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The Raven and the Dove #1
The Raven and the Dove
Four fates collide in this avian-inspired, epic fantasy retelling of Tristan and Isolde perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Sabaa Tahir, and Leigh Bardugo!
A princess longing to be free...
On the dawn of her courtship trials, Princess Lyana Aethionus knows she should be focused on winning her perfect mate, yet her thoughts wander to the open sky waiting at the edge of her floating kingdom. One final adventure calls. Upon fleeing the palace, the last thing she expects to find is a raven prince locked in a death match with a dragon.
A bastard aching to belong...
Reviled son of a dead king, Rafe would do anything for his beloved half-brother, Prince Lysander Taetanus, including posing as him in the upcoming courtship trials. When a dragon interrupts their secret exchange, he orders his studious sibling to run. After suffering a fatal blow, Rafe is saved by a beautiful dove who possesses forbidden magic, just like him.
Fate brought them together, now destiny will tear them apart...
Unknown to the world above, on the foggy sea ten thousand feet below, a young king fights a forgotten war. He believes Lyana is the queen prophesied to save the world, and with the help of his favored spy, hidden deep in the highest ranks of the dove royal house, he will stop at nothing to have her.
Three shocking betrayals. Two star-crossed lovers. One unforgettable journey. If you like fierce heroines, brooding heroes, forbidden romance, and action-packed magical adventures with twists you'll never see coming, don't miss The Raven and the Dove!
A princess longing to be free...
On the dawn of her courtship trials, Princess Lyana Aethionus knows she should be focused on winning her perfect mate, yet her thoughts wander to the open sky waiting at the edge of her floating kingdom. One final adventure calls. Upon fleeing the palace, the last thing she expects to find is a raven prince locked in a death match with a dragon.
A bastard aching to belong...
Reviled son of a dead king, Rafe would do anything for his beloved half-brother, Prince Lysander Taetanus, including posing as him in the upcoming courtship trials. When a dragon interrupts their secret exchange, he orders his studious sibling to run. After suffering a fatal blow, Rafe is saved by a beautiful dove who possesses forbidden magic, just like him.
Fate brought them together, now destiny will tear them apart...
Unknown to the world above, on the foggy sea ten thousand feet below, a young king fights a forgotten war. He believes Lyana is the queen prophesied to save the world, and with the help of his favored spy, hidden deep in the highest ranks of the dove royal house, he will stop at nothing to have her.
Three shocking betrayals. Two star-crossed lovers. One unforgettable journey. If you like fierce heroines, brooding heroes, forbidden romance, and action-packed magical adventures with twists you'll never see coming, don't miss The Raven and the Dove!
512 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 9, 2020
About the author
Kaitlyn Davis
48 books1,670 followersBestselling author Kaitlyn Davis writes young adult fantasy novels under the name Kaitlyn Davis and contemporary romance novels under the name Kay Marie. Publishers Weekly has said, "Davis writes with confidence and poise," while USA Today has recommended her work as "must-read romance."
To learn more about her contemporary romance novels, visit her Goodreads author page for Kay Marie here: https://www.goodreads.com/Kay_Marie
Always blessed with an overactive imagination, Kaitlyn has been writing ever since she picked up her first crayon and is overjoyed to share her work with the world. When she's not daydreaming, typing stories, or getting lost in fictional worlds, Kaitlyn can be found playing fetch with her puppy, watching a little too much television, or spending time with her family. If you have any questions for her--about her books, about scheduling an event, or just in general--you may contact her at: KaitlynDavisBooks@gmail.com
Sign up for Kaitlyn's newsletter to stay up-to-date with all of her new releases and more! http://bit.ly/AuthorNewsletter
Like her on Facebook here: Facebook.com/KaitlynDavisBooks
Follow her on Instagram here: Instagram.com/kaitlyndavisbooks/
To learn more about her contemporary romance novels, visit her Goodreads author page for Kay Marie here: https://www.goodreads.com/Kay_Marie
Always blessed with an overactive imagination, Kaitlyn has been writing ever since she picked up her first crayon and is overjoyed to share her work with the world. When she's not daydreaming, typing stories, or getting lost in fictional worlds, Kaitlyn can be found playing fetch with her puppy, watching a little too much television, or spending time with her family. If you have any questions for her--about her books, about scheduling an event, or just in general--you may contact her at: KaitlynDavisBooks@gmail.com
Sign up for Kaitlyn's newsletter to stay up-to-date with all of her new releases and more! http://bit.ly/AuthorNewsletter
Like her on Facebook here: Facebook.com/KaitlynDavisBooks
Follow her on Instagram here: Instagram.com/kaitlyndavisbooks/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 626 reviews
March 11, 2023
3/5 ⭐
Full review on my Blog: The Dacian She-Wolf 🐺
A raven and a dove – what a yin and yang theme. I have to admit, it is kind of aesthetically pleasing.
I’ve been approved and ARC of this a long time ago and somehow I forgot about its existence until that one day when I’ve decided to pick it up and finally read it. I mean, the cover is super pretty, that was enough to draw my attention (once again).
What got me into actually wanting to read this is the Tristan and Isolde inspired plot. It seemed interesting enough for me because I have never read a book that it’s retelling the two lover’s tale. And it is also a very nice tale, romantic and heart-breaking and all.
So with that in mind, I dove in.
The first thing I felt about this was confusion.
Given the fact that I wasn’t very comfortable with the world just yet, I had a lot of confusing questions that I needed to be answered and I kept reading more to seek my answers than to actually find out what’s the plot about.
I kept asking myself:
- How come the doves are the ones that have to host the whole mating trail thingy and everyone has to show off in front of them?
- How this mating shit goes? Er, it seems tangled as fuck??
- If they have to pick another bird to be their mate, how come they’re all doves/ravens/owls etc. if one of their parents is not?
- How and why the fuck do dragons appear only when Rafe is around? Is he using some kind of unique body spray that drives the dragons crazy or what?
(I also got a few more questions but by now I don’t remember them sooo I’m moving on.)
I got my answers, don’t worry. We’re good.
Still not entirely enlightened, but overall satisfied.
Now, from that moment on, the action seemed to go somewhere and I felt relieved to discover that. My attention was on the action itself and I really wanted to see how things are going to unfold, especially because there was something reeking of a certain, soon-to-be betrayal and it got me interested.
As I kept reading, I realised that the plot is okay, I even thought I might like it, even though there was something missing, I don’t know, like a certain spice I was expecting to be there for a stronger flavour but it wasn’t. Don’t get me wrong, the whole plot idea was good, but I thought it would’ve been better if the author put more detail in certain areas and less in others. And a bit of more twist maybe. A twist with a mystery perhaps. But even so, the narration and action were good.
The world-building was somehow okay-ish, I would’ve loved it a bit more detailed though. But, as a whole, the placing was quite alright.
Now, I really have to say this: I had a problem with the characters.
I honestly disliked all the characters in this book, with some exceptions here and there.
There was something about each of them that just didn’t seem quite palpable. Some were bland and some were forced and I am not entirely sure I liked even a single one of them from the beginning to the end.
Lyana, the female protagonist, was supposed to be a ray of sunshine, a happy girl, wild and free. Instead, I found her very annoying, too full of energy (like an energy vampire sucking on my nerves), too stubborn and too foolish. She was such a brat, so childish and selfish sometimes. I honestly couldn’t enjoy her character at all.
Rafe, the male protagonist, was too indecisive for my liking and also not very well contoured. He was supposed to be the warrior type, right? Oh well, he somehow manages to injure himself 90% of the time almost immediately and he loses all sort of duels and battles. Not much of the warrior I was expecting though. But with all that, I kind of liked him from time to time, maybe when he showed me a glimpse of how was he supposed to be.
Cassi, Lyana’s best friend, was the one that could fool me. If it weren’t for the passages of her whereabouts, she would’ve probably been the one I would have liked best. But with all that, she had the dirtiest job of them all to do, I hate her for that, but I also can’t help but feel sorry for her. I still feel like I might like her even though I don’t.
Xander, Rafe’s half-brother, was in my opinion, the never-dying type of the good boy who’s always the one who gets played. Even though he is a bit of a coward, he tries to fight the choices he has to make and he is honestly too good for everything that was going on in this book. He’s been the one who got hurt at the end and I won’t be surprised if in the next installment he’ll be bitter about it. I don’t blame him.
I have an overall good opinion about The Raven and the Dove , even though I am not a fan of it. The story somehow got to me and I am now curious to see how things might go from now on. I am expecting some chaos and anarchy so I am definitely decided to get on with the series.
I really can feel that the whole plot can go better and even the characters, as I said, could improve. I am waiting to see another face of Lyana and Xander, I want Cassi to prove everyone wrong and show us how good she is and I want Rafe to shape the fuck up and be the raven and the person he wants to be, not the one he’s supposed to in the others’ conceptions of him. Oh and also, I want that fucker Malek to come to his senses or something because he’s acting like a maniac and I don’t like it.
Full review on my Blog: The Dacian She-Wolf 🐺
A raven and a dove – what a yin and yang theme. I have to admit, it is kind of aesthetically pleasing.
I’ve been approved and ARC of this a long time ago and somehow I forgot about its existence until that one day when I’ve decided to pick it up and finally read it. I mean, the cover is super pretty, that was enough to draw my attention (once again).
What got me into actually wanting to read this is the Tristan and Isolde inspired plot. It seemed interesting enough for me because I have never read a book that it’s retelling the two lover’s tale. And it is also a very nice tale, romantic and heart-breaking and all.
So with that in mind, I dove in.
The first thing I felt about this was confusion.
Given the fact that I wasn’t very comfortable with the world just yet, I had a lot of confusing questions that I needed to be answered and I kept reading more to seek my answers than to actually find out what’s the plot about.
I kept asking myself:
- How come the doves are the ones that have to host the whole mating trail thingy and everyone has to show off in front of them?
- How this mating shit goes? Er, it seems tangled as fuck??
- If they have to pick another bird to be their mate, how come they’re all doves/ravens/owls etc. if one of their parents is not?
- How and why the fuck do dragons appear only when Rafe is around? Is he using some kind of unique body spray that drives the dragons crazy or what?
(I also got a few more questions but by now I don’t remember them sooo I’m moving on.)
I got my answers, don’t worry. We’re good.
Still not entirely enlightened, but overall satisfied.
Now, from that moment on, the action seemed to go somewhere and I felt relieved to discover that. My attention was on the action itself and I really wanted to see how things are going to unfold, especially because there was something reeking of a certain, soon-to-be betrayal and it got me interested.
As I kept reading, I realised that the plot is okay, I even thought I might like it, even though there was something missing, I don’t know, like a certain spice I was expecting to be there for a stronger flavour but it wasn’t. Don’t get me wrong, the whole plot idea was good, but I thought it would’ve been better if the author put more detail in certain areas and less in others. And a bit of more twist maybe. A twist with a mystery perhaps. But even so, the narration and action were good.
The world-building was somehow okay-ish, I would’ve loved it a bit more detailed though. But, as a whole, the placing was quite alright.
Now, I really have to say this: I had a problem with the characters.
I honestly disliked all the characters in this book, with some exceptions here and there.
There was something about each of them that just didn’t seem quite palpable. Some were bland and some were forced and I am not entirely sure I liked even a single one of them from the beginning to the end.
Lyana, the female protagonist, was supposed to be a ray of sunshine, a happy girl, wild and free. Instead, I found her very annoying, too full of energy (like an energy vampire sucking on my nerves), too stubborn and too foolish. She was such a brat, so childish and selfish sometimes. I honestly couldn’t enjoy her character at all.
Rafe, the male protagonist, was too indecisive for my liking and also not very well contoured. He was supposed to be the warrior type, right? Oh well, he somehow manages to injure himself 90% of the time almost immediately and he loses all sort of duels and battles. Not much of the warrior I was expecting though. But with all that, I kind of liked him from time to time, maybe when he showed me a glimpse of how was he supposed to be.
Cassi, Lyana’s best friend, was the one that could fool me. If it weren’t for the passages of her whereabouts, she would’ve probably been the one I would have liked best. But with all that, she had the dirtiest job of them all to do, I hate her for that, but I also can’t help but feel sorry for her. I still feel like I might like her even though I don’t.
Xander, Rafe’s half-brother, was in my opinion, the never-dying type of the good boy who’s always the one who gets played. Even though he is a bit of a coward, he tries to fight the choices he has to make and he is honestly too good for everything that was going on in this book. He’s been the one who got hurt at the end and I won’t be surprised if in the next installment he’ll be bitter about it. I don’t blame him.
I have an overall good opinion about The Raven and the Dove , even though I am not a fan of it. The story somehow got to me and I am now curious to see how things might go from now on. I am expecting some chaos and anarchy so I am definitely decided to get on with the series.
I really can feel that the whole plot can go better and even the characters, as I said, could improve. I am waiting to see another face of Lyana and Xander, I want Cassi to prove everyone wrong and show us how good she is and I want Rafe to shape the fuck up and be the raven and the person he wants to be, not the one he’s supposed to in the others’ conceptions of him. Oh and also, I want that fucker Malek to come to his senses or something because he’s acting like a maniac and I don’t like it.
June 18, 2020
Okay, don’t cuff me even though I’m guilty as charged. I just looked at the cover of the book and pushed the request button without having any knowledge what this book was about, what the genre was, and what I was drinking at that time!
Yes, the cover was mesmerizing and hypnotizing gave me Alice in Wonderful effect. It whispered to my ear: ”Eat me”! Nope, wrong message. It said: “Choose me!” So I did and followed the rabbit. Guess what: there was no rabbit! My sister-in law resembled a rabbit when she was wearing her work suits (Oh, don’t be mad at me! She tells me meaner things like I’m disastrous cook which also I’m but this is not relevant!)
So we have protagonists carrying wings and the dragons in this story which already made me climb on my coffee table and started my hardly choreographed dance moves! (My neighbors canceled their movie reservations and decided to watch me because I was funnier than “Like a boss”movie)
So let’s get some quick analysis about this book:
-I mostly liked Lyana, our hot tempered, always her actions speak louder than her words kind of impatient, a little outrageous, vivid heroine. But at some parts, she acted like immature spoiled brat, made me wanna slap her several times or shake her incessantly. She needed to gather het wits. And suddenly she started to like Rafael. It was as fast as LDC’s (as Brad Pitt mentioned)love life St. Tropez (as Taylor Swift mentioned at “Man” song) I kept asked myself: wait a minute! I didn’t expect something so slow-burn but we didn’t see the fire at all.
When you click “insta love” on google, you may see this book’s cover which makes sense.
And Xander, you beautiful soul , I want to sing Smooth Criminal with new lyrics for you as like: Xander are you O.K.? Xander are you O.K.? Are you O.K. Xander?
The plot is also intriguing: Different houses come together to choose mates for ruling different kingdoms but he participants have to pass the tests by achieving some tasks. And Lyana has to choose her prince from “House of Whispers” ( Did I tell you that how much I loved the world building of this book! It is FANTASTIC!) But instead of real prince, she gets the prince’s bastard brother.
I already gave the romantic relationship which was a little weird for me because it was so fast and I didn’t notice the existence of chemistry between the couple. But the cliffhanger and twisty turn of the story intrigued me more and I wanted to read more because the author was really smart, original and her writing style is captivating. It didn’t bore me for a second.
So yes, I want to read more and learn more about these characters’ upcoming adventures.
Even though the romance part failed for me, I liked the character development, unique, original world building, I loved supporting characters, especially Xander and also Cassie. The ending was heart throbbing and clever. Pacing was great: Not too slow to make you yawn or not to fast make you go back and read some parts to get the story. So I rounded my 3.5 stars to 4 and I will be so happy to read the sequels.
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Special thanks to NetGalley and Kaityln Davis for sharing this intriguing, brand new series’ ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review.
Yes, the cover was mesmerizing and hypnotizing gave me Alice in Wonderful effect. It whispered to my ear: ”Eat me”! Nope, wrong message. It said: “Choose me!” So I did and followed the rabbit. Guess what: there was no rabbit! My sister-in law resembled a rabbit when she was wearing her work suits (Oh, don’t be mad at me! She tells me meaner things like I’m disastrous cook which also I’m but this is not relevant!)
So we have protagonists carrying wings and the dragons in this story which already made me climb on my coffee table and started my hardly choreographed dance moves! (My neighbors canceled their movie reservations and decided to watch me because I was funnier than “Like a boss”movie)
So let’s get some quick analysis about this book:
-I mostly liked Lyana, our hot tempered, always her actions speak louder than her words kind of impatient, a little outrageous, vivid heroine. But at some parts, she acted like immature spoiled brat, made me wanna slap her several times or shake her incessantly. She needed to gather het wits. And suddenly she started to like Rafael. It was as fast as LDC’s (as Brad Pitt mentioned)love life St. Tropez (as Taylor Swift mentioned at “Man” song) I kept asked myself: wait a minute! I didn’t expect something so slow-burn but we didn’t see the fire at all.
When you click “insta love” on google, you may see this book’s cover which makes sense.
And Xander, you beautiful soul , I want to sing Smooth Criminal with new lyrics for you as like: Xander are you O.K.? Xander are you O.K.? Are you O.K. Xander?
The plot is also intriguing: Different houses come together to choose mates for ruling different kingdoms but he participants have to pass the tests by achieving some tasks. And Lyana has to choose her prince from “House of Whispers” ( Did I tell you that how much I loved the world building of this book! It is FANTASTIC!) But instead of real prince, she gets the prince’s bastard brother.
I already gave the romantic relationship which was a little weird for me because it was so fast and I didn’t notice the existence of chemistry between the couple. But the cliffhanger and twisty turn of the story intrigued me more and I wanted to read more because the author was really smart, original and her writing style is captivating. It didn’t bore me for a second.
So yes, I want to read more and learn more about these characters’ upcoming adventures.
Even though the romance part failed for me, I liked the character development, unique, original world building, I loved supporting characters, especially Xander and also Cassie. The ending was heart throbbing and clever. Pacing was great: Not too slow to make you yawn or not to fast make you go back and read some parts to get the story. So I rounded my 3.5 stars to 4 and I will be so happy to read the sequels.
blog
Special thanks to NetGalley and Kaityln Davis for sharing this intriguing, brand new series’ ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review.
May 24, 2020
3.75 Stars
I have an immense fascination with winged creatures and this beauty came into my life like an answered prayer. I don’t get why more people are not reading this book bcs I’m OBSESSED with it, these characters, and this world! Gah, seriously, where in the world have you been?! This book is not perfect, but with the promise of it being a quartet series, I’m hopeful that it will only get better from here.
The story follows Princess Lyana of House of Peace and the bastard son of the dead king of House of Whispers Rafe. When fate the shape of a dragon brought them together and exposed their forbidden magic to one another, Lyana is determined to have the prince as her chosen mate in the upcoming courtship trials.
Upon finding out that she’s been deceived, Lyana is forced to navigate her new life in a foreign kingdom with a partner who doesn’t share the same thirst for adventure as hers. What you need to know is that, this book is only the tip of the iceberg. Something greater than what this book contains is going on. A prophecy, that if not fulfilled, will turn their world into chaos.
CHARACTERS
Princess Lyana: vivacious, brave, compassionate, a little naive and reckless. Her contagious bubbly personality and optimistic (borderline romantic) outlook in life is what I adored the most about her.
Rafe: sad, insecure, lonely. He’s your typical broody tortured hero who just needs someone to love him. He makes me SOFT. Something happens to him at the end of the book that made me so heartbroken.
Prince Lysander: sweet, charming, kind, intelligent, loyal to his subjects. What I didn’t like about his character in this book is that I think him as a ruler is not bold or courageous and strict enough.
Cassi: a chameleon with a great sense of duty. Her character is interesting. It might not seem like it, but she’s a key player in this book. I disliked and loved her in the same breath.
King Malek: aka our potential villain. His character is a mystery in this book which makes him so intriguing. He has The Darkling (from Shadow and Bone) aura about him and I felt the pull towards him like a magnet.
RELATIONSHIPS
Romantic Relationship
Insta love ALERT! Okay, guys, but hear me out. It’s not the most horrible thing that’s ever happened. These characters are teenagers. They complicate love with lust often. Give them a break. If it’s any consolation, the romance between Ana and Rafe doesn’t last long since it’s sort of a forbidden affair. They get separated at the end of the book and anything can happen in the sequel. So, chill!
Friendship
Ana and Cassi’s dynamic is what I admire in a long lasting friendship. Cassi is a patient sounding board and the voice of reason for Ana. They’ve bonded since they were children. On the other hand, their friendship is also a ticking time bomb considering the secrets Cassi’s been hiding from Ana. I hated Cassi by the end of this book but I want an epic redemption arc for her in the next book.
Sibling/Brother Love
When it comes to brothers in literature, no matter how peaceful and loving their dynamic seems to be, there’s always that underlying tinge of betrayal that’s bound to shake things up between them. It’s no different with Xander and Rafe. They don’t hold animosity towards each other despite being only half brothers, but their bond is being tested in this book.
WORLD BUILDING
It’s a decent enough world building. I think the concept is absolutely brilliant. Basically, the world in this book is split into two. The first is The World Above which consists of seven houses each residing in different landscapes. In this world, magic is strictly prohibited. The other one is The World Below the Mist where creatures, such as dragons live, and people who are caught with magic in their veins get executed and thrown into.
During the courtship trials, we get introduction to each of the houses but the main setting for this book is the House of Peace and the House of Whispers. I think in the next book, we’ll get to explore more about The World Below the Mist. Meanwhile, the magic system is underdeveloped. I have so many questions. Lyana has healing magic but I don’t know what kind of magic Rafe has. It’s unclear to me what sort of power he can do aside from being able to heal himself quickly.
OTHER ELEMENTS
The book is written in multiple 3rd person POVs. Each of these POVs is of different characters assigned with their own roles. So the voices are pretty distinct and sometimes it can be surprising bcs you’ll get hints and insights about each character’s backstory. The writing is easy to get into. It’s neither flowery nor overly poetic. The pacing is great. The first 30% really piqued my interest. The middle was a bit messy and tedious but managed to hold my attention. The ending phase was the most thrilling and it kept me on my toes. The book ends on a cliffhanger.
Another topic of discussion is the disability representation. To be honest I’m not really on board with how it is portrayed in this book. I know that Xander doesn’t think himself as less of a man bcs he’s got only one hand. He’s not ashamed of it but he accepts and embraces it. On the other hand, (with Xander not participating in the courtship trials himself) I feel like the depiction of it also goes unchallenged and perpetuates the notion that people with disabilities can only accomplish so much before their infirmity eventually stops them. It’s not liberating but it’s limiting.
The Raven and the Dove is a mesmerizing avian inspired retelling of Tristan and Isolde that’s bound to capture your heart with its diverse cast of characters, unique ‘sky land’ setting, and action packed magical adventures. Even though the romance is nothing you haven’t already read before and the disability representation isn’t flawless, I would still very much recommend this.
January 13, 2020
1/13/20 Update!
Yikes, I haven't updated this in so long! A lot has happened :) First off, the hard cover and paperback editions are now available to pre-order, woohoo! Here are some links:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository HC | Book Depository PB
If you'd like to see a video of what they look like, I posted one to my Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/B4-mF1GgtcJ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
And don't forget, if you live in the US and pre-order a copy, I have special goodies for you like exclusive art prints and bookmarks. You can find more details here: https://www.kaitlyndavisbooks.com/p/pre-order-giveaway.html
I also wrote a prequel novella (roughly 12.5k words) called The Princess and the Pawn which I'm giving to all my newsletter subscribers for free! If you want to read it, just sign up for my newsletter here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/eid12vwzu7
I'm so overwhelmed by the absolutely amazing response this book has received thus far! It was featured on the homepage of Netgalley, and was at one point one of the Top 10 most requested books on the entire site. It's been added over 2000 times on Goodreads. And, most importantly, there have been so many wonderful ARC reviews. I can't thank you enough!
I have a bunch more planned before it goes on sale on March 9th, so stay tuned :) Teasers are coming soon!
11/1/19 Update!
It's the cover reveal day!! I hope you all love it! We have an official on sale date: March 9, 2020 AND the ebook is now available to preorder on Amazon!
I'll have links to the hard cover and paperback editions soon if you'd prefer to grab a hardcopy! For now, I'll leave you with the pre-order giveaway full of exclusive goodies pictured below! Click here to learn more :)
***
I am SO EXCITED about this book!! I just posted an inspiration board for #IGWritersOct, so I thought I would post it here too as a little teaser :) I'll add more updates as they come, but until then, enjoy!
Yikes, I haven't updated this in so long! A lot has happened :) First off, the hard cover and paperback editions are now available to pre-order, woohoo! Here are some links:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository HC | Book Depository PB
If you'd like to see a video of what they look like, I posted one to my Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/B4-mF1GgtcJ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
And don't forget, if you live in the US and pre-order a copy, I have special goodies for you like exclusive art prints and bookmarks. You can find more details here: https://www.kaitlyndavisbooks.com/p/pre-order-giveaway.html
I also wrote a prequel novella (roughly 12.5k words) called The Princess and the Pawn which I'm giving to all my newsletter subscribers for free! If you want to read it, just sign up for my newsletter here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/eid12vwzu7
I'm so overwhelmed by the absolutely amazing response this book has received thus far! It was featured on the homepage of Netgalley, and was at one point one of the Top 10 most requested books on the entire site. It's been added over 2000 times on Goodreads. And, most importantly, there have been so many wonderful ARC reviews. I can't thank you enough!
I have a bunch more planned before it goes on sale on March 9th, so stay tuned :) Teasers are coming soon!
11/1/19 Update!
It's the cover reveal day!! I hope you all love it! We have an official on sale date: March 9, 2020 AND the ebook is now available to preorder on Amazon!
I'll have links to the hard cover and paperback editions soon if you'd prefer to grab a hardcopy! For now, I'll leave you with the pre-order giveaway full of exclusive goodies pictured below! Click here to learn more :)
***
I am SO EXCITED about this book!! I just posted an inspiration board for #IGWritersOct, so I thought I would post it here too as a little teaser :) I'll add more updates as they come, but until then, enjoy!
May 3, 2020
As a teenager in the mid-late 2000’s, I absolutely loved the 2006 movie adaptation of Tristan & Isolde starring James Franco. Although I haven’t seen that movie in years, the legend came back to me reading this book but with new twists and complex characters in a unique fantasy world. It was so much fun!
With only a few days of freedom remaining before her courtship trials, Princess Lyana “Ana” of the House of Doves longs for one final adventure before she is married off to the prince of another house. She and her best friend, Cassi, sneak away one morning hoping to catch a glimpse of the other houses as they arrive for the trials. What they don’t expect is they will rescue an injured raven after witnessing his fiery battle with a dragon.
Rafe, a raven bastard, will fight in the courtship trials in the place of his half-brother, Prince Lysander “Xander” of the House of Ravens. When a dragon attacks him and Xander during their journey, Rafe tells his brother to flee and faces the monster himself. Mortally wounded, he is rescued by a mysterious dove who also shares his affinity for magic, an affinity that is forbidden across the seven houses.
While concealing her identity and healing the injured raven she believes to be a prince, Lyana decides she will choose him as her match during the trials. He already knows her secret, and she would prefer to live the rest of her life without fearing someone will discover her magic. She also feels connected to him in a way she’s never felt with anyone before.
Meanwhile, the king beneath the clouds has dedicated his life to following a prophecy he believes he is destined to fulfill. The other half of this prophecy: Lyana. The plan he has put into motion approaches its final stages, and there’s nothing he won’t do to make sure it comes to pass.
A magical and heart-pounding fantasy retelling of Tristan and Isolde, Kaitlyn Davis’ The Raven and the Dove will blow you away. With complex characters who drive the plot, a unique and imaginative world, and a story with never-ending twists and turns, you won’t be able to put it down. The book is primarily told from four characters’ points of view, and you will find yourself understanding and cheering for each of them no matter how much their goals contradict one another. Lyana, Rafe, Xander, and Cassi will become your new favorite ensemble cast and leave you counting down the days until the sequel is released!
The memorable world of The Raven and the Dove includes royal houses and political intrigue, complicated family dynamics, magic systems, religions, prophecies, and two unique kingdoms; one above the clouds, and another below. I would’ve liked to have seen a bit more development regarding the religions and magic systems, as they were slightly confusing, but the story included enough details that I was willing to go along with it. Additionally, I’m not a fan of fantasy worlds where magic is forbidden, as I believe this is a cheap way to heighten the stakes; however, with everything else this book accomplished I was able to look past that as well. Lastly, there were moments this avian-inspired world came off as a bit bizarre (raven cry? neck feathers?), but I lovingly believe if you can handle what SJM throws at you in the ACOTAR series then you will be able to navigate The Raven and the Dove‘s world just fine.
More importantly, I adored every character in this story. Each had believable motives that often conflicted with one another to drastically heighten the stakes. I understood and rooted for each of our principal POV characters and even the majority of the side characters. Dramatic irony heightened the intrigue and I often pieced elements of the plot just as the characters did.
As a romance reader, I wish we could’ve felt the slow burn and tension between Lyana and Rafe a little bit more. Even for a YA novel, it could have benefitted from a bit more pining (surprising, right?), but overall the pacing was good and I’m interested to see how their relationship develops throughout the series.
PSA: If you haven’t read The Raven and the Dove yet, DO NOT look at the cover of book #2 in the series, The Hunter and the Mage. If you study it closely enough you will notice a spoiler from book #1 like I did!! Although the art is beautiful, wait until you finish the first book.
Overall, I highly recommend this book and can unquestionably say that it’s been one of my favorite fantasy books of 2020 so far!
Thank you to the author and Netgalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
With only a few days of freedom remaining before her courtship trials, Princess Lyana “Ana” of the House of Doves longs for one final adventure before she is married off to the prince of another house. She and her best friend, Cassi, sneak away one morning hoping to catch a glimpse of the other houses as they arrive for the trials. What they don’t expect is they will rescue an injured raven after witnessing his fiery battle with a dragon.
Rafe, a raven bastard, will fight in the courtship trials in the place of his half-brother, Prince Lysander “Xander” of the House of Ravens. When a dragon attacks him and Xander during their journey, Rafe tells his brother to flee and faces the monster himself. Mortally wounded, he is rescued by a mysterious dove who also shares his affinity for magic, an affinity that is forbidden across the seven houses.
While concealing her identity and healing the injured raven she believes to be a prince, Lyana decides she will choose him as her match during the trials. He already knows her secret, and she would prefer to live the rest of her life without fearing someone will discover her magic. She also feels connected to him in a way she’s never felt with anyone before.
Meanwhile, the king beneath the clouds has dedicated his life to following a prophecy he believes he is destined to fulfill. The other half of this prophecy: Lyana. The plan he has put into motion approaches its final stages, and there’s nothing he won’t do to make sure it comes to pass.
A magical and heart-pounding fantasy retelling of Tristan and Isolde, Kaitlyn Davis’ The Raven and the Dove will blow you away. With complex characters who drive the plot, a unique and imaginative world, and a story with never-ending twists and turns, you won’t be able to put it down. The book is primarily told from four characters’ points of view, and you will find yourself understanding and cheering for each of them no matter how much their goals contradict one another. Lyana, Rafe, Xander, and Cassi will become your new favorite ensemble cast and leave you counting down the days until the sequel is released!
The memorable world of The Raven and the Dove includes royal houses and political intrigue, complicated family dynamics, magic systems, religions, prophecies, and two unique kingdoms; one above the clouds, and another below. I would’ve liked to have seen a bit more development regarding the religions and magic systems, as they were slightly confusing, but the story included enough details that I was willing to go along with it. Additionally, I’m not a fan of fantasy worlds where magic is forbidden, as I believe this is a cheap way to heighten the stakes; however, with everything else this book accomplished I was able to look past that as well. Lastly, there were moments this avian-inspired world came off as a bit bizarre (raven cry? neck feathers?), but I lovingly believe if you can handle what SJM throws at you in the ACOTAR series then you will be able to navigate The Raven and the Dove‘s world just fine.
More importantly, I adored every character in this story. Each had believable motives that often conflicted with one another to drastically heighten the stakes. I understood and rooted for each of our principal POV characters and even the majority of the side characters. Dramatic irony heightened the intrigue and I often pieced elements of the plot just as the characters did.
As a romance reader, I wish we could’ve felt the slow burn and tension between Lyana and Rafe a little bit more. Even for a YA novel, it could have benefitted from a bit more pining (surprising, right?), but overall the pacing was good and I’m interested to see how their relationship develops throughout the series.
PSA: If you haven’t read The Raven and the Dove yet, DO NOT look at the cover of book #2 in the series, The Hunter and the Mage. If you study it closely enough you will notice a spoiler from book #1 like I did!! Although the art is beautiful, wait until you finish the first book.
Overall, I highly recommend this book and can unquestionably say that it’s been one of my favorite fantasy books of 2020 so far!
Thank you to the author and Netgalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
![Profile Image for Jessi ❤️ H. Vojsk [if villain, why hot?].](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1646942374i/66224803._UX200_CR0,46,200,200_.jpg)
December 20, 2019
The world will fracture, splinter in two,
One made of gray, the other of blue.
Beasts will emerge, filled with fury and scorn,
Fighting to recover what from their claws we have torn.
Two saviors will arise, one above, one below,
A king born in fire and a queen bred of snow.
Together they will heal that which we broke,
With magic and spirit, with mirrors and smoke.
But only on the day when the sky does fall,
Will be revealed the one who will save you all.
Story 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A world full of feathers and wings, of forbidden magic, forbidden love.
The princess has healing hands, a magic that could be punished by death. But when she meets a boy who happens to have magic in his veins, she feels certain. That will be her family, her future.
But nothing goes according to plan.
The princess leaves her family for the place of a queen, her wings so white her mates wings seem even darker.
The prince waited so long for a mate, for someone on his side. He waited so long, hoped so much that he didn’t see what was coming.
No one did.
There are books you start to read where you are sucked into the story in 0,003 seconds and your like: why do I need sleep? A job? Social life?
And then there are books where you need a few pages to get in.
Even though I had both types of this book in my life I can’t tell you which one this one is.
I can only tell you one thing: I liked it.
I really, really enjoyed it.
It was filled with magic, adventure, intrigues, spies and betrayals, with hidden kings and healing powers.
It was wonderful.
Can’t wait for book two.
Character 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The princess is called Lyana and that made me instantly think of Game of thrones and Lyana Stark. A brave, strong lady with a heart of gold.
And what can I say? They were very much alike.
I loved Lyana - aka Ana from the start.
I always love strong minded, brave woman in books/shows/movies and Ana was one of them.
She protected the one she loves and the innocent. She healed the injured even though she risked her life by doing it.
Everyone loved her.
She had all of them around her little finger.
Especially the men in her family.
I also loved that she was one of these people who always long for adventure and freedom and who in the end get what they want but only by a high price.
Rafe was this broody guy that would do anything for his big brother. Even take his place so they would win the competition.
He was a sad, insecure, tortured soul that only wanted to be happy. At least a little bit.
Xander was a real royal prince who was extremely loyal to his subjects. He did everything for them, sacrificed things, his pride, so they could be happy.
So his kingdom could have a princess.
Cassi was Anas best friend and did everything for her, but with every thought she thought, with every thing she did it felt harder and harder for her to keep her secret.
And after she was pushed too far even her strong willed loyalty couldn’t hold itself.
The strange underground king - Malek was one of the interesting ones. He definitely seemed to be the villain of the story. But with every word I read I realized that he reminded me of the Darkling (Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo). Both of them are the “villains” of the story, but don’t see themselves as a villain, as the evil of the story - they have a purpose - they want to make the world a better place, they want to save their people. And maybe their goal is the right one, but the way to it is so so complicated.
All in all I really liked the characters and cant wait to see what the future brings them.
World 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The world consists of feather and wings, of people who serve the gods but would punish magic in the veins of others.
They are all so different, but beautiful in their own way.
Owl wings, dove wings, Raven wings.
There were traditions, rituals and competition that showed the depth of the world building and the description of the world itself was beautiful.
Relationships 🌟🌟🌟🌟
I have no idea if the thing in this book can be called a love triangle, or not.
When Rafe and Ana met I knew instantly that they belonged together. Not only was their magic so similar, they both kept it a secret from their kingdom.
But then they found each other, only to be ripped apart. Again and again.
Ana was mated with Xander - the real prince of the ravens. His half brother only competed for him, because Xander had a handicap that made it nearly impossible for him to win.
But he needed to win. They needed a strong mate, a future queen.
And they got one.
But when Ana realizes the feud she is devastated. She thought she finally met someone where she could just be herself.
Xander and Ana were friendly to each other, but I never felt a spark. And when I read about Xander’s love and hobbies I thought that Ana wasn’t a good fit for him.
Cassi was. (Ship them!)
And Ana definitely needed someone different (Rafe, cough cough). But who knows what the future will bring.
But poor Rafe - he only wanted someone to love him the way he was. And he got that love from his brother. But it wasn’t the same. It didn’t feel the same after he met Ana.
Nothing felt the same. He was so sad, so heartbroken, it made me so so sad 😞
There was a little interesting twist that made the story even more appealing. A strange underworld king appears and wants to take Ana with him. I don’t really know if I like him, but I guess he’s the “villain” and I always love the evil ones, because they are the most interesting- most of the time.
But we’ll see...
Writing style 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The writing itself is in a fast comfortable pace written in different POVs. We get to see inside the thoughts and actions of the main characters and sometimes it’s surprising what we read there.
Can’t wait for book two!
One made of gray, the other of blue.
Beasts will emerge, filled with fury and scorn,
Fighting to recover what from their claws we have torn.
Two saviors will arise, one above, one below,
A king born in fire and a queen bred of snow.
Together they will heal that which we broke,
With magic and spirit, with mirrors and smoke.
But only on the day when the sky does fall,
Will be revealed the one who will save you all.
Story 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A world full of feathers and wings, of forbidden magic, forbidden love.
The princess has healing hands, a magic that could be punished by death. But when she meets a boy who happens to have magic in his veins, she feels certain. That will be her family, her future.
But nothing goes according to plan.
The princess leaves her family for the place of a queen, her wings so white her mates wings seem even darker.
The prince waited so long for a mate, for someone on his side. He waited so long, hoped so much that he didn’t see what was coming.
No one did.
There are books you start to read where you are sucked into the story in 0,003 seconds and your like: why do I need sleep? A job? Social life?
And then there are books where you need a few pages to get in.
Even though I had both types of this book in my life I can’t tell you which one this one is.
I can only tell you one thing: I liked it.
I really, really enjoyed it.
It was filled with magic, adventure, intrigues, spies and betrayals, with hidden kings and healing powers.
It was wonderful.
Can’t wait for book two.
Character 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The princess is called Lyana and that made me instantly think of Game of thrones and Lyana Stark. A brave, strong lady with a heart of gold.
And what can I say? They were very much alike.
I loved Lyana - aka Ana from the start.
I always love strong minded, brave woman in books/shows/movies and Ana was one of them.
She protected the one she loves and the innocent. She healed the injured even though she risked her life by doing it.
Everyone loved her.
She had all of them around her little finger.
Especially the men in her family.
I also loved that she was one of these people who always long for adventure and freedom and who in the end get what they want but only by a high price.
Rafe was this broody guy that would do anything for his big brother. Even take his place so they would win the competition.
He was a sad, insecure, tortured soul that only wanted to be happy. At least a little bit.
Xander was a real royal prince who was extremely loyal to his subjects. He did everything for them, sacrificed things, his pride, so they could be happy.
So his kingdom could have a princess.
Cassi was Anas best friend and did everything for her, but with every thought she thought, with every thing she did it felt harder and harder for her to keep her secret.
And after she was pushed too far even her strong willed loyalty couldn’t hold itself.
The strange underground king - Malek was one of the interesting ones. He definitely seemed to be the villain of the story. But with every word I read I realized that he reminded me of the Darkling (Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo). Both of them are the “villains” of the story, but don’t see themselves as a villain, as the evil of the story - they have a purpose - they want to make the world a better place, they want to save their people. And maybe their goal is the right one, but the way to it is so so complicated.
All in all I really liked the characters and cant wait to see what the future brings them.
World 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The world consists of feather and wings, of people who serve the gods but would punish magic in the veins of others.
They are all so different, but beautiful in their own way.
Owl wings, dove wings, Raven wings.
There were traditions, rituals and competition that showed the depth of the world building and the description of the world itself was beautiful.
Relationships 🌟🌟🌟🌟
I have no idea if the thing in this book can be called a love triangle, or not.
When Rafe and Ana met I knew instantly that they belonged together. Not only was their magic so similar, they both kept it a secret from their kingdom.
But then they found each other, only to be ripped apart. Again and again.
Ana was mated with Xander - the real prince of the ravens. His half brother only competed for him, because Xander had a handicap that made it nearly impossible for him to win.
But he needed to win. They needed a strong mate, a future queen.
And they got one.
But when Ana realizes the feud she is devastated. She thought she finally met someone where she could just be herself.
Xander and Ana were friendly to each other, but I never felt a spark. And when I read about Xander’s love and hobbies I thought that Ana wasn’t a good fit for him.
Cassi was. (Ship them!)
And Ana definitely needed someone different (Rafe, cough cough). But who knows what the future will bring.
But poor Rafe - he only wanted someone to love him the way he was. And he got that love from his brother. But it wasn’t the same. It didn’t feel the same after he met Ana.
Nothing felt the same. He was so sad, so heartbroken, it made me so so sad 😞
There was a little interesting twist that made the story even more appealing. A strange underworld king appears and wants to take Ana with him. I don’t really know if I like him, but I guess he’s the “villain” and I always love the evil ones, because they are the most interesting- most of the time.
But we’ll see...
Writing style 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The writing itself is in a fast comfortable pace written in different POVs. We get to see inside the thoughts and actions of the main characters and sometimes it’s surprising what we read there.
Can’t wait for book two!
March 10, 2020
2.5 raven-black STARS ★★✬✩✩
Although I didn't enjoy you: happy publication day!
⤐ Overall.
There's no way to disguise the fact that I did not enjoy this book. I had high hopes for it, was all in for falling head over heels for this YA fantasy romance. Wanna know what I actually felt like? I imagine (and hope) I looked a little something like this:
Bored but so cute that y'all can't possibly be mad at me for not loving this book.
The truth is, neither the eloquent writing style nor the magnificent world of Rafe and Ana can obfuscate the fact that this plot was all over the place and somewhat messy. There happened a little too much at once if you know what I mean. It's like watching multiple table tennis matches at once and so you're so overstimulated, you get bored, turn your back and watch the audience instead.
Altogether, we have some beautiful and interesting characters here. Who couldn't love Rafe? Nobody, that's who! He's your average tortured male hero with a gruesome past. He inflicts pain on himself because he thinks he's not worthy, but boi is he worthy. I must admit I had my troubles with Ana sometimes. She screams privilege all over, despite her magic that supposedly marginalises her. And do not get me started on Xander, so many things wrong, so many. I was oddly fascinated with Cassia, who's motives I find hardest to depict.
Some of the names were a little too made up to be authentic. Like. For instance, there's this deity called Teatanos. Guess what my brain read every. single. time. That's right. Tetanus. In old greek this meant cramp or spasm but if you translate that into German again, it also means rubbish (and cramp or spasm also). Irony at its best, y'all, served by mother language.
The romance was lovely! Honestly, I relished how they each suffered in silence after their initial meeting. I know, I'm terrible but it was just deliciously excruciating.
You can find me desperately scrolling for reviews that make me feel less lonely in this tiny room of people who didn't like this book.
⤐ What’s happening.
Rescued by a dove without identiy, the raven without a past finds himself tucked away in a cave that holds more potential than all the key moments of his life thus far. Ana and Rafe discover they share an aptitude for magic. And a fascination towards each other that will either be the root of much good or much trouble.
_____________________
writing quality + easy of reading = 5*
pace = 2*
plot/story in general = 2*
plot development = 2*
characters = 4*
enjoyability = 2*
insightfulness = 1*
_____________________
Many thanks to the author Katilyn Davis, who provided me with this eArc in exchange for an honest review.
This book is for you if… ... uhm well anybody got any idea what to put in here? I'm honestly at a loss of whom to recommend this to. TW: very steep cliff hanger.
Although I didn't enjoy you: happy publication day!
⤐ Overall.
There's no way to disguise the fact that I did not enjoy this book. I had high hopes for it, was all in for falling head over heels for this YA fantasy romance. Wanna know what I actually felt like? I imagine (and hope) I looked a little something like this:
Bored but so cute that y'all can't possibly be mad at me for not loving this book.
The truth is, neither the eloquent writing style nor the magnificent world of Rafe and Ana can obfuscate the fact that this plot was all over the place and somewhat messy. There happened a little too much at once if you know what I mean. It's like watching multiple table tennis matches at once and so you're so overstimulated, you get bored, turn your back and watch the audience instead.
Altogether, we have some beautiful and interesting characters here. Who couldn't love Rafe? Nobody, that's who! He's your average tortured male hero with a gruesome past. He inflicts pain on himself because he thinks he's not worthy, but boi is he worthy. I must admit I had my troubles with Ana sometimes. She screams privilege all over, despite her magic that supposedly marginalises her. And do not get me started on Xander, so many things wrong, so many. I was oddly fascinated with Cassia, who's motives I find hardest to depict.
Some of the names were a little too made up to be authentic. Like. For instance, there's this deity called Teatanos. Guess what my brain read every. single. time. That's right. Tetanus. In old greek this meant cramp or spasm but if you translate that into German again, it also means rubbish (and cramp or spasm also). Irony at its best, y'all, served by mother language.
The romance was lovely! Honestly, I relished how they each suffered in silence after their initial meeting. I know, I'm terrible but it was just deliciously excruciating.
You can find me desperately scrolling for reviews that make me feel less lonely in this tiny room of people who didn't like this book.
⤐ What’s happening.
‘Let’s pretend we’re not in a castle, but a deep, dark cave. Let’s pretend I’m a dove with no name and title, and you’re a raven with no past.’
Rescued by a dove without identiy, the raven without a past finds himself tucked away in a cave that holds more potential than all the key moments of his life thus far. Ana and Rafe discover they share an aptitude for magic. And a fascination towards each other that will either be the root of much good or much trouble.
Con:
⇢ one can talk her way out of her duties
⇢ the other can't escape his
⇢ a third party is undermining the field
Pro:
⇢ the gift to see light even in the darkness
⇢ not entirely separated from one another
⇢ kindness always prevails
_____________________
writing quality + easy of reading = 5*
pace = 2*
plot/story in general = 2*
plot development = 2*
characters = 4*
enjoyability = 2*
insightfulness = 1*
_____________________
Many thanks to the author Katilyn Davis, who provided me with this eArc in exchange for an honest review.
Want to read
November 7, 2019I gotta come clean: literally only requested this for the cover
March 14, 2021
The Raven And The Dove
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Okay, I have to admit it was the cover that initially caught my interest! It’s so pretty I can’t😍 I truly loved the writing style, amazing✨ The world is so aesthetically pleasing and beautiful too. Winged people living on seven floating islands high above the sky, I could never say no to that.
But (and isn’t there always a but) I did not like how the story developed. I was so into it the first half, but I hated (yes, I know, a strong but necessary word) how it turned out. I just can’t deal with how frustrating it was with how Xander was so oblivious, how Rafe did not do anything and that Lyana just basically played poor Xander. I needed something to happen (literally anything) but no, they just kept on going even though they all knew it wasn’t right. I feel like a mess trying to explain why I didn’t like how it ended, but ugh, just NO.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Okay, I have to admit it was the cover that initially caught my interest! It’s so pretty I can’t😍 I truly loved the writing style, amazing✨ The world is so aesthetically pleasing and beautiful too. Winged people living on seven floating islands high above the sky, I could never say no to that.
But (and isn’t there always a but) I did not like how the story developed. I was so into it the first half, but I hated (yes, I know, a strong but necessary word) how it turned out. I just can’t deal with how frustrating it was with how Xander was so oblivious, how Rafe did not do anything and that Lyana just basically played poor Xander. I needed something to happen (literally anything) but no, they just kept on going even though they all knew it wasn’t right. I feel like a mess trying to explain why I didn’t like how it ended, but ugh, just NO.
March 23, 2020
E-ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own and are not affected in any way.
PROS:
• Amazing world building! I loved loved LOVED the world building! One of the most beautiful and vivid so far. I had no problem to picture in my head the written images. Just hands down. Loved it!
• Magonia vibes! As you may or may not know, Magonia series it's one of my favorite ever! Like, it's in my top 10! And this book, giving me Magonia vibes, it was like pure joy! And the vibes kept coming through all my reading!
• Perfect pacing. Not too slow and not too fast. At least for me, it had the perfect recipe for keeping me entertained through all the pages.
• Character development. You know those type of books where you barely can see the difference between characters, where you can't recognize their voice?! Well, another good news. Here it's not the case! I felt like, even if it wasn't written who did or said something, I would have known in the next who it was!
• Short chapters! Do I really need to say again that I LOVE a book with short chapters?!
CONS:
• Insta love. Not really against it, but I feel like here it could've used a little more time to develop. Felt a little rushed.
OVERALL THOUGHTS:
• I can't wait to read the second book! September, please come faster!
You can follow my TWITTER
If you want to support me, you can check my WHISHLIST
Get 2 months of free books HERE
PROS:
• Amazing world building! I loved loved LOVED the world building! One of the most beautiful and vivid so far. I had no problem to picture in my head the written images. Just hands down. Loved it!
• Magonia vibes! As you may or may not know, Magonia series it's one of my favorite ever! Like, it's in my top 10! And this book, giving me Magonia vibes, it was like pure joy! And the vibes kept coming through all my reading!
• Perfect pacing. Not too slow and not too fast. At least for me, it had the perfect recipe for keeping me entertained through all the pages.
• Character development. You know those type of books where you barely can see the difference between characters, where you can't recognize their voice?! Well, another good news. Here it's not the case! I felt like, even if it wasn't written who did or said something, I would have known in the next who it was!
• Short chapters! Do I really need to say again that I LOVE a book with short chapters?!
CONS:
• Insta love. Not really against it, but I feel like here it could've used a little more time to develop. Felt a little rushed.
OVERALL THOUGHTS:
• I can't wait to read the second book! September, please come faster!
You can follow my TWITTER
If you want to support me, you can check my WHISHLIST
Get 2 months of free books HERE
July 10, 2021
If you're looking for a tale of love, friendship, brotherhood and destiny that is going to rip your heart out, here it is.
Ana: Strong, determined and a heart for adventure, she is a girl who refuses to let her future be decided to her. She knows what she wants and she goes for it. All or burst.
Rafe: Loyal, fierce and stubborn, he is bastard son no one cares for. No one but his brother. So when his brother asks him to do the unspeakable he does. Everything he does he does for Xander. But that is all put to the test the moment he meets Ana.
Xander: Kind, trusting, loyal and highly intelligent, he is the prince who lives for his kingdom. All he wants is to be the ruler his people deserve. To prove to others and himself that he is not lesser.
Cassi: Mysterious, smart and highly secretive, she is a girl who lives only to help her king fulfill a mysterious prophecy. And while she claims to love her best friend she had no qualms doing things behind her back so long as it helps her achieve her goal.
This was a true delight and I looked forward to seeing how the rest of tale unfolds.
I received a free ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Ana: Strong, determined and a heart for adventure, she is a girl who refuses to let her future be decided to her. She knows what she wants and she goes for it. All or burst.
Rafe: Loyal, fierce and stubborn, he is bastard son no one cares for. No one but his brother. So when his brother asks him to do the unspeakable he does. Everything he does he does for Xander. But that is all put to the test the moment he meets Ana.
Xander: Kind, trusting, loyal and highly intelligent, he is the prince who lives for his kingdom. All he wants is to be the ruler his people deserve. To prove to others and himself that he is not lesser.
Cassi: Mysterious, smart and highly secretive, she is a girl who lives only to help her king fulfill a mysterious prophecy. And while she claims to love her best friend she had no qualms doing things behind her back so long as it helps her achieve her goal.
This was a true delight and I looked forward to seeing how the rest of tale unfolds.
I received a free ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 31, 2020
I saw this being recommended to fans of Sarah J Maas and decided to give it a go without expecting much. Man, was I wrong.
I wasn’t ready for such a complex, fast-paced, character-driven work of art.
I’m OBSESSED!
I loved every single POV, every conflict, tangled relationship, unexpected development... I can’t praise this enough. How this isn’t more popular is beyond me.
One thing I absolutely loved were the “villains” in this book. And I’m using quotation marks because rationally I understand they are evil mf but my heart is screaming “my babies!!” So there’s that. Kudos for crafting such complex, relatable Bad Guys. I couldn’t be more in love.
I’m still weeping over Rafe. In general. And specially about his last scenes in the book. I’m DYING to know what happens to him next.
Not to be dramatic or anything, but I’ll never be happy again if Rafe doesn’t get his [redacted] back.
This book gifted me with an incredible main female character.
I loved how Lyana knew what she wanted and fought for it no matter what, without shame or any self doubt. I’m looking at you, trial’s closing ceremony. Talk about badass! She knew what (who) she wanted and she said, fuck it I’mma getting myself that boi. Mad respect.
Rafe and Lyana are my new addiction. The tension between them, the longing... THE ANGST! Oh man, their will-they-wont-they dynamic was everything I ask for in life.
I loved that they finally gave in to their emotions and attraction but I think I’d have loved it even more if they had waited. Only because I’m a gluttony for angst.
My only complain was the use of the miscommunication trope between them and Xander. Things would’ve been so much more easier if any of the three had used their words. It was just silly. But I’m willing to ignore the silliness in favor of everything else. Fingers crossed things change in the next book.
I loved the relationship between Xander and Rafe. Brothers with the world literally against the idea of them loving each other, unable to not care for one another. It was the perfect mix of adoration and resentment that creates such a captivating dynamic. I need them to get things fixed in next books or I’ll cry.
I wasn’t expecting to care about Xander as much as I ended up doing. He was so wholesome and pure and giving, it was impossible not to love him.
I’m torn in half when it comes to Cassi. Because WHAT SHE DID, but also MY BABY DESERVES A REDEMPTION ARC! I actually loved her immensely and found her character to be one of the most complex and interesting to explore in future books.
And now I have to wait two months to read the next book and I can’t stop thinking about that ending... that last scene... and I’m like
You know a book is good when you are feeling so many emotions you no longer can create coherent thoughts lol
I wasn’t ready for such a complex, fast-paced, character-driven work of art.
I’m OBSESSED!
I loved every single POV, every conflict, tangled relationship, unexpected development... I can’t praise this enough. How this isn’t more popular is beyond me.
One thing I absolutely loved were the “villains” in this book. And I’m using quotation marks because rationally I understand they are evil mf but my heart is screaming “my babies!!” So there’s that. Kudos for crafting such complex, relatable Bad Guys. I couldn’t be more in love.
I’m still weeping over Rafe. In general. And specially about his last scenes in the book. I’m DYING to know what happens to him next.
Not to be dramatic or anything, but I’ll never be happy again if Rafe doesn’t get his [redacted] back.
This book gifted me with an incredible main female character.
I loved how Lyana knew what she wanted and fought for it no matter what, without shame or any self doubt. I’m looking at you, trial’s closing ceremony. Talk about badass! She knew what (who) she wanted and she said, fuck it I’mma getting myself that boi. Mad respect.
Rafe and Lyana are my new addiction. The tension between them, the longing... THE ANGST! Oh man, their will-they-wont-they dynamic was everything I ask for in life.
I loved that they finally gave in to their emotions and attraction but I think I’d have loved it even more if they had waited. Only because I’m a gluttony for angst.
My only complain was the use of the miscommunication trope between them and Xander. Things would’ve been so much more easier if any of the three had used their words. It was just silly. But I’m willing to ignore the silliness in favor of everything else. Fingers crossed things change in the next book.
I loved the relationship between Xander and Rafe. Brothers with the world literally against the idea of them loving each other, unable to not care for one another. It was the perfect mix of adoration and resentment that creates such a captivating dynamic. I need them to get things fixed in next books or I’ll cry.
I wasn’t expecting to care about Xander as much as I ended up doing. He was so wholesome and pure and giving, it was impossible not to love him.
I’m torn in half when it comes to Cassi. Because WHAT SHE DID, but also MY BABY DESERVES A REDEMPTION ARC! I actually loved her immensely and found her character to be one of the most complex and interesting to explore in future books.
And now I have to wait two months to read the next book and I can’t stop thinking about that ending... that last scene... and I’m like
You know a book is good when you are feeling so many emotions you no longer can create coherent thoughts lol
March 7, 2020
The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher and the author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Full review HERE
I'm not gonna lie, at first I was interested in this book because I was drawn in by the beautiful cover. But then the plot sounded very intriguing and so I decided to request an ARC and I got approved!
I'm so glad to say this was such a nice read, it wasn't a 5-star read but it's definitely fully deserving of 4 stars in my opinion.
The retelling aspect of the story of Tristan and Isolde was very well done and I could see some tropes that were taken from the original story and woven into the narration of this new one.
Rafe and Lyana were the perfect star-crossed lovers in my eyes and I found myself rooting for them since their first encounter. I also need to give a special mention to Xander, he's such a nice and kind guy who truly loves and cares for his people, definitely king material.
I quite enjoyed the magic system that was introduced in this book, but there's still so much we don't really know and I cannot wait to have the chance to find out more! Also, the world below sounds so fascinating and there's so much to discover still.
I warn you guys, there's a cliffhanger ending in this one. My gosh, I so need to know how the story continues. If Goodreads is right, the second book is set to come out in July. Let's hope it's true, so that I don't have to wait too long!
Full review HERE
I'm not gonna lie, at first I was interested in this book because I was drawn in by the beautiful cover. But then the plot sounded very intriguing and so I decided to request an ARC and I got approved!
I'm so glad to say this was such a nice read, it wasn't a 5-star read but it's definitely fully deserving of 4 stars in my opinion.
The retelling aspect of the story of Tristan and Isolde was very well done and I could see some tropes that were taken from the original story and woven into the narration of this new one.
Rafe and Lyana were the perfect star-crossed lovers in my eyes and I found myself rooting for them since their first encounter. I also need to give a special mention to Xander, he's such a nice and kind guy who truly loves and cares for his people, definitely king material.
I quite enjoyed the magic system that was introduced in this book, but there's still so much we don't really know and I cannot wait to have the chance to find out more! Also, the world below sounds so fascinating and there's so much to discover still.
I warn you guys, there's a cliffhanger ending in this one. My gosh, I so need to know how the story continues. If Goodreads is right, the second book is set to come out in July. Let's hope it's true, so that I don't have to wait too long!
March 16, 2020
that ending was PHENOMENAL! holy crap i cant wait til the sequel 😵😩😵
pls i need it now 😔😔
rtc (hopefully lOl)
pls i need it now 😔😔
rtc (hopefully lOl)
May 8, 2020
HHhmmm mixed feelings.
Here are some of my thoughts:
• For the most part, I found the plot intriguing with the magic, politics, and romance.
• I also found Lyanna charming in her assertiveness and vivaciousness. She was selfish at times, but I understood her yearning for freedom.
• I liked that Cassi saw Lyanna as a friend, but she had her own agenda as a ruthless spy. Related to her, I liked that there was a bigger plot besides the courtship trial and the forbidden romance b/w Lyanna and Rafe. It was cool to know but not fully know that there was something ginormous coming.
• Rafe was the broody boy with the sad past and loyal heart who was hard not to root for.
• Xander was the shockingly sweet and dutiful prince. Even when he had all the reasons to shun Rafe, he was kind. In fact, they both had huge reasons to hate each other because they book took so much from one another, without even trying.
• While I found that the plot was interesting enough and the characters to have great potential – I felt like it fell short by the end. It was a bit too much waiting, in terms of the romance and for Malek to show up on the mating ceremony/Lyanna’s birthday. It just wasn’t as exciting anymore. The 1st half was solid. 2nd half questionable.
• In particular, I was honestly super irritated with Lyanna, Rafe, and Xander. I’m giving Cassi the pass because even though she did some messed up things, she was a spy and had another agenda, so it was to be expected from her. In fact, I’m hopeful that she would find her path and redeem herself in future books. HOWEVER, I was disappointed that with the other characters:
So overall, this book had potential, although I was annoyed at certain characters towards the end. I felt like I was waiting for the whole book to see that turn where the characters could grow and be more interesting, but they certainly under-performed in the developments department. I really have no idea what’s going to happen in the upcoming books. The reveals of this book were not too surprising, so I feel like the next books would be the game-changer on how I feel about this series. For now, 2/2.5 stars. Would be higher like 3/3.5 but pretty disappointed with certain plotline/characters later on, so 2/2.5. I felt the book was quite engaging for the most part, although it slowed down (and then became super annoying) towards the end.
Things that you might want to know (WARNING: Spoilers below)
Happy/satisfying ending?
Love triangle? Cheating? Angst level?
Tears-worthy?
Humor?
Favorite scenes?
Here are some of my thoughts:
• For the most part, I found the plot intriguing with the magic, politics, and romance.
• I also found Lyanna charming in her assertiveness and vivaciousness. She was selfish at times, but I understood her yearning for freedom.
• I liked that Cassi saw Lyanna as a friend, but she had her own agenda as a ruthless spy. Related to her, I liked that there was a bigger plot besides the courtship trial and the forbidden romance b/w Lyanna and Rafe. It was cool to know but not fully know that there was something ginormous coming.
• Rafe was the broody boy with the sad past and loyal heart who was hard not to root for.
• Xander was the shockingly sweet and dutiful prince. Even when he had all the reasons to shun Rafe, he was kind. In fact, they both had huge reasons to hate each other because they book took so much from one another, without even trying.
• While I found that the plot was interesting enough and the characters to have great potential – I felt like it fell short by the end. It was a bit too much waiting, in terms of the romance and for Malek to show up on the mating ceremony/Lyanna’s birthday. It just wasn’t as exciting anymore. The 1st half was solid. 2nd half questionable.
• In particular, I was honestly super irritated with Lyanna, Rafe, and Xander. I’m giving Cassi the pass because even though she did some messed up things, she was a spy and had another agenda, so it was to be expected from her. In fact, I’m hopeful that she would find her path and redeem herself in future books. HOWEVER, I was disappointed that with the other characters:
So overall, this book had potential, although I was annoyed at certain characters towards the end. I felt like I was waiting for the whole book to see that turn where the characters could grow and be more interesting, but they certainly under-performed in the developments department. I really have no idea what’s going to happen in the upcoming books. The reveals of this book were not too surprising, so I feel like the next books would be the game-changer on how I feel about this series. For now, 2/2.5 stars. Would be higher like 3/3.5 but pretty disappointed with certain plotline/characters later on, so 2/2.5. I felt the book was quite engaging for the most part, although it slowed down (and then became super annoying) towards the end.
Things that you might want to know (WARNING: Spoilers below)
Happy/satisfying ending?
Love triangle? Cheating? Angst level?
Tears-worthy?
Humor?
Favorite scenes?
December 8, 2019
You can find this review on my blog: https://rww.home.blog/2019/12/08/the-... 🌺💫
Title: The Raven and the Dove
Author: Kaitlyn Davis
Release Date: 09 March 2020
Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5
To be honest, when I saw this arc on Netgalley, I didn’t think I would get it. It made my day when I got the notification that this arc was approved for me! I was so hyped to read this book; the cover was gorgeous, the story was intriguing, and most important of all:
The main characters had wings. And there were dragons involved.
I enjoyed this book. It was entertaining. The story was so interesting and I wanted to know more and more. We are left with sort of a cliffhanger at the end and with more questions than answers.
Which is obviously a good thing for the writer and publisher, since I now desperately want to know what will happen next. Luckily for my poor curious self, there are apparently going to be three more books released in The Raven and the Dove series, so hopefully my desperate questions will be answered.
I think my biggest problem with this book is the characters. With Lyana and Rafe. Xander was so underrated and a sweetie-pie, while Cassi’s character took an unexpected dark turn that I enjoyed. But with Lyana and Rafe… the little, inconsequential problem called insta-love arose.
Insta-love is such a big turn-off for me that I put the book down in frustration and went to do something else.
The writing was okay; I struggled with finding any quotes. However, I loved the world building! The idea of floating isles seems so magical to me. And with an entire world living below, never seeing the sun?
That got me really curious.
Good Underlying Themes/ Messages:
-Your disability does not define you.
-Wild souls are meant to be free.
-Brains matter just as much as brawn.
These were decent themes, so a whole star for this category!
Fantastic World Building:
As I mentioned above, I loved the world building in this book.
The setting sounded beautiful and the people seem to have an interesting history. I loved how people’s views on some things in this book were different. One thing was seen in a specific way, but it was seen as something totally different by someone else.
The people were diverse and we skimmed the religion but it was still interesting!
A whole star for this category!
Realistic characters and growth:
And so we’ve arrived at the real problem of this book for me.
Lyana is definitely a wild soul. She can’t sit still for even one minute before she wants to jump out of the window and fly away to find something more entertaining. At times, I liked her impulsiveness and spontaneity. It’s a fresh breath from all of the serious and dramatic characters I’ve encountered. But then again, at other times she irritated me. Her point of view was childish at times and her instant ‘love’ for Rafe frustrated me to no end.
Rafe was the typical brooding warrior with a good heart. He wasn’t very interesting to me, remaining bland for the rest of the book in my opinion. His only hobbies seem to be fighting.
The relationship between Lyana and Rafe reminded me of a very common problem when it comes to so-called love in books:
Love and lust are not the same thing.
It’s the cause for insta-love in this book. I didn’t feel any chemistry between them and I also hated it because I knew it would hurt Xander immensely. I still don’t understand why they were attracted to each other? Is it because of they both have magic?
Moving on to Xander, my thoughts while reading his chapters were that he was so underrated and underappreciated. He only has one arm and because of that, he doesn’t think he’s as worthy as Rafe. His severe daddy-issues have probably got something to do with it as well.
But you know what? I would choose Xander over Rafe anyday. Then we’ll spend our days reading on a couch in front of a sizzling fire. Heaven, don’t you think?
Xander’s POV’s were so much more entertaining than Rafe’s, so I hope the author realizes what a gem he is and gives him some more attention.
Cassie was a curveball I didn’t see coming. I thought when I first read her chapter that she would be acting as Lyana’s own Impulse Control but she had such a bigger role to play and I’m actually sort of proud of her?
I really struggled with this rating because honestly, Xander and Cassi were the only characters that kept me going. So for the first time, I’m giving this category 0.25 stars.
This just goes to show how much I hate insta-love.
Interesting Story:
The only thing that makes me want to continue this series is the story.
I’ve got so many questions and I urgently need to get some answers. As you probably already know that this story is a Tristan and Isolde retelling. I had no idea what story that was so I Googled it (obviously) and this book stays both true to that story and not. The elements of the original story is there, but I think from here on it’ll take it’s own original turn.
Sort of like how A Court of Thorns and Roses was based on Beauty and the Beast, but the rest of the series is an original story.
A whole star for this category!
Writing Style Is Beautiful/ Easy To Read:
As I mentioned before, the writing was okay. It wasn’t bad or good, just average. I appreciated that the writing wasn’t overly dramatic, since that and the insta-love wouldn’t have worked well together.
Half a star for this category.
That’s it!
Overall, I was underwhelmed by this book but I’ll definitely read the next book in the series!
Any thoughts on The Raven and the Dove that you would like to share? Have you read this book or would you like to read it? Comment down below!
*I received this arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I would like to let you know that the author is hosting a pre-order giveaway! (US-only, unfortunately…)
Everyone who pre-orders an ebook will receive an exclusive double-sided art print (one side with character art by Salome Totladze and the other with the world map). Everyone who orders a print edition (hardcover or paperback) will receive the same double-sided print, plus a bookmark and a signed book plate/sticker to attach to their copy!
More details about the pre-order give away can be found here: https://www.kaitlyndavisbooks.com/p/p...
Till we meet again!
Xx Alexia
Title: The Raven and the Dove
Author: Kaitlyn Davis
Release Date: 09 March 2020
Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5
To be honest, when I saw this arc on Netgalley, I didn’t think I would get it. It made my day when I got the notification that this arc was approved for me! I was so hyped to read this book; the cover was gorgeous, the story was intriguing, and most important of all:
The main characters had wings. And there were dragons involved.
I enjoyed this book. It was entertaining. The story was so interesting and I wanted to know more and more. We are left with sort of a cliffhanger at the end and with more questions than answers.
Which is obviously a good thing for the writer and publisher, since I now desperately want to know what will happen next. Luckily for my poor curious self, there are apparently going to be three more books released in The Raven and the Dove series, so hopefully my desperate questions will be answered.
I think my biggest problem with this book is the characters. With Lyana and Rafe. Xander was so underrated and a sweetie-pie, while Cassi’s character took an unexpected dark turn that I enjoyed. But with Lyana and Rafe… the little, inconsequential problem called insta-love arose.
Insta-love is such a big turn-off for me that I put the book down in frustration and went to do something else.
The writing was okay; I struggled with finding any quotes. However, I loved the world building! The idea of floating isles seems so magical to me. And with an entire world living below, never seeing the sun?
That got me really curious.
Good Underlying Themes/ Messages:
-Your disability does not define you.
-Wild souls are meant to be free.
-Brains matter just as much as brawn.
These were decent themes, so a whole star for this category!
Fantastic World Building:
As I mentioned above, I loved the world building in this book.
The setting sounded beautiful and the people seem to have an interesting history. I loved how people’s views on some things in this book were different. One thing was seen in a specific way, but it was seen as something totally different by someone else.
The people were diverse and we skimmed the religion but it was still interesting!
A whole star for this category!
Realistic characters and growth:
And so we’ve arrived at the real problem of this book for me.
Lyana is definitely a wild soul. She can’t sit still for even one minute before she wants to jump out of the window and fly away to find something more entertaining. At times, I liked her impulsiveness and spontaneity. It’s a fresh breath from all of the serious and dramatic characters I’ve encountered. But then again, at other times she irritated me. Her point of view was childish at times and her instant ‘love’ for Rafe frustrated me to no end.
The endless blue sky had always called to her.
And her soul still ached to respond.
Rafe was the typical brooding warrior with a good heart. He wasn’t very interesting to me, remaining bland for the rest of the book in my opinion. His only hobbies seem to be fighting.
The relationship between Lyana and Rafe reminded me of a very common problem when it comes to so-called love in books:
Love and lust are not the same thing.
It’s the cause for insta-love in this book. I didn’t feel any chemistry between them and I also hated it because I knew it would hurt Xander immensely. I still don’t understand why they were attracted to each other? Is it because of they both have magic?
Moving on to Xander, my thoughts while reading his chapters were that he was so underrated and underappreciated. He only has one arm and because of that, he doesn’t think he’s as worthy as Rafe. His severe daddy-issues have probably got something to do with it as well.
But you know what? I would choose Xander over Rafe anyday. Then we’ll spend our days reading on a couch in front of a sizzling fire. Heaven, don’t you think?
Xander’s POV’s were so much more entertaining than Rafe’s, so I hope the author realizes what a gem he is and gives him some more attention.
Cassie was a curveball I didn’t see coming. I thought when I first read her chapter that she would be acting as Lyana’s own Impulse Control but she had such a bigger role to play and I’m actually sort of proud of her?
I really struggled with this rating because honestly, Xander and Cassi were the only characters that kept me going. So for the first time, I’m giving this category 0.25 stars.
This just goes to show how much I hate insta-love.
Interesting Story:
The only thing that makes me want to continue this series is the story.
I’ve got so many questions and I urgently need to get some answers. As you probably already know that this story is a Tristan and Isolde retelling. I had no idea what story that was so I Googled it (obviously) and this book stays both true to that story and not. The elements of the original story is there, but I think from here on it’ll take it’s own original turn.
To be a bird without wings was a fate almost worse than death.
Sort of like how A Court of Thorns and Roses was based on Beauty and the Beast, but the rest of the series is an original story.
A whole star for this category!
Writing Style Is Beautiful/ Easy To Read:
As I mentioned before, the writing was okay. It wasn’t bad or good, just average. I appreciated that the writing wasn’t overly dramatic, since that and the insta-love wouldn’t have worked well together.
“Is it foolish to want to save lives?” she asked. “I would think it far more foolish to sit back and watch them die when I know in my heart I could save them.”
Half a star for this category.
That’s it!
Overall, I was underwhelmed by this book but I’ll definitely read the next book in the series!
Any thoughts on The Raven and the Dove that you would like to share? Have you read this book or would you like to read it? Comment down below!
*I received this arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I would like to let you know that the author is hosting a pre-order giveaway! (US-only, unfortunately…)
Everyone who pre-orders an ebook will receive an exclusive double-sided art print (one side with character art by Salome Totladze and the other with the world map). Everyone who orders a print edition (hardcover or paperback) will receive the same double-sided print, plus a bookmark and a signed book plate/sticker to attach to their copy!
More details about the pre-order give away can be found here: https://www.kaitlyndavisbooks.com/p/p...
Till we meet again!
Xx Alexia
December 15, 2020
Holy.Shirt. HOLY FORKING SHIRT.
Three shocking betrayals. Two star-crossed lovers. One unforgettable journey in this Tristan & Isolde avian-inspired fantasy retelling.
I--I--
Okay, let me start again.
I--
Nope. Can't do it. I'm utterly shell-shocked.
This was wholly unique, and completely enthralling. I loved reading about each House of Bird's, and the society in which they lived. The romance was agonizing (in the best way). I didn't know who to root for. The majority of the book was basically just Kaitlyn Davis playing tug of war with my feelings.
My favorite character by far, however, was Lyana. She was playful, fierce, cocky, and adventurous - simply a delight to read.
Alsooo, another great moment (because you know I can't resist a good quote):
My only complaint is that I wish we had gotten a bit more sense of the world and it's history. It seemed so complex, that I really just wanted to know part of its origin stories, legends, etc., However, a major part of the plot was the mystery shrouding that particular aspect, so that I understand.
And THAT ENDING. Where I felt like the story dragged a bit at certain points, the ending TOTALLY MADE UP FOR IT. HOLY CRAP. It almost broke me. Major cliffhanger alert!
Overall, this was such a fun ride! Can't wait for the sequel!
Big thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me an ARC copy of this book!
Three shocking betrayals. Two star-crossed lovers. One unforgettable journey in this Tristan & Isolde avian-inspired fantasy retelling.
I--I--
Okay, let me start again.
I--
Nope. Can't do it. I'm utterly shell-shocked.
But then she remembered the raven, the cave, and the adventure ahead, and a smile widened her lips. "Let's go."
This was wholly unique, and completely enthralling. I loved reading about each House of Bird's, and the society in which they lived. The romance was agonizing (in the best way). I didn't know who to root for. The majority of the book was basically just Kaitlyn Davis playing tug of war with my feelings.
My favorite character by far, however, was Lyana. She was playful, fierce, cocky, and adventurous - simply a delight to read.
"Don't." Her voice was so sharp it startled him. Her eyes flashed with something he hadn't expected - lightning bolts of hurt. "Don't question my character."
Alsooo, another great moment (because you know I can't resist a good quote):
"Stop showing off," Luka murmured, but his tone was playful.
Lyana glanced at him as she snapped the last buckle into place. "Now, why would I do that?"
My only complaint is that I wish we had gotten a bit more sense of the world and it's history. It seemed so complex, that I really just wanted to know part of its origin stories, legends, etc., However, a major part of the plot was the mystery shrouding that particular aspect, so that I understand.
And THAT ENDING. Where I felt like the story dragged a bit at certain points, the ending TOTALLY MADE UP FOR IT. HOLY CRAP. It almost broke me. Major cliffhanger alert!
Overall, this was such a fun ride! Can't wait for the sequel!
Big thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me an ARC copy of this book!
January 25, 2021
This wonderfully complex world featuring different birds (humans with wings) was beautifully detailed and reminded me of Sarah J Maas in the different houses and beautiful descriptions. It’s time for the young princes and princess of the kingdoms to be matched and mated, for the first-borns to get to stay in their kingdoms and choose partners from other kingdoms, and for the second- and third-borns to be picked and leave home forever.
This tale follows the story of several young royals, a second-born princess with a rebellious streak and a secret, dangerous gift. A first-born son who loves someone he shouldn’t. A spy. A king with two sons—one who is legitimate and has a disability his people might see as a weakness, the other illegitimate and unable to claim the throne. It’s a delightfully twisty setup, and as everyone comes together for the matching, and things get complicated by dragons (because, of course), things get even more fun! I was completely entranced by this book, the forbidden love story, loved the complicated arcs of so many characters. I reached the end and was so glad there would be a book two!
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
This tale follows the story of several young royals, a second-born princess with a rebellious streak and a secret, dangerous gift. A first-born son who loves someone he shouldn’t. A spy. A king with two sons—one who is legitimate and has a disability his people might see as a weakness, the other illegitimate and unable to claim the throne. It’s a delightfully twisty setup, and as everyone comes together for the matching, and things get complicated by dragons (because, of course), things get even more fun! I was completely entranced by this book, the forbidden love story, loved the complicated arcs of so many characters. I reached the end and was so glad there would be a book two!
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
March 25, 2023
Reread : 22/01/15
~2.5 stars~
One thing upon my reread I understood is that, I thought I forgot everything but surprisingly, I knew everything so my reread was unnecessary 🙃 also, I didn't know this was a Tristan and Isolde retelling as the author mentioned since I don't know what characters they are, so I couldn't really pick on that part.
As a whole, I really can feel that there's more to this world and the whole plot can go better and even the characters, as I said, could improve. I am waiting to see another face of Lyana and Xander, I want Cassi to prove everyone wrong and show us how good she is and I want Rafe to shape the fuck up and be the raven and the person he wants to be, not the one he’s supposed to in the others’ conceptions of him. Oh and also, I want that fucker Malek to come to his senses or something because he’s acting like a maniac and I don’t like it.
credit
━━━༻❁༺━━━
First read : 20/03/03
~2.5 stars~
a raven and a dove – what an yin and yang theme. I have to admit, it is kind of aesthetically pleasing. Even though it is a bit of a cliche.
Unfortunately, pretty cover be damned because I didn’t really like this book to much to really even care about it. It took me a little more than 1/2 of the way to even really connect with the story.
This book was boring for my tastes. Nothing really exciting happens until the last 100 pages, also where all the shortest chapters were at? It was really hard for me to pay attention through a good chunk of it, and somehow a small light flickered that I could actually know what was happening even if I did not care about the characters.
━━━༻❁༺━━━
I really have to say this: I had a problem with the characters.
I honestly disliked all the characters in this book, with some exceptions here and there.
There was something about each of them that just didn’t seem quite palpable. Some were bland and some were forced and I am not entirely sure I liked even a single one of them from the beginning to the end.
Lyana, the female protagonist, was supposed to be a ray of sunshine, a happy girl, wild and free. Instead, I found her very annoying, too full of energy (like an energy vampire sucking on my nerves), too stubborn and too foolish. She was such a brat, so childish and selfish sometimes. I honestly couldn’t enjoy her character at all.
Rafe, the male protagonist, was too indecisive for my liking and also not very well contoured. He was supposed to be the warrior type, right? Oh well, he somehow manages to injure himself 90% of the time almost immediately and he loses all sort of duels and battles. Not much of the warrior I was expecting though. But with all that, I kind of liked him from time to time, maybe when he showed me a glimpse of how was he supposed to be.
I have no idea how to describe the romance that was in the book. It was fine, and this is coming from a person where romance is not her cup of tea whatsoever. I feel like the romance between Rafe and Layana was insta-love. They met for a few chapters, and then the next thing I knew they were in love with each other, but they can’t be together. And Xander and Layana’s romance was just boring.
Cassi, Lyana’s best friend, was the one that could fool me. If it weren’t for the passages of her whereabouts, she would’ve probably been the one I would have liked best. But with all that, she had the dirtiest job of them all to do, I hate her for that, but I also can’t help but feel sorry for her. I still feel like I might like her even though I don’t.
Xander, Rafe’s half-brother, was in my opinion, the never-dying type of the good boy who’s always the one who gets played. Even though he is a bit of a coward, he tries to fight the choices he has to make and he is honestly too good for everything that was going on in this book. He’s been the one who got hurt at the end and I won’t be surprised if in the next installment he’ll be bitter about it. I don’t blame him.
━━━༻❁༺━━━
The world-building was somehow okay-ish, I would’ve loved it a bit more detailed though. But, as a whole, the placing was quite alright. The author added terms later to the book, and I had to side-eye them quite a bit. They were weird, and honestly because I keep misreading them and it looked like another few words I know quite a bit. It was really weird.
There was quite a bit of times where I noticed repetition with a few words. It was this book, where I now hate the word ‘Mate’ for a long time. Mate was used quite a bit of times, and honestly how many times can you use the word for a long time before someone could get sick of it.
the essence of the story is really lost of me. The plot is given continuous momentum, with frequent events like the Courtship trials (that are slightly glossed over…), a few battles with dragons (because dragons exist in this world too) that help this book move at a fast-pace. However there’s no tangible presence of a threat or antagonist in this story.
I read at least 70% of this book, and there’s only vague, ominous mentions of a fire god gaining strength. And so I really struggled to attain any satisfaction from this story. The magic system is relatively straightforward. However like so many other things this story is trying to tackle, the magic system goes without a solid explanation. You get bits and pieces of information here and there, and you have to piece those bits together like a puzzle.
━━━༻❁༺━━━
Unfortunately, this book felt so… unnecessary. And boring. Although Kaitlyn Davis is a seasoned writer, with many published books to her name, I honestly struggled to see that here with the messy plot and world-building. I do hope this book finds its audience regardless.
~2.5 stars~
One thing upon my reread I understood is that, I thought I forgot everything but surprisingly, I knew everything so my reread was unnecessary 🙃 also, I didn't know this was a Tristan and Isolde retelling as the author mentioned since I don't know what characters they are, so I couldn't really pick on that part.
As a whole, I really can feel that there's more to this world and the whole plot can go better and even the characters, as I said, could improve. I am waiting to see another face of Lyana and Xander, I want Cassi to prove everyone wrong and show us how good she is and I want Rafe to shape the fuck up and be the raven and the person he wants to be, not the one he’s supposed to in the others’ conceptions of him. Oh and also, I want that fucker Malek to come to his senses or something because he’s acting like a maniac and I don’t like it.
credit
━━━༻❁༺━━━
First read : 20/03/03
~2.5 stars~
a raven and a dove – what an yin and yang theme. I have to admit, it is kind of aesthetically pleasing. Even though it is a bit of a cliche.
Unfortunately, pretty cover be damned because I didn’t really like this book to much to really even care about it. It took me a little more than 1/2 of the way to even really connect with the story.
This book was boring for my tastes. Nothing really exciting happens until the last 100 pages, also where all the shortest chapters were at? It was really hard for me to pay attention through a good chunk of it, and somehow a small light flickered that I could actually know what was happening even if I did not care about the characters.
━━━༻❁༺━━━
I really have to say this: I had a problem with the characters.
I honestly disliked all the characters in this book, with some exceptions here and there.
There was something about each of them that just didn’t seem quite palpable. Some were bland and some were forced and I am not entirely sure I liked even a single one of them from the beginning to the end.
Lyana, the female protagonist, was supposed to be a ray of sunshine, a happy girl, wild and free. Instead, I found her very annoying, too full of energy (like an energy vampire sucking on my nerves), too stubborn and too foolish. She was such a brat, so childish and selfish sometimes. I honestly couldn’t enjoy her character at all.
Rafe, the male protagonist, was too indecisive for my liking and also not very well contoured. He was supposed to be the warrior type, right? Oh well, he somehow manages to injure himself 90% of the time almost immediately and he loses all sort of duels and battles. Not much of the warrior I was expecting though. But with all that, I kind of liked him from time to time, maybe when he showed me a glimpse of how was he supposed to be.
I have no idea how to describe the romance that was in the book. It was fine, and this is coming from a person where romance is not her cup of tea whatsoever. I feel like the romance between Rafe and Layana was insta-love. They met for a few chapters, and then the next thing I knew they were in love with each other, but they can’t be together. And Xander and Layana’s romance was just boring.
Cassi, Lyana’s best friend, was the one that could fool me. If it weren’t for the passages of her whereabouts, she would’ve probably been the one I would have liked best. But with all that, she had the dirtiest job of them all to do, I hate her for that, but I also can’t help but feel sorry for her. I still feel like I might like her even though I don’t.
Xander, Rafe’s half-brother, was in my opinion, the never-dying type of the good boy who’s always the one who gets played. Even though he is a bit of a coward, he tries to fight the choices he has to make and he is honestly too good for everything that was going on in this book. He’s been the one who got hurt at the end and I won’t be surprised if in the next installment he’ll be bitter about it. I don’t blame him.
━━━༻❁༺━━━
The world-building was somehow okay-ish, I would’ve loved it a bit more detailed though. But, as a whole, the placing was quite alright. The author added terms later to the book, and I had to side-eye them quite a bit. They were weird, and honestly because I keep misreading them and it looked like another few words I know quite a bit. It was really weird.
There was quite a bit of times where I noticed repetition with a few words. It was this book, where I now hate the word ‘Mate’ for a long time. Mate was used quite a bit of times, and honestly how many times can you use the word for a long time before someone could get sick of it.
the essence of the story is really lost of me. The plot is given continuous momentum, with frequent events like the Courtship trials (that are slightly glossed over…), a few battles with dragons (because dragons exist in this world too) that help this book move at a fast-pace. However there’s no tangible presence of a threat or antagonist in this story.
I read at least 70% of this book, and there’s only vague, ominous mentions of a fire god gaining strength. And so I really struggled to attain any satisfaction from this story. The magic system is relatively straightforward. However like so many other things this story is trying to tackle, the magic system goes without a solid explanation. You get bits and pieces of information here and there, and you have to piece those bits together like a puzzle.
━━━༻❁༺━━━
Unfortunately, this book felt so… unnecessary. And boring. Although Kaitlyn Davis is a seasoned writer, with many published books to her name, I honestly struggled to see that here with the messy plot and world-building. I do hope this book finds its audience regardless.
April 18, 2020
”Love is when you find a piece of yourself in someone else, a piece you never knew was missing, but without which you’d be broken”
*sighhhhhh* Ok I am so incredibly pissed off by this book but it was also really good. I really don’t know how I should rate this but hopefully I’ll know after my rant hahaa
Ok I’m just going to start off with what pissed me off the most. XANDER DESERVED BETTER! I felt so sad whenever he felt self conscious or insecure about his hand. The scene where he took off his glove and showed Lyana was so incredibly sad because he truly felt less of a man because of it. I wanted to scream at him and tell him that he is a dream and what every man should aspire to be! Can you imagine how he felt when he found out about things? He deserves to be happy! I’d totally understand if he became the villain, and I’d still be on his side!!
I also felt bad for Rafe and I loved him but I was so pissed off that he gave Into temptation and betrayed his brother. I really was hoping he’d be strong and not go down that route but hey, this is YA fiction so who was I kidding? He also deserved better in a lot of ways and I would’ve been more than ok if he would’ve thrown a knife at Xander’s mom!
I just didn’t like Lyana one bit. She acted spoiled, entitled and a bit selfish in the first chapters of the book and then completely heartless. I understand you can’t help who you love but her decisions were terrible and hurtful.
Cassi I will never ever forgive her for what she did to Rafe. No matter what she does in the next book to redeem herself, I will never like her! And I’m really hoping that last chapter wasn’t hinting towards a relationship between her and Xander. Although I can’t wait to see what he does when he finds out what she did to his brother.
Maybe I’m too emotional about things that happened but it’s been a while since I’ve felt angry because of how characters were treated (not since Empire of Storms).
I’m anxious for the release of the next book because I want to see how everything plays out and I need answers! Overall the story was interesting and well done but I guess it just gave me too many sad/negative emotions
4/5 🌟’s
*sighhhhhh* Ok I am so incredibly pissed off by this book but it was also really good. I really don’t know how I should rate this but hopefully I’ll know after my rant hahaa
Ok I’m just going to start off with what pissed me off the most. XANDER DESERVED BETTER! I felt so sad whenever he felt self conscious or insecure about his hand. The scene where he took off his glove and showed Lyana was so incredibly sad because he truly felt less of a man because of it. I wanted to scream at him and tell him that he is a dream and what every man should aspire to be! Can you imagine how he felt when he found out about things? He deserves to be happy! I’d totally understand if he became the villain, and I’d still be on his side!!
I also felt bad for Rafe and I loved him but I was so pissed off that he gave Into temptation and betrayed his brother. I really was hoping he’d be strong and not go down that route but hey, this is YA fiction so who was I kidding? He also deserved better in a lot of ways and I would’ve been more than ok if he would’ve thrown a knife at Xander’s mom!
I just didn’t like Lyana one bit. She acted spoiled, entitled and a bit selfish in the first chapters of the book and then completely heartless. I understand you can’t help who you love but her decisions were terrible and hurtful.
Cassi I will never ever forgive her for what she did to Rafe. No matter what she does in the next book to redeem herself, I will never like her! And I’m really hoping that last chapter wasn’t hinting towards a relationship between her and Xander. Although I can’t wait to see what he does when he finds out what she did to his brother.
Maybe I’m too emotional about things that happened but it’s been a while since I’ve felt angry because of how characters were treated (not since Empire of Storms).
I’m anxious for the release of the next book because I want to see how everything plays out and I need answers! Overall the story was interesting and well done but I guess it just gave me too many sad/negative emotions
4/5 🌟’s
April 21, 2020
4.5/5 ✨✨✨✨
There’s was something about this book that captivated me. After page 50 I couldn’t put it down. First off...the cover. Is. STUNNING. A dark skin black girl as a main character?!?!? Also her hair is in small braids (as described in a scene from the book.) Let’s talk about Lyana.
It was such a breath of fresh air to see a female protagonist that wasn’t “badass” and “hard.” Too often when trying to reject gender norms, female protagonist are often written very one sided and almost robotic. But Lyana was FULL of life. I’ve never read a book with a black female protagonist like her. She was bubbly and flirtatious. Rebellious yet strong. Passionate yet loyal and kind hearted. Too often we only see these traits reserved for white female protagonist. Only white girls are seen as “soft” and “girly”. There was a carefreeness to Lyana that was so amazing to read about.
The description of Lyana as a black women was well done in my opinion. The words used to describe her skin and hair were well rounded and varied. I loved that her hair was in braids and other protective styles. It so important to experience a character whose blackness isn’t all encompassing to their existence and plot.
Lastly, the romance. I’m a sucker for broody: asshole male protagonist and Rafe was no different. He was sarcastic and emotionally unavailable. He was loyal to his brother, even to a fault and he loved fiercely and in totality. I loved the pacing of the romance, it was SUCH a good slow burn. And then I felt like the author ruined it. The ending relationship wise rushed in my opinion. It was at an agonizingly slow pace and then......someone’s found in bed and I’m soooo upset because it just felt unnatural.
Finishing TRATD im left with so many questions about the next book. This world is so rich and detailed. The houses and their magic feel so real it flew off the page. I’m very interested in seeing how to author will approach repairing the many relationships that she broke in the next book. If you’re interested in a book with diverse representation,
(Race and disability), political intrigue and a rich magic system I would highly recommend.
There’s was something about this book that captivated me. After page 50 I couldn’t put it down. First off...the cover. Is. STUNNING. A dark skin black girl as a main character?!?!? Also her hair is in small braids (as described in a scene from the book.) Let’s talk about Lyana.
It was such a breath of fresh air to see a female protagonist that wasn’t “badass” and “hard.” Too often when trying to reject gender norms, female protagonist are often written very one sided and almost robotic. But Lyana was FULL of life. I’ve never read a book with a black female protagonist like her. She was bubbly and flirtatious. Rebellious yet strong. Passionate yet loyal and kind hearted. Too often we only see these traits reserved for white female protagonist. Only white girls are seen as “soft” and “girly”. There was a carefreeness to Lyana that was so amazing to read about.
The description of Lyana as a black women was well done in my opinion. The words used to describe her skin and hair were well rounded and varied. I loved that her hair was in braids and other protective styles. It so important to experience a character whose blackness isn’t all encompassing to their existence and plot.
Lastly, the romance. I’m a sucker for broody: asshole male protagonist and Rafe was no different. He was sarcastic and emotionally unavailable. He was loyal to his brother, even to a fault and he loved fiercely and in totality. I loved the pacing of the romance, it was SUCH a good slow burn. And then I felt like the author ruined it. The ending relationship wise rushed in my opinion. It was at an agonizingly slow pace and then......someone’s found in bed and I’m soooo upset because it just felt unnatural.
Finishing TRATD im left with so many questions about the next book. This world is so rich and detailed. The houses and their magic feel so real it flew off the page. I’m very interested in seeing how to author will approach repairing the many relationships that she broke in the next book. If you’re interested in a book with diverse representation,
(Race and disability), political intrigue and a rich magic system I would highly recommend.
March 7, 2020
I thought that The Raven & The Dove was very promising but fell short in it's execution in a lot of places.
I felt that the magic was underdeveloped - however with this being predominantly a Tristan and Isolde retelling, I was willing to forgive that in lieu of a compelling romance which is something else I felt this novel did not have.
I didn't particularly like Lyana as a protagonist, I felt like her motivations were weak in comparison to Rafe, who I thought was executed perfectly, his back story and character development were my favourite thing about this book and his character was the one thing throughout this book that kept me reading and caused me to feel emotion on his behalf.
The story was quite fast paced, and I appreciate it for that, but I feel like throughout the majority of this book, nothing really happened regarding the plot or the romance, which would have been fine if there was strong character development building an epic slow burn romance but I don't feel like it delivered on that front.
Overall this felt like a very long prologue to a story and I was disappointed.
I felt that the magic was underdeveloped - however with this being predominantly a Tristan and Isolde retelling, I was willing to forgive that in lieu of a compelling romance which is something else I felt this novel did not have.
I didn't particularly like Lyana as a protagonist, I felt like her motivations were weak in comparison to Rafe, who I thought was executed perfectly, his back story and character development were my favourite thing about this book and his character was the one thing throughout this book that kept me reading and caused me to feel emotion on his behalf.
The story was quite fast paced, and I appreciate it for that, but I feel like throughout the majority of this book, nothing really happened regarding the plot or the romance, which would have been fine if there was strong character development building an epic slow burn romance but I don't feel like it delivered on that front.
Overall this felt like a very long prologue to a story and I was disappointed.
January 5, 2020
Truth time. I requested this one because the cover made me laugh so hard. Rhysand and an average beautiful girl in a beautiful gown, I had to read that.
This book is not that bad but its not even good. Tristan and Isolde? Lamely.
It's so senselessly complicated, there's insta love thrown at your face, the romance is boring, the whole narrative looks so much like an infinite prologue of facts, things and introduction that it's all I hate in a fantasy book and if I ever read again the word MATE I'll throw up but I appreciated the discussion around disability, the world building was so so bad but it still, the whole story is very atmospheric. I don't know, it's obviously not a read for me but I see plenty of readers been attracted by it and love it.
This book is not that bad but its not even good. Tristan and Isolde? Lamely.
It's so senselessly complicated, there's insta love thrown at your face, the romance is boring, the whole narrative looks so much like an infinite prologue of facts, things and introduction that it's all I hate in a fantasy book and if I ever read again the word MATE I'll throw up but I appreciated the discussion around disability, the world building was so so bad but it still, the whole story is very atmospheric. I don't know, it's obviously not a read for me but I see plenty of readers been attracted by it and love it.
May 20, 2020
I had high hopes for The Raven and the Dove as a Tristan and Isolde retelling, but there were just too many plot elements in too little time, making it feel both rushed and all over the place. The narrative just didn’t flow.
While the language itself was very eloquently written, but the worldbuilding was very lacking, which had the potential to be so much more if it was more explored.
On top of this, I didn’t really connect much to the characters, and it all just seemed too superficial.
While the language itself was very eloquently written, but the worldbuilding was very lacking, which had the potential to be so much more if it was more explored.
On top of this, I didn’t really connect much to the characters, and it all just seemed too superficial.
Want to read
November 15, 2019I better be reading this day it comes out or I will cry. It sounds so good!
March 15, 2020
I. Can’t. Even.
Thank god the sequel comes out in sept. I’ll be dying until then.
I can’t get over how much I loved this.
Thank god the sequel comes out in sept. I’ll be dying until then.
I can’t get over how much I loved this.
June 17, 2021
She was more than a princess.
She was a force.
If anyone could bring color to a house made of black, it was she. If anyone could return laughter to streets that had grown quiet from so much misfortune, it was she. If anyone could could erase the past and restore the future, it was she.
As soon as I saw that this was a retelling of Tristan and Isolde I knew that I both needed to read this right away but also that I would need to guard my poor lil heart while doing so. I don't know how many of you know the story of Tristan and Isolde, and while I have never read the actual tale, the movie that came out in the mid 2000s with James Franco and Sofia Myles was my favorite for a really long time. Call me a glutton for punishment but that is my most watched movie of all time. If you don't know anything about the pair, you might want to look up a synopsis before you dive into this to see what you might be getting yourself into.
On to the plot. This entire book was built upon an incredibly unique premise. Right away in the prologue, a King who is on a boat on a sea surrounded by mist feels a presence come into the world-- "she" he refers to her as. It's not clear who this "she" is exactly but before he dies from wounds he sustains from a dragon, he tells his only son, "Your queen is here" and then basically makes it sound like they are destined for each other and that their pairing will save the world. Since we don't know much of anything at this point, we also have no idea what problems this world even has to solve. I was sure intrigued, though.
Once we get into the actual book we learn that this is a fantasy world that features a bunch of floating...islands? I think they're islands anyway?? That make up different kingdoms that feature a different group of people who have wings of a specific breed of bird. Our main female character, Lyana (dove wings) is the princess of the House of Peace. Since their House is kind of the main one, the courtship trials which are held once in a generation are being held there.
On the morning before it all starts, Lyana and her best friend Cassi fly to a secret spot of theirs just to catch a peak of even the first of the other kingdoms to arrive. It turns out to be the Ravens. Somehow a dragon (which it seemed never usually made it up that high) shows up and one of the Ravens is engaged in battle. Long story short only the crown prince (Xander) and his bastard half brother (Rafe) which had planned on participating in the trials in place of his brother who is missing a hand were ahead of their group. Xander flies back for reinforcements and Rafe is left to try to take on the dragon. He sustains life-threatening injuries. Lyana saves him and they bond when they figure out they both have healing magic in a world where magic is seen is a horrible thing and people are usually killed for.
As you can imagine, things go to hell because as expected, Lyana goes through the entire trials things Rafe is the prince when really he is not and she wins up promised to Xander.
A few other pretty big things happen, too. We catch a few glimpses of that prince I mentioned from the prologue and there's a spy involved whose identity I never would have guessed and that person ends up in a very interesting predicament at the end of the book. Well, everyone does, really. To be honest, they're all in a pretty shitty place (which, again, since I knew the story of Tristan and Isolde it really didn't surprise me).
I'm just now seeing that this is a four book series which I am so happy about because I'm pretty sure this story is going to go to some pretty amazing places. The writing was incredible honestly. From the world-building to the characters, to the flow of everything in general--I was so impressed and am dying for that next book.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Kaitlyn Davis for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! ♥
She was a force.
If anyone could bring color to a house made of black, it was she. If anyone could return laughter to streets that had grown quiet from so much misfortune, it was she. If anyone could could erase the past and restore the future, it was she.
As soon as I saw that this was a retelling of Tristan and Isolde I knew that I both needed to read this right away but also that I would need to guard my poor lil heart while doing so. I don't know how many of you know the story of Tristan and Isolde, and while I have never read the actual tale, the movie that came out in the mid 2000s with James Franco and Sofia Myles was my favorite for a really long time. Call me a glutton for punishment but that is my most watched movie of all time. If you don't know anything about the pair, you might want to look up a synopsis before you dive into this to see what you might be getting yourself into.
On to the plot. This entire book was built upon an incredibly unique premise. Right away in the prologue, a King who is on a boat on a sea surrounded by mist feels a presence come into the world-- "she" he refers to her as. It's not clear who this "she" is exactly but before he dies from wounds he sustains from a dragon, he tells his only son, "Your queen is here" and then basically makes it sound like they are destined for each other and that their pairing will save the world. Since we don't know much of anything at this point, we also have no idea what problems this world even has to solve. I was sure intrigued, though.
Once we get into the actual book we learn that this is a fantasy world that features a bunch of floating...islands? I think they're islands anyway?? That make up different kingdoms that feature a different group of people who have wings of a specific breed of bird. Our main female character, Lyana (dove wings) is the princess of the House of Peace. Since their House is kind of the main one, the courtship trials which are held once in a generation are being held there.
On the morning before it all starts, Lyana and her best friend Cassi fly to a secret spot of theirs just to catch a peak of even the first of the other kingdoms to arrive. It turns out to be the Ravens. Somehow a dragon (which it seemed never usually made it up that high) shows up and one of the Ravens is engaged in battle. Long story short only the crown prince (Xander) and his bastard half brother (Rafe) which had planned on participating in the trials in place of his brother who is missing a hand were ahead of their group. Xander flies back for reinforcements and Rafe is left to try to take on the dragon. He sustains life-threatening injuries. Lyana saves him and they bond when they figure out they both have healing magic in a world where magic is seen is a horrible thing and people are usually killed for.
As you can imagine, things go to hell because as expected, Lyana goes through the entire trials things Rafe is the prince when really he is not and she wins up promised to Xander.
A few other pretty big things happen, too. We catch a few glimpses of that prince I mentioned from the prologue and there's a spy involved whose identity I never would have guessed and that person ends up in a very interesting predicament at the end of the book. Well, everyone does, really. To be honest, they're all in a pretty shitty place (which, again, since I knew the story of Tristan and Isolde it really didn't surprise me).
I'm just now seeing that this is a four book series which I am so happy about because I'm pretty sure this story is going to go to some pretty amazing places. The writing was incredible honestly. From the world-building to the characters, to the flow of everything in general--I was so impressed and am dying for that next book.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Kaitlyn Davis for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! ♥
January 22, 2020
(Thank you Kaitlyn, for a copy through Netgalley!)
Okaaaay, so I definitely wasn’t prepared to care about this book by the end, but holy crap, it was so GOOD. I care. And I definitely will be reading the rest of this series, no questions.
Basically different houses (different courts) come together and chose mates who will rule the different kingdoms through a showing of strength and other various tasks. After meeting each other under dangerous but memorable circumstances, Lyana is set out to chose the prince of the House of a Whispers during the ceremony. What she doesn’t realize is, her prince has is own secrets. He’s not the Prince, but the Princes bastard brother in disguise as him.
The characters were so well-crafted. Each had a distinct personality that was easily defined. Lyana craved her freedom and sought happiness which paved the way for a stubborn protagonist. I loved it. Rafe allowed grief to consume him, thus granting him the title of complete asshole. Cassi was led by duty and blinded by love. And Xander was....he was just the cinnamon roll.
Every single one had their own unique story in which I was interested. Whether it was a stubborn princess with a knack for trouble, a bastard born son who went the extra mile to stay out of the way, a soldier sworn to her king, or a boy trying to find the good in everyone around him, I was here for it. All of it.
The world building was quite interesting. Above, the people have wings and don’t possess magic. If they do, they’re killed for it. Below the mist, the people HAVE magic but have one wing or no wings, because they were shunned from above.
It’s funny because I didn’t actually care during those first one hundred pages of Lyana preparing to chose a mate. It wasn’t that it was poorly written, or boring, I just went in with the idea that it wouldn’t wow me. Kaitlyn, however, had different plans for me.
Let’s just go ahead and skip to that ending. (Spoilers)
Through the book, Cassi visits her King Malek who she reports to about Rafe and Lyana. By the time that wicked climax comes to pass, the King comes to the world above and he and Cassi cause quite a bit of trouble for Xander and Lyana during their ceremony. It ends with Rafe losing a wing and being what we assume-but-don’t-really-assume is killed, Xander being stabbed and revived, and Lyana being captured by King Malek who cuts her wing as well 😭.
It’s funny, this book did not seem capable of reaching such dark depths, but it DID. I thought it was too delicate of a book, but it wasn’t! My god was I slapped in the face with that ending. Loved it. Need more.
I do have one it’s-probably-just-me complaint though. The moment Rafe decides to play along with Lyana and actually be with her for one night. That was rushed. It felt super rushed. It’s a romance so give me those details to some degree! I get that we needed to get to Xander walking in on them, but like have one of them remember the night. Go back to it. Do something. I wanted more from their ONE romantic night together.
Okaaaay, so I definitely wasn’t prepared to care about this book by the end, but holy crap, it was so GOOD. I care. And I definitely will be reading the rest of this series, no questions.
Basically different houses (different courts) come together and chose mates who will rule the different kingdoms through a showing of strength and other various tasks. After meeting each other under dangerous but memorable circumstances, Lyana is set out to chose the prince of the House of a Whispers during the ceremony. What she doesn’t realize is, her prince has is own secrets. He’s not the Prince, but the Princes bastard brother in disguise as him.
The characters were so well-crafted. Each had a distinct personality that was easily defined. Lyana craved her freedom and sought happiness which paved the way for a stubborn protagonist. I loved it. Rafe allowed grief to consume him, thus granting him the title of complete asshole. Cassi was led by duty and blinded by love. And Xander was....he was just the cinnamon roll.
Every single one had their own unique story in which I was interested. Whether it was a stubborn princess with a knack for trouble, a bastard born son who went the extra mile to stay out of the way, a soldier sworn to her king, or a boy trying to find the good in everyone around him, I was here for it. All of it.
The world building was quite interesting. Above, the people have wings and don’t possess magic. If they do, they’re killed for it. Below the mist, the people HAVE magic but have one wing or no wings, because they were shunned from above.
It’s funny because I didn’t actually care during those first one hundred pages of Lyana preparing to chose a mate. It wasn’t that it was poorly written, or boring, I just went in with the idea that it wouldn’t wow me. Kaitlyn, however, had different plans for me.
Let’s just go ahead and skip to that ending. (Spoilers)
Through the book, Cassi visits her King Malek who she reports to about Rafe and Lyana. By the time that wicked climax comes to pass, the King comes to the world above and he and Cassi cause quite a bit of trouble for Xander and Lyana during their ceremony. It ends with Rafe losing a wing and being what we assume-but-don’t-really-assume is killed, Xander being stabbed and revived, and Lyana being captured by King Malek who cuts her wing as well 😭.
It’s funny, this book did not seem capable of reaching such dark depths, but it DID. I thought it was too delicate of a book, but it wasn’t! My god was I slapped in the face with that ending. Loved it. Need more.
I do have one it’s-probably-just-me complaint though. The moment Rafe decides to play along with Lyana and actually be with her for one night. That was rushed. It felt super rushed. It’s a romance so give me those details to some degree! I get that we needed to get to Xander walking in on them, but like have one of them remember the night. Go back to it. Do something. I wanted more from their ONE romantic night together.
May 17, 2020
2.5-3 stars
I'm sorry to say that this book didn't work for me like I wanted it to. It had all the promise and makings of a good YA fantasy but I knew early on that it wasn't 'biting' for me. THE RAVEN AND THE DOVE was a fantasy built around human/bird beings of different species. The characters were inviting in their description and there was nothing I particularly disliked about the main characters apart from Cassi (who made me smell a rat) and the sea king. Rafe, Xander and Lyana were interesting but not exciting.
My difficulties with this book, that left me in the dissatisfied/okay zone, related to a chaotic plot. I felt like many plot devices and story lines were mish-mashed into the story and I would have preferred a little less going on; it would still have had enough happening with a little less, if that makes sense. I hated the butchery of where the plot ended up and I don't honestly know how I feel about carrying on with the series.
I did like the descriptions of the physical geography of this world, the world above and below. There were dragons (just a little), magic, gods and deceit. I read this as a buddy read with Tilly Bookish Spoonie, so I do advise checking out her positive thoughts as a comparison to my experience.
Thank you to the author for the review copy through netgalley.
I'm sorry to say that this book didn't work for me like I wanted it to. It had all the promise and makings of a good YA fantasy but I knew early on that it wasn't 'biting' for me. THE RAVEN AND THE DOVE was a fantasy built around human/bird beings of different species. The characters were inviting in their description and there was nothing I particularly disliked about the main characters apart from Cassi (who made me smell a rat) and the sea king. Rafe, Xander and Lyana were interesting but not exciting.
My difficulties with this book, that left me in the dissatisfied/okay zone, related to a chaotic plot. I felt like many plot devices and story lines were mish-mashed into the story and I would have preferred a little less going on; it would still have had enough happening with a little less, if that makes sense. I hated the butchery of where the plot ended up and I don't honestly know how I feel about carrying on with the series.
I did like the descriptions of the physical geography of this world, the world above and below. There were dragons (just a little), magic, gods and deceit. I read this as a buddy read with Tilly Bookish Spoonie, so I do advise checking out her positive thoughts as a comparison to my experience.
Thank you to the author for the review copy through netgalley.
February 20, 2020
Magical beings, birds of prey, birds of peace, political marriages, a feisty heroine, two heroes to choose from and dragons! Kaitlyn Davis had me from the first page of THE RAVEN AND THE DOVE!!
A princess knows her time has come to choose her prince from the powerful houses of the land, but sh is determined to do things her way, resenting the lack of control she has over her life. Lyana did NOT expect to fall for the mysterious raven prince as she watched him battle to the death with a dragon. If she had to marry, it would be him. Little did she know he wasn’t who he claimed to be exactly, but she would discover how powerful brotherly love and a sacrifice made for that love was and the secret powers she shared with Rafe. But they could never be together, but would marrying Lysander, the gentle and bookish soul be so bad?
No one expected a treacherous betrayal or a claim from a young king from below who will stop at nothing to have Lyana.
Simply magical! A tale of love found, denied and the pain of duty over personal desires. Wonderful characters, each with distinct and vibrant personalities, a heart-wrenching betrayal and the beauty of a fantasy world that feels real! After this powerhouse of an opener, I can't wait for more in this series!
I received a complimentary ARC edition from Kaitlyn Davis! This is my honest and voluntary review.
Series: The Raven and the Dove - Book 1
Publication Date: March 9, 2020
Publisher: Kaitlyn Davis
Genre: YA Fantasy
Print Length: 506 pages
Available from: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews, Giveaways, Fabulous Book News, follow: http://tometender.blogspot.com
A princess knows her time has come to choose her prince from the powerful houses of the land, but sh is determined to do things her way, resenting the lack of control she has over her life. Lyana did NOT expect to fall for the mysterious raven prince as she watched him battle to the death with a dragon. If she had to marry, it would be him. Little did she know he wasn’t who he claimed to be exactly, but she would discover how powerful brotherly love and a sacrifice made for that love was and the secret powers she shared with Rafe. But they could never be together, but would marrying Lysander, the gentle and bookish soul be so bad?
No one expected a treacherous betrayal or a claim from a young king from below who will stop at nothing to have Lyana.
Simply magical! A tale of love found, denied and the pain of duty over personal desires. Wonderful characters, each with distinct and vibrant personalities, a heart-wrenching betrayal and the beauty of a fantasy world that feels real! After this powerhouse of an opener, I can't wait for more in this series!
I received a complimentary ARC edition from Kaitlyn Davis! This is my honest and voluntary review.
Series: The Raven and the Dove - Book 1
Publication Date: March 9, 2020
Publisher: Kaitlyn Davis
Genre: YA Fantasy
Print Length: 506 pages
Available from: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews, Giveaways, Fabulous Book News, follow: http://tometender.blogspot.com
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