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Fables & Other Lies
by
Do you believe in curses?
I never did.
Not until that fated night, six years ago, when I sat in The Devil’s Chair and made a wish.
Not until it came true.
Not until I met River Caliban himself, heir to a fortune of curses. My fated sworn enemy.
I knew I should have stayed away from him. I should have run the other way when he called out my name, when he flashed that sinful s ...more
I never did.
Not until that fated night, six years ago, when I sat in The Devil’s Chair and made a wish.
Not until it came true.
Not until I met River Caliban himself, heir to a fortune of curses. My fated sworn enemy.
I knew I should have stayed away from him. I should have run the other way when he called out my name, when he flashed that sinful s ...more
Kindle Edition, 224 pages
Published
December 20th 2020
by The Wicked Pen
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as a ghost story, this is everything i wanted
‘mexican gothic’
to be. its creepy, its spooky, and there are actual ghosts with a really interesting plot line. its a really good gothic story.
as a romance, this is kinda lame. there really isnt any romance, at least not until the end. i have no problem with a slow burn, but when you have a short story, such as this, slow burns work against you.
i think if this had been longer, there could have been more development and the balance between the tw ...more
as a romance, this is kinda lame. there really isnt any romance, at least not until the end. i have no problem with a slow burn, but when you have a short story, such as this, slow burns work against you.
i think if this had been longer, there could have been more development and the balance between the tw ...more
Dec 02, 2020
Chelsea Humphrey
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
from-publisher,
bookstagram-made-me-do-it
"The most powerful man on the island, the most sought after, the most mysterious, the one I was told to never, ever, summon by name, was holding out his hand for me. I set my hand over his and he held it gently as he watched me. I left it there, ignoring the shiver that slithered down my spine. Wela was going to disown me for this. I felt that warning in the pit of my stomach, and it was only then that I pulled my hand from his."
If you aren't familiar with Claire Contreras, you should know that ...more
If you aren't familiar with Claire Contreras, you should know that ...more
4 stars
Penelope Guzman has been away from her home for years and never ...more
“The moment you came back to the island, you sealed your fate.”With Claire Contreras books, I’ve learned to expect the unexpected. One of my favorite things about reading her stories is that she writes outside of the box. This is not your typical romance- in fact, I’m not sure if I’ve read anything quite like it before. A gothic romance with just a touch of paranormal, it was a book I didn’t want to put down.
Penelope Guzman has been away from her home for years and never ...more
3.5 STARS
The second I heard Claire will be releasing a gothic romance, I was gagging for it. I love a unique and twisty read, and this one certainly delivered in spades.
Admittedly, it did take me quite a bit to get into it fully but that likely has more to do with my blah mood lately than anything else. I have the attention span of a gnat. It's ridiculous. But I digress.
Fables & Other Lies is a story full of secrets, reven ...more
The moment you came back to the island, you sealed your fate.
The second I heard Claire will be releasing a gothic romance, I was gagging for it. I love a unique and twisty read, and this one certainly delivered in spades.
Admittedly, it did take me quite a bit to get into it fully but that likely has more to do with my blah mood lately than anything else. I have the attention span of a gnat. It's ridiculous. But I digress.
Fables & Other Lies is a story full of secrets, reven ...more
So... I sit down to read this book, right? I have NO IDEA what I’m getting into. Admittedly, I haven’t read the blurb. All I know is it’s a “gothic” romance. And I don’t know what a “gothic” romance is 😂 but I’m curious. Very curious. So I’m reading this book and my heart is going wild! Because OMFGGGGGGGG! WHAT EVEN IS THIS STORY!?!?! I. WAS. SPEECHLESS! BREATHLESS. Like jaw dropped on the floor, heart in my throat, eyes wide, edge-of-my-seat, just utterly captivated! I love a unique romance an
...more
Fables & Other Lies was one of those books I didn’t want to put down but also didn’t want it to end. I loved how unique this book was. There was history and Domincan culture thrown into an interesting story. Penelope doesn’t believe in curses or magic but ends up questioning this throughout the book. Fables & folklore is a subject I find interesting but don’t read a lot of. This was perfect for 2020 to get take a break from reality. There are so many facets to this book that it’s hard to express
...more
***AVAILABLE NOW***
5 CURSED CROWNS
Fables & Other Lies is NOTHING like Claire has written before. Mysterious and utterly captivating, it is a magnificent story that intertwines the traditional aspects of a gothic storytelling with a contemporary romance novel!
I honestly don’t even know what to say about this story. The plot line is completely original, filled to the brim with interesting characters, local folklore, a rich culture of a fictional island, and heaps of romance.
The characters are int ...more
5 CURSED CROWNS
Fables & Other Lies is NOTHING like Claire has written before. Mysterious and utterly captivating, it is a magnificent story that intertwines the traditional aspects of a gothic storytelling with a contemporary romance novel!
I honestly don’t even know what to say about this story. The plot line is completely original, filled to the brim with interesting characters, local folklore, a rich culture of a fictional island, and heaps of romance.
The characters are int ...more
4 Stars!
(ARC provided by author)
Penelope returns to the island she grew up on after being gone a while. It's filled with history, traditions, legends, folklore, and family rivalries. She'd been warned against the Caliban's her entire life, but didn't believe in the myths about curses. She never understood the feud between their families, but was forced long ago to accept they were sworn enemies. When she crosses paths with the handsome, seductive, arrogant River Caliban, she knows she should ...more
(ARC provided by author)
Penelope returns to the island she grew up on after being gone a while. It's filled with history, traditions, legends, folklore, and family rivalries. She'd been warned against the Caliban's her entire life, but didn't believe in the myths about curses. She never understood the feud between their families, but was forced long ago to accept they were sworn enemies. When she crosses paths with the handsome, seductive, arrogant River Caliban, she knows she should ...more
The first 30% of the story was confusing, up to 40% I couldn’t be invested in the plot or connect with the characters and dnf it.
This was a very unique gothic style read with a heartwarming romance thrown in. I love a read that keeps me guessing, and I definitely had a ton of questions the whole way through. My only complaint was that for the first 70% the pacing of the story was slow. It’s weird though, because even though it was slow going, I wasn’t necessarily bored!🤷♀️
This is a story about a curse that involves two families..there is a bit of paranormal aspects thrown in.. not like vampires or anything; but psychics, ...more
This is a story about a curse that involves two families..there is a bit of paranormal aspects thrown in.. not like vampires or anything; but psychics, ...more
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**
- 3.5 stars -
I haven't read many Gothic Romances, but in general I love stories that are mysterious and you don't know what to expect. We are thrown into the story right from the start and I was a bit confused but very curious to see which direction the story would go. I was intrigued by the characters and their family history. I was hooked to the story but it was just too short for me to fully believe in the connection between the two main charac ...more
- 3.5 stars -
I haven't read many Gothic Romances, but in general I love stories that are mysterious and you don't know what to expect. We are thrown into the story right from the start and I was a bit confused but very curious to see which direction the story would go. I was intrigued by the characters and their family history. I was hooked to the story but it was just too short for me to fully believe in the connection between the two main charac ...more
Fables & Other Lies captures the quintessential mysterious, disconcerting atmosphere of a true gothic romance. Between the unique characters and the heady setting of Pan Island, this book is unlike anything else I've read this year. Claire Contreras proves once more that she can write in any genre with style and authenticity. A must read for gothic romance lovers!
...more
December 21, 2020! <3
4.25 Stars
Definitely a book that's written outside of the box with tons of twists and turns...What is the curse? Who started it? Who really is River?
I couldn't put this down when I started because I just had to know all of the answers.
The only negative things about this book of Penny and River is it took a while to get into it and I felt that there wasn't enough of the backstory to really understand. Once getting past the 50% mark though...things started coming together and making sense. But I ...more
Definitely a book that's written outside of the box with tons of twists and turns...What is the curse? Who started it? Who really is River?
I couldn't put this down when I started because I just had to know all of the answers.
The only negative things about this book of Penny and River is it took a while to get into it and I felt that there wasn't enough of the backstory to really understand. Once getting past the 50% mark though...things started coming together and making sense. But I ...more
I can honestly say it's unlike anything I've ever read!
...more
FIVE ORIGINAL STARS for Penelope and River ❤🖤❤🖤!!!
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
WOW!
THIS BOOK LEFT ME SPEECHLESS!
Although this is only the second book that I've read by Claire yet, after reading "Twisted Circles" which completely fascinated me, I developed high expectations for her future books.
And with this book, Claire fulfilled my expectations!
Her writing style is unique and recognizable because of the way she builds an intriguing storyline whose main thought isn't only a love story but tradition and folklore imbued ...more
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
WOW!
THIS BOOK LEFT ME SPEECHLESS!
Although this is only the second book that I've read by Claire yet, after reading "Twisted Circles" which completely fascinated me, I developed high expectations for her future books.
And with this book, Claire fulfilled my expectations!
Her writing style is unique and recognizable because of the way she builds an intriguing storyline whose main thought isn't only a love story but tradition and folklore imbued ...more
I just didn’t like this book... it was hard for me to connect with the story, there was too much rambling and I felt like there were missing pieces.
I had to re-read some pages because I didn’t know what they were talking about.
Didn’t feel the connection between H and h.
Everything was rushed.
Still can’t understand what the curse was about 🤷🏼♀️
I don’t know if it was that I am in a dumb mood or that this type of books are not for me.
I had to re-read some pages because I didn’t know what they were talking about.
Didn’t feel the connection between H and h.
Everything was rushed.
Still can’t understand what the curse was about 🤷🏼♀️
I don’t know if it was that I am in a dumb mood or that this type of books are not for me.
I honestly had no idea what to expect when Claire mentioned gothic romance for her next release, I still have no idea what that all entails. But I sure did enjoy the heck out of this one. Yes, there's romance and it was probably the one thing I wish there was more of, but I really reallllllyyyyyy loved the folklore aspect to this book.
The intrigue, the mystery and the feeling that you must keep reading to figure out what's going on. Not going to lie, I thought there'd be moments that I'd get spo ...more
The intrigue, the mystery and the feeling that you must keep reading to figure out what's going on. Not going to lie, I thought there'd be moments that I'd get spo ...more
➳ Rate: 5/ 5 stars
Wow! I had no idea what I was in for with this one. I went in completely blind and I do not regret that for a sec. It was incredible. So interesting and different. The gothic vibes, the mystery, the magic... just splendid!
Penelope and River will have you falling in love with their romance and everything that surrounds their families and town. And wow what a romance it was. So beautiful. That ending had me all kinds of giddy and emotional.
I'm not gonna go into details so I don't ...more
Wow! I had no idea what I was in for with this one. I went in completely blind and I do not regret that for a sec. It was incredible. So interesting and different. The gothic vibes, the mystery, the magic... just splendid!
Penelope and River will have you falling in love with their romance and everything that surrounds their families and town. And wow what a romance it was. So beautiful. That ending had me all kinds of giddy and emotional.
I'm not gonna go into details so I don't ...more
I'm at a lost on how to rate this book. There's no denying that the writing was good, but I just couldn't get into the gothic romance elements of the story. I felt things were left unresolved
...more
I wasn't really sure about this. I don't like paranormal stuff.
But this wasn't bad at all.
First of all ... the cover! Beautiful!
And the story. It's set on a small Dom-Rep Island.
I've never read anything about that place before in a romance. I don't really like that 'area' all that much because of all the fables and the whole witchy magic stuff the Island people seem to believe in.
BUT - this story was cute. It was interesting and mysterious and a bit silly and exciting and dangerous and heartbr ...more
But this wasn't bad at all.
First of all ... the cover! Beautiful!
And the story. It's set on a small Dom-Rep Island.
I've never read anything about that place before in a romance. I don't really like that 'area' all that much because of all the fables and the whole witchy magic stuff the Island people seem to believe in.
BUT - this story was cute. It was interesting and mysterious and a bit silly and exciting and dangerous and heartbr ...more
Fables & Other Lies was another fantastic story from Claire Contreras. I loved the feel of this story and how it felt like another world. Pan was an amazing place that I could not get enough of. I was compelled to read this book without stopping and was addicted to every word!
More than anything I loved how the story almost felt like a secret that was whispered in your ear or passed down from generation to generation. It had an other-worldly feel filled to the brim with haunting memories, love, f ...more
More than anything I loved how the story almost felt like a secret that was whispered in your ear or passed down from generation to generation. It had an other-worldly feel filled to the brim with haunting memories, love, f ...more
Riveting Storytelling! Lose yourself on Dolos and Pan Island. Legends and fables will come to life. This was a beautiful story about a deadly curse and the power of true love.
A tale that was refreshingly new and captivating at the same time. I went in completely blind, with zero expectations, and I read it in one sitting. I WAS TOTALLY HOOKED. So much love for River and Penny's story. It was dark at times, yet beautiful and unputdownable.
My suggestion would be to just click and read. I loved eve ...more
A tale that was refreshingly new and captivating at the same time. I went in completely blind, with zero expectations, and I read it in one sitting. I WAS TOTALLY HOOKED. So much love for River and Penny's story. It was dark at times, yet beautiful and unputdownable.
My suggestion would be to just click and read. I loved eve ...more
First off I just really need to compliment Claire and tell her that I am so super impressed with her story-telling ability with this book. What a great story! Fables and Other Lies was yet another book of Claire's that I just knew was different for her to write, but she killed it. Something that I wouldn't typically pick up, but since I have complete trust in Claire-- I knew it would be good.
I feel like the more and more that Claire branches out in the writing genre game, she really grows so mu ...more
I feel like the more and more that Claire branches out in the writing genre game, she really grows so mu ...more
3.5 Stars
This held my interest but I felt that I was in a perpetual fog that never cleared. I was hoping for a great aha twist that made the story all come together. The fog lingered.
I'm not a reader that needs a nice tidy ending but I do want to feel satisfied. When a story is murky and poses far more questions than answers, the ending needs to make the journey getting there worth while. I'm not sure this did.
The premise and the story were interesting, the execution didn't quite do it justice. ...more
This held my interest but I felt that I was in a perpetual fog that never cleared. I was hoping for a great aha twist that made the story all come together. The fog lingered.
I'm not a reader that needs a nice tidy ending but I do want to feel satisfied. When a story is murky and poses far more questions than answers, the ending needs to make the journey getting there worth while. I'm not sure this did.
The premise and the story were interesting, the execution didn't quite do it justice. ...more
„What will you do when you learn that everything you thought you knew was a lie?”
For two days I’ve been trying to collect my thoughts and write something meaningful... It’s not often that the story I read makes me speechless and completely stunned, but Claire Contreras just did that. I’ve never read a book like Fables & Other Lies. This novel is like a modern fairy tale, filled to the brim with sorcery, folktales and a beautiful love story that will make your head spin and then steal your he ...more
For two days I’ve been trying to collect my thoughts and write something meaningful... It’s not often that the story I read makes me speechless and completely stunned, but Claire Contreras just did that. I’ve never read a book like Fables & Other Lies. This novel is like a modern fairy tale, filled to the brim with sorcery, folktales and a beautiful love story that will make your head spin and then steal your he ...more
Fables & Other Lies puts Claire in a new sphere of writing for me.
She’s a Renaissance woman of an author that genres and limits cannot conquer. From romance, to sports, to dark, to heart-wrenching and now to a gothic romance story that will literally keep you guessing from page one through the epilogue. Her growth and talent as a writer and story teller knows no bounds.
In the vein of Wuthering Heights and Rebecca, F&OL tells a dark and mysterious love story; that leaps from the pages into a mo ...more
She’s a Renaissance woman of an author that genres and limits cannot conquer. From romance, to sports, to dark, to heart-wrenching and now to a gothic romance story that will literally keep you guessing from page one through the epilogue. Her growth and talent as a writer and story teller knows no bounds.
In the vein of Wuthering Heights and Rebecca, F&OL tells a dark and mysterious love story; that leaps from the pages into a mo ...more
What did I just read?? Y’all, I am speechless.
This book truly deserves way more than 5 stars!!
I read Fables & Other Lies by Claire Contreras and this is HANDS DOWN MY FAVORITE BOOK OF HERS!!!!
Omg the suspense had me on the edge of my seat. I felt like I did when watching The Haunting, I didn’t know what to expect, I just wanted answers. This is something so different from what she usually writes but wow... I was on the edge of my seat unable to put this book down for even a second.
EVERYTHING ...more
This book truly deserves way more than 5 stars!!
I read Fables & Other Lies by Claire Contreras and this is HANDS DOWN MY FAVORITE BOOK OF HERS!!!!
Omg the suspense had me on the edge of my seat. I felt like I did when watching The Haunting, I didn’t know what to expect, I just wanted answers. This is something so different from what she usually writes but wow... I was on the edge of my seat unable to put this book down for even a second.
EVERYTHING ...more
Have you ever sat on a review for a bit because you feel like anything you will say won't do the book justice? Well, here I am, about week later and I still have no words. Trust me when I say, you haven’t read anything like this from Claire Contreras before. It's like a fairy tale done in the dark. It's mystical. It's magical. It's romantic. It's mysterious. And it's simply breathtaking.
Penelope Guzman has returned to her island home because of an unexpected death in her family and finds hersel ...more
Penelope Guzman has returned to her island home because of an unexpected death in her family and finds hersel ...more
This is the second gothic romance I’ve ever read and I can safely say I am huge fan of this genre! I loved the feel of this book. Claire created a whole atmosphere that carried throughout the story. The fog that swirled around the island and settled over the manor felt like a character all of its own.
Once again, I fell hard for the female lead. Claire always creates strong female characters that I immediately connect with. Despite all of the heartbreak she lived through, Penny was still strong ...more
Once again, I fell hard for the female lead. Claire always creates strong female characters that I immediately connect with. Despite all of the heartbreak she lived through, Penny was still strong ...more
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Claire Contreras is a New York Times Best Selling Author who traded her psychology degree to write fiction. Don’t worry, she still uses her knowledge on every single one of her characters.
She’s a breast cancer survivor (x2), who was born in the Dominican Republic, raised in Florida, and currently resides in Charlotte, NC with her husband, two adorable boys, and French bulldog.
Her books range fro ...more
She’s a breast cancer survivor (x2), who was born in the Dominican Republic, raised in Florida, and currently resides in Charlotte, NC with her husband, two adorable boys, and French bulldog.
Her books range fro ...more
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“Mostly I think the Guzmans didn’t want the Calibans moving in on their land. The Guzmans were here first. They founded Pan Island.”
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“Your love sustained me and made up for a lifetime of loneliness,” he said. “I’ll love you for eternity.”
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Jan 10, 2021 02:31PM