Hey all, Sam here.
Yes, the reviews just keep coming. I guess that’s what happens when it’s only April and I’ve already read 44 books this year…plus there were all the books I read in the last few months of the year last year that I didn’t talk about here. So, I’m working on catching up a bit. It’s going to take time, especially if I keep reading at a decent pace.
For today’s book review, I’m talking about a book I devoured last fall (and the review for book two in the series is coming this month as well, because I have read that one as well….and book three is out at the end of the month.
I have made it a goal for myself to read more and support more indie authors, and so far I am doing a pretty decent job of it overall. Yes, I am still reading plenty of traditionally published books (mostly thanks to NetGalley, the library, and a few pre-orders), but most of my book buying budget is currently going towards buying indie books and supporting indie author Kickstarters…so hopefully I’ll be posting loads more indie reviews from here on out. You can even see photos of some of my book hauls and indie book features by checking out my Instagram (@SamRushingBooks).
All right…let’s go ahead and get started with today’s review.
A heartwarming, feel-good fantasy romance…with a helping of spice and only a pinch of danger.
Trapped in a tower by the emperor who conquered her homeland, Daella yearns for an escape. But as one of the few half-orcs left in the world, she knows she’ll never be free, much less find her own happily ever after.
Destiny takes an unexpected turn when the emperor offers her a deal. To earn her freedom, she must journey to the mysterious Isles of Fable and track down wielders of outlawed dragon magic. Eager to seize her chance, Daella agrees.
When a brutal storm tosses her ship off course, she washes up on the wrong island—right at the feet of Rivelin, a gruff but handsome elven blacksmith, who seems more likely to stab her than help her. To her surprise, he offers her shelter until the next ship passes through in six weeks’ time.
Daella soon realizes he’s hiding something big. It could be the very magic she’s been tasked to hunt down—the key to her long-awaited freedom. But as they bicker over the flames of his forge, her heart kindles with something she’s never felt before.
When his secrets finally come to light, Daella must decide what’s more her freedom from the wicked crown or the desires of her heart.
Forged by Magic is a complete, stand-alone fantasy romance novel set in the whimsical world of Falling for Fables.
My Thoughts
Rating: 4 stars
If you’ve been around here for a little while and haven’t yet realized it…I’m really enjoying books that are a little more cozy fantasy or cozy romantasy. Don’t get me wrong: I love a good high-stakes fantasy adventure story, but I’m definitely in a cozy hermit era for my life, and sometimes the world just feels so stressful and I just need a lighter escape, something where the stakes are much lower and I know things are going to work out.
Enter books like this one, which does have vibes and stakes similar to reads like Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree (which I somehow never reviewed on here. Wow. I guess I’m going to do a re-read and then review it) or Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne (review coming for that one probably towards the end of April).
Books that have more of a cozy fantasy feel to them, at least to me, feel like they are more hopeful, and yes, they do feel cozier as well. There’s food and friendship and found family. Sure, there might be some evil lurking on the outskirts that might be a problem later in the book, but everything will be okay.
For Forged By Magic, there was a sense of coziness and finding a place where you belong, but there was also this underlying romantic tension and steaminess between the two main characters. In some regards this installment of the series had some elements working against it…like needing to establish the world and the lore and some important past events that have affected the present. Book two could just dive in with the new viewpoint characters and hook us with the story.
I enjoyed both Daella and Rivelin. Honestly I’m a sucker for a buff elf, especially one who feels a need to protect his home community. And obviously this first book introduces us to a whole cast of characters here in the Isles of Fable…and I already hope this is going to be a long series of interconnected stories, because I can see a number of side characters who I’d like to see more of. The second book, Brewed in Magic, follows Rivelin’s sister, who we meet in this one.
Plus, the more books we get, the more we get to explore the world and the lore…and I’m a sucker for a world rich in lore and worldbuilding detail. I read Forged by Magic very quickly, and progressed it from series to read after borrowing on KU to series I must own so I can have it on the shelves of my library.
The third installment, Mined in Magic, is set to be released April 30th, and I already have plans to binge it as soon as it arrives on my Kindle…because yes, I didn’t want to wait for my paperback copy to ship, so I pre-ordered the ebook and will snag the paperback later as well.
Give me more adventure, more magic, more romance, more great stories that whisk me away from the real world for a few hours. I want to read them all.
All right. That is all from me for today. Thank you so much for stopping by, and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.
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