A breathtaking romantic fantasy inspired by Beauty and the Beast about a girl who paints the future and a cursed dragon lord, bound by love and deception in a plot to bring down the gods.
From the New York Times bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes!
Truyan Saigas didn’t choose to become a con artist, but after her father is lost at sea, it’s up to her to support her mother and two younger sisters. A gifted art forger, Tru has the unique ability to paint the future, but even such magic is not enough to put her family back together again, or stave off the gangsters demanding payment in blood for her mother’s gambling debts.
Left with few options, Tru agrees to a marriage contract with a mysterious dragon lord. He offers a fresh start for her mother and sisters and elusive answers about her father’s disappearance, but in exchange, she must join him in his desolate undersea palace. And she must assist him in a plot to infiltrate the tyrannical Dragon King’s inner circle, painting a future so treasonous, it could upend both the mortal and immortal realms. . . .
**A Forgery of Fatecomes out June 3, 2025**
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for this copy in exchange for an honest review.
I haven’t read Six Crimson Cranes, but reading this synopsis, I knew I had to read this. I love any myth retelling, and fairytale retellings are a close second. Retellings are always a great chance to show off an author’s creativity, since the original story (or stories) have some level of restrictions before it’s not even close to the same story anymore. I have always enjoyed the same story from a different perspective, or a “side story” that is fully explored. I really enjoy the elements that the authors put in that makes you immediately think of the original story, and I definitely chase that feeling in these kinds of books.
And this book does not fail to deliver. Advertised as a Beauty and the Beast retelling, the author also puts in that there are many other elements of other stories that she weaves in, and I completely believe it. Every aspect of this story feels like a myth or a story from somewhere, and I really enjoyed that whimsical feeling. The protagonist was also a strong lead, and it didn’t feel like she was left to the whims of the story, but that rather she drove her own story—something you don’t find in most fairytales.
A glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.
At sixteen, Honora “Nora” Holtzfall is the daughter of the most powerful heiress in all of Walstad. Her family controls all the money–and all the magic–in the entire country. But despite being the center of attention, Nora has always felt like an outsider. When her mother is found dead in an alley, the family throne and fortune are suddenly up for grabs, and Nora will be pitted against her cousins in the Veritaz, the ultimate magical competition for power that determines the one family heir.
But there’s a surprise contestant this time: Lotte, the illegitimate daughter of Nora’s aunt. When Lotte’s absent mother retrieves her from the rural convent she’d abandoned her to, Lotte goes from being an orphan to surrounded by family. Unfortunately, most of them want her dead.
And soon, Nora discovers that her mother’s death wasn’t random–it was murder. And the only person she can trust to uncover the truth of what happened is a rakish young reporter who despises everything Nora and her family stand for.
With everyone against her, Lotte’s last hope is hunting for the identity of her father. But the dangerous competition–and her feelings for Theo, one of the Holtzfalls’ sworn protectors–turns her world upside down.
**The Notorious Virtues comes out April 1, 2025**
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for this copy in exchange for an honest review
Family trials. Cousin against cousin. Social unrest in a society built on crushing the lower classes even further down. Magic only the elite could access. The scary woods filled with the stuff in legends and nightmares.
This book has it all, and while the tropes are by far from unique, the way Alwyn Hamilton weaves the story together really makes every piece come alive. I was astonished at how much I liked this book while reading it as I feel I’ve gotten more jaded with time in my reading.
Built on 4 POVs that bring to life very different perspectives, we the reader can see this world from all angles.
Nora, the heiress apparent until she no longer was with the death (murder?) of her mother, the next heir in line
Lotte, the long lost cousin and descendant of the Holtzfalls, who grew up being abused at a convent in a small town away from the city her family rules
August, the newspaper journalist seeking after the truth, or at least the next big thing to get his paycheck in a city that keeps oppressing individuals like him
Theo, the knight bound by oath from his ancestor to protect the Holtzfalls with his life, though perhaps they don’t always deserve it
I felt the pacing and tension for the next plot piece was the perfect amount. Who doesn’t love a family competition for inheritance? From Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ Inheritance Games to Kayvion Lewis’ debut series, it’s definitely a trope that draws us in. I will say that the games were not solely the focus of the book, so you are forewarned if that is what you’re hoping it would be. While the trials they face are present, it’s time on page is less often than expected. The true highlight of the book comes in figuring out the mystery behind Nora’s mother’s death.
The lore crafted behind the rise of the Holtzfalls and the purpose of the Veritaz trials was well developed. Everything has a purpose and everything is more linked than one may expect. The integration into the same world of Hamilton’s other series is also probably a huge luring factor to this book, although I haven’t read it yet. It definitely takes careful planning to draw out a world that fits with an existing story but also add new details for this part of the continent. I loved the piecemeal way we got to see how this skewed society came to be and where the Holtzfalls lost their way somehow from what it once should have been.
Beyond the plot points, the characters equally drew me in. While I definitely favoured August and Nora’s POVs, the perspectives they all provided were supremely helpful in adding individual stakes in the overall game. The unlikely alliance between a lowly reporter and the heiress was always fun to see, and their witty banter was absolutely perfection. I’m a little less enthused with the romantic turn Theo and Lotte were headed towards, but if you enjoy the damsel in distress feel, then it works well enough. The biggest character development though comes from Lotte and Nora’s growth together as they figure out what it means to be an actual virtuous individual who doesn’t just look out for themselves or their rich buddies they control. I enjoyed the progression in their characters, especially as they’re competitors for the same ultimate prize.
The ending was also not what I expected and leaves the door wide open for what may come next in the series. I love that the author enjoys shaking things up and possibly having a different story arc in each book. The overall murder and family trials definitely wraps up in book one so it’s not that kind of cliffhanger, but the tidbit of what awaits in the next book has me almost wishing I didn’t read this book so early. Whenever book two comes out, it’ll be worth the wait if it’s anything like its predecessor.
Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after.
Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle. But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out . . . but first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts.
Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test in A Curse for True Love, the breathlessly anticipated conclusion to the Once Upon A Broken Heart trilogy.
And finally we have it, the finale (see what I did there) of the Once Upon a Broken Heart series, the cousin of the Caraval series, coming to an end. As you can probably already tell by my rating, I was just a little bit disappointed how it all came to an end. I wish there was more explained, and in general the last book was a lot shorter than I thought it would be, for a book that would end a trilogy.
A Curse for True Love is the final part of the trilogy revolving around essentially what is the love story of Evangeline Fox, as she is torn between a real-life fairytale prince, or the feelings she gets whenever she sees Jacks, even though she remembers nothing about him. If she has always wanted her fairytale ending, why does her happily ever after seem like it’s not quite enough? And in that case, what is it that she’s forgotten but perhaps actually wants?
Down the Rabbit Hole 