Maggie Blackbird

Today, I’m hosting author Rosayln Bria’s latest release Her Dark Enchanments, a dark fantasy romance, fairytale retelling.  Be sure to read my review.  Don’t forget to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway.  And check out the pre-order contest.

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Title: Her Dark Enchantments
Series: N/A
Author: Rosalyn Briar
Genre: Dark Fantasy Romance, Fairytale Retelling

The Wicked Fairy. The Mistress of All Evil. The villain of Sleeping Beauty goes by many names, but where did she come from?

Blurb: Myravelle Spinner grew up in a tower with only spiders, spindles, and stone walls for friends while her mother spun gold for the king. She wondered why her mother refused to teach her fairy magic until one fateful mistake led Myravelle to become the healer in the king’s Sleepy Wood Company.

Drained from years of waking soldiers from a cursed sleep, Myravelle must now choose a new canvas–a man whose life she drains with a dagger to fuel her healing powers. A ritual binds her to Byzarien Dumont, who loathes fairies for the fires that left his family impoverished and his body riddled with scars. His burning hatred causes Myravelle’s enchantments to wilt, leading the king to threaten her mother’s life.

Byzarien can only see Myravelle as a beautiful spider who strings men along her web, while Myravelle considers love a weakness for the king to exploit. With their families in danger and soldiers rotting in a death-like sleep, the pair must learn to trust one another before the dark magic spinning in Myravelle’s soul unravels once and for all.

The Wicked Fairy never asked to become a monster…

Sharp and sexy, Her Dark Enchantments is a deliciously dark romance that will plunge you deep into the fairy woods, proving every villain is the hero of their own story. Majestic with her blades and blood magic, Myravelle is the goth queen I would be proud to serve. Lyrical and richly atmospheric, if you love underdog heroes and sensual slow burns, look no further for your next favourite read.—Lily Rooke, author of The Dying Light

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Purchase at:

Amazon | Apple | Kobo | Smashwords | Quill&Crow Publishing | Books2Read

**PreOrder Her Dark Enchantments and you can enter for a chance to win lots of goodies from the author!**

Everyone who enters the giveaway will receive digital copies of both Her Dark & Enchanting Poetry and Her Dark & Enchanting Spellbook. These are lovely companion pieces to the novel.

Head to the author’s website with proof of preorder and ENTER HERE!

Near the ritual’s end, she hesitated. Loneliness clawed into her bones like the cold, and she missed her mother more than ever. So, Myravelle did a foolish thing. She slipped sweet pea into the burning cauldron, hoping to attract a lover and a friend: a soul mate.

She bent over the pot and allowed her ragged whispers to set the embers aglow, spells turning the dried ingredients into flames. A pillar of aromatic smoke rose into the air, where it mingled with the ever-cloudy sky, and she gripped the cold hilt of her dagger. As she lifted it to the sky, her magic grew inside, strong and true. Cool, flowing rushes streamed through her veins, all the while boiling currents burned from her heart to collide with a force that made her wail in agony.

She dropped her dagger onto the table and rested her palms against the smooth, worn wood. The pain in her chest spun itself tightly around her heart and tugged outward, connecting to where or to whom she did not know. Why did it hurt her so? Had she performed the ritual too many times? Had she asked for too much by adding the sweet pea? She blinked away the tears swirling her vision and met the captain’s glare.

Shaking, Myravelle raised the dagger to her palm, where there was a scar in the shape of an ancient rune. This one, a simple circle with a straight line connecting two stars. She had never learned what any of the symbols meant—her mother had never taught her about the fairy enchantments. Nevertheless, Myravelle could see them glowing in her mind when she needed them. It was that raw, untrained magic that had frightened Xylina the most.

With the tip of the dagger, she traced the rune at the center of her palm. The scarred skin broke open with such deep pain, Myravelle gasped. When the shape was complete, she placed her palm face-down above the cauldron, letting the smoke seep into the wound. She made a fist, digging her fingers into the open flesh, and dripped the precious rubies of her blood into the cauldron.

It bubbled and sizzled against the coal with a coppery scent, and a fresh burst of smoke rose into the sky, crackling with silver and gold sparks. Myravelle’s mouth ran dry, and her legs wobbled. She leaned against the table to gaze up at the smoke, while her eyesight betrayed her, wisps of darkness hovering along the edges.

The cloud of smoke and sparks swirled high above the field as the soldiers watched with wide eyes. Bursts of tiny explosions made the smoke grow brighter, like a galaxy of stars. She grew even weaker as the magic churned and spelled the name of her new canvas.

Sparkling letters began to take shape as they burned against the dark sky. They always started randomly: backward, upside-down, and out of order. Then, twisting and twirling the golden letters became clearer and organized themselves into a legible name…

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It’s very rare when I venture into the world of fantasy, and even rarer when I read and review a fairy tale retelling, but having had success with one retelling, and because the blurb was so intriguing, I decided to give this book a read.

The blurb says it all so I’ll get straight to the review.  First off, the worldbuilding is incredible.  I don’t mean just the setting, but the magic, the characters, the people in power, etc.  The author is very creative and I was impressed with the new place she brought me to.  It was part Rapunzel, part Rumplestiltskin, and of course a huge part of Sleeping Beauty.  Think of it as a prequel to Sleeping Beauty, before the princess is born and put deep into her sleep.

Also, this is not a romance.  Is it a love story?  In many respects, yes.  It has to be, because if not, we wouldn’t witness how Sleeping Beauty came to be.  The star of the novel, Myravelle Spinner, is shunned by all in the kingdom and accused of being a witch.  But inside Myravelle’s heart is pure loveliness and the desire to be loved, since she has much love to give to someone.  Being forced to use humans as canvases to create magic for the king has tired her soul since every “canvas” ends in death.  But she has no choice because disobeying the king means the death of her mother.

I loved this setup because she is already beginning to feel defeated.  She’s tired.  She’s lost two very important people (I won’t say who or I’ll get into spoiler territory).  Nobody likes her.  Many even fear her.  She is the lowest of the low.  So imagine her surprise when Byzarien Dumont, a soldier in the king’s army, is chosen as her new canvas.

Of course, Byzarien hates Myravelle.  I won’t state for what reasons, but his feelings are justified, especially since he doesn’t know Myravelle’s full story of why she uses canvases.

The slow development of their relationship and eventual love was beautifully crafted.  I really enjoyed how the two eventually connected and joined forces against the king.  I especially enjoyed how love is what restored Myravelle’s weary soul and gave her hope.  And this hope enables her to use her magic for good.

But there is much going on in the plot.  Again, I won’t say what.  But it comes full circle.  At first, I was “What????  You gotta be kidding me!!”  But then I understood since this isn’t a romance, what was written made sense.  It was a rebirth of something new.  Was it evil?  I won’t say.  But it gives the readers the backstory of someone important in the fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty and why she was meant to sleep.

I also enjoyed the writing.  The author has romantic prose suitable for the tale retelling.  My only quibble is that it did drag in a few spots.  The story could have been shorter and not have lost anything in the full novel.

If you like fairy tale retellings, love stories, and a look into darkness, you’ll enjoy this novel.  Do yourself a favour and get a copy.

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Rosalyn Briar is a former teacher, a mother of two fearless daughters, and a wife to her soul mate. She loves reading, traveling, and playing board games. More importantly, she believes in fairy tales. When she is not reading or writing, you might find her playing dress-up or gleaning through the woods for wildflowers with her princesses.

Follow Rosalyn:  Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Bookbub | Amazon | Goodreads

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Enter for a chance to win:
Her Dark Enchantments Swag Box
$20 Amazon Gift Card
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