Smoke and Scar By Gretchen Powell Fox

Rating: 4 stars

Adult - Spice: Enemies to Lovers, Slow Burn, Forced Proximity, Who Did This To You

Genre: Fantasy, Fantasy Romance, Romance

Tags: Fae, Fairies, Magic, Celestials, Deadly Trials, Book Review

Shattered Crown Book 1

Elyria has been drowning her sorrows for 25 years. Now the next Arcane Crucible is starting again and another person she cares about is going to go. She will do anything to stop her. Cedric a human knight who has been training for most his life, is also headed to join the Crucible. Enemies will have to work together to get through this, unlike previous crucibles. Will they be able to set aside their differences to get to the end?

This is the first book in the Shattered Crown series. Elyria is fighting her own inner demons. She has an obvious case of PTSD from her past, but she is loyal beyond measure. Cedric realizes early on that he's going to have to work with enemies. He too has a past that he must conquer, but he is a quick study. The world seems to have misinformation as to its own history. Where both sides don’t seem to have the entire story of what happened. But we get to learn alongside the characters as they puzzle this together. The magic of this world is well defined in how everyone uses it with their personal skills. I enjoyed reading this book and look forward to reading the next book, Splintered Kingdom.

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Pages: 468

Read: Digital

From: NetGalley this is an ARC (Advanced Readers Copy)

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Product description and Images are from amazon.com:

“Birthed in shadow. Forged in fire.

Throne of Glass meets The Serpent & the Wings of Night in this epic romantic fantasy where a haunted fae warrior and the human knight who hates her must team up in order to conquer a legendary series of trials.

A Splintered Kingdom

An ancient grudge has kept humans and the magical races of Arcanis at odds for centuries. The Arcane Crucible, a legendary series of trials that occurs every 25 years, offers a chance for peace.

A Haunted Warrior

Elyria Lightbreaker, once a celebrated fae war hero, is a shadow of her former self. Drowning in grief after losing the man she loved to the previous Crucible, now she must rise to stop his sister from falling to the same fate.

A Vengeful Knight

Hardened by loss and fueled by hate, Cedric Thorne's lifelong goal to conquer the Crucible on humanity's behalf is finally within reach. The only problem? Getting through the trials alive means working with Elyria—the very fae he blames for his parents' deaths.

An Unwinnable Challenge

With alliances fragile as spun glass and betrayal lurking at every turn, Elyria and Cedric must navigate deadly trials that test their strength, spirit, and magic... as well as their increasingly complex feelings for each other.

This is the Arcane Crucible.”