Tag: renee dugan

Book Review: Epics Etched in Echoes (Tales of Wonder and Woe #1.5) by Renee Dugan

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Rating: ★★★.5
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 448 pages
Author: Renee Dugan
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: May 23rd, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Experience the thrilling sequel to A STORY SPUN IN SCARLET’S heartwrenching conclusion…

AUDRA JASHOWIN is a storyteller without a tale of her own.

Her quiet life shattered by the revelation of a past she doesn’t remember and the false memories she’s long believed, Audra follows the compulsion to reclaim her forgotten years…and the power that shaped them. But when a simple quest to the Isle of Misspoken Stories proves to be far more treacherous, Audra finds herself pitted against a foe that represents her past…all the best and worst parts of it.

Is it worth it to reclaim all the loss and hurt that brought her this far? Or would a quiet life be better in the end?

JAIK GRISSOM is a soldier surviving on desperation and a forgotten dream.

Haunted by memories of love lost and a sacred oath only he remembers, Jaik is determined to help Audra find her memories…by any means necessary. But as their quest for the truth grows more perilous, and a vengeful force pits beasts of nightmare against them, Jaik must confront his own greatest fears.

That Audra might be better off without her memories, after all…and better off without him.

While danger rises and their journey pushes them closer together and pulls them apart again, Audra and Jaik face the most difficult choice they’ve ever known and ever whether to fight for the past, the future, and each other…or learn to live in a world their story has no part of.

THIS PAINS ME.

I love Renee Dugan’s book and it hurts to feel like this was missing something for me. Mainly surrounding the point of,,,why? If you’ve read A Story Spun in Scarlet, I feel like that books ends where it needs to (or if not, an extra chapter or long epilogue would have sufficed). Instead, a companion novel that was one long meandering story covering the same things book one already did just felt redundant.

I do love these characters and the writing style. It’s not a bad book by any means, and I’ll still read RD’s next book. There’s some good scenes and allusions that added a story telling quality I appreciated. I’m hopeful that the next book has a different vibe for me.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: moderate

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Book Review: This Cruel Dawn (The Curse of the Blessed #3) by Renee Dugan

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 272 pages
Author: Renee Dugan
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: August 5th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A Blessed. A Hunter. A Fight for their Kingdom.
Shaken by ceaseless revelations reshaping everything they thought they knew of their world and themselves, Elynor, Sharek, and Sylvester take the political battleground of distant Orleth. Their to halt a war. Their Rowan Varodan, now a trusted member of the Orlethian royalty. But confronting him proves a far different venture than any of them foresaw. In order to thwart the cunning killing Blessed and his unpredictable schemes, the trio must search the depths of themselves, face their veiled secrets, and prepare to risk-and lose-all they hold dear in the fight for Erala’s future.
Including their own lives.
Devastated by the deaths of his beloved siblings and his most trusted friend, Prince Jamyson throws caution to the wind in the struggle against sinister Gavannon al-Morral and his own father’s declining health. Yet as circumstances grow darker for Erala and war looms ever nearer on the horizon, Jamyson learns he still has more to lose…and that, to prevent his kingdom from falling to ruin, he may have to let go of the things he loves most and confront truths about his own past that will alter the very fate of Erala.
Two kingdoms teeter on the brink. And only the outcast and despised among them have any hope of sparing their beloved home from destruction.

GOOD CONCLUSION.

I’ve been meaning to finish this series up and I’m glad that I did! They are short quick burst fantasies with plenty of action and intrigue. I enjoyed the multiple POV the most. I love seeing all sorts of sides to a story and this was no different.

There’s a lot of good character growth (as expected and loved from Renee Dugan). I liked where everyone ended up and thought overall it wrapped up the story lines well. The fast pace makes the pages fly and there’s many good surprises and reveals. Some totally blindsided me and I am always here for those moments.

It’s a journey, and a great one.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, executions, near death experiences

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ARC Book Review: A Tale Told by Traitors (Tales of Wonder and Woe #2) by Renee Dugan

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 653 pages
Author: Renee Dugan
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 8th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Set sail into the swoony, pulse-pounding, high-stakes second installment in the TALES OF WONDER AND WOE, a series of sequential standalones each focusing on a new romantic fantasy adventure!

LIONYRA VARA is not who she seems.

A humble immigrant baker living in Mithra-Sha, Lio hides a bitter she is truly the sole inheritor of the ruling regime in the neighboring country of Amere-Del. And now, against her will, Lio is going back—to the land of her worst fears and lifelong nightmares.

And she won’t be going the life of her oldest friend hangs in the same cruel balance. Their only hope for freedom is to outwit the people who seek to enslave them to the fate they left behind.

But to do it, they must first find their way back to each other.

RYKER KASSIAN is a man caught between desperation and redemption.

A legendary pirate swimming in insurmountable debt, Ryker sees only one way to slip the noose for himself and his beloved by offering the runaway Delina as a ransom for a lofty sum. But when the lost heir offers him a chance at something more—by helping her hunt down her missing friend—Ryker seizes the opportunity without a second thought.
It might be his only chance to fix everything he’s broken…and save his crew from slaughter.

As their hunt takes them to hidden pirate cities, sinister port towns, and the treacherous heart of Amere-Del where revolution threatens to ignite, all of their secrets and schemes collide. Backed against the tenuous balance of an impending civil war, Lio and Ryker have no choice but to confront the bitter truths they’ve fled from, the causes they’ve betrayed, the schemes for their destruction…and a rising attraction they both deny.

And with a ruthless regime seeking both their heads, they must choose which side of the line they stand on—whether they remain enemies divided, or become allies in the fight to shape their own destinies.

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

A NEW FAV.

This might be my new favorite book by Renee Dugan. I know the page count seems daunting but I love that this wasn’t split up into a duology. Give me those longer page counts and also give me a full story and this delivered on both counts. I enjoyed being back in this world and getting Lio’s story.

I loved the pirating aspects and all of the hidden identities. The slow burn was incredible and there were definitely some good and swoony moments. And the action was dark and intense. There’s a gruesome angle to this book that I thought fit the pirating theme well. I was clutching my pearls and gasping on the treadmill wondering who was actually going to make it to the end of the book.

I had such an enjoyable time reading this book. I love Renee Dugan’s writing style and the craft that goes into each tale. Lio had an amazing character arc and I was absolutely cheering for her when the final change happened. I loved how strong and supportive Ryker was and how stalwart he became about being in her corner. I am in love with this entire book.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate – high
  • Content Warnings: blood/gore depiction, loss of life, murder

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ARC Book Review: A Story Spun in Scarlet (Tales of Wonder and Woe #1) by Renee Dugan

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 660 pages
Author: Renee Dugan
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: March 8th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

LET ME TELL YOU A STORY…

AUDRA JASHOWIN is a storyteller without a purpose.

When all the tales in the land of Mithra-Sha lost their endings, Audra fled from her family’s rejection and the only home she ever knew. Now, with a sense of veiled danger haunting her heels and her life as devoid of direction as her stories, she arrives at long last in a city of fresh starts and second chances.

There, she finds an adventure greater than she ever dreamed.

JAIK GRISSOM might be the key to bringing back the power of all stories.

A simple farmhand with a way around weapons, Jaik possesses more than a sharp wit that sets Audra’s soul aflame. He’s a natural amplifier with the talent to breathe life into her tales…into all the tales in Mithra-Sha.

Chased from their comfortable lives by a stroke of ill luck on a fateful night, Audra and Jaik embark on a journey for answers—through the wilderness and over the raging sea, to the heart of storytelling itself. Along the way, the strange bond between them deepens as they begin to uncover a mystery that lurks beneath all the broken tales, written in the shroud of their own unlikely pasts.

To mend the fractured stories in Mithra-Sha, Audra and Jaik must learn to embrace what lives at the core of their own the bravery and brilliance, the loyalty and love, and the purpose and power they both harness—together and apart.

And they must face a terrible truth penned between the pages of their quest…a tragedy that will change the course of history and rewrite the ending of their tale forever.

Thank you to the author and Netgalley for an eARC.

I HAVE BEEN DESTROYED.

Oh my goodness what an incredible book. Those last few chapters let me an utter mess and I am sitting here writing this review right after finishing and I am NOT OKAY. I mean, I am, but also THE FEELS.

I loooved this whole concept. It was really unique with the storytelling powers and how that changed the world around Audra. Meanwhile, I also adored Audra!! What a beautifully strong FMC who truly rose above an incredible amount to find the answers she was seeking and the strength to carry that through.

Jaik was such a gem too. I loved the chemistry between them and how they had that pull towards each other. Some perfectly written banter and all of the best protective moments and I must protect these two at all costs.

The reveals were fantastic and each turn in the story drew me in even more. There were some stunning moments that held such raw humanness that brought tears to my eyes. I loved this journey from the start to the finish. There’s action and romance and magic and intrigue and this sense of feeling like one of those true fantasy books you just have to read.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: anxiety depiction, loss of life, near death experiences, blood/gore depiction

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