emeraldisle's review
4.0
I wasn’t expecting much of anything when I started reading this book. It was more geared towards middle school readers or freshman in high school. But I still enjoyed it nonetheless. Some of the faery lore in this universe was stated multiple times throughout the book like “faeries cannot lie” and “time is different in the human and faery world”. That part got old very quickly because it got repeated so much.
babs_reviews's review
4.0
I think this is first book I've read that focuses solely on fairies. I love fairies and found this book to be enjoyable. It was a quick read as I read it in pretty much one sitting. (the first 10% I read the night before) The author gave us great detail and I had zero trouble imagining the beautiful world she created.
Rylie has it all, a wonderful caring family, a best friend, and a boyfriend that she can't get enough of. Days leading up to her sixteenth birthday she begins to have headaches and sever back pain. Fearing that she is getting sick before her big party she trys to ignore it and hope it will go away. She pushes on and enjoys her life with friends and boyfriend, Adam. Everything comes crashing down when the night before her birthday a knock comes on the door comes and on the other side is....her birth mother.
What?!?! Yeah, I know I would be freaking out if I were Rylie. Everything she has ever known all changes with the words from Azura. As if delivering devastating news only one day before her big party Rylie learns not only was she switched at birth but she is going to transform into her natural faery form over night. Azura wants to stick around and help her daughter but Rylie needs space. Azura delivers more news when she tells them of the dark faeries and the promise her birth dad made to trade her for dark magic access. This part was brushed aside as Rylie's dad is a detective and feels he can keep her safe.
She wakes up the next morning and all the changes have taken place. She can see clearer, her skin is perfect and blemish free, and she now has wings. She makes it through her party, just barely keeping it together so her glamour doesn't disappear.
No surprise when she is alone next she is kidnapped and taken to the dark faerie leader Varwik. His goal is to mate his son, Kallan and Rylie together to stop her from becoming an enemy. She is a special faery and her power will be great. The one thing he didn't figure into his plan, neither Kallan or Rylie has an interest to marry the other.....or do they?
Although kept prisoner Rylie is allowed trips outside to view the beauty of the world. In the process Kallan and her get to know each other and slowly fall for each other. Kallan loves her and will not force her hand. For Rylie the answer is simple, as wonderful as Kallan is starting to be she must get home to Adam.
Striking her own dark promise with Varwik, Rylie finds a way to go home. For how long and at what cost?
Such a wonderful story! I was sucked in this book from the beginning. Rylie was a strong character and even when things looked their bleakest she didn't give up. I admired her determination to get back to her world and her family. I loved Kallan, yes her relationship with Adam was easy and right, but with Kallan there is passion and fire. I didn't expect the ending and I look forward to reading the second book. I received this book in exchange for an honest review. I reccommend you go pick up your copy!
Rylie has it all, a wonderful caring family, a best friend, and a boyfriend that she can't get enough of. Days leading up to her sixteenth birthday she begins to have headaches and sever back pain. Fearing that she is getting sick before her big party she trys to ignore it and hope it will go away. She pushes on and enjoys her life with friends and boyfriend, Adam. Everything comes crashing down when the night before her birthday a knock comes on the door comes and on the other side is....her birth mother.
What?!?! Yeah, I know I would be freaking out if I were Rylie. Everything she has ever known all changes with the words from Azura. As if delivering devastating news only one day before her big party Rylie learns not only was she switched at birth but she is going to transform into her natural faery form over night. Azura wants to stick around and help her daughter but Rylie needs space. Azura delivers more news when she tells them of the dark faeries and the promise her birth dad made to trade her for dark magic access. This part was brushed aside as Rylie's dad is a detective and feels he can keep her safe.
She wakes up the next morning and all the changes have taken place. She can see clearer, her skin is perfect and blemish free, and she now has wings. She makes it through her party, just barely keeping it together so her glamour doesn't disappear.
No surprise when she is alone next she is kidnapped and taken to the dark faerie leader Varwik. His goal is to mate his son, Kallan and Rylie together to stop her from becoming an enemy. She is a special faery and her power will be great. The one thing he didn't figure into his plan, neither Kallan or Rylie has an interest to marry the other.....or do they?
Although kept prisoner Rylie is allowed trips outside to view the beauty of the world. In the process Kallan and her get to know each other and slowly fall for each other. Kallan loves her and will not force her hand. For Rylie the answer is simple, as wonderful as Kallan is starting to be she must get home to Adam.
Striking her own dark promise with Varwik, Rylie finds a way to go home. For how long and at what cost?
Such a wonderful story! I was sucked in this book from the beginning. Rylie was a strong character and even when things looked their bleakest she didn't give up. I admired her determination to get back to her world and her family. I loved Kallan, yes her relationship with Adam was easy and right, but with Kallan there is passion and fire. I didn't expect the ending and I look forward to reading the second book. I received this book in exchange for an honest review. I reccommend you go pick up your copy!
amy_inthecatacombs's review
5.0
Rylie is just a normal teenage girl that’s about to celebrate her sixteenth birthday. She has a great boyfriend, Adam, who is also one of her best friends, and another best girl-friend, Sierra. As her birthday approaches she starts to feel strange and like someone is watching her. She starts to get backaches and headaches.
Before her birthday, she finds out that the person that has been watching her, is her birth mother, Azura, who claims that both of them are fairies. According to Azura, the blue birthmark on Rylie’s face means that she is an Aurorian, a special fairy that will have great powers.
Azura tries to warn Rylie that dark fairies will be after her. Rylie’s birth father made a deal with Varwik, the king of dark fairies, that Rylie would belong to him.
When she turns sixteen, Rylie sprouts wings and notices facial differences. She will able to hide her appearance from humans, but won’t be able to hide from other fairies. Some fairies find out about her, and she is taken to Varwik’s castle, where she is to wed Kallan. Will Sierra find out how to escape her father’s dark promise?
I absolutely loved the Keegan Chronicle’s series, and I thought this cover was absolutely beautiful. I’m so glad the authors picked fairies to write about. I haven’t read many fairy books. The only other series I’ve even started about fairies is the ones by Aprilynne Pike.
I don’t know how Rylie/Oleander could deal with finding out that her parents weren’t really her parents and being a fairy. I did like Adam, but I definitely find Kallan intriguing. I guess I am rooting for Kallan, even though I do think Adam is nice.
Kallan just has a little something extra that I haven’t seen in Adam yet. I loved the descriptions of the fairy world, and all of the little piskies. I can’t wait until the next one! This was definitely a quick read. I was so upset when it was over. Hopefully, it won’t be too long of a wait for the next book.
Before her birthday, she finds out that the person that has been watching her, is her birth mother, Azura, who claims that both of them are fairies. According to Azura, the blue birthmark on Rylie’s face means that she is an Aurorian, a special fairy that will have great powers.
Azura tries to warn Rylie that dark fairies will be after her. Rylie’s birth father made a deal with Varwik, the king of dark fairies, that Rylie would belong to him.
When she turns sixteen, Rylie sprouts wings and notices facial differences. She will able to hide her appearance from humans, but won’t be able to hide from other fairies. Some fairies find out about her, and she is taken to Varwik’s castle, where she is to wed Kallan. Will Sierra find out how to escape her father’s dark promise?
I absolutely loved the Keegan Chronicle’s series, and I thought this cover was absolutely beautiful. I’m so glad the authors picked fairies to write about. I haven’t read many fairy books. The only other series I’ve even started about fairies is the ones by Aprilynne Pike.
I don’t know how Rylie/Oleander could deal with finding out that her parents weren’t really her parents and being a fairy. I did like Adam, but I definitely find Kallan intriguing. I guess I am rooting for Kallan, even though I do think Adam is nice.
Kallan just has a little something extra that I haven’t seen in Adam yet. I loved the descriptions of the fairy world, and all of the little piskies. I can’t wait until the next one! This was definitely a quick read. I was so upset when it was over. Hopefully, it won’t be too long of a wait for the next book.
gabs_myfullbookshelf's review
1.0
Super short, but it ended up being a good thing because this was also super trite. I did not find a single character interesting or original, and Rylie was just plain stupid at times. I’m not going to continue with the series, but I do hope she dumps Adam’s ass because that boy has absolutely no personality beyond being her boyfriend.
kba76's review
3.0
Imagine, the day before your sixteenth birthday you find out your parents are not your birth parents...and you're actually a faery.
The opening was a bit slower than I'd like, and I honestly didn't feel particularly engaged by our main character. However, once she is kidnapped by the dark fairy king - who is determined that the oath made by her father will be fulfilled - things pick up a little.
This sets up the basic concept of the world and the characters within it, but everything felt rather superficial.
The opening was a bit slower than I'd like, and I honestly didn't feel particularly engaged by our main character. However, once she is kidnapped by the dark fairy king - who is determined that the oath made by her father will be fulfilled - things pick up a little.
This sets up the basic concept of the world and the characters within it, but everything felt rather superficial.
swagkermit's review against another edition
3.0
Nostalgia November Read #3
It was really great to revisit this one. It was one of the first (and only) books I got on Kindle, so I loved reading through and seeing what I had chosen to highlight at about age 11 (nothing worth quoting here). It wasn't quite as good as I remembered but it was still a quick, easy and fun read.
It was really great to revisit this one. It was one of the first (and only) books I got on Kindle, so I loved reading through and seeing what I had chosen to highlight at about age 11 (nothing worth quoting here). It wasn't quite as good as I remembered but it was still a quick, easy and fun read.
fae_bae's review against another edition
adventurous
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
fuzaila's review against another edition
3.0
2.5/5 stars
Well, that was a quick and uneventful read. I had braced myself for possibilities of surprises and action, but there was none.
OVERVIEW
Dark Promise is a paranormal romance. Rylie McCallister is a soon-to-be sixteen year old. Her parents are loving and supportive, so is her best friend. Her boyfriend Adam is the most caring and handsome guy. Basically her life is just perfect, until it's not.
The day before her sixteenth birthday, a strange woman named Azura visits her family and reveals to her that she is actually her daughter. Not a human, but a 'light faery'. Her transformation would be complete on her sixteenth birthday, when she'll sprout wings, her ears will become pointed, and her skin flawless. Her name is actually Oleander. The star-shaped birthmark on her forehead wasn't a normal birthmark, but the sign of an Aurorian faery with special powers. Her real faery father had promised her to Varwik, the leader of the dark faery world hoping to gain access to the powers of the dark faeries. Not wanting her daughter to be given to the dark world, Azura had traded her daughter to the newborn dead daughter of the McCallisters to make Varwik believe that she died in birth. She has been watching Rylie grow ever since.
Azura warns Rylie that once she becomes a faery, other faeries could detect her and the dark faery would come after her. Soon enough, the day after her sixteenth birthday, Rylie is kidnapped by dark faeries and bought to Varwik's castle. Varwik offers her an impossible choice - either die and let her powers die with her, or marry his seventeen year old son Kallan.
Rylie is stuck between the two worlds. She badly wants to return home, and she misses Adam. But Kallan doesn't seem like a bad guy. What would she do? What were her powers that Varwik was so afraid of? How could she survive?
THOUGHTS
The starting was slow. The prologue practically tells the whole story, so there are no surprises.
All the first few chapters, Rylie talks about her perfect life, and it was damn boring. And next when she transforms into a faery, for about ten pages we're in front of the mirror.
The romance was cheesy. There was absolutely no chemistry between Adam and Rylie. They couldn't stand each other for five seconds without kissing. Everyone else was like,
So, it was after 70% of the book, that the story actually moved on. The story had so much potential, but the author focused solely on the sloppy romance. I wish the author hadn't brought on a love triangle and instead gave us some more insight to the faery world. The dark faery world didn't seem all that dark, and Oleander was actually roaming the gardens when she was suposed to a prisoner. (Don't worry these aren't even spoilers).
The characters lacked depth, except maybe Kallan. Rylie was the least lovable one. And her parents, the McCallisters, the way they took the news of their daughter being a faery surprisingly and unbelievably well, was unrealistic.
VERDICT
All said, the story lacked purpose halfway through the book and became yet another love triangle. But because I'm human and I am curious, I just might pick up the sequel.
Well, that was a quick and uneventful read. I had braced myself for possibilities of surprises and action, but there was none.
OVERVIEW
Dark Promise is a paranormal romance. Rylie McCallister is a soon-to-be sixteen year old. Her parents are loving and supportive, so is her best friend. Her boyfriend Adam is the most caring and handsome guy. Basically her life is just perfect, until it's not.
The day before her sixteenth birthday, a strange woman named Azura visits her family and reveals to her that she is actually her daughter. Not a human, but a 'light faery'. Her transformation would be complete on her sixteenth birthday, when she'll sprout wings, her ears will become pointed, and her skin flawless. Her name is actually Oleander. The star-shaped birthmark on her forehead wasn't a normal birthmark, but the sign of an Aurorian faery with special powers. Her real faery father had promised her to Varwik, the leader of the dark faery world hoping to gain access to the powers of the dark faeries. Not wanting her daughter to be given to the dark world, Azura had traded her daughter to the newborn dead daughter of the McCallisters to make Varwik believe that she died in birth. She has been watching Rylie grow ever since.
Azura warns Rylie that once she becomes a faery, other faeries could detect her and the dark faery would come after her. Soon enough, the day after her sixteenth birthday, Rylie is kidnapped by dark faeries and bought to Varwik's castle. Varwik offers her an impossible choice - either die and let her powers die with her, or marry his seventeen year old son Kallan.
Rylie is stuck between the two worlds. She badly wants to return home, and she misses Adam. But Kallan doesn't seem like a bad guy. What would she do? What were her powers that Varwik was so afraid of? How could she survive?
THOUGHTS
The starting was slow. The prologue practically tells the whole story, so there are no surprises.
All the first few chapters, Rylie talks about her perfect life, and it was damn boring. And next when she transforms into a faery, for about ten pages we're in front of the mirror.
The romance was cheesy. There was absolutely no chemistry between Adam and Rylie. They couldn't stand each other for five seconds without kissing. Everyone else was like,
So, it was after 70% of the book, that the story actually moved on. The story had so much potential, but the author focused solely on the sloppy romance. I wish the author hadn't brought on a love triangle and instead gave us some more insight to the faery world. The dark faery world didn't seem all that dark, and Oleander was actually roaming the gardens when she was suposed to a prisoner. (Don't worry these aren't even spoilers).
The characters lacked depth, except maybe Kallan. Rylie was the least lovable one. And her parents, the McCallisters, the way they took the news of their daughter being a faery surprisingly and unbelievably well, was unrealistic.
VERDICT
All said, the story lacked purpose halfway through the book and became yet another love triangle. But because I'm human and I am curious, I just might pick up the sequel.
brokereader's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5