Review--Dirty Lying Faeries by Sabrina Blackburry

 

For better or for worse, the newest changeling has arrived . . .

When Thea Kanelos’s best friend drags her to an art gala (that’s definitely not her thing), she doesn’t expect a chance encounter with Devin Grayson to change her life forever. The handsome stranger isn’t just anyone―he’s a powerful fae, charged with bringing Thea into his world.

Believing that she’s always been human, Thea must accept that everything she’s known about herself up until now has been a lie. She’s not human at all. She is a fae―funny, because she doesn’t even believe in faeries.

But with strange creatures now visible on the street and fangs and colors flashing in the shadows, it can’t be faeries are real. And with the Winter Solstice approaching, a magnificent ball will bring her fully into the fae world and draw her closer to Devin with whom she has a deepening and dangerous attraction.

As her new powers awaken, Thea learns she plays a more pivotal role to the fae than she ever imagined. And when the barrier between the human and the fae worlds begins to crack, it will be up to her to save not just herself, but everyone she loves from a terrible fate.

Deeply sensual and darkly magical, Dirty Lying Faeries is the first book in an exciting new series that takes readers inside a universe filled with faeries, dragons and werewolves--and those that love them.

 

Sabrina Blackburry brings us a new novel of faeries that is sure to entertain both the new and seasoned faery reader! Dirty Lying Faeries is the start of a new world, that I hope will last a very long time! It's a world where faeries exist, and as I am sure we are to learn, much more than that if the next titles in this series tells us.

Thea's life changes drastically in one night. When attending a gala event with her best friend, Candace, Thea meets the enigmatic Devin at the museum where it took place and is inexplicably drawn to him. There is a spark growing between these two before they even realize it. But Devin isn't your ordinary guy, he just so happens to be the Lord of Winter in the faery courts. Yes, Devin, is apart of the mysterious group we call the fae.

For years, the courts of faery have been struggling to survive. Due to mysterious reasons, the fae cannot seem to have their own children to further populate their species so every year they turn one human into a faery and thus keep their population alive. And it would seem this year, the chosen one is Thea.

Thea begins to notice strange things happening around her ever since the party she attends. She sees things out of the corner of her eyes, people who don't look quite...human. And it's not long before everything is revealed to her and she learns that she is a changeling; a human chosen to begin the process of being turned into a faery. But not all is quite right in her new world. There are dark secrets in faery's muddled past that are coming to fore and Thea finds herself at the center of it all.

It's been a long time since I read a book about faeries and I have to say that I missed it! The very nature of faeries has fascinated me long before such other titles entered people's bookshelves, though I did enjoy those too! As any seasoned reader will tell you, not all faeries are the happy Tinker Bell type, and really, Tinker Bell was a jealous little vixen who wanted to murder Wendy just to keep her away from Peter, so really THAT Tinker Bell is align with other faeries of old! Lol.

There were quite a few secrets in this book that were constantly popping up! Mysteries upon mysteries and most were resolved by the end. It's hard to say if Blackburry is leaving open doors for books further down the road as the synopsis of her next book appears to be going in a new direction of dragons. That's not say she won't ever circle back and pick a new fae couple to follow around. But I like that she leaves just the thinnest thread of a teaser here and there! You never know what might spawn a new story to devour!

The pacing to this one was perhaps on the slow side, but just a touch. When you have great character development, pacing isn't always an issue for me! And I positively loved Blackburry's characters! Thea was a completely relatable heroine. Devin was perhaps a bit more of a positive fae, I truly wasn't expecting him to be such a romantic. The faeries here are definitely not as "dark" as some other books tend to make them be. Which that in itself was a bit refreshing! Sometimes trying to figure out a sinister character type's intentions can be exhausting. The characters here were very genuine, but that's not to say there weren't a few surprises along the way.

The romance in this one was...a bit complicated. It started as a bit of a slow burn but then it's really not long at all before it ignites. So maybe we'd call it rapid fire? Lol! Thea was struggling to adjust to her new lifestyle and then suddenly there's Devin and the attraction that was sizzling between them before her change ignites into an inferno! But I will say the romance does not take over the story, it's just there in the background, which was also really nice!

There was just something about the language of the novel that felt a little simple to me. But perhaps it's just because I read so much and I find myself not only with a new book, but a new author. New styles to learn and all that. But I don't know, things just didn't seem too complicated plot wise. And that's not a bad thing either. I guess I'm just used to the mystery wrapped in mystery sprinkled with secrets and twisted into something else to make my head spin. To read a novel that was pretty straightforward was enough to give me whiplash, but in a refreshing sort of way!

The book ended with a resolution! I kind of expected this based on what I skimmed about the next book, Dirty Lying Dragons. But you never know really, so I couldn't assume this while reading! Dirty Lying Faeries was a lighthearted take on the sinister members of the fae to bring forth a compelling and entertaining story! If you're looking to get into books about faeries but didn't want to start off too dark, I highly recommend this one!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars