A Deal with the Elf King (Married to Magic)

by Elise Kova

Marcela Medeiros (Illustrator)

Perfect for fans of A Court of Thorns and Roses and Uprooted, this stand-alone, fantasy romance about a human girl and her marriage to the Elf King is impossible to put down!

The elves come for two things: war and wives. In both cases, they come for death.

Three-thousand years ago, humans were hunted by powerful races with wild magic until the treaty was formed. Now, for centuries, the elves have taken a young woman from Luella's village to be their Human Queen.

To be chosen is seen as a mark of death by the townsfolk. A mark nineteen-year-old Luella is grateful to have escaped as a girl. Instead, she's dedicated her life to studying herbology and becoming the town's only healer.

That is, until the Elf King unexpectedly arrives... for her.

Everything Luella had thought she'd known about her life, and herself, was a lie. Taken to a land filled with wild magic, Luella is forced to be the new queen to a cold yet blisteringly handsome Elf King. Once there, she learns about a dying world that only she can save.

The magical land of Midscape pulls on one corner of her heart, her home and people tug on another... but what will truly break her is a passion she never wanted.

A Deal with the Elf King is a complete, stand-alone novel, inspired by the tales of Hades and Persephone, as well as Beauty and the Beast, with a "happily ever after" ending. It's perfect for fantasy romance fans looking for just the right amount of steam and their next slow-burn and swoon-worthy couple.

• ISBN10: 1949694283
• ISBN13: 9781949694284
• Publish Date: 6 November 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Silver Wing Press
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 338
• Language: English

Reviews

[Lisa]

Sometimes you just need an enjoyable, light, standalone read, and Deal with the Elf King did not disappoint. I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Luella and Eldas, and there was just enough world-building to keep the story interesting without being overwhelming or confusing. Though this story is light and relatively low action, I found it enchanting and hard to put down, and an overall feel-good read.

[Leigha]

Luella makes a deal with the devil *cough* I mean elf king *cough* in this fun, if not original, fantasy romance.

While Deal with the Elf King had all the beats of an epic fantasy romance, it never quite resonated with me. The idea of a standalone romance sounds amazing, but the application of it always seems rather shallow (particularly in the first novel to a new world setting). Finding the right balance between world-building and the building of a romantic relationship is challenging. Something always seems to be sacrificed to make these elements work in a solo book, and, in this case, it was both. Luella and Eldas’ romance was built way too rapidly for it to be believable. Timing is everything – more time needed to be spent with them as a couple in addition to them as individuals. Additionally, the world building was murky and confusing as not enough time is spent developing it. Future novels set in this world will be able to explore the world-building, but this romance will always be lackluster.

tl;dr A lackluster romance and murky world-building left me feeling rather meh about this new series.

I enjoyed this but something just didn't hit right. I found the longer I read the vague feelings of discontent settled in. I enjoyed the world building although the reveal about the Elf King siring pure elf children from his elf mistress rather than the Queen should've been explained a lot sooner. It was driving me nuts the entire time trying to figure out Alice and Sevenna and their roles. The reasoning was okay I guess but it kinda kills the romance to hear all the Elf Kings have a relationship with someone else. . I would've liked to see more of the land and the people and Luella's powers. I liked Luella and Eldas for the most part. There was some wishywashy stuff towards the second half that felt forced. Luella started to drive me nuts with her ideas on duty and choice - was it really necessary to break his heart? Like I get where she was coming from but I also didn't like that she fight for him. Or something like that. I think that's where a lot of my dissatisfaction with this book comes from. I like the concept of choice but it also ruined the romance for me a bit. And I think I have very conflicting emotions about it. Rinni and Willow were great and I loved the friendship between them all - particularly Luella's relationship with Rinni. Hook was cool. Harlow was amusing - total jerk - but amusing nonetheless. The plot progressed fairly quickly, although there were some pacing issues - the first part was solid, the second fell apart a bit.

An enjoyable fantasy read. 3.5 stars, rounded to 4.

[Ashley]

So sweet and wholesome! It was everything I hoped it would be. Such a fast, addicting read too!

This was my first book by Elise Kova and I'll definitely be reading more!

[scarr]

I enjoyed the world building in this book - can’t ever get enough of anything Fae-related.

If you are a fan of Naomi Novik’s “Uprooted” and “Spinning Silver” you’ll enjoy this story!

[tweetybugshouse]

I love stand-alone novels as it means that everything is wrapped up at the end in a neat bow. There no question that this is the book for 2020 that we all need one with a delightful happy ever after. The world-building of midscape is amazing, I felt like I was there and did not want to leave. The hunt to figure out why the previous Human Queens have not succeeded in solving the slow drain of midscape is quite interesting.

Eldas and Luella relationship has a rough start as she has no clue that she is the Human Queen he has come to her town to claim. Due to the underhanded actions of someone who claims to love her. Once the shock wears off and she accepts that this is her role now and stops feeling like she has been betrayed because she does not receive the same training as those who came before her the action heats up.

This novel does not disappoint in keeping you entranced in the story and it does not lack in the supernatural aspects and shows our author skills beyond the fantasy novels I have read previously from her. If your ready for a romance that is steamy and keeps you enthralled this is one you need to pick up this year. It the perfect escape from this year of craziness.