Fae (Fae, #1)

by C. J. Abedi

[KitsuneBae]

For the complete review, please visit Thoughts and Pens

Fae relates the story of Devilyn Reilly and Caroline Ellis, two faeries who were sundered by inevitable circumstances. Devilyn Reilly, the only faerie of both light and dark and the heir to the throne of kingship of both courts, is burdened with the choices laid upon him, Dark or Light? And Caroline—half mortal, half-fae—is living normally in the world of humans and little did she know that the fate of the Faeries lies upon her shoulder. And a long ago prophecy forces the worlds of Devilyn and Caroline to collide and bring unity and balance to the two warring courts of Faes. Will Devilyn be able to hold on to the light as he attempts to protect Caroline or fall into the chasm of darkness like what his father desires? How will Caroline face the truth of her birth as she struggles to covet Devilyn’s love?
Such a touching and curious summary that after finding this ARC in Netgalley, I immediately put in a request and was so glad to have been approved. But just like the old saying, “Do not judge the book by its cover (or summary in this case),” I immediately came across regrets with this book. Fae has a lot of potential if things weren’t just so immersed with Caroline’s obsession with Devilyn’s handsomeness and her self-pity of being not good enough for the too good to be true Devilyn. Yes, romance is a very important element for the Fae’s plot but I didn’t expect that I’d be drowning from Devilyn and Caroline’s alternating thoughts of wanting each other and at the same time, of how to avoid each other. This book wasted precious pages to put emphasis on that aspect that the other important elements of the story lay forgotten. For one, there were the secondary characters who should have been amazing but became dull and generic due to neglect. Aside from that, the master villain lacked lethal aura to scare me. Second, the plot which would have been epic became average as it lacked gripping scenes. Even the mystery and twist were merely passable. Third, the Norse mythology that was incorporated to the story would have been good but it wasn’t convincing enough. Where was Loki? Where was Thor? I think the presence of these gods would have made a significant impact to the overall story since we’ve seen a lot of Odin in this book, of how he made a good father to Devilyn. I mean, come on, wouldn’t it be nice to see Loki or Thor popping here and there to guide Devilyn as a brother? The Valkyries and Vikings even appeared in this book so how come those two did not?

Now, the question is, would I still read the sequel of this book? Apparently, yes. You see, I still have faith in Fae that things would get better in the 2nd book. Devilyn and Caroline are likeable enough characters not that I wasn’t aghast with the former’s name (Devilyn? Why would someone so gorgeous be named as lame as this? Yeah, I know.) Caroline’s okay, she strikes me as someone waiting to unleash her true self, that behind the inferiority complex, she’d come out as a tough gal without forgetting her humanity. I just wished that she hadn’t pulled a Bella Swan in this book because I might have LOVED her. And Devilyn, well he’s gorgeous, dangerous, sarcastic and more intelligent than Edward Cullen so I guess I have to give him credit for that though he really reminded me of the latter the way he acted throughout the whole story. Another reason that I’m going to read the second book is that, I want closure no matter how difficult it is on my part, no matter how long it would take me. I’ve already started this journey, might as well finish it. Who knows, the story might take an interesting turn in the next Fae adventure?


All in all, Fae is an interesting fusion of fairy tale and Norse mythology and a perfect remedy for those fans who are still suffering from the Twilight withdrawal.