Reading With Tyler

Name: When the Moon Hatched
Series: Moonfall #1
Author: Sarah A Parker
Publisher: Harper Collins
Format: Hardback
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal
Noted Tropes: Enemies to Lovers, Slow-burn, Forced Proximity, Found Family, Revenge, Cliffhanger
Steam or Spice: Spice

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Review:

This book is a slow read, I’ll be honest about that right away. I wasn’t totally aware of that when I went into it (I thought the romance was going to be a slow burn! not the story!) and so there was a time where I thought I was going to end up putting it down. But something kept pulling me back in, and his name was Kaan. We had a consent driven MMC, and I adore him.

More on him in a moment, first a bit about the FMC and how the story is told. We follow Raeve for the majority of the story, a contracted assassin who spends the majority of the book out for revenge. However we do have multiple other POVs that pop up in the book, and I mention this because it’s more than just our FMC and MMC, so if multiple POVs are something you struggle with, I want to be upfront with you that there are a few more in this!

When I say that Kaan was the reason I kept being pulled back in, it wasn’t because we got a lot of chapters from his POV, though I loved the ones we did get – but rather because the dynamic between him and Raeve was brilliant. It was angsty, steamy, beautiful and they are a cute pairing. Raeve alone however, well let’s say she was incredibly revenge driven and there were moments where I just wanted to shake her and say let it go, girl! Solve the mystery here!

Unfortunately, there are also some questionable words used that kind of pull you out of the story. They just don’t feel like they belong especially when the author has clearly gone to great lengths to build this world and make it feel so very real! Other than the questionable words that crop up every now and then, the writing was beautiful. And like I said, Sarah A Parker went to grerat lengths to make this world, developing languageS and different terminology that really pull you into her world.

I will add that I hadn’t realised how close I was to the end because of the giant wad of information the author gives us at the end so we have a better understanding of their world (including a multipage glossary and pronunciation guide – which was a pleasent surprise when I realised it was there because it helped me understand some of the terms that the author had created that I just couldn’t wrap my head around).

Despite the occassional issue with wording and the slow read, the book has a hold on my heart!! I thought I knew where the story was going but somehow I hadn’t quite connected the dots that we were shown early on! What a surprise, given that some of the less favourable reviews said the story was rather predictable (which I don’t necessarily mind all the time)…

The story is well presented! The characters are great (except perhaps for the whole revenge thing for too long)! And the DRAGONS! There are three different kinds, and they all clearly have their own personalities / types. And I now really want a moonplume dragon! And that damn cliffhanger ending chapter! I almost wish I hadn’t read it because the sequel won’t be out until next year (2025) and so I’ve got to wait a long time for the continuation of Raeve’s story but I cannot wait for some answers!

“Chase death, Moonbeam. And I pray your bloodlust brings you the same sense of peace I feel just knowing you exist.”