Book Review: Fantastical

• Book Blurb

  Cora Goode has woken up in a fairytale world where she can understand what birds are saying, men ride horses and have fluffy feathers in their hats and furniture zigs, zags and whirls in miracles of construction.

  The problem is, she thinks she’s in a dream. Without realizing it, Cora does something that starts a centuries-old curse that will sweep the land if she gets captured by the evil Minerva.

  At this point, her dream becomes a nightmare.

  Luckily, hot guy, fantasyland Noctorno is there to save her from the clutches of Minerva.

  Unfortunately, hot guy, fantasyland Noctorno doesn’t like Cora all that much. He has his reasons, but no matter what our Cora does to try to convince him, he won’t be convinced.

  Cora needs Tor to keep her safe and guide her through this fantastical world all while she hopes one day to wake up in her not-so-great apartment in her not-so-great life in her world.

  The problem is, the more time she spends with the gorgeous warrior Tor, the faster she falls in love with him.

  Cora Goode has woken up in a fairytale world where she can understand what birds are saying, men ride horses and have fluffy feathers in their hats and furniture zigs, zags and whirls in miracles of construction.

  The problem is, she thinks she’s in a dream. Without realizing it, Cora does something that starts a centuries-old curse that will sweep the land if she gets captured by the evil Minerva.

  At this point, her dream becomes a nightmare.

  Luckily, hot guy, fantasyland Noctorno is there to save her from the clutches of Minerva.

  Unfortunately, hot guy, fantasyland Noctorno doesn’t like Cora all that much. He has his reasons, but no matter what our Cora does to try to convince him, he won’t be convinced.

  Cora needs Tor to keep her safe and guide her through this fantastical world all while she hopes one day to wake up in her not-so-great apartment in her not-so-great life in her world.

  The problem is, the more time she spends with the gorgeous warrior Tor, the faster she falls in love with him.

• My review

  It’s been a while since I read Fantastical, but it’s firmly in my hall of fame—right up there with The Golden Dynasty. If you like fantasy romance with high spice and a grumpy/sunshine dynamic, this is your book.

  From the start, you immediately understand what kind of heroine Cora is, and what kind of hero Tor is. The character dynamic is clear right away, and you learn more about both of them as the story progresses.

  Romance & Characters (Grumpy/Sunshine)

  Cora is lively, bubbly, happy—pure sunshine—and that plays perfectly against Tor’s grumpiness. She’s open-hearted and optimistic, and she faces everything in this new world head-on.

  That said, her sunshine personality can come across as childish for some readers. For me, she was perfect.

  Tor is grumpy and has a hard time showing emotion, but you see the way he slowly falls in love with her. He’s very much that tall, dark, and handsome type.

  I love how Kristen Ashley writes the falling-in-love progression here. You can see it through Cora’s thoughts as it’s happening, and it feels like a real build over time.

  The spice is there. Kristen Ashley delivers around 2–3 strong spicy scenes in this one, and I enjoyed them.

  The Big Relationship Conflict

  Kristen Ashley usually writes at least one huge conflict between the main couple, and the one in this book is the best I’ve read from her.

  That scene destroyed me. The first time I read it, I reread it about five times because it hit so hard—my heart felt like it was breaking (it was that good of a scene).

  One thing to keep in mind: Kristen Ashley isn’t great at writing grovel, and her conflict resolutions can be somewhat quick. If you need extensive groveling and a long rebuild, that may disappoint you.

  It’s been a while since I read Fantastical, but it’s firmly in my hall of fame—right up there with The Golden Dynasty. If you like fantasy romance with high spice and a grumpy/sunshine dynamic, this is your book.

  From the start, you immediately understand what kind of heroine Cora is, and what kind of hero Tor is. The character dynamic is clear right away, and you learn more about both of them as the story progresses.

  Romance & Characters (Grumpy/Sunshine)

  Cora is lively, bubbly, happy—pure sunshine—and that plays perfectly against Tor’s grumpiness. She’s open-hearted and optimistic, and she faces everything in this new world head-on.

  That said, her sunshine personality can come across as childish for some readers. For me, she was perfect.

  Tor is grumpy and has a hard time showing emotion, but you see the way he slowly falls in love with her. He’s very much that tall, dark, and handsome type.

  I love how Kristen Ashley writes the falling-in-love progression here. You can see it through Cora’s thoughts as it’s happening, and it feels like a real build over time.

  The spice is there. Kristen Ashley delivers around 2–3 strong spicy scenes in this one, and I enjoyed them.

  The Big Relationship Conflict

  Kristen Ashley usually writes at least one huge conflict between the main couple, and the one in this book is the best I’ve read from her.

  That scene destroyed me. The first time I read it, I reread it about five times because it hit so hard—my heart felt like it was breaking (it was that good of a scene).

  One thing to keep in mind: Kristen Ashley isn’t great at writing grovel, and her conflict resolutions can be somewhat quick. If you need extensive groveling and a long rebuild, that may disappoint you.

Character & romance details

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