ARC Review: The Raven and the Dove

Title: The Raven and the Dove
Author: Kaitlyn Davis
Series: (The Raven and the Dove #1)
Release Date: March 9, 2020
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retellings
Rating: ★★★

Thank you to Edelweiss+ and Swoon Reads for an eARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

Synopsis

A princess longing to be free…

On the dawn of her courtship trials, Princess Lyana Aethionus knows she should be focused on winning her perfect mate, yet her thoughts wander to the open sky waiting at the edge of her floating kingdom. One final adventure calls. Upon fleeing the palace, the last thing she expects to find is a raven prince locked in a death match with a dragon.

A bastard aching to belong…

Reviled son of a dead king, Rafe would do anything for his beloved half-brother, Prince Lysander Taetanus, including posing as him in the upcoming courtship trials. When a dragon interrupts their secret exchange, he orders his studious sibling to run. After suffering a fatal blow, Rafe is saved by a beautiful dove who possesses forbidden magic, just like him.

Fate brought them together, now destiny will tear them apart…

Unknown to the world above, on the foggy sea ten thousand feet below, a young king fights a forgotten war. He believes Lyana is the queen prophesied to save the world, and with the help of his favored spy, hidden deep in the highest ranks of the dove royal house, he will stop at nothing to have her.

Three shocking betrayals. Two star-crossed lovers. One unforgettable journey. If you like fierce heroines, brooding heroes, forbidden romance, and action-packed magical adventures with twists you’ll never see coming, don’t miss The Raven and the Dove!

Review

Deceit, dragons, hidden magic and star-crossed lovers. The Raven and the Dove has all of that and more. Set in a world divided into two, those above and those below, it delivered a story beyond two people fighting fate for love. It’s about a princess who dreams of a higher calling, a prince who longs for approval, a bastard who wants to be accepted and an owl who hides the darkest secrets of them all. 

Lyana – Princess of the snowy House of Peace. She dreams of adventure and is always getting into all kinds of mischief. On the day the challenges for royalty to find mates should begin she witnesses a brave prince fighting for his life against a dragon and decides she’s going to turn the tables on fate and propriety. 

Rafe – The bastard prince of The House of Whispers. Shunned in his own kingdom by everyone but his brother, he would do anything for Xander including pretending to be him to compete and obtain the perfect mate for the kingdom that hates him. Attacked by a dragon and nursed back to health by a mysterious dove has a strange way of coming back to bite him in the ass later on though.

Xander – The crown prince of The House of Whispers. He’s held back by his deformity, a man of books rather than fighting. He needs the perfect mate to bring hope back to his kingdom to restore it and be taken seriously again. 

Cassi – The orphaned owl taken in by Lyana and her kind heart. She loves her best friend more than anything, but she has her own past and secrets that might just change everything.

There were so many amazing things about this book. From the writing to the world-building and the amazing characters themselves I was enraptured. While we had 4 POVs most the book, they each had their own distinct voice and I never found myself dreading someone’s chapters.

There was a bit trickery and star-crossed lovers having in the romance department. You are just on this journey with Lyana but you see what she doesn’t thanks to Rafe and Cassi. It was like watching an train wreck about to happen. So many threads of people’s lives were tangled because of the decisions others made. I just wanted it to all work out in the best ways possible and without any betrayals. 

Xander was my favorite little cinnamon roll. He loves his people but is so passive in his own life. Everyone could see it but him. He let something out of his control define him and I think some progress there was made so that’s something I’m really looking forward to in the second book along with Cassi’s storyline. 

While it took me a hot minute to get into this book and the idea of winged people, once I was in I was in deep. We’ve only really gotten to explore the tiny bit of this huge world and were left with some major cliffhangers. I’m excited to see where this will go next and even more excited that the next book The Hunter and the Mage comes out September 2020 so I don’t even have to wait too long!