Twisted Fate by Jessi Elliott | Blog Tour & Spoiler-Free ARC Review

Title: Twisted Fate
Author: Jessi Elliott
Publisher: Jessi Elliott
Publication Date: February 13, 2018
Genre(s): New Adult, Fantasy, Fae, Romance
Source: Between the Sheets Promotion & Publisher
Pages: 300
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Synopsis

Being kidnapped by the leader of the fae really puts a dent in your senior year.

Aurora Marshall is sharp, witty, and always has a plan. Ready to finish her business degree and graduate, her life is going smoothly—until the night she meets Tristan Westbrook.

Tristan, the overbearing, gorgeous fae leader, and an admired businessman in the human world is all kinds of dangerous. While he finds Aurora intriguing, her refusal to bend to his will keeps them locked in a constant power struggle.

Entering into a deal is the only way to escape Tristan’s clutches, which only plunges Aurora deeper into the fae world. With her future at stake, she is forced to handle his arrogance and extraordinary fae abilities as she fights to stay grounded in her mundane life.

Not to mention her struggle to ignore the growing attraction she knows she shouldn’t feel for the man who kidnapped her.

When people said college would be the most exciting time of her life, Aurora never thought this is what they meant.

Review

So, I don’t venture into the New Adult realm often. There were times where this was a 4-star read and time where this was a 2-star read, though overall it was an enjoyable book. For readers that have considered venturing into this realm, Twisted Fate is a fun introduction to this world.

There were some things I really liked about this book. I thought Tristan’s character was so enjoyable. While we never get a POV chapter from him, he interactions with Aurora shows that he has some wit and while there still is the “I can’t stay away from you” trope, I like that he approaches it in a slightly different way. I also liked the overarching concept of the fae and how their interaction with our world was explored.

I kind of hate myself for saying this, but my first impression was that I was getting some 50 Shades vibes. That is not meant to be an insult, but there’s a part when Aurora is interviewing for a job at Tristan’s company and the exchange was like:

“Aurora.”

“Tristan.”

And I just had some minor flashbacks. Now I’m not saying that this book is like 50 Shades because there is literally no similarities between the two other than that one exchange. Let me say that again. THERE ARE NO SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TWO, I just got a kick out of that and had to address it.

I also LOVED the use of consent in the book. There was a sexy time scene towards the end and there was open communication between the parties involved including confirming physical responses with verbal responses and making sure everything was okay when progressing to more intimate relations. So big win for that!

However, there were some things that weren’t my favorite. One that stands out was the amount of interconnecting plot threats. While the main plot following Aurora and her time with the fae is definitely the main plot, there were one or two side plots that got some page time but not nearly enough as when some things happened they felt incredibly out-of-place. This also resulted in the “things are going so well something must go bad” thing happening twice in quick succession. This sadly resulted in a baby tone problem that I wasn’t in love with.

There was also a couple of parts that I thought were going to result in large conflict but were resolved within a page or two, especially towards the end. As this book is the first in a series, a couple of these I thought were going to result in setups for subsequent novels. Though the actual setup we got was pretty cool.

Final Thoughts

Overall, this was a fun NA story that is great for those thinking about venturing into this field. The use of the fae added some paranormal fun without venturing into the cliché of vampires or werewolves. The main storyline following Tristan and Aurora and the main conflict with the fae was definitely the strongest part of the story. Depending on your preference, you may really enjoy the side plots or find them to clutter the story. I lean towards the latter with some of them, though there were a couple I grew to enjoy.

I do recommend this book if you like NA or fantasy/paranormal reads and I do plan on continuing on with the series.

Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ – 3.75/5 Stars

*HUGE THANK YOU TO JESSI ELLIOTT AND BETWEEN THE SHEETS PROMOTION FOR PROVIDING ME WITH AN E-ARC OF THIS BOOK. ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN*

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