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tarahific

T, like the beverage ☕ she/they disabled queer zillenial ('97) 🥄🌈 wife to a wife, mom to two cats 👩🏻‍❤️‍👩🏼🐈‍⬛🐈 SFF with a splash of other genres

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LGBTQ+ Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Sapphic Across Genres
Classic Literature from the United States
My Taste
A Study in Drowning
The Everlasting
The Jasmine Throne
Catching Fire
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With Wing And Claw (Fae Isles, #5)
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tarahific started reading...

1w

With Wing And Claw (Fae Isles, #5)

With Wing And Claw (Fae Isles, #5)

Lisette Marshall

The war is over… but the trouble is only just beginningThysandra’s world is falling apart. Rebels have overthrown the fae empire she’s served for centuries. Worse, she’s the one who caused the defeat – tricked into treason by her longtime nemesis and romantic obsession, Anaxia, who then promptly abandoned her again, like the empathy-lacking demon she is.Execution by rebels would be a relief at this point.Instead, the bastards name her High Lady of the very court she just betrayed. Punishment or reward, Thys isn’t quite sure.Now she’s supposed to restore order at the Crimson Court… but fae are clamouring for violent revenge. Humans want rights and reparations. There's a sentient mountain causing trouble, and Anaxia is suddenly prancing around the castle again, refusing to leave, and murdering people left and right.Most ridiculously of all, she’s claiming Thysandra is madly in love with her.Agreeing to work together is the only way to restrain the little menace. But when tensions at the court rise to a breaking point, simple cooperation may no longer be enough… Because someone is undermining Thys at every turn. And if she doesn’t soon decide how much she can trust this fickle demon she can’t help but desire, it may just be the death of them both.With Wing and Claw is a steamy sapphic fantasy romance featuring a former villain coming to terms with herself, a stabby demon with no morals but plenty of charm, and lots of deadly court intrigue. It can be read as a standalone, although certain events will be more meaningful for readers of the main Fae Isles series.

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tarahific TBR'd a book

1w

With Wing And Claw (Fae Isles, #5)

With Wing And Claw (Fae Isles, #5)

Lisette Marshall

The war is over… but the trouble is only just beginningThysandra’s world is falling apart. Rebels have overthrown the fae empire she’s served for centuries. Worse, she’s the one who caused the defeat – tricked into treason by her longtime nemesis and romantic obsession, Anaxia, who then promptly abandoned her again, like the empathy-lacking demon she is.Execution by rebels would be a relief at this point.Instead, the bastards name her High Lady of the very court she just betrayed. Punishment or reward, Thys isn’t quite sure.Now she’s supposed to restore order at the Crimson Court… but fae are clamouring for violent revenge. Humans want rights and reparations. There's a sentient mountain causing trouble, and Anaxia is suddenly prancing around the castle again, refusing to leave, and murdering people left and right.Most ridiculously of all, she’s claiming Thysandra is madly in love with her.Agreeing to work together is the only way to restrain the little menace. But when tensions at the court rise to a breaking point, simple cooperation may no longer be enough… Because someone is undermining Thys at every turn. And if she doesn’t soon decide how much she can trust this fickle demon she can’t help but desire, it may just be the death of them both.With Wing and Claw is a steamy sapphic fantasy romance featuring a former villain coming to terms with herself, a stabby demon with no morals but plenty of charm, and lots of deadly court intrigue. It can be read as a standalone, although certain events will be more meaningful for readers of the main Fae Isles series.

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  • Queens of Mist and Madness (Fae Isles, #4)
    Sep 06, 2026
    Queens of Mist and Madness (Fae Isles, #4)Lisette Marshall
    5.0
    Enjoyment: 5.0Quality: 5.0Characters: 5.0Plot: 5.0
    🏛️
    🪷
    🗡️

    What a lovely conclusion to such an underrated romantasy series! This book has so much heart — the way things come together in terms of found family and healing from trauma literally made me cry several times 🥹. The character arcs and growth, not just for the MCs but for the side characters, is all very well executed.

    I found the pacing of this last installment to be perfect. The final battle was steadily built up to, until I was anxious about what would happen. It was intense with equal parts raw action and clever strategizing, and I really enjoyed how it all wrapped up. I also love what Em decides to do with the fae empire afterwards — LOVE an anti-hegemony message!

    I gotta say I appreciate how this was still dark and intense and made me feel all the feels but didn't unnecessarily dispose of beloved characters. I will definitely read more of Lissette Marshall's writing because how did she manage to emotionally destroy me AND give me a happy ending?!

    This series was such a killer combo of epic fantasy world-building and character development, deep emotional themes, and spicy romantasy elements. The very realistic anxiety and trauma/PTSD representation, as well as the disability/sign language representation, are also 10/10. I picked up the first book looking for a silly little romantasy to get lost in during a stressful season of work. I did not expect to fall in love with a series full of well-crafted characters, intricate magic systems, and emotional depth. If you're looking for all the standard romantasy elements but want something that feels unique and well-developed, I cannot recommend Fae Isles enough. It is not at all difficult to read and I guess you could turn your brain off for it, but it is several levels above other hyped books/series in the genre and there is plenty of pay-off if you read with your brain "on".

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    tarahific commented...

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  • Thoughts from Chapter 14 🌶️ (65% page 230)
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    tarahific is interested in reading...

    2w

    The Red Winter

    The Red Winter

    Cameron Sullivan

    A devastating love story. A bewitching twist on history. A blood-drenched hunt for purpose, power, and redemption. In 1785, Professor Sebastian Grave receives the news he fears most: the terrible Beast of Gévaudan has returned, and the French countryside runs red in its wake. Sebastian knows the Beast. A monster-slayer with centuries of experience, he joined the hunt for the creature twenty years ago and watched it slaughter its way through a long and bloody winter. Even with the help of his indwelling demon, Sarmodel – who takes payment in living hearts – it nearly cost him his life to bring the monster down. Now, two decades later, Sebastian has been recalled to the hunt by Antoine Avenel d’Ocerne, an estranged lover who shares a dark history with the Beast and a terrible secret with Sebastian. Drawn by both the chance to finish the Beast for good and the promise of a reconciliation with Antoine, Sebastian cannot refuse. But Gévaudan is not as he remembers it, and Sebastian’s unfinished business is everywhere he looks. Years of misery have driven the people to desperation, and France teeters on the edge of revolution. Sebastian’s arcane activities – not to mention his demonic counterpart – have also attracted the inquisitorial eye of the French clergy. And the Beast is poised to close his jaws around them all and plunge the continent into war. Debut author Cameron Sullivan tears the heart out of history with this darkly entertaining retelling of the hunt for the Beast of Gévaudan. Lifting the veil on the hidden world behind our own, it reimagines the story of Europe, from Imperial Rome to Saint Jehanne d’Arc, the madness of Gilles de Rais and the first flickers of the French Revolution.

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  • Ruins of Sea and Souls
    Aug 21, 2026
    Ruins of Sea and SoulsLisette Marshall
    4.0
    Enjoyment: 4.0Quality: 3.5Characters: 4.5Plot: 4.0
    🦪
    🕊️
    🔮

    So torn about how to rate this because the first half kinda dragged for me (and I'm someone who loves slow-paced books). Em's anxiety circles are valid but they didn't need to be written on the page that many times. The new lands the gang explores and the exciting discoveries they make are compelling, I just wish they weren't so bogged down by Em's inner monologues.

    There might be light spoilers below but nothing egregious.

    The second half really picks back up and although Em's anxieties are still present, they don't feel overbearing. I adore the different "races" of magical creatures and the multiple magic systems in this series, especially because we get to see them in action and are taught the mechanics/logic behind them in a way that feels seamless. This installment in particular expands some of these systems, as well as the larger world and the lore of several characters. Also the new little familiar someone gains?! I'M OBSESSED. Alyra has my heart.

    There's a lot of character growth as well, and it extends beyond Em and Creon to side characters too. The characters are very consistent—even when they're being insufferable, it's true to form, so I can get past it. There's also a lot of not communicating which is frustrating, but it's also well backed-up by characters' motivations and histories, so again it's hard to fault it.

    THE ENDING!!! It got me good 😭. I'll definitely be starting the next book immediately.

    My final gripe is the title. Ruins? Yes. Sea? Sure, but it's maybe a stretch... "shores" would work better. Souls? What souls?? Are they in the room with us??? How about "Ruins of Shores and Secrets" or "Shores of Reign and Ruins"? DON'T LIE TO ME WITH THE TITLE. I THOUGHT WE WERE GOING INTO THE OCEAN GDDMNIT. I also thought we might find out more about Ally?! WHERE IS SHE?!

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