Beyond the Aching Door

The Fatebound Duology, Book 1

De: Victoria Mier

Narrado por: Sara Brodt

A mortal journalist. A mysterious series of drownings. An exiled Fey king. A forgotten Fatesong. A single, desperate chance to save magic from extinction.

All Raegan Maeve Overhill wants is to survive another October. It's the anniversary of the worst thing that ever happened to her: the unsolved disappearance of her father nearly two decades ago. But when mysterious drownings grip the city of Philadelphia, Raegan sets her mourning rituals aside for a career-making opportunity to lead her newspaper's investigation.

Her hunt for answers takes her to the city's shadowy places where magical beings appear in puddles, the Fair Folk offer bargains, and magic is very, very real. When Raegan uncovers a startling connection to her father's disappearance, she knows she can't just return to her normal life without uncovering the truth. To get it, though, she'll need to make a deal with the dark, deadly and alluring Unseelie King—and do her best to ignore their dangerous attraction to one another.

Inspired by Welsh mythology, Slavic folklore, and Arthurian legend, Beyond the Aching Door is an adult urban fantasy romance for fans of A Discovery of Witches.

Contains mature themes.

©2024 Victoria Mier (P)2024 Tantor Media

OH MY GOD. The yearning.

“He gazed down at her as though he would sacrifice everything for her and hate himself all the while.”

OH MY GOD. The yearning. The fate bound tension. I am DYING.

This book reminds me of a combination of Divine Rivals/Crescent City/parts of The Deer and the Dragon. I loved the urban setting—I love an urban fantasy or magical realism story, so this immediately captured my attention.

This book is so deep and unique and fun. The setting, the storyline, and SEXUAL TENSION. Ugh. I’m obsessed.

And I love the combo of folklore and Arthurian elements. SO fun.

The narration of the audiobook is fabulous. Unique voices for complex characters, and I laughed out loud at Baba Yaga’s cackling. SO good.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice: 🌶️.5/5

A wild magic and mystery filled ride with lots of angst

Wow! I knew this was a dualogy, but I did not expect the way this book would end. I’m just sitting here stunned. Regan, our FMC, is a journalist. She gets assigned a strange case that pulls at the back of her mind. Her father disappeared almost 20 years prior. She remembers fairy tales and stories about the fae. Something about this case pulls at the back of her mind and makes her dare to do take a risk. This starts the plunge of her into a life that has her realizing magic is real, the fae are real, and that she has been many different places over time. The Fae King she meets, there is a pull to him.

The world and magic system building that Victoria Meir built is complex and intricate. The imagery of some of the places they visit are so rich. Even the other characters like Baba Yaga, you can just see them in your mind’s eye. I would like to stay In Baba Yaga’s bath house, please!

This book has magic, folklore (including Authorian lore), prophecies, and everything shrouded in a mystery they are trying to solve. The slowwwww burn and tension between Regan and The Fae King will really have you feeling the angst and wishing it would happen. When it does, the passion is fire. So, not a ton of spice, but the build up has you simmering through most of the book. Also, the feminine rage aspect of it. It brings the power. Regan has so much built up, and frustration at every turn, so that when she unleashes that anger it has an impact.

I also love that Regan is bisexual and it was incredibly relatable when she it gets mentioned she would always tell her boss that meant she likes maybe 4 men and then all the women. I actually laughed out loud. I did get lost at times with so much going on, so it is the only reason it is not 5 starts. That is just me, and probably my neurodiversity. It is beautifully written.

I listened to this as an audiobook. The narrator, Sara Brody, did such an amazing job. This is no short book. To be able to have so many different characters, with different accents, and being able to listen and easily distinguish each character consistently was astonishing to me. It did not feel like a solo narrator at all.

I eagerly anticipate the second book, especially as an audiobook. My heart is waiting to see where we are going next.

Fae Romantasy with Mystery!

I want to say first and foremost the audio narration was excellent for this book! Sara knocked it out of the park! I enjoyed how the book opened with strange drownings and more mysterious things happened throughout. The answers unfolded at a good pace and the main characters were great! It was a unique take on an older Fae King romantic interest on a younger human! But by the end I was invested in their relationship.