Bunny's Reviews: Woodborn Review Spotlight

Woodborn by Heather Nix is finally on tour and we're thrilled to share it today! Read on for details and be sure to enter the giveaway at the end - A book box containing the book and other bookish goodies!

Prepare yourself as you dive into Woodborn and experience an engaging cast of characters that will keep you page-turning as you read about a variety of characters. Woodborn takes into a fantasy world where a young witch is born never knowing the truth about her birth. A young faun faces a heartbreaking tragedy at the hands of someone who would profess themselves to be "virtuous." Something dark is looming over the horizon and these two will cross paths. Can they come together to survive the evil that is coming?

This book isn't for everyone, but it is an amazing story. There is a nice amount of detail without the author going overboard with it and making readers uncomfortable. I enjoyed a lot of this book and found the characters to be truly fascinating.

My heart broke for Maelwen as she endures so much in the beginning of this book. But boy did I cheer when she finds her strength and takes her life back into her own hands. It's a great thing to witness. She begins to truly realize who and what she is. It's so good to watch her grow and develop and become more secure in her heritage. She still has her "fragile" moments, but they aren't to be misconstrued as moments of weakness. She is stronger than she appears and showcases just that at the moments when it's most needed.

Cicerine is such a sweet character in this book, but she too ends up dealing with a lot of heartbreak and loss. She has moments of happiness with her mother and her best friend, but you're going to be quick to see that there is one character ...who just doesn't fit in here. My biggest outrage for her is when this particular character has the audacity to call her friend an "outsider."

I was literally like...excuse me?! But you're an outsider, too! So get off your "pious" high horse and grovel in the mud where you belong! LOL! Too much? I doubt it. Trust me, when you read this book you will 100% agree with me on this one. The man is trash. Period.

There is a lot going on in this book and it is broken up into parts. You will travel with the characters to different places, meeting new people, making new friends, and yes, new enemies. There is danger around, but they preserve.

There are dark elements and moments in this book, hence why I said it might not be for everyone. The author does give a statement at the beginning of the book, so please read that before you dive into this book fully. For those who choose t read this book, you will absolutely enjoy it. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

I'm rating this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to the author, Heather Nix, and R&R Book Tours for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Woodborn (Song of Gods #1)

Expected Publication Date: January 21, 2023

Genre: Sapphic Fantasy/ High Fantasy

“I do not know how I lived in darkness for so many years with this bright world just waiting for me to grasp it.”

Maelwen is a young witch trapped in a harsh and unforgiving life. Friendless and alone, she endures terrible abuse in order to survive in the desolate land of Iowain.

Across the continent, Cicerine, a virtuous young faun, lives in the idyllic glade of Kanitosh Woods. Alongside her mother and closest friend, she is raised with dutiful reverence for the god, Idyth—led by the mysterious Father Farragen.

After escaping her tormentor and seeking a new life of her own, Maelwen finds a fresh start in the seedy trade city of Konidas. Meanwhile, a terrible tragedy befalls the glade, and Cicerine must flee to the same seaside town, leaving behind all she has ever known.

As a dark and menacing force spreads across Idythia, can Maelwen’s gifts and Cicerine’s developing power stand against the threat which faces them all? Alongside found family, new friends, and a crew of sapphic pirates, the line between good and evil is tested as the continent prepares for an epic battle.

CW: This is a sapphic fantasy novel, featuring a great deal of blood. Full list here

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Excerpt

My bare feet pad along the floor of my small apartment as I head toward the bedroom. The desolate and stark journey from Iowain to Konidas took three days’ time, and I arrived two months ago today. I slept on the open ground, wrapped in my cloak beneath the wide sky, full of stars. I did not encounter a single living creature as I flew. The nights were silent but for the whistle of the wind and the soft rustle of my cloak, becoming as familiar to me as a part of my ‌body. Tiny pinprick scars now run along my arms and back from wrist to wrist, where it stitches to my skin for flight, looking like a seam pulled undone. They are the only wounds which my body has not healed. It feels odd, like finding something I did not know belonged to me. The cloak currently lies draped over a chair in my sitting room, humming softly to me as I sit on my bed. Months ago, I only dreamed of freedom. Now, I have it.

This apartment sits over a tavern in Konidas. The owners are human, plump, and kind-hearted. The night I arrived here, the tavern was the first open business I found, and I shook off the chill at a barstool with a tankard of frothy ale. The barkeep made small talk, and after the ale loosened my tongue, I let slip that I had just arrived and had made no arrangements for housing. I had planned on renting a room at the inn by the docks, despite the cost—rooms were rented by the day or the hour, not monthly. Without renting one of the rickety, dilapidated homes in town or an apartment above one of the small businesses, the cost of living in a transient city like Konidas is high. However, by the end of the night, I had made my first friend, the barkeep, Shell. She is the daughter of the tavern owners who coincidentally, and conveniently, had an empty apartment upstairs. I can’t help but feel like this is all too easy, too good. I have never had a home or a friend, and this comfort is unnerving. Some god or goddess must have been on my shoulder, guiding me toward complete strangers who somehow trusted me enough to offer up an apartment within hours of my arrival. I would say thanks if we still recalled the names of the gods. I paid them upfront for three months, a show of good faith that I can at least be counted on in that regard. I am not a friendly face, but money is just as good when it comes to trust. For the second time today, I pull out my sack of coin from beneath my mattress and count it. Jarrus’s savings and my meager hoard made a fair sum, and I have a decent amount left, but soon I will need to come up with a way to make more. I slide beneath my blankets and with a small smile allow myself to drift to sleep—almost happy for the first time in my life.

I wake with the dawn, the pale pink light of sunrise filtering through my small window. There is a marked quiet to the morning and my brow furrows as I look around. My cloak has gone quiet. The persistent hum has stopped, and my senses feel dulled. I am tired, despite my night of sleep, and my body aches. Hunger grabs onto the pit of my stomach with a twisting cramp and I stand, unsteady on my feet. I dress in a pair of charcoal gray pants and a silk blouse, and I pull my long hair back into a leather tie. The staircase down to the tavern seems to shift beneath my feet, and I grip the railing to keep from falling. Shell is busy wiping down the bar, and I can smell something cooking in the kitchen, but it makes my stomach turn. Nearly gagging, I push my way through the door and out into the morning bustle.

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*Cover Art by Anna Doušová

About the Author

Heather Nix is the debut author of Woodborn, the first book in the Song of Gods series. Born and raised in sunny San Diego, CA she longs to return to the forests of the Pacific Northwest. She is the mother of two human and three cat children, and enjoys tattoos, tabletop RPGs, and creating feminist art in her limited spare time. Heather is passionate about writing queer fantasy and strives to create nuanced characters who resonate with underserved communities.

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