Affiliate links can be found within this post. If you need additional information, please see the disclaimer.
MY REVIEW:
Genre | Tropes: YA Fantasy, Myths, Fae, Sirens
Rating: 5 out of 5 ⭐
Trigger Warnings
- Incest without sex (stepmother-stepson kissing)
- Sexual assault (unwanted kissing and touching)
- Violence against animals (from hunting)
I’ve been trying to read more fantasy books lately, especially young adult ones since I prefer to have more focus on the story and less on explicit scenes. The author for this book, Kristina, found me and reached out about this book. When I read the description and saw that it included a wide range of characters and a story line that was different from books I’ve seen out there, I knew I wanted to read it.
It starts out a little slow and takes some time to get settled in. Lirien is the son of a human man and siren woman, so he has characteristics of both. Including that he certainly does not look human, but can live outside of the water. The book jumps right into Lirien’s father being taken out by the Siren mother and Lirien’s remaining family being consumed by grief. This is the portion of the story (grief processing) that felt a little slow, but was very necessary to the story.
After this point, a tragic accident happens where Lirien uses his siren magic because of his angry step-mother and accidently unleashes a spell on her. The author is very straight forward about the fact that there are triggers in this book that many would not want to read about. The sections where the step-mother is attracted to her step-son is not overtly done and there isn’t much to it other than some cringe worthy moments. But she is overcome by the siren curse and thinks that she is in love with him. Prior to the spell, she could barely stand him.
As the story progresses, there are layers of curses brought upon by Lirien initially and then the step-mother in her frenzied state. Lirien has to travel in and out of the mythical land of Elythia to find direction for how to break the curse and meets some amazing friends on the way.
I really enjoyed the friendship development between Lirien (Siren), Kitra (fae fox) and Brandegil (elf) where they just seemed to fit perfectly together and each brought their own unique qualities to the table for their adventures.
Lirien had quite the trial laid before him, but he perseveres driven by his love for his human family and wanting to protect them. He goes to great lengths to break the curse on them all and is willing to sacrifice himself once all is said and done to rid them all of his siren magic.
A story about acceptance, friendship and supporting others even when the odds seem insurmountable.
“Sometimes love is a curse.”
GET IT HERE:
Sometimes love is a curse, a twisted, unnatural obsession.
Such is the dark magic of a siren’s song, the power of which half-siren Lirien witnesses for himself as he watches his mother sing his father, the King of Ardeth, into the sea. In a fruitless attempt to reverse his father’s fate, Lirien sings the siren song himself, not knowing its true power is seduction. Instead, he ensnares his stepmother, the Queen, with its hypnotic melody.
When Lirien refuses her desperate advances, she turns to forbidden magic to force her love on him. But wishing upon a havoc stone is an invitation to chaos. The queen’s own son and daughters, Lirien’s beloved siblings, are whisked away and transformed into animals. They flee the kingdom, and Lirien chases after them, his beautiful voice also gone.
Through elven mountains, fae forests, and siren waters, Lirien will stop at nothing to find and save his family. Threats come at him from all sides, but there are allies, too—Kitra, a shapeshifting fae fox who vows vengeance on the Queen for killing her brother, and Brandegil, an elf who can awaken the sacred sword Alibrandr to help break the spell on the children.
Together, they’ll bring the stars raining down from the heavens if that’s what it takes to save Lirien’s family, but there’s still the matter of breaking the spell on the Queen. And Lirien’s own deadly curse haunts him should he stray too long from the sea.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kristine Elyse Butke
Kristina Elyse Butke (Kris-TEE-nuh E-LEES BUT-key) started writing early, focusing on plays and musical theater, later having her original works produced at the Ohio State University Mansfield. In 2013, she decided to switch from the stage to the page and earned her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University.
Since then, she has contributed to the webzine Speculative Chic and also did subtitle proofreading for the anime Skip Beat! and published poetry with ExFic, First Class Literary, and Synaeresis Magazine. She has presented at conventions all over the state of Ohio, including Animate, Ohayocon, Colossalcon, and Matsuricon. She has also appeared at conferences in Japan when she worked as an assistant language teacher of English in Kumamoto prefecture.
She has also lived abroad in Wales in addition to Japan, and her time in both countries has informed her writing, often serving as the inspiration for many fantastical settings in her works. When Kristina isn’t travelling or writing, she nerds out in cosplay and indulges her otaku side by streaming as much anime as humanly possible and diving into manga and comics.
Join Kristina’s special newsletter here and get a free printable for writers: the Creative Character Questionnaire!
For everywhere Kristina is on the web, check out her Linktree!
Looking for book recs…
Adventures in Literature 
Leave a comment