Book Review: A Tempest of Ravens by E.A. Bard

March 30, 2026March 29, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

A Tempest of Ravens (The Noble Exiles #1)
Publisher: Bard Songs Publishing
Pub Date: 24 October 2025
Genre: Historical Fantasy Romance

Panda Rating:

_{(3.5 pandas)}

📖 SYNOPSIS

Outlander meets One Dark Window in this sweeping and visceral historical romantasy.

SCOTLAND 1651. THE KINGDOM IS ABLAZE WITH WAR AND WITCHES’ PYRES.

Maeve MacDonnell has spent years being haunted by croaking ravens, terrifying visions, and uncanny abilities she can’t explain. She’d give anything to be free of them—or to finally control them.

After the superstitious local villagers force her out of town, an alluring stranger named Eamon comes to her aid. As their connection deepens, he encourages her to embrace her abilities. And as her power grows, so does their undeniable chemistry.

When they’re ambushed by the invading English army—who are hell-bent on conquering Scotland and turning every witch to ash—Maeve and Eamon flee to the last Scottish-held castle.

Thrust into a brutal web of deceit, and besieged by enemies on all sides, Maeve must rely on her chaotic magic to survive. It could be the key to saving the kingdom and everyone she loves—but only if she can harness it in time.

Inspired by real events and perfect for fans of Rachel Gillig and Diana Gabaldon, this atmospheric historical romantasy is the first book in the Noble Exiles series.

⚠️ CONTENT WARNINGS

On-page violence, sexual assault (non-consensual kissing & touching), attempted kidnapping, torture, war themes, blood, PTSD, emotional abuse, misogyny, bigotry

TL;DR: Lately, I’ve been struggling to find a read that piques and keeps my interest past the first few pages, so I was very excited when I started A Tempest of Ravens and it did just that. While there were enjoyable moments as the story progressed—particularly the historical context and atmosphere—the uneven pacing, repetitiveness, and a lack of connection to the characters, left me wanting more. I really thought I would love this more than I did, however, I still think it’s a solid debut and I’m curious to see where Maeve’s story goes next. If you’re more into historical fiction with a little bit of witchcraft and magic thrown into the mix, and a mild romantic subplot, you might enjoy this one!

Book Review: Masquerade by O.O. Sangoyomi

May 22, 2025 Dini @ dinipandareads6 Comments

Masquerade
Publisher: Rebellion Publishing Ltd.
Pub Date: 2 July 2024
Genre: Adult Historical Fantasy

Panda Rating:

_{(4 pandas)}

📖 SYNOPSIS

HER RISE TO POWER, PAID IN BLOOD

Òdòdó’s home city of Timbuktu has been conquered by the warrior king of Yorùbáland. Under their new oppressive ruler, conditions for Òdòdó and the other women in her ostracised blacksmith guild grow even worse.

Then Òdòdó is abducted and whisked across the Sahara to the capital city of Ṣàngótẹ̀, where she is shocked to discover that her kidnapper – the apparent vagrant who had visited her guild just days prior – is none other than the warrior king himself, and he has chosen her to be his wife.

Òdòdó soars to the very heights of society, and into a world of battle and politics. As tensions with rival states grow, revealing elaborate schemes and hidden enemies, Òdòdó must defy the cruel king she has been forced to wed and reforge the shaky loyalties of the court in her favor, or risk losing everything—including her life.

Loosely based on the myth of Persephone, O.O. Sangoyomi’s Masquerade takes you on a journey of epic power struggles and political intrigue which turn an entire region on its head.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Misogyny, kidnapping, torture, murder, forced killing of parent (on-page), poisoning of an individual to cause infertility, suicide (on-page), blood, extreme violence and war themes

TL;DR: Masquerade is a great debut by Sangoyomi and I was so pleasantly surprised by it. I will say that while this is categorised as historical fantasy, there is very little in the way of fantasy about it. Nevertheless, it was a compelling story about a woman’s rise to power and the lengths she would go to pull herself out of a life of poverty and subjugation. Òdòdó is a fantastic morally grey main character who has a very compelling arc that made it surprisingly easy to root for her, despite making decisions that place her very solidly in the unlikeable camp. I found myself somewhat shocked at the lengths she would go to, but also admired her dogged determination to not be bested by people she knew weren’t better than her. Her arc was so unique and made this story unputdownable. I chose to go the immersive reading route for this (audio + ebook) and I enjoyed how the narrator brought Òdòdó’s story to life. I’d recommend this to readers who love a good historical novel, especially one that’s not Western-centric, and a story about an underdog who comes out on top because there’s nothing quite so satisfying as seeing horrible people get their comeuppance! 🤭

#FirstLinesFriday: 31 March 2023

March 31, 2023March 31, 2023 Dini @ dinipandareads11 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

First lines:

“Theodora Eloisa Charity Ettings was a very long name for a very small girl. This, her aunt liked to say, was probably why she was such a handful—by the time one had fully shouted the words “Theodora Eloisa Charity Ettings, you get back here this instant!” said ten-year-old girl was almost always long gone.”

Blog Tour Spotlight: Hag of the Hills by J.T.T. Ryder

August 15, 2022September 22, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads2 Comments

Hello, friends! I’m excited to be shining a spotlight on Hag of the Hills by J.T.T. Ryder as part of the blog tour hosted by The Write Reads. Thanks so much for having me on tour!