A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross

"With lush world building and lyrical prose, A River Enchanted feels like the echo of a folktale from a world right next to our own." --Hannah Whitten, New York Times bestselling author of For the Wolf House of Earth and Blood meets The Witch's Heart in Rebecca Ross's brilliant first adult fantasy, set on the magical isle of Cadence where two childhood enemies must team up to discover why girls are going missing from their clan. Jack Tamerlaine hasn't stepped foot on Cadence in ten long years, content to study music at the mainland university. But when young girls start disappearing from the isle, Jack is summoned home to help find them. Enchantments run deep on Cadence: gossip is carried by the wind, plaid shawls can be as strong as armor, and the smallest cut of a knife can instill fathomless fear. The capricious spirits that rule the isle by fire, water, earth, and wind find mirth in the lives of the humans who call the land home. Adaira, heiress of the east and Jack's childhood enemy, knows the spirits only answer to a bard's music, and she hopes Jack can draw them forth by song, enticing them to return the missing girls. As Jack and Adaira reluctantly work together, they find they make better allies than rivals as their partnership turns into something more. But with each passing song, it becomes apparent the trouble with the spirits is far more sinister than they first expected, and an older, darker secret about Cadence lurks beneath the surface, threatening to undo them all. With unforgettable characters, a fast-paced plot, and compelling world building, A River Enchanted is a stirring story of duty, love, and the power of true partnership, and marks Rebecca Ross's brilliant entry on the adult fantasy stage.

Underwhelming in every way.

In A River Enchanted, a bard by the name of Jack Tamerlaine is summoned to return home to the isle of Cadence, after ten years living on the mainland. Reluctantly, he answers the summons and will try to figure out why the daughters of the island are going missing.

He soon finds out that the nature spirits of the isle are just as capricious as he remembered and will only listen to his songs. Furthermore, the tension between the East and the West is higher than ever, which makes it even more difficult to find out what happened to the girls. He teams up with Adaira -his childhood rival and the daughter of the Laird- to finally solve this mystery.

In the beginning, I struggled a little with this book. Somehow it didn't really grab me and it felt quite melancholic at times. Jack had a rough start being back in Cadence and among the people he grew up with. He keeps wanting to go back to the mainland and his beloved career. Once he reluctantly agreed to team up with Adaira, it slowly got better -for Jack as well as for me.

The magic system and the nature spirits are really well written! I was very intrigued by the idea of the wind whispering rumors and warnings, the hills making your trip longer or shorter and the sea giving you fish or starving you.

The characters in this book are very lovable. I especially liked Jack's sister Frae, but also loved Sidra, Maisie, Thorin and Mirin. Each character has their own flaws and struggles and it all comes together nicely.

Overall I really liked this book. The first part was a bit hard for me, but the second part definitively made up for it. If you like Scottish folklore, a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance and stories entwined with magic and spirits, this book is perfect for you.

Books, Coffee & Passion
4.5 stars
Jack is summoned home to Cadence. He's not sure why until he reaches the island and is told that young girls are disappearing. Adaira is the heiress of the east. Her role isn't exactly what she wanted for herself, but as the only leaving heir of the laird, she doesn't have much choice. She understands her responsibilities and knows she needs to find the disappearing girls to return them safely to their parents. That means she needs to work with her childhood enemy. Jack and Adaira need to unite their efforts in order to solve the mystery.

Torin, Adaira's cousin and captain of the guard, and Sidra, the clan's healer and his wife, were my favorite characters from the beginning. I loved both of their POVs. Their callings, their relationship, and their character development were done in a beautiful way. I also enjoyed Jack's POV and his own journey regarding his complicated relationship with his mother and the clan. I loved the moments with his sister, and I liked his dynamic with Adaira. The glimpses we had into their past were fun to read. It took me some time to warm up to Adaira. At first, I wasn't sure what to think about her, and in my opinion, her character was a little underdeveloped. It got better as the story progressed. I enjoyed her relationship with Jack and loved her friendship with Torin and Sidra.

I loved the setting! The eerie island vibes were remarkable. The magic system and the isle spirits were intriguing and compelling. The pacing wasn't perfect, a lot was packed in the last chapters but I still loved this story. The writing was beautiful, the mystery kept me invested and I needed to know what was going on! I guessed some of the mysterious details but my enjoyment didn't waver.

A very atmospheric, beautiful, intriguing, emotional tale. Can't wait to read the next book!

I felt the author is very talented with her descriptions. This book felt a bit slow in parts, and I think the author struggled with the romance, especially between the main characters. I did enjoy it and want to find out what happens in the next book!