House of Ash and Shadow (Gilded City Book 1) by Leia Stone

Fallon Bane was born with a devastating curse: a single touch from another person will cause her excruciating pain. Thus, she has accepted that she will die without ever being kissed, without even hugging her own father, though it breaks her heart every day.

But when her beloved father falls ill, she breaks into the magical Gilded City to find a healer fae that can save him. When handsome healer Ariyon Madden agrees to help, everything she knows about herself and her curse changes. Because during her father’s healing, Ariyon reaches out and touches her bare skin. She waits for the agony… but it never comes. For the first time in her life, she imagines a new future for herself. However, that fantasy is quickly destroyed, because not only does Ariyon flee from her in disgust when he learns of her curse; he also reveals her existence to powerful fae who want to hurt her.

Fallon is then swept away to a magical academy, where she learns the terrifying truth about her family history and her dark magic. Her life and the future of fae everywhere hang in the balance, and all the while Fallon can’t help but wonder if she will get to touch Ariyon Madden one more time before she dies…

My Review

Fallon lives in a small town with a loving father, but she has a horrible curse: she can’t be touched without extreme pain. I admire her bravery in trying to save her father by breaking all the rules. 

In Gilded City, we had our first experience with magical fae and this academy. But Fallon is still in desperate need of a miracle.  Ariyon rocks her world, too, revealing info she didn’t know about herself. This gets more fascinating. I love it when magic and romance are in the mix for the story.

The academy, the familiar, and, of course, her new magical prowess and heritage make this so much more exciting. There is some teenage angst as one twin may be more enemies to lovers, and the other may be more friends to lovers, but it could go either way in this love triangle. 

The love triangle starts to figure out, and we get glimpses of happiness before it all comes crashing down. This book is a constant battle between light and dark. Who will win? The end is exhilarating, and the cliffhanger is aggravating. I was so involved with the characters that I didn’t want this one to end. 

Author Leia Stone has done it again, and Fallon’s story has absolutely made me crave this fantasy academy world. I love this story’s dark magic, curse, and love triangle. It is a very young adult, but oh, such a great read. This is a fantastic start to a series, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

If you want to read House of Ash and Shadow by Leia Stone you can find this book on Amazon. As an Amazon Assocaite, I earn on qualifying purchases.

If you love this book, you might also enjoy books in the following tags and categories: Fantasy Romance, Fae, and Academy.