Court of Bitter Thorn by Kay L. Moody

Kay L. Moody's Court of Bitter Thorn tells the story of Elora. She is faced with an arranged marriage to save her family from financial ruin. Tragedy quickly strikes, leaving her and her two younger sisters orphaned. Elora has no choice but to follow through with a loveless marriage for the sake of her family. All she wants to do is compete in a tournament with her skilled sword ability. Fate, however, has other plans, and she is lured into the cursed court of a faerie prince. Striking a bargain with a fae is known in the mortal world to be ill-fated, but Elora finds herself entangled in a bargain. She has no choice but to help Prince Brannick win the throne of High King. Before Elora loses all sense of time passing, can she fulfill her bargain and make it back to the mortal realm in time for her marriage?

The weakest part of Court of Bitter Thorn is in its opening chapters. The set up of the story and foreshadowing is rather apparent. The plot is relatively easy to follow, but it is a fun read and perfect for YA fantasy fans looking for a nice piece of entertainment. Once Elora arrives in the enchanting world Faerie realm, the story starts to pick up and goes from good to great. Moody's descriptions of Faerie are where her creativity starts to shine, and the characters begin to show meaningful development.

Chapters are generally short, averaging about 15 pages in ebook format, which makes this book perfect for reading on the go or during breaks. I personally really enjoyed taking a break from my day-to-day and spending a little time in Faerie.

The chemistry between Brannick and Elora is a little slow to develop but gifts readers with funny exchanges:

“You are a master of swords. How do you also know how to play the harp?” She wanted to roll her eyes but managed to suppress it. “I’m cultured.”

Court of Bitter Thorn is an excellent start to a new YA series, and I will be excitingly awaiting the next installment.

Disclaimer: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Review by Sarah Hinrichs