Thank you to NetGalley and K.A. Connolly for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
*Norcliff* opens with a gut-wrenching tragedy: Erin Hart loses both her fiancé and her parents on what was meant to be her wedding day. From this moment on, the novel becomes a gripping journey of grief, resilience, and unyielding strength. With her parents held hostage by the Mortons—ruthless neighbors with eyes on Norcliff—Erin faces an impossible choice: submit to Ardent Morton’s demand for her hand in marriage or rise and fight to free herself and her home from their control.

What sets Erin apart is her fierce independence. Unlike the traditional women of her time, she’s been trained in swordplay, dagger combat, and horseback riding since childhood. Her skills aren’t just for show—they become essential tools as she seeks allies and ventures to the capital in search of aid from King Ulrich. But with threats rising from the north and bandits swarming Arndale, her path is anything but straightforward.

Connolly’s world-building is rich with court intrigue, personal sacrifice, and emotional depth. Erin’s sense of justice and her devotion to her land are deeply moving, and her character development felt both grounded and empowering. I particularly enjoyed watching the bond between Erin and Hugo unfold naturally over the course of the novel—it added emotional weight without overshadowing the plot.
That said, some elements felt underdeveloped. Certain characters were introduced as major players, only to vanish or receive minimal follow-up—most notably the poisoner, who plays an early role but is scarcely mentioned again. Additionally, there were a few editorial slips (such as missing spaces and misused royal titles—only a king should be addressed as “Majesty”), but these didn’t detract significantly from the story. While I felt the ending could have had a bit more of an epic punch given the stakes.

It was a very interesting book! I can't say that it was my favorite, sincee I think historical fiction is generellay not my style (anymore). So it falls into the "okay" category, but I could see it being more to others' tastes.

I couldn't finish this one. It started out very interesting, and the setting felt very unique, but then the plot started rushing and I felt like I didn't have any emotional connection to any character or place, so I didn't really care about them. Everything from characters to dialogue felt really flat and forced.

Im really sad that this book wasn't executed better, as the premise and the start point of the story were really interesting.

Sad to say but I didn’t much care for any of the characters in this story. The main character didn’t stand out to me and all the other side characters came and went and I just could not for the life of me, get through it with an emotional attachment being nonexistent. I might try a reread someday? Maybe it’s a me thing, but sadly, I’m passing on this.

This story follows the daughter of a noble family who is forced to raise an army and battle with a neighbouring family, intent on forcing her into a marriage and taking her lands. The FMC shows strength and determination, despite many obstacles, and fights like a bad-ass. There's also a romantic thread that developed nicely and was quite cute. Unfortunately though, I found the plot in general a little dull and anticlimatic, and the FMC quite difficult to connect with. It deals with a number of important issues through a modern lense, but a lot of the attitudes expressed and the dialogue is written as though it is trying to emulate an historic perspective and style, which I overall found confusing. It had it's moments, but it ultimately didn't do it for me.

I like the premise of this book a lot. However it was just too fast paced for me and I was lost in some portions.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

This book suffered from poor connective tissue. The premise was solid and I liked the characters, but I felt like the plot jumped from tableau to tableau featuring the characters, rather than being along for the ride.

his book was such an easy read in that it was fast paced, the slow burn romance was adorable and was genuinely had me giggling and kicking my feet at times. I really liked seeing the feminism and female friendship throughout this book and all of the characters were very much likeable. It just seemed sort of rushed in all the wrong places?

the story of a young woman working through grief and finding her strength was moving. The portrayal of loss is raw and relatable, and her journey toward healing feels authentic. That said, the pacing is a bit slow in places, and the side characters could’ve been more fleshed out.
Overall a good read

"Norcliff" by K.A. Connolly tells the touching story of Erin as she copes with a tragic loss, showing her strength and growth into a powerful character. The book is full of action and adventure, set in a well-researched historical setting that is described just right. It not only has a gripping plot but also explores important themes like identity and ethical choices, making it relatable for younger readers with little romance. With beautiful language and meaningful insights, "Norcliff" is an engaging read for anyone who enjoys thoughtful stories.

This is one of those that I would file under "not for me, but not bad." I didn't connect with any of the characters, the pacing was choppy, and the dialogue was pretty cringeworthy much of the time. But I can see how it would appeal to its younger readers, like my 9th grade students, so I will add it to our classroom library anyway and let them explore.

***Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book to review.***

DNF at 36%

Sadly I just could not get along with the writing in this book. It felt very choppy and disjointed.

Overall I enjoyed this book but didn't love it. I was initially drawn in by the cover and then blurb. I hoped for a badass female maim character and in that regard it did not disapoint. I loved seeing Erin through thr story and her strength really shone through. I also enjoyed the slow burn romance through the story.
I just felt that at times the story felt rushed and that in face we could have done with more information at times to flesh events out and make them clearer. I think I've been left with too many gaps in the plot.
Overall though I did enjoy it and I would still recommend to people to give it a try.

While the plot seemed to have some promise, the narrative execution felt quite choppy, and the Point of View felt inconsistent. Perhaps further editing is necessary?

a low 3 stars
arc from netgalley!

this started out really interesting, i loved how it was setting the stage for this character to be very important later on, as there is a little prologue chapter set eighteen or so years before the bulk of the book
however, not much happened with this character following on, or to do with many of the characters really. i felt that they were all quite stationary, and that the plot moved very fast around them and kind of swept them away. I didnt particularly like any of the characters, though the duke had some lines that made me laugh a bit but we dont see him until 60/70% of the way through the book.
our main girl was alright, but her sister was severely overshadowed and she had nothing to do at all. I wish jax had anything to do either, but after chapter five or so there isn’t really anything.
the world was interesting, i got medieval vibes from it though im not sure if that is the inspiration, and what descriptions there were were good.
I did find myself skimming from the 50% mark, and then skimming more after 70%, it was not the most interesting plot and the characters could not carry it alone.

Norcliff was such an engaging read!
The story was well crafted, filled with love, intrigue and the first steps of a Lady, who is much more than she can imagine.

Erin, the main character, is definitely a "not like other girls" type, but she's not a stereotype at that. She actually is taught skills and benefits from using her own thoughts and feelings to make things right. Her character definitely grows and changes throughout the story, where she has to prove everyone wrong. Erin isn't just a Lady, she is a leader, a lover and a fighter all at once.

I would love to read more from this world and see where the ending actually takes us.

So the reason I wanted to read this book is because I saw it on Netgalley and thought the story sounded really interesting! For me, I very much liked this book, I just didn't love it. This book was such an easy read in that it was fast paced, the slow burn romance was adorable and was genuinely had me giggling and kicking my feet at times. I really liked seeing the feminism and female friendship throughout this book and all of the characters were very much likeable. It just seemed sort of rushed in all the wrong places? There would be times where I wanted to know more about what was happening in certain points in the story and to find out more about what happened to specific characters and never got my questions answered. I guess what I'm saying is yes, this book was likeable, but it very much had it's flaws. Would this stop me from reading another K.A. Connolly book? No. Would I pick this up as a physical copy? Also no. However, if you do want a nice easy read which has topics of grief, action and slow burn romance, I would say to go for it when it comes to this one, just maybe don't expect all your questions to be answered.

4 stars!

I always choose books by its cover, and this one didn't dissapoint! Thank you to Netgally for the review copy.

It's a fastpaced youngadult fantasy story, without any magical elements. It was a quick and easy read, but still enjoyable!

We follow Erin who is supposed to marry Marc who she has known her whole life. On her way to the wedding, they get attacked by the Morton's who want to take over the land of Erin's family. They kill everyone 'red wedding' style and kidnapp her and Marcs parents.

Erin who grew up with Liana as her sister and bodyguard, and Jax their teacher, travel to the capital to plead their case to the King and get some help. However, the king doesn't care and his son apparently is horrible and joins the Morton forces.

The story continues by them traveling back to save and rescue her parents. Along the way they try to gather evidence and find allies.

Will they be able to save her family and her land? Will they find unexpected allies? And maybe even some love? Read it now!

I was very excited when I got the ARC for this book. The premise was interesting and I couldn't waited to read it. Sadly, it did not deliver. I had a difficult time finishing this book and have been tempted to dnf it numerous times.

From the very beginning the writing felt strange, at first I thought it was satire but soon realised it was just the author's writing style. Everything about this book felt so unserious, I couldn't connect with any of the characters, they were all unlovable and this whole book just lacks emotion. The idea for the story was good (hence why the premise looked promising) but executed badly. I feel this needs a good editing/rewriting.

Unfortunately this book wasn't for me, but my opinion is my own and tastes are subjective.