I liked this book. As with the others in the series it was very descriptive although I found the storyline quite inconsistent and overwhelming at times. I did not find the characters in particular Aisling as likeable as I did in previous books which kind of made me feel that this book was very long and too descriptive to read at times. Although still a decent book in the series I loved the setting and the description did allow me to be immersed in the storyline.

Would recommend to anyone looking for a fantasy romance series who is very descriptive with multiple plot lines.

The Forever Queen is the third and final instalment in this trilogy,
Unfortunately for me, I found the story rather lacking... much unlike the previous books in this series. Some of the plot within this book just didn't flow as effortlessly for me personally.

Thank you to Netgalley, Second Sky Books and Ashley Metzler for providing me with a copy of this book in return for my honest review.

The ForeverQueen
2.5⭐️3🌶️

3rd Book
Romantasy
Multi POV
Dual timeline
Celtic/irish Mythology
Unique Magic System
Sentient Magic
Fae
Magical Beasts


The Forever Queen wraps up Ashley Metzler’s trilogy with some seriously gorgeous imagery. The worldbuilding is still one of the strongest parts of this series—every scene is so easy to picture, and the atmosphere is really vivid throughout.

That said, I struggled a bit with this one. There’s no real recap or reminder of what happened in the previous books, which made it tough to jump back in and remember key events or character dynamics. I found myself wishing there were a few more hints or refreshers.

The biggest issue for me, though, was the characters. I had a hard time connecting with them this time around, especially the FMC. Her personality felt pretty different from the first two books, almost like she’d been rewritten, and it made it harder to relate to her or care as much about her journey.

Overall, it’s not a bad read—especially if you’ve just finished the first two books and everything’s fresh. The writing is lovely, but the emotional payoff just didn’t hit the way I hoped.


Thank you Second Sky books and NetGalley for the gift of an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.


The Mortal Queen- 4⭐️1.5🌶️
The Savage Queen- 3⭐️3🌶️
The Forever Queen- 2.5⭐️3🌶️

I found this one a disappointing final to such a good trilogy. The first two books of this series were by far a 5* read for me but I really struggled to get into this one.

I found it slow to start with, some parts were rushed and therefore there were parts that didn’t make sense to me and I couldn’t follow. I also found that I was starting to dislike Aisling in this one (which I know is the point) but that really affected my engagement in the story.

There were some parts which were really immersive and told well however and I still love the premise so 3* overall.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC!

This series hooked me so fast, and it will stay with me. I loved the whole story, and how Metzler approached it. I was genuinely surprised at times I really thought I had figured out what was coming next, and I love when authors are able to do that through a series all the way to the end. I will say, the first two books were better, but I still really enjoyed the trilogy through to the end.
—
Thank you Second Sky & NetGalley for this complimentary ARC - all thoughts are my own! 📚
Publishers release date 5/16/2025

Ashley Metzler’s The Forever Queen is a visually stunning finale to the Aisling Trilogy, written in prose that feels almost liquid with beauty. Metzler’s world-building remains a standout — lush, shimmering with fae magic, and so atmospheric you can practically smell moss and moonlight on the page. Her writing is lyrical without being purple, a real treat for anyone who loves fantasy that immerses you completely.

Aisling and Lir continue to shine as the beating heart of the story. Their connection is electric, full of yearning and vulnerability. Lir’s chapters, especially, deliver deep emotional resonance, adding a layer of quiet intensity that’s been building across the series. Metzler is brilliant at writing romantic tension that crackles and aches all at once.

That said, book three isn’t flawless. The pacing falters, with a middle section that drags and an ending that feels rushed, as if too much was squeezed into too few pages. The memory-loss plot device felt like a shortcut, undermining Aisling’s growth and robbing her of agency just when she’d finally stepped into her power. I also missed the ensemble of supporting characters who’d been so vibrant earlier; here, they’re mostly sidelined in favor of the central romance and final conflict.

Despite these stumbles, The Forever Queen delivers an emotional punch and leaves a lingering ache in the best way. For fans invested in Aisling and Lir’s journey, it’s worth seeing through to the end.

My heart has held a special place for Lir and Aisling since I early read Breath of a New Creature, and the additions to this story in the new release of 1 and 2 have made this final book an absolutely amazing conclusion to this series. The world building and writing is one of my all time favorites, and the MCs have stayed content in their hold on my imagination. This series is a Roman Empire series of mine and one I’ll be returning to often.

Thank you so much Second Sky, NetGalley and Ashley for the arc!

The forever queen is the conclusion to the Aisling trilogy , a fae romantasy series that followed Aisling a human princess forced to marry the fae king of the forest in order to forge a peace treaty between their people.

*The rest of this review may contain spoilers*

I actually started this book in March but had to stop. The book still had the rich and imaginative storytelling as the others and it had the creative character depictions and immersive world-building as well. Where it fell short for me was the plot....

I'll confess I really wanted to read this one because of the cliffhanger in book 2, I thought that the voice calling Aisling to the otherworld was Dagfin and she would go find him and have some character growth and personality traits from book 1 but I was completely off the mark; turns out it was a new character Niamh calling her and she now has to get the favor of the Gods so she can replace Niamh as the guardian of that world. This book was so incredibly frustrating it felt like throughout this series it's been a constant case of one step forward , three steps back especially with Lir and Aisling's relationship. At some point the charcaters in a 'romantasy' have to actually get together and stay together. It was a constant back and forth between I hate you but not really between these characters and by the end of book 2 it became exhausting and I thought they had reached stability but noooo in book 3, Aisling the power hungry tyrant puts on some magical belt that stays on for 85% of the book and causes her to forget Lir *sighhh* so right back to square one. And on that note Aisling was absolutely insufferable, her whole existence revolved around amassing power to get revenge and it was never enough , nothing else about her is explored! I expected this book to involve her grappling with the impact of Dagfins death and the fact that she committed mass genocide but Dagfin was barely mentioned and she enjoyed committing genocide which was so unsettling for me I was literally like what the actual heck is this. I mean it was her family and clan that sold her to the fae but the fact that she has such an intense hatred for other innocent humans was actually insane. Keep in mind she commits mass genocide again at the end of this book. Speaking of the end , what actually was that , all of those long justifications and power hungry mania only for her not to survive and then somehow still have a child with Lir as a spirit!!! make it make sense to me cause I couldn't with this book. And it actually is so underwhelming because I enjoyed book 1 and it had so much of potential, this series could have been epic fantasy but it just fell not even flat, it was subpar. I just want to stress that it is okay for a female character to be strong and powerful but still be kind and caring that does not make her weak it is a testament to her strength.





***Thank you to netgalley and the publishers of this book for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review based on a personal reading experience. ***

The writing is absolutely stunning. The atmosphere and vibes immaculate. I absolutely HATED the anduril plot line. I feel it was a cheap and drawn out way of trying to “start over” the enemies to lovers tension. It really killed the book for me. The first two books I read in a day. This one: months. BUT The ending was perfection. Perfect way to wrap up the series.

ARC REVIEWER

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This truly a beautiful work of art. My heart broke for multiple reasons. Aisling and Lir was an amazing slow burn their love was beautiful and wild as their fire together ❤️. Also, Lir is a daddy material 😍. I am so happy I found this series that was recommended by @books_and_crafts and @mandy_bookingchaos. I have been so thankful to be a part of the ARC team for this beautiful book. The fantasy and world building was done amazingly. I cannot recommend this series enough to anyone who will listen. @ashleymetzlerauthor I have not loved a series so much in a long time. Thank you for building this fantasy world.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

Oh boy. After really enjoying the first one, and being okay with the second one, this is a very disappointing end to the series.

There are some major, major flaws. A very big one being the choice of Anduril the belt being such a huge plot component. It was completely annoying and ridiculous. Aisling doesn't want to train to be a warrior, she puts on a mystical belt that a guy who was trying to kidnap her gave her, and then the belt thinks her husband is distracting and so forces her to forget him. This goes on for pretty much the entire book, and it's the stupidest thing ever. She could've just like tried???? The whole forgetting things seemed like a covenient way to attempt to rebuild relationship tension, but I genuinely can't imagine anyone enjoy the boring re-hashing of the first book.

Fionn is barely a character after he jump-starts all this ridiculousness and if you thought the plotline with Racat was going anywhere, you're wrong because we barely ever hear about him. Dagin the annoying is mentioned only once thank god, and Aisling's stupid annoying family is kept to a minimum.

Niamh is a terrible new character. She is completely un-understandable and not in a fun, chaotic way, just in a 0 consistency, clearly just doing whatever forwards the plot in the way Metzler wanted.

The ending is just stupid. So, so stupid, and I refuse to give it anymore thought than this <spoiler> how the fuck did they have a kid? </spoiler> Aisling's entire arc and idea of her own destiny is ruined and ignored. Also, <spoiler> they just abandon Annwyn off page?? They were fighting for two books to save it and they don't even seems to care that they've lost it? Huh???? </spoiler>

The first book wasn't great but it was intensely accessible and engrossing. This book just kept punching me in the face for wanting to enjoy it. I don't recommend, and what's worse, it renders reading the first book completely pointless. Don't bother.

One star.

I absolutely loved the first two books in The Aisling Trilogy, so I was excited for the third book. Once again, I was drawn into the plot from the beginning and remained hooked until the end, which is why I couldn't put the book down. There were a few things in the plot that I didn't like, but they didn't take away from my reading experience. I still enjoyed the book, although it was weaker than the previous two. I didn't expect the ending, and I'm disappointed that the trilogy ends this way. However, I understand what the author wanted to achieve. The world-building in these books was one of my favorite aspects as it was interesting, immersive, and refreshing. I grew to love the well-developed characters, which makes me a little sad in hindsight.

THE FOREVER QUEEN

2.75 /3⭐️ {Arc}
(ARC review) — Thank you to author Ashley Metzler and her publisher Second SkyPublishing. I received an Advanced Reader Copy for the May 2025 release of THE FOREVER QUEEN in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately this trilogy has dwindled in ratings. Bk1 was the best, then Bk2 middle of the road and this one was tough to finish. I only dud because it was the final book, an ARC and I felt I needed to see how it ended.

The first two books were good and then this final one had plot holes, really odd pacing and was disappointing.

I felt like everything good in the first two books was erased and we were reading an entirely different series. Very confusing. Wasn’t the way I expected this journey to end.

I really loved The Forever Queen. It started off strong and pulled me in right away. The world is magical and beautifully written, and Aisling’s journey kept me hooked from start to finish. The ending was unexpected, really interesting and emotional. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading more from Ashley Metzler.

The best fantasy read of the year, hands down. Cannot believe it’s over. Aisling and Lir you will have my heart forever. Beautifully written and so captivating, author did a phenomenal job once again.

Once again Ashley shows us just how amazing her world building and descriptive writing it. The visuals of the places they visit and the lush nature surrounding them are so vivid. I loved every description.

We return to the story where book two left off. Again the chemistry between Aisling and Lir is palpable. You can feel the yearning between them.

I enjoyed our favourite side characters back in the fold, however I don't think they played a big enough part. We also see an old face return and new leaders come into the story. Aislings horrid family are back again and you'll hate them more than ever.

I enjoyed the little quests they go on, we understand the history, relationships and choices made by people in the past a lot clearer.

However I did feel that this book wasn't favourite of the trilogy which for me is heartbreaking for a conclusion. I felt there were lots of plot holes. I had hoped that this would be a book where we see Lir and Aisling on the same page, more chemistry and a bit of spice, however we have a book that sees them yet again at constant odds with eachother.

I have conflicting feelings about the end. It is a bittersweet ending. I cried A LOT! That is a testament to Ashley's writing. She ripped my heart out. I read this book back in March and I've thought about the ending all this time and I've struggled to put into writing my feelings about it. I know people would have loved a happy ending tied up in a bow but on reflection part of me thinks actually I did like it the way Ashley did it. Boy, this series was an emotional rollercoaster!

We've been on such a journey with Aisling and Lir and the culmination, the vengeance they seek was put into three chapters and an epilogue which left me with so many questions. I also felt like Lir got a bit of a bum deal with the ending when he had already been through so much trauma.

That being said I do think the ending, as sad as it was, had a massive impact on me.

I have enjoyed this series immensely and I honestly can't wait to see what is next for Ashley. I'll be at the front of the queue for her next book!

Thank you to Second Sky and the author for the arc. This is my honest review of the book.

Book review: 2.5/5 ⭐️
Genre: YA romantasy
Themes: fae, prophecy, doomed lovers, power
📖 Read if you like: The Hurricane Wars, Kingdom of the Wicked

Aisling and Lir have declared their love for each other and set the world aflame. With the mortals having new powers and destroying the fae kingdom by kingdom Aisling searches for a weapon that will grant the Gods’ favour and hope for a future of her choosing.

I wanted to love this finale as I enjoyed the first two books in this series, but there were too many flaws in both the plot and characters. First off, Anduril felt like a cop out to l redo the love story and create tension. It was such a large magical concept to just appear and read as an irritating and unnecessary plot device in my opinion. I cannot figure out why Aisling would trust Fionn, or why she would so easily let go of her hard fought control over her own destiny. I found myself disenchanted with her as a character. She came across as power-hungry and self-centred, and smart is not a trait I would associate with her, so worthy also became questionable. This all powerful sorceress became helpless once again, and it was by her own making.

The whole journey to the Other and why it could save the Sidhe was also confusing to me. We were jumping all over time and space and it was tough to follow between the POVs. I also thought Lir and Aisling’s interactions were littered with stereotyping and anger. It all felt repetitive to book 1 and the belt situation dragged on for too long. With Aisling forgetting Lir, the romance became lacklustre, though Lir continued to shine in his devotion. I did find it a little odd that he no longer cared what happened to the Sidhe, which is the part of the story I was most interested in. And all those well developed side characters I adored from the first two books were no where to be seen. I also didn’t understand why the Lady gave power to the Fire Hand knowing he would use it to destroy the Sidhe, thereby fulfilling the prophecy herself. Overall, a minefield of pitfalls and contrived traps.

This just really missed the mark for me and I found it hard to read with odd pacing. I am a completionist and needed to see this series through. The last 25% of the book was the finale I was craving and it had a satisfying end to the series. Overall, I liked Metzler’s creative world and enchanting writing with the first two books really shining. While I will always adore Lir and liked many elements of this series, ending on a dud is always a bit disappointing.

Thanks to NetGalley and Second Sky for this eARC.

In this third and final installment of the Aisling trilogy, we once again join our beloved characters for one last epic journey. I absolutely adored the first two books and these characters truly captured my heart. That said, I found the beginning of this book quite confusing. It dives heavily into what seems to be a complex mythology or lore, which felt more forced into the narrative that it became difficult to follow and harder to connect with the characters in the way I had before.
I also found myself struggling to connect with Aisling. Still, I remain deeply moved by her overall journey throughout the series as she struggles to find her independence, self-worth, and inner strength, all while discovering her found family and true love. Despite my mixed feelings about this final installment, I will always cherish this series and wholeheartedly recommend it.

*Thank you to Ashley Metzler, Second Sky and Netgalley for the audiobook copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.

When I saw that the third Aisling book was finally being published, I was so excited because I absolutely loved the descriptive world-building, the folklore aspects, and the cast of characters we met in the first two books. Unfortunately, The Forever Queen fell flat for me.

The story follows on pretty much straight after book two and focuses more on Aisling and Lir’s role in saving the Sidhe and the impending war between them and the humans. One of the major plot points that occurs very early on (within the first few chapters) is that Aisling needs to become stronger in order to claim the Goblet of Lore to win the war. To do this, Aisling is given Anduril, a magic-imbued belt that will make her the ultimate swordswoman and grant her enough power to obtain the Goblet. Meanwhile, we learn that Aisling’s father and brother have been granted dark powers by the Lady who has partnered with Danu to defeat Aisling and Lir.

My main issue with this book was the pacing, which tore me from the story more than once. It starts off very chop-and-change without clear pathways joining the chapters. It then slows right down for the middle half of the book before jumping around again towards the end. It kind of felt like the middle section was written first because it felt more reminiscent of the writing style in the earlier books while the rest felt tacked on.

My other issue with The Forever Queen is that too much focus was put on Anduril. It seemed like it was only added in to make an extra point of conflict, namely in Aisling and Lir’s relationship, but there was already enough potential conflict between Aisling and her family/the humans. Although this did not eventuate and was barely present by the end of the book. Anduril maybe could have worked in a previous book or if it was touched on previously, but not as an artifact that was never mentioned yet seems to be the solution to everyone’s problem.

Even with the issues, I would recommend people who enjoyed the start of the series to definitely finish it because it still has elements that were enjoyable even though the culmination of the events leading up to the finale missed the mark.

Thank you to Ashley Metzler, Second Sky Publishing, and NetGalley for giving me an eARC of The Forever Queen.

As with the rest of the series, this books was beautiful and atmospheric, Lir and Aisling lobe story was everything. Was the ending satisfying yes is a way, thier was a bit for frustration with the pacing, and i missed a lot of the side characters. The memory loss took away from all the development of wished would happen. I do feel like we got a good conclusion but I wish it was approached differently. But overall I loved this series.