This is my favorite fantasy read of 2025😭❤
Absolutely amazing writing, Wonderful chemistry.
A refreshing world building with new magic system.
Pining and yearning done so well between friends to lovers trope.
This book starts in the heart of the war with immediate action so you won't have to suffer through first 40-50 pages. There is so much love and yearning in this book, that you will feel like , yes this is how fantasy books are supposed to like. Bcoz we like out Fantasy man obsessed and the one "who will die for you" . I am high on emotions right now so i will need 2-3 business days to articulate all my thoughts and write full review so until then this is it. I will just say, go get book(pre-order it)😤

4.75🌟

The Second Death of Locke really revived my love for the romantic fantasy genre. It felt like a breath of fresh air in a very crowded space. This book sucks you straight into the story and only lets go of your attention after the epilogue. I loved it! We didn’t have to wait long for the action to come, it was there from the start. The battle scenes were very cool to read about, especially with the whole mage-well dynamic. That was one of my favorite aspects of the story. The magic system. Our main characters are a well and her mage, so he has to draw power from her in order to be able to use it. They’re connected at all times and it made the agressive yearning and longing even better. It’s not like I can give you guys some tropes that would sum up this romantic storyline. All you need to know is that they’re beautiful and really can’t exist without each other and if that’s not goals then I don’t know what it.

The first 60% of the book was definitely my favorite. I loved the journey, the characters going on an assignement together. I wished it were a little longer. A lot happened in this book, but I was sad to see the “quest” end. Seeing some of these characters going from being utterly indifferent towards one another to loving and caring for each other was everything. I hope we get to see more of this group of queer knights in the next books.

I can’t tell you guys too much about the plot and story without spoiling the direction of the book. I loved it. I had the best time. I wasn’t perfect, but it was the most fun I had with an epic romantic fantasy in a long time. This author actually took the time to build a world, an interesting magic system and a bloody war. I have no clue where the bext books will take us, but the ending left me in desperate need of more.

Please consult trigger/content warnings!

I want to say thank you to Net Galley, Little, Brown Book Group UK & Orbit for a chance to read this story in exchange for an honest review.

The Second Death of Locke is a romantasy steeped in loyalty, sacrifice, and the pull between love and duty. Grey Flynn’s life is bound to her mage, Kier — she is his blade, healer, and protector, with a power so rare it could change the fate of nations. The queernormative world feels lived-in and authentic, and V.L. Bovalino’s prose has a lyrical quality that draws you into its history, politics, and layered relationships.

The heart of this story lies in the slow-burn connection between Grey and Kier — the kind of devotion that is equal parts tender and destructive. The magic system and the mystery of Grey’s heritage are intriguing, and the found-family moments add warmth against the backdrop of war and danger.

That said, the middle section does lose some momentum, and at times the romance takes centre stage at the expense of the political intrigue and secondary characters. But the emotional payoff and immersive world building make up for these slower stretches. I didn't connect to the characters as I usually do and I wasn't enthralled by the MMC - the FMC I wasn't quite sure of ultimately. Perhaps that is more me than the actual writing of the book. All in all it was a rich, atmospheric fantasy perfect for readers who enjoy yearning, morally grey choices, and worlds where magic feels both dangerous and intimate.

this was exactly what I needed to fuel my lady knight obsession after the knight and the moth. it was my first ever friends to lovers storyline, and while i don't always think it works, it was done really well here. you could feel the connection between Grey and Flynn and they would do anything for each other. My favourite aspect of the book was definitely the setting/magic system. I thought the Isle of Locke was a fascinating almost mystery to the story, and the magic between mage's and their hand was intriguing too. Overall, an amazing debut and one I will be continuing to read more in this world

I want to start by thanking NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK / Orbit Books for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Second Death of Locke had such an interesting premise and after finishing the book, all I can say is I wish this had been paced differently. There are so many exciting aspects to Grey’s life and world: the codependent magic system, her secret identity, her abilities as a soldier, her “unrequited” love for her best friend since childhood, the seemingly endless war, the hunt of the Heir of Locke. And yet, despite all of these secrets, there is no tension and no real justification for the majority of the story. There is no major conflict or difficulty presented in the book and any pain or suffering is told rather than shown.

The Second Death of Locke is a knight style fantasy about a sunken magical isle and the lost heir who could resurrect it. You open a story about knights and I’m in, I’m gonna imagine Chappell Roan as Joan of Arc and no one can stop me.

First off, I enjoyed the book. I read it in three days. I liked the world and the aesthetic, I liked most of the characters and the magic system. I liked all the potential this book has but it does fall flat in a lot of ways, arguably due to the mix of a debut author and a not so great editor.

The description of sets were good, sometimes really good. Tapping unto all the senses and bringing that knight, medieval, King Arthur aesthetic to the forefront. I would have loved to see more play with this type of world. Even the Atlantis elements of the sinking Isle, there’s a lot of ways to have fun here.

The characters: Despite other reviews I’ve seen in here I liked Grey. I think sometimes if a female lead isn’t loud, and aggressive, and snarky she gets labelled boring or not having a personality. Grey has a personality that isn’t fully developed, because she isn’t fully developed. She has been denying who she is her whole life and everything has been devoted to Kier, this is where the story should be heading, her coming into her own.

Kier, I liked his personality for the first half. I thought he was kind and funny but not in the overly-flirty, actually kind of gross way. I liked the humour between them and the familiarity. I did actually believe Grey’s POV that she wasn’t sure if Kier liked her back, assuming he was affectionate with everyone. They’ve known each other for a decade, they’ve been insanely close and even bound to each other. Also she is a ‘lost heir’ so you can argue he’s so protective because of that. We know he feels the same but I can get why Grey would be in denial. This is the thing that has huge stakes. The two of them avoiding it and denying it makes sense to me. That being said, there is a significant drop off once they get together for Kier as a character, he becomes an accessory.

I do have a caveat complaint about how one character was handled. I like the move towards representation but honestly, when introducing a trans character I don’t need paragraphs of justification that in this fantasy world they are allowed to exist. Girl, you are telling me people pour magic into each other and magic isle exploded and fell into the sea. A trans character in a fantasy story isn’t going to shock my system. But that’s just my two cents.

This book suffers mostly from being badly edited. This is the kind of book that has a lot of potential and by not edited it correctly a lot of the strengths fell flat.

‘but Louise, what do you think they should’ve done?!’

Okay, hand me the mic.

Firstly, the narrative perspective? Third person limited? There was nothing gained from making this book third person. We experienced the world through Grey anyway and at the moment of info dump or describing external things (which were few and far between.) The entire story is about Grey’s internal journey, so why would we be peering over her shoulder the entire time and yet hearing her thoughts. We have to ask, who is the narrator if they are not the character but from tone and style you can infer the narrator is Grey, so why are we in third person. Maybe that will become clear in later books but for me that’s a big edit that should’ve been discussed when taken from the slush pile.

Also the structure. Structurally we have a lot of problems. We have entire sections where the syntax is exactly the same all the way through which drags the info dumping of inner thoughts. Variety will make it faster and read easier. Info dumping, can we ban this as a war crime. The audience only need to know what we need to know when we need to know it. Does that make sense? I don’t need names of everyone and everything in the world, let me learn and puzzle it out and infer. That where the fun is, trust that your audience can pick it up.

We also have too many small rises in stakes and then sudden drops off when it’s resolved two chapters later. The heir thing? They should’ve set up for the whole book as though it was Kier and jump in last minute with Grey? A fully subjective perspective would help this. The stakes getting us to that point is the secret binding, even play up the kidnapped girl, give me more external conflict and allow Grey to withhold information from us. Also Locke was resurrected this book? That’s insane. Everything was resolved, there is nothing resolved.

Also Kier, keep him dead book one. If you want this to be a trilogy, keep him dead until later. Make us deal with the aftermath, give us something other than guilt she resurrected him but trapped him on the isle. Also on this, if we are going for this 10 years of yearning I’m gonna need it not to be resolved in 150 pages. In a trilogy? No way. Even him taking her place is resolved immediately, there are no stakes. Build up, cut when he’s taken, cut when he dies but for the love of god let me have something with these two unresolved or I’m just not gonna care.

It could’ve been (and should’ve been) a standalone. There was very little substance to this book and that made it drag at times. Because nothing was happening and everyone was just talking it made it difficult to feel the relationships were forming organically. There is a lot of potential here but it is an elevated first draft and could’ve been so much more.

In summary, it’s a perfectly nice debut with a lot of potential. I think it has suffered mostly due to the current market of churning books out without thoroughly editing and spending time with them. It felt more aesthetic than anything when this would really shine if it was more playful.

Also FYI I will read the sequel to see where we go from here. Also anything I don’t moan about means I enjoyed it.

Thanks to Orbit, Little, Brown Book and whoever else for the ARC in exchange for a review 🤙

What an absolute amazing read!! 🥰🤩 I absolutely loved it 😍
I loved the world, the magic system and the characters . And I loved Kiern and Grey‘s relationship🥰
I need twenty more books about all the side characters! 🤩😤

I think this book might have started a love for friends-to-lovers romance!!

Kier and Grey (our main characters) were so cute and the yearning was perfection!! Childhood friends to lovers but with a time gap in between just made it even better! I loved the world and the way in which we slowly discover what happened to the Isle of Locke…
The magic system was so different to my usual reads which was so refreshing!!

This book kept me guessing and even if I managed to work a few things out, they made sense for the story and I always love finally knowing how plot point A gets to point B and the ending had me crying (in a good way I promise!)

The cast of characters were so lifelike to me and they really had me laughing at times!


A wonderful romantic fantasy!

The Second Death of Locke will definitely be one of my most memorable reads of the year.

I loved the adventure V. L. Bovalino takes us on, meeting new characters along the way and exploring a world with a unique and well-crafted magic system.

The love story between Grey and Keir was full of yearning and emotional depth. Their loyalty to each other as childhood sweethearts was especially moving and added a lot of heart to the story.

I know I’ll be thinking about the story of Locke for a long time.

📚 review 📚
the second death of locke - v l bovalino

hark! does thine heart long for medieval core tales? well, sit thine self uponest thou’s comfiest seat as I tell you about the season’s hottest lady knight - forsooth!

help - i’ve found a new favourite book, it would appear that 2025 is not only the year of epic fantasies that you will have to pry from my cold dead hands, but also the year of the lady knight - seriously these gals are giving brienne of tarth and i love it.

so, why should you read this? other than the lady knights and because it’s incredible? let me tell you… this book has
🗡️ so much angst
🗡️ medieval fantasy vibes
🗡️ found family
🗡️ childhood friends to lovers

and so much yearning. seriously, if you looked up the word yearning in the dictionary, it would just be a picture of this book cover and the utter codependent idiots that are grey and kier.

i am a sucker for the “it’s always been you” trope, so naturally i would die for these questing fools and their stubby child hostage. this is the ultimate quest story, with a bunch of chaotic queers stabbing things and saving the world. it’s a beautifully written, well executed fantasy that is deep and winding with politics, war, devotion and so much more.

though advertised as a stand alone, this is the first in a trilogy of interconnected stories. so as devastating as it is not to have this level or devotion on my life at least i’ll get more of this world and my favourite knights.

the second death of locke is out in september. thank you @netgalley for the early copy.
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#bookworm #bookblogging #bookblogger #fiction #readerlife #readersofinstagram #bibliophile #bibliophilelife #bookstagram #reading #bookstagrammer #booklover #booksbooksbooks

(thank you little brown book group for the arc in exchange for an honest review)

❝
‘Do you trust me?’ Kier asked.
‘Eternally,’ she said.
❞

On the island of Idistra, there are five nations and ever since the destruction of the much-revered Locke, the four nations have been at war. For Locke was important. It was the source of power that fed the Wells (those who can store power), who then powered the Mages (those who harnessed the power), but Wells (referred to as Hands in the army) are running out. No one knows what caused the death of Locke, but an heir remains, and as the four nations scramble for resources, they also fight in search of the heir of Locke.

When a child is discovered by childhood friends Captain Kiernan Seward and Hand Captain Grey Flynn, they are tasked with transporting the possible Heir of Locke to the sovereign of Scaela. A journey that is full of danger in every shadow. A journey that, if completed, will earn Grey and Kier their much-needed freedom.

There’s much to love about this book. I loved the dynamic presented between a Mage and their Hand. I loved the queer-normative world. I loved certain aspects of the world-building. I especially loved the potential friends-to-lovers romance arc, as that is my favourite type of romance to follow. But sadly, I couldn’t get over how little I cared about the characters. Aside from being heavily devoted to each other, the only thing I can tell you about our two main characters is that Grey is angry and Kier is kind. There’s an intense scene involving the two towards the end of the book that should have had us frantic in anxious worry, then moved to joyous relief, but I felt nothing. I just moved on to the next chapter.

The plot isn’t exactly something new in the fantasy world and while I enjoyed following it, what really saved this book from a lower rating, is the politics in the later-half of the book. I’m a sucker for political intrigue and especially if it’s done right.

I’m not certain if I’ll continue with the series. I’ll probably sample book two when it comes out.

❝My love is yours, as that which beats within my heart is yours, and that which powers the fabric of the world is yours through mine own hand. Take from me, that I may be thine.❞
— Binding ritual recovered from Locke, author unknown, date unknown

From start to finish it had me hooked and I am so unbelievably sad it's over but also so happy I got to read such an amazing book. I already miss each and every one of the characters and being immersed in their world. Praying for any sort of novella or extra chapter so I can be back with my babies. PLEASE i beg of you!!

It literally feels criminal to rate this lower than 4 stars but honestly *something was missing* just give me 3-5 business days to think about it.

This book had everything I lately scream for:
🛡️ Feminine knight🥵 + mage love interest? Check.
💥 Political intrigue? Spellcasting? Magical bonds? FOUND FAMILY? Check, check, checkity-check.
💕Friends to lovers + childhood friends? My absolute favorite.

And yet… something didn’t click.

Don’t get me wrong, I was so ready to fall headfirst into this friends to lovers story.
Grey, our sword wielding, duty bound heroine, and Keir, the golden-retriever- mage who has basically had “I ❤️ Grey” written across his forehead. They have known each other forever, and the emotional intimacy is real. The pining? Real. The magic? Interesting, unique. The prose? Solid.

But the plot and emotional stakes? Kinda wandered off halfway through and never came back.

I DON’T KNOW??
I wanted to ache, to scream, to highlight pages with shaky hands. What I got was, “Oh. That was sweet.” 😐
Cuties🥹

⬆️Which is great. But I wanted more? It felt like the plot got figured out too quickly and the last 30% we were just taken on a ride.

Tropes & Themes:
💘 Friends to Lovers
🛡️ Fem knight (ish) x Mage
🌈 Queer Normative Society
🫱 Magical Bond / Fated Connection
👑 Political Intrigue
🔥 Emotional Longing (one-sided… maybe two?)
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family
💔 Angst-lite
🫠 Golden Retriever MMC

If you’re craving a soft, sugar-coated romantasy with heavy emotional devotion and low external tension, this will probably work for you. But if you need your romance messy, your pacing taut, and your knight actually, y’know, knighting-you might walk away feeling like something’s missing.

Still: thank you to NetGalley and Hachette for the ARC!

It literally feels criminal to rate this lower than 4 stars but honestly *something was missing* just give me 3-5 business days to think about it.

This book had everything I lately scream for:
🛡️ Feminine knight🥵 + mage love interest? Check.
💥 Political intrigue? Spellcasting? Magical bonds? FOUND FAMILY? Check, check, checkity-check.
💕Friends to lovers + childhood friends? My absolute favorite.

And yet… something didn’t click.

Don’t get me wrong, I was so ready to fall headfirst into this friends to lovers story.
Grey, our sword wielding, duty bound heroine, and Keir, the golden-retriever- mage who has basically had “I ❤️ Grey” written across his forehead. They have known each other forever, and the emotional intimacy is real. The pining? Real. The magic? Interesting, unique. The prose? Solid.

But the plot and emotional stakes? Kinda wandered off halfway through and never came back.

I DON’T KNOW??
I wanted to ache, to scream, to highlight pages with shaky hands. What I got was, “Oh. That was sweet.” 😐
Cuties🥹

⬆️Which is great. But I wanted more? It felt like the plot got figured out too quickly and the last 30% we were just taken on a ride.

Tropes & Themes:
💘 Friends to Lovers
🛡️ Fem knight (ish) x Mage
🌈 Queer Normative Society
🫱 Magical Bond / Fated Connection
👑 Political Intrigue
🔥 Emotional Longing (one-sided… maybe two?)
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family
💔 Angst-lite
🫠 Golden Retriever MMC

If you’re craving a soft, sugar-coated romantasy with heavy emotional devotion and low external tension, this will probably work for you. But if you need your romance messy, your pacing taut, and your knight actually, y’know, knighting-you might walk away feeling like something’s missing.

Still: thank you to NetGalley and Hachette for the ARC!

This is my type of fantasy. If you love high fantasy with a subtle hint of romance, a great magic system and amazing found family. Look no further..
The yearning between Kier and Grey was cheff's kiss, their chemistry was so good and I love them so much❤️‍🩹The book follows our main characters on a quest with some interesting and funny side characters. As we travel with them, the magic system becomes more interesting and plot twists emerge. The longing between Kier and Grey as well as their friendship is just so good, I loved every second of it. Grey also, as a main character is such a lovable person and I can't wait to read more about her journey.
The magic system between wells and mages is so unique and different from others.
The only critique I have was some things were rushed and I have some unanswered questions but I'm sure it'll be in the following books which I cannot wait for!

Oh the Lady Knight Era is so back!

The author has created a medieval and intricate world in which all power is in the hands of wells , people who serve as “sources” of power , but which can only be used if channeled by a mage. So, one is powerless without the other and giving equal importance and respect to both.

The story follows Gray and Kier , childhood friends and Well and Mage respectively,of whom the relationship is full of such mutual trust and devotion In which neither would hesitate to walk through fire for the other. Even with the single POV ,the author has managed to make tangible the tension ,the pining , love( romantic and not ) , the fears that unite them and their being simply imperfect , human and intrinsically connected. Usually I am not a big fan of Friends to Lovers, but in Grey and Kier I might find the second exception after Clare's Julian and Emma.

I also liked the side characters as much as the main ones, and the found family they created has all my heart and all my tears too . There were moments that made me smile , others that made me cry but each of these contributed to make each character and story development special from the beginning to the end.

✨ the Second Death or Locke was everything I hoped it would be and even more. It was a story of love , friendship that was able to break my heart and put it back together again and again. Needless to say, it was one of the best reads of the year!

This book hooked me right away with vibes that reminded me of The Locked Tomb (a series I adore) so I loved that familiar atmosphere. The Heart-and-Hand concept felt very Griddlehark coded, even if some of the other similarities were a little too obvious.

I did struggle with the romance, which leans on the unrequired love/ miscommunication trope and felt a bit flat, and I wish the magic system around the Wells had been explored more deeply.

Also, I expected FF romance (my bad, this is a me problem) and was very disappointed with the MMC who was just boring and didn't do much.

Still, I enjoyed the "quest" vibe overall, and I was really intrigued by the politics (even tho, I must admit, some things didn't make sense at times). Also, I thought this was a standalone because it has the perfect ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK | Orbit for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion! Needless to say, as always, all thoughts are my own and I have not been influenced in any way.

I'll be honest the first half of this book was slow for me, there was a lot of they do this, then they do that and now they're doing this and I felt like the plot wasn't moving anywhere and I didn't really care about any of the characters. Once the 60% mark hit though things began to pick up for about 20% then it just pulled again.

I felt the book was anticlimactic and gave a lot of detail to some things and not others. It's very relationship and character driven rather than plot.

There are things that still don't make sense to me, and likely never will as it's a standalone book.

I think there are people that will definitely enjoy this read though.

FMC: 24
MMC: 26

I loved this book so much!

The magic system where a mage & a well are a team, the mage draws their power from the well & the well is the physical protector/knight was so unique and well done.

With lost lands & hidden identities, war, quests, found family and friends to lovers, this story had me hooked and so invested in each and every character.

Where to begin? This is the easiest 5 stars I’ve given all year.

The Second Death of Locke was probably my most anticipated read for the second half of the year and I went in with high expectations because on paper it was everything I would love. And right from the first page I knew it was IT. It was everything I hoped for and more and then MORE. It was perfect for me, in every way!

I was hooked right from the start with the characters and their relationships and dynamics and then also the lore in general. A real medieval feeling story with politics and knights, with a super cool magic system that tied so beautifully into the character’s bonds.

This book is a masterclass in devotion and love and hope. The YEARNING and longing kept striking me in the chest on nearly every other page, it was such a masterfully crafted story.

I will point out that I think reading this on kindle (like I did) without being able to see the percentage really helped to pack a punch because of the way the story is structured. Without going into spoilers, I just want to say it will keep you on your toes! Never knowing what to expect next!

So much happened in this book and I went through every emotion imaginable, but one thing I can say for certain is I would die for Grey, Kier, Eron, Brit and Ola. Their friendships meant the world.

I also want to note how wonderfully queernormative this world was. It was so refreshing and comforting, not an ounce of queerphobia for miles. Just so… beautiful.

I laughed, I cried, I screamed, I smiled… And I’m ready to do it all over again because you best believe the moment a physical copy is in my possession I will be rereading it. IMMEDIATELY.

How far would you go for those you love?