It was probably not the read for me, and that’s okay. I did like the fairytales and the fantasy aspect of this sapphic romantasy. Also, the pace was good and it felt quite cosy at times. The writing fits the narrative and I also liked that. However, I did not connect with the characters and I did not particularly like the romance aspect of the book — the two girls lacked some chemistry for me. But I would definitely recommend it.

Thank you to Netgalley for an e-ARC in exchange for a honest review.

I can't give this book a better compliment than this: the execution is even more ambitious than the premise.
And the premise is already compelling, extremely so. An isle (not-Britain) that literally lives on the back of its stories. Hundreds of folktales are reenacted in an endless cycle, their protagonists reborn in different bodies playing out their scripts over and over so the cliffs will stay cliffs and the woods will stay woods. And if for whatever reason their stories don't play out as they should, death and destruction will follow. Literally. Every tale is connected to the place in which it is enacted, and the place will cease to exist with its tale, disappear from maps and memories.
So what happens when two tragic lovers want to rewrite their own story for a better ending? And, if we stop pretending that books are just escapism and not a political commentary on our times—what happens when immigrants arrive carrying with them their own tales and start to reshape their new home?

Both our protagonists, Vina and Simran, the knight and the witch of their tale, are POC, even if they come from vastly different backgrounds. They fit and not fit in their society even if that society needs them to stay alive, and their fight for the freedom to choose their own lives is also a fight to have those lives matter for something besides the use that can be wrought out of them. They are both surrounded by incredible found families, friends and allies who are all marginalized in a way or another and know how to pull together in times of need. Even if we only follow Vina and Simran's POVs, several of the secondary characters have their own arcs and shine in pivotal moments throughout the book, and it's easy to love them as the protagonists do.

Because tales shape the isle, even if time passes normally some elements cannot change. Which means that in a time period with pistols we also have knights who ride horses and fight with swords, and Elizabethan court dresses alongside medieval armour and cotehardies; skyscrapers also make a brief appearance. It's messy and more than a little abstract, and it took me a lot at the beginning to find my bearings because of it, but I ended up loving this shifty, undefined setting.

The pace was the biggest negative for me. It's painfully slow at the beginning, and painfully fast at the end, with the characters moving from location to location and living through pivotal moment after pivotal moment with zero breathing space for them and zero processing space for me. We never know what happens to a pretty important secondary character (I'm assuming it will be fixed in the final version of the book). Also, speaking about pace but in another sense: how much stamina do the characters have, that they are always walking everywhere? Simran walks from London to the countryside, then from the countryside to an ancient forest, then from there to the mountains. I do not need to have every step of her journey described, but a little more detail to add that she rested, possibly took a room at an inn, ate something, would have been appreciated.

In the end, this is a theme-driven book. I've seen some people call it romantasy, and while I think it deserves the readership that the subgenre brings, I'm not sure it will satisfy its readers. The love story is there and well-done, but the narrative moves on a different set of tracks. It's a story about stories, and the eternal theme of tradition vs change, which in this case is explored through the identity of a nation, how it has shifted from century to century, from invasion to invasion, always changing but never perishing, always improving, and there's no reason to think it will not continue to do so in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the advanced reader copy. All the opinions stated here are my own.

I really wanted to love this book since I loved the idea of it but I just couldn’t.

The idea of always repeating stories in every life was intriguing and at the start I was absolutely into it. I wanted to learn more about the reincarnations, the way people followed their life’s and so on.

And there was my problem: nothing I expected of this book was happening. Instead the story was repetitive, the pacing was really off and either too fast or too slow. And then the random time change that kinda solved everything in an instant also didn’t help.

Additionally I really didn’t feel any tension between the two protagonists and therefore didn’t feel their love story at all.

A lot more and better thought about worldbuilding and a better pacing and I think this idea could have been a highlight. Instead I needed to think about my rating for more then 2 days because I just couldn’t decide how many stars this was for me in the end. It was just neither horrible nor good- it’s the kind of book I’ll for sure not remember for long.

Thanks to Netgalley for the eARC!

I'm very into the current Lady Knight trend, so I had high hopes for this one. Initially I thought this had such a cool concept. I loved the idea of fated reincarnations of fairytale figures. I felt intrigued at first too and was hoping I'd really enjoy the story, but the further in I got, the more confusing things became. The world building or plot didn't click for me and that made it harder and harder to enjoy the story, until eventually I felt like I wasn't understanding anything anymore. At that point, I figured it would be best to dnf.

Simran and Vina know that they are destined to kill each other in every lifetime. They are incarnated on an island that is sustained by the tales that exist within it. But when a murderer begins destroying those tales and the island starts to die, the Witch and the Knight must join forces to uncover the culprit and save their world.

I have to admit that I found the magic system—and the way the tales came to life—quite confusing. I also struggled to understand the significance of the eternal prince and queen. Even after finishing the book, I’m not sure I fully grasped what was happening.

The world itself had so much potential, but it felt underdeveloped. It didn’t help that most of the story takes place in London, yet there’s little mention of its surrounding areas, and the different names added to the confusion. I also kept wondering: when exactly does this story take place? I know, I know—it’s fantasy, and you’re supposed to just go with it. But my mind couldn’t stop asking those questions.

I also had some issues with the pacing. At times, it felt repetitive. Moments that seemed to be building toward action or tension ended too quickly, while others dragged on longer than necessary.

I loved how easy the writing was to read, and her descriptions really paint a picture. The whole environment feels dreamy, enchanting, and kind of romantic.

That said, I really liked Simran and Vina as characters. I kept rooting for them and for their relationship. They shared some beautiful moments, but I wished we could have actually seen them fall in love. Their romance felt a bit too sudden. Because we never learn much about their past lives—which is supposed to explain their fast connection—it was harder to feel that bond as a reader. On the other hand, the side characters were wonderful, and I loved the diversity and representation they brought to the story.

The premise of this book is brilliant—unique and refreshing—but I was hoping for a stronger execution. I read one review that suggested this would have worked better as a duology, and I completely agree. Part One and Part Two could have been developed into separate books, especially since the second half had such a different tone. That would have given the author space to expand the world, develop the relationships more fully, the magic system and plot.

Overall, this was still a fun read. I really loved the two main characters and their love story, even if I wished for a little more depth.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of this much anticipated book by Tasha Suri.
An ancient sounding tale that speaks of our present.
I loved how Suri managed to link real world politics with a story that sounds more fantasy than many fantasy stories I’ve read (a lot). She managed to do what many fantasy writers couldn’t: write the present in the backbone of her tale, which is the world it’s set in. A world ever changing tha ks to community, diversity and inclusion, that evil forces want to keep still for the sake of - what, security? Or a false sense of it, since it requires blood and slavery.
A very metaphorical review, I know, but I don’t feel like spoiling the main dynamic of the Silver Isle and Elsewhere.
I’m not a big romance fan, but the love story was so imbued with not just love, not just the two MCs, but the core values of this story that I could not not cheer for it.
It’s not about romance either: this is a book about belonging and family, which I appreciated more than the love story in itself.
The only downside of this book is that it’s fairly simple and linear in its writing - I would have liked some more flowery and wordy prose as Suri so graciously gifted us in her previous trilogy, but I imagine that writing a standalone book asks for conciseness, so I get it.
READ THIS!

The premise of this book was really interesting. A world where tales are real and they are what keeps the land fed and alive? How cool! We follow the tale of the knight and the witch who fall in love only to be the cause of each others’ deaths. Not only that, but the tales are all incarnates, so everyone is trapped in their own tales for eternity.

Unfortunately, I really struggled with the pacing. The first chunk of the book (which was also the majority) felt so slow, but at the same time we had these pockets of time where interesting things happened that felt like they were over just as quickly as they begun. I really enjoyed part two, which felt like a whole different book, but again the pacing was off and it was felt like too much packed into too little. I think I would have enjoyed it more spread out over two shorter books where we would also get to explore the world more, as I was so fascinated by that.

I didn’t feel very much between the romance between the two main characters, either (although I do enjoy the lady knight trend, and the sapphics). I’m sad about that, because I think I would have loved them if they were more fleshed out and we got to see them connect and bond a little more. It felt like all their connection happened off-page in their previous lives.

Saying all that, I really enjoyed the criticism of the monarchy & colonialism, and how their community fought for their freedom. The archivists in particular were featured at the beginning of most chapters where they revealed what they would be keeping and what they’d be monitoring or discarding to control the country’s history and therefore its people. It had a lot to say about how the lands leaders erases documented suffering and silences people.

I can’t write this review without mentioning how much I loved the cat companion as well!

Overall, I mostly liked it and think a lot of other people will love it. Thank you to Netgalley and publishers for the review copy!

this was a really interesting concept and world which blended mythology/fairy tale and time periods to create an almost timeless setting - although london felt slightly out of place with the rest of the aesthetic. the natural settings, especially the forests, were very atmospheric, backed up by beautiful writing. i liked the overall plot and characters, although i wasn't super invested in the romance. my biggest problem was the pacing, which took a while to get into. as i was getting more interested, part two disrupted the narrative and almost started it again, which cut off the momentum and took more time to get back into. that made it a bit exhausting to read by the end, though overall i did like the messaging and narrative.

Thank you Orbit for the chance to read this ARC.

Unfortunately,I had to DNF this book at 60% and I am very sad about it.

I was really looking forward to this sapphic fantasy romance with a lady knight, but I just didn't feel any of it.

The premise is actually rather interesting, it felt like the author used the concept of tales marking the destiny of the individuals invoved in them against their will as a sort of metaphor for certain narratives being imposed on minorities.

The setting and the magic system seemed unique and full of potential, but it ended up not being fleshed out enough for me. The characters were nice but I could not get into them and the romance just fell flat.

The more I went on reading, the more I realised I was losing interest and was not curious to find out how it ends. I tried to continue but it was starting to feel like a chore, so I decided it was best to stop.

I think other people might actually lke it, unfortunately it was not the book for me.

dnf 32%

don't talk to me, I'm so sad, this book was supposed to be great😭. But since the beginning, I didn't feel this book at all, it felt very chaotic and undercooked and I don't want to force myself to read anymore

The knights books didn't deliver for me at all, based on their description and marketing I was expecting something completely different then what was actually inside these books🫠

Thank you Netgalley for providing digital advanced copy in exchange for honest review.

This has potential. But sadly I don't think the world building or characters were built up enough over the span of the book.

I felt nothing for the relationship between the characters. Despite being told they had a past. We didn't see or really feel the connection.

The world and magic system needs more details. I felt like I didnt know or find out enough to understand what was going on and why.

The Isle in the Silver Sea is a beautiful, ambitious fantasy that marries romance, folklore, political and cultural themes, and the power of stories in a very satisfying way. It isn’t perfect, but for many readers it will be deeply resonant: if you enjoy romantic fantasy with lyrical prose, haunted by past lives and steeped in folklore, this is likely right up your street.
I’d give it 4 out of 5 stars. It hits many of its goals impressively, though a few structural or pacing decisions held me back from loving it even more.

4.5 stars

This book tells of a love story, but it isn't a love story or isn't in the way some might think. I would say it isn't a romantasy, but a romantic fantasy. The purpose of the this book is the telling of the tale and, yes, the relationships within are beautiful but it is not an emotion driven story of two people as one might expect.

This story isn't, as some say, instalove. In fact, it very clearly goes against that with both two leads questioning the emotions to which they are drawn by their tale. I adore the fact they both recognise that this isn't love <i>yet</i> (there is love later). That what they have is fragile and mixed up within the tale being told. It is messy and feels so much more authentic than instalove (which I do dislike).

I think those who were dissatisfied with this story went in expecting something different from what this tale had to give. The comfort of predictable emotive romance is evaded, but for good reason.

What it gave instead is a tale of today, this moment, in the UK, the place of history and stagnation, of the need for migrants and the rejection of their place in history. The need for them to be perfect, to fulfil only certain roles, but still be <i>other</i> no matter how well they become "true citizens".

The stories being stifled are the culture being stifled today. The book tells how the tales of, not only those from Elsewhere, but of the people within the Isle itself are forgotten and changed under the refining and sanitising of the government archivists. Just as we look at how the history, culture, and folklore of people from across the British empire and of the Welsh, Scottish, and Irish have been overridden by English rule. All are subject to the dulling force here. Culture is meant to move and grow, change under the movements of its people. Each bit of it precious and never as neat as the ruling authorities will like.

The author does a wonderful job of interweaving medieval and Victorian aspects together to showcase a world that is both the past and the present. It is beautiful in so many ways. Though I do feel like it is worth pointing out that this is a slow-paced tale. I think there will be some who will not be able to appreciate its style due to this nature. There are times when this pacing does the story in a little and is why it didn't achieve the full 5 stars for me. Particularly, Part 2 took away a bit of the growing momentum from the story and while I ended in a place I loved, it took a little while to find its stride again.

Overall, a tale I would highly recommend to all those who love a slower paced romantic fantasy grappling with aspects of humanity we must confront. 💜

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. This review is my own.

On its surface, The Isle In The Silver Sea is a fantasy book with a sapphic romance, found family, magic, tales and change. But if you allow yourself to look closer, and I think you should, it is an intricately crafted commentary on our world, politics, flaws and issues.

There is so much depth to all the themes within and each and every word has weight. The parallels to our world are undeniable and the importance of this reflection cannot go unnoticed. This book is genuinely incredible and its existance is its own form of resistance and rebellion to the state of our world currently. Pieces of literature, like this, are so incredibly important and vital in a world where so much of our knowledge and information is filtered and crafted to fit a narrative.

The tales of the Isle and the Archives were especially compelling and reflective of our world. Writing, history, knowledge and creative craft are such important areas of influence and truly shape the society we live in and this book really shows all sides of that. The damage of the conformity that is demanded and the loss of so much history was something that really sat with me. The resistance to change and "otherness" is another topic that Tasha explores in depth here, focusing a lot on how power and the need for control can be so poisonous to a places history and culture.

The way Tasha molds the world is a testament to her love of the craft. Information is given to the readers in a way that is digestible without feeling like youre being spoon fed. I felt very "in" the world and definitely felt the need to keep reading and delve further into it. The characters were compelling and individual in their struggles, actions and history. Their personalities and stories held so much weight. A diverse cast of characters is woven so deeply into this book, a main part of the narrative. There is such dimension to them all and they all speak to important points.

This book and its themes are extremely important, especially now, and I cannot stress enough that we need to consume and digest such literature to understand our own shortcomings and blind spots. Change doesn't happen from standing still, we must be pro-active in our resistance.

There is so much more I could say about this book but I truly believe it will be more impactful for you to read yourself so I urge you to pick this up when it releases and go in with an open mind, a willingness to listen and the mind to make connections to our world.

The year of the lady knight continues 🥀🗡️

Let me tell you, I devoured this book!!! the lyrical writing, the mystery, the characters that I just wanted to read about forever and the fated stories just meant to break your heart. Yes to all these! This was one of those books I read the first chapter and was like yeah, this will hit the spot👀

The Isle in the Silver Sea is a story steeped in the love of a tale. The isle itself is held together by the ability to have stories become reality and played out amongst the normal goings on of the people living there. Over and over again through centuries, people of the isle are reincarnated as characters in these known tales, fated (or doomed) to see their story played out to the end all for the sake of their home.

We follow both Simran and Vin, the witch and the knight, fated to meet, fall in love and inevitably be each other’s doom.

This was a ride! I absolutely loved the characters of Vin and Simran, as well as the superb ensemble of side cast - Hari🥺🥺

The book itself wasn’t without its issues, the world building was a bit???? And the relationship of the two FMCs was a bit instalove but honestly it was all vibes and it really worked for me!

Fully recommend if you want to cry over some wonderful idiots who just want to suffer🥲

Thanks so much to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. - Freya, arc & monthly book box pick reviewer (athenafreyag on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/athenafreyag/ )

Initial thoughts: Tasha Suri is a beloved author for me. She combines an amazing prose, nuanced storytelling, and great characters in a lush setting. I also admire her a lot as a person, so I always read whatever she writes.

What I liked 🤩: I loved Simran!! A witch who says it what it is, who protects her loves ones, who doesn't apologize for her magic. I liked Vina--the knight-- a lot, too. She is patient and smart, a firecracker who enjoys pushing people's buttons.

Because they are part of their tale, their love and romance are sort of pre-destined, but it also felt like they got to know each other and developed feelings for each other in a natural way, too. We had banter and bickering and mistrust that developed into trust. I felt their romance and feelings, and I enjoyed how the author portrayed it.

As usual, the author weaved important themes into the worldbuilding and story. Race, privilege, othering, misogyny. The author has an uncanny ability to navigate these themes masterfully. I really, really, really liked it.

The worldbuilding, in general, was fascinating. Think medieval Once Upon A Time focusing on two queer women with a m/m side couple and a cat.

What I didn’t like 🙃: I didn't like the plot device used towards the last 20-30%. To me, Simran's personality carried a lot of the story, and when we lost that, the book lost me, too, to be honest. The pacing in the second half of the book went slower than what I would have liked, too, so my investment to the characters and the story decreased as a result of the above.

There were a couple of unclear things about the worldbuilding, too. For example, the book can be described as a medieval Once Upon A Time focusing on two queer women with a m/m side couple and a cat. However, the medieval part was very abstract, as in we had the elements of medieval England but we had no idea when we were in time. I also didn't understand why people were so excited to get the Eternal Prince back.

Overall: The Isle in the Silver Sea is the medieval Once Upon A Time focusing on two queer women with a m/m side couple and a cat. I loved our couples, our cat, and the worldbuilding! What a strong, authentic sapphic beauty this was!

SE info: This is the monthly pick for the Illumicrate October box, and I cannot believe I am saying this but I will probably skip despite how sacrilegious it sounds. Partly because I am unsure of the artists, and partly because while I liked the book, I didn't love it.

I'm really disappointed in this anticipated release, especially after reading other positive reviews that left me wondering what I was missing. What it comes down to is this: the world building and magic system are as flimsy as an IKEA chest of drawers that have been through three house moves. Nothing felt clearly laid out, and the chemistry between the leads was not a build, but a flipped switch. Oddly, that's one part of the magic that I did understand, but I still didn't like it. The pacing picked up in the second half, but it wasn't enough to save this for me because I wasn't invested in these main characters. There were some characters I liked along the way and I wanted to see the oppressed freed, but I ultimately didn't think Suri executed the premise. A vague three stars for a vague fantasy.

Thanks to Little Brown Books and Netgalley for the arc.

I have been a fan of Tasha Suri’s ever since reading Empire of Sand some seven years ago. This sounds like the prelude to saying this one was a let down and perhaps it is. Given that I’ve given three 5-star ratings and two 4-star ratings to the five books of hers I’ve read, a 3-star rating is a bit of a disappointment. This isn’t to say it was a bad book, but I think it lacked a lot of what made the rest great.

Namely, this is the richness of worldbuilding and description that was present in both the Books of Ambha duology and the Burning Kingdoms trilogy. In both of these, you could start the book and find yourself enveloped in such detailed worldbuilding that you would almost believe yourself to be sat right alongside the characters. It was rich and believable, and backed up by equally rich and believable characters. It was almost completely the reverse case for The Isle in the Silver Sea. It took me a good third of the book to even get a handle on the worldbuilding and I think that was because it felt like a lot of disparate things thrown together and none of them welded well. It’s fantasy England, but it’s urban fantasy? But not modern urban fantasy. There are flats (as in apartments) and rifles, but also horse and carriage, so we’re possibly talking somewhere around 16th or 17th century. And, it turns out, mine is the kind of brain that can’t just sit there and let the disparate-ness go. I kept turning the various elements over and over trying to make some sense of the world. Add onto this a magic system that felt flimsy and ill-defined: well, it was not an auspicious beginning.

If the worldbuilding wasn’t quite at the standard I anticipated, neither were the characters. In fact, the side characters were the most interesting to me in this case (Hari and Galath, whose story we only get the edges of as it relates to our main characters). It does make a bit of sense: both Vina and Simran are, effectively, archetypes in their story because that’s the plot. However, they felt like it and that was the issue here. Yes, Vina is reduced to her incarnate status by those around her and there is a hint that she chafes at those restraints, but other than that, both characters feel rather bland. And, given that this is quite largely a romance, that’s a big ol’ problem. In fact, I wonder if the romantasy tag put on this one has led to the romance being somewhat forced. Because we know that Suri can write fantasy romance (I refuse to use that portmanteau) - the Books of Ambha are proof of that - but it just does not work for me here. It all falls flat because it’s missing the richness that filled Suri’s previous books.

That doesn’t mean there are no elements I liked and I think the second half of the book was much more interesting than the first, partly because it focused less on the romance. Of course, in a book where the plot is essentially about two characters acting out a tragic romance that has been acted out multiple times before and will be again, where the plot is about breaking the cycle: you have to start the cycle first, and this is the first half of the book. Perhaps this makes an argument for the book being split in two and a duology being made out of the story, so that the characters can be fleshed out more, the world more securely constructed and the romance upon which everything rests made more believable.

But I was meant to be talking about what I enjoyed of this book and much of that was what it had to say about history and those that tell stories, especially stories that create national myths and cultures. This is when I felt the book was at its best and I think a greater emphasis on it would have done this book a world of good. Again we go back to possibly making this a duology, so that there is time and space to develop the romance and plot and so that everything can be woven together in a more balanced way.

To conclude then, while I have to admit to being a little bit disappointed by this one, it also has to be said it was still good. I guess it just didn’t live up to the (reasonably high) standards I had.

Possibly the highest praise I can give a book is to say that I’m already looking forward to a reread immediately after finishing it. The book is centred around the tale of The Knight (Vina) and The Witch (Simran). On the titular isle in the silver sea the land is ruled by an eternal queen who is desperately trying to keep tales alive because they form the foundations of the land. The characters from them become incarnate and in turn cannot die (or they can but to be resurrected and begin their story highlights ver and over again.

I found it quite confusing at the start of the book as there is so much going on and trying to grasp the idea of the tales and incarnates was difficult at first but by the end of part one of the book I felt like I understood it and was ready for part two!

I loved the main characters and their drive to escape the lives other people had planned out for them, I loved the side characters who played different roles depending on which life they were living, I loved the magic around the whole isle and the fae folk.

Also there is a cat called Maleficium, need I say more?

There’s so much I don’t want to say in case it spoils some aspect of the story but I highly recommend this book!

2025 is truly the year of the last Knights! ⚔️


This is my first Tasha Suri book and it won't be my last!

This book has so much inclusivity and touches upon issues within our 'real world' without it feeling like a lecture, it flows together so seamlessly within the beautiful fictional world Tasha Suri has created. 

A truly unique story of macabre fairytales and two people who are tragically bound by fate to fall in love and die together, breaking free from their 'constraints', with some real food for thought symbolism and messaging woven into it. 

A grumpy and sunshine trope with a refreshing twist. A golden retriever Knight and a hot grumpy witch...I adored them both 🖤

Also, there's a cat...

I'm not very good at putting down in words just how much I love the books I read, I never feel I do them justice.
Please check out this book on release, it's fabulous!