ARC Review: "Touch of Faete" by Ligia de Wit ★★★★★

ARC Review: Touch of Faete (Bradaís Pledge #1) by Ligia de Wit

This urban romantasy adventure about a fae with a seer gift and a pirate with dark powers and immortality is as creative as it is witty, with a rich blend of dark elements and enticing chemistry. 🩵 Containing tropes of slowburn, forced proximity and enemies to lovers, this got me “grinning from pointy ear to pointy ear” should be put on your reading list, you will not be disappointed!

Titus’s sky-blue eyes sparkled, and a deep emotion flickered on his face. Not Titus the murderer pirate but a Titus who loved this creation, who loved life in all its glory, who felt joy in looking at life around as I was feeling it.

[Contains some spoilers]

PLOT SUMMARY
There are three dimensions: Tír na Daonna, the land of humans; Tír D’aois, the land of fae; and Tír na Vraoichta, the land of darkness.

22-year-old nurse Ryanne Kelly is a human touched by fae when she was younger, meaning she has the gift of foresight. This has unfortunately resulted in her being unable to get past the first date with someone, because she can see who they end up with in the future. She has a few rules when it comes to dating: never date a coworker/boss, ignore her tiny yet bothersome pixie friend Bricius (who others cannot see), avoid hand contact (as this triggers visions)…

But with the encounter of Titus Doyle, a mysterious mercenary who doesn’t trigger her seer abilities, a new rule is added: no weird pirates. But the oddities do not end there: he has lived hundreds of years, cannot be killed and wields dark powers. For he is a bradaí, created by the evil creature Anord from Tír na Vraoichta, who controls him with an incessant thirst for blood (specifically fae’s) and gold. And Titus knows people will pay a pretty price if he sells Ryanne.

Marking Ryanne as prey so he knows her whereabouts, he tries to kidnap her but is captured by the faes and taken to Tír D’aois. The fae and the bradaí have long been enemies but the Lady Cuidigtheach “Cuidi”, queen and most powerful of fae, believes that Ryanne is the key to ending this rift. There is supposedly a “spark of creation” dormant in bradaí, the same spark all creation has.

Ryanne must find a way to awaken this within Titus. But that’s easier said than done when it comes to a pirate who does not literally have a heart. Though with Ryanne’s mark, there comes a connection between them that shifts everything they know. Should Ryanne be unsuccessful, she will lose everything.

Dating Rule Number Nine: It’s okay to break the previous eight rules once in a while.

This is told from the first-person past-tense POV of Ryanne and Titus.

OVERALL OPINIONS I wish I had encountered Ligia de Wit’s work far sooner than I have, because this is some of the most creative pirate stories I have read (though, I confess, there are not enough stories in this genre)! de Wit has a remarkable way of telling a great story through a contemporary style. Like Titus’ ship with its old-fashioned façade but up-to-date tech, electricity and plumbing within, this story looks like something traditional, but it has amazing modern touches and it is a really cool concept! You could even say it was “Grand”, as Titus often says. The first sentences hooked me right in: “First dates were my speciality. To be more precise, *ending* first dates was my speciality”. It’s a unique and intriguing opening. And then, of course, you know the Titus fellow will be the man she bumps into, simply based on the description.

A tall, dark-haired man bumped into me. He was freakishly tall, more than six foot two, for sure.
“Watch where you’re going.” He threatened in a husky tone, sparkling blue eyes hardening. A black leather jacket fit his well-defined physique, and a scrubby beard hugged a firm jaw.

The enemies-to-lovers quickly established. Perfect! I absolutely adore the tension and chemistry between Titus and Ryanne! I will now be using the phrase “Butterflies yelled Huzzah!” because of this book haha!! They have such perfect banter where they tease each other, and the scene where she throws anything and everything at him! And then there are things like when Ryanne gets Titus to become more polite, they play chess, he repays her kindness, taking her on a proper date, buying her a lovely dress. Oh and the way he does the charming smile all women can’t resist – and Ryanne just walked past! I bet Titus had that shocked Pikachu meme expression. They are similar, both live in two worlds. But I like that we do get this constant reminder that he is a pirate and he can double-cross. Gosh like look at this tension ahh:

“I like your eyes.” His hand slid up my cheek. The contact was surprisingly soft, tender, matching his gaze, totally in discordance with his previous attitude... “I’ve wanted to do this since the first time you fed me.” His hand slid over my hair, running his fingers through the strands. “Soft as I imagined.”

This reminded me a little bit of Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone as we have a girl with unique and desired magical powers and a romance with a dangerous man who wields dark powers, as well as mild spice – but that’s where the similarities end. The vibes were ever so slightly like the anime Sugar Apple Fairy Tale and Fena Pirate Princess as well, I say that because of tiny fairy companions and pirates respectively.

This story harkens greatly to Celtic mythology, especially with the use of creatures and names.
To list some examples:
• Faes are prominent in Celtic folklore and mythology. Pooka is a mischevious shape-shifting creature in Irish folklore too.
• The use of otherworldly realms are common themes in Celtic myths.
• The name for the realm of darkness, Tír na Vraoichta, directly references Tír na nÓg which is the Celtic Otherworld. This is also known as the “Land of Youth”, and those who inhabit it possess eternal youth or immortality – which is exactly what the bradaís are!
• Bradaí is the Irish word for “pilferer” or “thief”, clearly a deliberate choice. Titus’ surname itself Doyle is an Irish surname and his family is Irish.
• The wise queen of the fae Cuiditheach (who reminds me a lot of the Lady Galadriel from Lord of the Rings) means “helpful” or “assisting”, which works as she gives Ryanne advice plus also assists the realm itself from evil through her magic shielding the land.
• Gallchobhair means “foreign help” or “lover of foreigners”, which is either ironic or fitting as he is a mentor helping Ryanne, a foreigner to the fae world, yet despises the bradaís who are also foreign.
• Fé Erie could be a combination of things. In Irish, Fé means fae and the Erie could have connotations with Éire as in Ireland, as in brave – this would excellently tie in the fact she has a deep connection to the roots of the place. It could also be a play on the French word Féerie, which means “fairy play” or “magical spectacle” which works rather well as she manifests herself and also disappears, but also conducts their meeting – destiny at play. It could of course just be a pun on the word fairy.
• The name of Titus’ ship Scáil Dragún means “Shadow Dragon” or “Phantom Dragon”, which is like Titus’ place of origin, the realm of darkness, and his dark magic, and it is made of Dragonwood.

Overall, just about every name used is made of Irish or Gaelic words or drawn from Celtic mythology, with a few European folklore making an appearance (like dryads and nymphs from Greek mythology). But this story is undoubtedly Ligia de Wit’s own creation – and an incredibly inventive one of that. I could talk about this all day. I loved everything about this!

The magic trait is interesting too, having a literal beast within that has a mind of its own that always wants to kill or plunder gold.

<< Positives >>
🠚 Pretty cover!
🠚 Quick and easy read
🠚 Intriguing characters, all with a purpose.
🠚 The chemistry between Titus and Ryanne
🠚 Amazing plot twists!
🠚 Extremely interesting concepts that diverge from stereotypical ideas
🠚 Integration of Celtic mythology and folklore while also being its own unique thing.
🠚 The different pictures for each part (fae castle for part 1, ship for part 2)
🠚 While some books might not explain character motivation or world-building choices, de Wit ensures that such things are addressed. For example, Ryanne asks “Why didn’t you train me to prepare for this?” which is actually a good question and the fae queen emphasises the importance of free will otherwise they’re not any better than Anord and his puppeteer-like hold he has on everyone. That makes so much sense!
🠚 I really like the character of Fé Erie. She is so mysterious and a pivotal, mythical-like figure who orchestrates the central relationship and the overarching plot, seeing the potential in both Ryanne and Titus.
🠚 Realistic aspects such as the prejudice and racial hate between bradaís and fae.

<< Negatives >>
🠚 We jump straight into some of the world-building aspects. For example, Titus sensing préachta for the first time in ages – this is just quickly inserted here, what is préachta?
🠚 Chapter 16 felt a bit too info dump. I would have spaced it out a little more.
🠚 Ryanne’s family are barely talked about. The first time I heard she had a sister was Chapter 14. I feel this could have been established earlier. I think a good part to have included this would have been around the time Samantha mentions “I promised my sister I’d babysit” – Ryanne could have been like “Sister promises are important” and reflected on her own relationship with her sister (whatever that may be, depending on how close she is this could have been an ironic statement that she doesn’t agree with)
🠚 How/when did Titus find Bricius?
🠚 It would have been nice if there had been more of Ryanne’s visions, as she is she seer, but I’m sure there’ll be plenty in the next books!
🠚 I love Mouse and Ryanne’s friendship, it would have been lovely to have had more interactions between them, where they just talk to each other rather than part of a group with Titus or the sailors. Again, I’m sure this will be covered in the next book.
🠚 There are more POV chapters from Ryanne than Titus. I would have loved a few more chapters from him.
🠚 Minor but I would have liked to have known what the other 5 dating rules were, for fun.
🠚 I love the reveal that Ashtore means treasure, but I would have omitted its meaning from Chapter 35 and had the reveal at the end.

CHARACTERS
-ˋˏ ꒰ Ryanne꒱ ˎˊ-
↳ When Ryanne said “There was no man out there for me, but warm coffee would do. Coffee filled in the blanks and never let me down.”, I couldn’t agree more! At least she is self-aware: when things are her fault, she acknowledges it.

Time to act. I wasn’t going to play coy anymore. Gloves off from now on. I’d gain his trust that way and he’d open up. Kindness always found its way back.

-ˋˏ ꒰ Titus꒱ ˎˊ-
↳ Tall, dark handsome, a “three-century-old pirate adapting to the Internet” haha. He likes classic elegance, like me. He doesn’t read romance books, that’s the only way. The way he makes sure none of his crew glare at her! The “that’s my girl”? Giggling and kicking my feet. I do like him! A darkling-like figure who turns good? Sign me uppp!!

Titus’s eyes shone, matching his predator smile. “You can’t escape from me, no matter how hard you try, little seer.”

FAV QUOTES
• Humans could be so easily deceived, seeing only what they thought was true. What they wanted to see.
• A flicker of a smile broke his grave countenance, as brief as lightning in a ragged sea storm.
• “if the fantastic world you live in helps you cope with this depressing place … whatever works.”
• “You have such beautiful eyes,” Titus said. “They remind me of high seas when the ocean turns deep green.”
• Curiosity killed stupid seers if they attempted to go near evil bradaís.
• I could still feel it. Her purity, touching me briefly. Soft hands on my broken skin, the crease of a furrowed brow as she wiped my face, or her smile when she gave me food.
• Her touch had awakened something in me. Something that had nothing to do with my beast. It was … different. Similar to when I was at sea.
• I was alone, at the mercy of a bradaí. He could now say, “please” and “thank you,” but that might be, “*Please*, I’m handing you over to these unknown guys as a guinea pig for them to do whatever they want. *Thank you* for your understanding.”
• Of course he’d have me in dresses, this twenty-first-century pirate lost in the past.
• The chill breeze gave me goosebumps. I embraced myself, caressing my arms. I took two safety steps away from the railing and closer to the mainmast. Titus followed me, shook his jacket off and put it on my shoulders. I blinked at him, but his gaze kept steady on the ocean. I closed the coat tightly around me; it smelled musky. He must smell musky, too. My cheeks burned.
• “Do you trust me?” His expression changed and, for a second, for a brief moment, he looked eager, like a teenager looking for praise but not wanting to show it. I offered him my hand. Crazy, I knew, but he wouldn’t let me slip. Maybe I was being stupid. Maybe my brain had developed some anomaly. But I smiled. • Despite the fact I wasn’t bedding her—yet—I needed her by my side, even though I didn’t know exactly why. Like asking a bradaí why they wanted to be at sea. It was a need beyond comprehension.
• Stupid pirate. Five-star mercenary? Five-star moron! Worse, he almost convinced me he’d cared for me.
• I sucked in a breath. She had kept the beast away. It had been her. She had inhibited the beast. Her energy. Our energies.
• *Blood. Kill them.* Aye. I’d indulge the beast to protect Ryanne.
• “What’s the rush?” he said, eyes twinkling and arms spread apart. “Let me show you my world.”

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I received an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review and I’d like to thank Ligia de Wit and BookSirens for the opportunity. This has not affected my opinion in any way.

“Touch of Faete” is out now!