I just finished reading this book and there is only one thought repeating itself in my head: Jessie Mihalik, you have outdone yourself!
I have been reading books by Jessie Mihalik since the 2019 release, Polaris Rising, book 1 of the Consortium Rebellion trilogy. If my memory is right, I was wandering around my local bookstore when the cover art caught my eye. I was ready to try something new and the synopsis hooked me. Now here we are, six years later, and I've bought every Mihalik book in paperback and eBook since and read each at least three times or more. Yes, I need to read the original trilogy that Mihalik released but I look at things this way: Silver & Blood is not out until January 2026, which means the 2nd book could be a year out from there, totaling 15 months in which I am waiting for the next book. More than enough time to have some Mihalik books I haven't read to keep me company. And there's some novellas too that might last me to this Thanksgiving. All to say this: it's going to be a long wait to book 2.
Silver & Blood is about Riela, who has been living on her own for a long time before her powers as a mage suddenly appeared. Now she has agreed to her village's insistence that she go into the woods to kill the monster that has been attacking her foolish neighbors at night. When Riela finds more monsters than she had anticipated, she's rescued by a handsome mage and his trusted wolf. She ends up a guest in Garrick's castle where she hopes to learn how to control her power. As time goes on, Riela finds out that Garrick is an exiled king, stuck on this side of a magical door that leads to Lohka, where the rest of the Etheri are and where he sent the rest of his court before they were trapped with him. Now Riela, with her growing magical talent, has to work with Garrick to understand where her magic came from and how to get the door open before the Blood King, who trapped Garrick in this world, manages to capture Riela and her magic for himself. As they start to fall for each other, the truth about Riela's origins threaten the tenuous ties between them and Riela's hopes for the future.
First of all, for me this had a lot of Beauty and the Beast vibes, so right there that cemented this as an absolute awesome book for me. Also, within a day of Riela becoming a guest at Garrick's castle, she finds a massive magical library. Seriously, a book can't go wrong when it gives you a magical library. With that said, the world of this book started to fill in and kept me hooked trying to understand the hows and the whys of everything going on. I found it interesting that Riela was a seemingly ordinary woman until a flood that threatened to wipe out her village caused her magic to suddenly manifest, allowing her to save them by forcing the water to go around their homes. The fact that she's an older protagonist is definitely a plus, because Riela was able to think logically when she had to stop and take stock of her surroundings and what was going on. She had fits of temper, don't get me wrong, but she was able to reflect on her situation and try to work out things for herself and I like that in the leads of a good romantasy book. Most of the book follows Riela's perspective with a handful of chapters from Garrick's point of view, showing how the king has become wary in isolation and how he perceives Riela with her magic and her connection to the Etheri. Their development worked individually and as a couple and I loved their banter and their fights because a good couple needs to be able to fight and then come back together stronger than before. By the time the final line hit, I had a massive grin on my face and just about fell over. I even wanted to cheer a little because THAT is how well that ending hit for me. It just stuck the landing and judging gives it 10 points for perfect execution, form and technique.
As for the world itself, I was very intrigued at the the way the castle and the forest worked for the setting. It turns out that anything magical that enters the forest is unable to leave it again because of a curse that was placed on it by some powerful Etheri sovereigns. The idea was to keep humans safe from the monsters that wandered through the trees and the Etheri who had no problem taking humans for pets. That definitely colors the impression of these magical people, who have apparently been thought to have gone out of existence because they hadn't been seen in at least a century. It all lends a tragic slant to the story because all Riela wants to do is go back to the home that has the memory of her father in it and now she can't step past the treeline. It also lends a sort of urgency to Riela wanting to master her magic so that she can see if there is some way for her to return to the life that she once had. The creatures that live in the woods were also interesting in the sense that they gave the right amount of a threat to keep Riela in the castle where it was safest without it being just a convenient way to keep the main couple together. I appreciate books that give the couple the distance they need to find their way back to each other. It makes the connection feel earned instead of just simple, and it's stronger as a result.
Side characters were well-developed, even the ones not directly seen on the page. The Blood King is only mentioned by the people in the book and I already hate him with a fiery passion. I know once he makes his appearance on the page in book 2, I'm going to have a hard time watching what he does to the leads of the first book. All of that already and I have not even been formally introduced to the guy yet. I loved Grim and the people of the Silver Court and the little glimpses seen of Riela's parents when she spoke of them and her loss. The cast was lovely and I hope to see more of them in the coming books.
Mihalik is talented as a writer. I have been coming back to read Mihalik's books for years because I know that I will end up loving the couple at the center of every adventure. This is the first time I've read the more fairytale/fantasy based work by Mihalik but if this is the direction she's going to continue to move in, I'm all for it. Past series had each book focus on a separate couple that was part of a found family type of situation but I don't think that will be the case here. There might be a dual storyline situation in the next book but that just might be me trying to hope for too much. If anything, as long as there is a chance for more books, other leads might take the center stage after this initial conflict of the Blood King is resolved. But I'm getting too far ahead of myself. If you are a fan of Mihalik's past works, this is a book you NEED to read. If you like the romantasy trend in the book world right now, this book is right up your alley. It is filled with everything that makes these books great like forced proximity for the leads, a magical castle that tries to do what you say and a beautiful library that is out of a dream. What more can readers ask for in their next romantasy read?
Rating on my Scale: I've had time to sit with this a few hours and I'm giving it 10 Stars. I just loved everything about it and I know that I will read this again once I have my copy in my hands. The wait is going to be long until book 2 is finally out but I will be here, sitting patiently, until that moment arrives.