Rating: 3.5🌈
The Nightingale Prince is a first novel from author Zack Bell and it’s a wonderful jump into the world of paranormal fiction.
Bell is establishing a universe that’s full of mythological elements, deeply rooted in a past history and past lives of the beings we’ve barely met and just gotten to know. The author has chosen a main character who’s just as ignorant of the world around him as the reader as our guide through the story, a format that allows both the reader and the person the same distance from the events as they occur.
Bell is creating such a vast, complicated arc and universe that at moments within their narrative it becomes a bit unclear as to what the characters are actually thinking, what their motivations are, and where they actually came from. This series is one where the characters have many rejuvenations and their past lives and actions are currently reverberating through the present day.
Confusing? Yes, but interesting? Very.
The romance between Toby who thought he was human ( he’s not, he’s a reincarnated Fae), and the ancient nature Fae, Amaethon, who’s living on the grounds of the magical house Toby has inherited, is a weak aspect to the story. It starts off as an instant love without much connection between them to back it up, so it’s hard to invest in it initially.
Does it get better? Yes, as does the other threads, but there’s so much more going on that Bell needs to lay down in terms of knowledge or drama, that the emotional connections are oftentimes dropped. Or not connected enough because our attention is everywhere.
But the cast of characters? Intriguing. The drama? Well done, including the battle scenes. The more I read about certain sections of the universe and mythology, the more I want to know about the pieces that aren’t laid down yet or fully.
Bell gives the reader and characters a cliffhanger at the end of The Nightingale Prince to set up the next story to come, The Lyrebird Prince.
I think Zack Bel did a great job with their first published novel and I’m looking forward to reading the next one in the series.
Buy Link:
The Nightingale Prince: An MM Fae Romance (The Songbird Princes)
The Songbird Princes:
✓ The Nightingale Prince #1
â—¦ The Lyrebird Prince #2 – TBD
Blurb:
The crown of a Fae Prince is a dangerous thing
Toby’s boyfriend just kicked him to the curb, so when he inherits a decrepit mansion in the remote Aussie bush, he jumps at the chance for a break. He finds a charming little town full of big personalities, and a handsome, mysterious gardener. But Toby will soon discover that everything he thought he knew is a lie. He’s not even human.
The Fae are real, and he’s one of them.
The ancient nature Fae Amaethon has buried the pain of losing his lover a century ago. These days, he finds plants easier to talk to than people, but Toby pulls him out of his shell so easily. When the same evil that took his lover returns, he’ll fight to protect Toby and the chance to love again.
An ancient magic is reawakening, and Toby is the heir. To make matters worse, Fae hunters want him dead, and they’ll destroy this quiet town to stop the Nightingale Prince from rising.
Amaethon and Toby will have to fight together to survive, and failure means the end of all Fae kind.
The Nightingale Prince is a paranormal MM romance with a touch of the gothic. Book 1 of The Songbird Princes, each book follows a different main couple with a HEA, but the series must be read in order. May contain: Lots of chocolate chip cookies, a crumbling mansion with a library to put Belle to shame, an eccentric old lady who might’ve given King Arthur his sword, a magical housekeeper, and a badass witch librarian. It contains explicit content. Check the copyright page for content warnings.
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 