Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️🌶️🌶️
Genre: Dark Fantasy Romance
Length: 330
Format Read: Author-Provided eBook
Published: May 30, 2026
I received this ebook from Amber @ambermerrows herself on IG via direct message in exchange for an honest review and all opinions are my own.
We start the story meeting Nephelle at her home when she is awaking and then she is immediately antagonized by her mother. The two of them share a tentative if not outright combative relationship and Nephelle’s father is gone, leaving Nephelle the responsibility of working with herbs for their living. One evening,she is returning from her work and is attacked and nearly kidnapped, but during her escape, she appears to be transported to a fae land through a portal. Thus begins the adventure we share with Nephelle.
The writing in this book is incredibly descriptive and it captivated me into the story and its immersive atmosphere. When I was reading it, it read similarly to how watching an anime feels somehow. I was mentally picturing the characters and the world in an anime setting as well.
“Some days, I see everything in bright colors. Maybe if I painted the landscapes and sunsets that capture my gaze, the world won’t feel so dim when I reflect on my darker days.”
Nephelle is a strong character and she knows who she is and what she wants. In that she also knows what she does NOT want, which ends up playing into the story often. She makes some very good friends in the fae world when she starts working for the head apothecary in a lord’s household, which helps her find her footing and provides support, giving us readers a “found family” feeling.
The characters are also multi-layered; some of the twisty and mystery feelings from the additional characters in the story are really good at making it hard to tell who Nephelle should trust. I was also often misled on certain characters; I usually have a good sense about when a character shouldn’t be trusted and this book threw me for a loop on nearly all of those.
Between the writing being immersive and the plot and characters being twisty, I was kept on the edge of my seat for the last half of the book. It is a slow build up until that halfway mark, and once the story is going, I didn’t want to put the book down when I had to end a reading session. Multiple times, during my night time reading sessions, I was practically holding my eyes open with my hands or arguing with myself whether I should keep reading or if I need to get sleep to work the next day. (And I mean it was hard to keep my eyes open because I’m a busy adult in my 30’s, not because of the story).
This is book one in a series, so we are left with a LOT of questions and mysteries, but it is a completed trilogy and I fully intend to purchase the trilogy at my next chance to shop books.
I recommend this book if you are a fan of stories like “Quicksilver”, “From Blood and Ash”, and “Apothecary Diaries”.
Thank you, Amber, for sending me a copy of your book!
LINKS TO THE BOOK
Amazon Affiliate Link to “Altered Echoes” by Amber Merrows
Bookshop.org link to “Altered Echoes” by Amber Merrows
I have provided two links to the book above: one is through Amazon’s affiliate program, through which provides me a small commission, and the other is NOT an affiliate link through Bookshop.org. I provide both options because I know that not everyone likes or can use one or the other shop for any reason.
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