A Coming-of-Age Story of a Girl Banished to Earth

Book Review of Fawn by Laura Elizabeth

Published: December 5th, 2024
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4 stars)
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Urban Fantasy
Series: The Forgotten Heir Chronicles (Book 1 of unknown)

Disclaimer: Thank you Laura Elizabeth for sending me this book. All thoughts and opinions are 100% honest and my own.

CW/TW: Violence, murder, gun violence, gangs, child abuse, blood, torture, medical content, imprisonment, sexual assault, attempted rape, child death, grief, abandonment.

Banished to Earth

At age four, Faunella is kidnapped, thrown from her world and left to die in a forest on Earth. She has no memory of the world she comes from. Her only friends are the Fae, also stuck on Earth, and they raise her as if she were theirs. For Faunella and the fae to stay safe, they must all follow one rule – stay away from the humans.

However, as Faunella grows, she becomes fascinated by the creatures that resemble her so much. She craves connection and friendship. Fate may agree, seeing that it keeps pushing Faunella and Derick together whilst others keep them apart.

Maybe not all humans are the same; maybe they’re not all dangerous.

Growing up with Faunella

First and foremost, Fawn is a coming-of-age story that follows Faunella (Fawn) from the age of four to twenty. Each time jump within the book begins a new ‘Part’.

As Fawn ages, the themes throughout the story age with her. As a four-year-old, she’s experiencing this new life with no memory of her past. She doesn’t fully understand what’s happening and is simply enjoying her life with the fae. As time goes by, Fawn experiences fear, loneliness, loss/grief, human connection and true friendships. Each of these themes show up multiple times and in different and age-appropriate ways. Because of this, Laura is able to show the character growth of not only Fawn but other characters as well.

Hinting at Romance

As I said before, this book is a coming-of-age story. Because of this, the romance, for the majority of the book, is ‘hinted’ at and builds the anticipation for the moment it blossoms.

So, there is romance; however, if you’re looking for an epic romance that encompasses the entirety of the book, this isn’t for you. I do believe with how this book was set up that, the next book/s in the series will focus more on the romance.

First in a Series

Being the first book in a fantasy series, Fawn has quite a lot of world-building, which is to be expected. This, as well as the cozy vibe and the coming-of-age story progression, mean that the pacing is fairly slow for most of the book – it does pick up a bit towards the end. I’m excited to see how Laura continues Fawn’s story.

Favourite Quotes

“They look like me,” she explained, her voice sounding hoarse from her prolonged crying. “Everyone has a family that’s the same as them, except me.”

What was he doing trapped in an endless cycle of hurt or be hurt, look strong or be weak, kill or be killed? All of this pretending was slowly killing him.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed Fawn. Laura wrote a unique story with interesting characters and a story layout (multiple time jumps) that I don’t think I’ve ever seen before, especially executed this way.

If you enjoy cozy books, forest vibes and sweet coming of age stories then Fawn should definitely be your next read.

Author’s Website | Amazon AU | Amazon US
Where you can, please purchase from the author’s website to support indie authors
🚨 Available on Kindle Unlimited 🚨

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