The Enemies to Lovers Fantasy You Need to Read!
Where Oceans Burn
Teen & Young Adult Fantasy, Fantasy Romance
Independently Published
October 13, 2022
ebook, paperback
With these three virtues, we shall rise. With these three, we shall conquer.
Truth. Honor. Blood.
To my people, the sky-reigning Empyreans, Intention Day is sacred…
Truth…
To me, it’s the day my carefully crafted lie crumbles and my truth gives way to my ruin. The intense power surging through my veins is revealed, immediately coveted by those eager to exploit me for what they deem a greater good. If they have their way, the future I long for will be ripped away. But I am a warrior born to fly. To fight. Not to be caged and controlled.
The great scale of the goddess Neera has tipped out of my favor. The pans teeter between weighty punishment and deadly opportunity. My choices? Capture my most formidable enemy before next Intention Day, or forfeit my wings.
Honor…
But life’s loftiest plans are often a breath away from disaster, and tragedy strikes as unpredictably as a bolt of lightning. When I find myself at the mercy of my greatest enemy, the terror known as the Shark of the Sea, the monster who killed the person I loved most, I accept my fate. My death. But the Shark does not lash out in revenge for all I’ve done. He tells me his true name is Crest. And while he calls me a Scourge, he honors his orders to guard me.
Blood…
Forced together, Crest reveals that the truth only exists in the place between our perspectives and shares his hope to garner peace before the land is further soaked with the blood of sky and sea. The longer I am among his kind, the more I wonder if he might be right. Could an alliance be the salvation of both our peoples?
I am Elira, great Scourge of the Sky.
He is Crest, cunning Shark of the Sea.
Together… we could be unstoppable.
“With these three virtues, we shall thrive. With these three, we shall conquer: Truth, Honor, Blood.”
Where Oceans Burn by Casey L. Bond is an absolute must read for any fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout and Sarah J. Maas. Casey L. Bond has written a gorgeous YA Fantasy with incredible world building, and a storyline about a woman whose fate lies in ending the war between those in the sky and those in the sea.
What would you do to avenge the person you grew up with? The closest friend you’ve ever had? For Elira, losing Aderyn was like losing a part of her soul. From the day of Aderyn’s death, Elira, one of Empyrean’s fiercest commanders has sworn to bring the elusive sea predator—The Shark—to justice. The only problem is that in a society where the only glory comes from being the one on top, unrest lurks around every corner.
“Without reflection, there was no growth. Without growth, there was no prosperity. No truth or honor could rise from stagnancy.” 
When Elira finds herself at the mercy of the sea people, her world and everything she thought she knew about it is turned on its head. Suddenly instead of hunting The Shark, she is instead needing his name and protection in order to survive long enough to heal from the fall that sent her into Talay’s sea. Instead of being a mighty commander in the sky, her broken wings need to heal while Elira grapples with coming to terms with the moniker given to her by the people of the sea—The Scourge.
Where Oceans Burn isn’t just a fantasy tale of enemies to lovers—there’s so much more in this beautifully written story. Elira and Crest both need to come to terms with their fates, and the paths their hearts most desire. Learning how to cast aside generations of prejudice and hate in a war that has been waged for as long as anyone can remember is difficult, but the most important step is always the first towards peace.
“If you skip the ending, you miss all the best parts, the parts that make all the heartache and strife, all the pain and sorrow worth it. You have to traverse the dark valleys to reach the highest peaks, Elira.”
Even though Elira and Crest’s story remains unresolved at the end of Where Oceans Burn, I was left feeling hopeful instead my usual in pain and agony feeling of cliffhangers when my beloved characters don’t have their HEA’s quite yet. Casey L. Bond has me so completely invested in the outcome of Elira’s next steps. It takes a phenomenal character like Elira, and even better writing to pull off a feat like that! Easily one of the best books that I’ve read in 2022, look for Where Oceans Burn to be released October 13th—you will absolutely not regret it at all.
Jes is a self-proclaimed bookworm, who recently moved from the PNW back to the Midwest. When her nose isn’t in a book, she’s spending time with her husband, two kids, and her three fur babies, or exploring the globe. She also firmly believes that you should start the day with coffee, and end the day in bed with a good book.
