The Ruins Beneath Us

This first book in a romantasy duology by TikTok star Sasha E. Sloan combines a compelling love triangle, luscious worldbuilding, and spellbinding magic to deliver a debut with everything romantasy fans crave.

Young elf Lyria has spent her life in hiding while a dangerous war brews between the elven kingdom and human world. Now eighteen, she has grown restless hiding on the outskirts of the forest that surrounds the human world. One day, while her mother is away, Lyria hears a boy in the forest calling for help and rescues him from certain death. Unbeknownst to her, the boy, Finn, is the crowned Prince, and he wants Lyria to become the kingdom’s royal apothecary!

Terrified that Finn is going to discover she’s an elf and she used magic to heal him while he was unconscious, Lyria struggles to fit in with the human kingdom while also hiding her identity. At court, she meets the jaded Head Healer, Cygnus, who is cold, highly suspicious of her, and constantly questions her abilities. But earth-shattering secrets can’t lay dormant forever, and after Lyria and Cygnus discover a dark and sinister world hidden underneath the palace, Lyria must decide once and for all who—if anyone—she should trust.

This slow-burn YA romantasy will be written by BookTok sensation Sasha Sloan and will appeal to fans of other successful TikTok hits like Lightlark and Assistant to the Villain.

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Shockingly good

Honestly? I found this book because I like Sasha on Instagram. I had little hope for it, because how could an influencer write a great book? She’s so young. Right?

I was dead wrong. It’s amazing. I need more.

Great Start!

This was such a good start to the series and debut book for Sasha. I will say for listening purposes the last two chapters (31 and 32 I believe) before the epilogue are switched around. So you will need to skip ahead and then go back.

Well done! Already need book 2!

The narrator did a phenomenal job. The world building magic system was smooth and easy to digest. Loved the ending!! Ahh such an amazing visual!
This is a great read and got me out of a reading slump.
I cannot wait for book 2. Especially after how this one ends. Cheering on Lyria so hard!

The last few chapters are not in the right order...

I think something went wrong in the editing process, because the last few chapters are out of order.
This story, performance, and everything else about it was phenomenal.

Perfect Debut Novel - Beware Chapter Error

I throughly LOVED this novel from new author Sasha E Sloan. It’s been years since I picked up a YA novel, and this did not disappoint. I was hooked almost immediately and definitely made an effort to find more opportunities to listen throughout the day. I am on the edge of my seat to get answers to the unfinished questions and cannot wait to my hands on the upcoming second book!

The end of the book seemed extremely confusing - the last three chapters - but I realized after going back a few times to figure out what I must have misheard to realize that the last two chapters currently play in reverse order. It went 30 - 32 - 31 - Epilogue. If you run into the same issue, you’ll have to jump around a bit.