She rides to claim her fate, he flies to burn it down.
As the only woman in the Moontouched Brotherhood, Tani studies on the haughty island of Eavenfold surrounded by men who see her as an ill omen at best. Her Fate Ceremony is only days away, offering five possible escapes from the storm-locked island, but each with their own consequences.
Lang, an insubordinate Crown Prince, holds the reins to one of the few true dragons left in the world. Sent to Eavenfold on a diplomatic mission by his warmongering father, he watches as the Brothers bestow a rare and unwanted Marriage Fate on Tani. Already her touch magic alarms him, but if she succeeds and marries the victor of the upcoming tournament, her power could topple empires.
They both arrive at the games. Her, to claim her Fate. Him, to destroy it by any means possible.
Sixth up in our run through the SPFBO Finals is To Touch a Silent Fury by R. A. Sandpiper, and this one split the team. One of us came away already desperate for book two, while others admired the world but never quite believed in the yearning at the heart of the story. Dragons, a slow burn, and a best friend who quietly won over more than one of us. Here’s what we thought.
Stacey
Oh man…the more I think on this book the more I just love it.
It definitely starts with a lot of world building which can sometimes be complicated but it all comes together so trust the process!
While this story is fairly long…every word builds the tale, the suspense, the tension! Every character has a fulsome background, with rich history and they bring that to life in each chapter.
I’ve read this author’s first series and was obsessed so I was a little worried that this wouldn’t measure up. I should get a grip! This was an incredible read.
Dual POVs always make me happy! We get both Tani’s and Lang’s side of things as we go and I love that.
The magic system is very unique and interesting and the story is built around Tani trying to come into her fated power but when a pretty major twist happens, things definitely start to go off the rails. This is not a romantasy to me, it feels like a big epic fantasy with dragons and magic with side of slow burn love (and I mean sloooow)
We also get some awesome twists and turns to the plot and once it ramps up…we are on a great ride to the last page!
I’m already rabid for book 2!!
Maureen
The opening chapter left me confused; the second chapter brought me into the story and the third made me interested.
I was intrigued by the world and how the author had grown it, becoming my favourite thing about the story. A lot of new terminologies are thrown at the reader in the beginning, but it smooths as one sees them used in proper context. I applaud the work put into it; it must have been a fun world to create.
I have two issues with the book. I never found belief in the yearning each other felt. I read it, but it felt a little hollow. I wanted to believe; each MC was a likeable person who had done, and would do, both great and terrible things. They seemed like good people put in a bad place. The romance worked, but the heightened longing, spoken about often, just felt tepid.
The other was the plot contrivances to get the heroine to where she needed to be. It wasn’t like she was making dumb decisions, but they often weren’t wise. The tale was okay, but when I stopped to look at the bigger picture, some of the choices seemed a tad far-fetched. At the end of the book, there’s a huge plot hole that isn’t explained, and it’s an important one.
It was an okay story, better than many, but felt short of delivering a real emotional investment for me.
Julia
To Touch a Silent Fury by R.A. Sandpiper is a slow burn, enemies to lovers fantasy romance with dragons, court politics, and a heroine caught between her fate and desire, and it delivers exactly what that description promises. I’ll say upfront that romance as a genre (or rather romance tropes and sappiness) isn’t something I personally enjoy, so my own reading experience skewed way lower than my score here reflects. But judging the book on what it sets out to do rather than my personal taste, it earns real credit.
Tani’s arc, from outsider on an island of magic-touched men to being bonded to a baby dragon caught between two princes, is fast moving and rarely lets up. The strongest section comes when she is living among a tribe of silent peoples who eke out a living in the very scarce woods. Here she is learning to survive on very little and slowly earning the trust of a culture other people dismiss as savages. That stretch has genuine texture and patience to it, and it’s some of the book’s best writing.
The romance is clearly the centerpiece, and it leans fully into classic genre staples: forbidden attraction, a brooding prince hiding a decent heart under duty and fear, and high stakes moments interrupted by emotional confessions rather than pushed past them. Readers who love that kind of tension, where the emotional beat matters more than the plot clock, will likely find this exactly the kind of payoff they’re reading for. It’s not restrained, but it is committed, and it knows its audience.
“Curse me,” he demanded.
“I will not.”
“Curse me,” he repeated. “Tell me I am a heartless cad. Tell me you despise me. Tell me you could never want me how I want you.”
“No.”
“Tani.” He stepped forwards, the lamplight catching against the scaling fire in his eyes. “You must not allow me even the smallest hope for you. For like the moon, I will hang in the darkness for all eternity, isolated from any other touch, thinking only of you. Do me this one cruelty now, and I will stop talking of it forever.”
I said nothing, for there was nothing I wanted to say. I barely breathed, my throat tight. He breathed heavily enough for both of us, weighted by his confession.
“Curse me,” he demanded, stepping closer again. Our hands were inches from each other, and our lips closer still. “Curse me and break this spell you have over me.”
I stared at his mouth. He reached up but did not let his hand brush my face. Trembling, I leaned forwards, and the Dragon Prince’s rough palm touched my cheek.
If one could drown in desire, I might have done then. My need for him, and his for me, consumed us so entirely the room faded into nothing. We were the night sky itself, endless and expansive.
There’s also a well handled thread with Tani’s male best friend, who accepts early and cleanly that romance isn’t in the cards for them and stays a loyal, steady presence throughout. It’s a small thing, but it gives the book some welcome balance against all the yearning elsewhere.
This is a strong entry for readers who want dragons and court intrigue wrapped around a love story built on longing and slow burn payoff. It knows exactly what kind of book it is and executes with confidence, even where that execution wasn’t built for me personally.
Adawia
I liked the idea of this story more than I liked the execution. That is to say, the premise is good, but it just felt a little too contrived in too many places, and I struggled to become invested in any of the characters – except for the bff. He’s the most believable character and I found myself cheering for him, but felt the end of his role in this book wasn’t quite satisfying.
That’s our take on To Touch a Silent Fury! The world and its magic impressed, but the romance divided us: a gloriously slow burn for some, a little hollow for others. A few too many convenient plot turns kept it from winning everyone over, though the loyal best friend found fans on all sides.
Not every judge who scored this one managed to write up their thoughts, because sometimes life just gets in the way. So our score below includes a few more voices than the reviews above.
Our Score: 6.64/10
Our Official SPFBO Score: 6.5/10
To Touch a Silent Fury is one of the ten finalists in this year’s SPFBO. Here’s how our current standings look:
- A Light from the Nether by Molly Dowd Sullivan: 8
- Carrion Saints by Hiyodori: 7.25
- Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher
- The Hallows by H. L. Tinsley: 8.91
- The Honorable Con by Michele C. Shaw
- Jester by Tim Carter: 8.44
- No More Levels by Benjamin Barreth: 7
- Of Mages and Makers by Rel Carroll: 7.9
- To Touch a Silent Fury by R. A. Sandpiper: 6.5
- Violence & Vigilance by David T. List
A huge thank you to R. A. Sandpiper for putting this book forward, and to all the other teams working through the Finals alongside us. Stay tuned as the scores come in for the rest. You can see the list of all the finalists and their scores here.
Our judges for Round Two are Adawia, EG, EVA, Kerry, Maureen, Max, Sara, Sherry, Stacey, Tianna, Yaniv, and Julia (me). If you’d like to learn more about us, including our likes and dislikes, you can read about them here.
Any queries should be directed at our editor, Jennie Ivins, via Bluesky, Instagram, or Threads.
