THE SWEETEST FIEND
Played by the Piper, Vol. 1BY RAVEN KENNEDY | PUBLICATION: SEP 22, 2026
AVON | GENRE: ROMANCE / FANTASY
RATING: ★★★★
"The author knew exactly what story she wanted to tell."
____________________________________________________________________
It’s time to pay the Piper.
Our world cracked open like an egg. Power burst out, and with it, nine monstrous Banes ready to destroy everything. The powerful Core fae finally slayed them all, but each Bane left a Plague to punish us.
But that’s not the only thing they left behind.
I’m half Bane, half fae, and wholly hated. Survival means enduring every vicious glare and cursed outbreak. Until one day, a Plague descends upon my city that means certain death.
Then he comes. The Pied Piper.
He rids my city of the Plague, but it comes at a cost. One hundred and thirty people are taken as payment. Including me.
I don’t know what he’s going to do to us, but I know I have to get home. My family’s lives depend on it. But the Piper won’t let me go, and something wicked stirs between us. The sweet scent in my veins beckons him, while the seductive lure of his magic sinks under my skin.
I have to escape before it’s too late. Because if I don’t, it’s not just my heart at risk…
But the entire world.
Our world cracked open like an egg. Power burst out, and with it, nine monstrous Banes ready to destroy everything. The powerful Core fae finally slayed them all, but each Bane left a Plague to punish us.
But that’s not the only thing they left behind.
I’m half Bane, half fae, and wholly hated. Survival means enduring every vicious glare and cursed outbreak. Until one day, a Plague descends upon my city that means certain death.
Then he comes. The Pied Piper.
He rids my city of the Plague, but it comes at a cost. One hundred and thirty people are taken as payment. Including me.
I don’t know what he’s going to do to us, but I know I have to get home. My family’s lives depend on it. But the Piper won’t let me go, and something wicked stirs between us. The sweet scent in my veins beckons him, while the seductive lure of his magic sinks under my skin.
I have to escape before it’s too late. Because if I don’t, it’s not just my heart at risk…
But the entire world.
____________________________________________________________________
The original Pied Piper tale has never been about rats.
At its heart, it is a story about promises, consequences, and the devastating cost of failing to honor one's word. A town plagued by suffering accepts help from a stranger, only to break the agreement once the danger has passed. In return, the stranger takes the most precious thing they have: their children.
When I pick up a Pied Piper retelling, that tension is what I'm searching for. Not necessarily a faithful recreation of the folklore, but an expansion of its central questions. What is owed? What happens when people convince themselves a debt no longer needs to be paid? What price is too high when the consequences finally arrive?
The Sweetest Fiend takes a different path.
Rather than preserving the Piper's enigmatic presence, this retelling pulls him into the light. The story shifts its focus from the folklore itself to the characters inhabiting it, particularly the mysteries surrounding the Piper and the relationships he forms. As the first book in a duology, many answers remain deliberately out of reach, ending on a cliffhanger that leaves both the characters and readers suspended in uncertainty.
What immediately impressed me was the novel's opening. The earth is literally opening up, the plagues are terrifying, and people are dying. The sense of urgency is established from the very first pages, and the stakes feel both immediate and overwhelming. This isn't danger for the sake of drama. The situation itself drives the momentum forward and keeps the story moving.
The pacing slows in the middle, but not without reason. Character development, relationship building, and bringing together a larger cast all require space. While certain sections felt less urgent than the opening, I understood their purpose within the larger story.
The novel's greatest strength is its character work. The rapport among the cast is engaging and often carried my interest through slower moments. Even when I wasn't entirely sold on every development, I remained invested in the interactions because the relationships felt lively and compelling.
The romance was less successful for me. While the chemistry is certainly present and the romantic scenes are effective in what they set out to do, the emotional progression felt rushed. I understood the attraction, but I wanted more development before some of the relationship milestones occurred.
It's also worth noting that this is clearly the work of an experienced author. The worldbuilding is one of the novel's strongest elements, not because it exists independently, but because it shapes the characters themselves. Their fears, decisions, and relationships feel born from the world they inhabit rather than simply placed within it. There is confidence in the storytelling that comes from a writer who understands her craft.
Ultimately, my experience with The Sweetest Fiend comes down to a matter of mismatch rather than disappointment.
I understand the appeal this book will have for many readers. I can see why its character-focused approach and reimagining of the Piper have captured so much attention. The author knew exactly what story she wanted to tell.
It simply wasn't the expansion of the folklore I was searching for.
While I came looking for a deeper exploration of the promises, consequences, and moral weight at the heart of the Pied Piper legend, this novel chose to explore different questions. That's neither a flaw nor a failure. It's a choice.
And sometimes a book and a reader can admire the same road, while still wishing to travel in different directions.
At its heart, it is a story about promises, consequences, and the devastating cost of failing to honor one's word. A town plagued by suffering accepts help from a stranger, only to break the agreement once the danger has passed. In return, the stranger takes the most precious thing they have: their children.
When I pick up a Pied Piper retelling, that tension is what I'm searching for. Not necessarily a faithful recreation of the folklore, but an expansion of its central questions. What is owed? What happens when people convince themselves a debt no longer needs to be paid? What price is too high when the consequences finally arrive?
The Sweetest Fiend takes a different path.
Rather than preserving the Piper's enigmatic presence, this retelling pulls him into the light. The story shifts its focus from the folklore itself to the characters inhabiting it, particularly the mysteries surrounding the Piper and the relationships he forms. As the first book in a duology, many answers remain deliberately out of reach, ending on a cliffhanger that leaves both the characters and readers suspended in uncertainty.
What immediately impressed me was the novel's opening. The earth is literally opening up, the plagues are terrifying, and people are dying. The sense of urgency is established from the very first pages, and the stakes feel both immediate and overwhelming. This isn't danger for the sake of drama. The situation itself drives the momentum forward and keeps the story moving.
The pacing slows in the middle, but not without reason. Character development, relationship building, and bringing together a larger cast all require space. While certain sections felt less urgent than the opening, I understood their purpose within the larger story.
The novel's greatest strength is its character work. The rapport among the cast is engaging and often carried my interest through slower moments. Even when I wasn't entirely sold on every development, I remained invested in the interactions because the relationships felt lively and compelling.
The romance was less successful for me. While the chemistry is certainly present and the romantic scenes are effective in what they set out to do, the emotional progression felt rushed. I understood the attraction, but I wanted more development before some of the relationship milestones occurred.
It's also worth noting that this is clearly the work of an experienced author. The worldbuilding is one of the novel's strongest elements, not because it exists independently, but because it shapes the characters themselves. Their fears, decisions, and relationships feel born from the world they inhabit rather than simply placed within it. There is confidence in the storytelling that comes from a writer who understands her craft.
Ultimately, my experience with The Sweetest Fiend comes down to a matter of mismatch rather than disappointment.
I understand the appeal this book will have for many readers. I can see why its character-focused approach and reimagining of the Piper have captured so much attention. The author knew exactly what story she wanted to tell.
It simply wasn't the expansion of the folklore I was searching for.
While I came looking for a deeper exploration of the promises, consequences, and moral weight at the heart of the Pied Piper legend, this novel chose to explore different questions. That's neither a flaw nor a failure. It's a choice.
And sometimes a book and a reader can admire the same road, while still wishing to travel in different directions.
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About the Author:
Raven Kennedy is an international bestseller, whose love for books pushed her into creating her own worlds. The Plated Prisoner Series, a dark fantasy romance, has sold in over twenty countries. It became a New York Times, USA Today, Sunday Times, and Spiegel bestseller, hit #1 in the Amazon store, and has sold over six million copies worldwide.
Raven Kennedy is an international bestseller, whose love for books pushed her into creating her own worlds. The Plated Prisoner Series, a dark fantasy romance, has sold in over twenty countries. It became a New York Times, USA Today, Sunday Times, and Spiegel bestseller, hit #1 in the Amazon store, and has sold over six million copies worldwide.
*HarperCollinsCA provided the eARC
in exchange for this unbiased review.
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in exchange for this unbiased review.
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