Otherworldly - A Burned Heart (Book 1 & 2 Stubbed -AMAZON RELEASE 2/28)

Information

Status

Ongoing

Year

2024

Author

alloralee

• CH 26 - The Welcoming Committee
  Jun 7, 2025
• CH 25 - Trapped
  May 30, 2025
• CH 24.5 - Prologue - Discord
  May 23, 2025
• CH 3 - Choices
  Aug 14, 2024
• CH 2 - Family Ties
  Aug 14, 2024
• CH 1 - Point Nemo
  Aug 14, 2024

Reviews

Community Reviews(6)

• One-eyed MikeRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Like other reviewers, I came to this story from Alloralee's linked tale Otherworldly - A Shadowed Awakening.
  It's tempting to compare the two, but I want to avoid spoilers for the first story.  Briefly, in both stories adult women find themselves in a new world, in the body of a young member of high nobility. There are parallels in the initial set-up, and they seem happen in the same world and timeline.
  So, I was wary in case Freddie was just Nora with a nicer family.
  I've stuck with it, and it seems like the two stories are diverging in a satisfactory way, with not too much deja vu. Other than the set-up, Freddie/Kalina seems to be a different character, and Kalina's background is certainly different. The main characters seem realistic.
  It may be early to judge the story, but it seems to be developing well. The MC has real issues to deal with, including an interesting curse. The main danger is that she will become over-powered too soon. An almighty Superman (or Superwoman) gets boring after a while - it's why DC Comics invented kryptonite!
  And, talking of powers, remember that being heir to a ruling dynasty is a form of superpower too...
  The writing and style are satisfactory, with a low error level. It's an enjoyable, interesting read.
  So, as long as the author continues down the present route this looks like another enjoyable Otherworldly story. And I'm happy to recommend A Shadowed Awakening too.
• RydeniusRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I was initially reluctant to begin reading this spin-off of Alloralee’s other story (that I’m more invested in), Otherworldly - A Shadowed Awakening. Fortunately, the great powers of procrastination claimed victory over my reluctance, and binging commenced. 😜
  In contrast with A Shadowed Awakening’s angsty and timid main character with a distant family, this MC is a decisive risk-taker with a loving family, charging ahead without cease and leading the reader on what is sure to be a wild ride—one nervously viewed though the gaps of one’s fingers at times.
  The author is having a blast writing the new MC, and it shows in the writing with the character’s voice strong in the narration. The supporting characters are just as lovingly designed and portrayed as the quirky and unstoppable MC, given enough agency that they don’t fade into the background as props.
  I particularly like the way religion has been woven into the lore of the world, the characters’ daily lives, and how interacting with the world’s gods has consequences. Often grave consequences. The interactions never feel comfortable.
  The writing style overall is light and visually pleasant with care given to the paragraph lengths and their impact on the flow and importance of the text. Short sentences and one word sentences are used for effect, and dialogue is often used to break up sections of description or rumination, helping to naturally draw the reader into the action.
  There are occasional ESL(?) grammar oopses and typos, but overall the grammar is excellent and author edits often resolve those quickly for all but the earliest of readers.
• SnappyDragonRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  (Reviewed at Ch 14 Patreon)
  Overall
  If you want to read a story about an unhinged, feral, female lead taking the Isekai experience and beating it up in an alleyway, this is the story for you.
  Story
  It’s hard to discuss or think about this story without comparing it to the author’s companion work, Otherworldly. If you have read that work and enjoyed the nuanced depictions of mental health and unique reactions to the Isekai scenario, you will likely also enjoy this one.
  If you follow her work because you enjoy being repeatedly stabbed in the heart by character trauma, then this looks to be a slower burn than her other works. Freddie’s initial experience seems more comfortable and healing than the author’s usual fare. However, I believe I can see the writing on the wall, Allora giveth but she also taketh away.
  Anyone reading an Allora work expecting sunshine and rainbows throughout is tempting fate, and tempting the author to punch them in the gut when they least expect it.
  Character
  One of my favorite characters to read, Freddie is a mess, in a fun way. While Allora Lee has a penchant for writing traumatized characters, Freddie is a masterclass in making you feel good about it.
  If Otherworldy’s Nora is the slow devouring darkness of a struggle with depression, then Kalina/Freddie is a blazing sun of unexamined trauma with a chip on her shoulder here to kick life in the unmentionables.
  The supporting cast plays off the MC well and I’m vibrating with excitement for a potential crossover with Otherworldly’s Nora.
  Style
  Allora’s style is clear and workable with just enough flair thrown in to not distract from the story at hand. The tone is different from her other works but in an enjoyable and intriguing way.
  Grammar
  I hate having to review things for grammar, but as a novice, it looks good to me.
• btillyRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Very unusually, alloralee has two stories set in the same world, at the same time, with characters who seem destined to interact.
  In Otherworldly - A Shadowed Awakening, Nora is a businesswoman yanked into the queendom of Maeve in Gargantua by callous Gods who are having a bet. Having lost a loving family, Nora is stuck in a powerful but uncaring one. Which she wishes to fight against, along with the gods who did this to her.
  This is the companion series, Otherworldly - A Burned Heart. Here Freddie is the rebirth of a fighter into a loving family, mediated by a loving Goddess. Freddie wishes to grow strong and fight, surrounded by the love of her new family. Both main characters are driven and blessed by the Gods. But they are each other's mirror images in many ways.
  As with the other, I love the style and story. The grammar is good, except for a minor tendency towards run-on sentences. I love the main character, but wish that the minor characters surrounding her were a little more filled out.
  I will be interested to see how both stories advance. And I'm curious what interactions are planned between them. In fact I like alloralee's writing enough that she's the second Patreon that I've chosen to pay for. Based on what's coming, I do have some guesses where they will start to interact, but saying would be a spoiler...
• dzweigRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 3.5

  This book is placed in the same world as "A Shadowed Awakening", and works best set against its predecessor.  In ASA, the protagonist is taken from a good life and finds herself replacing an eight-year-old girl from a horrid family.  She rejects that girl and that family, and works to redefine herself.  "A Burned Heart" is a mirror image:  The protagonist is taken from a violent life and a horrid family and finds herself replacing an eight-year-old girl from a kind and loving family.  She leans into her new identify.
  In the absence of the emotional conflicts that structure the first book, ABH is closer to traditional LitRPG:  We spend more time watching the protagonist get into fights and improve her statistics.
  "A Burned Heart" is stronger for its contrast with "A Shadowed Awakening".  In isolation, it has less to distinguish it from other books that use similar tropes.
• CatgurlRoyal Road

  ★★ 2.0

  OK premise. Decent writing style, grammar and spelling. Writing is fuzzy in many spots, not making points clear, like why MC should be stopped from seeing her brothers, etc.
  I liked MC's family, what we see of them. I feel an opportunity was wasted in these first scenes to give MC's parents more form and character by having them act and speak more. There was some good dialog with grandfather and uncle, but a lot more was just generic filler.
  MC is a bit too manic and focused on fire and fist-fighting, which is what she did in her prior life.  Not sure why she is continuing to focus on those things, as it appears her prior life was miserable.  Anywho, this obsessive focus is not appealing to me.
  Also the story is dragging with filler from early on - for example paragraph after paragraph about forming a magma platform, all of which could and should be edited down. Reads like a large portion of this story is AI generated, which is dragging it down.
  The best scene so far was the one with MC and her little brothers - wish there was more depth and length to that.
  In summary, so far story focus is isolated all on MC, fire and fighting, which seems likely to continue. Also feel this tale is choking on filler content. Big no from me.