Book Review: Historical Fiction Romantasy Readers Will Love Italian Renaissance Standalone, Graceless Heart
If Historical Fiction Fantasy with some Romance is your vibe, listen up. Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibanez definitely needs to go on your 2026 TBR. I so enjoyed her YA Egyptian duology, so I was so excited to read her adult debut. Now I will say, this does get a bit more steamy than her previous books, but other than that, these characters still read pretty young. AND it’s a standalone, which, in my opinion, we need WAY more of. This year I’m on the hunt to read more standalones in between starting new series because there are so many unfinished series. Does it stress you out too? Anyway, this was a quick read for me with multiple POVs, and it’s set in an alternate history of Florence in the 1400s. If you’re a fan of the Renaissance art period, there are also some fun little Easter eggs sprinkled throughout the story that I think you’ll really enjoy, including a very famous artist… I’m keeping this review spoiler free because there are some fun twists and reveals, but let’s get into it.
P.S. How stunning is this first edition? The purple foiling and cover is even more gorgeous in person.
Things to Know:
Historical Fiction Fantasy
Alternate History
Enemies to lovers
Political Intrigue
Renaissance era
Magical beings
We meet Ravenna, and she’s a young talented marble sculptor, but also has hidden magical abilities that she really doesn’t want anything to do with in the beginning. She’s also what I would call a ‘soft FMC’. She’s smart and talented, but she’s not going to be wielding a blade like a lot of Romantasy FMCs these days, and I appreciated something different. And of course, there’s a brooding immortal knight, Santurnino. The romance is definitely more than a subplot in this story, but there’s also a lot happening with political intrigue and the mystery surrounding this immortal family who basically kidnap her and give her an impossible task, so it felt .
I was a little worried when I realized the Pope is one of the POVs, and let’s just say, he’s not a good guy. I’m not Catholic, but I am a believer, and sometimes authors do a little too much trauma dumping on their bad religious experiences (which is totally valid to feel, but I don’t personally enjoy reading). So some people might find this part a bit offensive, but I didn’t feel like it was too much. He makes a great villain and it’s rare to get a villain POV.
I really liked how Isabel weaved in actual moments from history into the story as well. But then we get into the magic. I 100% thought there were vampires in this story. I was wrong. However, there are Fae, but things are not as they seem. I actually really enjoyed the magical bits and reveals, and could have even used more of it.
The audiobook is great and really helps with immersing you in the story as the narrator does a light Italian accent. So overall, this was a fun read to get to early in the year, and if you’re a historical fiction fantasy + romantasy reader, you might enjoy it too! You can find the audiobook on Audible or Libro.fm (ProTips: Audible is 99 cents/mo for three months right now AND you can get two free audiobooks on Libro.fm with the code SWITCH right now).
Favorite Quotes:
“You are ruinous Santurnino, but I won’t let you ruin me.”
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