Verdict: A short, sharp, seriously spicy enemies-to-lovers novella — grumpy fae warrior meets chaotic sunshine demon on the battlefield, and the sparks are immediate.
Best for: Fae Isles readers craving Naxi and Thysandra’s full story, and anyone who wants maximum tension and heat in a single sitting.
Heat: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ High Spice (Explicit, Open Door)
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Tropes: Enemies-to-lovers, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, opposite sides of a war, dangerous bargains
Sometimes you don’t want a 500-page epic — you want a concentrated hit of tension, banter, and heat you can devour in one evening. That’s exactly what In Love and War delivers. Lisette Marshall’s sapphic companion novella to the Fae Isles series finally gives grumpy fae warrior Thysandra and chaotic half-demon Naxi the spotlight, and it more than earns its place on our list of spicy sapphic fantasy books.
If you loved the enemies-to-lovers charge of This Splintered Sea, this novella distills that same energy into a shorter, sharper package.
What Is In Love and War About?
Fighting on opposite sides of a seemingly endless war, Anaxia (Naxi) — a chaotic, sunshine-bright half-demon, half-nymph — and Thysandra, a hardened fae warrior, keep colliding on the blood-soaked battlefield. What starts as knife-to-throat hostility slowly curdles into something far more dangerous: attraction. Across stolen moments, dangerous bargains, and a war that gives neither of them room to breathe, the two enemies circle a connection that could get them both killed — or become the one thing worth surviving for. It’s a compact, high-tension enemies-to-lovers story that runs in the background of the main Fae Isles books and finally takes center stage here.
What Makes This Novella Work
Opposites that actually spark. Naxi’s chaotic sunshine energy against Thysandra’s stern warrior edge is a grumpy/sunshine pairing done exactly right.
Tension on every page. With so little room, Marshall makes every scene count — the banter is fast, the stakes are lethal, and the chemistry is instant.
Big heat in a small package. Despite the short length, the spice is explicit and generous — this novella does not hold back.
A payoff for series fans. Readers who watched these two simmer in the background of books 1–4 finally get the full, satisfying story.
Book Synopsis
Anaxia and Thysandra were never supposed to be anything but enemies. On opposite ends of a grinding, seemingly endless war, they meet again and again on the battlefield — the reckless, quick-tongued half-demon and the disciplined fae warrior who should want her dead.
But hatred has a way of blurring into something hotter, and every dangerous bargain they strike pulls them deeper into a game neither can fully control. Knife to throat one moment and breathless the next, Naxi and Thysandra keep choosing each other in ways that defy every side they’re supposed to serve.
Set against the backdrop of the wider Fae Isles conflict, this companion novella traces their romance from wartime antagonism to a hard-won happy-for-now — a story that has simmered in the margins of the main series and finally gets told in full, setting the stage for what comes next.
My Review
I went in expecting a fun little side dish and got something genuinely delicious. In Love and War is proof that a novella can pack a real punch — Marshall wastes zero words, and the result is a lean, propulsive romance that’s all crackling tension and sharp dialogue. Naxi is the kind of chaotic-good disaster you can’t help adoring, and Thysandra’s stern restraint is the perfect foil.
The heat is the headline here. For roughly ninety pages, the spice is explicit and open-door, and it’s woven through with knife’s-edge danger that makes it hit even harder. Enemies-to-lovers can feel rushed in short fiction, but the groundwork these two laid across the earlier Fae Isles books means the payoff feels earned rather than instant. It’s a masterclass in doing a lot with a little.
The obvious caveat: this is a companion novella, not a standalone epic. At 20k words it’s a quick read, and it lands best if you have some familiarity with the Fae Isles world — a few readers new to the series wished for more context and length. Taken for what it is, though, it’s a tightly written, satisfying, and very spicy treat. A confident 4 stars.
Tropes & Themes at a Glance
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Naxi (half-demon) & Thysandra (fae warrior) — F/F |
| Core tropes | Enemies-to-lovers, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, opposite sides of a war |
| Setting | The Fae Isles — a war-torn high-fantasy world |
| Heat level | 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ High — explicit, open door |
| Series | Fae Isles #4.5 — companion novella (~20k words, HFN) |
| Content notes | War violence, explicit content, short novella length |
How Spicy Is In Love and War?
Heat rating: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ High Spice. For a novella, this one runs remarkably hot — readers consistently peg it around a 4 out of 5, with explicit, open-door scenes. What makes the heat work is the danger baked into it: the intimacy plays out against wartime stakes and knife-to-throat tension, so the spice feels charged rather than gratuitous. If you want a short read that doesn’t skimp on genuine steam, In Love and War delivers a lot of heat per page.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you’re a Fae Isles reader wanting Naxi and Thysandra’s full story, you love grumpy/sunshine enemies-to-lovers, and you want maximum tension and high heat in a quick, one-sitting read.
You may want to skip it if: you want a full-length standalone novel, you’re brand new to the Fae Isles world and want lots of context, or you prefer lower-heat, closed-door romance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can In Love and War be read as a standalone?
It technically can, but it’s a Fae Isles #4.5 companion novella — it reads best if you’re familiar with the series, since Naxi and Thysandra’s arc runs through the main books.
Is it a true sapphic romance?
Yes. The entire novella centers on the F/F relationship between Naxi and Thysandra — it’s an unambiguously sapphic story.
How steamy is it really?
Quite steamy — around a 4 out of 5. It’s explicit and open-door, and packs a surprising amount of heat into its short length.
How long is it?
Short — roughly 20,000 words (about 91 pages). It’s a quick, one-sitting read rather than a full-length novel.
Does it have a happy ending?
It ends on a happy-for-now (HFN), with the couple’s story continuing to develop within the wider Fae Isles series.
If You Loved In Love and War, Read These Next
Want more sapphic fantasy heat? Explore the full spicy sapphic fantasy book list for your next pick. For more battlefield enemies-to-lovers, try This Splintered Sea; for high-heat competition fantasy, Consort of Fire hits hard; and if you want a shorter, funnier spicy read, The Girl Who Bit Me is a chaotic joy.
The Bottom Line
In Love and War is a small book that punches well above its weight — sharp, tense, and genuinely spicy, with a grumpy/sunshine pairing you’ll root for from the first clash of blades. It’s a must for Fae Isles fans and a great quick fix for anyone who wants their sapphic fantasy hot and fast. A solid 4 stars. Check the latest price on Amazon →