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Title: Below the Lilies
Genre: Dark Romantasy
Word Count: 75k | 21k for Act 1
POV: Dual - Third Person Limited
Subgenres:
Gothic Romance
Courtly Intrigue
Supernatural horror (eldritch)
Slow-burn Sapphic
Premise: When frail noblewoman Maeve Ebenhurst reunites with her childhood friend Lorelai, admiration quickly spirals into an obsessive yearning. But Maeve harbours her own demons, and as war looms closer and court intrigues threaten to expose her volatile powers, her desire to protect her may awaken the very darkness she fears most.
Series: Duology (Below the Lilies, Above the Mountains)
Comps:
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson

Looking for: 2 Beta Readers who have a genuine interest and knowledge of dark romantasy specifically. Please do not apply with your services if you do not know and enjoy the genre. It also contains explicit scenes (tasteful) alongside thematic overlap with Wuthering Heights and to a lesser extent Jane Eyre. Expected turn around time is 2 weeks per act with act 1 being approximately 21,000 words. Communication is via email with documents provided in word format unless otherwise requested. Please no Fiverr.

Beta readers will be reading for enjoyment. I will have a basic list of questions to go along with the manuscript and the manuscript will be released to you in acts. This is to ensure that if there are any consistent themes in the responses I can action them before moving onto providing the second act and so on. I am not looking for editor or developmental style feedback or suggestions as I will engage an editor prior to querying.

Please reply with your rates and why you are interested. It should be clear either from your ŷ������ profile or your personal website that you know the genre. If it is unclear, you should be able to tell me what books you've read from the genre that resonate with you. This is to ensure that I am reaching my target audience.

Writing Sample
There was catharsis in watching the pages burn. As the ink bled into ash, Maeve felt the tension in her bones ease. For years, those brushstrokes tormented her, the words penned with graceful loops and sweeping lines. They whispered of a friendship long buried beneath the weight of expectations. Though she hadn’t seen Lorelai for an age, the memory of her was a haunting reminder of better days.

Notes & Triggers: This book is for the adult audience with an emphasis on dark. It deals with significant psychological themes that some readers might find challenging. I would not consider it tropey, but rather literary leaning into classic gothic traditions including, but not limited to, obsession, yearning, desire and unreliable narration.

Hi Evelyn!!

This looks and sounds amazing!! I loved Gothikana and Wuthering Heights 😍. This is right up my alley!! I would love to be considered to be your beta reader.

Here's my website:
Email: [email protected]

Thank you and good luck💓

Hi Evelyn. I own Beta Reader Bookings LLC. I personally vet my readers. (I'm an editor, so I know what qualities to look for.) While my readers are not editors, they are true lovers of the genres they read. They have passed assessments and have signed confidentiality agreements. I have some fantastic Dark Romantasty Readers on the team.

My company is registered in New York, and all of my beta readers are based in the US. Authors can order online or via email. For email orders, I invoice via the company's PayPal account. The price for a beta reading service depends on the turnaround time you'd like and how many questions you have. All services include in-depth answers to up to five questions and a detailed feedback report. You can view pricing online. If you have any questions, feel free to send an email to [email protected].

Beta Reading Service for Dark Fantasy:

Beta Reader Bookings LLC Homepage:

Client Testimonials:

FAQs:

Submitting each act separately would be more expensive. This is the service you'd use if you'd like to submit only the first act:

Hi Evelyn,

I have four years of verifiable experience as a beta reader, and the most recent project I worked on was a Dark Romance novel. My rate is $1 per 1000 words, and I can provide feedback in March (within the 2 week deadline you've mentioned).

I can adapt to your requested style of feedback and answer any questions you may have, which you can submit before and/or after receiving my report.

Here is my page in which you can check my full info + a list of testimonials:

You can contact me via email at: [email protected]

Thank you! I look forward to working with you.

Kind regards,
Cielo.

Hi Evelyn

I love the premise of the book! Romantasy is my go-to genre, and I find it intriguing that, despite being dark romantasy, the title Below the Lilies has a gentle feel to it. I'd love to beta read your manuscript. To give you an idea of my work, here’s my Fiverr page, where you can see the reviews I’ve received from authors I’ve worked with: Fiverr Link:

If you choose to work with me, I’ll provide detailed feedback and suggestions, along with in-line commentary to help refine your book. Reach me @ [email protected]. I’m excited to collaborate and look forward to hearing from you!

Best
Swati

Hey everyone,

Are you an author? Looking for a Beta? Well, we have a few crazy gremlins on our team that are hungry to devour your stories.

We are a team comprised of avid readers and writers committed to helping you turn your work into the best that it can be.

So feel free to check out our website on to learn more on what we have to offer on a complete beta read of your story.

To contact us, you can respond to this post, send us a PM (private message) or use our contact page on our site.

We look forward to working with you and may the gremlin force be with you!

Cheers and happy writing,
#TBG
"Where every story comes to Life"

Heck yeah, this sounds awesome. Romantasy, AND sapphic? As a queer and speculative author myself, I'm interested.

You can find all my information, including rates and experience, over on my site: .

Hi Evelyn,

I would like to read your manuscript as this is a genre I really enjoy. A blend of gothic with the supernatural? Count me in!
For pricing and reviews, please check my website:
You can reach me at: [email protected]

Thank you for the replies so far. I will be following up with suitable betas. I just wanted to draw attention to the fact that I've updated the original post with triggers/emphasis on target audience. If that additional information changes anything for you please edit your post so I know. :) Thanks!

Hi Evelyn
Good morning/evening
How are you?
I would like to read your story. At the moment, I am reading The Fourth Wing and loving it. And I have read the first few chapters of the Serpent and the Night...
Kindly go through the terms and testimonials on my website

If you feel we would be a good fit and I can help you make your book stronger, the contact form is right there on the page.
Hoping to hear from you
Have a great day
Cheers
Nila
Digital Creative Pages

Hi Evelyn,
I love the depth with which you have described this. I am particularly interested in the eldritch supernatural horror and gothic element. With ten years experience in beta reading I have read many books in a similar genre. I also loved House of Hunger. I am interested in beta reading for you.
My website, has more information about my services, examples of my commenting style, and testimonials. There are also more testimonials on my ŷ������ thread:
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Hi,

I’d love to work with you. My email id is [email protected]


Here is my link with testimonials:


/topic/show/...


Looking forward to hearing from you.

Regards,
Mamta

Hello Evelyn, How Is your story going? Can we talk about some covers for your book? I can get you some cool ones at an affordable rate.

Hello,

I'm an affordable and experienced beta reader and I would love to take a look at your novel. I provide detailed feedback and will answer any questions you might have.

I can provide you with the following:
- Detailed in-line comments on your text
- A full document detailing feedback and thoughts about plot, characters, setting etc.
- I will give you a "review" and a "rating" after finishing the manuscript
- I will fix grammar and spelling mistakes
- I will answer any questions you have about my feedback or any questions you specifically have about your manuscript or writing
- I can promise a quick turnaround rate (depending on the length of your work)
- If there's anything additional you would like me to do/give feedback on, I'll be more than happy to do that as well

If you're interested please email me at [email protected]. I am more than happy to give the help needed!

Hi, Evelyn --

I'm actually a beta reader and developmental editor in the romance, fantasy, erotica, and magical realism spaces. I have a special place in my heart for the dark and spicy, particularly. Your book sounds like my cup of tea. I love a good slow burn.

I offer two styles of reads: casual and original. The casual read ($30 per 10k words) is solely comments in the document and answers to any questions you have prior to starting. The original ($40 per 10k words) is everything casual plus a mini letter of overall takeaways and feedback from a reader's perspective, but with the eye of an editor.

I can start as soon as next week, I'm comfortable with the split acts and the two week deadlines for each given they're all split in 20-30k word increments, and Word is perfect.

My website is whimsyreads.carrd.co -- if you're interested in working together, you can fill out the form on the site or email me at [email protected]. Good luck!

Hi,

I’d love to work with you. My email id is [email protected]


Here is my link with testimonials:


/topic/show/...


Looking forward to hearing from you.

Regards,
Mamta

Hi

I love beta reading and I would be glad if you can give me your work to beta read. kindly drop the manuscript in my mail [email protected]