Welcome to another edition of #BooktokMadeMeDoIt…. Sort of.

I got an ARC of Silver Elite by Dani Francis at New York Comic Con 2024 and was interested in reading it, but got a wee bit distracted and didn’t get to it early. When it released in spring 2025, it kinda popped off and now I’m playing catch up. Funny how things work out sometimes…

Silver Elite [Buy Bookshop Amazon LibroFM] is about a girl named Wren and all the secrets she’s keeping. We meet her when she’s trying to sneak out after a night of spicy fun with a soldier, only to run into another one… who is gorgeous. Before she can get away, she saves a child in dramatic fashion and knows she messed up. Not so long after, while she’s out tending to the cattle on the ranch, her Uncle Jim uses their telepathic connection to warn her against coming home, revealing the silver glow in his arms, highlighting him as a mod. Soldiers are looking for her to see her shoot, but one recognized him for who he really is and takes her away.

In more dramatic events, Wren ends up being forced into military school, and that hot soldier from early happens to be in charge. She’s trying to get kicked out, but learns there’s a lot more going on behind the scenes with the rebellion than she knew. Also, she can’t get Cross out of her head, even though he’s her capitan and his father is in charge of everything, so maybe one hook up is enough to fix it….

Overall, this is a fun read full of drama and dumb decisions. My biggest issues are that I called the big twist from the very first few chapters, which is always a major bummer to me. It’s billed as a dystopian romance, but the dystopian vibes aren’t there. The magic is about the only thing different in their lives from ours. A few pieces of technology have different names, but sound like devices we already know and use daily. I wanted more dystopian vibes and world building. Make me believe this world is real.

The romance was entertaining. I’d give it two chili peppers in general, as some scenes are more descriptive than others, but didn’t feel too over the top to me. I just wanted a bit more tension from them.

My husband listened to most of the audiobook with me, which made for a fun road trip together. His rating was pretty similar to my 3.75 stars. He said, “Would I read it again? No. Would I watch a TV show or movie of it? Heck yeah! Would I read the second book? Sure!” So, take that review from a non-reader as you will.

I’m looking forward to book two. I just hope we know who Dani Francis really is by then.