Grace

Just... wow!

This books clears a lot of things about Mische that were big question marks for me in the past books, that were just crumbs leading to to this amazing book, I just can't have enough!

My biggest ccomplaints in the books 1 and 1.5 were towards world-building and this book just delivered it perfectly! I could feel like I was there, and picture all the scenes thanks to the great description so thanks Carissa!

Also this book is more in the traditional quest style, in contrast with the past 3 books were there was a goal that branched out into others. Not saying one is better than the other but I get why some people got bored with this one, I personally enjoyed it way more because of it. The quest was clear, the journey was full of obstacles that mixed both the MCs fears and regrets, and each stage closer to the goal became harder and deeper (in contrast with the past books that kept a steady pace throughout the story).

The character development is beautifully depicted, both the FMC and MMC learned and grew from their starting points, and Mische's trauma that didn't make much sense on how it was incorporated in book 2 was greatly explained that now it makes total sense if I were to re-read Ashes and the Star-Cursed King.

Some parts of the book were a bit slow, but you cannot have a continuous crescendo, you need nuances in the pacing and cadence. I just loved it!!!

It started out nice, sweet even, of course without the backstory one thinks they've known each other for so long and had mutual crushes but didn't want to admit it.... but then...

Who can even think a fling with the guy you saw as a newborn and have met your whole life, pretty much as your younger brother, would be right, or hot romance? Like BIG red flags everywhere in the book:

1. That is not hot at all
2. The guy doesn't take a NO for an answer
3. The guy acts like a patient, but he is definitely not
4. He is more on the creepy side of things
5. The FMC is a wreck, and I thought "well, at least she sees this is by no means hot", but then she admits she's got the hots for him too, so..... no thanks

Sorry but not Christmas-y at all

Very heartwarming, light read. Perfect to start your holiday reading 📚

This story follows Sadie, the new girl in a rather dull town that hasn't celebrated Christmas in 10 years. She feels off place by being new and having her parents busy and overwhelmed with the chores that need to happen with a recent change of residence.

After finding lost letters from 25 years ago under a floorboard with hopes and dreams of a little girl that used to live in the house Sadie is living now, she decides to remind everyone of the Christmas spirit and find the author of those letters.

This book is amazing!!! I deeply enjoyed it, the tension, the anger, the joy, the romance, even the nice family moments... ALL OF IT!

I have so many favorite moments of this book but I don't want to spoil anything. The story follows mainly Allie Rousseau, a world-class ballet dancer, and both sides of her: her past in Cape Cod and her present as part of the Royal family of dancers (her mother and her 3 sisters are well known in the ballet industry).

Yes, her mother is shitty, and the dynamics in her family are messy, but I think it is pretty real (families can be that dramatic i real life, too).

There's also the POV of her love interest / childhood best friend Hudson, who is a sea rescuer and THE book boyfriend we all want: he is hot, dreamy eyes, tall, very understanding, caring, great uncle, he puts Allie's needs over his every time, not pushy even when he clearly wants Allie with him (he even mentions standing purposely next to a wall where she wouldn't feel trapped and have access to the exit shall she wanted to leave), and apparently he also f*cks like a Greek god.

The whole cast around them is very enjoyable too, each with their own personalities that make the story so relatable (we all know someone as straightforward as Kenna, or as protective and anxious as Caroline, as motherly as Mrs. Ellis or as silly as Gavin).

My only two notes to say, but this is just my own opinion about the story itself, no critique in any way to the perfect writing Yarros delivered:

1. I think the whole side of finding Juniper's dad is hard to follow, like everyone was so stressed about the effects and it shows when Allie is explaining what happened, but it adds to the feeling of overwhelm as a reader, I just wanted to get it clear bc it was so confusing.
2. I didn't like Allie, to me she was very over the place, she wanted something then she changed her mind, and then she didn't know what else... she was too much and then too little. I understand the trauma she went through and the uncertainty of the events around the accident, the way her mother treated them and the pressure she was under... but she WAS very entitled, she felt with the right to judge everyone and to know everything, and if she didn't know the moment she wanted then that person was shut down of her life just like that... she took way too long to get to a conclusion she told Hudson at the end of the book that everyone was screaming at her (metaphorically) from the very beginning and that she even mentioned a few times throughout the book as well... I loved when Kenna told her to cut the BS and stay out of her own way (like fr, she was her own demise in her misery)

I know people that do that and it is very frustrating, but Hudson's love is real if he stayed notwithstanding.

So this is my review, it is a romance so there's no spoiler in saying it does have a happy ending, and also it doesn't need a complex plot nor a huge backstory, but it is still very emotional and connects with the reader in any level they are, so I loved it.

This book is a classic. Having said that, it is important to keep in mind the following:

-Ideas put in the book are hardly compatible with today's views (religiously, familiar, even in gender matters)

-Pacing and events considered important back then may be boring or irrelevant today

-Writing style is different from modern writing

All of the above may be obvious to some but I wanted to put them as a reminder for all who read this review.

Now, even considering the points above, and having read Jules Verne, who is contemporary of Bram (yeah, different genres but still gives an idea of what was considered interesting back in late 1800s), to me this book was ok, boring at times and very entertaining at others.

I wish it wasn't as repetitive, and the foreshadowing was quite obvious (like I was screaming "Lucy is turned!", "Mina is targeted!", "He hypnotized them!") By the time the characters deducted what was happening my reaction was like "you don't saaaaay! What gave it away, like the last 50 pages or so?" Especially since they were supposed to be documenting and sharing everything around half the book forward, so they were supposed to be on the same page at all times...

I think the scene that just kept my eyes rolling was when Jonathan saw Mina paler by the day, weaker... and his deduction was that her state was due to her affliction for not being included in the men's conversation instead of what was obvious -she was attacked by Dracula... like come on... really dude?

The pacing was very slow as well, and not to mention the dialogues with some locals or seamen with weird accents that just made the whole thing completely hard to understand, let alone to follow.

So overall I rate it with 🌟🌟🌟 because it is not as bad, I still wanted to know what was going to happen and how they were going to end it all, even if at times I lost interest and will to go on. I'm glad I got through it, though, I think it was worth it, just maybe not a re-read for me.

I loved the story, the characters, the setting... Lilith is such a badass even if she doesn't know it.

Points I LOVED:

1. This is the first FMC I've read that is not in her late teens (she's 30) making it very relatable.
2. She struggles to connect with people, which is something very real and common
3. Although she cares a lot, she just cannot express in a warm way that... her love language is caring and finding the cure for both her sister and Adcova
4. She is a woman of science, which is something not commonly represented so I appreciated that so much
5. And as a woman of science she doesn't rely on magic, nor is waiting for a knight in shining armor to come and solve her problems, she takes action even if it endangers her because she knows no one is coming to save the day
6. She represents very well how moms behave: taking great care of others before taking care of herself. I'm not saying that's OK, just that it is well-depicted
7. She saves the MMC
8. She saves the day

Points that kept ot from being 5 stars:

1. Same as with Serpent & the Wings of Night, the world-building falls a bit short, maybe a map and an introduction to the mythology, some context on what is going on so we can place it on the timeline within the series before getting too ahead in the story, this would help a lot

If you enjoy a strong, "common" and in her thirties FMC this is the book for you.

I wanted to enjoy this one, especially because the first book was really good. Unfortunately it was lacking so much that was already built or set up in TSATWON:

1. First of all: I understand Oraya was in a difficult situation emotionally, like she saved her lover and lost her father, became an heir and a prisoner all the same day... so yes, it was too much to process (both father and lover lied to her...), but for how she was raised and how she'd fight against vampires to save humans I expected her to give a fight nonetheless... and instead she chose to play the prisoner role.
2. I agree Raihn also had a performance to maintain to keep Oraya alive, and I appreciated how he gave some tells so we can know it was part of the performance... but it really bothered me how easy he trusted everyone having lived with other vampires for 200 years... what was that experience worth for if he was being that naive? "Alliance" as an excuse is BS, so no plot there. And the worst: How many times did he need to say or think "There she is"?
3. Mische... I LOVED her in the first book, her bright personality is everything, but here she is completely off. I can't imagine facing your abuser. That must be traumatic. But there is something that just doesn't make sense to me in how she was written, I don't know if that's just me...
4. Lilith and Vale, I was eager to read more of them after Six Scorched Roses, but Lilith was just the excuse for setting the "big plot" (the wedding), and Vale was.... I couldn't even picture him as the "third best general, now turned the first best", it wasn't enough of him to see that...
5. Simon and Septimus weren't as challenging as we were led to believe, I was a bit disappointed, there was a really good idea but the execution was a bit lazy 😞

Overall I felt the book was way too long for the story, it had too many dialogues and they weren't even adding to anything... also I saw too much repetition, like "The she is", "Fear is a recollection of physical whatevers " and describing over and over the details of the Wings or the Heir marks.... also apparently Oraya's cheeks were the first thing the enemies were thinking on slashing because she got them every time she battled with someone... it was a bit discouraging for me to keep reading because it was tiring.

The part I enjoyed though is Vincent's past,trying to have is POV and understanding why he didn't kill Oraya when he found her... I swore he had made Oraya the god blood item evwryone was looking for, so it would have been SO meaningful and THAT would have been a very interesting plot to follow.

So yes, I liked the first book, LOVED the Six Scorched Roses (definitely getting that one in paperback) but this one felt lazy, unedited in many ways and too long.

🌟🌟🌟🌟.5

I loved the story, the characters, the plot, the romance... pff I couldn't put it down!

I enjoyed this book way more than I expected, especially having a strong FMC. I loved the romance, not cheesy, it also had its evolution. And Oraya's development in terms of becoming as powerful was very inspiring, to not give up even when odds are against you or that the world taught you it is impossible.

I took half star out just because I needed more world-building, a map to understand where every kingdom was, the places, distances, politics, the reason the trial took place (it is stated as something that happens every century to honor Nyaxia, as a ritual, and you learn some of Nyaxia's trial-from which the Kejari is based on- along the way but there's just something vague about it).

I would only advice to beware of some trigger points:

• Blood (like a lot of it)
• Forced s*x
• M*rder
• Enslavement

Other than that to me it is an amazing read and totally recommend 👌🏻

I am a hopeless romantic so naturally I loved the fated theme in this book, yes as unrealistic, kinda forced and even over the top as it is, that's why I read romance books in the first place.

Now, this was not necessarily my favorite, like then again, why does anyone keep waiting on someone for so long, despite your dreams and they making it clear that they are not changing their ways for you?

Also (and this is more personal) I don't read military stories bc 1: I don't live in US so in my country US military interventions mean totally other things than what US feels so honored by, and that's OK... and 2: due to that we do have different views of the war and who is the hero in the story... but I gave this book a chance to see where it went and to me it was an unnecessary setting, especially since it is too close to reality, or even it IS someone's reality and not a nice setting for a romance.

Now, my opinion of it AS A ROMANCE STORY: I think it evolved into something beautiful like admitting they didn't have any right to make that choice for the other, but man it was so hard to live the non-relationship through both lenses. That is, I think, beautifully written and achieved that dual POV, still I kept screaming at both like "get your shit together, you love each other!"

As much as I enjoyed this book there were a lot of annoying things that were too over the top, and what outstands the most is the fact that all these 3 years Izzy was mad at Nate, like really pissed off because of an abandonment and that's what you are led to believe happened as their last interaction for most part of the book...... until they get to childishly discuss (for the eleventh time) and you get Nate's POV conveniently about 80% in, totally opposite to the whole story... so it was either planned that way or something in the story telling broke but to me it just didn't work, that and Izzys constant stubborness to stay, like of course she wouldn't be allowed to do as she pleases in a war zone, she would have been dispatched back notwithstanding who she was....

Overall I think it is enjoyable and I stand by Yarros in her romantic writing... if an author doesn't make your feelings arise and get mad at these characters then they are not doing it right and she definitely is doing it great!

I loved this beautiful book! I also needed something cozy, and that didn't require a lot of thought on my part, and this was perfect! I finished it basically the same day I started.

Now I hear some people didn't get the chemistry between Ollie and Ethan and guys, let me explain the process: she spends 24/7 with the person she thought as Satan's child (because of a misunderstanding that I get through later on), but then she even states how she realizes he is not the daredevil she thought he was, and starts to find he's actually a nice dude playing tough after he was told to not try any moves on her (shitty but how many times have we ourselves listened to the wrong voice?) And I think his vulnerability the night of the mai tais was it for her, to see him under a different light altogether.

Also, the book is hilarious, I had so much fun reading it. I agree it may not be everybody's cup of tea, but to me it was just right. It reflects Latin families correctly (metiches, we love chisme, and also oversharing, comforting, and proud) and the dynamic between Ami and Ollie after the news is great, Ami got into a denial phase bc her life was falling apart and chose not to believe it at first. It is real!

The firing may or may not be as accurate, I worked at a beer company and if you were involved in any kind of incident/or car crash due to inebriation you were fired because you were not practicing responsible drinking... so a choice you made in your personal life does affect your professional life as well, it reflects your work ethic for sure so I can understand the situation with Mr. Hamilton, I would have liked a stronger argument, though.

Only thing I would say that didn't make sense to me was why Ollie took so personally and so deep how Ethan supposedly saw her with disgust that first day they met and then she decided to make him an enemy.... I get she tends to see everything pessimisticly, but that detail for me was over the top, like we don't know each other, I don't care tf you think of me... especially if I love my body as Ollie states a number of times. The rest I think, is cute and something I would watch in a romcom movie.

So try and don't take a romcom that seriously peeps, it is not meant for that, it is entertainment and this book was very entertaining to me, at least.

Amazing story! This is about Aisling Everheart, daughter of the Ambersea emperor and enemy if the now submitted Imbrian ex prince Kohen Badshah. Yes, there are lots of tropes like “he cheated on her because he was having a difficult time”, “my father killed his father”, “virgin until marriage but desires him”, “we don't know the whole story”, “supposed enemies to lovers”, “forced proximity”, “the chosen one”, “found family”, “My bonded creature has a special relationship with his bonded creature”

She sees Kohen as her enemy all the time, he's nothing but nice to her. She feels he's going to turn his back on her at any time out of revenge for his father's death so she doesn't trust him and questions that attitude of protectiveness towards her through the book.

As the story moves forward Aisling has to overcome many challenges, first Tetra (her best friend who happens to have a condition in one of her legs that disables her to walk without a cane and meds) is chosen to go to The Wilds and bond with a creature (Hunger Games style), then the proximity with Kohen that makes her question the stories her father has told her about Imbria, the trials they are put through during camp and trying to survive for real after someone actually wants to unalive her.

Of course she bonds with the coolest creature available and gets powers that has to keep secret for her own safety and shares that with her MMC who also gets the coolest creature and gets forbidden powers too.

It is light reading, but still exciting and I can't wait for part 2 in December!!!

This was the best book of the trilogy! In my opinion Vow of the Shadow King was extra, the story would have worked better as a duology. Yes, some happenings in the second book lead to this one but with a good editing between first and second books (let's be honest, not everything in the first book was necessary as well) a duology would have been just fine.

I wasn't sure I wanted to read this book after VOTSK but I am so glad I did, it made so much sense and it moved me so much.

Favorite scenes (NO SPOILERS):
-Cheep, I love it!
-The Vulug Ugdth ceremony
-The war with the Licornyn riders
-Maylin's backstory is beautiful
-All the scenes with Arraog, specially her backstory

Some points I didn't love, but aren't deal breakers for me:
-As some reviews also pointed out, the repeated scenes but from the other's POV was too much, although the last scene made sense, but most really didn't
-Faraine's silence when she actually could and should have said something... it's like “girl, speak your mind, say what happened...” but she chose not to and I thought it would be an interesting plot later on, but it wasn't

SPOILER POINT





- To me, the magic compelling Vor to go through with the alliance made with Larongar didn't make sense... he may not have known about Ilsevel BUT the higher forces compelling him to fulfill his side of the bargain must have... therefore they should not have forced him at all knowing he didn't marry Ilsevel... there couldn't be two Ilsevels at the same time right?





End of SPOILER POINT

So all in all I loved it, even more than Moonfire Bride and Sunfire King together (and that is a lot to say), to me it had more depth and purpose, the turning points, revelations, the retcon that will be continued in War Bride... puff I am invested

What do you think? Do you agree? Did I miss something?

I loved the story... I just finished it and am in tears. There's so much to say about the story:

First, I must say it starts somehow slow, like I didn't understand why so much backstory for both Rory and Soline... but then halfway I realized Davis builds a backstory that actually adds to the present of the characters, and it unravels in the last quarter of the book, like every single detail of those backstories come to importance when Anson is found alive and then when Rory discovers that Hux is alive too. I really enjoyed that, even the glass of wine Soline and Anson had on their first date is brought as a detail when Anson tells Soline he doesn't drink anymore and she answers that he wasn't much of a drinker back then either.

The build up for the story is very well written, I felt every single flinch, rage, fear, joy, heartache, accomplishment and pride... I grew to dislike Owen with all my heart and still cannot forgive him even if what he did was because he wanted what he thought was best for Anson.

And Camilla wasn't my favorite either, but then I got to understand why Camilla is the way she is and saw how she redeemed herself to Rory once she filled that emptiness she had by finding out Soline was her biological mother... such a masterpiece...

Character development felt so natural, realistic and also relatable, how Rory starts to feel confident of her work and standing for what she wants in life even if she's broken, how Soline overcomes her wish for solitude by opening to Rory and ending up attending her gallery's opening night, Camilla's joy to have a loving mother and therefore becoming one herself, Anson's brokenness after the war plus being deceived into an unhappy life by his father...

I also must be honest, I saw the grand revelation of Camilla being Soline's daughter coming from a mile away, but for the first time in having that not-surprised-for-this-revelation thing and the “late period” trope I actually wasn't disappointed nor did it ruin the book for me, on the contrary: I was expectant to see how it would be revealed and the waiting was very enjoyable.

The only thing I would say felt incomplete and maybe rushed was the ending, like, Hux is alive and what happens next...? You move forward some months and the wedding is happening? How did they find him? Why was he kidnapped (or no reason at all? That is also valid)? At least what was his reaction when he saw a new Rory fulfilling her dreams? There were obvious struggles when he got back home whichprobablyy would have made the ending more complex and also losing focus of what the author wanted to say, it was not his story the central point... although one of the main conflicts (the gallery) was influenced by him... I think it is a story for another time, yet a story worth telling.

Sorry for the long review, it is so much but at the same time it is so good I want to thank the author for this story, it has become one of my favorite books and reminds me so much of “The Things We Leave Unfinished” by Rebecca Yarros.

I needed something light to read, that didn't require too much thought and that would be entertaining... to me this book accomplished that. I have to say I don't think it to be a very complicated story but I still really enjoyed this book very much.

It is light, not that short, and depicts the kind of romance that is built overtime... not a romance that happens just because, nor it is forced upon, although it does start with the MCs kidnap after tricking her into stepping out of her house's threshold, but it is developed in a way that it doesn't fall as a Stockholm syndrome trope, she genuinely keeps her trust limited and questions everything even when he is kind to her and doesn't give her any reason beyond her kidnapping to distrust him, which makes it -to me- more realistic.

I didn't expect it to be as enjoyable, so I am reading The Sunfire King, I need to know why everything happened in the first place and if Valera can make amends of her choices.

I loved the book, mostly, I enjoyed the story, the banter, the illusion of a happy ending and the conflict January has with her father's choices in life... to me it was pretty relatable, and it had a lot of funny times too, so I had a great time.

I enjoyed the writing behind January's personality, to make me understand it's not like she sees life under rose-colored lenses because she has a perfect life, she just chooses to see it that way regardless of the bad going on around her and look for her happy ending. And that is a nice way of viewing life, actually. Gus even points that out as kudos to her ability to be the bright light in a dark room.

Also... how she starts feeling comfortable in a town she thought she would feel the opposite due to its history, and later understanding why she's there is so beautiful and emotional... this actually brought me to tears.

My favorite chapter is 25

I was postponing this book for far too long, that I regret it. It was so good, much better than I thought it would be.

Maybe I would have liked more world-building, to me it was lacking, but the story was so good and the writing... chef's kiss, that it didn't matter that much to me.

Yes it felt like Beauty and the Beast was a major inspiration for this book, at times there were parallelisms, but I think SJM explored the curse with a very interesting twist to it, and how it all unraveled was beautifully executed.

Like many, I too had my doubts in the beginning, like it didn't make much sense, but I knew there had to be more to it and when it happened I really enjoyed it.

Now I'm off to the second book because I need a follow-up!

I liked this book the most, it has everything: romance, strategy, action, spice, humor... it is long but not unnecessarily (contrary to ACOMAF). It is very dynamic and something is actually happening at all times, it kept me on edge and wanting to know how it ended all the time!

I enjoyed this one a lot but there are some things that kept me from giving it 5 stars:

- “Gave a vulgar gesture”, “My mate” and “said to no one in particular” are way overused, so much so that it became annoying to read and completely dulled my reading experience

-There's so much info dump, like for example in the middle of the war with Hybern certain characters appear and explain their whole backstory and how they came to support Prythian... like dudes, seriously? You are in battle and you have time to chit chat?

-Also there was a lot of info dump between dialogues that broke the fluidity of the conversation, I got lost and had to go a little back and read it again skipping the info dump part to make it make sense

-Some things weren't clear, like again, during the battle with Hybern, was Rhys with Feyre or not? He was supposed to be fighting but suddenly he's got part in the decision when Feyre and Amren are about to go to the Cauldron on their own... to me it was confusing

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
It was a bit slow the first half but then the story unraveled in a marvelous, mind-blowing way. I just have to start ACOWAR right away!

It is more of the cotidianity after Under the Mountain, yes there are some secrets revealed and I love the banter between Feyre and Rhys, and the last half was stunning, brilliant, and sets everything in motion for ACOWAR (I just read a few chapters)... but I find the first half way too long to get to that point. Some bits are moved fast-forwardly but others are -to me at least- unnecessarily very detailed or repetitive.

It would have been a 5 star if not for this, it took me way too long to want to put the book up again and continue my reading, couldn't get past 10 pages at once for the first half. I even started and finished another one in parallel to keep me motivated, ended up choosing to finish that other book instead lol...

Maybe once I get to ACOWAR I will find those bits necessary or, at least, making sense. I have learned after the end of this book that SJM doesn't leave crumbs without a purpose, so... I am open to be amazed and change my mind ✨️

I think is a classic, it is beautifully written and the story, as simple as it is, is moving. The detail I liked the most is the reference of the green light, it is effortless ICONIC.

I think I am in the age of truly understanding and valuing the message told in this book, it talks about making your dreams come true, Gatsby worked hard to get there, only his means weren't honest and that's when he lost everything he truly cared for... the shallow things won't follow us to the grave, only the most important ones: love, friendship, people we left a positive mark on.

You see, Gatsby had his house filled with people every night attending his parties, but Nick struggled to find people willing to attend Jay's funeral in the end, and that tells us that you can be surrounded by people but that doesn't make you less lonely.

I watched the movie a long time ago and don't remember much of it except for the green light and the final scene. I will have to re-watch it and have a more solid opinion on whether the movie did justice to the book or not, as well as if they kept some details in the book that are more of a performance and less of quotes.

I enjoyed the book, it is fast-paced, nostalgic at times and I think it is the first book I've read that is written by a man that has romance in it, of course the genre is tragedy but still... it brings a nice POV.

I think this book is perfection! I had read some reviews that said Rule of Wolves title wasn't accurate... I can see that but I also stand by the title given by Bardugo. It is because AND later thanks to Fjerda that we have a great story happening at all in this book.

Without spoiling anything my thoughts with spoilers are marked below I enjoyed the book, at the end of King of Scars I wasn't sure I'd like Rule of Wolves, to be honest I felt tricked into the same story of the S&B trilogy and just wished Bardugo had more creativity than that.

I can't say I give it to her, that she came with a brilliant plot in RoW, because I still think it could have been something greater than that... I don't enjoy echoes throughout the whole series and Leigh has done it 4 times already so it gets old and some might even call it lazy.

What I can say is that the main plot and its different POVs alongside some interesting retcons and plot twists make this book perfection to my eyes. If you are someone that has already read the other books, I think you'll like this one better, even if you didn't like S&B trilogy, or LOVE too much SoC and CK... also fills in some gaps left in past books of the series.

Now here come some spoilers that you can skip if you don't want to miss out on the surprise





REVIEW WITH SPOILERS





I still can't get over the fact that the Darkling was brought back...again... the retcon wasn't enough to justify it.
The Darkling's fate at the end of the book was grounded in the fact that he was strong and eternal enough to keep the tear closed, but still in the last two pages a completely different solution was on the table, so... that is my only no no

I loved Nina and Hanne's story ever since they met in KoS, and how they developed in RoW had me hinged, I am fully invested in their relationship. I was so upset when they made us believe she was unalived by Prince Rasmus but when “he” spoke at the assembly in Os Kervo I started suspecting what eventually was revealed and I cried so hard over that scene when Nina and Hanne finally speak alone (Hanne as Prince Rasmus)

I also felt thrilled when Alina and Mal came back, and that brief scenes with the Crow Club. I expected Kaz to rely on Zoya when they ended up in the Suli camp, but I wanted more Jesper and Wylan, although this was not their story so I can understand the chapters in which the crows were involved.

Zoya's character development was amazing, she grew to be the Queen Ravka needed, the soldier she aspired to be, and the woman her aunt expected to become. Some readers didn't get why Zoya and Nikolai's romance, but if you have spent most of your time with one individual, it is natural you grow to care for each other. Now Zoya didn't care for him that way at the beginning, but keep in mind it's been 3 years of Zoya's care (day and night) and chase of the demon, so that is more than enough time for them to get very close. Nikolai really valued having Zoya keeping him (and others) safe that long, and Zoya felt seen for who she really is, so I can see their romance happening with no problem to the story.

Also Zoya is a badass of a queen, who humbled herself to the point of working with people she didn't want to and ending up feeling nothing less than respect for them (Alina, David, Genya, General Pensky, Adrik...)

Speaking of David, I didn't expect him to die, not on his wedding night, I was torn and my heart ached for Genya, I was grieving the whole time

I love Riley Thorn's series, but this last one... was a DNF for me, I couldn't manage to read past 55%. I didn't expect this book to be my first DNF ever, considering how much I enjoyed all the series, and here's why I just couldn't:

1. I don't remember Nick being so possessive of Riley, like honestly WTF with him being “My girl”, like all the time?

2. It bothered me so much having him stating over and over again how much he wanted to have sex with Riley, all so needy that to me felt very annoying and over the top. Even saying that in front of anyone to hear is so uncomfortable.

3. If they had that history with Griffin, why even bother to help him? To me the argument is off, because Nick is bothered by him all the time (Riley should be the one to have a banter with Griffin, but apparently she's over it and for some reason it is Nick who has a problem with him now... did I miss something? Maybe I read the last a while ago and I don't remember

I write this review as a D&D player and former theater actress I TOTALLY LOVED IT! I bought it just for the title, knowing what I was getting into, and it became better than expected! To me this brings romance in a different way, to me more relatable and includes groups of people that are often overlooked at high-school.

I read in other reviews that some people thought the story was flat, I agree that there wasn't too much of a backstory. This isn't fantasy YA writing, this is romance. In my opinion and coming from someone who mainly reads fantasy, you don't need 4 chapters for world building nor the characters need to be complex in a romance book... because this is totally relatable without any effort, especially because the target audience is well defined, so we can identify with one or more characters, and understand where their concerns and decisions come from.

Even if you don't relate directly, didn't we all, at some point, make reckless choices when we were in high school? At that age anything is a drama, the end of the world, so to Riley being kept away from theater activities and brought to work at a gamer store WAS indeed a punishment.

I like how the relationship between her parents after divorce is still amicable, and her mom even wishes for Riley to have a relationship with her father even though they both clearly think his priorities lie in his store and gaming sessions.

In this matter, I can relate with her mom because my hubby IS a DM and also enjoys painting his miniatures and terrains, so much that sometimes I myself feel he enjoys that even more than spending time with us as a family. Of course he doesn't, but I related to how Shannon must have felt having her then husband dedicate so much time and effort into his store and game-related activities.

And on the other hand, I enjoyed Riley's dad opening to her, and she finding out that he actually cares for what she does, he is a proud dad regardless of her interests being totally opposite to his. I cried myself out on their chat at the hospital, so sincere and tbh I felt the book was telling my own story. My dad had a heart attack 2 years ago and we hadn't seen each other for 4 years because we live in different countries and then COVID happened... but we took that time to realize how much we've lost over not-so-important matters.

Now, regarding the main topic, Riley and Nathan's relationship... I bought it, yes it is a trope and I could foresee everything that happened, the what was predictable but not always the how it was going to happen, so I liked that very much. Then again, this is a romance book of less than 300 pages, I was expecting actually something simpler. It was predictable, yet I enjoyed how Kristy wrote and developed their story... so yeah, I dig it