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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
fast-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“You’re the beat to my heart, Amara,” he whispered against her mouth, pressing his forehead to hers, and something that had been wilted inside Amara unfurled, opening, soaking, blooming in the emotion she could see in his eyes.
She was the beat to his heart and he was the beat to hers, both of them pulsing together.
Maybe they were both the same beats.
Maybe theirs was the same heart.
every time i read this paragraph i want to cry. the “whispered against her mouth, pressing his forehead to hers,” dante is peak romance. i honestly thought no couple could top ryan and indy from the right move but dante and amara came in and proved me wrong. they’re officially the second couple i love this much which basically makes them top tier because it’s literally just them and ryanindy holding the crown. two best couples of my year and two of the best books i’ve read in my entire life. NO ONE DOES IT LIKE THEM.
i actually started the dark verse series because of dante and amara. i kept seeing edits and quotes about them on twitter, and it got me curious since the excerpts sounded so promising (especially the one about dante giving amara a cat as a companion). i just knew i’d love her the same way i knew i’d love indy ivers.
dante maroni and amara rossi. the names? gorgeous. the story? even better. childhood love, a small age gap and the kind of devotion that just ruins you for all other couples. and my heart? shattered. especially when they had to keep their relationship a secret. the pain, the longing, the yearning… I FELT IT ALL IN MY BONES.
“Days became weeks. Weeks became months. He left every time. Months became years. Years became six. He hated leaving her, pressing his forehead to hers as her eyes burned. Six years became seven. Her exile never ended. They never truly began.”
LIKE HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE OKAY AFTER READING THIS!!!?
“He kissed her hand, the man who had slain demons and men alike to bring her back.”
dante maroni. he’s THE ideal man. what do you mean he carried amara every day to go outside because she couldn’t walk and he knew she liked getting out of the house? what do you mean he read to her because she loved books, sat in silence when she couldn’t speak and read books about trauma and torture survivors just to help him understand her psyche and support her healing? he always, always cares about her health, both physically and mentally. and then he even gave her a cat so she wouldn’t feel alone? please, i’m still crying.
“While Dante was old enough to take care of his brother as he had been for a long time, he wanted Damien to get the help he needed and deserved.”
and it’s not just amara. i also love how he handled damien’s condition too. he knew his brother needed more than him, needed professional help and he made sure damien got it. that’s love in its own form.
“Dante had become something like the sun. She waited every day to feel his warmth, if only just for a few minutes before the clouds returned. But as long as she had the sun, the clouds were bearable.”
i full-on sobbed. because if you know their story, you know what those clouds meant. he’s dark, yes but to her? he’s the sun.
these are just some of the reasons i love him but truth is i love everything about dante maroni. the man is a goner for amara and i’m a goner for them. quote a single word out of his mouth and you’ll find me on my knees.
“Dante had never known softness and strength could coexist together in such balance before her. Despite being through everything she’d been through, walking through hell and fighting the demons in her mind, she still had a love for life that unmanned him. The most generous of hearts, the most steely of spines, Amara was a woman of beauty, a warrior of blood, a queen of scars.”
amara rossi. my baby, my love, my queen. i love her so much (plus points because she has lulu too and they love each other!). she’s a pure soul since the start. like imagine a 10-year-old saying every kid should have a mom like hers and she didn’t even mind sharing her mom with kids who didn’t have one. THAT’S OUR AMARA. even after everything she went through, her heart stayed soft and she didn’t let her soul got tarnished.
“Some days, he’d give her a little nod and her heart would flutter like an overexcited hummingbird. Some days, he’d look at her and grin and her stomach would roll with butterflies. And some days, rare days, when he said a cordial ‘hey’, Amara would save his voice in her memory and squeal on the inside while planning their babies’ name.”
this paragraph literally had me laughing because i think at some point in our lives we’ve all been her.
“I’m in love with you, Dante, but I won’t let you waltz in and out of my life as you please. You say you’re fighting for me and you might even win the battle but you will lose me.”
YES. clap for her. she waited and endured but she also demanded respect.
“She fought it, wherever her head was.”
“She didn’t break.” No, she didn’t break. Not his fierce warrior queen.
she’s literally strength wrapped in softness. what do you mean she endured days of torture despite having a low pain threshold? what do you mean she was dragged back into the same place of torture and still found a way to ground herself, regulate, survive and fight literally to save dante?! she’s the kind of woman who looks delicate but is forged of fire.
beyond the characters, one thing that really stood out for me was the way the emperor was written. i couldn’t help but compare the writing style between the previous two books and this one because it was just so good especially compared to the predator. i mean there’s no need for comparison but runyx’s writing style definitely improved here. it wasn’t tiring to read at all unlike the predator which made me feel like i was running in circles.
i also loved how the backstories of other characters were inserted here. for instance, how young tristan kept an eye on morana and dealt with any creep who dared to look at her. through their story pov, we also get to see how tristanmorana’s relationship developed over time.
Sentí que a veces no avanzaba mucho y estaba medio lento, pero me encanta Dante ❤️
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Amara is such a strong fighter, and Dante is *checks notes* very dark, loyal and hot af.
I truly loved this book, the characters, and the way the series keeps a consistent thread that lets us readers piece things together along the way. That said, it just doesn’t compare to the first book - Tristan and Morana will always be my favorite.
After all the tension between Dante and Amara in the first two books, I expected a bit more of that in their own story. Still, I really enjoyed it.
I truly loved this book, the characters, and the way the series keeps a consistent thread that lets us readers piece things together along the way. That said, it just doesn’t compare to the first book - Tristan and Morana will always be my favorite.
After all the tension between Dante and Amara in the first two books, I expected a bit more of that in their own story. Still, I really enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Torture, Pregnancy
Moderate: Rape, Trafficking
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Runyx has officially become one of my top favorite authors!
I discovered her writing through her debut novel the Predator and I was very surprised!
She has this talent of writing intriguing characters in a complex world then weave them into a twisted story ...like an intricate web that captures the reader without letting go!
It’s her storytelling that is unique: fast paced, emotional, dark and hopeful, with mystery and suspense all along.
The ride just gets better and more intense from books 1 to 3: many secrets being unfolded only for new ones to come our way!
In the Emperor, we get to the point where we doubt everyone and we don’t know who is manipulating the others ... so our mind keeps working!
And I have been waiting for Dante and Amara’s story from the start ... I fell in love with these broken but strong characters.
Their story melted my heart!
Amara trying to be brave and overcome her trauma, Dante being the major player with a challenging responsibility on his shoulders. Their psychology was so well written and their connection gave me all the feels!
I’m in the happiest book slump
“
I discovered her writing through her debut novel the Predator and I was very surprised!
She has this talent of writing intriguing characters in a complex world then weave them into a twisted story ...like an intricate web that captures the reader without letting go!
It’s her storytelling that is unique: fast paced, emotional, dark and hopeful, with mystery and suspense all along.
The ride just gets better and more intense from books 1 to 3: many secrets being unfolded only for new ones to come our way!
In the Emperor, we get to the point where we doubt everyone and we don’t know who is manipulating the others ... so our mind keeps working!
And I have been waiting for Dante and Amara’s story from the start ... I fell in love with these broken but strong characters.
Their story melted my heart!
Amara trying to be brave and overcome her trauma, Dante being the major player with a challenging responsibility on his shoulders. Their psychology was so well written and their connection gave me all the feels!
I’m in the happiest book slump
“