Reviews with content warning for Gore - The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King

Oof, that was more emotional than I was expecting! Tense and angsty and full of bloodshed—so basically a fantastic vampire romance, lol! I am totally invested in this incredibly built world, so I can’t wait to see where the next duology takes us!

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stardust_heidi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad 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

5.0

God. Fucking. Damn. It. This book slayed me.

The first half of the book was quite agonizing, given the events of Serpent. Oraya's grief was truly something to behold. Grief and rage. Sometimes it almost felt like it dragged on a bit too long, but at the same time, especially by the end of the book, I appreciated it for what it was. Her feelings about Raihn were justifiably complicated, and I think Carissa Broadbent did an incredible job at portraying the grief and anger and the other, more difficult to navigate feelings like love. UGH, IT'S SO GOOD. Chapter 43-45 literally sent me. And it changed the whole tone of the book after that. The whole story is incredible, and I loved how CB captures not just amazing character moments but also ties it into a phenomenal plot.

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januaryt123's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

5.0

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tanadeet's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-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

5.0

It was like a ball of yarn. Beautiful, blue and silver spun yarn with multiple strings, all rolled into one. So many stories woven into one tale, wonderfully written. I would have liked a bit more of Vale and Lilith, exploring their new bond in a volatile and vicious new situation.

I loved the emotional challenges Oraya had to work through, the struggle was heartfelt and even though much was unsaid between her and Raihn, it wasn't a frustration watching them finding a path to each other.

The additional snippets of history about Vincent and Oraya's lost family, added layers of richness to the overall story and I enjoyed it. A lot.

Looking forward to more awesome writing and spending more time in their realm 🍻❤️

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readingisfun14's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Great duology! I liked the first book better but this one was still good and a great end to the story.

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iszie's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

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soniajoy98's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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midnightrose_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Ashes and the Star Cursed King is the second and final book in the Nightborn duet by Carissa Broadbent. It is in the Crowns of Nyaxia series. This was a good sequel but not the five star read I had expected. I had hoped that the enemies to lovers revenge plot Oraya had towards Raihn that was hinted at at the end of The Serpent and the Wings of Night would last longer than it did. Instead it sort of fizzles out unfortunately. Oraya and Raihn are a fine couple, if a bit boring. Having Oraya and Raihn’s POV’s eliminated a lot of the potential tension this book could have had with just Oraya’s. Vincent continues to be the most fascinating and multilayered character in the story. *HIS STORY WITH ORYA’S MOTHER WAS SO INTERESTING* The conflicting emotions Oraya has over the course of the novel about her father the more she learns about his past was really the highlight of the novel for me. The interludes of Raihn’s past felt repetitive, since we were already told this story by Raihn in the previous book. In the end I felt that the angst and tension in the book was really between Vincent and Oraya and not Oraya and her love interest Raihn.

I’m curious about the next duet in the series (the Shadowborn duet; The Songbird and the Heart of Stone is the name of the first book.) Which is obviously going to be about Mische (Raihn’s friend). I’m interested in seeing what her personality is like away from him. Also Septimus, if I had to guess, is going to be the main character of the last duet which has me VERY excited as it has the possibility of being my favorite duet of the whole series!

Even though this book wasn’t a five star the first book in this duet certainly was (The Serpent and the Wings of Night) Which is more than enough reason for everyone to definitely pick up this duet! I’ll be checking out the standalone ‘Slaying the Vampire Conqueror’ which is out on April 27 and Six Scorched Roses the novella about Vale and Lilith.

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