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heatherv_89's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Sexual content
annkayla's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, War, and Violence
poisonflame's review against another edition
adventurous
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
4.0
I really enjoyed this duology, and I don’t think it suffers from sequel syndrome. I feel that it could’ve been a little more tightly plotted, and while Broadbent’s prose is lovely, there are a few spots where the voice doesn’t match, or small errors pulled me out of my immersion in the book. Overall, the book is well written with solid conflict and resolution, and I found it very enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Minor: Rape and Kidnapping
princessofpages's review against another edition
4.25
I'd spend a lifetime at the tip of your blade, and it would have been worth it.
AGHHHH!! This book was so hard to write a review for because in many ways it is the perfect example of a sequel not quite living up to the sky-high expectations of the first book. The Serpent and the Wings of Night had me absolutely ENTHRALLED, GAGGED, DISTRESSED, FOAMING AT THE MOUTH... all the things. Without giving any spoilers, the ending of the first book set up this incredible enemies-to-lovers storyline that I was fully prepared to go feral for.
Unfortunately, the sequel didn't really deliver for me in terms of pacing or plotting. The first 35% was very slow and it was difficult to get a sense of the characters' motives once we were removed from the Kejari setting. Though I absolutely LOVED getting Raihn's backstory, it wasn't clear at almost any point WHY he was doing... basically anything he was doing. The entire Godblood storyline felt tired and patently uninteresting. Overall, the vibe of the entire first half was just *mild disappointment*.
All of these things had me prepped and ready to hit that 3-star review. EXCEPT.
EXCEPT. There were a few things this book did really well and I'm such a massive sucker for them that they made up for the plotting flaws.
1. The Complicated Father
I love reading about complicated father figures, the more details and emotional messiness and nuance and pain the better. Yes, I obviously have daddy issues. No, I don't want to talk about it. Oraya's exploration of her relationship with Vincent, coming to terms with who he was to her, and the resolution at the end? Had me choking, sobbing, retching. I tabbed so many moments that those sections are just annotations at this point. I'd read the entire series just for the Oraya/Vincent saga.
2. The Healing Arc
I'm beginning to fear that my favorite themes are revealing too much about me personally, but the dual POV was (imo) an amazing choice, and getting to see both Raihn and Oraya's sexual trauma and the way they were able to heal from it together really had me emotional and just generally elevated the story.
Overall, I enjoyed this book so much even though it truly did NOT live up to the expectations of the first. As far as fantasy series wrap-ups go, it wasn't bad: I laughed, I kicked my feet, I cried (too much), and I experienced moderate anguish even though I wasn't once surprised. I call that a win. And cannot WAIT to devour the other novellas in this world!!
AGHHHH!! This book was so hard to write a review for because in many ways it is the perfect example of a sequel not quite living up to the sky-high expectations of the first book. The Serpent and the Wings of Night had me absolutely ENTHRALLED, GAGGED, DISTRESSED, FOAMING AT THE MOUTH... all the things. Without giving any spoilers, the ending of the first book set up this incredible enemies-to-lovers storyline that I was fully prepared to go feral for.
Unfortunately, the sequel didn't really deliver for me in terms of pacing or plotting. The first 35% was very slow and it was difficult to get a sense of the characters' motives once we were removed from the Kejari setting. Though I absolutely LOVED getting Raihn's backstory, it wasn't clear at almost any point WHY he was doing... basically anything he was doing. The entire Godblood storyline felt tired and patently uninteresting. Overall, the vibe of the entire first half was just *mild disappointment*.
All of these things had me prepped and ready to hit that 3-star review. EXCEPT.
EXCEPT. There were a few things this book did really well and I'm such a massive sucker for them that they made up for the plotting flaws.
1. The Complicated Father
I love reading about complicated father figures, the more details and emotional messiness and nuance and pain the better. Yes, I obviously have daddy issues. No, I don't want to talk about it. Oraya's exploration of her relationship with Vincent, coming to terms with who he was to her, and the resolution at the end? Had me choking, sobbing, retching. I tabbed so many moments that those sections are just annotations at this point. I'd read the entire series just for the Oraya/Vincent saga.
2. The Healing Arc
I'm beginning to fear that my favorite themes are revealing too much about me personally, but the dual POV was (imo) an amazing choice, and getting to see both Raihn and Oraya's sexual trauma and the way they were able to heal from it together really had me emotional and just generally elevated the story.
Overall, I enjoyed this book so much even though it truly did NOT live up to the expectations of the first. As far as fantasy series wrap-ups go, it wasn't bad: I laughed, I kicked my feet, I cried (too much), and I experienced moderate anguish even though I wasn't once surprised. I call that a win. And cannot WAIT to devour the other novellas in this world!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Violence, Slavery, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Torture
maregred's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Sexual content
Moderate: Classism, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
beckyremillard's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, War, Gore, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual content
marykate_roper's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Sexual content
aubbywaubby's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Sexual content, Violence, Death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Slavery, Child death, Sexual violence, and Rape
Minor: Death of parent
tw page reads “ “graphic violence, violence against children, discussion of sexual assault and rape, and slavery. This book also contains explicit sexual content.”hapalyn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Torture, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Violence
Moderate: Slavery, Medical content, Child abuse, Confinement, Grief, and Murder
shadikb's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Dec 31, 2023
Going to come back to the story. Just need a break.
Update Jan 3, 2024.
I finally finished it.... Here is my review:
I was so waiting for the “Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” moment and it never came....... I was disappointed but it was an okay read. The pace from the last book was lost. Became repetitive with the "There she is". It just didn't captivate me the first book.
Going to come back to the story. Just need a break.
Update Jan 3, 2024.
I finally finished it.... Here is my review:
I was so waiting for the “Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” moment and it never came....... I was disappointed but it was an okay read. The pace from the last book was lost. Became repetitive with the "There she is". It just didn't captivate me the first book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, War, Violence, Child abuse, Sexual content, Confinement, Death, Gaslighting, Murder, and Toxic relationship