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radiantgeode's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Death, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Gore, Violence, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, War, Blood, Body horror, Cursing, and Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying and Vomit
overflowingshelf's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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
4.5
CW: Death; grief; murder; confinement; violence; war; blood; fire; torture; injury
“‘This is how the world ends,’ the fate had whispered, and I was going to show them just how right fate was.”
Dianna has entered her villain era, and I am here for it!
The Throne of Broken Gods picks up immediately after The Book of Azrael and takes you for a wild ride. I expected lots of twists, turns, and emotional devastation, and Amber V. Nicole DELIVERED.
This book is a beast (it clocks in at over 700 pages in paperback), but it is well worth it as it’s a beautiful exploration of grief, love, family, and friends. Plus, it delivers a hot romance, unforgettable characters, fun action scenes, and some shocking twists.
“When I burn this world to embers, and you paint me as the villain, remember, I really did try to be good… once.”
Dianna is in her full-blown villain era and has some fun power upgrades to match. She’s out for revenge, out for blood for all those who betrayed her, and you best not stand in her way. As much as I fully loved her embracing her villainess side (and I truly LOVED it), my heart also ached for her. She is hurting so, so, so badly after what happened at the end of The Book of Azrael. All I wanted to do was reach out and hug her. The grief she felt was tangible, and I cried along with her at times. The softer, quieter moments with Dianna and her feelings stood out to me and were some of the most impactful. Dianna’s character arc was genuinely awe-inspiring in this book as we see her go through all the stages of grief. It’s a hard journey to join her on, but I love where she ended up. I truly think Nicole’s exploration of grief through Dianna’s character is fascinating, and one of the things I loved the most about this book
“I never once said that I was good…but sometimes a king has to be a monster.”
Logan is no more as he’s ready to own being Samkiel again, and I think that’s for the better. I feel we see a different Samkiel in this book as he’s really embracing his role as a God, as a leader. And just cause he’s a God doesn’t mean he’s all good. He’ll do anything to bring Dianna back to herself. He’s very much in his “touch her, and you die” era, and he would do anything for her. I liked this Samkiel more, as he had an air of confidence and strength. He’s juggling a lot as he’s cleaning up after Dianna, trying to bring her back to herself and stopping chaos from being unleashed on all the realms. I also truly adored seeing him spend time with the Hand and getting to know them better as a group and individuals.
“Yet he looked at me as if he would rip the world to pieces for me, and I knew I would do so much worse for him.”
We continue the enemies-to-lovers vibes from The Book of Azrael though it is much more layered and complex now. The flirty, snarky banter in the scenes of them fighting each other had me living. But their relationship is so much deeper than that. They have this deep connection – they both can see behind the monster/god to the individual and accept each other for their flaws, fears, hopes, dreams, and all. Their relationship continues to develop slowly over this book, but the payoff is worth it. We get some very rewarding sexy scenes in this, but also so much love. God, the love. Along with the exploration of grief, the exploration of the power of love and all the many forms it can take is another standout from this book.
“Let chaos reign.”
This book did feel a little long at times – there were a lot of flashbacks and a lot of points of view that I’m not sure were all necessary – but I honestly didn’t mind in the end as I was so engrossed in the story, in the drama. Boy, does this book go there in terms of the plot! I was a big old jumble of nerves and so stressed the whole last quarter of the book. I was literally gasping out loud and having to put the book down at times to process EVERYTHING that was HAPPENING. And oh my god, that ending! While I correctly predicted some plot points, others completed shook me to my core. I still am in shock thinking about some of them! I don’t know which character I hate more after everything. I cannot wait to see where Nicole takes this story and these characters in the last book as THAT ENDING.
“Remember that I love you.”
If you want to be emotionally devastated, this series is perfect for you. And I mean that in the best way possible. I cried, I laughed, I gasped, I loved – I felt it all while reading. If you love dark romance or are in your romantasy era, you will eat these stories up! You do have to read this series in order, so now is the perfect time to start, as The Book of Azrael and The Throne of Broken Gods are on KU.
I am now anxiously awaiting an update on book 3 and look forward to all the heartache and pain that Amber V. Nicole will bring us with that book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Grief, Murder, Violence, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: War and Confinement
stephaniemcuervo's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Sexual content, and War
Moderate: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, and Confinement
darknesslighttt's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
5.0
🐚 𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖 🐚
𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: enemies to lovers, revenge, fated mates, fantasy, forbidden, forced proximity, cinnamon roll hero
𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀: blood, death, violence, grief, death of a loved one
Keep in mind that this book is second book in the Gods & Monster series, and may contain spoilers from the first book.
I will start by saying that although the world is in chaos, at least Dianna and Samkiel are together, but I will not specify when they are.
After the end of the first book, I suspected that this book would be a roller-coaster of emotions, but what I didn't know was that Amber would keep us breathless until almost halfway through the book. Nothing can stop Dianna from killing those who took part or knew about Kaden's plan to kill Gabby. I loved seeing a revengeful Dianna, but I saw her in such a heart-breaking way. The chapters from her perspective are full of pain, suffering, grief & guilt. She closed herself in, and nothing could touch her until all those who had a part in her sister's death were annihilated.
I think this is the first character I see going fully villainous, until the moment she realizes that she has no other way to escape, than to return to Samkiel. As for her feelings for him, they were very well closed in the depths of her. She avoided him, insulted him and yet after everything that happened, a part of her still wants to save him.
Samkiel is crazy about Dianna. All his thoughts and actions are around her. He goes through all of Dianna's fights and insults while flirting with her. He fights and makes sacrifices just to save Dianna and lead her to the path of healing. Honestly, I don't really think I breathed when I was reading the chapters from his perspective. Only how much weight is gathered on his shoulders with the care of his friends, of Dianna who is always in danger of being taken by Kaden, and of everyone in realm made my heart break a little. We also see another part of him. We see how he stands by his friends and understands them, but also how he struggles emotionally.
The relationship between Dianna and Samkiel is raw and messy, and although things keep coming up to keep them apart, they become closer and closer. And finally we see the spice that Amber promised us. I'm really glad she didn't rush them, because they needed to heal before moving on to the next step.
I loved the new characters and that we could finally see them from their perspective. Each of them took a piece of my heart, except for Vincent of course - I couldn't stand him from the very beginning-. I became very attached to them and I hope that Amber will keep them alive.
I will not go into details about the last chapters, all I want to say is that they are a roller-coaster of emotions, which makes your heart beat and keeps you in suspense.
Ahh, and let's not forget the plot twists. I really did not expect something like that. Not only did they take me by surprise, but they also left me socked.
I can't wait to see what happens in the next book, although it's probably a long time until we see it.
Thank you Amber Nicole and Star Publishing for the opportunity to read this amazing book in exchange for an honest review.
𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: enemies to lovers, revenge, fated mates, fantasy, forbidden, forced proximity, cinnamon roll hero
𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀: blood, death, violence, grief, death of a loved one
Keep in mind that this book is second book in the Gods & Monster series, and may contain spoilers from the first book.
I will start by saying that although the world is in chaos, at least Dianna and Samkiel are together, but I will not specify when they are.
After the end of the first book, I suspected that this book would be a roller-coaster of emotions, but what I didn't know was that Amber would keep us breathless until almost halfway through the book. Nothing can stop Dianna from killing those who took part or knew about Kaden's plan to kill Gabby. I loved seeing a revengeful Dianna, but I saw her in such a heart-breaking way. The chapters from her perspective are full of pain, suffering, grief & guilt. She closed herself in, and nothing could touch her until all those who had a part in her sister's death were annihilated.
I think this is the first character I see going fully villainous, until the moment she realizes that she has no other way to escape, than to return to Samkiel. As for her feelings for him, they were very well closed in the depths of her. She avoided him, insulted him and yet after everything that happened, a part of her still wants to save him.
Samkiel is crazy about Dianna. All his thoughts and actions are around her. He goes through all of Dianna's fights and insults while flirting with her. He fights and makes sacrifices just to save Dianna and lead her to the path of healing. Honestly, I don't really think I breathed when I was reading the chapters from his perspective. Only how much weight is gathered on his shoulders with the care of his friends, of Dianna who is always in danger of being taken by Kaden, and of everyone in realm made my heart break a little. We also see another part of him. We see how he stands by his friends and understands them, but also how he struggles emotionally.
The relationship between Dianna and Samkiel is raw and messy, and although things keep coming up to keep them apart, they become closer and closer. And finally we see the spice that Amber promised us. I'm really glad she didn't rush them, because they needed to heal before moving on to the next step.
I loved the new characters and that we could finally see them from their perspective. Each of them took a piece of my heart, except for Vincent of course - I couldn't stand him from the very beginning-. I became very attached to them and I hope that Amber will keep them alive.
I will not go into details about the last chapters, all I want to say is that they are a roller-coaster of emotions, which makes your heart beat and keeps you in suspense.
Ahh, and let's not forget the plot twists. I really did not expect something like that. Not only did they take me by surprise, but they also left me socked.
I can't wait to see what happens in the next book, although it's probably a long time until we see it.
Thank you Amber Nicole and Star Publishing for the opportunity to read this amazing book in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Grief, and Death
samantha_ellen's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
Hi… I am a broken woman 😭
What a roller coaster! That ending!!! Wtf!!!
I really liked book one ~ BUT BOOK 2 ❤️🔥
I felt like the authors writing really went up a notch. The characters jumped off the page & I could really see their different personalities. New povs were introduced & I absolutely loved getting to know them all, the found family in this book was perfection 🙌🏽
But the real star of the story is how the FMC (a villain) is portrayed. The reason she becomes a villain is explored, her morality, her grief, her anger (feminine rage YES PLEASE) her love.
It’s so so well done.
Dianna is honestly one of the most bad ass FMC I’ve ever read.
Now to say ’m obsessed with the mmc would be an understatement!
He is the biggest cinnamon roll for the FMC, fighting to help her every step of the way even when she pushes him away - & literally tries to kill him… He never gives up on her.
The authors characterisation of a grumpy god, who would do anything for her, lightening at his finger tips, polite to everyone while also being extremely strong with the worlds on his shoulders…. & then a dirty mouth in the bedroom 🫠
I honestly have no words for this man.
HE IS ELITE
You really had to work for their relationship in this, THEY WENT THROUGH IT!
There was so much pain but OMG was it worth it!!
The world building expanded & the plot really opened up as well. Huge plot twists & reveals along with absolutely HEART WRENCHING scenes.
While I was reading I often felt like I was watching a tv show. The action was so well plotted. The emotions of the characters jumped off the page & the dialogue was perfection.
If you are someone who loved Buffy, the vampire diaries or the originals (especially the villains / morally grey characters & strong, smart arse fmcs) then this is a series for you.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Grief, Sexual content, Blood, and Death
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