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4.28 AVERAGE
4.28 AVERAGE
The magic system is amazing, but the main character is so unlikable! She is boring! And the romance is so cliche.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
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
✨ “The monster in the woods is not always the one you fear — sometimes it’s the one you carry inside.”
📍 Fantasy realm of Blunder (gothic, mist-shrouded kingdom)
Gillig opens her Shepherd King duology with a haunting tale of prophecy, power, and the price of survival. Elspeth, bound to a dangerous Nightmare, must navigate a kingdom where curses run deep and bargains carry blood. Darkly lyrical and richly atmospheric, this is a romantasy for readers who love gothic tension, high stakes, and the ache of forbidden love. For fans of Hannah Whitten’s For the Wolf or Naomi Novik’s Uprooted, it’s a story that coils tightly and doesn’t let go.
⚠️ Content Warnings: Violence, death, possession, trauma, explicit intimacy.
🌶 Spice Level: 3/5 (moderate on-page steam, woven into romance).
📍 Fantasy realm of Blunder (gothic, mist-shrouded kingdom)
Gillig opens her Shepherd King duology with a haunting tale of prophecy, power, and the price of survival. Elspeth, bound to a dangerous Nightmare, must navigate a kingdom where curses run deep and bargains carry blood. Darkly lyrical and richly atmospheric, this is a romantasy for readers who love gothic tension, high stakes, and the ache of forbidden love. For fans of Hannah Whitten’s For the Wolf or Naomi Novik’s Uprooted, it’s a story that coils tightly and doesn’t let go.
⚠️ Content Warnings: Violence, death, possession, trauma, explicit intimacy.
🌶 Spice Level: 3/5 (moderate on-page steam, woven into romance).
Slow start but really picked up in the last 150 pages!
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
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:
No
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
The atmosphere of the book hit the spot for me given I am a sucker for a "castle ruins in the mist" imagery, so that actually does the hard-carrying of the rating for me. The relationship development was lacking for me - it's one of those romances where the male character does some aroused growling, which I am not opposed to, but I need to buy into the falling-in-love part. I wasn't convinced of that here but *shrug* it's still enjoyable enough to read for the heart-fluttering moments. I'm going to go ahead and read the sequel and see how I feel about the duology overall.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense