Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - City of Thorns

Spicy. Demon romance. She starts off being captured by a demon and throne in a cell.. he’s mistaken her for a demon doppelgänger but she is human. How does she convince him that she’s not who he’s looking for?! Also her parents were killed by demons and she wants answers. What’s the solution? She convinces him that she’s human and she can work with him.. he wants revenge on her sucubbus doppelgänger and she wants information about her parents deaths. Do they convince the other demons that she is a succubi? I’m not spoiling anything but this is a spicy read! If you like spicy romance.. haters to lovers trope & demons/ sucubbi this is the book for you

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becksus's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Hmm this ain't it, but dunno what I was expecting either tbh. A lot of teasing and hinting but a disappointing peak.

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bookishchaos's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

Wow! This was a really good book! I was surprised. I loved the storyline, world-building, & characters. The plot twist was creative and I didn't see it coming. It does kinda end on a cliffhanger but I would still recommend this.

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crinkledmochi's review

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

i expected the twist at the end, but the story is interesting enough for me to want to continue.

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ariel790's review against another edition

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mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Do not read City of Thorns, Book #1 of the Demon Queen Trials, without expecting to read #2 Lord of Embers, and #3 Garden of Serpents shortly thereafter. The main reason I say this? Well, the core mystery of the story - the motivation for the main character - is not resolved in Book #1. I went into this book knowing it was part of a series, but unable to read #2 or #3 at the moment, I was very disappointed that there was little to no resolution within this first book. Very unsatisfying.

From the very beginning, Rowan just wants to know who killed her mother. She is neurotically obsessed with finding answers that she's almost willing to do anything. Including aligning herself with a killer demon. She is given some leads that are chased, but doesn't really figure anything out. If anything, she is left with more questions than with what she started with. So, she plots with the demon to both their advantage.

Honestly though, I don't fully understand how their enemies didn't see Rowan coming from a mile away. Very obvious intentions, and single minded focus. She lacked depth, but still somehow other characters thought her more clever than she really was. I found this frustrating. Along with the antagonists being one tone as well.. kill or sabotage Rowan, even if the means or reasons are illogical.
Not the worst I've ever read, but the story seemed to go more for the AW! Shock moments over world building or character development. It felt very dumbed down, more like a YA masquerading as a adult romance. Overall with the 3 books it may be better.. I may read them if I can ever get my hands on them since I do like the theme and concepts... but as a start, such a shame.

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