Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

248 reviews

natashareadsbooks'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

4.0

Wow. I don't even know what to say about this book! 

Oraya was a human. She was taken in by the vampire king, taught never to trust others because she wouldn't be safe. Never safe. Taught to fight so she could protect herself. She used those skills to hunt down vampires trying to harm the innocent humans in the human district. And was taught to protect her heart at all costs. 

She threw herself into the Kejari- a tournament held every century, the winner granted just one wish from the goddess herself. And Oraya knew exactly what she wanted - she didn't want her human weaknesses anymore. 

But in the tournament she needed to form an alliance. Everything about Raihn was dangerous. He was her greatest competition and rival. But she still found herself drawn to him. But there was no room for compassion. Raihn may have understood her more than anyone ever had before. And their attraction may end up being her downfall in a world where nothing was more deadly than love. 

So, it took me a little longer to get into this book than I would have liked, I have been in a huge book slump for weeks. But it was intriguing and interesting and despite me taking awhile to get into the story, I wanted to know more. 

I was drawn to the characters, and their stories, and wanted to know all I could about them. How strong Oraya was, and brave - not only living in a world that was designed to kill her but to over come that every day, and to fight back against the injustices every chance she could despite her not having vampire strength, or powers. She fought for what she could, and still had compassion despite the world trying to beat it out of her. 

And I wanted to know more of Raihn. He was mysterious, and dangerous. He was ruthless and cunning. But he was also intriguing and curious. 

The world may be on the precipice of war, offering up horrors despite the characters being in the Kejari- the trials spanning weeks. Truths coming to light. 

I loved the dark fantasy world of magic. The depravity of the world but also the small glimpses of hope too. 

If you are looking for a new fantasy world to dive into filled with blood and carnage then I recommend this book! 

4 Asteris ⭐ out of 5⭐. 

2🌶️ out of 5 🌶️. - a couple detailed scenes. 

Tropes: 

→ Enemies/Rivals to lovers 

→ Trials/tournament 

→ slow burn 

→ romantasy 

→ dark fantasy 

→ vampires 

→ dark magic 

→ shadow daddy 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Animal death, Hate crime, Sexual content, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Kidnapping, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Stalking, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, War, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Torture, Violence, Blood, Confinement, Death of parent, Classism, and Gaslighting

coffeeandstories's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Murder

Minor: Rape

bryleecookie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring 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

4.5

This book was almost impossible to put down. With vampires, magic, enemies to lovers, slow burn and hunger games vibes, this book was an enjoyable and fun read. 

The trials were deadly and intriguing, the world building wasn’t overly complicated but still interesting, the magic was dark and mysterious, with the reluctant alliance between Oraya & Raihn a captivating story to watch unfold. 

The vampires in this weren’t your typical copy & paste vampires, they had human elements, variety, personality and the blood sucking wasn’t the main theme in this book, although it is definitely a reoccurring mention and subplot, it was not the main focus of the vampires which was refreshing. 

There’s just something about deadly trials and games that reel me in as a reader and I loved that this plot has developed to grow up as I have and was written in an adult perspective, rather than the YA that it is typically used for. 

Oraya is an odds-defying, badass FMC who is entertaining to read about, but I did feel that there was some contradiction to her character and some holes in her story which I’m hoping is explained more in depth in the next book. 

Raihn is swoon worthy, a badass MMC with alpha energy and underdog vibes. I would have liked to have read his perspective though as some foreshadowing was definitely missed here considering the ending of this book. Although, I will say that because of this, I really felt the emotions the characters were experiencing along with them. 

I rated this a 4.5. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it but was disappointed that the lovers portion was very short lived, aswell as the ending feeling rushed with little explanation and the characters needing some more depth. However, this did not take away from the overall fun of the book, it os an easy, action packed, exciting romantasy read. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Blood, Sexual content, Violence, and War

Mention of sexual assault/rape (not detailed)

jnterhune's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Took some getting use to, I was unaware it was a vampire story (my first one also) so that took some adjusting, but overall was hooked and enjoyed the story. Love the characters, loved the trials, found it very original and a fun read! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Torture, Alcohol, Animal death, Confinement, Murder, Rape, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, and Gore

kuro2091's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Violence

Moderate: Sexual violence and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Torture, War, and Confinement

porridgegobbler's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny 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

4.5

LOVED IT 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Murder, Blood, Gore, and Sexual content

Moderate: Sexual violence, War, and Vomit

skyfluff's review against another edition

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Self harm, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Murder, Rape, Blood, Body horror, Sexual violence, War, Torture, Death of parent, Death, and Violence

spatterson7's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Grief, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Gore

Moderate: Death of parent, Genocide, Cursing, Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, War, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Alcohol, Child death, Torture, Slavery, and Self harm

e11e_reads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Blood, Torture, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Sexual content

Moderate: Confinement

Minor: Slavery and Rape

emmerylynn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

4.5

This definitely got me out of my reading slump! I loved the author’s writing style. Perfect blend of morally grey characters. And the slow burn romance was 🙌 . This book had me gasping, squealing, and uttering other obnoxious noises to annoy my husband…which is THE sign that I’m loving the book. Wish there was more detail in the trials though. Defiantly picking up the sequel!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Violence, and Sexual content

Moderate: Sexual assault, War, Slavery, and Rape

Minor: Emotional abuse