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A review by justkarlah
Dark Artificer by Ember Holt
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
▫️Dual 1st person POV▫️
I just want to start my review by saying that I have not read the first two books in the series. I went into it not knowing anything about the first two princesses or their stories. It didn't make the plot or world building too confusing, and I was able to follow along with the story for the most part. The only thing I did have some trouble with was all the characters that had multiple names/were referred to by different names.
Alyse was a strong-willed FMC with a passion for helping her people. She was pretty naive at the beginning, which makes sense since she's a princess, so it was nice to see her grow both in maturity and in delving into/developing her powers.
Kazimir is the definition of a possessive, overprotective MMC with a dark side. He was an interesting character to read about, and it would have been cool to learn more about his past and his progress to becoming a scribe at the castle. I loved that he created mechanisms that helped him use his powers to the best of their ability.
The story progressed at a pretty normal pace, although it did feel like some events passed by too quickly (almost like they had to cut them down to make the book shorter?).
There's a ton of tension between the two main characters, a large amount of sexual content, as well as some non-consensual scenes. I would definitely recommend checking the TWs before reading!
If you're looking for a fantasy book with forbidden love, revenge, and strong princesses, then this might be the book for you!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I just want to start my review by saying that I have not read the first two books in the series. I went into it not knowing anything about the first two princesses or their stories. It didn't make the plot or world building too confusing, and I was able to follow along with the story for the most part. The only thing I did have some trouble with was all the characters that had multiple names/were referred to by different names.
Alyse was a strong-willed FMC with a passion for helping her people. She was pretty naive at the beginning, which makes sense since she's a princess, so it was nice to see her grow both in maturity and in delving into/developing her powers.
Kazimir is the definition of a possessive, overprotective MMC with a dark side. He was an interesting character to read about, and it would have been cool to learn more about his past and his progress to becoming a scribe at the castle. I loved that he created mechanisms that helped him use his powers to the best of their ability.
The story progressed at a pretty normal pace, although it did feel like some events passed by too quickly (almost like they had to cut them down to make the book shorter?).
There's a ton of tension between the two main characters, a large amount of sexual content, as well as some non-consensual scenes. I would definitely recommend checking the TWs before reading!
If you're looking for a fantasy book with forbidden love, revenge, and strong princesses, then this might be the book for you!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Alcohol
Minor: Slavery