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A review by steffandbooks
Dark Night Golden Dawn by Allison Carr Waechter
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
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
One of my favorites reads this year, for sure!
I have been searching for a good adult fantasy romance for so long, I was already telling myself that the stuff I am looking for apparently only exists in FBAA and ACOTAR/Cresent City. I don't need constant spice, but one or two really good scenes I do appreciate and I got this here.
However, the romance is solely a sub plot here, so if you're looking to read a smutty book, this is not the one for you. The actual plot however, dang... it feels like this is a mix of Bridgerton, Cresent City and A Discovery of Witches. And I love all of these, so, naturally, I devoured this book. Never seen any of the plot twists coming and it was so interesting to see how the immortals and the magic in this world is displayed.
And, obviously, I got a new book boyfriend. Finn McKay. Boy, don't get me started. Him and the FMC were childhood friends to lovers to enemies to lovers again. Do I need to say more? Okay, if the second chance romance didn't convince you... HE KNEELS IN FRONT OF HER, in order not to scare her away and let her know that he is not mad at her but the situation in general. He falls first, or should I say, he never fell out of love with her? And he has FANGS (no, he's not a vampire)!
The FMC struggled with a really toxic relationship in the past and has many issues to work through throughout the whole book and her healing process takes a lot of time. Do check trigger warnings because there are some heavy topics being discussed. The author even has content warning in her book herself.
And lastly, what I really liked here as well was the LGBTQ+ content. It felt so natural in this books, FMC is bi, her best friend is bi and reminds me so much of Cinna (The Hunger Games), the FMCs parents are both mothers and the youngest sister is asexual. All of this felt just natural, flawless mentioned within the story without delving into too much detail because in this world, this is all natural. of course, there was the occasional mentioning of homophobia, but it's not a main part of a book. It's hard to explain, I guess, but I just liked it the way it was written, because it didn't feel forced.
I read this on my KU, but, naturally, I am going to order my print copy for this now and also pre-order the second one in this series.
5/5 stars
2/5 spice rating
I have been searching for a good adult fantasy romance for so long, I was already telling myself that the stuff I am looking for apparently only exists in FBAA and ACOTAR/Cresent City. I don't need constant spice, but one or two really good scenes I do appreciate and I got this here.
However, the romance is solely a sub plot here, so if you're looking to read a smutty book, this is not the one for you. The actual plot however, dang... it feels like this is a mix of Bridgerton, Cresent City and A Discovery of Witches. And I love all of these, so, naturally, I devoured this book. Never seen any of the plot twists coming and it was so interesting to see how the immortals and the magic in this world is displayed.
And, obviously, I got a new book boyfriend. Finn McKay. Boy, don't get me started. Him and the FMC were childhood friends to lovers to enemies to lovers again. Do I need to say more? Okay, if the second chance romance didn't convince you... HE KNEELS IN FRONT OF HER, in order not to scare her away and let her know that he is not mad at her but the situation in general. He falls first, or should I say, he never fell out of love with her? And he has FANGS (no, he's not a vampire)!
The FMC struggled with a really toxic relationship in the past and has many issues to work through throughout the whole book and her healing process takes a lot of time. Do check trigger warnings because there are some heavy topics being discussed. The author even has content warning in her book herself.
And lastly, what I really liked here as well was the LGBTQ+ content. It felt so natural in this books, FMC is bi, her best friend is bi and reminds me so much of Cinna (The Hunger Games), the FMCs parents are both mothers and the youngest sister is asexual. All of this felt just natural, flawless mentioned within the story without delving into too much detail because in this world, this is all natural. of course, there was the occasional mentioning of homophobia, but it's not a main part of a book. It's hard to explain, I guess, but I just liked it the way it was written, because it didn't feel forced.
I read this on my KU, but, naturally, I am going to order my print copy for this now and also pre-order the second one in this series.
5/5 stars
2/5 spice rating
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Homophobia
Minor: Vomit, Blood, Lesbophobia, Infidelity, Torture, and Violence