A review by bookitallaway
The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King by Carissa Broadbent

5.0

If I could give 10 stars I would. This book blew the first book out of the water and the first book was outstanding! So we find ourselves in a bit of a giant clusterf***. My heart broke for Oraya when her whole world came crashing down around her in a brief moment. She had trouble trusting people before, now it's tenfold. Raihn, whom she trusted and loved, betrayed her in the worst way. Now the kingdom is weak due to hostile take over and the only hope they have is for Oraya and Raihn to work together. She is trying to figure out this new power she possesses and seeing that her adoptive father had so many lies and secrets, she isn't sure she will be able to unravel them all. We do get more world building and meet more characters, which was something I was looking for in book 1. We also learn more about Oraya and Raihn and their true history/background. With so much that has happened between them, it's hard to see if Oraya and Raihn can make it back together. Carissa Broadbent did a phenomenal job of showing both sides of Raihn and Oraya and why they are both valid in their ways of handling the situation they have been given. I also liked that she just didn't have them all of a sudden kiss and make up. They would have to make the decision to chose between ultimate power and love and after everything they have faced, it wouldn't be an easy decision.

The banter and dialogue was never forced or flat. The book flowed well, had great pace, and wasn't unnecessarily drawn out. This is such a good book. I'd love to see her revisit this world again and see more of Raihn and Oraya.

Spice: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Character Dev: 5/5
Overall: 5/5