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chthonicbambi 's review for:
Phoenix Unbound
by Grace Draven
A rare romantasy win for me! Though maybe the romance is actually kind of a subplot in hindsight. A fearsome gladiator and a fire witch cross paths. Although they start off on the wrong foot (he literally kidnaps her) , they ultimately unite in their shared desire to break free from the shackles of a tyrannical empire.
The FMC Gilene is described as "plain" and is from a small, overlooked village. In reality, however, she is very strong-willed, intelligent, and hiding an extraordinary power. Despite the fact that the MMC Azarion selfishly uses Gilene for his own purposes, he never hurts her and eventually grows to deeply admire her. Suuuper slow-burn but well worth it in my opinion. His motivations are very understandable and you empathize with his character from the beginning. The story is incredibly brutal at times but also beautiful and emotional. There is a particular scene of absolute, unfettered female rage in this book that was so cathartic and will stick with me for a long time. Romantasy books tend to read pretty juvenile for me but this one, thankfully, read like an adult novel.
Anyway, I loved this!
The FMC Gilene is described as "plain" and is from a small, overlooked village. In reality, however, she is very strong-willed, intelligent, and hiding an extraordinary power. Despite the fact that the MMC Azarion selfishly uses Gilene for his own purposes, he never hurts her and eventually grows to deeply admire her. Suuuper slow-burn but well worth it in my opinion. His motivations are very understandable and you empathize with his character from the beginning. The story is incredibly brutal at times but also beautiful and emotional. There is a particular scene of absolute, unfettered female rage in this book that was so cathartic and will stick with me for a long time. Romantasy books tend to read pretty juvenile for me but this one, thankfully, read like an adult novel.
Anyway, I loved this!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, War
Moderate: Infertility