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bookitallaway's reviews
416 reviews
The Divine and the Cursed by J.E. Reed
5.0
LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. This was such a fun book to read. Closed door romance, but exceptional world building and character development. Second book coming at the end of this year as of this review and I cannot wait!
There's angsty steam, close proximity, miscommunication but not in the typical way. Arianna our MFC and General Rion, our MMC, meet under dubious circumstances. She pretending to be someone she's not as a slave, hiding her powers, and he is the enemy that her kingdom has been fighting against, also hiding his true agenda and would not do well if he found out the true identity of our MFC. What starts out as hate quickly grows into more affection and truths that both sides have been told and believed are blurred and not entirely true. The character development was really well done for this book and I'm really looking forward to book 2 so I can dive further into my favorite people. Arianna is strong, smart and king and while she does need some saving, she isn't the damsel in distress type. Rion is the typical big bad, possessive male, but he's also not written in a way that leaves a bad taste in your mouth either. I cannot recommend this book enough, and to say more I think would give away too much of the storyline/plot.
There are some trigger warnings to be aware of, although I think they are more cautionary than trigger warnings. Slavery, violence, war, kidnapping, etc, but READ them for yourself and decide.
Will they or won't they succumb to a forbidden bond? Enemy of my enemy is my friend right? Opposites attract or are they too different? Will they survive? Who is the true enemy?
Spice: 1/5 (not that it's bad, just non-existent/closed door)
Plot: 5/5
Character Dev: 5/5
Overall: 5/5
There's angsty steam, close proximity, miscommunication but not in the typical way. Arianna our MFC and General Rion, our MMC, meet under dubious circumstances. She pretending to be someone she's not as a slave, hiding her powers, and he is the enemy that her kingdom has been fighting against, also hiding his true agenda and would not do well if he found out the true identity of our MFC. What starts out as hate quickly grows into more affection and truths that both sides have been told and believed are blurred and not entirely true. The character development was really well done for this book and I'm really looking forward to book 2 so I can dive further into my favorite people. Arianna is strong, smart and king and while she does need some saving, she isn't the damsel in distress type. Rion is the typical big bad, possessive male, but he's also not written in a way that leaves a bad taste in your mouth either. I cannot recommend this book enough, and to say more I think would give away too much of the storyline/plot.
There are some trigger warnings to be aware of, although I think they are more cautionary than trigger warnings. Slavery, violence, war, kidnapping, etc, but READ them for yourself and decide.
Will they or won't they succumb to a forbidden bond? Enemy of my enemy is my friend right? Opposites attract or are they too different? Will they survive? Who is the true enemy?
Spice: 1/5 (not that it's bad, just non-existent/closed door)
Plot: 5/5
Character Dev: 5/5
Overall: 5/5
The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent
5.0
Definitely one of my top favorites that I've read this year. Our MFC is strong, smart and willing to do whatever it takes to prove herself just like she's had to do much of her life being a human in a vampire world. Raihn is partaking in the Kejari and is a ruthless vampire, and a very imposing enemy to Oraya's adopted father, who also happens to be a super high ranking and power vampire.
There are epic battles, trust is misplaced, betrayal on many levels. Both the MFC and MMC have targets on their back and they either will have to work together or they will be bitter enemies to the end. It is every man or woman for themselves, who will win and who will die? Whole kingdoms are at stake and no one is who they claim to be.
What I love:
-vampires
-humans
-lies
-deceit
-War
-Oraya(MFC)
-Kejari---thing hunger games competition on steroids
-goddess of death
-Raihn( MMC)
What I didn't love:
-would have liked even more world building
-would have liked more backstory/information on the reasons behind the war, maybe that will come into play more in book 2
Spice:5/5
Plot: 5/5
Character Dev: 5/5
Overall: 5/5
There are epic battles, trust is misplaced, betrayal on many levels. Both the MFC and MMC have targets on their back and they either will have to work together or they will be bitter enemies to the end. It is every man or woman for themselves, who will win and who will die? Whole kingdoms are at stake and no one is who they claim to be.
What I love:
-vampires
-humans
-lies
-deceit
-War
-Oraya(MFC)
-Kejari---thing hunger games competition on steroids
-goddess of death
-Raihn( MMC)
What I didn't love:
-would have liked even more world building
-would have liked more backstory/information on the reasons behind the war, maybe that will come into play more in book 2
Spice:5/5
Plot: 5/5
Character Dev: 5/5
Overall: 5/5
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
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