Reviews with content warning for Adult/minor relationship - Silver Under Nightfall

When the author mentioned in the acknowledgments that they used to write fanfiction I was not surprised in the slightest (affectionate).

This book is an absolute joy to read - Remy is a fun and incredibly endearing MC to follow on this crazy ride. The humans and the vampires have been at odds for centuries, and when an uneasy alliance finally begins to form, a vampire mutation causes the newly turned undead to become near-unkillable zombies and threatens the agreement. Remy must work with Lord Malekh and Lady Song - engaged vampire royals - to find the origin of the mutation, and resist falling into their bed in the process.

Loved the concept, very quick read despite the page count because I couldn't put it down, truly such a gem. I could nitpick story elements, but I had so much fun that it was easy to breeze past and just enjoy the ride. Poly couple where the vampires find this himbo vampire hunter and decide that he belongs to them now. Our pure of heart, dumb of ass Remy is living the dream.

There are two elements that I would offer as points to consider before reading. For one, this story's setting is at odds with its language and technology. The environment, weaponry, and everyday items make it feel like it is early 1800s at the ABSOLUTE latest, but the colloquial language and medical tech give it a more modern feel. You're telling me you have to use carrier pigeons for messaging and horse-drawn carriages for travel, but have ABO +/- blood typing and a blood-processing machine that provides the identity of whoever you take a sample from? I guess a society with vampires would prioritize tech involving blood, but you'd think they'd have phones as well at that rate. I'm not a stickler for time-appropriate details, especially since this isn't set in our world, so it didn't really bother me, but I know this can be a dealbreaker for others.

The other issue I had was the passage of time. Maybe I read the book too quickly and missed some key words, but I felt like we were jumping around at light speed. A ball is held in one of the first chapters and is initially described as being in a few days time, but then we are immediately at the ball. No page break, no acknowledgment that the days had passed, we are just at the ball. It made the reading experience a bit jarring and made the ability to estimate how much time had passed between plot points difficult. The events of this story take place over a month or two (?) and two weeks of that is a time jump. You could have told me it was five days, you could have told me five months, I would have believed either one.

Neither of these points detracted too much from the story personally, but felt important to mention for potential readers. Overall, the most fun I've had with a book in a hot minute and am eagerly anticipating the sequel!

(Side note: it feels like a crime to have Malekh call Remy "my pet" in the very first chapter and then literally never use it again like what the fuck you literally bring him in to be the sub in ur hot vampire relationship KEEP CALLING HIM YOUR PET)

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wilybooklover's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

5.0

This is not a perfect book by any means — the first third is a bit slow, a few words are misused, some of the twists were predictable and easy to guess, the ending was a little weak and rushed — but it was the perfect book for *me* and my reading mood when I picked it up. Violent, sexy, and a whole lot of fun, it felt like the perfect blend of fantasy and romance with both horror and historical elements. The take on vampires is refreshing without straying too far from tradition, and there's enough mystery, political intrigue, and suitably creepy monsters to keep things interesting. Remy could be a frustratingly oblivious protagonist at times, but he's such a dramatic disaster bi. I really loved reading the dynamics of this bisexual throuple; the romance is surprisingly soft and warm (maybe a bit instalove-y, but I don't even care).

I am in DIRE need of the sequel though after that ending!! Also I wish we had the US cover in the UK, it's so much prettier.

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achay91's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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raspberryvanguard's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.0

I had fun! Xioadan and Zidan would love Megan

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irisestacansado's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book was not a fast read, but it was worth every second. While I found it dragged a little bit at some points, it maintained my interest throughout enough that it didn't particularly detract from my experience. The narrator for the audiobook took a bit of getting used to, but made some great sound effects, so that had more of an impact than the writing itself on the experience.

As for the writing and the contents, I loved the style. Chupeco's writing allows for a predictable but not too predictable ending, and has the kind of foreshadowing that helps the reader figure out the mysteries within alongside the characters. I enjoyed seeing the romance dynamics, which I find still relatively rare. This book used some classic tropes, but still felt unique. If you're looking for an interesting fantasy with court vampires, complicated family relationships, and a polyamorous relationship, I highly recommend this book!

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growplantsreadbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

I knew I'd love this when I heard it described as "Castlevania, but they all kiss" and oh goodness they did a lot more than kiss.
There was a bit too much "there is no way they both like me" when the hot vampires were literally throwing themselves at him ... But there were enough reasons for Remy as a character to feel that way so it at least made sense.

Spoiler

I thought their sex-filled Fortnite at Xiaodan's place

came a bit late in the plot because instead of enjoying their happiness I just kept thinking, aren't there more important things to be doing right now? Like a prude! I just think the pacing would be better if it happened in the first 40% and not the last 40% of he book.
The characters didn't have the most annoying features of their Castlevania doppelgangers (alcoholism & not kissing each other), but the characters were so similar in every other way that it was hard to think of these stories separately. I kinda wish Zidan was more moody like Alucard, it felt like

Spoiler

they made him more aggressive because he's a top lol

Anyway, this book is full of action and it was hard to put down. I finished the whole thing in a weekend! Id recommend it to anyone a fan of queer fantasy!
I'll definitely read the next one.

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city_girl_writer's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes

4.0

I was surprised on how much I enjoyed this. This was really fun and loved our main characters. Remy, Xiaodan, and Zidan's relationship was definitely a highlight for me. There are a few world-building details I wasn't sure about or forgotten, which confused things for me. Nonetheless, I am excited to read Court of Wanderers (book 2).

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fifteenthjessica's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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

4.0

Between his father's rivalry with the current leader of the vampire hunters and the rumors that his mother was turned by a vampire lover while pregnant with him, Remington Pendergast is not the most well-liked Reaper, even if he is now one of the most effective. Soon a job only he was willing to take brings him into the sights of Zidan Malekh and Xiaodon Song, the leader of the Third Court of vampires and the heiress of the Fourth Court, who are hoping to form an alliance between their courts and the human kingdom of Aluria that Remy hails from. And Aluria will need all the help it can get when a strange plague is turning its citizens into a horrifying variation of vampires. Will Remy's trip East with the alluring vampire couple stop this plague, reveal the truth about his mother, and help Remy get over his belief that he is unworthy of love?

Rin Chupeco definitely knows how to craft an intriguing fantasy novel with complex characters that mix in the most interesting ways, but I'm still not sold on her skill at describing what is going on. Like the huas in The Bone Witch, the Breaker, Remy's main weapon, is hard for me to picture. It's called a scythe often, so I assume it has a more polearm like handle, but the way he's described as moving with it makes it hard for me to picture him doing it with a long handle. A picture on a variant cover suggests it is in fact a short handle and heavily inspired by real world weapons like Kusarigama, but it's never outright stated, probably because pre-modern Japanese weaponry is an obscure area of knowledge for most Western readers. Also, like when I read the Bone Witch, I found myself sitting there wondering "Wait, how'd that happen?" as a main character is described as having a serious injury.

Fair warning to anyone looking into book who are younger fans of Chupeco's YA novels, things get steamy. Most is completely consensual, but an important subplot is about Remy's affair with an older woman (possibly multiple) that is less due to any attraction Remy's feels for her and more because it's the only way to get information about vampire movement in Aluria that everyone admits should be given to him because he's a vampire hunter, but the woman's husband is a giant asshole. Nothing graphic, but characters definitely bang, and I know I would not have enjoyed that type of content when I was in my young teens.

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