llsugarspicell's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
lolasreviews's review against another edition
DNF at 43%
Wasn't in the right mood to keep battling the darkness in this one. I liked the main characters and how they were both caught in a difficult situation and the other has the chance to become their light. I liked the hope and the spark of connection between them. I liked the hint of romance and as this is a an enemies to lovers romance the romance doens't move quickly, which makes sense.
What I didn't like was the dark parts, multiple scenes with un-consented touches of sexual parts and two rape scenes so far that made me uncomfortable. The elf, Eroan, is held captive for the whole story so far and tortured a lot, both physical and sexual. The only reason I could stomach most of it is because the author doesn't go in too much detail of the pain or the emotional effects it has. And I just wanted to see him be free and be his own person, instead of being captive and doing what he could. I am pretty sure books with long periods of captivity of the main characters just don't work for me.
Besides the two main characters there also is a side character that was quite interesting. I was really curious about her and her backstory and I liked how she interacted with both main characters. She was a bit of a mother figure in a world that's so dark and cruel, but at the same time it was clear she also knew how to survive. Most of the other character we met are either victims and do what they're told or are nasty and cruel dragons who do everything to get what they want. And the queen was the worst of them all so far.
The world building was well done too so far. I liked the feel we get for dragon society, the different types of dragons named after minerals or metals. And how the author picked her words well to give their society a bit draconian feel. I really felt like the world was well thought out even with how we didn't get all the details yet, it still felt there was more behind it.
I probably should've listened to the worries I had whether I would like this one when it got advertised as dark romance, but I liked the sound of the fantasy and romance parts and decide to give it a try. And I guess that about sums up my opinion of this book, I didn't like the dark parts, but I did like the romance and the fantasy parts.
All in all it had good points, but I wasn't in the right mood to deal with the darker parts. I am not a fan of dark reads in general, but if you don't mind dark reads, you probably wouldn't mind that.
Wasn't in the right mood to keep battling the darkness in this one. I liked the main characters and how they were both caught in a difficult situation and the other has the chance to become their light. I liked the hope and the spark of connection between them. I liked the hint of romance and as this is a an enemies to lovers romance the romance doens't move quickly, which makes sense.
What I didn't like was the dark parts, multiple scenes with un-consented touches of sexual parts and two rape scenes so far that made me uncomfortable. The elf, Eroan, is held captive for the whole story so far and tortured a lot, both physical and sexual. The only reason I could stomach most of it is because the author doesn't go in too much detail of the pain or the emotional effects it has. And I just wanted to see him be free and be his own person, instead of being captive and doing what he could. I am pretty sure books with long periods of captivity of the main characters just don't work for me.
Besides the two main characters there also is a side character that was quite interesting. I was really curious about her and her backstory and I liked how she interacted with both main characters. She was a bit of a mother figure in a world that's so dark and cruel, but at the same time it was clear she also knew how to survive. Most of the other character we met are either victims and do what they're told or are nasty and cruel dragons who do everything to get what they want. And the queen was the worst of them all so far.
The world building was well done too so far. I liked the feel we get for dragon society, the different types of dragons named after minerals or metals. And how the author picked her words well to give their society a bit draconian feel. I really felt like the world was well thought out even with how we didn't get all the details yet, it still felt there was more behind it.
I probably should've listened to the worries I had whether I would like this one when it got advertised as dark romance, but I liked the sound of the fantasy and romance parts and decide to give it a try. And I guess that about sums up my opinion of this book, I didn't like the dark parts, but I did like the romance and the fantasy parts.
All in all it had good points, but I wasn't in the right mood to deal with the darker parts. I am not a fan of dark reads in general, but if you don't mind dark reads, you probably wouldn't mind that.
viivacious's review against another edition
It seems to revolve mostly around sex, and I just find that incredibly boring. I am very disappointed, I had heard so many good things about it.
izz_bizz_buzz's review against another edition
4.0
While I enjoyed it immensely I am very hesitant to recommend this book.
It has a lot of darker themes and they are prevalent to the story. So be sure to heed the content warnings.
(Minor spoilers ahead)
Characters:
There are dragonkin (dragons that have human forms), elves, and humans (they are French and live in France I thought that was neat)
Lysander (dragonkin): a prince. He is passively suicidal, where he thinks about how he would be ok with people killing him. He is also abused by his mother and sees no way out from her abuse.
Eroan (elf): an assassin sent to kill the queen. He is willing to do anything to accomplish his goal. He puts his people first even over his own mental well being. He does suffer from ptsd later in the book.
All dragons except Lysander are awful people. I was waiting for any other dragon to not be horrible and ended the first book still waiting. Maybe in the next books idk.
The elves are nice but I don’t have much to say about them.
Humans are thought to be extinct. But they are there. The book gives humans a non magic advantage. The humans use tech(post apocalyptic modern tech that they’ve fixed up). I like the humans. I just thought it was odd that this took place on earth. But it didn’t detract.
Romance/spice
There isn’t a lot of romance. The main two find each other attractive and it seems like eventually in the series they’ll get together but that’s not what the plot is about.
There is a lot of sex in the book but our main couple don’t get very far, (foreplay and a blowjob). They do in fact have sex with other people.
Most of the sex for Lysander is for political reasons and he needs to be coerced into. He is gay and has a few scenes with women. And has a consensual sex scene with a unnamed man and one coerced scene that is interrupted with a man
Eroan has sex with men and women. His sex scenes in The beginning he is drugged or under duress. Later on the rest of them are consensual with naked characters
Plot:
The plot is very straight forward but it really doesn’t need to be complicated. Dragon queen is evil. She’s been killing off elves and humans. Gotta kill her.
I enjoyed the writing style and thought the world was interesting and the characters were enjoyable and I wanted them to succeed in their endeavors.
It has a lot of darker themes and they are prevalent to the story. So be sure to heed the content warnings.
(Minor spoilers ahead)
Characters:
There are dragonkin (dragons that have human forms), elves, and humans (they are French and live in France I thought that was neat)
Lysander (dragonkin): a prince. He is passively suicidal, where he thinks about how he would be ok with people killing him. He is also abused by his mother and sees no way out from her abuse.
Eroan (elf): an assassin sent to kill the queen. He is willing to do anything to accomplish his goal. He puts his people first even over his own mental well being. He does suffer from ptsd later in the book.
All dragons except Lysander are awful people. I was waiting for any other dragon to not be horrible and ended the first book still waiting. Maybe in the next books idk.
The elves are nice but I don’t have much to say about them.
Humans are thought to be extinct. But they are there. The book gives humans a non magic advantage. The humans use tech(post apocalyptic modern tech that they’ve fixed up). I like the humans. I just thought it was odd that this took place on earth. But it didn’t detract.
Romance/spice
There isn’t a lot of romance. The main two find each other attractive and it seems like eventually in the series they’ll get together but that’s not what the plot is about.
There is a lot of sex in the book but our main couple don’t get very far, (foreplay and a blowjob). They do in fact have sex with other people.
Most of the sex for Lysander is for political reasons and he needs to be coerced into. He is gay and has a few scenes with women. And has a consensual sex scene with a unnamed man and one coerced scene that is interrupted with a man
Eroan has sex with men and women. His sex scenes in The beginning he is drugged or under duress. Later on the rest of them are consensual with naked characters
Plot:
The plot is very straight forward but it really doesn’t need to be complicated. Dragon queen is evil. She’s been killing off elves and humans. Gotta kill her.
I enjoyed the writing style and thought the world was interesting and the characters were enjoyable and I wanted them to succeed in their endeavors.
bookishbananna's review
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
sallysocker's review against another edition
5.0
“He wished he could have saved one. Just one. The impossible dragon who had guided Eroan out of the dark.”
This book is not for the light hearted and you should definitely read the warning before you start reading.
This book was absolutely amazing just like all of Ariana Nash’s books. I just ordered the other parts of the series and can’t wait for them to arrive.
This book was brutal but still so enjoyable to read. It was so good! The story was everything you can asked for as a fantasy nerd, dragon shifting people and elves. The characters was amazing and had depth, they felt so real and the character development good. I’ve learned from Ariana Nash’s books that she like to write complicated and angst characters and she is so good at it too. It’s amazing!
This book is not for the light hearted and you should definitely read the warning before you start reading.
This book was absolutely amazing just like all of Ariana Nash’s books. I just ordered the other parts of the series and can’t wait for them to arrive.
This book was brutal but still so enjoyable to read. It was so good! The story was everything you can asked for as a fantasy nerd, dragon shifting people and elves. The characters was amazing and had depth, they felt so real and the character development good. I’ve learned from Ariana Nash’s books that she like to write complicated and angst characters and she is so good at it too. It’s amazing!
charlscorp's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
imaginary_sauropod's review against another edition
3.75
Eroan’s one goal in life is to kill the dragon queen, but he was thwarted by the queen’s son Prince Lysander. For whatever reason this Prince Lysander is reluctant to torture and kill Eroan like the rest of the dragons, even going so far as to attempt to free him.
Prince Lysander is a broken dragon who can do nothing right. His mother is upset he fails to have sex with female dragons to continue the line and he is considered weak for not having the same bloodlust and tendency to violence as everyone else. A certain elf catches his eye and he can’t help but want to help him avoid the torture he has to go through. But this elf is a stubborn elf who refuses to tell Lysander his name and refuses to escape when given the chance. His resilience inspires Lysander.
This book is porn and torture porn. Not normally what I pick up to read but the characters were very engaging. It reminds me how much an active protagonist who has a clear goal really does to make a story engaging. I was expecting Eroan and Lysander to spend more time together, but I guess that’s why there are three books.
Prince Lysander is a broken dragon who can do nothing right. His mother is upset he fails to have sex with female dragons to continue the line and he is considered weak for not having the same bloodlust and tendency to violence as everyone else. A certain elf catches his eye and he can’t help but want to help him avoid the torture he has to go through. But this elf is a stubborn elf who refuses to tell Lysander his name and refuses to escape when given the chance. His resilience inspires Lysander.
This book is porn and torture porn. Not normally what I pick up to read but the characters were very engaging. It reminds me how much an active protagonist who has a clear goal really does to make a story engaging. I was expecting Eroan and Lysander to spend more time together, but I guess that’s why there are three books.
Spoiler
I did not appreciate the two gay male leads having sex with women in order to have children. Admittedly it makes more sense in Lysander’s situation, but it also feels like straight pandering in a gay book.squeakynarwhal's review
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
abilyssa's review against another edition
4.0
I'm just going to list some thoughts:
-This is dark, guys. Like, really dark. Most of the sex is nonconsensual and any time sex with a woman is written on-page, it's very violent.
-The plot is such a rollercoaster. You think you know what direction the story is going to take, and then it goes in a totally different direction.
-The setting was a bit confusing at first. I had thought this was like a classic fantasy world, but then there's mention of solar panels and cars and France and I realized that this is a post-apocalyptic fantasy. No worries for people who don't like this type of fantasy, though. The modern stuff is kept to a minimum, and the majority of the story takes place without modern technology.
-The romance was not very convincing to me at first, I remember. It seemed like insta-lust more than anything else, and yet Lysander in particular behaved as though he was in love. Don't worry, though; the romance becomes more convincing by book 2. And despite all that, this remains a slow-burn. Seriously, these two go through hell and never catch a break.
-I loved Eroan as a character. If he were real, I would probably hate him for how he uses everybody around him and for his arrogance, but this is what makes his character so interesting. I didn't love Lysander. I thought he was so foolish to keep walking into his own captivity and so that was frustrating. However, now that I'm nearly done with book 3, I see that this is just a part of his character development.
-Eroan and Janna's scene was hot; don't @ me
"Don't tease," she warned, her voice carrying a sharp, warning tone.
Eroan gathered her hair to one side and kissed the curve of her neck where her pulse fluttered. "Why not? When you seem to like it?"
Overall:
These books are really dark. The characters go through so much trauma and it seems to never end. I'm 73% of the way through book 3 and I still feel like the trauma never ends. It is taking me a while to muster the courage to finish book 3 because I think I'm gonna cry so...yeah. Make sure you're in the right headspace for these books and check the content warnings.
With that said, I would recommend these books. They're really entertaining and the love story, while tragic and toxic in so many ways, is so powerful.
-This is dark, guys. Like, really dark. Most of the sex is nonconsensual and any time sex with a woman is written on-page, it's very violent.
-The plot is such a rollercoaster. You think you know what direction the story is going to take, and then it goes in a totally different direction.
-The setting was a bit confusing at first. I had thought this was like a classic fantasy world, but then there's mention of solar panels and cars and France and I realized that this is a post-apocalyptic fantasy. No worries for people who don't like this type of fantasy, though. The modern stuff is kept to a minimum, and the majority of the story takes place without modern technology.
-The romance was not very convincing to me at first, I remember. It seemed like insta-lust more than anything else, and yet Lysander in particular behaved as though he was in love. Don't worry, though; the romance becomes more convincing by book 2. And despite all that, this remains a slow-burn. Seriously, these two go through hell and never catch a break.
-I loved Eroan as a character. If he were real, I would probably hate him for how he uses everybody around him and for his arrogance, but this is what makes his character so interesting. I didn't love Lysander. I thought he was so foolish to keep walking into his own captivity and so that was frustrating. However, now that I'm nearly done with book 3, I see that this is just a part of his character development.
-Eroan and Janna's scene was hot; don't @ me
"Don't tease," she warned, her voice carrying a sharp, warning tone.
Eroan gathered her hair to one side and kissed the curve of her neck where her pulse fluttered. "Why not? When you seem to like it?"
Overall:
These books are really dark. The characters go through so much trauma and it seems to never end. I'm 73% of the way through book 3 and I still feel like the trauma never ends. It is taking me a while to muster the courage to finish book 3 because I think I'm gonna cry so...yeah. Make sure you're in the right headspace for these books and check the content warnings.
With that said, I would recommend these books. They're really entertaining and the love story, while tragic and toxic in so many ways, is so powerful.