diaryofthebookdragon's review against another edition
4.0
Very dark world. Not something I would expect from Jeffe Kennedy.
emreadswhatshewants's review against another edition
4.0
I am forever looking to fill the hole in my heart that Milla Vane's a heart of blood and ashes left and so far no luck. This book had quite a bit of 'modern speak' for something that was supposed to be high fantasy but I related to the heroine enough and also found the ultimate cinnamon roll hero so I guess I'll continue with the series. 3.5 stars
miloulou's review against another edition
5.0
Ignore the ugly cover, because this was a surprisingly dark story about enslavement and basically torture all because of weird sex magic. It made me so uncomfortable to explore this world, as seen through naive Gabriel’s eyes as he realizes that wizards are essentially owners of other human beings who are magically forced to obey and give everything to whoever they’re bonded to.
Overall though, I really loved Nic and Gabriel, who were well developed characters. However, I’m conflicted about Nic’s acceptance of her role in life, a sort of brainwashing that she tries to overcome but instead accepts. Hopefully this is addressed in the next book because her Fascination is so icky.
Overall though, I really loved Nic and Gabriel, who were well developed characters. However, I’m conflicted about Nic’s acceptance of her role in life, a sort of brainwashing that she tries to overcome but instead accepts. Hopefully this is addressed in the next book because her Fascination is so icky.
bukheeta's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
It needs more editing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy and Rape
lickableenzymes's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely fantastic. The world and lore is really well set up. The characters are enjoyable and well written. The conflict supernatural, but relatable to all women, I think.
madrona's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
marilanoire's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
I like the characters and the story is interesting, but I should have read this series first. I knew the characters already from Sally‘s book and it would have been better to read this series first and then move on to the second one.
johnm's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
myhandmadehell's review
5.0
So, I only picked this one up because it was free on Kindle for a minute and I wanted more dark fantasy romance and this looked fine.
Let me tell youuuuu. Despite the cover (yikes) and the title (sigh), this book is ~excellent~. I read some of the reviews here, including the negative ones, and I have to say I’m confused - did we all read the same book?
Nic and Gabriel are AMAZING together. The banter was great right off the bat. The dual POV is always a plus because you get to see both sides and watch each character piece things together on their own. The way the author wove in Nic explaining Convocation rules and politics to Gabriel as a way to also explain it all to the reader was really well done: no pages-long info dumps. Just exactly the context we need at exactly the moment we need it.
Aaaand the thing I love about the use of the “if they’d only just sit down and talk” trope here is that THEY DID! They were both still hiding things from each other but both had good reasons, and each conversation actually brought them closer to understanding one another, and had more information. Watching them dance around each other, especially with both of them being very smart and insightful people in their own right, was absolutely delightful, heart-racing, and satisfying every time they took one step forward. And the chemistry is 100% there. I don’t know how she did it but it’s fantastic.
Gabriel is incredibly well-written: he’s a touch angsty, a bit stubborn, a little reserved, pretty funny, kind of attractive, a touch out of place, but he’s never too much of any of those things. As complex and rich and interesting a male lead as I’ve ever seen and I would die for him.
A lot of people hating on Nic in the reviews but I don’t get that. She’s prickly and sarcastic and exasperated and angry *but the book explains exactly why*. The author deliberately created a truly impossible situation with the world building that made every motivation, secret, and hidden feeling make perfect sense, and to make the whole thing feel especially heartbreaking. And Nic is so smart, so compelling, and so funny and cool that it’s impossible not to adore her. Her character voice is extremely strong and I really appreciate it.
I literally cannot wait to watch Nic and Gabriel change that whole goddamn world. They are a power couple to the extreme and I’m so fucking excited for them.
Bonus points for making me look up the definitions of THREE words. Nice use of the SAT vocabulary!
Let me tell youuuuu. Despite the cover (yikes) and the title (sigh), this book is ~excellent~. I read some of the reviews here, including the negative ones, and I have to say I’m confused - did we all read the same book?
Nic and Gabriel are AMAZING together. The banter was great right off the bat. The dual POV is always a plus because you get to see both sides and watch each character piece things together on their own. The way the author wove in Nic explaining Convocation rules and politics to Gabriel as a way to also explain it all to the reader was really well done: no pages-long info dumps. Just exactly the context we need at exactly the moment we need it.
Aaaand the thing I love about the use of the “if they’d only just sit down and talk” trope here is that THEY DID! They were both still hiding things from each other but both had good reasons, and each conversation actually brought them closer to understanding one another, and had more information. Watching them dance around each other, especially with both of them being very smart and insightful people in their own right, was absolutely delightful, heart-racing, and satisfying every time they took one step forward. And the chemistry is 100% there. I don’t know how she did it but it’s fantastic.
Gabriel is incredibly well-written: he’s a touch angsty, a bit stubborn, a little reserved, pretty funny, kind of attractive, a touch out of place, but he’s never too much of any of those things. As complex and rich and interesting a male lead as I’ve ever seen and I would die for him.
A lot of people hating on Nic in the reviews but I don’t get that. She’s prickly and sarcastic and exasperated and angry *but the book explains exactly why*. The author deliberately created a truly impossible situation with the world building that made every motivation, secret, and hidden feeling make perfect sense, and to make the whole thing feel especially heartbreaking. And Nic is so smart, so compelling, and so funny and cool that it’s impossible not to adore her. Her character voice is extremely strong and I really appreciate it.
I literally cannot wait to watch Nic and Gabriel change that whole goddamn world. They are a power couple to the extreme and I’m so fucking excited for them.
Bonus points for making me look up the definitions of THREE words. Nice use of the SAT vocabulary!
mdlaclair's review
4.0
This was a very interesting new series. It reminds me of a mixture of Amanda Bouchet’s kingmaker series and Jennifer L. Armentrout’s blood and ash series. You have Gabriel a wizard that has all this power and no training and Nic a women with all the training and no way to use her power. Since I normal read the Tala books by Jeffe Kennedy, this seemed a very different world