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xapoptosisx's review against another edition
dark
tense
- 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
5.0
I sorely underestimated this book going into it. I am feeling alot of emotions rn but the female rage in this book was delicious and the mmc was beautiful. The characters are amazing the world building is great. I had no idea this was part if an entire verse but once I've finished this trilogy I'm going back and reading everything.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, and Alcohol
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Rape, Vomit, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
luckybookjunkie's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think Clare Sager has a true talent in writing about anxiety, PTSD, and the life-long changes horrible things that have happened can incur upon a person. However, where this book fell short for me, was in the contradictions within the character's responses to things, and some of the inconsistencies. I don't think this was a bad book, but I do no plan to continue further into this world (after book 2, which really fell syndrome to the 2nd book syndrome)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Infidelity
dreyajavi's review against another edition
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
This book was one of those super easy reads that I blazed through and then spent a day asking myself if anything actually happened.
The pacing was everywhere. This was not aided by the 🌶️ that completely took me out of the world the book was creating.
What I did like, were our characters and their relationships with others and each other (even if it caused them to completely neglect their spying). I really liked how gently the author handled the hard topics of this book. And also the regency-esque aspects of it all (come on Mr. Darcy like hand stretching).
The pacing was everywhere. This was not aided by the 🌶️ that completely took me out of the world the book was creating.
What I did like, were our characters and their relationships with others and each other (even if it caused them to completely neglect their spying). I really liked how gently the author handled the hard topics of this book. And also the regency-esque aspects of it all (come on Mr. Darcy like hand stretching).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Child abuse
leasasaa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
4.0
This was a great book. It dealt with a lot of very heavy topics and dark themes. It explored and showed so much typical fantasy romance novels don't really venture into.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Body shaming and Alcohol
laylareadsthings's review against another edition
I really, REALLY wanted to love this, so this breaks my heart to DNF. I love this author’s other work - this one was just not for me. There are a lot of mental health TW for this book so please do your research ❤️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Murder, Abandonment, and Classism
koistyfishy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
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
4.0
4 Orrery Stars ⭐
Spicy Level: 🌶️🌶️/5
This book is the literal definition of why I love fantasy romance and prefer fantasy romance to contemporary. It had everything that your girl wants and needs in a book. There was tension. There was magic, there was angst...It was just so good!
The tropes in this are not too bad either 😏
▶ <s>Enemies</s> Hate to Lovers
▶ Forced Proximity
▶ Fake Relationship
▶ One Bed
▶ Touch Her You Die
▶ Who Did This To You...
▶ Morally Gray MMC
▶ Human X Fae Relationship
▶ HE'S A FUCKING SHADOW DADDY PEOPLE!!!!!!!!
I adored this. It just played into that romantic catnip that gets me excited. This first-person POV book follows Kat, a noblewoman estranged from her husband, trying to keep her (husband's) estate afloat. She has been forced into a life of thievery to make sure that she can pay for things around the estate and one day she makes the mistake of stealing something from a Fae. Fortuitously for her, she is summoned to court to play...a SPY on dear Bastian the Night Queen's Shadow. Naturally, things get exciting from there...
Claire Sager has built such unique characters with unique worldbuilding, and I honestly couldn't put this down. I fell behind in the buddy-read and I devoured this when I had the chance to catch up! Basically, I absolutely adored almost everything about this. And let me tell you how LOUD I squealed when I found out that Vice had her own story.
To explain why I didn't give this a full 5 stars I need to delve into "Spoiler Territory" so if you haven't read this, the above should be enough to help you decide to proceed or not (but my recommendation is if you like me LOVE Fantasy Romance) this book will be like catnip to you too! I cannot believe that I have sat this long on not reading a Claire Sager book because it's LITERALLY EXACTLY what I enjoy! I also appreciated the English spelling of everything. I'm tired of reading things without U. Overall, I cannot wait to read book two. I am salivating at what is going to happen with these characters and where they're going to go.
I struggled a little bit with Katherine's character and that was one of the things that brought my rating down. I think what would have made the difference is I would have appreciated if the author's note was actually at the beginning of the book explaining certain choices and why Kat would make those choices. Yes, I understand that it dealt with abuse and the trauma related to the abuse. I just didn't like that she internalised a lot and did not seek help and assistance. I was highly frustrated that she didn't reach out to those within her circle that could have helped her get out of the situation really easily. I do understand that people who are in a situation of domestic abuse or just abuse often do feel like they cannot ask for help and they cannot reach out to someone. But given how she was described at the start as being this "confident" Wicked Lady who could commit highway robbery, the shift to the "lack of confidence" and fear to ask for help didn't make sense. It just almost went against how she was described at the start. I also wanted her to be different, to be an influence to speaking out...
Another aspect that annoyed me is I felt the point of Bastian, not knowing that she was married was quite frustrating. If I had a "mark" at court, the first thing that I would do would be to find out everything and anything I know about that person. It's standard practice to listen to the "rumour mill". Kat did that with Bastian... And given that he knew that she was spying on him, he should have known that her husband wasn't dead. She (and the court) did not HIDE the fact that he was still alive. Kat might not have confirmed he is dead but it felt very disappointing that he didn't know... Also when he did find out I wanted more tension between the two of them (and maybe having Bastion's POV here would have helped add this)...
I also wanted to see Shadow Daddy Penis!!! I felt TEASED AND I DIDN'T LIKE IT! 😭😭😭😭😭
Spicy Level: 🌶️🌶️/5
This book is the literal definition of why I love fantasy romance and prefer fantasy romance to contemporary. It had everything that your girl wants and needs in a book. There was tension. There was magic, there was angst...It was just so good!
The tropes in this are not too bad either 😏
▶ <s>Enemies</s> Hate to Lovers
▶ Forced Proximity
▶ Fake Relationship
▶ One Bed
▶ Touch Her You Die
▶ Who Did This To You...
▶ Morally Gray MMC
▶ Human X Fae Relationship
▶ HE'S A FUCKING SHADOW DADDY PEOPLE!!!!!!!!
I adored this. It just played into that romantic catnip that gets me excited. This first-person POV book follows Kat, a noblewoman estranged from her husband, trying to keep her (husband's) estate afloat. She has been forced into a life of thievery to make sure that she can pay for things around the estate and one day she makes the mistake of stealing something from a Fae. Fortuitously for her, she is summoned to court to play...a SPY on dear Bastian the Night Queen's Shadow. Naturally, things get exciting from there...
Claire Sager has built such unique characters with unique worldbuilding, and I honestly couldn't put this down. I fell behind in the buddy-read and I devoured this when I had the chance to catch up! Basically, I absolutely adored almost everything about this. And let me tell you how LOUD I squealed when I found out that Vice had her own story.
To explain why I didn't give this a full 5 stars I need to delve into "Spoiler Territory" so if you haven't read this, the above should be enough to help you decide to proceed or not (but my recommendation is if you like me LOVE Fantasy Romance) this book will be like catnip to you too! I cannot believe that I have sat this long on not reading a Claire Sager book because it's LITERALLY EXACTLY what I enjoy! I also appreciated the English spelling of everything. I'm tired of reading things without U. Overall, I cannot wait to read book two. I am salivating at what is going to happen with these characters and where they're going to go.
Another aspect that annoyed me is I felt the point of Bastian, not knowing that she was married was quite frustrating. If I had a "mark" at court, the first thing that I would do would be to find out everything and anything I know about that person. It's standard practice to listen to the "rumour mill". Kat did that with Bastian... And given that he knew that she was spying on him, he should have known that her husband wasn't dead. She (and the court) did not HIDE the fact that he was still alive. Kat might not have confirmed he is dead but it felt very disappointing that he didn't know... Also when he did find out I wanted more tension between the two of them (and maybe having Bastion's POV here would have helped add this)...
I also wanted to see Shadow Daddy Penis!!! I felt TEASED AND I DIDN'T LIKE IT! 😭😭😭😭😭
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, and Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming and Fatphobia
bellebookcorner's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“No matter what happens, remember, all of this is real.”
Calling all fantasy romance lovers to read this if you like;
• Morally Grey Characters
• One Bed
• Fake Relationship
• Touch Her and Die
• Enemies-to-Lovers
• Shadow Magic
• Spicy scenes
• Betrayal and Court Intrigue
My very first book from the author and it won't be my last!
The plot is very well written, well-paced and really intrigued me until the end. The mystery, the flirting and bantering, the sweet comforting moments makes me keep flipping the pages!
The world building is also fascinating and easy to understand, the idea of one court being ruled by two different rulers based on when they need to rule in one day is very interesting (a king rule during the day, and a queen rule during the night). I hope to learn more about this court in the next book.
The characters are very loveable and easy to connect with, especially the FMC – Kat. Kat is a strong female MC but at the same time she’s haunted by her past memories and harsh reality of her marriage life and debt. I love seeing how she grow throughout the story and I admire her when she’s trying to stand up for herself when her life is surrounded by egoistic men.
There’s also the love interest – Bastien! A swoon-worthy love interest but also mysterious with too many secrets and can be very intimidating….
I want to know more about him and I hope we got to see from his POV in the sequel!
Overall, this is a fantastic way to start a fantasy romance series! It’s already off to a good start and I’m really looking forward to know more.
Highly enjoyable, entertaining and definitely will recommend this book cause I devour this so fast!
Thank you to Paper Myths and the author for giving me an e-ARC of the book and for having me on this book tour. I’m leaving this review voluntarily!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Fatphobia
Minor: Animal death and Sexual assault
eclecticallyreading's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Kat is a beautifully complex FMC who is perfectly balanced by the dark seductiveness of Bastian (lovers of shadow daddies like the Darkling and Azriel will love him). Focuses on the trauma of being a woman in a world built by and for men (PLEASE CHECK CONTENT WARNINGS). A beautiful and heartbreaking journey of self discovery and empowerment , perfect for anyone who needs their heavy content broken up by heavy petting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Fatphobia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Animal death
Official CW from author: - Violence & murder - references to child abuse (mentions of and trauma from aggression in childhood home; flashback to emotionally abusive incident) - threat of sexual assault - killing an animal (brief reference from childhood, little detail) - fat shaming (from secondary characters)aerisaturner's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.75
This novel takes place in the Beneath Black Sails universe, but it isn't necessary to have read that series to understand this novel.
*Deceit, desire, and dark secrets
* Sent to spy.
* Enemies-to-lovers
* Morally grey fae hero
* Who to trust?
* Touch her and die
* Hand necklace.
Clare Sager delivers again on strong main characters that are flawed, and are trying to do their best given their situations (but it is actually written in a plausible manner). The relationship between the FMC and MMC is a complex dance with delicious tension. MMC is *chef's kiss*.
I can't wait to see what happens next in this series.
(This reviewer received an Advanced Reader Copy - novel publication date is February 20, 2023).
*Deceit, desire, and dark secrets
* Sent to spy.
* Enemies-to-lovers
* Morally grey fae hero
* Who to trust?
* Touch her and die
* Hand necklace.
Clare Sager delivers again on strong main characters that are flawed, and are trying to do their best given their situations (but it is actually written in a plausible manner). The relationship between the FMC and MMC is a complex dance with delicious tension. MMC is *chef's kiss*.
I can't wait to see what happens next in this series.
(This reviewer received an Advanced Reader Copy - novel publication date is February 20, 2023).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Violence
Minor: Fatphobia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Murder