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dxmxus's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
While this is definitely a slower paced book, primarily focusing on world building and plot development, the characters are easy to connect with. Definitely a difficult book to put down, however, there are moments where the main character seems almost too naive. Readers see through much of the foreshadowing well before the character realizes the warning signs.
I fully plan on finishing the series, however, I hope the next books focus more on character development as the MC feels somewhat flat and unwilling to learn unless absolutely forced into it.
I fully plan on finishing the series, however, I hope the next books focus more on character development as the MC feels somewhat flat and unwilling to learn unless absolutely forced into it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Murder, and Sexual harassment
viselik's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I found the book quite enjoyable, and it was a quick read. I read it in about 4ish hours. I found the retelling of the story of Excalibur and King Arthur an excellent spin on the story, filled with fae and a believable world! I'm pretty interested to see where this story will go and the story of Morgan (who I totally did not call Morgana more than once).
The relationship between Morgan and Darven was interesting. Still, I did not see a spark of romantic tension between them, which was fine as I got so interested in the world and the story of the fae I forgot this was a romantasy (romance fantasy) book.
Without going into spoiler territory, I enjoyed how Arthur was in this! I loved seeing his arc and change throughout the book, which also helped me like Darven as an excellent comparison.
I found the book quite enjoyable, and it was a quick read. I read it in about 4ish hours. I found the retelling of the story of Excalibur and King Arthur an excellent spin on the story, filled with fae and a believable world! I'm pretty interested to see where this story will go and the story of Morgan (who I totally did not call Morgana more than once).
The relationship between Morgan and Darven was interesting. Still, I did not see a spark of romantic tension between them, which was fine as I got so interested in the world and the story of the fae I forgot this was a romantasy (romance fantasy) book.
Without going into spoiler territory, I enjoyed how Arthur was in this! I loved seeing his arc and change throughout the book, which also helped me like Darven as an excellent comparison.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Kidnapping
plush's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
I struggled with this book. The first 100-150 pages especially. I cannot comment on this being an Arthurian retelling because I do not know the original story well enough. I found the book a tad confusing. The book seems to make the assumption that you know these characters, or at least a version of the story, so I think my confusion would be remedied if I knew the original better.
I thought the premise was interesting. The end of the book was dramatic. I think it struggled with pacing, which I understand is difficult, but the end had a lot happening with too little pages. I also wish that Morgan and Draven’s relationship was better fleshed out. I’m assuming that is going to be a major focus of book 2.
My absolute biggest issue with the book, and had this not been an ARC I would have DNF’d, is the fact that trigger warnings are included, but DO NOT include sexual assault/rape.
Spoilers-ish from this point on:
There are explicit scenes that HEAVILY insinuate that Morgan is raped. Nearer to the end of the book, she comments that “it didn’t go that far” but her assailant literally drugged her, tied her to a bed, cut her clothes off, and carved his name into her chest. This is how the chapter ends, and technically no rape occurs on-page, but the implication of the final paragraph seems to heavily insinuate what is about to happen.
“I watched as Florian positioned the dagger over my left arm. As he began cutting away the fabric of my tunic, I closed my eyes, praying to the Three that whatever drug he had slipped into my drink would take me far away again.”
Minimally that is sexual assault. It was very jarring to read, because I did check triggers prior to starting the book, and was extremely surprised that this did not make it into the warning list. I actually stopped reading the book, read a couple others, before deciding to come back to it.
I understand this is supposed to be a darker Romantasy, and I have read The Plated Prisoner series which follows a similar darker vein. I didn’t have a problem with that series. My main issue was that a list was provided, and this very glaring moment was left out. This is not at all a small, throwaway scene. It leaves large ripples in the story, and understandably the main character suffers from it. So, it really isn’t something that was *missed* and not put on the list, rather it seems to have been intentionally left out; either for shock factor or because it is later revealed he “didn’t go all the way” so perhaps the author didn’t think it counted.
I struggled with this book. The first 100-150 pages especially. I cannot comment on this being an Arthurian retelling because I do not know the original story well enough. I found the book a tad confusing. The book seems to make the assumption that you know these characters, or at least a version of the story, so I think my confusion would be remedied if I knew the original better.
I thought the premise was interesting. The end of the book was dramatic. I think it struggled with pacing, which I understand is difficult, but the end had a lot happening with too little pages. I also wish that Morgan and Draven’s relationship was better fleshed out. I’m assuming that is going to be a major focus of book 2.
My absolute biggest issue with the book, and had this not been an ARC I would have DNF’d, is the fact that trigger warnings are included, but DO NOT include sexual assault/rape.
Spoilers-ish from this point on:
There are explicit scenes that HEAVILY insinuate that Morgan is raped. Nearer to the end of the book, she comments that “it didn’t go that far” but her assailant literally drugged her, tied her to a bed, cut her clothes off, and carved his name into her chest. This is how the chapter ends, and technically no rape occurs on-page, but the implication of the final paragraph seems to heavily insinuate what is about to happen.
“I watched as Florian positioned the dagger over my left arm. As he began cutting away the fabric of my tunic, I closed my eyes, praying to the Three that whatever drug he had slipped into my drink would take me far away again.”
Minimally that is sexual assault. It was very jarring to read, because I did check triggers prior to starting the book, and was extremely surprised that this did not make it into the warning list. I actually stopped reading the book, read a couple others, before deciding to come back to it.
I understand this is supposed to be a darker Romantasy, and I have read The Plated Prisoner series which follows a similar darker vein. I didn’t have a problem with that series. My main issue was that a list was provided, and this very glaring moment was left out. This is not at all a small, throwaway scene. It leaves large ripples in the story, and understandably the main character suffers from it. So, it really isn’t something that was *missed* and not put on the list, rather it seems to have been intentionally left out; either for shock factor or because it is later revealed he “didn’t go all the way” so perhaps the author didn’t think it counted.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
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