I like the idea of this book more than I like the actual book itself. I love the idea of a slow-burn enemies to lovers story in a high fantasy setting inspired by southeast Asia, with a matriarchal society, and the whole shadows/light magic. Like all of that I absolutely vibe with, but somehow I just wasn't totally sucked in. I liked it fine, and I may read the sequel, but it's not a high priority read for me. ( )

I enjoyed the book. The Main characters don't seem to be doing much leading but the setup in the book for book 2 of the series has me excited for what could be coming. I do wish the book had a map to refer back to. ( )

I can't wait for the second book!

Pretty much the first time I've read a book with a more high fantasy and Sci fi ish theme, but definitely won't be the last.

The world building was a bit confusing at first, but it grew on me, just like our main characters Alaric and Talasyn.
Both frustratingly stubborn and hot tempered, but also two very complex characters that I grew to adore.
Especially Talasyn and the hardships she goes through. Talk about a badass heroine. ( )

I enjoyed the book. The Main characters don't seem to be doing much leading but the setup in the book for book 2 of the series has me excited for what could be coming. I do wish the book had a map to refer back to. ( )

I really, really wanted to love this book. I’ve been waiting for its release since March of this year, and the enemies-to-lovers, light vs dark war, and a Southeast Asian inspired world (esp since I grew up in SEA) aspects AND not to mention that gorgeous cover, sounded REALLY up my alley. Plus I always love supporting fellow POC authors.

So imagine my disappointment when it just fell flat for me! I really enjoyed part 1 and then in part 2…I felt like it just fell apart. Unfortunate since part 2 is the majority of the book.

There were things I liked, though. I liked the worldbuilding of Sardovia, Nenavar, and the Night Empire. I loved the descriptions of characters’ clothing and the food they ate. And Talasyn had a very relatable background as an orphan who didn’t know what it felt like to be loved. And I also enjoyed learning about the matriarchal society that was Nenavar.

Unfortunately, I felt like the story was way overwritten (it was 477 pages but it could have been 100 pages shorter and not lost any story). The overuse of italics started to bother me after awhile. And the POV switches weren’t clearly marked and the two leads didn’t have a distinct voice, and sometimes I got confused whose head we were supposed to be in.

I didn’t feel like I got to know our characters at all beyond the surface level and what the author told us we should feel, making Talasyn come off like a whiny petulant child who had all her major decisions made for her, and Alaric was just…a bland edgelord MMC with no personality. I didn’t feel any love between them, maybe some semblance of lust because they found each other hot? I did learn about halfway through the book that this started out as Reylo fanfiction and sadly it shows. For the record, I may not have been the target audience because I am not a Reylo shipper. I’m also not a fan of romances where there is a clear power imbalance between the two MCs, and the whole falling in love with your colonizer aspect just didn’t sit well with me.

The secondary characters, outside of Khaede and the Nenavarian Queen, felt like they just existed to move the plot along. I didn’t know who was who and why they were significant.

Most of all, I felt the pacing was off and not a whole lot happened for the bulk of the story. I did get bored at times and found myself skimming to see when something would happen, anything. Then the ending just…ended and didn’t feel like a proper one. Felt like it just ended in the middle of a scene.

I don’t think I’ll be continuing on with this series. Mostly because I don’t really care what happens to Talasyn and Alaric from here. I truly had high hopes for this but in the end, it just wasn’t for me. ( )