Anita

If you're a fan of "The Roots of Chaos" series, this book serves as an excellent transition between the two volumes. However, it is heavily reliant on knowing who the characters from the Priory are before diving in.

Perhaps if I hadn't read the Priory first, then I would have enjoyed it more. I can see how satisfying it would be to go from this book into the next, following through to their conclusions.

I look forward to more from this series.

Firstly, I never expected to get an advanced copy of this highly anticipated title, yet here I am.

I went into this knowing that it was hinting at the same kind of relationship that Dramione fans yearned for. So I was not disappointed in the slow burn and enemies-to-lovers tropes on this point; these two specifics were built in deliciously.

Unfortunately, the worldbuilding fell short. It lacked just that same level of description as the characters themselves, which was a shame because it had the potential to become something bigger, and I could see a possible universe coming out of it. Perhaps there was a need to push fanfic to traditional publishing, but perhaps some more time could have been spent in actually using what was a great base and crafting it into something Brigitte Knightley could have used again and again.

Overall, a great read, but only because of the characters themselves. And I'm not actually 100% it was because I separated them from their inspiration.

An interesting debut fantasy novel, which strong YA vibes. Our main character is someone who has experienced early hardship, with many flaws that a teenager/young adult would experience, providing strong character development as she tries to find herself in the midst of everything that has happened and has yet to happen.

The world building is immense, with a well-thought-out class system and politics. Somehow, the co-existence of dragons and humans is completely well written, despite it being loosely based upon the 1920s. The more I delved into this delicately concocted world, I was drawn more and more into its darkest, deepest depths, where nothing is what it ever seems on the surface. It gave me vibes reminiscent of Babel or Blood Over Bright Haven, where a simple basic thing can connect to so many more matters without people realising.

A very interesting piece of work, I look forward to further pieces by S. F. Williamson.

A direct continuation from the ending of the first book, we're thrown back into the political turmoil that's brewing in Tiankawi.

While Kai's sacrifice was not in vain (still miss him), it only delays the inevitable. Each of the key players (Nami, Mira, Cordelia) are left to deal with their own individual growing problems, and developing. However, while I enjoyed Cordelia's subplot in the first book, it doesn't feel as impactful or necessary in this one.

The ending was wrapped up in an almost too neat way. After showing us what she's capable of through the grief for Kai shown through various characters, the climax of it felt a little lacklustre. It almost felt like a little bit of a letdown after being thrown into such a high stakes plotline from the beginning.

Overall, I enjoyed the duology as a whole, and while it didn't conclude in a way I liked, it gave the characters something.

Kristen Ciccarelli did not mess about, and she threw us right back into the plot.

The world-building continues to be immaculate, following with a solid plotline that rivalled the first book. Rune and Gideon lived up to the enemies-to-lovers trope, with the slowburn and angst that I could feel from them. The pacing was fast, the side characters held their own, and I ended up reading the entire thing in one day.

I had the same feeling with The Crimson Moth, but maybe this book just hit me in the right mood, because I enjoyed it very much.