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A review by ivanareadsalot
The Spoils of Victory by Jem Blackwing
5.0
I would like to thank GRR for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
This was an amazing start to a promising new series!!!
Def gave me soft Captive Prince vibes, and even being vibe-adjacent, i think that's pretty much the highest compliment I could ever give an MM historical fantasy romance! And tbh, i don't think i've ever thought that about anything i'd read post CPT before!
So woooow way to go, Jem Blackwing, for bringing IT!
The Spoils of Victory very much stands on its own merit though, because it had some MEGA world building, and much, much more sexy sexy love! And though there was a "Damen" (MC's name is Damon lol) but no "Laurent", i thought the whole world, with its lore and politics and religion in play, was "Laurent" in spirit ;p i was fully enthralled and loved every second of this story! Even the parts that made me ferocious!
I'm looking at you, Damon-in-the-last-15%!!!
Ugh i was soooo mad at him, the blasted fool! And there absolutely should have been waaayyyyy more groveling!!! Lyr was a precious pumpkin from start to finish and Damon should have known better!
But ultimately, I was just so blown away by Jem's excellent narrative, and the brilliant characterization, and all the epic intricacies of bloodlines and culture, kingdoms and conquerors, that my superficial niggles paled in comparison to how much this book's quality kept feeding me!
The storytelling was so gripping!
For a fantasy romance.
I'm still speechless at what i got caught up in!
i legit got that feeling when your heart drops out of your body because the worst thing that could happen to your favourite characters happened and you forget to breathe!!
And yesss the last quarter of this was an emo rollercoaster for sure! but i'm now hooked on the feeling and i just want more of it in my brain!
Eager to see how this whole series will pan out because this beauty was a monster!
As an aside, i'm really hoping i've manifested an amazing series (tbc in the future obvs) that i can binge in the aftermath of the Captive Prince trilogy, which never fails to leave me despairing at the end of Kings Rising! and ofc no reread of CPT would be complete without leaving me with the most supreme book hangover like no other series can, so it's practically essential that Jem Blackwing delivers another win when Book Two in the Heirs of the Empire series, The Price of Freedom, comes out!
Ahhhhh Spring 2025 is so far away, but i'm a super fan of everything i've just read, and i'm sure it will be worth the wait!
This was an amazing start to a promising new series!!!
Def gave me soft Captive Prince vibes, and even being vibe-adjacent, i think that's pretty much the highest compliment I could ever give an MM historical fantasy romance! And tbh, i don't think i've ever thought that about anything i'd read post CPT before!
So woooow way to go, Jem Blackwing, for bringing IT!
The Spoils of Victory very much stands on its own merit though, because it had some MEGA world building, and much, much more sexy sexy love! And though there was a "Damen" (MC's name is Damon lol) but no "Laurent", i thought the whole world, with its lore and politics and religion in play, was "Laurent" in spirit ;p i was fully enthralled and loved every second of this story! Even the parts that made me ferocious!
I'm looking at you, Damon-in-the-last-15%!!!
Ugh i was soooo mad at him, the blasted fool! And there absolutely should have been waaayyyyy more groveling!!! Lyr was a precious pumpkin from start to finish and Damon should have known better!
But ultimately, I was just so blown away by Jem's excellent narrative, and the brilliant characterization, and all the epic intricacies of bloodlines and culture, kingdoms and conquerors, that my superficial niggles paled in comparison to how much this book's quality kept feeding me!
The storytelling was so gripping!
For a fantasy romance.
I'm still speechless at what i got caught up in!
i legit got that feeling when your heart drops out of your body because the worst thing that could happen to your favourite characters happened and you forget to breathe!!
And yesss the last quarter of this was an emo rollercoaster for sure! but i'm now hooked on the feeling and i just want more of it in my brain!
Eager to see how this whole series will pan out because this beauty was a monster!
As an aside, i'm really hoping i've manifested an amazing series (tbc in the future obvs) that i can binge in the aftermath of the Captive Prince trilogy, which never fails to leave me despairing at the end of Kings Rising! and ofc no reread of CPT would be complete without leaving me with the most supreme book hangover like no other series can, so it's practically essential that Jem Blackwing delivers another win when Book Two in the Heirs of the Empire series, The Price of Freedom, comes out!
Ahhhhh Spring 2025 is so far away, but i'm a super fan of everything i've just read, and i'm sure it will be worth the wait!