A review by fortissimofvck
King of Wrath by Ana Huang

emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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

5.0

I absolutely love Ana and her books! I finished her Twisted series last year and only now got around to reading Kings of Sin, and all I can say is WOW. The way Vivian's character developed to the point where she finally stood up to her father was absolutely a thrill to read and I was so happy for her when she did it. She also might just be my favorite female MC Ana has written so far; she's witty and sarcastic, and her banters with Dante were nothing if not an absolute joy to read. Dante going from judging her and keeping her at arm's length just because he was forced into the marriage to slowly falling in love with her and realizing she's nothing like her father was extremely heartwarming to read as well. Out of all her main MCs, so far Dante is probably my favorite. I don't even know if it was intentional or not, but the little quirks she gave him (spacing his candles exactly certain inches apart or hating when his food touches) felt like reading about an autistic character which I also absolutely adored.  But I did draw a good number of broken hearts and sad emojis while annotating it, especially during the scene where he brought her
takeout from her favorite sushi restaurant, only to have a fight with her about her ex-boyfriend just before he could share it with her.
The spice was also absolutely delicious, as always, and my god if Dante's words didn't unlock a new kink in me. Especially the limousine scene with the seats... But their breakup absolutely broke me. Thank god Dante is a man in love who genuinely tried winning her back, even going as far as to pretend they're total strangers who're meeting for the first time. I want a love like theirs:(

Some of my favorite scenes and quotes, in chronological order:
  1. Most engagement rings were a symbol of love and commitment. Mine was the equivalent of a signature on a merger contract.
  2. It was one of my favorite things about her, even though I shouldn't have a favorite anything about her.
  3. Sitting at the bottom of the bag, nestled between paper-wrapped cutlery and a plethora of sauces, were two takeout boxes from my favorite sushi restaurant. </3
  4. "I still love you. You know that. I've always loved you. If it weren't for your parents..." His head lowered. "Damnit, Viv. It was supposed to be us." "I know." The thickness of her voice made my gut twist. "But it's not." "Do you love him?" My gut twisted further at Vivian's long pause. "You don't," Heath said. "If you did, you wouldn't hesitate." "It's not that simple." I'd heard enough. "Next time you try to steal a man's fiancee," I said, my voice deadly calm despite the rage tunneling through me. "Don't be stupid enough to do it in his house." Heath whipped around. Surprise flashed through his eyes, but he didn't get the chance to react before I hauled my arm back and slammed my fist into his face.
  5. "Heath said he still loves you. Enough to go against your parents, and me, to be with you. But you broke up two years ago and he didn't do a damn thing about it until he found out you were engaged. You want to know the truth, Vivian? If I loved you as much as he claims to love you, nothing would've stopped me from keeping you.
  6. WHEN HE TOOK HER ON A DATE IN THE VALHALLA'S LIBRARY AND PROJECTED THE STARS ON THE SKY BECAUSE "you can't see the stars in New York. So I brought the stars to you."
  7. the Paris date and Vivian's: Like I said, I'd been to Paris many times. but this was the first time I was actually falling in love in the City of Love.
  8. "You and me, sweetheart. That's the destination. And I'm willing to take as many steps as I need to get there.
  9. THE DEVELOPMENT OF HIM GIVING HER THE FAMILY HEIRLOOM RING WHEN HE PROPOSED OUT OF LOVE AS OPPOSED TO THE DIAMOND ONE WHEN THEIR MARRIAGE WAS JUST ARRANGED