4.5

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this book. I honestly went in with low expectations because I read another book by this author and I DNF it. But, I absolutely loved this one!

This book follows Oraya, a human who is adopted by a vampire who is also the king of the Night court. As she grows up, she is constantly surrounded by predators. Despite the work she puts into becoming strong. Because of this, she has a lot of trust issues with everyone around her. She decides to enter a tournament, where the winner is granted a wish from their goddess Nyaxia. In this tournament, she unexpectedly meets a vampire named Raihn who unexpectedly breaks her walls down. As the tournament goes on there are dangers all around her and yet romance unexpectedly ensues. She may have to pick between her wish of becoming a strong vampire and her love. 

Although this fantasies major plot line is built the way a lot of typical fantasies were written (tournament, unexpected, love, forbidden romance) it’s the secrets and the way the author builds the characters up that make you so addicted. You know there is more than what you’re reading, and she does a really good way of setting up the secrets that when they revealed they are predictable but still so enjoyable to read. 

I loved all the characters in this book. Every character, I just wanted to know more of and every interaction, the dialogue and the buildup was so enjoyable.

The only thing I wish I got more from this book was the world building and understanding of the political climate between all the houses. When some of the reveals came up, I was a little lost, because I didn’t fully understand the political climate in this world. It all made sense in the end, but, I didn’t like that. I had to wait until the end for all of it to make sense.

I am immediately diving into the novella, and I am very excited to read the second book. This book is not perfectly written, but it is so easy to enjoy, and I absolutely loved it.

I also recommend listening to the audiobook. It was very enjoyable, and the narrator is the same voice actress that did the ACOTAR series (not the dramatized version)