I am the Nightborn King,” I said, voice low and deadly. “Do you think I’m going to beg for your respect? I don’t need your respect. Your fear will do. Bow.” The underdevelopment of the villains. We all clearly hate the villains, but I wanted to loathe them. I think there was one too many, and I wanted to get to know them a little deeper as well. But with enemies closing in on all sides, nothing is as it seems. As she unravels her past and faces her future, Oraya finds herself forced to choose between the bloody reality of seizing power – and the devastating love that could be her downfall.

But when what begins as a simple transaction gradually becomes something more, Lilith is faced with a terrifying realization: It’s dangerous to wander into the clutches of a vampire… and in a place already suffering a god’s wrath, more dangerous still to fall in love with one. It was a very difficult road, but ultimately, I feel really proud of where this story ended up. I hope you absolutely love it! The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King – The second book of the core series, which also includes the main characters of Six Scorched Roses as side characters. some would call what he did brainwashing (me? never 🤭). and the best part of this book, unquestionably, undoubtably Vincent and how his complex bond with Oraya was explored. how his past was explored. i loved his influence on her so much. 💘 I wanted to capture him like rainwater. I wanted to savor him like blood. I wanted him to open me and touch everything within me that I’d hidden away from the world.This book is perfect and a masterpiece and I can't thank Carissa enough for it. I can't even describe in words how much I loved it. This has become one of my forever favourite fantasy books. his character, i feel, is the most complex i've seen in so long. the cold lonely king, afraid to open himself up to love because he knew it was the only weakness people had. but he just couldn't help loving his wife, his daughter to pieces. and it destroyed him. I just loved this book, it’s so hard for me to write this. I just want you to read it and love it and thank me for recommending it. 🥹 Thoughts on the Characters And the grovelling and begging by Raihn was just everything! He just ruined me because the way he begged Oraya just so he could worship her as a goddess as a queen was just 😭🤌 i wanted it to be enjoyable but i dreaded reading up to 40% of this and this book is LONG. very, unnecessarily long. i love carissa's writing sm but i feel like she did way too much with this book and an editor was desperately needed.

I realized that it was the stare of a scientist, someone used to analysing things and taking them apart. A little spark of relief came with this realization. Because that, at least, was something I understood. Maybe Vale and I were worlds apart in every way—human and vampire, lord and peasant, near-immortal and pitifully ephemeral—but if we had that, it was already more than I had in common with most of the people I’d grown up with.” It is RELEASE DAY! It's honestly a bit surreal. This was one of the hardest books I've ever written for a number of reasons, from health issues to deadline stress, but the biggest of which was that I so desperately wanted to make sure that it does Oraya's story justice for the (totally unexpected) huge number of readers who connected with her in book 1. I think this is what I loved most about this story, how the author was able to explore complicated human emotions and relationships, and its costs. I am queen just as much as he is king. When we’ve reclaimed our kingdom, I intend to rule beside him as such.”

If you switched from a Rhysand girlie to a Cassian girlie, congrats, you will also go from a Raihn girlie to a Vale girlie. It is a canon event, I cannot interfere. You and I are the same. There is no one I would rather have ruling this kingdom beside me than you." In the nearer term, Slaying the Vampire Conqueror, a standalone full-length novel in the Crowns of Nyaxia world, is coming in just two weeks, if you need to ease your book hangover. ;) But I'll save all that rambling for another time.

it was beautiful, seeing him opening up to Oraya. about his motivations, his loneliness, the way he'd do anything for her to just be okay again. The ending was fitting. It came round full circle in a way that had me squealing. And it has made me extremely excited to see where the author will take this world next. We know whose story is coming next thanks to the Author’s Note. This series is the definition of an amazing slow burn, and the author managed to do it in both books, which made Rhain and Oraya’s romance even better. They are both layered and have complex emotions that create a tumultuous relationship, but one that is sooooooo good. There is no insta-love here, only raw and confused feelings, hurt, angst, and despite all that happened at the end of the first book, honesty. Rhain and Oraya both have to work hard to rebuild the trust that was shattered and seeing them tiptoe around each other while feeling such intense emotions and trying to stifle their urge to jump into bed together was a pure delight.

A novella set within the world of Nyaxia, this story focused on Lilith and how her encounter with Vale, a vampire set off a chain reaction all from a deal she made with him. With the town Lilith grew up in having succumbed to a deadly disease, everyone was dying, and it seemed like nothing would be able to save everyone. Until, Lilith took it upon herself to seek out Vale and make him an offer that would ensure she’d get what she needed to help save those closest to her. With a deal made of offering six roses in exchange for six vials of Vale’s blood, Lilith and Vale were now in agreement of it. This novella kind of gave me, “Beauty and the Beast” vibes in the way that Vale was a reclusive vampire who was also kind of a grump, and Lilith was an intelligent woman willing to do anything to find a cure. The details mentioned in this novella would later prove to be significant so, I was more than ready to read this story and see what happened between Lilith and Vale. Lilith has been dying since the day she was born. While she has since come to terms with her own death, the deaths of everyone she loves is a completely different matter. As the town she calls home slowly withers away due to a mysterious god-cursed illness, Lilith takes matters into her own hands. Vincent - ”I will not lie to you, little serpent. I was expecting to kill you that night. But what I was not expecting was to love you so devastatingly much.” Although gone, Vincent does not leave us or Oraya in book two. Personally my favorite character from book one after being the most interesting and compelling. Vincent’s story and past gets peeked into as Oraya struggles with her love and hatred for her father and his actions. To my gorgeous and lovely friends Lyra and Vio. I had so much fun reading this book with you 💗 we were crying, screaming and fang-girling in our group and It was chaotic but I enjoyed every minute of reading this book with you. Can't wait to do more BRs with you and I love both of you so much 🫶 If I haven't already, this is where I’ll lose a lot of you... This is really about personal preference, but “There she is” does not do it for me. When this line was used in the first book, it neither delighted nor irritated me. But the amount of times it was repeated in this book took me out of moments between our main characters that I would’ve otherwise been very invested in. A couple of other repeated lines were a bit cringe, too, but I do think there are many beautiful quotes throughout this book.