REVIEW: The Songbird and the Heart of Stone by Carissa Broadbent
Okay friends, when I tell you that Carissa Broadbent is on FIRE in The Songbird and the Heart of Stone, I mean she set my heart and soul aflame and then remorselessly left them burnt to a withered crisp by the end. Get ready to sink your teeth into a brand-new exquisitely soul-stirring and divinely epic slow-burn fantasy romance full of death, desire, treachery and heart-wrenching emotions that just bleed off the page.
First things first, let me share an important message: The Songbird and the Heart of Stone might be the first book in the new Shadowborn Duet, but you do not (I repeat, DO NOT) start your journey into the Crowns of Nyaxia world here. Sure, Broadbent’s writing is absolutely strong and captivating enough that you could be a rebel and skip the preceding Nightborn Duet, starting with Serpent and the Wings of Night, but why would you do that and miss out on a lot of important context as well as deprive yourself of another phenomenal blood-soaked love story?
Okay, with that out of the way, it’s time to let the gush fest begin! From the moment I met Mische in The Serpent and the Wings of Night, she immediately became one of my favourite characters of the entire series. Although she could come across a bit vapid and shallow at times, I had a feeling there was a lot of pain and trauma hiding behind the mask of giddy smiles and relentless optimism, which I could not wait to dig into in The Songbird and the Heart of Stone.
Now, when Mische set off to discover the world on her own at the end of the Nightborn Duet, I was not expecting to meet her again as she is thrust into the underworld together with the bastard heir of The House of Shadows (and his spirit wolf, Luce, the true MVP of the show) on a deadly quest to resurrect the God of Death. But holy smokes, did this end up to be exactly the adventure that my dark hole of a soul wanted and needed; to my huge surprise, there wasn’t even a single moment where I missed Raihn and Oraya, and I am now just as (if not more) invested in Asar and Mishe’s story.
First of all, these two are quite literally the perfect embodiment of the grumpy/sunshine trope, and I absolutely loved how their effortlessly amusing dynamic added so much heart and humour to this otherwise dark and emotionally draining story. Broadbent really is the queen of the slow-burn for me, and the way that Mische and Asar semi-reluctantly started to bond throughout this harrowing journey and eventually help each each other understand what honest love and devotion is supposed to feel like just tugged on my heartstrings in all the best ways. The reason why their romance feels so believable and intimately vulnerable to me, is because the physical/sexual attraction comes second to their emotional attraction and bonding; this is exactly what ultimately makes The Songbird and the Heart of Stone stand out in the crowded romantasy space for me.
Moreover, while there is plenty of action (of both the fighting and the steamy kind, hello delicious blood sucking scene!!!) to satisfy the plot-driven readers, my character-driven heart was truly sucking up all the inner turmoil, unpacking of trauma and the unravelling of all the complex interpersonal relationships. Especially Mische’s complicated dynamic with her god Atroxus had me in an absolute chokehold, and I really appreciated the authentic and deeply vulnerable exploration of themes of (childhood) trauma, faith, devotion, vengeance, forgiveness (of others and oneself), and the dangerously thin line between love and hate.
The emotional character journey in The Songbird and the Heart of Stone is honestly more multi-layered and tear-inducing than an onion, and I absolutely loved how Broadbent meticulously heightened the stakes, increased the tension, and peeled back a new layer of complexity and emotional depth every time these characters progressed to a deeper level of the underworld. In both flashbacks and the present, we see Mische and Asar as they are quite literally being hunted and haunted by the ghosts of their pasts, which not only unveiled their intriguingly dark backstories in the most enticing way possible, but also established such a deep emotional connection for me that was honestly not safe for my own sanity.
Now, while this book started out with immediate ‘new favourite’ potential for me because its vibe and aesthetic reminded me so heavily of other deliciously dark fantasy favourites like Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff or Asunder by Kerstin Hall, I do personally think the second half is where the true gold can be found. Especially parts 2 and 3 felt slightly hectic and oddly paced to me, with some important character/relationship progression happening off screen and side characters not getting the development I was hoping for.
Those little nitpicks didn’t stop me from obsessively devouring this book like nobody’s business, yet it was in part 4 (of 7) that I think Broadbent just fully hit her stride; from that point onwards, we just go through the wildest emotional rollercoaster, leading straight up to a brutally bittersweet ending that I could/should have seen coming yet which still ripped my heart out of my chest and left me staring blankly at a wall for a few minutes. The audacity to end with such a diabolical cliffhanger of an ending, and then make me wait for book 2… unacceptable, but I love the heartache.
In my humble opinion, The Songbird and the Heart of Stone is not only Broadbent’s best work to date, but it also just raised the bar for every other dark romantasy to come. With its deeply flawed yet lovable morally grey characters, cutthroat vampire politics, haunting imagery, blood-soaked history and rich lore, fickle meddling gods, dangerous necromancy, and exquisite levels of emotional destruction, even the most cold-hearted grimdark enthusiasts will find much to love in The Crowns of Nyaxia series; also, it’s got a loyal skeletal spirit wolf companion, what more could you ask for?!
Thank you to Tor Bramble for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The Songbird and the Heart of Stone is scheduled for release on November 19, 2024.
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