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The Eye of the Goddess #2
A Vow of Embers
A princess’s forced marriage to a dangerously seductive prince becomes a life-and-death alliance in an exhilarating adventure by Sariah Wilson, the USA Today bestselling author of A Tribute of Fire.
Lia is always prepared for battle, but being blackmailed into marriage by Prince Alexandros is a challenge too far. She has no choice. He’s holding her sister hostage to force her hand. But with this union built on betrayal and rage comes a contract. By the goddess’s law, the marriage must not be consummated. A relief to Lia. She’d rather commit regicide than fall into bed with a man she loathes.
There is one other saving grace. Marriage gives Lia access to the palace and a chance to uncover the truth about the treasured eye of the goddess—and the magic it holds. But something inexplicable and impossible to ignore soon binds Lia and the prince. By night they walk in each other’s dreams, and by day they share each other’s pain.
As longing and trust grow between Lia and Alexandros and inhibited desires are set free, outside forces rise against them, posing an ever-present danger. Not only to the throne but to their very lives.
Lia is always prepared for battle, but being blackmailed into marriage by Prince Alexandros is a challenge too far. She has no choice. He’s holding her sister hostage to force her hand. But with this union built on betrayal and rage comes a contract. By the goddess’s law, the marriage must not be consummated. A relief to Lia. She’d rather commit regicide than fall into bed with a man she loathes.
There is one other saving grace. Marriage gives Lia access to the palace and a chance to uncover the truth about the treasured eye of the goddess—and the magic it holds. But something inexplicable and impossible to ignore soon binds Lia and the prince. By night they walk in each other’s dreams, and by day they share each other’s pain.
As longing and trust grow between Lia and Alexandros and inhibited desires are set free, outside forces rise against them, posing an ever-present danger. Not only to the throne but to their very lives.
584 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 8, 2025
1249 people are currently reading
12776 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 795 reviews
May 3, 2025
4.25 ⭐️ Even better than book 1! Picks up RIGHT after the ending of book 1 and the character & plot developments in this were just wonderful. I NEED book 3!!
July 10, 2025
I'm sad
*light spoilers, maybe?*
this book has me reeling with frustration. I was looking forward to learning more about the eye and the temple, how all of that would unravel. Instead it was 500 pages of her hating him, but her "body betrays her" *eye roll*. Literally nothing happens until 90% in. I don't think I've ever ended up hating a main character by the end of book two like this, she's so childish and so stuck in her hate and distrust, it was annoying, so much could have been fixed if she wasn't so awful and talked to people. MMC wasn't much better.
*light spoilers, maybe?*
this book has me reeling with frustration. I was looking forward to learning more about the eye and the temple, how all of that would unravel. Instead it was 500 pages of her hating him, but her "body betrays her" *eye roll*. Literally nothing happens until 90% in. I don't think I've ever ended up hating a main character by the end of book two like this, she's so childish and so stuck in her hate and distrust, it was annoying, so much could have been fixed if she wasn't so awful and talked to people. MMC wasn't much better.
July 9, 2025
500+ pages of 2 characters deciding whether or not to have sex. Spoiler alert — they don’t. And then 40 pages of actual story at the end. Get an editor.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 8, 2025
1.5 ★— Oh man… where do I even begin?
The first book in this series wasn’t perfect, but I genuinely had fun with it. It ended on such a juicy cliffhanger: Lia discovering that the sailor she’d been seeing, Jason, was actually Prince Alexandros, the very man she was once betrothed to before fleeing her home. Naturally, I was hyped.
I was ready for all the tropes: yearning, unresolved tension, enemies to lovers angst, an engagement loaded with resentment and heat, and, of course, some progression in the overarching plot involving the Eye of the Goddess and the priestesses.
What I got instead was… 600 pages of absolutely nothing.
The book is just the FMC, Lia, oscillating between being desperately horny for the MMC, saying she hates him, getting jealous, being mad for no reason, and then horny again. Rinse and repeat. There’s a near hate-sex scene every other chapter. Everyone around her keeps telling her how much Xander loves her, but she either denies it, ignores it, or spirals into some self-pitying, contradictory monologue while still being jealous and touch-starved. Also, there’s body betrayal in every third chapter. No exaggeration.
Oh, and let’s not forget that he kisses another woman. For no reason. Because why not?
You want plot? There is none. The central story around the Eye of the Goddess is basically untouched until the last 80% of the story. It honestly felt like the author wanted to stall any real plot development to stretch the series out, but didn’t fill the space with meaningful character work either.
And that’s the real tragedy here: if you’re going to pause plot progression, you better give us compelling character dynamics! But nope, that wasn’t present here either.
Lia devolved into someone irrational, constantly angry, horny, jealous, and weirdly oblivious to everything going on around her (including her own sister’s painfully obvious romantic situation). Xander, once a character with some personality, got flattened into a cardboard alpha male whose main function was to put Lia on her back and declare vague feelings of lust for her without any other substance.
Even the steamy scenes fell flat because I was so annoyed by both of them at that point. There was no tension anymore, just exhausting repetition.
It’s so disappointing because the setup had so much potential: an arranged marriage between two characters with a tangled past and tons of emotional baggage? That’s interesting. That’s tension. That’s fertile ground for drama, angst and development! But all that was squandered here in favor of horny filler and character regression.
This book actively made me like the characters less and killed any interest I had in the ongoing story. I can’t believe I read almost 600 pages of this.
The first book in this series wasn’t perfect, but I genuinely had fun with it. It ended on such a juicy cliffhanger: Lia discovering that the sailor she’d been seeing, Jason, was actually Prince Alexandros, the very man she was once betrothed to before fleeing her home. Naturally, I was hyped.
I was ready for all the tropes: yearning, unresolved tension, enemies to lovers angst, an engagement loaded with resentment and heat, and, of course, some progression in the overarching plot involving the Eye of the Goddess and the priestesses.
What I got instead was… 600 pages of absolutely nothing.
The book is just the FMC, Lia, oscillating between being desperately horny for the MMC, saying she hates him, getting jealous, being mad for no reason, and then horny again. Rinse and repeat. There’s a near hate-sex scene every other chapter. Everyone around her keeps telling her how much Xander loves her, but she either denies it, ignores it, or spirals into some self-pitying, contradictory monologue while still being jealous and touch-starved. Also, there’s body betrayal in every third chapter. No exaggeration.
Oh, and let’s not forget that he kisses another woman. For no reason. Because why not?
You want plot? There is none. The central story around the Eye of the Goddess is basically untouched until the last 80% of the story. It honestly felt like the author wanted to stall any real plot development to stretch the series out, but didn’t fill the space with meaningful character work either.
And that’s the real tragedy here: if you’re going to pause plot progression, you better give us compelling character dynamics! But nope, that wasn’t present here either.
Lia devolved into someone irrational, constantly angry, horny, jealous, and weirdly oblivious to everything going on around her (including her own sister’s painfully obvious romantic situation). Xander, once a character with some personality, got flattened into a cardboard alpha male whose main function was to put Lia on her back and declare vague feelings of lust for her without any other substance.
Even the steamy scenes fell flat because I was so annoyed by both of them at that point. There was no tension anymore, just exhausting repetition.
It’s so disappointing because the setup had so much potential: an arranged marriage between two characters with a tangled past and tons of emotional baggage? That’s interesting. That’s tension. That’s fertile ground for drama, angst and development! But all that was squandered here in favor of horny filler and character regression.
This book actively made me like the characters less and killed any interest I had in the ongoing story. I can’t believe I read almost 600 pages of this.
July 10, 2025
This is a filler book
The first book was awesome, but this book seems to be a filler book. Honestly, if you read the first few chapters and the last few at the end, you would get the gist of the entire book without having to read the entire thing that honestly reads as a bad bitter woman sitcom. The main character comes off as childish, immature, and just plain idiotic. Nothing like the personality in the first book, a huge disappointment.
The first book was awesome, but this book seems to be a filler book. Honestly, if you read the first few chapters and the last few at the end, you would get the gist of the entire book without having to read the entire thing that honestly reads as a bad bitter woman sitcom. The main character comes off as childish, immature, and just plain idiotic. Nothing like the personality in the first book, a huge disappointment.
April 16, 2025
4.5⭐️ rounding up bc this series is so good but I gotta knock half a star bc the miscommunication trope is driving me INSANE and this was almost 600 pages of it 😩 but overall WOW such an incredible story. Just as engaging and page turning as book 1. That cliff hanger GAHHHHHHH what the heck!!!!!! This is all I’m going to be thinking about!!!!!! The found family is just 🤌🏼🤌🏼 and I’m starting to be emotionally attached to all the characters like that ending 😭😭😭😭😭 I need book 3 now pls!!!!!
July 9, 2025
The miscommunication trope drove me ✨insane✨ during this book which is annoying because I actually like the plot / magic system / world building
July 18, 2025
Thank god it’s over. That took me days to finish and it was painful. I couldn’t get past a few pages without being throughly annoyed and needing a break.
Lia is one of the worst FMC I’ve read. This entire book is basically just her being a horny virgin with no self control and anger issues. She is manipulated by basically everyone around her. Funny she’s not allowed to feel anything about what’s happening to her. It’s all just wrong and she’s being ridiculous according to her sisters, Xander, his brothers, and her own lying sister.
The emotional manipulation by Xander is unbelievable. Especially since everyone keeps telling her he’s not the one in the wrong. He purposely makes sure she watches him kiss another woman but some how he’s not a bad guy?! F that. He’s a total piece of shit. Even if he believes she truly loves someone else back home that’s not an excuse for his treatment of her. It also makes him an idiot to believe such a bs story.
Io could die and I would be ecstatic! Quhyn could die and I wouldn’t be bothered either.
Nothing happens in this book. Hundreds of pages of pure nothingness. All it is is her wanting him but hating that she wants him. Him lying about wanting her when it’s convenient for him. Io trying to get them to have sex by literally any means necessary.
Lia has no backbone. She doesn’t stand up for herself. She may get mad and throw knives but as soon as someone tells her she’s being unreasonable she gives up. She can’t even tell Io no to wearing dresses that make her uncomfortable. What a great FMC she makes.
Nothing covered in this book adds much to the overall plot. There’s some random crap with step mommy and the council that just seems like filler. The queen doesn’t seem like much of a threat even though it’s been implied she’s trying to kill them. They go around screaming on balconies their entire plan and bitching at each other about how it’s a fake marriage. Yet it’s supposed to be some huge secret?! As if nobody else in the castle can hear their shit?! Get real.
We get a small slice of the actual threat at the end but they’re all so far off the mark of what’s happening around them that is amazes me they’re all even still alive. Two books in and they aren’t even working as a team. I’m not sure why she should feel compelled to save Illion. They are in a mess of their own making. But Io and the sisters all make her feel like she should spread her legs and comply with anything Xander says so Illion can be saved disregarding the fact she’s trying to save her own dying nation.
At this point it’s not compelling enough to get me to read the final book when it comes out. I knew I wasn’t going to like the second book since I barely liked the first. But the overall plot was intriguing enough to read it. But that plot has been so far forgotten in this book that I just don’t care.
LUNA is the only good thing in this book. She’s obviously a dragon and I’m sad I won’t get to see that happen if I don’t finish.
I knew one of them was the bird!!
I find Dolion to be very sketch… HoA probably. Or working for the queen.
Lia is one of the worst FMC I’ve read. This entire book is basically just her being a horny virgin with no self control and anger issues. She is manipulated by basically everyone around her. Funny she’s not allowed to feel anything about what’s happening to her. It’s all just wrong and she’s being ridiculous according to her sisters, Xander, his brothers, and her own lying sister.
The emotional manipulation by Xander is unbelievable. Especially since everyone keeps telling her he’s not the one in the wrong. He purposely makes sure she watches him kiss another woman but some how he’s not a bad guy?! F that. He’s a total piece of shit. Even if he believes she truly loves someone else back home that’s not an excuse for his treatment of her. It also makes him an idiot to believe such a bs story.
Io could die and I would be ecstatic! Quhyn could die and I wouldn’t be bothered either.
Nothing happens in this book. Hundreds of pages of pure nothingness. All it is is her wanting him but hating that she wants him. Him lying about wanting her when it’s convenient for him. Io trying to get them to have sex by literally any means necessary.
Lia has no backbone. She doesn’t stand up for herself. She may get mad and throw knives but as soon as someone tells her she’s being unreasonable she gives up. She can’t even tell Io no to wearing dresses that make her uncomfortable. What a great FMC she makes.
Nothing covered in this book adds much to the overall plot. There’s some random crap with step mommy and the council that just seems like filler. The queen doesn’t seem like much of a threat even though it’s been implied she’s trying to kill them. They go around screaming on balconies their entire plan and bitching at each other about how it’s a fake marriage. Yet it’s supposed to be some huge secret?! As if nobody else in the castle can hear their shit?! Get real.
We get a small slice of the actual threat at the end but they’re all so far off the mark of what’s happening around them that is amazes me they’re all even still alive. Two books in and they aren’t even working as a team. I’m not sure why she should feel compelled to save Illion. They are in a mess of their own making. But Io and the sisters all make her feel like she should spread her legs and comply with anything Xander says so Illion can be saved disregarding the fact she’s trying to save her own dying nation.
At this point it’s not compelling enough to get me to read the final book when it comes out. I knew I wasn’t going to like the second book since I barely liked the first. But the overall plot was intriguing enough to read it. But that plot has been so far forgotten in this book that I just don’t care.
LUNA is the only good thing in this book. She’s obviously a dragon and I’m sad I won’t get to see that happen if I don’t finish.
I knew one of them was the bird!!
I find Dolion to be very sketch… HoA probably. Or working for the queen.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 11, 2025
omg….
Look…. The story itself is good so I kept reading, but I feel that I’ve lost all common sense after reading it…. The push and pull between the two main characters was maddening. a slow burn is one thing I didn’t expect this whole book to be that way. there were a lot of repeated situations which really was unnecessary. There’s only so much you can write about a certain situation, but it was so drawn out PAINFULLY! I won’t lie I skipped thru most of it because it was so frustrating to read.
Look…. The story itself is good so I kept reading, but I feel that I’ve lost all common sense after reading it…. The push and pull between the two main characters was maddening. a slow burn is one thing I didn’t expect this whole book to be that way. there were a lot of repeated situations which really was unnecessary. There’s only so much you can write about a certain situation, but it was so drawn out PAINFULLY! I won’t lie I skipped thru most of it because it was so frustrating to read.
July 11, 2025
Not for me. The plot was 95% miscommunication/lack of any communication between the main couple. The last 5% some things started to pop off but l was just so incredibly frustrated with the repetitiveness. The main couple could have just served so much more in this book. I was left wanting the entire time. It became dull with the miscommunication and also having exact convos over and over again. It was paced so poorly and nothing really happens the entire book until the end.
July 29, 2025
4.5 ⭐️ this was such a fantastic second book! The cliffhanger at the end of book one had me so excited to start this, and it did not disappoint! There are so many enemies to lovers stories out there where the hate feels forced and then it’s overcome too quickly. This book was the opposite of that. The anger, betrayal, and frustration felt so natural and believable. The only thing stronger than those feelings was the TENSION between these two!! Their banter kept me giggling. The scenarios they ended up in had me at the edge of my seat dying to see who would break first! This is such a fun couple, and I really love watching them navigate the politics of their world. The ending was so good, and I can’t wait for the third book!!
March 31, 2025
I devoured the first book and was super excited when I had to opportunity to get an advanced copy of A Vow of Embers. One of my favorite times to read is on a road trip and I was SO excited to have this book to read on our long drive yesterday. I loved that it picks up right where the first book leaves off and we're brought right back into the action of everything going on. As always, the author writes a captivating story that is hard to put down. I love the characters and the overall plot. Really looking forward to the next book. Full review to come.
Content Rated R
The author does have a content disclaimer at the beginning of the book letting people know about the content and what chapters they may want to skip.
Romance: Not clean. Open-door intimacy between married couple. Nudity, kissing/touching, lusting
Language: None
Violence: Some fighting, talk of suicide
Content Rated R
The author does have a content disclaimer at the beginning of the book letting people know about the content and what chapters they may want to skip.
Romance: Not clean. Open-door intimacy between married couple. Nudity, kissing/touching, lusting
Language: None
Violence: Some fighting, talk of suicide
July 9, 2025
I loved the first book but this one was a bit of a let down, I was entertained the first 50%, like I was eating it up but it started to get repetitive. The FMC and MMC were annoying me SOOOOO much, the miscommunication made me want to throw my kindle across the room. They were both super annoying and a whole lot of nothing happened, until the last 10%. We could've cut out at least 200 pgs of the book out.
July 31, 2025
3.5 Stars ✨
Mythology/ Fantasy Romance
“But embers mean that the fire is still there. It can be revived. You only have to breathe on them to bring them back to life. And the tiniest of embers can create the mightiest of flames.”
I liked this one a lot more than the first , but the angst, miscommunication and bitterness kinda drove me bonkers. I like when books have banter, even the back and forth push and pull- but it was a bit overboard in my opinion. The plot is barely there and gets overshadowed because of the romance. What I did like was that both mcs have their own “crews” or found family. I enjoyed getting to know those characters better in this installment. They add more to the story. Overall, I found this book to be a filler to get us to the final. Nothing really happens until about 70% in. Hoping the last book will have more plot and less emotional bickering.
Content ⚠️
-no language
-heavy suggestive dialogue but no explicit intimate scenes (chapters 63&64)
Mythology/ Fantasy Romance
“But embers mean that the fire is still there. It can be revived. You only have to breathe on them to bring them back to life. And the tiniest of embers can create the mightiest of flames.”
I liked this one a lot more than the first , but the angst, miscommunication and bitterness kinda drove me bonkers. I like when books have banter, even the back and forth push and pull- but it was a bit overboard in my opinion. The plot is barely there and gets overshadowed because of the romance. What I did like was that both mcs have their own “crews” or found family. I enjoyed getting to know those characters better in this installment. They add more to the story. Overall, I found this book to be a filler to get us to the final. Nothing really happens until about 70% in. Hoping the last book will have more plot and less emotional bickering.
Content ⚠️
-no language
-heavy suggestive dialogue but no explicit intimate scenes (chapters 63&64)
July 12, 2025
I ADORED A Tribute of Fire. I waited for A Vow of Embers. What a disappointment after great character development in the first book. Lia was a quirky, plucky, endearing heroine in book 1. I listened to the sequel on audio. 18 hours of listening to her say over and over again that she had to stick to her vows, but her body betrayed her was painful. The miscommunication trope was 300 pages too long. There were so many moments when an actual truthful conversation was just about to happen, and then some idiot would open their bedroom door without knocking. Seriously?!!?! Jason was charming; Xander had very little charm. WHERE WAS THE EDITOR? I gave it 2 stars bc the last 1.5 hours furthered the plot. I really hope the editor and author read the comments and take them into consideration. I absolutely adored the first book. I will read the 3rd book because I am hoping this one was an anomaly. Please bring back the characters we loved!
May 21, 2025
I DESPERATELY need more people to read this series. This book was spectacular and I stayed up until 4 am for 3 consecutive days reading it because I simply COULD NOT put it down. I love fantasy; but I also know that it’s hard to write truly GOOD fantasy, and Sariah was able to do just that. The characters, the plot, the tension and yearning, it was all simply incredible. I LOVE that the relationship between the FMC & MC did not cement in the first book (and tiny spoiler! not the second book either) which is EXACTLY how you develop a romantasy series. I CANNOT wait for book 3, this is easily becoming one of my most favorite romantasy series.
Sariah Wilson thank you SO SO much for sending me the first book as an ARC last year and the second ARC this year. You’ve made me indescribably happy and I cannot wait to see what you have in stores for us!!! 💙💙💙
Sariah Wilson thank you SO SO much for sending me the first book as an ARC last year and the second ARC this year. You’ve made me indescribably happy and I cannot wait to see what you have in stores for us!!! 💙💙💙
September 21, 2025
2.5⭐️ I’m really conflicted reviewing this book. I want to let you know that I absolutely loved the first book! ‘A Vow of Embers’ was one of my most anticipated releases of this year!
with that being said, this was unfortunetly a let down in my eyes.. it makes me SO sad I didn’t love this as much as ‘A Tribute of Fire’! all the reviews so far are super positive, so I don’t get why I didn’t have the same experience😞 I wanna give actual feedback and explain my reasonings instead of just saying ‘I DiDn’T LiKe ThIs BoOk’.
to me this book was a filler book - it felt like nothing happened - except for getting a deeper understanding oft the lore, history and background character information. this book is very much suffering from second-book-syndrome. it might me setting up for the 3rd book, but I just wish this one had more plot. one of the things I liked in the first book was trying to come up with theories based on information-sprinkles through-out the book, but all the foreshadowing seemed so obvious in this one (but that might just be because I’m a seasoned fantasy reader)🤷♀️
I got an ARC/uncorrected proof, so this might have been changed in the final book, but the first half has SO many over explanations. to give an example; at some point they are having an argument and it says ’she stomped off, telling us with her feed how annoyed she was by his request’. we know you stomp when you are annoyed, we don’t need an explanation on that. this might not seem like a big deal, but when it happens MULTIPLE times, it gets tiresome.
and the “romance”?! I think this is one of the most frustrating romances I have read in a LOOOONG time!😫 *cue Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘1 step forward, 3 steps back‘* but make it 12 steps back instead. OMG this was so frustrating!! they are running in circles and get absolutely NOWHERE. them 🤝🏼 miscommunication :[
it made sense in the beginning of the book after the cliffhanger from book one, but then it just NEVER ended🤦🏼♀️ Alexandros infuriated me🤬 and everyone is telling Lia to make it work and that they belong together, but I couldn’t agree less! if I found me a man like him who keeps acting like a dumb immature boy who lies instead of communicating you’d never see me again!🏃🏼♀️ I sadly stopped rooting for them completely 😭 their ‘relationsship’ is too toxic for my liking and her friends (*cough cough* Io) meddle way too much!
I feel like the author did a great job at keeping the story/lore cohesive, but there were two important things that makes absolutely no sense at all; why Qyuonh was kept in chains + why she would allow it and what was revealed in the end. there were two sentences said by the same person (I can’t tell you who because that would be a spoiler) but they fully contradict each other🤦🏼♀️ to me it makes so sense
so all in all; this book wasn’t for me. the first one was amazing and because of that I can see myself reading the 3rd book, but this one was sadly not for me 😞
Thank you to Sariah Wilson for the ARC 🙏🏼
0.75/5🌶️
with that being said, this was unfortunetly a let down in my eyes.. it makes me SO sad I didn’t love this as much as ‘A Tribute of Fire’! all the reviews so far are super positive, so I don’t get why I didn’t have the same experience😞 I wanna give actual feedback and explain my reasonings instead of just saying ‘I DiDn’T LiKe ThIs BoOk’.
to me this book was a filler book - it felt like nothing happened - except for getting a deeper understanding oft the lore, history and background character information. this book is very much suffering from second-book-syndrome. it might me setting up for the 3rd book, but I just wish this one had more plot. one of the things I liked in the first book was trying to come up with theories based on information-sprinkles through-out the book, but all the foreshadowing seemed so obvious in this one (but that might just be because I’m a seasoned fantasy reader)🤷♀️
I got an ARC/uncorrected proof, so this might have been changed in the final book, but the first half has SO many over explanations. to give an example; at some point they are having an argument and it says ’she stomped off, telling us with her feed how annoyed she was by his request’. we know you stomp when you are annoyed, we don’t need an explanation on that. this might not seem like a big deal, but when it happens MULTIPLE times, it gets tiresome.
and the “romance”?! I think this is one of the most frustrating romances I have read in a LOOOONG time!😫 *cue Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘1 step forward, 3 steps back‘* but make it 12 steps back instead. OMG this was so frustrating!! they are running in circles and get absolutely NOWHERE. them 🤝🏼 miscommunication :[
it made sense in the beginning of the book after the cliffhanger from book one, but then it just NEVER ended🤦🏼♀️ Alexandros infuriated me🤬 and everyone is telling Lia to make it work and that they belong together, but I couldn’t agree less! if I found me a man like him who keeps acting like a dumb immature boy who lies instead of communicating you’d never see me again!🏃🏼♀️ I sadly stopped rooting for them completely 😭 their ‘relationsship’ is too toxic for my liking and her friends (*cough cough* Io) meddle way too much!
I feel like the author did a great job at keeping the story/lore cohesive, but there were two important things that makes absolutely no sense at all; why Qyuonh was kept in chains + why she would allow it and what was revealed in the end. there were two sentences said by the same person (I can’t tell you who because that would be a spoiler) but they fully contradict each other🤦🏼♀️ to me it makes so sense
so all in all; this book wasn’t for me. the first one was amazing and because of that I can see myself reading the 3rd book, but this one was sadly not for me 😞
Thank you to Sariah Wilson for the ARC 🙏🏼
0.75/5🌶️
November 6, 2025
4.5⭐️🫑
For this book being almost 600 pages, I flew through it! The chapters are short, and I did not want to put it down.
It picks up right where book 1 ends. At first, I wasn't sure if I would remember all the details, but I was easily able to establish characters and events because the author effortlessly weaved it in without it being an info dump.
This is more character driven than plot driven, which I absolutely love! I loved the sisterhood relationships and how Lia grew over the book.
The yearning and tension were palpable. But at a certain point, I was internally screaming for them to just communicate! It was a lot of back and forth, but I still enjoyed it and cannot wait for book 3! The revelations and twists I did not see coming!! Absolutely recommend. Read A Tribute of Fire first.
Arranged marriage
Forced proximity
Prophecy
Court Intrigue
Found family
Miscommunication
Tension and yearning
For this book being almost 600 pages, I flew through it! The chapters are short, and I did not want to put it down.
It picks up right where book 1 ends. At first, I wasn't sure if I would remember all the details, but I was easily able to establish characters and events because the author effortlessly weaved it in without it being an info dump.
This is more character driven than plot driven, which I absolutely love! I loved the sisterhood relationships and how Lia grew over the book.
The yearning and tension were palpable. But at a certain point, I was internally screaming for them to just communicate! It was a lot of back and forth, but I still enjoyed it and cannot wait for book 3! The revelations and twists I did not see coming!! Absolutely recommend. Read A Tribute of Fire first.
Arranged marriage
Forced proximity
Prophecy
Court Intrigue
Found family
Miscommunication
Tension and yearning
October 5, 2025
I honestly feared this was a perpetual book that would never end. There was absolutely zero reason for this to be 500+ pages. I think I’ll still read the third book, but this was frustrating.
What worked for me:
- She knows how to write a kissing scene
- I still love the sisterhood (I know this is supposed to be my positive section but this one was so…man-ie compared to the first and IDK how I feel about that)
What didn’t work for me:
- ENDLESS MISCOMMUNICATION
- Constantly ricocheting between wanting to stab him, to then being so ~shocked~ by how sexually appealing she finds him
- How many times did she want to stab someone in this book? 372?
- We spend too much time in the main character’s head and operate with next to no descriptions of the physical world
- I feel like I’m missing some logical motivation/assumption. All of the obstacles just feel SILLY/invented just for the sake of having obstacles/conflict
- MC read as a literal jerk the entire time. His hot-and-cold + FC’s mind made for a miserable Act 2
- I think I could’ve cut 200 pages. I wish I was a beta reader with track changes and comments galore. I see the potential, and that’s what makes it so infuriating
- I need a scene grid here. So much repetition that didn’t move us closer toward anything
- This was the opposite of romantic. Angst and lust but no romance. I’m tired!
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⚠️ Content Warnings ⚠️
Spice level: Very detailed kissing scenes but no actual sex. Alongside the main character, we get to learn what boners are!
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death (+ of parent), suicide, sexual content
Minor: Pregnancy
What worked for me:
- She knows how to write a kissing scene
- I still love the sisterhood (I know this is supposed to be my positive section but this one was so…man-ie compared to the first and IDK how I feel about that)
What didn’t work for me:
- ENDLESS MISCOMMUNICATION
- Constantly ricocheting between wanting to stab him, to then being so ~shocked~ by how sexually appealing she finds him
- How many times did she want to stab someone in this book? 372?
- We spend too much time in the main character’s head and operate with next to no descriptions of the physical world
- I feel like I’m missing some logical motivation/assumption. All of the obstacles just feel SILLY/invented just for the sake of having obstacles/conflict
- MC read as a literal jerk the entire time. His hot-and-cold + FC’s mind made for a miserable Act 2
- I think I could’ve cut 200 pages. I wish I was a beta reader with track changes and comments galore. I see the potential, and that’s what makes it so infuriating
- I need a scene grid here. So much repetition that didn’t move us closer toward anything
- This was the opposite of romantic. Angst and lust but no romance. I’m tired!
Let’s Connect
---
⚠️ Content Warnings ⚠️
Spice level: Very detailed kissing scenes but no actual sex. Alongside the main character, we get to learn what boners are!
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death (+ of parent), suicide, sexual content
Minor: Pregnancy
July 29, 2025
honestly struggled whether to give it 2 or 3 stars but ultimately couldn't justify 3. I was super disappointed as I loved the 1st book. I feel that this book was a filler, and book 3 will be even better than the 1st (or arleast I hope)
95% of the book was "I hate you," but my body wants you, on a continuous loop. i felt i was screaming at my book most of the time (and not the happy kicking you feet scream). There was no real plot to the book. Even when they were uncovering information, it was nothing substantial. The last 5% of the book really kicked up, but I didn't feel the impact as much because I was so emotionally exhausted and frustrated with the back and forth childish relationships. can we normalise doing an amazing duoligy instead of having 3 books with boring filler of a 2nd book?
95% of the book was "I hate you," but my body wants you, on a continuous loop. i felt i was screaming at my book most of the time (and not the happy kicking you feet scream). There was no real plot to the book. Even when they were uncovering information, it was nothing substantial. The last 5% of the book really kicked up, but I didn't feel the impact as much because I was so emotionally exhausted and frustrated with the back and forth childish relationships. can we normalise doing an amazing duoligy instead of having 3 books with boring filler of a 2nd book?
July 29, 2025
I thoroughly enjoyed this 2nd book in this series! Enemies to lovers always entertain me! So do fantasy romances in general! I loved the dynamics between Lia and Prince Alexandros. They make quite a married couple. My views of the prince in both books have gone from love to hate to love to hate and back to love. His character makes me feel like I have more mental health problems than I actually do, lol! Bouncing back and forth between extremes. I hope there's gonna be more to this series. I'm not ready for the journey to end. This was a fantastic fantasy book with complex characters that I have become so invested in.
August 4, 2025
My most hated FMC. She was so annoying. 100% of this book was miscommunication and I hated every second of it. Nothing happened till like 95% of the book and it wasn’t even worth it 😩
July 7, 2025
This book was AMAZING!!! 10/10 one of my favorite books of all time!! A Tribute of Fire was also amazing but this one??? ABSOLUTE PERFECTION.
I don’t know how I’m supposed to wait for the next book to come out because I need more of Xander and Lia right now😭😭
Also, I cannot get over how beautiful the sisterhood in this book is.
Found family, slow burn, lots of action, a stubborn and strong and intelligent FMC, a strong and protective and smart MMC…this book has everything I could ever want and more.
The writing style is also just absolutely stunning.
Xander and Lia are now two of my favorite characters of all time, and Sariah Wilson has become one of my top favorite authors of all time.
EVERYONE WHO LOVES FANTASY NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK!!
I don’t know how I’m supposed to wait for the next book to come out because I need more of Xander and Lia right now😭😭
Also, I cannot get over how beautiful the sisterhood in this book is.
Found family, slow burn, lots of action, a stubborn and strong and intelligent FMC, a strong and protective and smart MMC…this book has everything I could ever want and more.
The writing style is also just absolutely stunning.
Xander and Lia are now two of my favorite characters of all time, and Sariah Wilson has become one of my top favorite authors of all time.
EVERYONE WHO LOVES FANTASY NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK!!
June 6, 2025
WOW. This story is one of those that sticks to your brain. Makes you want to keep reading all night. I think about this book, Lia, Jason, all the time! While I think Lia is a little wishy washy, she is young and learning who she is and what she stands for. She is brave and I love how this book showed her character development in the end. Truly one of the best stories I’ve had the pleasure of reading. Cannot wait for Book 3!
July 14, 2025
5 FCKIN STARS!!!!!!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
WHAT AN ABSOLUTE WILD RIDE. The way this book has consumed my entire life for the last 24 hours is not healthy!!!!
Where do I start? The last 20% of this book took so many twists and turns that I physically could not take my eyes off the pages.
Lia & Xander need to sort their problems out ASAP BECAUSE I CANNOT TAKE IT ANYMORE!!!!!!!
WHAT AN ABSOLUTE WILD RIDE. The way this book has consumed my entire life for the last 24 hours is not healthy!!!!
Where do I start? The last 20% of this book took so many twists and turns that I physically could not take my eyes off the pages.
Lia & Xander need to sort their problems out ASAP BECAUSE I CANNOT TAKE IT ANYMORE!!!!!!!
July 12, 2025
2.5 stars.
After reading the first book, I couldn't wait for the next to be released so I could continue this story, but boy, was I disappointed and underwhelmed by this.
Most of the book was very repetitive, pretty much only condisted of the fmc yelling at the mmc that she hated him and that she would like to kill him while simultaneously melting into a puddle of lust just by looking at him. The mmc wasn't much better, just alternating between glaring at the princess and looking smug (and being obnoxious) that he had such an effect on her.
I felt like most conversations Lia had with her adelphia were very shallow, like the author didn't care to make the emotions of those scenes to come across in the writing as she had in the scenes with Xander.
Nothing happened to drive the plot forward until the last couple of chapters (those were at least exciting).
I was also very annoyed that some issues in the story were never even discussed, like they were completely forgotten.
This book makes me doubt my experience of the first book, wondering if I somehow completely missed out on the parts of bad writing because of the excitement of the book. Or if this book was just a sloppy second.
After reading the first book, I couldn't wait for the next to be released so I could continue this story, but boy, was I disappointed and underwhelmed by this.
Most of the book was very repetitive, pretty much only condisted of the fmc yelling at the mmc that she hated him and that she would like to kill him while simultaneously melting into a puddle of lust just by looking at him. The mmc wasn't much better, just alternating between glaring at the princess and looking smug (and being obnoxious) that he had such an effect on her.
I felt like most conversations Lia had with her adelphia were very shallow, like the author didn't care to make the emotions of those scenes to come across in the writing as she had in the scenes with Xander.
Nothing happened to drive the plot forward until the last couple of chapters (those were at least exciting).
I was also very annoyed that some issues in the story were never even discussed, like they were completely forgotten.
This book makes me doubt my experience of the first book, wondering if I somehow completely missed out on the parts of bad writing because of the excitement of the book. Or if this book was just a sloppy second.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 12, 2025
4.5⭐️
July 10, 2025
I need the next book right now
July 25, 2025
I believe the hero is confusing willpower for blueballs.
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