5/5 🌟

you’re kidding me???? 
187 pages of pure fuck yeah from me. 

A masterpiece. Carissa’s writing style is so poetic, I didn’t want it to end. I fell in love mad fast. I might love Vale more than Raihn. Idk. Everything she writes is gold.

Gosh these standalone’s do something to me. 
I really enjoyed the female villainous perspective. As usual, it was hot hot hot. 

I support women’s rights but I also support women’s wrongs if you know what i’m sayin 
3⭐️/5

3.85/5 stars ✨Pleasantly delighted by this cozy and captivating story. Absolutely adore the concept of a librarian with the power to read any language, modern or ancient.

The world building in the first 50% of the book took me a little bit to longer to work through, but the second half was jam packed with action. Lydia and Quinn are an easy pair to love along the way.

- Cozy but adventurous fairytale like fantasy

- Set in a magical wood with mystical creatures, curses/ prophecy storyline

-Fated Mates, Forced Proximity, Slow Burn 🌶️

-65/35 plot to romance ratio

- Third person dual point of view

This was unique and recommendable to fantasy readers. I would consider it middle level fantasy in terms of intense world building & storyline. I did feel that there were a lot of characters introduced in the beginning, and the final 2-3 chapters felt rushed. Also some chapters were really long, which doesn’t deter me but it was daunting seeing 52 minutes left in the chapter sometimes 😅. Overall there’s some great character development for the FMC, and I look forward to seeing where it goes.

I received an ARC copy of this book for free for a voluntary honest review. Thank you for sending this beautiful story my way.

3.75/5 🌟

I’m so curious and happy that I picked this series up. Curious as to what’ll come next and happy because this was a cozy fairytale vibe for me. 

Evangelina is a hopeless romantic. When her first love suddenly switches up and plans to marry to her step sister, Evangelina seeks out a Fate- Jacks, The Prince of Hearts, to help her. Jacks strikes a deal with Evangelina, and the adventure unfolds. We all know deals and bargains in the magical realms don’t always go as planned! 

The unique concept of this story intrigued me and captivated me. So much beautiful imagery along the way.

The one downfall I have, is that there seemed to be a lot of miscommunication. I was frustrated thinking “jesus just tell the girl what she needs to know” multiple times. Not to mention, I was becoming rather fond of Jacks towards the end, and on the final page there’s realization that he set her up? or is that more miscommunication? pakxbxgeyzgdiwksjfjdhdhcgsfqfagskgocisnwbrb !! why ?!? it didn’t even feel like a cliffhanger, i was just thinking “wow damn what’s the truth?”

I’m going to continue, I liked it, but the ending threw me off a bit not going to lie. Beautiful writing style, and I have high hopes for the next books.

6/5🌟

Completely engulfing. 

The Ashes & The Star Cursed King was heart wrenching redemption, deeply reflective, darkness with light at the end of a tunnel. You know the satisfying feeling when you slip puzzle pieces into their correct spots? That’s how reading this felt. 

The writing style, foreshadowing, character development, dark gothic imagery, perfect amount of romance mixed into epic plot… a sequel that doesn’t disappoint. I laughed, cried (well sobbed), screamed, gave bombastic side eyes 👀

Watch out world because Carissa Broadbent is coming out of the woodworks… and she might just  become your new favorite indie author. I will recommend these books to literally anyone, my best reads of the year so far 🫡❤️‍🔥

3.75/5 Stars.

Such a cozy fantasy. Sookie Stackhouse is a small town southern girl who can hear people’s thoughts. When a vampire walks into her bar one night, a string of events unfolds that a Bon Temps girl never could’ve imagined. 

Urban paranormal fantasy romance, this is one I’ve been meaning to get around to for quite some time. It didn’t disappoint! 

Fast Paced
Small Town Romance, 
Touch Her and Die, 
Mysterious Plot, 
Vampires, Shifters, & Magical Realism

I enjoyed the book even more than the show and I’m a pretty big fan of the show, will definitely be continuing this series. 

4/5 🌟 I devoured it. Did I know it was going to be up my alley??? Pretty much.

I mean Siren b2b Dark Powerful King b2b Wings b2b Magically Binding Bargains????? Come on the concept was speaking to my soul from the get go. 

The dual time perspective in each chapter gave me insight, similarly to how a prequel would?? so I could see right when certain moments affected Callie then vs. in the present. I was 50/50 on how I felt about that. It felt like miscommunication, but upon completion I had better perspective & understanding. 

Does the dialogue get a little gushy and corny at parts? Yes!! But if liking that’s a crime, cuff me because I ate it up. 

I also have an aversion to a blonde MMC- not my type - but Desmond Flynn, there’s a first for everything. 

Tropes:

Fantasy/Paranormal Romance
Paranormal & Fae World 
Dark Magic Broody Morally Gray MMC
~ WINGS ~
Second Chances
Fated Mates 
~ Magic Bargains ~
Slow Burn

This one’s for you😈

Insightful, cozy, hopeful and heartwrenching.

I read this one between heir of fire and queen of shadows and it felt like the perfect placement for this prequel. Even though I knew something was going to play out, I cherished each moment all the same. 

A lot of my questions about Calaena’s past are hidden between these two covers. So many moments I connected to the first 3 books of the series, it was such a bittersweet end. 

If you’re questioning the order of reading, I suggest cracking it open between books 3 & 4. 

This one gets a 4.25/5🌟 from me. 

This is the coziest dark romance I think I’ve ever read. I loved the twists, dialogue, character development… All of it as a whole just felt like such a good read. Tristan???? My king??????? Sweet mother mary of jesus the MMC is the ultimate morally grey man I’ve encountered in awhile. 

I could rave for hours over this 350 pages.

Stand-alone within a series, villain gets the girl, touch her and die, badass FMC, lots of triggers so be sure to check if you’re wary. Smut level after the burn is off the charts. This is one i’ll definitely come back to for a reread someday. 

4.5/5🌟

It’s hard for me to put into words how much I’m enjoying working through all of Carissa Broadbent’s released work. Her writing style is so captivating and the way she pulls a plot twist outta nowhere really hits the spot for me. 

These might be fantasy romance but I love the way they’re so much more plot heavy than romance. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very invested in Max & Tisannah’s love story, but this trilogy is so much more focused on the character development and events that occur throughout an intense power war. 

This trilogy is so unique and enthralling, I know the final book is going to destroy me in the best ways. 

Dark Magic, Plot twists, Fae x Human Power War, Golden Retriever MMC x Badass Powerful FMC. Extremely engaging, I recommend this to all fantasy lovers.