This one is for all my romantasy friends. I finished this book about two weeks ago and I’m still processing it. I found it on TikTok when I saw a few larger book influencers raving, and the author was racking up thousands of 5-star reviews on Goodreads. It started off fast-paced and interesting. Our protagonist had her flaws, but I was rooting for her mission. We had a new magic system that I hadn’t encountered in any other fantasy books. The enemies-to-lovers trope is one of my favorites and we were certainly getting it here. I was thrilled. Especially after feeling like my last few romantasy reads at the end of 2025 were flops that pushed me to take a break from the genre entirely.

But then it got dark. And I mean dark. Dark spice, violence, death, grief, physical abuse and more. (Not a spoiler, there are trigger warnings at the start of the book.) It made me genuinely uncomfortable, and at that point, I was on the fence about whether I’d even recommend it. But I kept reading. All 652 pages.

With that page length, I was surprised this wasn’t written as a series but I’m so glad it wasn’t. There’s something deeply satisfying about a long book with a clean ending that doesn’t hold you hostage until book two or three. By the time I got there though, I was seriously frustrated with our female lead.

And then I got to the Author’s Note. And everything shifted. She shares a quote: “Write a tale that scares you, that makes you feel uncertain, that is uncomfortable.” Suddenly, I understood this story on a completely different level. The darkness wasn’t gratuitous. It was intentional. As the author puts it, “The best stories come from the stuck pain at the center of us.” And this book goes there.

So, is it 5 stars? For me, it’s sitting at a 4. But every friend and family member I’ve spoken to who read it? They called it an easy 5. Take that for what you will.

And my favorite quote from the book: “The only thing more dangerous than a man with a bruised ego is a woman with a score to settle.”