The Serpent and the Wings of Night
(Crowns of Nyaxia #1)
By: Carissa Broadbent
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: Aug. 30, 2022
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Rating:
The adopted human daughter of the Nightborn vampire king, Oraya carved her place in a world designed to kill her. Her only chance to become something more than prey is entering the Kejari: a legendary tournament held by the goddess of death herself.
But winning won’t be easy amongst the most vicious warriors from all three vampire houses. To survive, Oraya is forced to make an alliance with a mysterious rival.
Everything about Raihn is dangerous. He is a ruthless vampire, an efficient killer, an enemy to her father’s crown… and her greatest competition. Yet, what terrifies Oraya most of all is that she finds herself oddly drawn to him.
But there’s no room for compassion in the Kejari. War for the House of Night brews, shattering everything that Oraya thought she knew about her home. And Raihn may understand her more than anyone – but their blossoming attraction could be her downfall, in a kingdom where nothing is more deadly than love.
My thoughts…
This was a really engaging read. It was like The Goblet of Fire meets… Twilight? No… that’s not right. Basically, it’s a fight to the death via various trials designed by a goddess for vampires to compete in. The victor gets to have one wish granted from the goddess. This event only happens once every 100 years. So, while it’s something that many vampires have witnessed, it is completely new to Oraya who is human. A human who was “saved” by a vampire king and raised as his daughter. Oraya decides to enter the trials in the hopes of winning and asking the goddess to turn her so that she is just as strong as any other vampire. However, it’s not such an easy thing to do when you are the only human in a game full of predators.
This story didn’t really seem to have a dull moment. Whether it was the various trials that they would have to endure, or just navigating the vampire world as a human, there was just so much going on in this book. We also get snippets of Oraya’s life from the past that has shaped her into the girl she is today. I think having those glimpses really made her a more fleshed out character.
I don’t want to go too much into the story and give it away, but man was I not expecting the major twists that the author added. I mean, she could have left it alone, she could have only had the one “tada” moment, but no, she threw us a few curve balls along the way. So much so that before I even finished this book, I was clamoring to get my hands on the next one.
