Synopsis:
Starlight in her veins, and a soul that calls for darkness.
On the magical continent of Celesterra, all humans are enslaved to the ruling fae…
Asteria Zagreus, a mortal young woman enslaved on Celesterra, must face Placement Day, the one day where all humans, at the age of Twenty-One, are placed in new kingdoms and given new masters to serve. Come Placement Day, Asteria is forced into the Dusk Kingdom and given to its Prince, Cyrus Tynan. When she refuses him and his desires, Asteria realizes she has only one escaping her enslavement and finding something thought impossible—freedom. Asteria must begin to play her own game within the court…and with the Prince of Dusk Kingdom himself.
Enemies come from all sides, however, and the merciless ruler of the Night Kingdom, King Calix Atarah Erebus, starts making his move against the Dusk Kingdom. Yet, darkness calls to Asteria in mysterious ways, and an equally mysterious soldier makes her question who the real monsters are—especially when it comes to a brutal king and a callous prince. With a bloody war brewing on the horizon, Asteria must decide who the true villain of her story is. Her choice, and the consequences of it, will ripple out across the continent.
Chaos rises, resistance gathers, and a soulmate bond is tested, while Asteria begins down a path that will change the course of history…
Of Darkness and Ruination is the first book in a compelling new adult romantic fantasy series featuring contrasting light and dark love interests and the delicate line of balance and chaos for a magical land. Plus fae shifters, court intrigue, resistance to slavery, a shadow daddy love interest who can shift into a dragon, and a heroine finding her own power and fighting for what she believes in. Perfect for fans of Sarah J Maas, Jennifer L Armentrout, Clare Sager, Nisha J Tuli, Carissa Broadbent, Chloe C. Peñaranda, and Raven Kennedy!
Publication Date: April 4th, 2024
My Rating:
My Favourite Quote: *subject to change*
I would take a great man any day, over a good one
My Review
Received an Advanced Reader’s Copy from the author in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much!
I cannot explain how resistant I am to write this review. Why? Thank you for asking. I was in so much denial that the book is over that writing this review feels like it’s the final nail in the coffin of accepting the fact. I don’t have the heart to spam the author and ask when book two releases because book one was thiccc and I have no right to have finished the book in a day and then spam the author about the sequel. *starts crying*
When I received the first mail from Rachel Fallon for the cover reveal of Of Darkness and Ruination I had stars in my eyes. The whole mail was filled with lovely words and art and I had no idea if I’d get an ARC of this baby, but the blurb sounded so good!
So when I got a mail from the author saying I was to receive the mail, I had this super warm feeling and I absolutely knew I would love this book.
True to the premonition, I could not put the book down. I just … drowned in it. About maybe twenty five percent into the book, I could not explain how much I was feeling as I read. I sent the author a DM on Instagram absolutely gushing. She was so nice about it too, thank you Rachel 🥹✨.
The book is split nearly straight down the middle into two parts. I couldn’t wait to see how that aspect was written into the book. The first half of the book was horrifying, painful, confusing, immersive. There are so many different aspects that you wouldn’t expect from a story that happens in ODaR. But I love that it speaks close to what really happens in someone’s reality. I’ll explain further over the course of the review.
The plot of this book is extremely interesting. It speaks about a sensitive topic and delves deep and never shies away from showing the brutality that happens around the characters and within their own minds. However, that’s not all. You’ll know things aren’t just as you think they are when you open the first page of the book and find that wonderfully detailed glossary. I gobbled it whole. The logos, the names, the powers. All of it. Just as intricate and intensive as the setup and the character list is, I sense the main plot too is to unravel further and further. So, it’s all going to come down on our heads in book two, I can just tell. Can’t wait.
The world building. *lets out a breath* Here’s the thing. There’s a lot happening. All the time. Every moment of every page. Every single page is wrought with tension of some kind or the other. The world building is happening along with literally everything else. There’s so much hidden in the darkness (lol) though I did sort of have a guess here or there but again with everything happening, Fallon doesn’t let you breathe to even think. Maybe I should’ve tried to chew each bite I’d ripped off of the book (metaphorically, of course) instead of stuffing the whole book down my heart. BUT, I personally don’t have any complaints! Fallon has been setting us up from page one, so I wasn’t surprised about somethings but extremely surprised about others! The world is… okay here’s the thing. This book kiiiiinda reads like ACOTAR and ACOMAF in one way, but it’s so vastly different that you don’t get lost in that or disturbed by it. Read it, you’ll get it. However, the world has its own rules, Gods, struggles and set-up and Fallon does it with so much detail.
The pace was amaaaaaazing. No complaints. It blew past me. At 50% I genuinely hit the brakes and decided I’m going to slow down, because I wasn’t ready for this book to end.
The characters are genuinely plenty. The glossary is really something you’ll need. But, the main characters you’ll have the general idea about and you see them enough that you don’t confuse yourself between them all. The FMC was one of the more interesting characters I’ve seen written on page. Most primary characters are written with the mentality to be liked. But I loved that the author didn’t try to write Asteria into the little box of all the things a reader will find “admirable” and “acceptable”. Asteria is just as she is. She, like any of us, learns through experience, sharpens her intuition and wields her courage when she needs to. She’s very very human and Fallon never tries to shy away from depicting that. And being human comes with just as many pitfalls as beauty.
There’s a lot of pain, heartbreak, love, friendship, betrayal, fear, courage and violence. There’s everything you can think of and it’s sister in this book. Check trigger warnings as always; and I hope you enjoy this book as immensely as I did. Five billion stars.
Heart's Content 