Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 512 pages
Author: Adalyn Grace
Publisher: Feiwel
Release Date: September 22nd, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Aurelie Chantelune was born to serve. Raised as a knight in a kingdom ravaged by demons, she’s spent her life honing her blade, driven by the memory of the monsters who tore her family apart and by the knowledge that she’s one of the few who can stop them.

If Aurelie can claim her first kill, she’ll inherit a legacy passed down through the Chantelune bloodline: a soulbond with Yuriel, an angel whose power is vital to her kingdom’s survival. But when those she loves begin turning into the very monsters she’s sworn to destroy, Aurelie is forced to seek help from the last place she ever imagined. Desperate, she forges a second and far more dangerous bond with Severin, a demon she can hardly trust, but who claims to know how to end the war for good.

With their lives and fates entwined, Aurelie, Yuriel, and Severin must team up to hunt down a cure capable of turning demons back into humans. But the more they learn about one another and the deeper their relationships grow, the more Aurelie begins to question the war and her place in it. With both of her bonded on opposing sides, she’ll have to make a choice: continue to stand with the angels, or risk everything by trusting a demon.

Thank you to the publisher for an eARC.

WELL I HAVE THOUGHTS.

I read through SO MANY reviews trying to figure out if this was a why choose or love triangle situation. Unfortunately I never figured it out, and even after reading it I didn’t figure it out either??? And that led to a lack of emotional investment for anyone. It was as if Grace was trying to keep it as vague as possible which then when anything did kind of happen it felt like there wasn’t enough lead up or genuine moments between the characters for the “spice” to work.

But that last 25% was LOCKED IN and Adalyn Grace brought all the chaos and reveals and jaw dropping cliffhanger moments. I did call the cliffhanger halfway through but there were some reveals where I was SHOOKETH. And I love that for me. It was very interesting to see the multiple POV’s and how those wove into the present plot + the bit of background story we got too.

This did feel slow at times and stall out with a few plot pieces, but overall it was a good series (duology? starter). I thought the themes woven in were nuanced but noticeable enough to ponder. I liked the push and pull between enemy characters and getting to see many sides to the story. Now that I’ve written this review out I feel like I’ve convinced myself to definitely pick up book two.

I’m obsessed with the cover, but I’m also okay that I didn’t pre-order this. I think the second book will determine if this is a worth having on the shelf read for me.

Overall audience notes:

• Fantasy + Romance
• Language: moderate
• Romance: 2ish open door; light innuendo throughout
• Violence: high
• Content warnings: blood/gore depiction, loss of loved ones, battle/war themes, kidnapping, murder, torture

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