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Lightlark #2
Нощногибел
Айсла Краун спечели любовта на двама могъщи владетели и разруши проклятията, които тормозеха шестте народа на Искронишка векове наред, но малцина знаят истинския произход на нейните сили.
След жестокото предателство, разбило сърцето ѝ, Айсла предпочита да опознава прелъстителните тайни на острова, вместо да поеме задълженията си на кралица на две от владенията. Ала бедите не идват сами и някои от другите владетели не просто не приемат победата ѝ спокойно, но и не вярват, че издигането ѝ на власт е заслужено. И са готови на всичко да я спрат.
Докато смъртта се носи към Искронишка и тайните от миналото започват да се разплитат, Айсла трябва да претегли своята отговорност към народа си срещу капризите на най-опасния предател от всички: собственото си сърце.
След жестокото предателство, разбило сърцето ѝ, Айсла предпочита да опознава прелъстителните тайни на острова, вместо да поеме задълженията си на кралица на две от владенията. Ала бедите не идват сами и някои от другите владетели не просто не приемат победата ѝ спокойно, но и не вярват, че издигането ѝ на власт е заслужено. И са готови на всичко да я спрат.
Докато смъртта се носи към Искронишка и тайните от миналото започват да се разплитат, Айсла трябва да претегли своята отговорност към народа си срещу капризите на най-опасния предател от всички: собственото си сърце.
544 pages, Paperback
First published November 7, 2023
11986 people are currently reading
204935 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 22,530 reviews
March 24, 2023
GOOD THING THERE IS A NEXT BOOK IN THE SERIES, BECAUSE THOSE PLOT TWISTS LEFT ME SCREAMING, CRYING, THROWING UP—
Hand the next book over, Ms. Aster. We are waiting.
Hand the next book over, Ms. Aster. We are waiting.
March 27, 2023
If Isla doesn’t end up with Grim, this will be my villain origin story
April 2, 2023
TEAM GRIM GIRLIES RISE.
April 2, 2023
idc what people say, I am #teamoro.
December 20, 2023
4/5
you cannot put grim there and expect me to choose the blondie with the personality of a snickerdoodle
you cannot put grim there and expect me to choose the blondie with the personality of a snickerdoodle
May 10, 2024
WHAT AN ENDING!!! I mean, I’m gonna need 3-5 business days to process it. Oro is Tamlin 2.0 YOU CANNOT CONVICE ME OTHERWISE. I was team Grim from the very beginning, and stayed team Grim until the end. Live, love, laught Grim. I said what I said.
November 11, 2023
**SPOILERS FOR LIGHTLARK #1**
These 1-star reviews because Isla didn't end up with Grim are ridiculous.
Yes, let's choose the person who schemed behind her back several times, lied, repeatedly erased her memories, and ignored her for weeks at a time??? and because why... a previous love history?? You don't do that to a person you supposedly love.
What's wrong with you all? Throw that mentality right into the trash. I'm happy she didn't go that route since I would've been mad. She had more connections elsewhere obviously.
I'm excited if there's book #2.
Edit: I have finished book 2. I'm intrigued. Still NEED the context behind the scheming 😭
These 1-star reviews because Isla didn't end up with Grim are ridiculous.
Yes, let's choose the person who schemed behind her back several times, lied, repeatedly erased her memories, and ignored her for weeks at a time??? and because why... a previous love history?? You don't do that to a person you supposedly love.
What's wrong with you all? Throw that mentality right into the trash. I'm happy she didn't go that route since I would've been mad. She had more connections elsewhere obviously.
I'm excited if there's book #2.
Edit: I have finished book 2. I'm intrigued. Still NEED the context behind the scheming 😭
October 23, 2024
3.5 ⭐️ At this point I fear I cannot trust you if you are team Oro. Because where?!!!! How??? The fact that someone could read about Grim in Nightbane and think you know what, nahh im gonna go with the one with the personality of goldfish who she doesn’t even posses a small grain of romantic chemistry with….??? The math simply is not mathing. I was told the love triangle would get more difficult in book two…. Now I have trust issues. I fear I’m Oreo’s number 1 hater at this point because the more he opened his mouth the more I wanted crawl into a deep dark hole and never come out.
Exhibit fucking A
“I want to be the only person you glare at, Hearteater. I want to be the only person you insult. I want to be the only name you speak in your sleep. You know what? I want everything. I want to be greedy and selfish with you. I want all your laughs. All your smiles too. I would rather die than watch you smile at anyone that isn’t me.”
“My entire world was night, and you lit a match. No matter what happens to me in this life, I’ll find you in the next one. I’ll always find you. What I feel for you can never be extinguished. Like the nighttime sky, it is infinite. You and me . . . we’re infinite.”
Meanwhile Isla had to BEG Oreo to kiss her. Like pop off sir give us absolutely fucking nothing king!!!
Grim did not have to go so hard in this book I fear my obsession with him is going to make me check myself into a mental hospital. If this man is not end game I might actually have to hold a funeral for these books because I will burn them.
All that being said… this book was definitely better than Lightlark, but I have to be completely honest with y’all, I’m strictly here for Grim and Isla and the love triangle drama. The overall plot in this series is average at best. And there was far too much Oro and Isla in the begging of this book. It was a bit of a slog at first, but once I hit the 50% mark I simply could not put it down. I’ve said it before I’ll say it again, this is entirely a vibes read for me, I’m having a silly fun time but would I recommend it at the end of the day..?? HA I literally have no idea. I can equal parts see how people either love this book or hate it. The plot holes at points actually cracked me up because I thought I was starting to make things up in my head. But alas Grimshaw has me in a chokehold and I became blind to the issues with this book because of him.
Like….
“The gods don’t listen to people like me, but I would go on my knees and beg them to let me keep you. You were once the bane of my existence . . . and now, you are the center of it.”
DO YOU BLAME ME?!!!!!
Yeah yeah yeah he betrayed her. I will let you know when I find a singular fuck to give. FORGIVENNNNNNN
GO GET YOUR MAN ISLA DONT BE DUMB!!!!!
I need skyshade like yesterday. My mental well-being shouldn’t be so reliant on who Isla ends up with but like here we are.
Exhibit fucking A
“I want to be the only person you glare at, Hearteater. I want to be the only person you insult. I want to be the only name you speak in your sleep. You know what? I want everything. I want to be greedy and selfish with you. I want all your laughs. All your smiles too. I would rather die than watch you smile at anyone that isn’t me.”
“My entire world was night, and you lit a match. No matter what happens to me in this life, I’ll find you in the next one. I’ll always find you. What I feel for you can never be extinguished. Like the nighttime sky, it is infinite. You and me . . . we’re infinite.”
Meanwhile Isla had to BEG Oreo to kiss her. Like pop off sir give us absolutely fucking nothing king!!!
Grim did not have to go so hard in this book I fear my obsession with him is going to make me check myself into a mental hospital. If this man is not end game I might actually have to hold a funeral for these books because I will burn them.
All that being said… this book was definitely better than Lightlark, but I have to be completely honest with y’all, I’m strictly here for Grim and Isla and the love triangle drama. The overall plot in this series is average at best. And there was far too much Oro and Isla in the begging of this book. It was a bit of a slog at first, but once I hit the 50% mark I simply could not put it down. I’ve said it before I’ll say it again, this is entirely a vibes read for me, I’m having a silly fun time but would I recommend it at the end of the day..?? HA I literally have no idea. I can equal parts see how people either love this book or hate it. The plot holes at points actually cracked me up because I thought I was starting to make things up in my head. But alas Grimshaw has me in a chokehold and I became blind to the issues with this book because of him.
Like….
“The gods don’t listen to people like me, but I would go on my knees and beg them to let me keep you. You were once the bane of my existence . . . and now, you are the center of it.”
DO YOU BLAME ME?!!!!!
Yeah yeah yeah he betrayed her. I will let you know when I find a singular fuck to give. FORGIVENNNNNNN
GO GET YOUR MAN ISLA DONT BE DUMB!!!!!
I need skyshade like yesterday. My mental well-being shouldn’t be so reliant on who Isla ends up with but like here we are.
January 2, 2024
did you know, radiohead copyright sued lana del rey for her song “get free” allegedly being too similar to “creep.”
as someone who has been listening to ok computer on repeat for the last month and had lana del rey as their top spotify artist this year, i feel uniquely qualified to talk about this.
because it’s kind of crazy, right? radiohead and… lana del rey. it’s ironic because the band famously doesn’t even like the song, “creep.” even more ironic, years before, a different musician won a copyright suit claiming “creep” was copying their song.
but we as a culture have been going after the wrong sensational lawsuits.
sarah j maas should sue alex aster for this duology. she’d win too.
okay, so getting into the actual book, this is a not a spoiler free review. i’m literally going to tell you the plot, so if you care, run run run as fast as you can and get out of here!
now that we’ve lost them, let’s get into it.
this is a bad book. it just is. the copy i read said it was 600 pages long, so that’s the metric i’m going to describe it by (it also felt 600 pages long), even though goodreads says it’s only 300 and something.
the first 400 pages were unbearable. absolute agony to read. it was 400 pages of isla (the fmc) and aster (the someone who decided to write this godforsaken book) trying to justify isla and her relationship with wonderbread. it was “isla went and did this,” “isla went over here and did that,” “isla is in love with him,” over and over and over except I DON’T CARE.
I DON’T GIVE A FUCK AND I DON’T WANT TO KNOW.
400 pages of yapping is just unacceptable, especially for a book that actually has an editor and publisher.
the writing is also just not super nice, and if there were issues with the world building in the first book they are more than apparent now. to an infuriating degree.
so yes, it’s an objectively bad book. but that said, damn it, i got kind of invested. so i have A LOT of opinions about the stuff that happened in it.
for the sake of continuity, i’m going to be really clear here to avoid confusion:
i have nicknames for the love interests.
oro will be referred to as either wonderbread or an old man or my personal favorite, “walking chastity belt,” or some combination of the three.
grim = rhysand. and i’m just going to call him that too.
there was no action or interest in the first 400 pages at all:
just a girl i don’t like dating a guy i don’t like and doing things i don’t care about. the only reason i had the strength to keep going (because otherwise i spent this whole book rage-quitting even 15 or so pages) was because i needed to know if it would fix itself.
i don’t particularly like isla and i don’t like either of the “love interests,” oro or grim, but she should not have been with oro. if i didn’t like grim, i ACTIVELY DISLIKE oro.
what the fuck do you mean i had to spend 400 PAGES WATCHING THIS CRUSTY OLD MAN AND HIS CHASTITY RING TURN HER DOWN OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND LIKE PHYSICALLY REFUSE TO TOUCH HER.
THAT WAS PAINFUL. THAT’S FUCKING CRUEL.
“hey babe, so i’m in love with you and all and you’re like super hot, but no so i actually don’t want to touch you. i need to be really stoic and vaguely reference to chivalry for a bit, so you can just get fucked, i guess.”
are you serious.
unfortunately, aster is.
anyways, long story short, turns out isla was getting it on w rhysand before all the events of book 1 but things went south and so he took away her memories (after she asked him to, I KNEW IT!!!), hence why she couldn’t remember any of that and chose oro at the end of book 1.
she gets her memories back bit by bit this book—which ended up being the only enjoyable part of the book—and yeah, she ends up w rhysand. but only BARELY.
I STOOD THROUGH SO MUCH SHIT ONLY FOR HER TO BARELY END UP W HIM. like, she left with him in the final scene, sure, but they didn’t save the world. nothing was wrapped up. she went with him BEGRUDGINGLY. this is not the happy ending i wanted, but it’s also not the tragedy i would have taken, so it’s just boring instead.
but the saddest part is there was potential here! there really was. despite how cliche it is, isla’s confusion between grandpa and rhysand was real! i didn’t know what she would choose and the tension could have been SO GOOD.
i shed a tear towards the end. granted, i cried more from seeing a squirrel fall off a power line about two weeks ago so maybe that’s not as important as it sounds, but i swear IT COULD HAVE BEEN GOOD. AT LEAST A LITTLE.
it’s a shame it wasn’t.
and lastly, the acotar allegations.
i’ve seen people (me) alleging that this is just like acotar (it is).
and i have to tell you, they’re true, they’re all true!
this could win a copyright suit, unironically.
everything reads just like sjm. rhysand 4.0 and her relationship with him, the things that isla does, her relationship with grandpa (who has the power of sun and growth and lives in a castle and has blonde hair… remind you of anyone?).
deadass there was a whole scene where isla wears a small black dress fashioned EXACTLY like the one feyre wears in the court of nightmares to go outside with grim and ends up sitting on his lap.
it’s not even trying to be creative.
anyways, i think that’s it. i definitely have more complaints i just don’t have the memory to remember them, so i guess aster gets off this time.
as someone who has been listening to ok computer on repeat for the last month and had lana del rey as their top spotify artist this year, i feel uniquely qualified to talk about this.
because it’s kind of crazy, right? radiohead and… lana del rey. it’s ironic because the band famously doesn’t even like the song, “creep.” even more ironic, years before, a different musician won a copyright suit claiming “creep” was copying their song.
but we as a culture have been going after the wrong sensational lawsuits.
sarah j maas should sue alex aster for this duology. she’d win too.
okay, so getting into the actual book, this is a not a spoiler free review. i’m literally going to tell you the plot, so if you care, run run run as fast as you can and get out of here!
now that we’ve lost them, let’s get into it.
this is a bad book. it just is. the copy i read said it was 600 pages long, so that’s the metric i’m going to describe it by (it also felt 600 pages long), even though goodreads says it’s only 300 and something.
the first 400 pages were unbearable. absolute agony to read. it was 400 pages of isla (the fmc) and aster (the someone who decided to write this godforsaken book) trying to justify isla and her relationship with wonderbread. it was “isla went and did this,” “isla went over here and did that,” “isla is in love with him,” over and over and over except I DON’T CARE.
I DON’T GIVE A FUCK AND I DON’T WANT TO KNOW.
400 pages of yapping is just unacceptable, especially for a book that actually has an editor and publisher.
the writing is also just not super nice, and if there were issues with the world building in the first book they are more than apparent now. to an infuriating degree.
so yes, it’s an objectively bad book. but that said, damn it, i got kind of invested. so i have A LOT of opinions about the stuff that happened in it.
for the sake of continuity, i’m going to be really clear here to avoid confusion:
i have nicknames for the love interests.
oro will be referred to as either wonderbread or an old man or my personal favorite, “walking chastity belt,” or some combination of the three.
grim = rhysand. and i’m just going to call him that too.
there was no action or interest in the first 400 pages at all:
just a girl i don’t like dating a guy i don’t like and doing things i don’t care about. the only reason i had the strength to keep going (because otherwise i spent this whole book rage-quitting even 15 or so pages) was because i needed to know if it would fix itself.
i don’t particularly like isla and i don’t like either of the “love interests,” oro or grim, but she should not have been with oro. if i didn’t like grim, i ACTIVELY DISLIKE oro.
what the fuck do you mean i had to spend 400 PAGES WATCHING THIS CRUSTY OLD MAN AND HIS CHASTITY RING TURN HER DOWN OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND LIKE PHYSICALLY REFUSE TO TOUCH HER.
THAT WAS PAINFUL. THAT’S FUCKING CRUEL.
“hey babe, so i’m in love with you and all and you’re like super hot, but no so i actually don’t want to touch you. i need to be really stoic and vaguely reference to chivalry for a bit, so you can just get fucked, i guess.”
are you serious.
unfortunately, aster is.
anyways, long story short, turns out isla was getting it on w rhysand before all the events of book 1 but things went south and so he took away her memories (after she asked him to, I KNEW IT!!!), hence why she couldn’t remember any of that and chose oro at the end of book 1.
she gets her memories back bit by bit this book—which ended up being the only enjoyable part of the book—and yeah, she ends up w rhysand. but only BARELY.
I STOOD THROUGH SO MUCH SHIT ONLY FOR HER TO BARELY END UP W HIM. like, she left with him in the final scene, sure, but they didn’t save the world. nothing was wrapped up. she went with him BEGRUDGINGLY. this is not the happy ending i wanted, but it’s also not the tragedy i would have taken, so it’s just boring instead.
but the saddest part is there was potential here! there really was. despite how cliche it is, isla’s confusion between grandpa and rhysand was real! i didn’t know what she would choose and the tension could have been SO GOOD.
i shed a tear towards the end. granted, i cried more from seeing a squirrel fall off a power line about two weeks ago so maybe that’s not as important as it sounds, but i swear IT COULD HAVE BEEN GOOD. AT LEAST A LITTLE.
it’s a shame it wasn’t.
and lastly, the acotar allegations.
i’ve seen people (me) alleging that this is just like acotar (it is).
and i have to tell you, they’re true, they’re all true!
this could win a copyright suit, unironically.
everything reads just like sjm. rhysand 4.0 and her relationship with him, the things that isla does, her relationship with grandpa (who has the power of sun and growth and lives in a castle and has blonde hair… remind you of anyone?).
deadass there was a whole scene where isla wears a small black dress fashioned EXACTLY like the one feyre wears in the court of nightmares to go outside with grim and ends up sitting on his lap.
it’s not even trying to be creative.
anyways, i think that’s it. i definitely have more complaints i just don’t have the memory to remember them, so i guess aster gets off this time.
December 18, 2023
Video review: https://youtu.be/WtWMbCKBOe8?si=V_odS...
well that was a plot hole ridden nonsense ride to nowhere. Readers deserve better.
well that was a plot hole ridden nonsense ride to nowhere. Readers deserve better.
March 31, 2023
Lightlark was the best book I’ve read in a long time and I am IMPATIENTLY awaiting this sequel.
Oh and Team Oro.
Oh and Team Oro.
Read
November 5, 2022I don’t think it’ll be easy but, I think, if the author truly tries hard enough, this will prove to be somehow worse than the first one!!
November 22, 2023
alex aster is my least favorite nepo baby
March 24, 2023
Lightlark kept me reading until 4am. I suspect the sequel will yield similar results.
Can’t wait.
Can’t wait.
December 22, 2025
Again, I surprisingly enjoyed this one 😂🤭 especially the ending. And one extra ⭐️ for Past Grim 🤭
I SCREAMED!!! That ending… 👀 MISS AUTHOR, IF YOUR MISSION WAS TO BREAK MY HEART, I CAN CONFIDENTLY SAY YOU SUCCEEDED 🙂↕️🫠
Wdym that’s the ending?? 😭 Wdym the last line was:
AHHHHHHH!!! I’m crying 😭😭 It’s the kind of line authors drop and then casually walk away while readers are on the floor screaming. MISS AUTHOR KNEW WHAT SHE WAS DOING 🙂↕️🫠
This series has an intense love triangle 😭 BUT… 👀 I’m living for it 🤭 Still, I’m so scared about who the endgame will be 😭 By heart, I’m Team Grim, but I love Oro too 😭🫶 I used to like him, but in this book my feelings turned into love 🥹 It’s so hard to choose between them, but deep down I know I’m Team Grim 😭🫶 That said, if it ends up being Oro, I honestly wouldn’t be mad 😭
Let’s talk about Oro first 🙂↕️
He really changed — and I don’t even know if it’s a good or bad change for him 😭 Sir absolutely kept my heart in the palm of his hand 🤭 and I wasn’t even mad about it 🙂↕️🤭
The “Who did this to you?” made me giggle so much 🤭 And then he DIDN’T STOP THERE 🙂↔️ This man said something that made me close the book and giggle like a psycho 🙂↕️
‘Scuse me!?!? HOW am I supposed to hate him after this?? 🤭 Absolutely not. That man is too good. OMGGG 💛 HOW is anyone supposed to recover from that??? 🤭 That’s unhinged loyalty mixed with calm menace. He really said gentle but deadly and meant it.
Isla Crown 👀 Tbh, there weren’t many changes in her character 😭 I expected more, so I’m lowk sad about that. Still, she impressed me in several scenes 🫶🫶
And when she realized that her vision wasn’t actually a vision 👀 AHHHHH!!! That scene gave me goosebumps 😭👀
I don’t have much to say about her since she felt mostly the same as in book one, so yeah 🤷♀️ Also, huge love to Lynx 🤭🫶 EEEEPPP!!! Unproblematic fave.
Now… It’s Grim time 🤭 Don’t mind me while I fangirl ✨🫂
I really wanted to share this line, yes, it’s cliché, but I DON’T CARE 🤭
AHHHHHHH!!! 🙂↕️ Gimme more, sir.
I said Oro had my heart in his palm…But this man 👀 THIS MAN has my entire soul and body captured, and I am NOT ashamed 🙂↔️🫶🖤 Sir, do whatever you want. I genuinely do not care atp 🤭🤭 Ok, yes, I exaggerated — but I’m sorry 😔 I literally cannot control myself right now.
THIS MAN didn’t even know he had a dimple. A. DIMPLE. 😭🤭 Isla noticed it, and he had no idea because my poor guy never smiled 😭 AHHHHHHH!!!
You’re telling me this is the same man who said he wouldn’t save her if she were in danger and then went on to take TWELVE ARROWS to his back just to shield her??? TWELVE. FREAKING. ARROWS. Yeah… I’m possessed 🤭🖤
Wow. What a lovely way to make me cry 😭 NOOOOO!!! 😭😭
In this book, we didn’t get to see Present Grim for a long time, but let me tell you, Past Grim was WORTH IT 🙂↕️ I was craving Past Grim. He made me cry, giggle, and scream 🤭🤭 And when Present Grim finally showed up…Yeah, that was my end 🤭🤭 Past Grim really said “I will emotionally ruin you” and delivered. And then Present Grim showing up was just the final blow.
Yeah no, that’s endgame-coded behavior 😭🖤 I think this is more than enough to show my obsession 🙂↕️
Holy shii- I just realized how long this review is 😭 Sorry for the rant and fangirling 😭🫂
That’s it, guys. Love y’all 🫶🖤💙
———————————————
💠 ✧˖°. pre-read 💠 ✧˖°.
It’s been a pretty long time since I read Lightlark, so it’s time to jump into the second book. 🖤💙
I SCREAMED!!! That ending… 👀 MISS AUTHOR, IF YOUR MISSION WAS TO BREAK MY HEART, I CAN CONFIDENTLY SAY YOU SUCCEEDED 🙂↕️🫠
Wdym that’s the ending?? 😭 Wdym the last line was:
“I love you, Oro… But, I love him too.”
AHHHHHHH!!! I’m crying 😭😭 It’s the kind of line authors drop and then casually walk away while readers are on the floor screaming. MISS AUTHOR KNEW WHAT SHE WAS DOING 🙂↕️🫠
This series has an intense love triangle 😭 BUT… 👀 I’m living for it 🤭 Still, I’m so scared about who the endgame will be 😭 By heart, I’m Team Grim, but I love Oro too 😭🫶 I used to like him, but in this book my feelings turned into love 🥹 It’s so hard to choose between them, but deep down I know I’m Team Grim 😭🫶 That said, if it ends up being Oro, I honestly wouldn’t be mad 😭
Let’s talk about Oro first 🙂↕️
He really changed — and I don’t even know if it’s a good or bad change for him 😭 Sir absolutely kept my heart in the palm of his hand 🤭 and I wasn’t even mad about it 🙂↕️🤭
The “Who did this to you?” made me giggle so much 🤭 And then he DIDN’T STOP THERE 🙂↔️ This man said something that made me close the book and giggle like a psycho 🙂↕️
“If you hurt her,” he said, voice lethally calm, “she will kill you. And then I will find a way to revive you so I can kill you again with my own bare hands.”
‘Scuse me!?!? HOW am I supposed to hate him after this?? 🤭 Absolutely not. That man is too good. OMGGG 💛 HOW is anyone supposed to recover from that??? 🤭 That’s unhinged loyalty mixed with calm menace. He really said gentle but deadly and meant it.
Isla Crown 👀 Tbh, there weren’t many changes in her character 😭 I expected more, so I’m lowk sad about that. Still, she impressed me in several scenes 🫶🫶
And when she realized that her vision wasn’t actually a vision 👀 AHHHHH!!! That scene gave me goosebumps 😭👀
I don’t have much to say about her since she felt mostly the same as in book one, so yeah 🤷♀️ Also, huge love to Lynx 🤭🫶 EEEEPPP!!! Unproblematic fave.
Now… It’s Grim time 🤭 Don’t mind me while I fangirl ✨🫂
I really wanted to share this line, yes, it’s cliché, but I DON’T CARE 🤭
“Let go of my wife.”
AHHHHHHH!!! 🙂↕️ Gimme more, sir.
I said Oro had my heart in his palm…But this man 👀 THIS MAN has my entire soul and body captured, and I am NOT ashamed 🙂↔️🫶🖤 Sir, do whatever you want. I genuinely do not care atp 🤭🤭 Ok, yes, I exaggerated — but I’m sorry 😔 I literally cannot control myself right now.
THIS MAN didn’t even know he had a dimple. A. DIMPLE. 😭🤭 Isla noticed it, and he had no idea because my poor guy never smiled 😭 AHHHHHHH!!!
You’re telling me this is the same man who said he wouldn’t save her if she were in danger and then went on to take TWELVE ARROWS to his back just to shield her??? TWELVE. FREAKING. ARROWS. Yeah… I’m possessed 🤭🖤
“I’ve been stabbed a thousand times… but none of that hurts more than hearing you say goodbye.”
Wow. What a lovely way to make me cry 😭 NOOOOO!!! 😭😭
In this book, we didn’t get to see Present Grim for a long time, but let me tell you, Past Grim was WORTH IT 🙂↕️ I was craving Past Grim. He made me cry, giggle, and scream 🤭🤭 And when Present Grim finally showed up…Yeah, that was my end 🤭🤭 Past Grim really said “I will emotionally ruin you” and delivered. And then Present Grim showing up was just the final blow.
“My entire world was night, and you lit a match. No matter what happens to me in this life, I’ll find you in the next one. I’ll always find you. What I feel for you can never be extinguished. Like the nighttime sky, it is infinite. You and me… we’re infinite.”
“The gods don’t listen to people like me, but I would go on my knees and beg them to let me keep you. You were once the bane of my existence… and now, you are the center of it.”
“You think I would watch you die, for the sword? Did you think I would make any choice that wasn’t you?”
Yeah no, that’s endgame-coded behavior 😭🖤 I think this is more than enough to show my obsession 🙂↕️
Holy shii- I just realized how long this review is 😭 Sorry for the rant and fangirling 😭🫂
That’s it, guys. Love y’all 🫶🖤💙
———————————————
💠 ✧˖°. pre-read 💠 ✧˖°.
It’s been a pretty long time since I read Lightlark, so it’s time to jump into the second book. 🖤💙
March 5, 2023
i just wanna see my golden boi Oro ok
July 25, 2023
I NEED ORO AND ISLA. I’m team Oro 4life
December 26, 2023
Let me preface this by saying I truly didn’t care who she was gonna end up with. Also, dnf at 52% because I honestly don’t care anymore.
To keep this review simple, Sarah J. Maas should sue Aster. I don’t care what y’all gotta say. This is just Aster blatantly copying SJM’S characters and all the way down to the actual writing. I wish I could provide examples of sentences that look too similar to what SJM would write, but I don’t have the copy. I didn’t care enough to actually buy the book.
The one star is reserved for the astronomical level of smut and it being too much alike SJM’S acotar series and writing.
Grim is a terrible love interest because there was literally no chemistry between him and Isla. No, idc what y’all say. Oro is a terrible love interest as well. And yes, it was very predictable. I knew who she was gonna end up with by the time I was on chapter 10 I believe.
To keep this review simple, Sarah J. Maas should sue Aster. I don’t care what y’all gotta say. This is just Aster blatantly copying SJM’S characters and all the way down to the actual writing. I wish I could provide examples of sentences that look too similar to what SJM would write, but I don’t have the copy. I didn’t care enough to actually buy the book.
The one star is reserved for the astronomical level of smut and it being too much alike SJM’S acotar series and writing.
Grim is a terrible love interest because there was literally no chemistry between him and Isla. No, idc what y’all say. Oro is a terrible love interest as well. And yes, it was very predictable. I knew who she was gonna end up with by the time I was on chapter 10 I believe.
Want to read
March 13, 2023Whatever you do, DON'T TURN ORO INTO TAMLIN. Thanks, bye.
June 30, 2025
4.5!! this series, the world, the magic is soooo fun
April 2, 2023
8 months before publication, and the book is already #1 on Barnes & Noble and Amazon. I guess I’m not the only one counting down the days
March 24, 2023
I'm so excited for this second book. I have read lightlark twice and truly am wondering where Aster is going to go next with this story.
April 2, 2023
wow... I assumed this would not come out until 2024. Guess it's time to reread lightlark!
July 29, 2024
₊‧ ୨୧ 4 stars ★
꒰🗡️꒱ “𝐢’𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬… 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐛𝐲𝐞”
SPOILERS FROM LIGHTLARK !!!!
this was definitely better than lightlark. the writing style has improved a lot so i was hooked from the beginning. my favorite part has definitely been the chapters between grim and isla, remembering what they experienced before. i loved seeing how they got to know and love each other 💌 at the end of lightlark you could see how much grim loved isla and even though he betrayed her you can see that isla didn't stop loving him either in this book
⋆ ˚｡⋆୨ “𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐭 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡. 𝐧𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐢’𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐞. 𝐢’𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮. 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝. 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐤𝐲, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞. 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐞… 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞” this quote is my favorite by far. i truly believe grim would destroy the world for isla 🧎🏻♀️
⋆ ˚｡⋆୨ “𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐝𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐞, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐠𝐨 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐲𝐨𝐮. 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞… 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭”
i am still loyal to him although i have to admit that in the first part of the book i became very fond of oro. “𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭”
but always #1 defender of grim !! also, throughout the story it is noticeable that isla and oro no longer have the same chemistry that they once had (i hope it's because the author wants an endgame for grim and isla 🤭)
anyways, the story? in the first book it was more interesting but i really liked seeing how isla began to control her powers and finally was able to help her people. i have grown more fond of her this book 🫂 it makes me so happy to see that she can finally connect more with her mother, thanks to lynx.
but honestly, all i cared in the book were grim and isla 🤭
but hear me out. I NEED THE NEXT BOOK NOW. i love that ending and i want to know what happens next 😩 pls grim endgame, that’s all i ask for skyshade 🫠
꒰🗡️꒱ “𝐢’𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬… 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐛𝐲𝐞”
SPOILERS FROM LIGHTLARK !!!!
this was definitely better than lightlark. the writing style has improved a lot so i was hooked from the beginning. my favorite part has definitely been the chapters between grim and isla, remembering what they experienced before. i loved seeing how they got to know and love each other 💌 at the end of lightlark you could see how much grim loved isla and even though he betrayed her you can see that isla didn't stop loving him either in this book
⋆ ˚｡⋆୨ “𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐭 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡. 𝐧𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐢’𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐞. 𝐢’𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮. 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝. 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐤𝐲, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞. 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐞… 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞” this quote is my favorite by far. i truly believe grim would destroy the world for isla 🧎🏻♀️
⋆ ˚｡⋆୨ “𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐝𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐞, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐠𝐨 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐲𝐨𝐮. 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞… 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭”
i am still loyal to him although i have to admit that in the first part of the book i became very fond of oro. “𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭”
but always #1 defender of grim !! also, throughout the story it is noticeable that isla and oro no longer have the same chemistry that they once had (i hope it's because the author wants an endgame for grim and isla 🤭)
anyways, the story? in the first book it was more interesting but i really liked seeing how isla began to control her powers and finally was able to help her people. i have grown more fond of her this book 🫂 it makes me so happy to see that she can finally connect more with her mother, thanks to lynx.
but honestly, all i cared in the book were grim and isla 🤭
but hear me out. I NEED THE NEXT BOOK NOW. i love that ending and i want to know what happens next 😩 pls grim endgame, that’s all i ask for skyshade 🫠
November 9, 2025
── 3.25 stars .ᐟ ᯓ★୭˚. ᵎᵎ
❛ What a thing, to be known. ❜
⌗ started: sep 17, 2025 ⌝
⌞ finished: nov 8, 2025 𖦹°‧
⤿ age rating: 14+
⤿ spice level: 0.5/5
⤿ content warnings:
⋆ death & grief
⋆ (war) violence
buddy read with the loml rosie ♡౨ৎ
⤷ find her review here !!
spoiler-free review!
★ tl;dr: severely lacking both emotional depth and impact, but far from lacking in climbable shadow daddies. fmc was cringier this time around and i’m half-begging for a divalicious throuple or a doomed yaoi romance.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
jungle - emma louise
01:23 ━━━━●───── 03:22
⇆ㅤ ㅤ◁ㅤ ❚❚ ㅤ▷ ㅤㅤ↻
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
🪻┆ main tropes:
➸ animal sidekick
➸ enemies to lovers
➸ love triangle
➸ morally grey characters
➸ tending to wounds
➸ war
➸ ‘who did this to you?’
──〝 i’ve been feeling, feeling for you, my love, 〞
⚔️┆ review:
you know that feeling when you cannonball into a pool thinking it’s going to be six feet deep, but it’s actually three, so all you achieve is a broken nose and busted up kneecaps? that is how the last 40% of this book felt for me.
not to shit on it too hard, it was definitely a fun time! i will give it to Alex Aster, she knows how to create 7’0” shadow daddies, because my goodness, i’d climb that man like a tree. but the problem is that from my perch on his shoulders, i would just look down on the rest of the book and see underdeveloped plot lines, shallow emotional impact, and minimally layered main characters. i’m surprised grimshaw’s spine isn’t completely disfigured from carrying these books on his back.
now, you may be thinking, ‘edie-may, why have you given this 3.25 stars if you hated it so much?’ (you aren’t thinking that, but i’m delusional), and the answer would be: ‘twas rather a fun time! yeah, the war had about as much impact as a wet napkin, and yeah, some of the characters (ahem, isla) became astronomically more cringe in this book, but i. had. fun. i blushed. i giggled. i self-inserted myself into the book for the sake of maladaptive daydreaming. that alone bumps it up to a 2.75, and then the extra 0.5 is sprinkled in there because of both my husband (grimshaw) and my wife (rosie).
─〝 our bodies are tired, our shadows will dance, 〞
🌌┆ characters:
➸ isla crown
⤿ “I was disappointed when I didn’t kill you.”
putting her first purely because she’s the main character, and not due to any underlying feelings of favouritism. seriously, i had to scour my annotations to find a quote for her, she had that little impact on me. i don’t remember too much from the first book, but i do know that i didn’t hate her. why was she so… cringe? i mean this sincerely, she was like a main character from a gacha music video: one-dimensional and ridiculously overpowered. she definitely had her moments, but to me, they felt few and far between. i am really hoping it’s only because of our girl’s lobotomy and not because it’s her entire personality.
⤷ ♪ ‘halley’s comet’ by billie eilish
➸ grimshaw
⤿ ‘She was sobbing, and he didn’t look betrayed—he looked devastated that she was crying.’
i also struggled to find a quote for our pookie here, but in sharp contrast to isla, it was because he had too many to choose from. i went back through my saved quotes to find that approximately 90% were from him, and each and every one of them could’ve been used. i have some strange desire to have this man snap my spine and no i will not delve into what that means for my emotional psyche.
⤷ ♪ ‘let the world burn’ by chris grey
➸ oro
i hate to say it but i think i also liked this man more than isla. he’s actually such a sweetheart, but next to grim, he’s like wet paint. and it pains me to say that because i still genuinely like him, but i just know bro is not about to be endgame. there were three sides of my brain working overtime during this book. the first told me that grim and isla should be together. the second told me they should all be an absolutely overpowered throuple. the final side tells me (quite loudly) that grim and oro should just ditch isla and develop a mlm relationship that would put even neil and todd from the dead poets society to shame.
──〝 i’ve been aching, aching for you, my love, 〞
˚₊ · »-𖣂→ my series reviews:
⤿ Lightlark (3.5★)
⤿ Nightbane (3.25★)
⤿ Skyshade (?★)
⤿ Crowntide (?★)
⤿ Grim & Oro (?★)
──〝 my head is a jungle. 〞
┆ ⤿ 🐈⬛ ⌗ pre-read:
⋆ prediction: 3.75★ ✗
⤿ it’s been so long since i read Lightlark but the gc has been ranting about it for so long that of course i had to tag along for a group read with my loveliest angels rosie, maryna, and lakshmi !! ♡
⤿ note: this started as a four person group read but life’s a bitch, so only two of us made it out alive.
જ⁀➴ ₊˚⊹ ★
❛ What a thing, to be known. ❜
⌗ started: sep 17, 2025 ⌝
⌞ finished: nov 8, 2025 𖦹°‧
⤿ age rating: 14+
⤿ spice level: 0.5/5
⤿ content warnings:
⋆ death & grief
⋆ (war) violence
buddy read with the loml rosie ♡౨ৎ
⤷ find her review here !!
spoiler-free review!
★ tl;dr: severely lacking both emotional depth and impact, but far from lacking in climbable shadow daddies. fmc was cringier this time around and i’m half-begging for a divalicious throuple or a doomed yaoi romance.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
jungle - emma louise
01:23 ━━━━●───── 03:22
⇆ㅤ ㅤ◁ㅤ ❚❚ ㅤ▷ ㅤㅤ↻
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
🪻┆ main tropes:
➸ animal sidekick
➸ enemies to lovers
➸ love triangle
➸ morally grey characters
➸ tending to wounds
➸ war
➸ ‘who did this to you?’
──〝 i’ve been feeling, feeling for you, my love, 〞
⚔️┆ review:
you know that feeling when you cannonball into a pool thinking it’s going to be six feet deep, but it’s actually three, so all you achieve is a broken nose and busted up kneecaps? that is how the last 40% of this book felt for me.
not to shit on it too hard, it was definitely a fun time! i will give it to Alex Aster, she knows how to create 7’0” shadow daddies, because my goodness, i’d climb that man like a tree. but the problem is that from my perch on his shoulders, i would just look down on the rest of the book and see underdeveloped plot lines, shallow emotional impact, and minimally layered main characters. i’m surprised grimshaw’s spine isn’t completely disfigured from carrying these books on his back.
now, you may be thinking, ‘edie-may, why have you given this 3.25 stars if you hated it so much?’ (you aren’t thinking that, but i’m delusional), and the answer would be: ‘twas rather a fun time! yeah, the war had about as much impact as a wet napkin, and yeah, some of the characters (ahem, isla) became astronomically more cringe in this book, but i. had. fun. i blushed. i giggled. i self-inserted myself into the book for the sake of maladaptive daydreaming. that alone bumps it up to a 2.75, and then the extra 0.5 is sprinkled in there because of both my husband (grimshaw) and my wife (rosie).
─〝 our bodies are tired, our shadows will dance, 〞
🌌┆ characters:
➸ isla crown
⤿ “I was disappointed when I didn’t kill you.”
putting her first purely because she’s the main character, and not due to any underlying feelings of favouritism. seriously, i had to scour my annotations to find a quote for her, she had that little impact on me. i don’t remember too much from the first book, but i do know that i didn’t hate her. why was she so… cringe? i mean this sincerely, she was like a main character from a gacha music video: one-dimensional and ridiculously overpowered. she definitely had her moments, but to me, they felt few and far between. i am really hoping it’s only because of our girl’s lobotomy and not because it’s her entire personality.
⤷ ♪ ‘halley’s comet’ by billie eilish
➸ grimshaw
⤿ ‘She was sobbing, and he didn’t look betrayed—he looked devastated that she was crying.’
i also struggled to find a quote for our pookie here, but in sharp contrast to isla, it was because he had too many to choose from. i went back through my saved quotes to find that approximately 90% were from him, and each and every one of them could’ve been used. i have some strange desire to have this man snap my spine and no i will not delve into what that means for my emotional psyche.
⤷ ♪ ‘let the world burn’ by chris grey
➸ oro
i hate to say it but i think i also liked this man more than isla. he’s actually such a sweetheart, but next to grim, he’s like wet paint. and it pains me to say that because i still genuinely like him, but i just know bro is not about to be endgame. there were three sides of my brain working overtime during this book. the first told me that grim and isla should be together. the second told me they should all be an absolutely overpowered throuple. the final side tells me (quite loudly) that grim and oro should just ditch isla and develop a mlm relationship that would put even neil and todd from the dead poets society to shame.
──〝 i’ve been aching, aching for you, my love, 〞
˚₊ · »-𖣂→ my series reviews:
⤿ Lightlark (3.5★)
⤿ Nightbane (3.25★)
⤿ Skyshade (?★)
⤿ Crowntide (?★)
⤿ Grim & Oro (?★)
──〝 my head is a jungle. 〞
┆ ⤿ 🐈⬛ ⌗ pre-read:
⋆ prediction: 3.75★ ✗
⤿ it’s been so long since i read Lightlark but the gc has been ranting about it for so long that of course i had to tag along for a group read with my loveliest angels rosie, maryna, and lakshmi !! ♡
⤿ note: this started as a four person group read but life’s a bitch, so only two of us made it out alive.
જ⁀➴ ₊˚⊹ ★
November 9, 2025
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
╰› (⭐3.75)
⋆｡°✩ 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍
i'm so conflicted on this one omg... but i'm so happy i got to read this with my gorgeous wife edie-may !! 🤭🤭🤭 unfortunately, as stated in her review, we lost 2 readers along the way 😔 rip maryna and lakshmi, gone but not forgotten 💔💔 (as always, life gets in the way)
⋆｡°✩ 𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒕
i'm a little sad to say that nightbane did exhibit some symptoms of second book syndrome. 😔 running around doing lil side quests? preparing for a war the entire book just to have the whole scene happen in the last 30 pages? sigh. oh well, it's not like i haven't already bought the rest of the series because YES I DO HAVE A PROBLEM.
i couldn't take most of this story seriously, as you will probably see in the rest of this review 😭💔 some things either didn't make sense or were just plain cringe... unfortunately.
the plot was really lacking and the progression was soooo slow. the buildup for the main event to happen in like 20 pages was just... disappointing, honestly. maybe skyshade can redeem it for us idk 🙏
i still had fun while reading this book! i just wasn't as downright obsessed with it as i was with lightlark.
⋆｡°✩ 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔
𝘪𝘴𝘭𝘢 ⭑.ᐟ 👑
in this one, our FMC definitely felt a little more oh-so-special 'chosen one', in my opinion. she was slightly more cringe and a little less enjoyable this time around, but i still have faith she'll redeem herself in the... *checks notes* how many more books? good lord. in the 3 more books and 2 more novellas in this series.
𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘮 ⭑.ᐟ 🌙
once again, giggling kicking my feet. grim is so pookie. i love him so much idecccc 👅👅👅
but seriously, he's such an adorable lil guy. his and isla's memories were probably the most interesting parts of this book. i think 95% of the tabs i used were to bookmark places where they made me swoon.
𝘰𝘳𝘰 ⭑.ᐟ ☀️
i feel so bad for this guy omfg 😭 when your mortal enemy highkey steals your bihh 🥀
oro was honestly really cute at the start of the book and i did like his character but... he's a little plain, i must admit. slightly boring, but he's still a cutie patootie! i just don't see him being chosen by isla... sorry man 😭
⋆｡°✩ 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈
the writing was a little juvenile and cringe at times, but it was definitely intriguing. it didn't ever really let my focus slip for too long, and i did enjoy it overall.
⋆｡°✩ 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔
lowkey super excited to get into skyshade after that ending omg!! (i'm still a tiny bit confused but it's okay, we ball)
i'm still rooting for the throuple to be a thing. is that weird?
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
ꫝ 𝒑𝒓𝒆-𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅:
AHHHH OMG I'VE BEEN SO EXCITED TO START THIS ONE!! predicting another 5 star... 💗
the plans finally left the gc 👅 (group reading this with my gorgeous darlings maryna, edie-may and lakshmi!! love you guys so much, can't wait to get into this hehe <3)
╰› (⭐3.75)
⋆｡°✩ 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍
i'm so conflicted on this one omg... but i'm so happy i got to read this with my gorgeous wife edie-may !! 🤭🤭🤭 unfortunately, as stated in her review, we lost 2 readers along the way 😔 rip maryna and lakshmi, gone but not forgotten 💔💔 (as always, life gets in the way)
⋆｡°✩ 𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒕
i'm a little sad to say that nightbane did exhibit some symptoms of second book syndrome. 😔 running around doing lil side quests? preparing for a war the entire book just to have the whole scene happen in the last 30 pages? sigh. oh well, it's not like i haven't already bought the rest of the series because YES I DO HAVE A PROBLEM.
i couldn't take most of this story seriously, as you will probably see in the rest of this review 😭💔 some things either didn't make sense or were just plain cringe... unfortunately.
the plot was really lacking and the progression was soooo slow. the buildup for the main event to happen in like 20 pages was just... disappointing, honestly. maybe skyshade can redeem it for us idk 🙏
i still had fun while reading this book! i just wasn't as downright obsessed with it as i was with lightlark.
⋆｡°✩ 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔
𝘪𝘴𝘭𝘢 ⭑.ᐟ 👑
in this one, our FMC definitely felt a little more oh-so-special 'chosen one', in my opinion. she was slightly more cringe and a little less enjoyable this time around, but i still have faith she'll redeem herself in the... *checks notes* how many more books? good lord. in the 3 more books and 2 more novellas in this series.
𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘮 ⭑.ᐟ 🌙
once again, giggling kicking my feet. grim is so pookie. i love him so much idecccc 👅👅👅
but seriously, he's such an adorable lil guy. his and isla's memories were probably the most interesting parts of this book. i think 95% of the tabs i used were to bookmark places where they made me swoon.
𝘰𝘳𝘰 ⭑.ᐟ ☀️
i feel so bad for this guy omfg 😭 when your mortal enemy highkey steals your bihh 🥀
oro was honestly really cute at the start of the book and i did like his character but... he's a little plain, i must admit. slightly boring, but he's still a cutie patootie! i just don't see him being chosen by isla... sorry man 😭
⋆｡°✩ 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈
the writing was a little juvenile and cringe at times, but it was definitely intriguing. it didn't ever really let my focus slip for too long, and i did enjoy it overall.
⋆｡°✩ 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔
lowkey super excited to get into skyshade after that ending omg!! (i'm still a tiny bit confused but it's okay, we ball)
i'm still rooting for the throuple to be a thing. is that weird?
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
ꫝ 𝒑𝒓𝒆-𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅:
AHHHH OMG I'VE BEEN SO EXCITED TO START THIS ONE!! predicting another 5 star... 💗
the plans finally left the gc 👅 (group reading this with my gorgeous darlings maryna, edie-may and lakshmi!! love you guys so much, can't wait to get into this hehe <3)
April 30, 2024
EDIT (4/30/24): FINALLY FINISHED.
let's start off with the important things, I got BINGO woo
Hard as she tried, I think Aster had to acknowledge some of the criticism she received for Lightlark. But honestly, her biggest crime (beyond being a failed TikTok singer who can't write) is the fact this book was so fucking boring. My friends were making fun of me for being dramatic (I am in fact, dramatic), but I think my intense dislike of this book was fueled by how much of a waste it is. Waste of publishing. Waste of opportunity. Waste of paper.
Aster continues to get undeserved accolades for subpar writing. If I was in her boots, I'd lean into the absurdity of my success and make the plot go haywire! Instead, she's desperately trying to prolong the tail end of the ACOTAR romantasy craze with cardboard cut out broody men and a vapid self-insert who is a lacklustre presence for the entire duration of the novel. Do you know how bad it is when the second lead guy has more interiority than your main character??? Oro is king of Lightlark, constantly wrestling between his responsibilities and personal aspirations; he's gifted with a Flair for determining honesty (stupid name by the way. if I get started, every naming convention in this series is as creative as a 3rd grader who's watched Winx Club for the first time AND WINX CLUB IS 13343245239X BETTER); he is in love with a woman with a past that he isn't afraid of. At every turn, Aster tries to make us hate this man and it's hilarious because there's clearly nothing wrong with him. She can't Tamlin him and I know she's hates that she's backed herself into this corner.
Grim is just a shit character. There's literally nothing compelling about him. He is a Walmart Rhysand who has no depth. We're constantly visiting Nightshade but there's never any information about what that realm is like. The most I got was that Nightshade people wear scanty clothes and live in darkness. ACOMAF I won't defend you, but just know that you did the broody morally grey shtick better. It's so funny because Oro and Grim cannot be distinguished from each other. In both the Oro x Isla and Grim x Isla love story, it's broody man who is untrusting of the quirky Wildling girl until she gets past their defense and gets them to fall in love with her. Same person in different fonts, Isla sucks regardless.
EDIT (4/7/23): oooh I was so close with the title. how many bets Nightbane is a secret item/ingredient etc that Isla has to find in Nightshade
I'm hopped up on Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Almond Butter Pretzel Nuggets and struck with inspiration so I present to you all: Lightlark 2 Bingo Card
(Posting a second time for the mobile users lmao)
Bingo Card Alt. Text
Isla is #traumatized (ACOMAF vibes)
sequel is called Nightshade
“Grim grinned”
conflict w/ Moonling realm
Isla x Oro ship killed within first 20-40% of book
flaws in Starling world building never addressed
Oro gets Tamlin'd
something with the Wildlings who don't eat hearts
only Grim can teach her how to use her powers
"X was an X thing"
v Isla x Grim spicy scene (even tho this is YA??)
"Wildling" (flirty)
Free Space
Isla in pretty dress that she hates bc she's #different
Cleo gets mean girl redemption
Isla embraces her sexuality for seduction
Isla gets a Nightshade girl best friend bc feminism
secret 7th realm
Grim has ~trauma~ (mommy/daddy issues)
Isla does something with a sword/weapon proving she's ~strong~
ACOTAR dupe
Azul still has no personality as token Black character
Isla either 1. gets ALL the powers or 2. loses all her powers
something with the "dreks" where Isla stops them all w/ Grim
"Hearteater" (flirty)
Personally, I'm hoping the following comes true (not because I'm invested, but because I've digested enough of Alex Aster's TikTok content to infer the high likelihood I might be right):
- Sequel is called Nightshade (duh, Isla is half Nightshade because her dad was some Nightshade general and all signs point to Isla x Grim endgame)
- There's some 7th realm. I am cursed with a physical copy of this book and though the secret chapter in Grim's POV was focused on smut, there was a mention that he was battling these things called dreks so I'm gonna guess there's this evil realm that all the other 6 realms have to team up against but Isla will be the most powerful in stopping them
- Speaking of smut. Ha, remember when Alex Aster's Booktok besties got on this forsaken website to defend her book by insisting it was meant to read dumb because it's written for 12-13 year olds? Side eye, CalvinBooks...SIDE EYE. I expect at least one very cringy attempt at steamy smut between Isla and Grim, not Isla and Oro - he's blonde!! We all know the blonde ones hardly make the cut in today's fantasy love triangles. R.I.P. Oro, you will not be missed because of that weird body-count conversation you had with Isla in the caves. What was that lmao.
You all might say I'm a hater, and you're so right. I'm vibrating with excitement for this book to come out. Heck, I might even be surprised with the improvements Alex Aster makes! Knowing how she's responded to feedback though, and the several yes-men surrounding her...she's gonna keep doing what she does.
let's start off with the important things, I got BINGO woo
Hard as she tried, I think Aster had to acknowledge some of the criticism she received for Lightlark. But honestly, her biggest crime (beyond being a failed TikTok singer who can't write) is the fact this book was so fucking boring. My friends were making fun of me for being dramatic (I am in fact, dramatic), but I think my intense dislike of this book was fueled by how much of a waste it is. Waste of publishing. Waste of opportunity. Waste of paper.
Aster continues to get undeserved accolades for subpar writing. If I was in her boots, I'd lean into the absurdity of my success and make the plot go haywire! Instead, she's desperately trying to prolong the tail end of the ACOTAR romantasy craze with cardboard cut out broody men and a vapid self-insert who is a lacklustre presence for the entire duration of the novel. Do you know how bad it is when the second lead guy has more interiority than your main character??? Oro is king of Lightlark, constantly wrestling between his responsibilities and personal aspirations; he's gifted with a Flair for determining honesty (stupid name by the way. if I get started, every naming convention in this series is as creative as a 3rd grader who's watched Winx Club for the first time AND WINX CLUB IS 13343245239X BETTER); he is in love with a woman with a past that he isn't afraid of. At every turn, Aster tries to make us hate this man and it's hilarious because there's clearly nothing wrong with him. She can't Tamlin him and I know she's hates that she's backed herself into this corner.
Grim is just a shit character. There's literally nothing compelling about him. He is a Walmart Rhysand who has no depth. We're constantly visiting Nightshade but there's never any information about what that realm is like. The most I got was that Nightshade people wear scanty clothes and live in darkness. ACOMAF I won't defend you, but just know that you did the broody morally grey shtick better. It's so funny because Oro and Grim cannot be distinguished from each other. In both the Oro x Isla and Grim x Isla love story, it's broody man who is untrusting of the quirky Wildling girl until she gets past their defense and gets them to fall in love with her. Same person in different fonts, Isla sucks regardless.
EDIT (4/7/23): oooh I was so close with the title. how many bets Nightbane is a secret item/ingredient etc that Isla has to find in Nightshade
I'm hopped up on Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Almond Butter Pretzel Nuggets and struck with inspiration so I present to you all: Lightlark 2 Bingo Card
(Posting a second time for the mobile users lmao)
Bingo Card Alt. Text
Isla is #traumatized (ACOMAF vibes)
sequel is called Nightshade
“Grim grinned”
conflict w/ Moonling realm
Isla x Oro ship killed within first 20-40% of book
flaws in Starling world building never addressed
Oro gets Tamlin'd
something with the Wildlings who don't eat hearts
only Grim can teach her how to use her powers
"X was an X thing"
v Isla x Grim spicy scene (even tho this is YA??)
"Wildling" (flirty)
Free Space
Isla in pretty dress that she hates bc she's #different
Cleo gets mean girl redemption
Isla embraces her sexuality for seduction
Isla gets a Nightshade girl best friend bc feminism
secret 7th realm
Grim has ~trauma~ (mommy/daddy issues)
Isla does something with a sword/weapon proving she's ~strong~
ACOTAR dupe
Azul still has no personality as token Black character
Isla either 1. gets ALL the powers or 2. loses all her powers
something with the "dreks" where Isla stops them all w/ Grim
"Hearteater" (flirty)
Personally, I'm hoping the following comes true (not because I'm invested, but because I've digested enough of Alex Aster's TikTok content to infer the high likelihood I might be right):
- Sequel is called Nightshade (duh, Isla is half Nightshade because her dad was some Nightshade general and all signs point to Isla x Grim endgame)
- There's some 7th realm. I am cursed with a physical copy of this book and though the secret chapter in Grim's POV was focused on smut, there was a mention that he was battling these things called dreks so I'm gonna guess there's this evil realm that all the other 6 realms have to team up against but Isla will be the most powerful in stopping them
- Speaking of smut. Ha, remember when Alex Aster's Booktok besties got on this forsaken website to defend her book by insisting it was meant to read dumb because it's written for 12-13 year olds? Side eye, CalvinBooks...SIDE EYE. I expect at least one very cringy attempt at steamy smut between Isla and Grim, not Isla and Oro - he's blonde!! We all know the blonde ones hardly make the cut in today's fantasy love triangles. R.I.P. Oro, you will not be missed because of that weird body-count conversation you had with Isla in the caves. What was that lmao.
You all might say I'm a hater, and you're so right. I'm vibrating with excitement for this book to come out. Heck, I might even be surprised with the improvements Alex Aster makes! Knowing how she's responded to feedback though, and the several yes-men surrounding her...she's gonna keep doing what she does.
May 20, 2023
I don't care what anybody says. I am team ORO. And I want isla and oro to end up together. That's ittt.
November 11, 2023
It's five stars, but a painful five stars when you're team Oro
November 21, 2024
“𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝑰 𝒅𝒐. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒐𝒖𝒃𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏.”
✨Hello ✨ it has taken me WEEKS to write this review because if i'm honest im scared for book #3 due to all the reviews I been seeing. But DUH I will read it because how book #2 ended i'm sorry butttttt WAAAATTT! 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭
Since this is book #2, I won’t spoil anything for you but seriously, you NEED to read this series! It’s a YA fantasy where Isla plays a dangerous game involving Lightlark (the magical isle at the center of their world). After the curse from book #1 is resolved, you’re immediately thrown into a new problem that sets up an entirely different plot. And, of course, that means you also enter the love triangle 😭💔 Prepare to have your feelings twisted, tangled, and thoroughly confused… and then suffer some more :)
“𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒃𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒔 . . . 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒃𝒚𝒆.”
This book was so fun and easy to dive into! But let me tell you, I wanted to grab Isla, shake her, and scream, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING" but that is what makes reading fun to be frustrated with the fmc and be in love with the mmcs right?? 🙃 I really hope i'm right 🫠
⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
this finally arrived from libby, am I scared?
✨Abso-freaking-lutely✨
✨Hello ✨ it has taken me WEEKS to write this review because if i'm honest im scared for book #3 due to all the reviews I been seeing. But DUH I will read it because how book #2 ended i'm sorry butttttt WAAAATTT! 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭
Since this is book #2, I won’t spoil anything for you but seriously, you NEED to read this series! It’s a YA fantasy where Isla plays a dangerous game involving Lightlark (the magical isle at the center of their world). After the curse from book #1 is resolved, you’re immediately thrown into a new problem that sets up an entirely different plot. And, of course, that means you also enter the love triangle 😭💔 Prepare to have your feelings twisted, tangled, and thoroughly confused… and then suffer some more :)
“𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒃𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒔 . . . 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒃𝒚𝒆.”
This book was so fun and easy to dive into! But let me tell you, I wanted to grab Isla, shake her, and scream, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING" but that is what makes reading fun to be frustrated with the fmc and be in love with the mmcs right?? 🙃 I really hope i'm right 🫠
⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
this finally arrived from libby, am I scared?
✨Abso-freaking-lutely✨
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