Devil's Dance

Jaga and the Devil #3

by Layla Fae

Láska je strašlivá slabost. A slabosti se trestají.

Co když tě nezlomí jen bolest… ale i muž, kterého už nikdy nechceš milovat?

Ona je zlomená. On se snaží zvrátit osud. A zatímco bohové válčí, láska se stává tou nejnebezpečnější slabostí.

Ďáblův tanec je syrové, temné a emotivní vyvrcholení série Jaga a ďábel. Příběh o bolesti, zradě, posedlosti a o tom, co zůstane, když část duše shoří.

Genres: Fantasy, Dark Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Dark, Romantasy, Romance, Paranormal

559 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 21, 2025

About the author

Sign up for my newsletter: here.
Layla Fae writes steamy monster romance of many varieties. Fluffy or dark, with TWs ranging from flavored monster essence used as food to blood play and dark taboo romance, she explores the fantasy of monster love from various angles.
She is not an author for the faint of heart.

Reviews

[Mo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m actually really disappointed 😔 I was expecting something epic and it just didn’t cut it for me.

I understand the rebirth and overcoming of trauma but that was so exaggerated, exhausting, and dragged out. I don’t think it was executed to its full potential.

It was so much back and forth between Jaga, Weles, & Woland that it’s very repetitive and sappy but now Jaga is the morally black character (which is great until it’s overplayed).

I really wanted Weles to be more than what his character was given. I was not expecting him to be such a depressing, cowardice character. He ruined the book for me.

I loved Chors in all three books and he has such a good backstory which I’m happy to have seen more come to fruition in this one. I looked forward to his appearances than anything else.


The war they faced since the beginning wasn’t pushed into this finale as much as I wanted. I figured an epic war between gods but it was a doozy. Perun was written perfectly and his encounter with Jaga was great.

I did enjoy all the revenge that Jaga was able to get because she became ruthless however, her tantrums, scoffing, and bickering made my eyes roll 🙄

The ending was cute but all that back and forth was for nothing and now I’m left sad because I was highly anticipating this book. Book two was my favorite of all.

[TetyanaSun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Боже… Я ще ніколи так несамовито не вболівала за morally black головного героя і так люто не хотіла придушити головну героїню.
Книга — розйоб
Яґа — розйоб моєї нервової системи
Я була в її команді перші дві книги, всім серцем. Вона боролася за свою свободу, не прогиналася, не продавалася, не дозволяла дияволу себе зламати. Красотка, АЛЕ, БЛЯХА.
Персонажі мають розвиватися. А вона ніби законсервувалася у своєму запереченні, до останньої сторінки.

Я вже психувала до судо́м.
Скільки можна вперто не бачити очевидного, не аналізувати, відкидати слова, вчинки, жертви?
Ти вже зачарувала цього бідолаху, він уже фізично НЕ МОЖЕ тобі брехати. Він уже, сука, вивалив перед тобою нутрощі, душу, травми, провину, кохання. Він розмазав себе по підлозі, щоб ти нарешті подивилася на нього не як на монстра.

А вона стоїть, і знову за своє: не вірю, не слухаю, не бачу, я піду-куди, мені цікаво ти зібралась?
Нія сказала краще за всіх:
«Вона що, недоумкувата, Велесе? Ти закохався в тупу жінку, яка не розуміє, що їй говорять?»
Підписуюсь підкожним словом. Нарешті хоч хтось сказав це вголос.

А тепер про головне!!!
ВЕЛЕС 100000000000000/5.

Я абсолютно повірила в його спокуту. Для мене вона відбулася ще після розділу з катуваннями. І саме тоді Воланд перестав бути для мене просто харизматичним дияволом.
Бо насправді він не руйнівник.

Він Творець

Цілитель

Митець

Бог

Воланда створив Перун. Століття тортур, принижень, пекла і болю народили чудовисько, яким він став. І авторка дуже красиво, буквально по молекулах, розбирає цю душу, щоб зрештою показати того Велеса, який завжди був

…який, до речі, ще й абсолютно високоякісний збоченець.

Безсоромний

Хтивий

Брудноязикий

Ментальний садист

Домінант

Яґо-трахальник 80-го рівня

Кінчати від того, що вона зав’язала йому хвіст бантом? Все)))

Це вже якийсь новий щабель божественного гедонізму

Обожнюю цю боготварину

Його терпіння до Яґи справді космічне. Тому, що я б її придушила ще сторінок за триста до фіналу

Все інше в книзі шикарно. Світ, слов’янська міфологія, гумор, персонажі, фінал, емоції — серія вийшла цілісною і дуже самобутньою.
Єдина причина, чому це не 5 - Яґа, її впертість не сила, а клініка)

Початкові налаштування на диявола дали сбій, в фіналі маємо краша Велеса🥰

[RAVEN · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was boring and disappointing. More like reading the day to day life of Jaga and others.

And I rated the first two books 5 stars.

[Yuliia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Це настільки неймовірна серія. Просто найкраща 🤌❤️‍🔥 І саме ця частина… можливо, я трохи забула, наскільки гарними були перші дві, але третя - це просто якийсь особливий смак.

Стільки емоцій, гумору, злості, психів і напруги. Воланд - це щось неймовірне. Напевно, один із найкращих персонажів, яких я читала.

Токсичне, неврівноважене бісове хлопчисько 😈

Коментарі Воланда з приводу будь-чого - це витвір мистецтва. А те, як Яґуся його виводить… Боже мій, вона моя героїня. Я хочу так само вміти 😅

І ці ревнощі Воланда 😈😈😈

«Він планує їхнє майбутнє? Моя найдорожча і мій син будуть… разом тепер?»

Ну просто в найкращих традиціях — від батька до сина 😂

А як він її називає - «макове дівчисько» ❤️‍🔥 Я просто пливу на цих моментах.

Це така інтенсивна романтична лінія: хімія, образи, ненависть, суперництво і туга ❤️‍🔥 Між ними настільки сильна напруга, що буквально кожне слово і кожна дія можуть порушити цей хиткий мир та баланс у їхніх стосунках. Постійне протистояння: хто хитріший, хто сильніший.

І окремо про Воланда. Мені дуже подобається, як його прописала авторка. Він не типовий покидьок, який змінюється заради жінки через 5 хвилин після зустрічі. Він залишається собою до останнього - ідіотом 😅 Але видно, як він намагається хоч щось змінити, хоч щось зробити для Яґусі. Виходить у нього погано, але зірочка за старання ⭐

Він реально думає тільки одним місцем 😅 Це єдине, що змушує його жити та рухатися.

«Минає секунда. Друга. Я струшую із себе шок і кидаюся за нею, мій твердий член сам вказує напрямок.»

Ну от… без коментарів 😂😈

Але водночас ох, як він за нею тужить 🥹 У свій викривлений спосіб, але як же гарно це написано 🤌

Після перших двох книг мені дуже хотілося поринути в його голову і зрозуміти, що цим дурком керувало весь цей час. І глибини його сутності точно не розчарували.

У перших частинах він був сильним, таємничим і незрозумілим. А в третій ми бачимо його іншим - місцями зломленим, жалюгідним і побитим часом. Його тут нарешті відкрили.

«Керований найнижчими інстинктами, імпульсивний, жадібний, жорстокий і звірячий. Саме в це ти закохалася, макове дівчисько. Ти і сама маленька звірюка.»

«Вона — моє пророковане макове дівчисько, моя найяскравіша зірка і світло надії.»

«Моє кохання — жорстока, нелогічна річ. Я ненавиджу бачити, як її кривдять інші, але насолоджуюся стражданнями, які їй заподіюю я.»

Протистояння Яґи і Воланда… Ох. Як я хотіла, щоб вона здалася, і водночас як сильно хотіла, щоб вона ніколи не здавалася.

А як він тужить…

«Гаразд. — Мої плечі опускаються в покірності. — Ми квити. Тож кохай мене знову.»

«Можливо, ти ніколи не будеш моєю, але чи можу я бути твоїм? Будь ласка.»

«Спи, кохана. Ха. Ти занадто приголомшена блаженством, щоб зупинити мене тепер. Я кохаю тебе. Я кохаю тебе. Я кохаю тебе.»

Це неймовірне слов’янське дарк-фентезі 🤌 Я ще ніколи не читала нічого подібного. Це справді особлива серія для мого серця. У скарбничку найкращого ❤️‍🔥

І як легко це написано. Персонажі такі живі - зі своїми недосконалостями, травмами та глибиною.

Арти в книгах були неймовірні ❤️‍🔥 Я завжди зависала над ними, розглядала героїв. Вони неймовірно красиві, автентичні й дуже додають атмосфері.

Сцени 18+… ооо, коли ми до них дійдемо 🤌😅 Це буде не скоро, але це якийсь новий вид збочення ❤️‍🔥😈

А ще:

«Знаєш, ніколи не було ніякої Баби Гені, — бурмоче Велес пізніше, коли ми лежимо в ліку. — Але могла бути Баба Яга. Та, що любить гній і топче богинь у землю.»

Я просто закохана в цю серію ❤️‍🔥

[Ms. Dess · Rating 2 out of 5]

My Rating: 2 ⭐⭐ because FUCK THIS SHIT!!!
Series Status: I finished it out of spite and now I need a cigarette, a nap, and maybe an apology from the author - definitely a call to my therapist.

We Have:
✅ Dark Fantasy Romance
✅ MF Romance
✅ Morally gray (borderline toxic) MMC
✅ Emotionally traumatized FMC
✅ Enemies to lovers… to whatever the fuck this is
✅ Miscommunication Olympics gold medalists
✅ Groveling… but make it ineffective
✅ “I said I’d change” followed immediately by chaos
✅ Emotional whiplash on a loop
✅ Respectfully… I wanted to fight both of them

This book pissed me the fuck off. Not in a fun/toxic “I’m screaming but I’m entertained” kind of way… no… this was the kind of irritation that had me side eyeing my Kindle like it personally wronged me. And before anybody jumps me, let me say this loud and clear… I see what the author was doing. I understand the trauma. I understand the hesitation. I understand why some readers are going to eat this shit up and call it powerful, empowering, healing, all of that. That just… was not my brand of chaos. For what I like?? Bitch no. Just no. ALL the fucking no’s.

Jaga… girl. I get it…I really fucking do. You went through some truly unhinged, nightmare fuel, “therapy is not enough for this” type shit. Your trust is shattered, your guard is up, and you are standing ten toes down in your boundaries. Love that for you in theory. In execution?? NAAAAAH - It felt like watching someone keep pressing a bruise just to confirm it still hurts. Over and over and over again. At some point I wasn’t rooting for healing anymore… I was begging for forward fucking motion.

And him… sir… what are we doing. The man is out here in a constant cycle of “I’ll do better” followed immediately by doing the exact opposite. It’s like watching someone say they’re on a diet while actively chewing on a cupcake. You cannot say you’re giving her space and then be all up in her face five seconds later acting confused about why she’s not folding. The lack of selfawareness was almost impressive. Almost.

The dynamic between them stopped feeling like tension and started feeling like a never ending loop. Same argument, different font. Same energy, same font but italicized. You think you’re about to get somewhere and then BOOM… we’re right back where we started like the emotional fucking equivalent of a glitch in the matrix. And I swear to fucking God if I had to read one more variation of “I want you but I can’t trust you but I’m still here but I’m mad about it” I was going to lose my shit. Well - clearly I did lose my fucking shit.

This book’s smut… listen… it’s there. It does what it needs to do. But even that started to feel like it was caught in the crossfire of all this back and forth. Like yes, we’re doing things… but at what emotional cost?? Because half the time I was too irritated to even enjoy it properly and that is a crime.
And then the plot choices… I’m not even going to spoil it, but just know there were moments where I had to pause and stare into the distance like “there is no fucking way this is the decision we’re making right now.” The kind of choices that make you want to grab both characters by the shoulders and shake them like a damn Etch A Sketch. HOWEVER… there was one impressively unhinged ménage a trois moment involving a split tongue……At first I was like absolutely not. Disgusted. Concerned. Then I kept reading… And suddenly I was like… well… hold on…wait a minute… let’s not rush to judgment here 👀


All in all… this is 100% personal preference. There are going to be readers who connect deeply with Jaga, who see strength in her refusal to fold. Ones who appreciate the realism of how messy healing and trust actually are. I respect that. No for real I do. But this shit is not for meeeee. I needed progression, not purgatory. I needed growth, not a beautifully written emotional stalemate.

Exhibit A: man says he’ll change… does not change
Exhibit B: woman demands honesty… receives honesty… is still (understandably) furious… but we live there for 300 pages
Exhibit C: me… on the couch… pissed… turning pages anyway because now I’m committed
And that’s really the problem… because I was still invested. Still reading. Still hoping it would snap into place.

It just… never quite did for me 😌

[Kateryna Vasylivna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Яка це неймовірна історія. Просто ВАУ ✨

Але, як же мною тіліпало останні 30% від твердолобості Яґи. Її тупо нічого не брало. Я дуже старалась розуміти її і співпереживати через все те, що творив Воланд у перших двох книгах, і там я була цілком і повністю за неї. Але тут це було вже виснажливо для мене, як для читача.

Воланд настільки віддався їй: відкрився 🫀, дозволив катувати себе всіма можливими способами, показав УСІ свої слабкості, розказав свої страхи, плакав при ній, наклав на себе закляття, щоб ніколи їй не брехати, дозволив робити з собою ще купу всього, від чого у мене очі були отакі - 👀, але вона не поступилась ні на сантиметр в своїй упертості. Ну як так!
Я вже хотіла того диявола приголубити і запитати чи дійсно та Яґа прям так йому треба? Може хай грається собі сама зі своєю гниллю...

Як він млів за нею, як пишався і гордився всім, що вона робила. А те, як він її називав - просто окремий вид мистецтва 🖤. Скільки епітетів, ух.

Як на мене, то Воланд собою перекрив усі невеликі погрішності сюжету і це була його книжка на всі 200% 😈.

[Raquel Brasil · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review

I closed the final page of this trilogy and just sat there, letting it settle. This story is relentless in the best way. It understands that survival is not the same as healing, and that love does not always arrive as gentleness.

What stayed with me most was the balance the narrative explores: light and dark, rage and restraint, indifference and devotion. Power here is not loud or dominating. It grows through surrender, through choice, through the willingness to be seen and claimed rather than conquered.

The characters are beautifully fractured. There is a rawness to the way pain shapes them, and an even greater beauty in how they continue anyway. Feminine rage is given space to exist without apology, while despair and yearning are allowed to transform rather than destroy.

This finale doesn’t seek easy victories. It understands that some wars are won not by force, but by yielding, and that love, when chosen freely, can be the most dangerous power of all.

This trilogy will stay with me for a long time. It’s unruly, emotional, and quietly devastating in all the right ways.

Raquel (The Ink Addicts Reads)

[El · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF 75% in. This was a really disappointing end to a series that had a great start. The book just focused on too much back and forth between Woland, Weles, and Jaga and it got boring and repetitive. Him apologising and trying to win her over, her wanting to be with him but angry over his previous lies and deceptions and seeking revenge. It was so much exaggerated, it missed the main plot which was the battle between the gods.

Chors and Jaga's romantic relationship went nowhere either in this book which makes me question what the purpose of their sexual encounter at the end of book 2 actually added to the story other than more smut. I was also really disappointed by Woland's character portrayal in this as well. For most of the series, he is this commanding presence, sparking fear amongst mortals to the extent they can't even speak his name or look upon him without bleeding. However, in book 3 he is scared of Perun, wanting to run and hide, he came off very cowardly and unlike himself.

[manu · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest … I was so excited to read this and it left me in the worst reading mood. Such an epic story, ending on a mid level note.

[Abby · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book as much as I loved the first two! I tried so hard, I truly did. I hated it. The constant moping and WHINING from Weles/Woland, girl PLEASEEE. He felt like a toddler and he’s supposed to be thousands of years old.💀 This book was just so different from the rest with how the 2 main characters suddenly are without any building up to that, that it was jarring. It felt like a completely different series. The first 2 books? 5/5 ⭐️. This book? 0/5 ⭐️, which really blows.

[Ms Eclectic · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book incredibly frustrating - Yaga becomes sulky, selfish and oppositional way beyond logic and past character behaviour.

The conflict between the characters doesn’t get resolved til about 90% and while I enjoyed reading from another perspective, Vêles becomes very sexually submissive and not really my cup of tea.

The ending was good. The rest of it very mixed.

[Vivien · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

While I still enjoyed most of the story, I didn’t like the direction the character development took. Weles was such a pathetic little crybaby and it was quite exhausting to read about his selfdoubts 🫠

I really loved this series so far and while I wouldn’t say I‘m completely disappointed, the last book was the weakest one for sure.

[Tetiana O · Rating 3 out of 5]

Мене бісить динаміка їх відносин, ці качєлі, це просто 🫠. Маятник жорстокості, від якого кайфують обоє.

Ця книга напевно найкраща з трилогії, все що треба було - написати від його лиця 😅.
Але момент в маковому полі був, мʼяко кажучи, шокуючий, він забрав одну зірку з собою, бо про таке треба попереджати 🙄. Обидва моменти.

Книга читалась тяжко, наче і цікаво шо там далі, цікаво коли Велес розповідає історію, що було раніше, а потім Яґа шось впоре і всьо, нема бажання читать далі.
Кінцівка напружена і динамічна, красива розвʼязка, все вчасно, все склалося. Я задоволена фіналом історії, але було вже аж трохи тошнотно 😅.

[BookishAnya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not going to lie, I am disappointed in the book. Seemed like a lot of waffling and I’ve been counting down the months/weeks for this to release. More like a 1.5

[Elif Arslan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yani… Benim için çok karmaşık bir puanlama oldu çünkü sevdim mi sevmedim mi bilmiyorum. Kitap mantıken bana istediğim her şeyi verdi ama ben tatmin olmadım, peki neden?

Önceki kitapta Woland kıza gerçekten inanılmaz bir şekilde (cinsel değil) ihanet ediyor ve aşağılıyor. Kız da ona ihanet ediyor. Ve karşılık verilmesinden dolayı Woland bir piç olduğu için gururuna yediremiyor ve kızın aranan bir güç kaynağı olduğunu herkese itiraf ederek onu hedef haline getiriyor. Tabiki sonunda kaçırılıyor ve işkenceye maruz kalıyor, kurtarıldığında ise çoktan kırılmış bir kadın oluyor.

Üçüncü kitapta bu kırılmış kadını ve onu birleştirmeye çalışan, köpek gibi ayaklarını öpen ve ona ölümü dilettirecek işkenceler yapmasına müsade eden bir Wolandı okuyoruz. Yani kitabın dört yüz sayfası boyunca kadına aşık olduğunu, onu kaybetmekten korktuğunu ve onun için savaşı kazanmak istediğini söylüyor. Kız bu sefer akıllı hiçbirine inanmıyor. Bu sırada arkada tabi küçük küçük tanrılar kapışıyor ama yazar bunu resmen okurlar sussun diye eklemiş gibi. Kitabın ana konusu sadece kızın ben sana aitim demesi üzerine. O kadar sığ ki kadın karakteri ya da erkek karakteri asla beğenemedim.

Neyse kitap bana istediğimi verdi çünkü Wolandın gerçekten yeri öpmesini istemiştim. Öptü hatta köpek gibi yaladı ama aklının bir köşesinde hala kızı manipüle etmek varken ne önemi vardı ki? Ya da sonunda kız ona teslim olmaya yaklaşmışken erkeğin onu zorla hamile bırakmaya çalışması ve bunun ona savaşı kazandıracağını düşünmesinden sonra tüm o karakter gelişimi ne içindi? Ve kız bunu ondan bekliyordu, rahmini çoktan korumuştu. Eee? Üç boktan kitap boyunca böyle bir aşk için mi süründük?

O kadar sinirliyim ki. Güya son anda kızı öldürmesi gerektiğinde onsuz yaşamaktansa tüm halkının işkence görmesine razı oluyor. Keşke ikisi de ölseydi. Öyle daha samimi olurdu yada Woland ölerek herkesi kurtarsaydı. Çünkü eminim kız kendine başka erkek bulurdu. Kendisi bile söyledi, sen binlerce yaşında bir adamsın benim hayatının aşkı olduğumu söylüyorsun, öyleyse doğrudur. Ama ben daha 21 yaşında bir kızım, kimseyi sevme fırsatı bulamadım, senin benim hayatımın aşkı olduğunu nereden bilebilirim? Tam olarak böyle söyledi. Ve bence zaten hayatının aşkı değildi.

Kitabı kesinlikle beğenmedim. Bir puan Woland yeri yaladığı için. Diğer puan da Jaga tüm işkenceye rağmen sadece ölmesine izin vermediğinde ona kendini verdiği için. Bu kadar.

Şimdi defolun gözümün önünden.

[Ingrid R · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave the two first books five stars and was impatiently counting down to the day book 3 would come out. When I started reading I was perplexed, though- it's like the two main characters are two different people entirely, and the plot is dragged out and boring. I kept reading hoping it would get better, but no.

This series would not have interested me if the characters were like this from the get-go. This is not the dynamic nor the characters I signed up for. It's like I'm reading about two different people.

Jaga is a different person, very annoying at that, just whining and being angry all the time. She's very difficult to like, and I want to punch her in the face.

The devil has turned into a submissive and powerless character. Also, reading the whole book in his POV takes away his mystery. There is no attraction to him whatsoever anymore. He's just not it in this book.

Everything is back and forth, going in circles, too. Reading this book is a chore. I skipped a lot of pages to compromise with myself, but I still couldn't get through it and DNF'd at 75%.

[Anna Ha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ах! Ну що ж.. Це була неймовірно прекрасна та чудова подорож по Всесвіту, вигаданому Лайлою Фей 🤩 Я щиро вдячна авторці за ідею та реалізацію! ❤️‍🔥 Тут передано все настільки віртуозно, що я з головою поринула у всі розказані світи..

Ця частина, знову ж таки дуже відрізняється від попередніх двох. Майже все оповідання ведеться від лиця Воланда.. Тут ми краще розуміємо його дії та вчинки.. Його страхи, травми та переживання 💔 Він не ідеальний аж нітрохи, але він - створіння, яке живе і справжнє зі своєю нелегкою долею 🫶

В 1 частині основні події відбувалися у смертному світі, у 2й - у Славі, тут - ми знайомимося із структурою та устроєм у Наві і трошечки заглядаємо у Вирай ✨
Як я щиро сумнівалася у минулій частині у всіх словах та діях Воланда, так само щиро я вірила у його каяття та кохання у цій книжці.. а от Яґа мене розчарувала дещо.. 😣 Так, я хотіла, щоб вона помстилася усім своїм кривдникам, але ж, бляха, що занадто, то нездраво.. Одна справа помста, інша - впертість та твердолобість.. 😶🫤 Завдяки закляттю крові, вона вже переконалася в правдивості всього, що Воланд їй виливав разом зі своєю душею, а ця кульома все впирається і впирається.. 🙃 Гордість, коли зашкварює - це вже нездорово.. тим паче, ми всі прекрасно розуміємо, що вона його дійсно кохає..
Спайсі тут на другорядному плані, але воно доволі незвичне.. наче, і вдвох, але здається, що там ціла оргія 😁

Трошечки не вистачило мені розділів від Яґи, щоб вона аргументувала свої чмонські вчинки..🤭
Мокоша - ух, я тріумфувала, коли її гепали об землю.. Так їй, треба було роздерти цю суку і скормити найгіршим бісам 😁😎
Ну а перепалки із забороною пестливих слів - це моя улюблена тема в цій частині - "блядська набридь" - топчик🤣

Добре все, що добре закінчується.. 🫶 Кінець для мене був трохи змазаний, але це тому, що вже настільки високо була задерта планка твору, що гідно її завершити - ще та майстерність 😎 Проте, я задоволена.. Це історія, що запам'ятовується і я впевнена, що буду часто повертатися до неї в думках, а, ймовірно, і фізично перечитуючи деякі найбільш улюблені моменти ❤️

[eileen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read through the first two books within days and just started the third one today but I don't think I can finish it.

This book went off the rails and it's as if the two main character's completely changed. Jaga seems like a completely different person and the torture she inflicts on Woland is just too much. Woland is also way too submissive. I guess he feels guilty for how he's treated her in the past and is trying to right his wrongs but sometimes I'm begging him to STAND UP. I get that it's dark romance but this is very different than the first two books.

The back and forth between Jaga and Woland also got repetitive and quite annoying to read. I was hoping for more of a resolution between them by the middle of the third book, but judging by the reviews, I don't think that's happening. I didn't like the direction of Jaga's character in this book at all and honestly pitied Woland.

[nayezi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm sorry, but that was a disappointment: Almost everything that I liked in the first two novels got lost here.

[Belinda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolutely no lessons were learned. Incredibly disappointing. How did we go from 4 stars for Book 1 to 1 star by the end of the trilogy?

I will say the dedication to the DARK/Toxic genre is commendable. It remains true to this genre. When I opened the book and found that this was gonna be from Woland's POV. I wanted to riot. This book is disappointing in that it is Jaga's story, and yet the conclusion is not from her voice, not from her perspective. Where is she? She's a background character.

The majority of the book feels like the author justifying the plot twist from the end of book 2: Woland = Weles, that and a whole lot of grovelling. The whole I hurt you because I love you so much, I'll do anything so you react to me (any reaction is fine) - gets old and tiring and as a grown woman reading this: no. Again, I suppose this fits the DARK/Toxic genre, but I don't want to label it 'Dark Romance' because nothing about this is Romantic (more a comment about 'Dark Romance' in general).

The more enjoyable slivers of this book come from the lore of the gods, how they work (belief from mortals over time solidifying their nature etc.), and Perun's game to out manoeuvre them by tampering with the mortal realm - that was great, more of that please. But instead we get Woland/Weles grovelling, being horny, wanting to fuck an unwilling Jaga but recognising that raping her is not a good idea (ok and you want a medal for that?), trying to manipulate her into fucking him, being an absolutely useless person in the war of the gods and just a general nuisance.

Jaga goes off there rails, and I don't blame her after all she's been through and what's been done to her. She's steadfast in never falling for Woland/Weles' tricks again, however her dedication to being a badass is very one dimensional - she's there in the background spending time torturing people in the name of science, and not figuring out a way to fucking escape. Lady, prophecies are purposefully vague, why don't we pull on that thread? No? Ok, stay holed up being a one dimensional performative bad ass with a new outfit.

------ SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER --------



For all this talk of never falling for the trap ever again (and to be honest there wasn't a lot of that talk considering the book was from Woland's POV) what does she do? Falls for it, in fact i don't think she ever escaped the trap. All that suffering for nothing. All that accumulation of power for nothing. She dedicates herself to Woland when push comes to shove. And that's it. The conclusion/final show down is anticlimactic - nothing strategic or grand, just a betrayal from one of the allies and Perun coming in to trap them all.

The Happily Ever After was essentially "yay i was chosen by the boy, finally". Jaga babe, come on, you are better than that. Are we really going to ignore all the abuse you endured at his hands? How he tried to impregnate you against your will TWICE? "Oh but he was so conflicted about it the second time, so it's ok, that means he cares". Disappointing is not strong enough a word, absolutely no lessons were learned, no character was developed.

There were so many other paths that could've been explored. What if she didn't go back and save herself? She wanted freedom to die - ok, kill your younger self. Try that. What if she believed herself to be a goddess that was created, pledge allegiance/claim herself and win the war, shaping Slawa to her image. Tie herself to literally any other god? (how about Chors? remember him? he's nice.) She learned how to mask her energy and hide magically. Why not disappear back to the mortal world using this skill?

Well. None of that was explored and we got what we got.

[Amber Danforth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I already just know it’s gonna be amazing. Since August 7th, I’ve wanted to read this book and I KNOW that’s not a “long” time, but it feels like fucking years!! I can’t believe you left us like that hun! 😂 I was so shocked, I’m pretty sure you looked at Rebecca yarros cliffhanger and said “Challenge accepted”. I forget what happens in books Almost right after I’m done reading them (horrible memory issues) yet this book series…. I haven’t been able to get it out of my head.. 😂 I just can’t believe it. I really really hope you’ve made the devil in this book absolutely GROVEL. I think that’s why I’m so excited as well, i can feel it in your writing that you won’t make this character someone who easily forgives. I always wanna smack myself (I do actually..) and the FMC when they do that, but you… I have a good feeling. I can’t wait, I really really can’t wait. God why can’t it hurry up!! I want time to speed up but also want time to slow for you so you don’t freak out on writing it, that shit is a LOT of pressure. My birthday’s on the 18th of December and sure, I’m excited about turning 20 but what I’m most excited about is the fact that it’s 3 days away from the 21st 😂
—
Anywayyy, I love your writing and I absolutely can’t wait to see what happens in this book. :))
Respectfully, a loving reader. 🫀

[Jennifer Lara · Rating 2 out of 5]

All that growth and strength jaga gained only to have it end the way it did felt like a slap in the face.

[Ely]

Nvm everyone is annoying I don’t want to play with you anymore

[Bri West · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my most anticipated ARC read of 2025. I read it in 13 hours today after it arrived in my inbox this morning. I might have to revise my review in a couple days when I have had more time to process it all but let’s see if I can get my initial thoughts and feelings into something coherent at least while it’s this fresh.

I am so invested in these characters and their stories that I’ve been dying for book 3. The first two books literally had me in a chokehold and are still some of the best books I have read. I want to start by saying the ending for the trilogy wraps up neatly and made me so happy that we get our HARD EARNED happily ever after. Man was that truly earned and I was worried we might not get it. But let’s get into the nitty gritty.

Okay, so I’ll admit I wanted Woland to suffer. To grovel. To pine and sacrifice and be forced to endure the consequences of his mistakes. Boy oh boy did he ever. I can’t believe i’m saying this but he suffered almost too much…

The indifference in the first couple chapters had me applauding Jaga like it was my fifth round of a standing ovation encore. YES QUEEN MAKE HIM BEG. I am all about making men face the consequences of their actions, holding them responsible and making them work for it. However … this is where I kinda struggled with this book. We don’t get ANY form of reconciliation until 70% into the story. I feel like I screwed myself by wanting him to suffer so much because of everything he has done in previous books, that I didn’t realize if it lasted this long we would lose out on so much of their chemistry. The tension, passion, banter, yearning (mutual) was lacking for so much of the story. I think those things were such a strong part of books 1&2 that it made me feel like something was missing this time around.

The pace also felt much slower. I was halfway through the story and realized that nothing of much importance had happened yet. There was one intense scene with Perun trying to kidnap Weles to enslave him. Other than that, the first half of the book was literally just Jaga torturing Weles by being indifferent, Weles/Woland failing to make amends + pouting, and then Jaga physically torturing all the people she deemed worthy of her revenge in more gruesome ways than even Woland would do. I missed the quicker pace, action that moved the story along, romantic enemy/lover tension and even the betrayal from the first two books.

The real action / drama comes at about 90% in so to me it didn’t quite live up to the all encompassing obsession I had with the first two books. Those made me feel SO. MANY. EMOTIONS. so deeply, while this one didn’t evoke as much from me until the end.

With all that said, let’s talk about the brilliant things Layla did because she is still one of my all time favorite artist and anyone who loves this series is of course going to enjoy wrapping up our Jaga & Devils twisted toxic love story. I really enjoyed the mind bond. I will never not love a MC & FC ability to speak mind to mind. I feel like this books also gives us more character building. We discover all the back stories about what had happened between Weles, Perun, and the other gods in more detail. We learn so much more about their motivations and how they have changed through the centuries. It doesn’t excuse their behavior but it definitely makes you understand them and empathize / relate to them on deeper levels.

Im also so excited that we got more of some of the side characters storylines and hopefully this isn’t the end for many of them! I’m especially looking at you sweet Chors since we know he’s getting his own story in the Fairytales from Slawa series with book 1: Follow the Moon !


As always with dark romance make sure you read trigger warnings.

Finally, thank you to the author once again for the honor of receiving this eARC. I will never stop reading her books!

[Lucie Aran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tohle bylo přesně takové zakončení série, jaké jsem si přála. Příběh si zachovává vše, co mě na předchozích dílech bavilo – temnou atmosféru, nejednoznačné postavy i svět, který nepůsobí uhlazeně ani bezpečně – a zároveň dokáže uzavřít hlavní linky způsobem, který působí promyšleně a uspokojivě. Bylo znát, že všechno, co se v sérii postupně budovalo, směřovalo právě sem, a díky tomu má finále potřebnou sílu i emoce.

Nejvíc mě bavilo sledovat Jagu a její vývoj napříč celou sérií. Tady je krásně vidět, jak moc charakterově dozrála a jak se změnil její pohled na svět i na lidi kolem sebe. Velmi dobře fungují také vztahy mezi postavami, které nejsou černobílé a neustále se vyvíjejí. Autorka si dala záležet na tom, aby motivace jednotlivých postav dávaly smysl, i když jejich rozhodnutí nejsou vždy správná nebo snadno pochopitelná. A Veles mě nakonec opravdu překvapil víc, než jsem čekala.

Celkově na mě kniha působila jako víc než důstojné rozloučení s celou sérií. Nejen kvůli samotnému závěru, ale hlavně díky tomu, jak přirozeně dokázala propojit emoce, vztahy i temnější prvky světa, ve kterém se příběh odehrává. Tuhle sérii jsem si opravdu zamilovala a po dočtení ve mně zůstalo hlavně nadšení a velké očekávání toho, co přinese navazující série s názvem Fairy Tales from Slawa.

[Fia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oof I'm sad this book turned out to be mostly a flop for me. The cliff hanger from the previous book left me dying for this one and it semi delivered in the first chapters but then just totally got lost in the sauce. I really dislike how Jaga turned out and how just unreasonably stubborn she was to the point you wanted to strangle her. The plot and miguffins that happened really just took the love I had for this world and story and threw it out the window. Cheesey, annoying, eye roll events popping up all the time. Spice was redundant. Blah.

[Rachel Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I completely devoured this book in the less than 24 hours that it's been available.

I absolutely loved that the story was told primarily in Weles's point of view and that he was obsessive without being annoying about it. Seeing him actually beg for Jaga and seeing him grow in his way of loving her was fantastic. After the lies and deceit of the last two books it was nice to finally have a break full of honesty. My heart ached for Weles.

There were a few things that stood out to me the most though that I do wish were different.

The first, I felt like there was a lot of modern styled speaking that I don't really feel was present in the previous books. At one point, Woland outright says "my bad". I wish that wasn't as prevalent but it wasn't a deal breaker.

I also felt like the pacing was also a bit slow. I thought there would be consistently more action like we saw in the previous two books. I wish there was more. Honestly I feel like this is something I see pretty frequently in Layla Fae's books, so I'm not too surprised but I do always want more to the plot.

Overall though I love this entire series and it's in my top reads for the year. Even though the pacing was slow in this one, I still never felt bored and looked forward to every single chapter. Jaga is one of my favorite FMC's and i'm so glad she got her revenge in every form it took

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book kind of aggravated me.

The first two were so well written, with twist and turns! I couldn’t stop raving about them to my friends.

How ever I feel like this book lacked the heart and soul the first two had. Was it written in a rush?

The first two we got a big bad shadow daddy, the third we got a cowardly little winey brat! I actually found the character pathetic.

The first two was hyping us up for this big battle between gods that I felt like never came! It was over in a flash.

The only reason I gave this book 3 stars was because of the illustrations, I feel like they kind of saved it a little. The time and effort the artist spent to create them can be seen in each one.

[Clara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed books 1 and 2 with the balance of dark, light, love, betrayal, confidence, shattering, humour and seriousness but most of all I liked the characters for all their flaws and quirks.

Book 3? Not so much.
It’s painful to get through and not in the dark romance kind of painful. The characters becomes highly unlikeable and very much stereotyped. I expected Jaga to become vengeance but not in a very boring ”yas gurl slaaay” girlboss kind of way being massively abrasive and all of the sudden superwoman who succeeds instantly on the first try with pretty much everything. Not to mention the meaningless bullying and boring interest for torture. Most of the book seems like a moody ternager.

Weles is diminished to a soy-boy, lost his likeable stride and wit, who basically turns into a child just thinks Jaga is his mother who should protect him whilst he cheers her on. I am all for the ”I worship the ground you walk on” guy, but only if backed up with a ”touch her and die” or ”we are equals” approach, not complete submissiveness (out of nowhere I might add)

Just overall felt like a trauma party everyone was invited to with everything wallowed in over and over again without any real resolutions.

Not sure what really happened here but for me personally book 3 just didn’t do it for me at all. 1.5 Stars

[V · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly i felt the plot lacking after book 1 but my god i fell for the characters and got invested in their story i needed to see that hea yk and i loved the side characters so can't wait to read more. This has also prompted an interest in slavic mythology which i am not fascinated to check out soon. i love love woland n his poppy girl