In the heart-pounding sequel to the New York Times bestselling dystopian romance Silver Elite, lines will be crossed, loyalties will be tested, and the fight for the Continent is only just beginning as Wren Darlington finds herself caught in the middle of two wars: one for the fate of her home and another for the fate of her heart.
LINES WILL BE CROSSED.
After blowing her cover as a double agent within Silver Elite and fleeing the Prime-controlled capital, Wren Darlington is finally safe behind allied lines. As her lover and former commander Cross Redden works to disrupt the Primes from inside their ranks, Wren turns her focus toward assisting the Uprising in overthrowing their rule once and for all.
LOYALTIES WILL BE TESTED.
Though she’s back among her own people, trust is hard-won and hidden agendas abound on the Mod base. And beyond those walls, Wren can’t help but worry that Cross is keeping secrets of his own . . . secrets that could jeopardize everything. Complicating matters even further is her shocking reunion with hotshot fighter pilot and undercover operative Grayson Blake. Once her closest friend in Silver Elite, Gray seems to understand Wren on a level she never thought possible.
AND THE FIGHT FOR THE CONTINENT IS ONLY JUST BEGINNING.
With the war between Mods and Primes growing more brutal by the day, and with her own role in the conflict becoming more essential than ever, Wren must confront some gut-wrenching questions. Who is she fighting for . . . and who is she willing to lose?
Dani Francis is the New York Times bestselling author of Silver Elite. She is an avid reader, a lover of all things breakfast, and a hopeless romantic. When she is not creating high-stakes fantasy worlds and complex characters, you can find Dani spending time with family or trying to figure out why the printer never works.
Update: DelRey is sending me an ARC! I CANNOT CONTAIN MY EXCITEMENT!!!!😆 I will be anxiously stalking my mailbox until it arrives. 🫶🏻
I NEED THIS NOOOWWWW! Silver Elite emotionally waterboarded me and I fear Broken Dove is going to finish the job. Whoever this anonymous menace of an author is, just know you’ve ruined me. Ruined!! I don’t know your name, but I do know I’d sell my soul for your drafts. How dare you hide behind a curtain of mystery while casually dropping one of my favorite reads this year!! Come out and face me, coward (or don’t, hehe just kidding) Just PLEASE keep writing in this world!
Broken Dove was one of my most anticipated reads of 2026 and consumed me to the point of infiltrating my dreams. Each twist had me racing through the pages! I loved how the sequel expanded the world building, politics, and magic system. The telepathic powers are incredibly fascinating, I had a lot of fun learning about all the new abilities.
I loved Wren’s character development in Broken Dove. Typically stubborn and impulsive, Wren learned to pause and reflect before reacting. She was isolated by the Mods and struggled to assimilate into their society, but persevered and found her place. She faced betrayal and loss, mended her own heart, and slowly opened it up again. I’m proud of her growth.
Some of the new characters frustrated me (you’ll know who), while others warmed my heart (Mako and Poppy). I found Wren and Xavier’s new friendship really sweet and loved how he had her back. I’m so glad Tana is okay. Prince is a cutie, can Wren please find a way to keep him?! I still have a soft spot for Cross and I’m very grateful for all the moments he rescued Wren. BUT, my favourite boy is Grayson Blake. I’ve officially fallen for Mr. Hotshot Pilot.
‼️ SPOILERS AHEAD ‼️
I adored Wren and Gray’s friendship, it was the highlight of my read. The playful banter and tension between them had me on the edge of my seat. I was screaming at all the loose confessions Gray slipped out. And when the moment finally hit, I was done for. I loved how they understood each other and took their time developing their relationship. It was so precious when Gray surprised Wren with a helicopter ride to the lagoon. Gray has always kept everyone at arm’s length, but slowly let his walls down around Wren. I sobbed when he opened up about his family to her — “I wanted to show you… all of me.” 🥹 The end of the book cleaved my heart in two. “Give me your hand, Dove.” OH MY GOD. The last chapter threw my emotions into a spiral. I’m going to be thinking about the final sentence until the next book is released.
Thank you millions to Penguin Aus for the early copy, it’s a dream come true!
Round up to 3.75! I’m going to be in the minority of this where I didn’t love this and didn’t hate this BUT I think people are either going to FROTH for what’s happening or absolutely lose their minds. This is going to be fun to see😆
Broken Dove picks up after Silver Elite and expands far beyond Sanctum Point into a broader, more complex world.
We follow Wren as she navigates shifting alliances, new environments, and rising stakes. Questions from book one begin to unravel, while new tensions emerge. Relationships are tested, new ones form, and survival becomes far less certain.
✨ Tropes & themes 🔥 Dystopian romance (dystopian setting takes front stage though) 🤝 Found family ⚖️ Shifting alliances 🫠 Romance you’ll either love or hate 🧠 Political intrigue 😵💫 Cliffhanger ending
This is a strong sequel that builds well on the first book.
The worldbuilding is significantly improved, with new locations and characters that make the story feel more expansive and cohesive.
The character dynamics are also stronger. Relationships feel more layered, and the found family element adds emotional weight. The tension throughout is consistent, with several genuinely high-stakes moments.
The pacing could have been tighter and though I like that the world building took front stage I wish I had the audiobook as there were parts I started skimming. Some sections feel longer than necessary and don’t always move the plot forward, which slightly impacts the overall flow.
The romantic dynamics shift in more complex and unpredictable ways, adding intrigue for what’s to come and having me question my own taste.
Nonetheless this was a WELL executed sequel that expands the world, deepens character relationships and raised the stakes to the next level while making me WANT to shift alliances (I decided I won’t tho😆🤪)
I don’t even know how to process what I’ve just read. So much has happened, my jaw is on the floor. I was on the edge of my seat, kept wanting to come back to this book and my heart hurt alottttt.
The character development and side character exploration in this book was immaculate. I loved getting to see more of both sides of the war and more 🤭🤭🤭
I fear I ate this one up? I finished this within a day because I honestly could not put it down. When I read Silver Elite last year I wasn’t entirely convinced just yet… Broken Dove completely sucked me in and I now get the hype! The plot twists in this one were insane and the fact that it was SO action packed left me on the edge of my seat. The friendships that are formed are also so nice to see; I genuinely need book 3. I cannot really elaborate more because I am of course trying to keep this review spoiler free, just know I 100% recommend this one for my dystopian romantasy girlies <33
the vibes ™: - dystopian - insane plot twists - romance/banter/spice - a pet wolf - interesting magic system (which I would love to know more about)
💌 Special thanks to @prhukexport for sending me an arc, grateful as always
Thank you so so so much to Del Rey for the gifted early copy. You have absolutely no idea how much that means to me!!!
I honestly do not think anyone is ready for this book. Did I like it? Yes. Was it what I expected? Absolutely not.
It was so different from the first book. Not in a bad way at all, just in a completely unexpected way. There is more worldbuilding, more intrigue, more secrets, and so many twists and turns. I loved seeing Wren’s character growth, even if I also screamed at her a few times for some of her stupid decisions.
That is all I will say! Now the real problem… waiting for book three. 2027 is SO far away!!
Okkkk!! I needed exactly 21 days to process this book before writing my (spoiler free) thoughts!! 🤭
I LOVE THIS SERIES SM!! & what do you mean I got to read an early proof of Broken Dove 🥹
Im going to keep it high level because there is still a couple of months before it comes out!
Firstly this book went in a direction I was NOT expecting but I was totally here for it. We learn SO MUCH in this book about so many different characters, new & old, aswell as so much more about the abilities of the Mods.
There are some real scene stealers in this book & whilst I was stressed a lot I was enjoying it 😂
So many "omg wait...WHAT?!?" moments & GURL the way in which we are set up for book 3, Dani Francis I bow down to you!! 🤍🙌🏼
I had so much fun reading Broken Dove. Like… so much so that I had to physically force myself not to pick it up when I had responsibilities. And I’m not even exaggerating.. I was thinking about it constantly.
Reuniting with these characters, meeting new ones, and diving deeper into the uprising, the politics across the continent, and the powers the Mods can develop? I was obsessed. I simply needed to keep reading.
Wren’s character development honestly broke my heart a little. Watching her try to find her place somewhere that keeps shutting her down… it hurt. She had to learn to control her impulses, to grieve the parents she never truly knew, and what they did. She had to heal after [redacted]… and you can feel the weight of all of it. But she slowly opened up to some characters. I’m rooting for her so hard. I have a feeling she’s much more powerful than she thinks.
I loved the introduction of new characters, their impact to the story and their own arcs. Some of them tested my patience though, but the sense of family Wren found at the Dagger? I ate that up. Even if at times it was messy, even when it hurt, even if it took time.
Her friendships with Ford, with Poppy, and her reunion with Tana, really touched me. But let me tell you, I’m fucking pissed at Dani for [redacted]. My poor little heart 💔
Also… I’d be lying if I said my love for Cross didn’t waver. Because my heart? Yeah, it belongs to Grayson now. That cocky little fucker won me over. The banter, the teasing, the flirting, the way their relationship evolved. I was a goner the minute she hopped on that plane the day of her rescue. I’m sorry, I’m a hotshot pilot girl through and through, and I don’t think anyone’s changing my mind anytime soon.
I have so many unhinged theories right now, but there’s one that hasn’t left my brain since we found out she sees gold when she incites… DM me if you’ve read the book and want to spiral some more 🫣
BUT THAT ENDONG WAS FUCKING RUDE! I’ve been staring at the wall for hours. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT??? Is [redacted] going to think [redacted] just left? Is [redacted] going to think [redacted] betrayed them? Is [redacted] going to think [redacted] ran away… WITHOUT [redacted]? AND WHAT ABOUT POPPY??? I have QUESTIONS. So many questions…
I fear I’m going to need at least three business weeks to recover. …or book 3. Book 3 would also help. Just saying
Thank you so much Penguin Random House Export for the ARC, this is my honest review. PS: sorry for throwing it across the room, I swear the book is unharmed (kind of) 🩶
I know this book isn’t technically out yet, but I need book 3 now😭 That ending is simply cruel.
Idk what else to say (that’s spoiler-free) about this book aside from the fact that I ATE IT UP.
Silver Elite was definitely a fun and engaging read but this, to me, was even more so. It’s like I would blink and then 200 pages had passed. It was just so effortless to read this book.
I still don’t think this series is perfect by any means - the characters can be annoying at times, and some plot points were dragged or seemed to only be there to move the plot along. However, this book is just so uniquely binge worthy to me that I can’t fault it? And I adore that we got even more of the political intrigue and rebellion in this book. Maybe I’ll change my mind if I let it sit with me longer but for now I’m just hyped and so happy to have read a book that was so fun and entertaining.
Huge thank you to the publisher for the proof!! Thoughts and opinions are my own.
five stars. no notes. no crumbs. just me absolutely sick over this book.
broken dove by dani francis has officially entered my “best books of the year” category. like… i inhaled 600 pages in under two days. who needs sleep or a job or a social life when you have emotional damage and fictional men to obsess over?
i love a dystopian romance, and this scratched every single itch in my brain. the vibes? immaculate. it’s giving hunger games x divergent chaos baby and i ate it UP.
grayson blake… i need a moment. because how has this man just walked in and rearranged my entire roster??? i genuinely didn’t think anyone could even come close to cross redden (still love you) but grayson has very aggressively forced his way into my heart and set up camp. i fear i am in love.
and wren?? finally an fmc with sense. backbone. brains. she’s giving katniss. she’s giving tris. she’s giving “i will survive and also destroy you while doing it.” obsessed with her.
the pacing, the tension, the world-building, the emotional spiral i personally went through… unreal. this book had me kicking my feet one minute and staring into the void the next.
i am desperate for book 3.
if you love dystopian worlds, high stakes, found family, spice, romantasy, tension that makes you want to scream, and men that ruin your standards forever… read this series.
3.75 stars. Listen I loved Silver Elite. I honestly don’t know how to feel about this book. It’s very slow and not a lot happens. Very character and politics driven. I loved being reunited with Wren but I missed Cross 😭 and don’t get me started on Kaine/Grey. Xavier has become my new favorite side character. The twists at the end were good though.
Huge thanks to Rih at Penguin Huddle for sending me an early copy of this! I loved Silver Elite, and couldn't wait to read more of Wren's story!
This book was nowhere near what I was expecting! Such a refreshing change for a sequel! Without giving too much away...
The world is expanded so well. We meet SO many new characters (my faves being Mako, Saint and Poppy!), and it just felt like such a step up from the first book. Loads of worldbuilding, deepening of existing characters and storylines, so many twists.
I do think that it could've been trimmed down a little bit, though! There was a lot of extra scenes that felt a little unnecessary in the grand scheme of things. I did just enjoy being back in this world with these characters so I didn't mind tooooo much, but the pacing definitely could've done with a little refining!
There's not much else I can say without spoiling it. I absolutely LOVED Gray (you'll see why). This resurgence of dystopian books with romantic side-plots is my favourite thing to come out of the past few years, because I grew up on Divergent and The Hunger Games, swooning over Four's protective nature and Peeta's gentleness. I feel like a teenager in the BEST way when I read these books.
As with the last one, I am SO EXCITED for where the next book will go, especially after that cliff-hanger ending! I'll be coming up with theories until the next one comes out!