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A Taste of Rhythm and Courage: A Twilight of Blood Short Story Romance

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He was bred to fight. She was born to defy. Together, they risk everything for a taste of freedom.

Lion, the king’s undefeated gladiator, has only ever known the rhythm of violence.

Saradra, a defiant freeborn slave, dares to teach him another rhythm — and together they step into a forbidden romance that risks discovery, punishment, and death.

In their stolen steps lies rebellion, intimacy, and a taste of freedom he was never meant to have.

A Taste of Rhythm and Courage is a short story set in the Twilight of Blood universe. A fast, one-hour read of forbidden passion, forced proximity, and defiance. Perfect as a standalone or a companion read to Lion of Zarall .

One click now and witness this stolen moment of peace between two unforgettable lovers.

86 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 7, 2025

3 people are currently reading
4 people want to read

About the author

Eddy Rose

4 books32 followers
Eddy B. Rose started her writing career when she was in third grade. Her first readers were a small but dedicated group of her classmates who stopped by at her desk at recess to read the next chapter of the story she wrote on a notebook.

Eddy lives in Queensland, Australia with her husband, toddler, and her two German Shepherds (the original babies) Kara and Kal-El. She enjoys getting up at 4.30am in the morning to write.

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5 stars
17 (77%)
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3 (13%)
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
Profile Image for Kelsbookreads.
130 reviews6 followers
September 29, 2025
I had a mini read the other night, the perfect little snack to immerse myself in the Twilight of the Blood world again.

If you've known me for longer than 3 minutes you'll know that I adore the way Eddy writes and am always recommending people to check out her Gladiator inspired series, because honestly, the world need to meet The Lion and be completely broken by Eddy's words.

A Taste of Rhythm and Courage is a bite sized moment that happens within the first book, Lion of Zarall. We find The Lion and Saradra locked in his room and sharing a beautiful moment before everything changes...

I loved how clear this scene was, how these characters are drawn to each other even though they shouldn't be, and how The Lion starts to crack the mould he'd always been pushed into.

This one will take less than twenty minutes to read, but it's the perfect accompanying story with the overarching series so far. And the art is stunning!

You don't need to have read Lion of Zarall first, but the impact will hit different when you do.

If you like:

- Forbidden love
- Forced proximity
- One bed
- Doomed fate
- He's the champion gladiator
- She throws a slipper at him
- Short story

Then add this to your tbr. I read this prior to official release date.
Profile Image for Samantha Reads.
33 reviews1 follower
October 8, 2025
When a short story is too short! I loved this read. I forgot that this grim dark story once took a break and had some beautiful romance.

A short tale of forced proximity at its best where two people so different fell in love and consumed by their desire to protect one another.
Profile Image for savage_book_review.
370 reviews3 followers
September 30, 2025
*Please note, I was provided with an ARC version of this book by the author and am voluntarily leaving an honest review*

This might take less than an hour to read, but it packs the emotional punch of a far longer story. If you've never read anything by Eddy before, it works wonderfully as a glimpse into the world she's created and the power of her character building, and I honestly can't see how it wouldn't hook you in to wanting to read the full length novels in the series. But if you have already read 'Lion of Zarall' and 'Beast of Zarall'... this is a bittersweet and beautiful bonus scene that will definitely add to your trauma in the best possible way.

I appreciate that it is difficult for me to put this in the context of a standalone, what with Eddy's other books being some of my favourite reads ever. But going into this, there is enough context provided for you to set the scene in your head and not feel lost, and it's woven seamlessly into the wider scene so it's easy to enjoy the imagery and feeling of the piece without wading through an info-dump. Likewise, your connection with the characters is almost instant; they are so well embodied that they feel instantly recognisable, without being clichéd or 'stock characters'. It's quick and simple; just two characters acknowledging and fighting their fears in their own way, but every moment dances straight off the page and into your psyche. And the author has kindly included the first three chapters of Lion of Zarall in this book so you can really get sucked into the world of Chinderia.

Of course, I do have the extra context of 'Lion of Zarall' in my head, and for me that just elevates this to a whole other level. My heart beat in time with their every step, and the atmosphere totally consumes you as you read. The author manages to eek every ounce of emotion from the reader in just this one short anyway, but when you know what happens subsequently, it really adds to the impact of this peaceful moment between Lion and Saradra. It's such a 'complete' scene - so easy to picture in your mind's eye that it feels more like recalling a memory than ingesting a fictional moment. Every second is on point - the descriptions, the character interactions, the feelings it evokes... all of it is well balanced and, honestly, pretty much perfect in my opinion.

However, it will also ensure you need to start attending group therapy with all of us others that have to work through the mental anguish (come join us on Facebook and/or Discord!)! 🤣😭
Profile Image for Nikki Elizabeth.
Author 5 books38 followers
October 4, 2025
"Fear isn't the enemy. Hiding from it is. Every time I do something that scares me, I win a little piece of myself back. Every act of courage, no matter how small, is a victory against the darkness that wants to swallow us whole."

Eddy Rose is the prose QUEEN. I absolutely love the way she weaves her fictional worlds, and her tone almost leans gothic with rich atmospheric detail, slow, intentional beats, and commentary that borders on pure poetry. This novella follows Lion, a beast and undefeated gladiator, as he explores his love for Saradra, a flame-haired freeborn slave who he fears will be taken away as soon as she conceives. Their world is complicated and layered, a place where carnage and cruelty are viewed as entertainment and commonplace necessities, and I find it absolutely fascinating how the author threads such vivid personalities into it.

As an added bonus, this short story comes with a preview of Lion of Zarall, which is an absolute must-read! This easy, breezy read is big on emotion and rich in storytelling, and it's definitely recommended both as a standalone and as a companion read to the A Twilight of Blood series.
Profile Image for Angiewagg.
278 reviews28 followers
October 9, 2025
Gladiator and freeborn slave. An unlikely duo, but this book makes it work.
I loved watching the characters grow individually and together.
If you have read Lion of Zarall you will still love this book. But if you have this book has such a different feel to it. So much MORE in general. Great read and can't wait for more.
I received an advance review copy at no cost and am leaving this review voluntarily.
⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️
Profile Image for CoriEliza0301.
29 reviews
October 12, 2025
Short but intriguing!
5⭐️, 1🌶️ Interesting short story. Definitely a teaser to entice you to read the main book. Writing was very well done & the characters were well defined even in the short amount of time we had with them. I received an advance copy for free at my request after seeing the blurb for it. I am so glad I requested to read this book! All my reviews are made voluntarily & are my honest thoughts/opinions. Will probably end up reading the main book!
Profile Image for Sarah C Davies.
Author 5 books35 followers
September 22, 2025
Anything Eddy writes I will read.

This short story is full of tiny details that mean so much to each of the characters. Saradra and Lion are incredible MC's and if you love this quick read, make sure you read Books 1&2 as well.

The Zarall series needs more hype than it gets! Thank you Eddy for sharing these stories with the world.
Profile Image for Dani.
172 reviews10 followers
September 24, 2025
What a gorgeous short story of two gorgeous characters 🥹

So beautifully written, I felt the emotion.
“the worst storms always passed”

thank you so much for allowing me to read this arc. It fit in so beautifully with Lion and Beast of Zarall.

11/10 recommend everyone read the Twilight of Blood Series
985 reviews5 followers
September 24, 2025
Can she teach him to dance?

We have two slaves in one room—a gladiator who is healing and a woman who is a pleasure slave. Even though this story is very short, it is full of emotions and will definitely make you think and feel. What a great story!

I received an advanced reader’s copy and am voluntarily leaving this review.
48 reviews2 followers
October 9, 2025
Interesting short story about the lives of a beast and a pleasure slave as they navigate through their positions and bonds together. Acts of Defiance are beaten out of the beast from a young age, so Lion faces embedded fears from his training while the pleasure slave he is housed with challenges him to try new things, such as speaking and dancing.
Profile Image for J.L. Coulbeck.
Author 4 books6 followers
October 24, 2025
A sweet little interval for Lion and Saradra; forced proximity at its best.
It’s enjoyable, and as much as I love a short story, this felt like a (very good) scene from a much larger book.

I’d have liked a little more content of the actual story in this ebook as a lot of the ebook pages are a preview for the main series.
Profile Image for Lauri.
41 reviews23 followers
November 3, 2025
Taste Of Rhythm and Courage is a short story set in the Twilight of Blood universe. It’s a quick read that I didn’t want to end. The connection and love between Lion and Saradra are so special. Creating such a bond, especially given their circumstances, is beautiful and touching. Whether this is your introduction to the Twilight of Blood series or not, it’s definitely worth the read.
Profile Image for Ana Carolina Crespo.
71 reviews3 followers
September 25, 2025
🥰🥰Short and sweet. I missed Lion and Saradra, and this was truly heart warming. I am really rooting for Lion to have the happy ending he deserves. thank you Eddy for giving me the pleasure of reading another ARC. Can't wait for book 3.
Profile Image for mistys_bookobsession.
37 reviews
October 8, 2025
I want more! I haven't read any of the other books in The Twilight of Blood Series however I now want to jump straight in and read more about Lion and Saradra.
This beautifully written short story grabbed me emotionally and made me fall in love with Lion and Saradra.
Profile Image for Book.lover_94.
141 reviews2 followers
December 1, 2025
ARC review!!

I wanted to thank the author for this opportunity.

This was a fast paced and short story; but honestly it left me with more questions than answers. Like, I need to know what happens to Saradra and the baby or more information about this world.
64 reviews1 follower
September 25, 2025
arc review

This was a great short story. The author is disrcriptive in their writing pulling out details
Profile Image for Tehmeena.
141 reviews7 followers
November 19, 2025
Content Warnings;
Contains a short s*xual scene (if that's not your vibe, you are warned.)

~Thank you, the author, Eddy Rose, for the free Arc of this book. I'm leaving this review voluntarily.~

Tropes;
𓂃🪶𝓢𝓱𝓸𝓻𝓽 𝓢𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂
𓂃🪶𝓓𝓮𝓯𝓲𝓪𝓷𝓽/𝓕𝓲𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓕𝓜𝓒
𓂃🪶𝓤𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓯𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓖𝓵𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓪𝓽𝓸𝓻 𝓜𝓜𝓒
𓂃🪶𝓞𝔀𝓷𝓮𝓻𝓼/𝓢𝓵𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓼
𓂃🪶𝓢𝓽𝓸𝓵𝓮𝓷 𝓜𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽
𓂃🪶𝓞𝓷𝓮 𝓑𝓮𝓭
𓂃🪶𝓕𝓸𝓻𝓬𝓮𝓭 𝓟𝓻𝓸𝔁𝓲𝓶𝓲𝓽𝔂
𓂃🪶𝓕𝓸𝓻𝓫𝓲𝓭𝓭𝓮𝓷 𝓟𝓪𝓼𝓼𝓲𝓸𝓷/𝓛𝓸𝓿𝓮
𓂃🪶𝓣𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓮 𝓞𝓯 𝓕𝓻𝓮𝓮𝓭𝓸𝓶
𓂃🪶𝓕𝓜𝓒 𝓣𝓱𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓼 𝓢𝓵𝓲𝓹𝓹𝓮𝓻 𝓐𝓽 𝓗𝓲𝓶
𓂃🪶𝓣𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝓓𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓮
𓂃🪶𝓝𝓸 𝓒𝓵𝓲𝓯𝓯-𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓮𝓻
𓂃🪶𝓗𝓕𝓝 ...𝓚𝓲𝓷𝓭𝓪?

This can be read as a standalone or read as a companion with the first book, "Lion of Zarall." You can check out my Arc review for the first two books as well ("Beast of Zarall" book two) if you desire.

"A Taste of Rhythm and Courage" is a very short and enjoyable read. You get a lot of beautiful descriptions without it feeling overwhelming or boring. The imagery is vivid and easy to imagine. Saradra and Lion are simply perfect together, I loved them before, and I love them even more now. I like her fiery personality and how she manages to break him out of his fearful shell. Lion, of course, is a deep and complex character, and I want to give him a big hug. I like how, in near the end, they both had a beautiful moment together. And then, at the end, that spice was HAWT. Dear Lordt. Short and simple, but you can understand both perspectives, one only knowing how to live in fear and the other knowing how to live WITH fear, not letting it overcome you.

What a beautiful experience! It only adds more to the series, and I love it. Oh, the motions, feelings, fears. The little details do matter, so additions such as this short story, I think, do wonders to add a cherry on the cake.

(The book includes the first few sample chapters from "Lion of Zarall" AND THE STUNNING CHARACTER ART!🙊♥️).

I'm internally scr4eaming and crying with an outward smile... WILL our tortured MMC get a HEA in the third book?👀 WILL HE?🔪 WELL, HE F*CKIN' DESERVES IT!😭 Oh, the memories have returned!💔 I can't wait for it. Give him the Happy Ever After he needs, (and me!), I beg you, Eddy Rose, our boy needs all the love!

Out of Fives;
𓂃🪶𝑪𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓: ✨✨✨✨✨
𓂃🪶𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒆: 🔥🔥🔥
𓂃🪶𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔: 🖤🖤🖤🖤
𓂃🪶𝑻𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏: 🔪🔪🔪🔪
𓂃🪶𝑩𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔: 🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋
𓂃🪶𝑬𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔: 🎲🎲🎲🎲
𓂃🪶𝑺𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒓𝒂 𝑭𝑴𝑪: 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
𓂃🪶𝑳𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑴𝑴𝑪: 🩶🩶🩶🩶🩶
𓂃🪶𝑷𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆: 🎬🎬🎬🎬🎬
𓂃🪶𝑷𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈: ⏳⏳⏳⏳⏳
𓂃🪶𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
𓂃🪶𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈: 🌍🌏🌍🌍🌏
𓂃🪶𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅: 𝒆𝑨𝑹𝑪/𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒆.
𓂃🪶𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔: 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒆, 𝒔𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 "𝑻𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑩𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅" 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆.
𓂃🪶𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒔: 80 (𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉 28).
𓂃🪶𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: 𝑭𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒚, 𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆.
𓂃🪶𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆: 7 𝑶𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒃𝒆𝒓 2025.
𓂃🪶𝑾𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝑰 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅: 𝒀𝒆𝒔.
𓂃🪶𝑶𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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