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Who can end the war between humans and the fae?

Now that Lilywhite Abernathy is the heir to the Hidden Lands, everything is about to change.

The Queen of Blood and Rage wants Lily to help broker peace with the human world, but Lily knows that harmony won’t come easily. After decades of waging war on the humans, who cost the queen her firstborn daughter, the fae are struggling to accept Lily, a half-human monarch. And the humans, while no match against faery affinities, will hardly agree to the queen’s détente without resistance.

Lily wants to be a fair ruler but fears having to abandon the life she’s known to do so. Now that she and Creed are more than just fellow Black Diamonds—operatives for the queen—her priorities have shifted. But her worries about assuming the throne are derailed when it becomes clear that someone—or some fae—is masterminding violent attacks to discourage peace.

In this follow-up to Melissa Marr’s Seven Black Diamonds, Lily and her friends are forced to reckon with the truth of their own parentage and to protect one of their own, no matter what—or who—comes between them.

368 pages, Hardcover

First published February 28, 2017

72 people are currently reading
3896 people want to read

About the author

Melissa Marr

107 books13k followers
Melissa Marr writes fiction for adults, teens, and children. Her books have been translated into 28 languages and been bestsellers in the US (NY Times, LA Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal) as well as overseas. Wicked Lovely, her debut novel, was an instant New York Times bestseller and evolved into an internationally bestselling multi-book series with a myriad of accolades.

In 2024 she released a queer fantasy (Remedial Magic via Bramble), a picturebook about a wee one and his two moms (Family is Family via Penguin), and a DC Comics graphic novel about teen Harley & Ivy (The Strange Adventures of Harleen & Harley).

An Illumicrate edition of 6 Wicked Lovely books will release in 2025.

If she's not writing, you can find her in a kayak or on a trail with her wife.

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5 stars
369 (24%)
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499 (33%)
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444 (29%)
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143 (9%)
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34 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews
Profile Image for Sarah Elizabeth.
5,002 reviews1,410 followers
August 4, 2020
(I received an advance copy of this book for free. Thanks to HarperCollins and Edelweiss.)

“Fae or fae-bloods were attacking humans at an ever-increasing rate. Her father was on his way to see her. The police had been at her door, and Hector was arrested. This didn’t feel like the peace she’d bartered for, and Lily wasn’t sure what to do about any of it.”


This was a YA fantasy sequel about fae.

I liked Lily in this story, although she did come across a bit darker than in the first book. She was strong though, and tried to do what was right, especially when it came to making peace between fae and humans.

The storyline in this was about Lily trying to broker peace, whilst someone else was attacking humans and making things impossible. We also had the threat of Lily being named as heir openly, and a very shocking and unexpected death! The pace in this was once again quite slow though, and things didn’t really seem to get going until near the end of the book.

The ending to this was pretty action-packed, and was the best part of the book for me.



6.5 out of 10


August 2020 -

This was pretty good, although I felt so sorry for Zephyr and Alkamy
Profile Image for Alaina.
7,347 reviews203 followers
December 17, 2017
This book was so good. One Blood Ruby was such a good sequel and now I'm sad because there are no more - but I'm still hopeful that Melissa Marr will write one more book for this series. If not I will have to find a way to cope with her decision.

I loved everything about every character. I'm pretty sure I have a tie on who was my favorite because Lily and Eilidh were just different to me in this book. Lily was a little bit more darker than she was in the first book and I loved everything about that. Plus her with Creed just made me so freaking happy too.

Then Eilidh just seemed more like a bad ass in this book. Torturing people and just becoming a savage. I loved everything.

Yes, there was love and lots and lots of ships that I was shipping. But one ship almost broke me because it didn't sail. I wanted to cry at what happened and my heart was so freaking sad.

I can totally see myself rereading these books and definitely finding another series to fall in love with - just because Melissa wrote it.

I need more books from her stat. Or maybe I just need more book period.
Profile Image for Saruuh Kelsey.
Author 23 books85 followers
September 16, 2016
3.5 stars

I liked this, but I wouldn't go much further than liked. There were elements I loved - Creed and Lily, Roan and Will, seeing more of Erik, and Lily's dad - but the rest was flat compared to the dark, exciting Seven Black Diamonds.

I'm left with so many unanswered questions. What happened to the fae world, and did Lily ever become queen? Was Eilidh meant to be queen, since the land chose her? What the hell HAPPENED to Eilidh? Did she and Torquil ever get to be together after that ending? Did Vi give Erik a chance? Did Zephyr ever heal from losing Alkamy? What were the consequences of Will coming out to the press? Was it Nacton doing the terrorist attacks or Eilidh???

It was an ending that didn't feel at all like an ending. It feels ... unfinished, like there's still more story to tell. I'm a bit frustrated I didn't get to see Creed and Lily ruling the fae world, or the peace settling between them and humans. I'm invested in this world and these characters, and I'd really appreciate an epilogue or follow up of some kind to give me a satisfying conclusion to their stories.

As always the faerie lore and details of the writing and world were stunning, but the story itself let me down.
Profile Image for Ezgi T.
417 reviews1,129 followers
August 2, 2017
Seven Black Diamonds'a bir kitap daha gelse, bu bir üçleme olsa, tadından yenmez. Bu haliyle One Blood Ruby çok fazla açık kapı bırakmış, bence Melissa Marr, istese bir kitap daha yazabilir ve tuhaf durmaz. Hatta, umarım bir kitap daha yazar ki bazı şeyler daha net bir sona kavuşur.

"This fae man," Lily's father said, almost as if he hadn't been interrupted at all, "has broken no law yet."
"Being fae is illegal . . . sir," said an officer cautiously.
Nick waved his comment away, sounding more and more like his attorney. "Nevertheless, there were no other laws broken."
Profile Image for Bitchin' Reads.
484 reviews123 followers
August 14, 2017
Like I said in my review for Seven Black Diamonds, Melissa's Wicked Lovely series will never be topped. This new fae series is good though--I love everything that Melissa writes, own all the books, and Melissa always delivers a story that is complicated and entertaining, and most often contains dark elements.

We experienced a death in this book that was unexpected and broke my heart, and you find out the lineage of who died and it further complicates the relations within the fae world.

Though to be fair, all the relationships within the fae world are complicated. Their social norms are very different than those of humans--where humans are restrained in their human connections, fae are loose and free in who they connect with and how. Humans are not for the good of nature but the good of their interests and enterprises, while the fae want to hold nature first--a clean, pure world allows them (and humanity) to live in comfort.

We finally get answers as to what happened to Eilidh--but full answers to why she was broken and the elements of the world brought her back to fullness is a mystery, but a mystery I can more than accept. We know that upon birth she split in pieces and the elements breathed new life into and claimed her as their own. In doing so, Eilidh was also given the power to harness the elements to protect those she has claimed as hers. (Hence a specific scene at the end of the book where Eilidh is super badass. This immense power the world bestowed on her does make me question who is the rightful Heir, especially with Nacton's following statement on 305: "'Once before these regents [...] the land chose the ruler.'" Bum, bum, BUM. Boom. Some serious foreshadowing. My impression of this knowledge bomb: it is very possible that she is the true Heir, since she was chosen by the world and possesses such great power and an immense connection to the world that they are practically one, or she is intended to be the enforcer of the true Heir's wishes, like a right hand man. It could go either direction and I would be completely okay with it.

My favorite OTP is Endellion and Leith--there is actually no true competition between their volatile and every changing love. He is the light and cheer to her dark and gloom, but it becomes very clear that they are more a like than they let known--just like the courts.

Also, the social commentary on reality is pretty on point--racism and division between those who don't look alike has become out of control, which we see even now happening in our world. The whole bringing together of the two fae courts, and then unifying the fae world and the human world, are very much what we are trying to do with countries and different societies. It is messy, unpleasant business, and will always be trying and questioning of whether it can be accomplished. Though the world in Seven Black Diamonds and One Blood Ruby is fantasy, it points to problems that need to be assessed and addressed within our own.

Melissa has always been great with the more subtle social commentary, and even here you see it. This multiple levels of meaning and insinuation are why I have always been drawn to the worlds and characters she creates. They are bursting with significance and life, and I can't help but love them in the end.

If you enjoyed her Wicked Lovely series, you will enjoy this different version of the fae that she has created--and it more something of her creation than the Wicked Lovely series was, because this time she is playing with the fae world genre instead of using what is common and known. Love. It.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Ifahh.
274 reviews1 follower
June 3, 2017
Sloppy. So sloppy. What kind of ending was that? It's entirely too predictable.

The book picks off from when the first book ended. And it gets more confusing because 1) it's been a while since you read the first book, and the introduction doesn't really recap what happened before 2) it's. so. damn. vague. Like ALL these characters are so one dimensional.

The author writes
about the protagonist, LilyDark (stupid name for a heroine, btw) and how she's supposed to be the heir of the fae throne. What does she do? Nothing. Speak to affinities and does absolutely nothing. Her boyfriend, the one-dimensional supposedly oh-so-good-looking Creed with the air affinity, does absolutely nothing in this book as well except to rub it into the other Diamonds' faces that he and the heir of the fae throne are together. Author doesn't even bother explaining why Creed and Lily are 'absolutely in love with each other', because hey, teenagers, amirite?

Ah, romance in this book. It's good that they want to introduce gay relationships and all in teen books, but in this book, the two gay twinks (I'M SORRY I SEE THEM AS THAT IN MY HEAD) are in a forbidden romance because 'it might spoil the reputation for Will's mom'. And guess what - she doesn't care! And neither do I! Because y'all ain't convincing me enough to make me vouch for their relationship. Any of the relationships/friendships in this damn story, even.

I am so let down after reading this book. It had so much to offer - cool premise, cool characters with awesome powers, but I was so thoroughly disappointed. Because that 'plot twist' at the end, isn't a plot twist at all. There was no climax in this story. It's just a sloppy 'well I made it this far, I got to end it' writing thus far.
Profile Image for Shelley.
5,598 reviews489 followers
May 24, 2017
*Source* Publisher via Edelweiss
*Genre* Young Adult, Paranormal
*Rating* 3.5

*MY Thoughts*

One Blood Ruby is the second installment in author Melissa Marr's Seven Black Diamonds duology. So, here is where we stand. Lily Abernathy, now LilyDark, has become the heir apparent to the Hidden Lands. She has become a voice for peace between the fae, and humans who have been at war over something that happened years before. But, there are still those who want to continue the war, and are doing everything they can to keep humans separated from the fae. 

*Full Review Posted @ Gizmos Reviews*

http://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/201...
Profile Image for K.A. Wiggins.
Author 21 books198 followers
May 30, 2017
Nice entry in signature Melissa Marr style - complex fantasy court politics and interpersonal intrigue, relationship drama alongside world-changing stakes, solid and engaging characters and romances, appealingly weird and dangerous faeries... Wraps things up nicely for the series (not sure if this is a duology or just a tidy ending to book 2.) It does seem to suffer from too large a cast with not enough length to hold them all - bouncing between viewpoints and characters makes it hard to emotionally invest and follow the motivations, a common problem with multi-POV large-cast stories... but you've got to give her credit for the complex plotting. On a possibly-related note, there was a surprising number of typos and rough phrasing/word choice issues for such an established author and strong publishing house, making me wonder if her publisher or someone on the team has been dropping the ball on resourcing her books well enough. I've seen some great stuff from Marr, and it would be sad if she's not getting enough support to keep putting out awesome books :(
Profile Image for Kirstin Culp.
333 reviews18 followers
April 29, 2021
This was a great end to this duology! I really enjoyed these characters and reading their povs, the story line was interesting but I felt that alot of things were missing from it. There seemed to be a lack of details on certain situations and it felt a bit rushed and confusing. I also didnt really like how some characters didnt get many chapters with their pov or they didnt get any at all. The pov changed so frequently it didnt really help the story continue smoothly. However I did enjoy this book just like I enjoyed the first one but I didnt really connect with the characters how I would have liked to.
Profile Image for Sophia s.
548 reviews
April 19, 2025
so good!! felt a little all over the place & was v confused at the beginning but it made sense at the end
Profile Image for Grishma.
45 reviews9 followers
January 22, 2021
This book was so strange, but in the best way possible. I cannot put my finger on what made me give it five stars, but I got really attached to it for no particular reason.

This is the second book in the duo, the first being Seven Black Diamonds. Part of what made me love this book was defintley the plot. Its an unique mixture of the "humans and fae are at war (which is usually set in a fantasy, distopian world)" and "there are magical creatures hidden in a modern day world". And Melissa Marr has cobined the two into an amazing series.

The premise of this book is that it is a modern world, which TV, phones, pop music, ect. There is a world of fae, and everyone knows that fae exist. The Unseelie queen hates humans, because her daughter died because of human-poisoned oceans. Now, the queen still wages war against the humans, sneaking in their world and killing them, setting fires, causing chaos, as revenge for her daughter.

The queen has groups of what she refers to as Black Diamonds. They are half-fae, and can blend in among humans. Their job is to be the ones causing chaos and carrying out her orders, which often been assasinating or mass murder.

The first book circles around our main character, Lilywhite Abernathy. She's the daughter of the biggest crime-lord in the world, and she's half-fae. Its a secret her father and her have kept forever, and they will not part with it. But when Creed Morrison, international pop-star, comes to her birthday party, and reveals that he knows her secret, she finds herself drawn to him despite that.

Creed Morrison is one of the queen's black diamonds. Zephyr is the leader of his group of seven. He knows that Lilywhite is born to be the last one, his last diamond. But once he approaches her, he is stunned to find out that she has no idea of her heritage. Lily ends up at the prestigous academy where the seven are residing, and must fend off their attempts to prove she is fae.

The first book was probably 4 stars. Despite it all, I loved that book, again, for no reason I can figure out. It just spoke to me (god that sounds so cheesy).

This book is about how Lily accepts her heritage, and tries to start creating peace between humans and fae, and Marr does not disappoint.

Lily was probably one of my favorite protagonists. She's determined to do what she wants to do, but she's level-headed enough to listen to others who now better. Very few people can balance on the line between the two, but Marr wrote Lily in a way that she can. Most headstrong female characters I love aggravate me once or twice despite it all, when they try to do everything by themselves or do something stupid. But Lily never did anything like that.

Zephyr was always one of my three favorite characters, and this book only made he love him more. In the first book I did feel like he did some stupid stuff, but in this book he was reasonable.

I hated Creed in the first book. I don't know why, I just did. He would disobey Zephyr (who was appreantly his best friend), and then get angry when he didn't understand why Zephyr was angry. I also didnt get the romance between him and Lily, but this book made everything clearer (they are an amazing couple, fight me). We also got to read some chapters in his point of view, which I did enjoy. He wasn't the typical jealous guy when Lily's(kinda?) ex Erik showed up, Creed respected him, and that shot him up 100 points for me.

Eilidh is the third daughter of the queen. I really liked her in the first book, but that love kinda dimmed out in the second one. She's still an amazing character though.

RHYS. We never get any chapters in his point of view, which is sad, but he's the eldest son of the queen. (For reference, Iana, the daughter that died, was the middle child). He's said to be the only one who can beat his mother, the queen, in combat. His big brother relationship with Eilidh was the highlight of both books. It is also revealing pretty early in the first book that he is Zephyr's father (he didn't know he had a son until then). This sequel contained Rhys and Zephyr trying to be father and son, and I was screaming with joy the entire time. Rhys is hands down my favorite character.

Erik! Erik is the son of the biggest drug lord in the buisness. His father and Lily's father have each-other's backs through everything, and in the first book, it was supposed to be Erik and Lily were going to get married. Lily rejected his offer, mainly because of all the chaos with the black diamonds (also because she didn't love him like that, and he didn't love her like that, but they were willing to marry anyway). The first book kinda forgets about him aside from the beginning, but this book he shows up again. I have to say, I was unethusiantic about it, because I though he would be the typical jealous friend that will betray Lily or something.
No! No! Nothing like that, and IT WAS AMAZING! Basically, Erik tells Lily that they are still best friends, and like their parents, he will have her back (as a friend) through all the peacemaking, and everything. And well, I loved him after that. It was such a break from the typical trope, and I loved how he was absolutely Lily's friend even after it all, even after you found about his friends and fae and such. (also a side note, I loved how everyone never dismissed Erik because they were fae and he was full human, there are mutiple instances that characters said that Erik was better at things then they were).

I was not expecting to love the king and queen as much as I did. Basically, the unseelie queen and the seelie king ruled different courts, but were married to eachother. They acted like fae who have been alive for forever act, but in this book, I got a semblance of their relationship, and it was glorious. The queen was mainly portrayed as this cunning, ruthless queen in the first book, but in this book, we get to see that she does care for her children.

Will and Roan. Two of the black diamonds, they didn't get a big role in the first book. We do get an insight into their characters in this book, and I really loved it. They are amazing characters.

Violet and Alkamy. Again, two other Black Diamonds, I never really cared towards them. They are great characters, as all of the ones in this book are, but I never really cared what happened to them. Sorry.

Side thing, we also get to see Lily's father in this book, and I love it. He's the biggest crime lord, but he's also incredibily loving. I loved how although he kept Lily away from the press, he never smothered her, or made her seem helpless. He made sure she knew how to fight, and taught her the tricks of the crime trade. Also a way Marr made me love him.

So, all in all, this is a really underrated series, and I swear you will get attached to it for reasons unknown.
76 reviews3 followers
June 11, 2017
This was disappointing. This book felt like the middle book of a trilogy: full of unnecessary padding to the story in order to bring the noise in the finale. But after reading other reviews and then going on the authors website, I'm to believe this book is the conclusion of the duology?? What?!

For this to be the conclusion - absolutely nothing was accomplished. For the first 200 pages we are reminded time and again of the impending announcement of LilyDark's coronation and her desire to protect her loved ones. That's basically it. Then we get to the last bit of the book and so much is happening that it feels rushed and frenzied. There is no firm resolution; just a few cheap lines in what feels like an epilogue. I was left with a *ton* of questions.

That was my biggest problem with this book - the author could've spent that time answering those cliffhanger questions instead off filling the book with fluff chapters. Oh look, everyone is at the club pretending to drink for the paparazzi. Oh joy. What does this have to do in the grand scheme of things? Absolutely nothing.

And lastly, I will say that Lily was such a let down. She was built up so much and was not worthy of it. She is the true heir of both courts. She mentioned her growing affinities in EVERY chapter. She talked endlessly about being trained for war by her crime lord father and her usefulness with steel. She kept daggers on her hips at all times. I don't want to spoil anything so I'll just say that when the time came for her to be useful she was not lol.


If I could give this series props for something, I would say that I loved her commitment to diversity. I also loved the relationship between the Queen and King. Their back and forth banter made it all worthwhile.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Nicole Field.
Author 19 books155 followers
June 8, 2017
Maybe it's because I had high expectations regarding this novel because it was the last book in this duology, or maybe it's cause I still love Wicked Lovely so much, but this one just didn't quite measure up to me.

Although I had looked forward to more interactions between Will and Roan (and got them!) I found that overall I just didn't feel the connection to this set of characters that I have to other books by this author.

Lilydark is the new heir to the faerie throne in the Hidden Lands, with her faerie mother and crime lord father. She stands perfectly between both worlds. And, of course, this means that people are going to want to kill her.

It wasn't until about halfway through this book that it stopped seeming so scattergun between all the different characters and got to the main focus of this story. I could hardly put it down as Lily's coronation happened, and people went to jail, and other people were buried under the earth, or shot with arrows and guns. I was absolutely shocked by the person that Melissa chose to kill in this book. But, again, that distance between me and the characters really stopped me from grieving for that moment as much as I wanted to.

Not a bad book, but a story that lacked a certain amount of direction for me.
Profile Image for McKenzi.
801 reviews31 followers
April 3, 2017
The sequel was so gripping and compelling and I couldn't stop!! Such a great plot and I loved learning even more about the Diamonds and their families! Plus I love learning more about the Fae world and those characters. This book was hands down better then the first!
55 reviews7 followers
June 6, 2017
I love Marr, but this book was confusing and riddled with grammatical errors. Might be time for a new editor.
Profile Image for Kelly Sierra.
1,025 reviews41 followers
June 14, 2017
Alright, I'm just going to stop now. I wasn't into the first book, but thought maybe the second book could turn me around, and it just didn't.

2 stars
Profile Image for Megan (sporadic hiatus due to law school).
1,121 reviews11 followers
January 27, 2022
One Blood Ruby wasn’t as good as the first one, which is a little disappointing. Nearing the end, I was prepared to have a third coming out soon/already out, but everything wrapped up within a few chapters.

I’m very glad to announce that we get more of Will, Roan, and Violet for a change. There could be more (and I will not say no to more Creed/Lily moments because that was there this book was lacking) but I’m glad we get some attention on them after they were mostly absent/side characters in the first one.

The book stopped making sense near the end. I still have so many questions that I doubt are getting answered, like what just happened? What was up with Eilidh? What happens after Lily wakes up, because it was kind of like an end-credit scene to one of those superhero movies that sets up the next one. (If you know, you know.) Did Eilidh’s powers get fully unlocked or evolved or were they always like that? WHAT HAPPENED??

I would have rated it another 4 stars, except the last few chapters made me more confused than interested. I’m glad to have read the series, though.
Profile Image for Johanna.
160 reviews3 followers
June 26, 2017
Surprises and heartbreak.

After finishing the first book, I was put-off because I felt like I didn't know who the characters were. There was definitely more development in this book, but I'm really upset that the characters still feel a bit distant. I wish there had been more emphasis on understanding the characters, if there was a way that could work with the rapid plot developments and changes.

I feel like there is still a lot of unresolved arcs that came fairly close to completion but are still loose.

I like seeing the princess slowly losing herself. The eventual explanation for it was what I had guess but very well done. I wish it had been explored more because the control of Nature over her is incredibly intriguing and I'm dying to know more!

Nick's fae ancestry was deliciously surprising and did make sense. I liked seeing Lily interact with the criminal underground after 1 being socialized with normal people and 2 after learning her royal lineage. Seeing the world that was previously the only home she had known with fresh eyes was very interesting.

I liked seeing Eric again and his interaction and integration into the Black Diamonds. I wish there was a bit more resolution with the tension and "fatedness" between him and Violet though.

I was really heartbroken when Alchemy died, although when she had said that the day was literally perfect in every way I knew she would, which was a bit cliche.
Profile Image for Carly O'Connell.
544 reviews13 followers
March 28, 2018
Not my favorite of Marr's work. Not actively bad, but nothing special either. I do enjoy how she writes romance, as dramatic and cheesy as all those declarations of love are, they warm my heart. But I kind of felt like my favorite character got fridged - killed for the sake of character development of her male lover.
In this second book of the Seven Black Diamonds series, Lily has accepted her role as heir to the Seelie and Unseelie thrones in exchange for peace and an end to thr war between humans and fey. But not all fey agree that the humans can go on polluting the earth unpunished, and peace does not come easy.
Profile Image for Cecily Black.
2,416 reviews21 followers
July 25, 2019
Really really not my genre and it took me a bit to remember the first installment of the series. I just really wasn't in the mood for this type of book so I was happy when I finished it. I did like it overall it just wasn't anything outstanding.
Okay Read!!
Profile Image for Sabrina Roy.
1,349 reviews35 followers
September 8, 2020
I personally think the book should have had a sequel and then the ending wouldn't have felt so rushed. But I liked that you got to see more of other characters. Laughs were had, tears were cried. it was a good book overall though. 3.5 stars compared to the last one which was a full 4 stars.
Profile Image for Karen.
511 reviews94 followers
March 31, 2021


Lily is really coming into her own in this story. She is no longer known as Lilywhite, now she is Lilydark. She is claiming her throne, but she is facing some dark opposition. First, she demand peace between humans and Fae. Then she finds herself thwarted at every attempt to secure that peace. Also, she kind of looses herself in this story, but it is all for a good cause. She begins to call on the Hidden Lands Fae to help her, but are they really helping her.

I had so many questions going into this book. Some were answered but still others popped up and I can’t say I am really satisfied by the story conclusion. This story ends with so many characters left hanging. Not all of the character story arcs had a conclusion in this book and that was pretty frustrating.

My favorite pairing in this story was Will and Roan. I have no idea what happens to Will after he comes out, although I am glad that he did. Will and Roan were such a nice aspect to this story.

People fricken die in this book! I don’t feel like it was talked about enough (or that it was very fair because now a certain Fae is sad and mateless). I have no idea if that Fae ever moved on and what became of them.

What happened to Creed? He was so cool in the first book, but this story has him following Lily around like a puppy. He really looses his identity in this story. I still root for them, but I wish he had more action scenes in this story. Also, neither of these books show Creed “performing” in any scene. I still don’t understand what he is famous for.

Violet was such a scene stealer in this book, but in the best way. I almost think she didn’t get enough credit or attention in this story. I was so curious about Violet and Erik but in the end I was denied this ship.

Elidih, who I never even mentioned in my review for book one, plays a really important role in this story. Her role as being even more connected to the Hidden World then Lily left me pretty confused. She also has this whole relationship with Torquil, her best childhood friend. Torquil is related to Rhys who is Zephyrs real father. So all these characters connect in a fun way.

This book is still lacking on those descriptive details that set the scene for me. I guess descriptions aren’t this author’s thing. That’s too bad because I would like to explore more Fae stories by her.
Profile Image for Ayla.
138 reviews2 followers
April 3, 2017
Typically I don't enjoy YA, but the core plot of this series is solid. My only real objection, and I think that's where the YA bit comes in, is that it seems that each character got 10 pages to think deeply about how much they love their chosen partner. So the plot will tick along nice and solid... screeching halt to talk about how wonderful being with ___ is... here comes the plot again, oh and now we need to pause to let the next person have profound thoughts about romance. Oy.

I wish the book had about 100 less pages of that fluff, but if a bunch of folks pondering love all over the place is what it takes to get the book published so the rest of us can just find out what happens next, ugh, so be it. That bit isn't written for me anyway, can't really begrudge it too much.

Otherwise, I quite like it and will continue on. Just, you know, with lots of skimming.
Profile Image for S.
479 reviews
January 14, 2020
*3.25

Unfortunately, this was a disappointment for me. I really enjoyed the first book in this duology, and had high expectations for the conclusion that it just did not meet. For one, the plot felt like a setup for a crazy ending that never really hit for me. It was very slow-moving, and I got distracted frequently while reading. I have a hard time rating sequels so low, and if this wasn't the second book to a story I really liked, the rating might've been even lower...idk.
I certainly didn't hate it at all though, and there were portions I really enjoyed. Just overall, didn't like it much.
Profile Image for Natasha.
142 reviews10 followers
January 7, 2018
Melissa Marr writes some of my favorite fae books. I really enjoyed Seven Black Diamonds and this was a good follow-up, but I hope there is another book because the ending was a little weak. Most of it was tied up too easily and then there was no closure for a couple of the characters' plot lines.
Profile Image for Rachel.
2,342 reviews131 followers
July 23, 2019

Drama... This book had so much drama and it was so incredibly wonderful. I love a good fae story, they are my favorite type of supernatural, and I have read plenty of fae stories and Seven Black Diamonds duology is among my favorites.

One Blood Ruby is the second book in the duology and it did not disappoint. Things pick up closely after the events in the first book, Seven Black Diamonds. Lily is the new heir to the Hidden Lands and her coronation is coming up, Lily's friends, the Diamonds, are supporting her while trying to do the tasks that are given to them by the royal fae. They have stopped the espionage and war on humanity to broker peace but someone doesn't want that peace and doesn't want Lily on the throne. The question then becomes who is sabotaging the peace talks and can Lily be the ruler everyone, fae and human alike, need her to be?

The plot of One Blood Ruby seamlessly connects with the plot of Seven Black Diamonds and is very interesting and unique in a paranormal story. The fae are raging war on humanity because humanity is destroying the planet which they all share, there is espionage (think spies), court politics, human politics, worlds clashing, people at unrest and magic all in the mix which makes for a very interesting story. The only thing I can complain about is that the ending was a little rushed and I want so much more of the story, other than that I was in love. The story flowed lovely and held my attention, I actually had to slow my reading down so that I could stretch the book out over a few days, so I could live in the story and enjoy it.

I have never loved a group of characters more than I do this group of characters. I enjoyed these characters, I had admired Lily, adored Violet, crushed on Creed, was jealous of Roan's calm, felt for Zepher, connected to Will and wished for Alkamy. I loved all the diamonds and connected to each of the characters. I loved that Lily's dad Nick loved his daughter so much and was so devoted to her and his wife, I loved that Eilidh was a character that was so very fae that she brought in the surprise element and most of all I loved the regents of faerie, Lily's grandparents. Endellion and Leith, the Unseelie Queen and the Seelie King, husband and wife and utterly ridiculous, mischievous, and scary all at the same time. I enjoyed these two so much and a lot of my laughable moments were because of them and I loved every minute of it. There are other characters that I haven't mentioned but that doesn't mean I love them less, I am just trying to keep this review as short as possible.

One Blood Ruby is now one of my favorite reads, with the fae and elemental magic, romance, mystery, plot twists, shocks and revelations, and some of the best characters I have ever read. This duology has made it into my all-time favorite books and I know I will find myself rereading the story over and over again. If you enjoy the fae, magic, romance, or crazy adventures I highly recommend this series. Melissa Marr has done a fantastic job with this series and I will have to admit that I did enjoy Seven Black Diamonds more than I enjoyed her other fae series Wicked Lovely so if you are a Wicked Lovely fan you might want to try Seven Black Diamonds.
Profile Image for Rachel (The Rest Is Still Unwritten).
1,606 reviews210 followers
November 17, 2019
Find this review and more on my blog The Rest Is Still Unwritten!

One Blood Ruby is the second novel in Melissa Marr’s Seven Black Diamonds series and is a deeply engrossing sequel that is filled with danger, adventure and romance.

After discovering her true Fae heritage, LilyWhite Abernathy has accepted her role as heir to the Hidden Lands and the combined Seelie and Unseelie thrones. After decades of raging war with the humans, the Queen of Blood and Rage is open to brokering peace with the human world and Lily knows her position in both worlds is the key to securing this. Alongside their fellow black diamonds, Lily and her new boyfriend Creed stand alongside Lily’s newly found fae family to create a new peaceful world but with recent violent attacks on humans leaning towards a fae involvement is the hope for peace over before it has even begun?

Having fallen in love with Seven Black Diamonds, I jumped into One Blood Ruby as soon as my copy arrived and was delighted to find all the aspects I loved about the first novel alive in its sequel. Picking up where the first novel left off, One Blood Ruby is a thrilling and exciting story full of romance, friendship and blossoming familial connections.

One Blood Ruby continues to follow Lily primarily but is also told through the varying perspectives of Creed, Eilidh, Zephyr, Will and Violet as well, offering readers a very well rounded and inclusive view of the happenings within the novel. I genuinely love all the characters and enjoy seeing them individually and as a group as they connect and fight for one another.

Melissa Marr is very inapt at creating darkly riveting and complex characters with different personalities, desires and drives. One Blood Ruby continues to feature characters like this who are all very different but complement one another immensely. Fae, fae-blood or human, Marr writes her characters fiery, passionate, capable and endlessly thrilling to follow. I like their wit, attitude and mannerisms across the board and feel like the cast of characters within this series is truly fabulous.

As the Hidden Lands and human worlds look to unite, we see a more maternal and almost human side to the Queen of Blood and Rage. Amongst the romance, friendship and action of the story, it was sweet to see Endellion motherly towards her newly found granddaughter Lily and even her grandson Zephyr. This made for a nice touch to the story and balanced nicely with other aspects that were at play.

One Blood Ruby was another fabulous novel from Melissa Marr filled with excitement, danger and even unexpected loss. Emotional and riveting, One Blood Ruby leaves me highly excited about seeing more of the characters and I will be keeping my fingers-crossed and my eyes peeled for another novel in the series as I would love to see what Melissa Marr does next!
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