What do you think?
Rate this book
The Severed Souls #1
Darkness Rising
With a name like Violence, she was destined for greatness.
Or destruction.
As the only female member of the notorious Wild Hunt, Violence spends her days collecting souls. Until she accidentally becomes attached to one.
That single soul reveals the darkness the king is breeding in the heart of their city.
The men of the Wild Hunt aren’t nearly as convinced of the evil that’s coming, but Violence knows first-hand just how malicious the king really is.
He is her father after all.
This is a reverse harem series, recommended for readers 18+.
Or destruction.
As the only female member of the notorious Wild Hunt, Violence spends her days collecting souls. Until she accidentally becomes attached to one.
That single soul reveals the darkness the king is breeding in the heart of their city.
The men of the Wild Hunt aren’t nearly as convinced of the evil that’s coming, but Violence knows first-hand just how malicious the king really is.
He is her father after all.
This is a reverse harem series, recommended for readers 18+.
164 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 26, 2018
586 people are currently reading
672 people want to read
About the author
A.K. Koonce
104 books885 followersA.K. Koonce is a USA Today best selling author. She's a mom by day and a fantasy and paranormal romance author by night. She keeps the fantastical stories in her mind on an endless loop, while she tries her best to focus on her actual life and not that of the spectacular but demanding fictional characters who always fill her thoughts
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
July 11, 2018
Didn't have the X-factor
Something was missing here, the little extra "je ne sais quoi" that makes an OK reverse harem great
I'm going to put it down to the length of the book. At only 164 pages the characters were just not able to develop enough for me to care what happened to them!
Vi (short for Violence) has spent 3 years- 3 effing years - completely silent and removed from the 3 other member's of the Wild Hunt. She has not spoken to any of them at all
then suddenly wow surprise surprise she falls for them
Ok we need a plot and yes she has a cool name, but can we not have something a little more believable that I can actually get behind? These guys have been shunned by her for years and they are all seeking her attention like little lost puppies!
More backstory was needed and I did not sympathise with Vi or any of the harem, especially not with the massive chip she has on her shoulder. It's like she thinks the world is against her.
At 64% I realised I didn't care what the hell happened to any of the characters, and they did have a little potential to be more.
Nothing was wrong with the editing or the plot or dialogue. It had all the making of a good RH it just was just too short and lacking in the extra details
Something was missing here, the little extra "je ne sais quoi" that makes an OK reverse harem great
I'm going to put it down to the length of the book. At only 164 pages the characters were just not able to develop enough for me to care what happened to them!
Vi (short for Violence) has spent 3 years- 3 effing years - completely silent and removed from the 3 other member's of the Wild Hunt. She has not spoken to any of them at all
then suddenly wow surprise surprise she falls for them
Ok we need a plot and yes she has a cool name, but can we not have something a little more believable that I can actually get behind? These guys have been shunned by her for years and they are all seeking her attention like little lost puppies!
More backstory was needed and I did not sympathise with Vi or any of the harem, especially not with the massive chip she has on her shoulder. It's like she thinks the world is against her.
At 64% I realised I didn't care what the hell happened to any of the characters, and they did have a little potential to be more.
Nothing was wrong with the editing or the plot or dialogue. It had all the making of a good RH it just was just too short and lacking in the extra details
April 29, 2019
Overall opinion on this book: It's trying way too hard.
It felt like this book was meant to be dark and edgy but it simply did not have the depth to draw me in and make me feel anything for these characters. The name "Violence" is too on the nose. Stealing souls. Fighting demons in the dark.
It seemed like there was not enough to this book at all. There was hardly any dialogue and there was no light points to balance out the dark. You can't have something be 100% dark, even if it is supposed to be the main theme. You have to have some moments of hope and there was none in this book.
The characters are not well developed. You say Link is the analytic one but there isn't any evidence to back that up. Jeriko is a typical bad boy. Nollix seems clingy. What makes me want to invest my time into these characters? Violence herself is mild and falls too easily into the role of "bad ass princess who is actually really sweet and all the men desire her".
These tropes have gotten old and I hate that this cover sucked me in. Another case of being deceived by something pretty.
So disappointing.
It felt like this book was meant to be dark and edgy but it simply did not have the depth to draw me in and make me feel anything for these characters. The name "Violence" is too on the nose. Stealing souls. Fighting demons in the dark.
It seemed like there was not enough to this book at all. There was hardly any dialogue and there was no light points to balance out the dark. You can't have something be 100% dark, even if it is supposed to be the main theme. You have to have some moments of hope and there was none in this book.
The characters are not well developed. You say Link is the analytic one but there isn't any evidence to back that up. Jeriko is a typical bad boy. Nollix seems clingy. What makes me want to invest my time into these characters? Violence herself is mild and falls too easily into the role of "bad ass princess who is actually really sweet and all the men desire her".
These tropes have gotten old and I hate that this cover sucked me in. Another case of being deceived by something pretty.
So disappointing.
July 7, 2018
I really like books that deal with the Wild Hunt so I was excited to start this, it was too short to really expand on the world and characters.
There is some action but the ending is abrupt
Not sure how I feel about Violence and don't really understand her
We will see what the next book brings
There is some action but the ending is abrupt
Not sure how I feel about Violence and don't really understand her
We will see what the next book brings
June 28, 2018
Another fantastic reverse harem novel by A.K. Koonce! It's a slow burn but there's definite promise of sexy times ahead! I loved Vi and her boys and am really excited to see where this series goes!!! A.K. had quickly become an auto-buy author for me I have loved everything she has written!
June 26, 2018
A.K.Koonce has given us a new series that just blew me out of the water. Vi, short for Violence is our heroine, but so unique... withdrawn, unsure of herself, and absolutely brimming with untapped power. She is being used as a pawn in her father's plans as King. This novel is driven by character development and the stunning descriptions of a dark world of magic where Vi finds herself as part of The Hunt... devouring souls. This story and Vi captured my heart along with two gorgeous men, Nollix and Link.
July 19, 2018
1.5 stars. This book was incredibly short. I’m pretty sure I’ve read samples longer and more detailed than this. Really no world or character building no explanations. One minute she hates her wild hunt brothers the next minute she likes 2 of them? When all but link who apparently has been trying to break her silence for 3 years have treated her with disdain? Yes, this is the book where no sense was made. I mean what the heck is even going on here what is the main goal of the story? Our wizard friend has been keeping secrets apparently, nothing is revealed about the true purpose of the book other than he thinks it can be used to create an army of the dead. Certain characters pointed during the story seemed pointless as no real backstory had been given. I mean why did she even get sentenced to the wild hunt? What’s up with the crazy sister? What happened to between her and the ex fiancé? A couple characters and actions scenes does not a book make. This book is missing it’s “muchness.”
July 23, 2018
It was going semi decent up until the very end with the capture and such. I had such hiiiigh hopes for this book, and then the plot slowly got worse and the book was so short (which is fine) that the bad parts go to me faster. I will still read the second book when it comes out just so I know what happens and hope that it turns out better. Koonce is still one of my fave authors though so I won't be surprised if the next one is better.
July 24, 2018
Amazing!!!
I loved this book it was exciting and heart wrenching. I can't wait to see were the next book will take us. The characters are perfect the dynamic was very interesting and I like how the relationships didn't start out good. A.K. Koonce made something wonderful and amazing.
I loved this book it was exciting and heart wrenching. I can't wait to see were the next book will take us. The characters are perfect the dynamic was very interesting and I like how the relationships didn't start out good. A.K. Koonce made something wonderful and amazing.
July 6, 2018
Though AK Koonce's books are short, she is able to convey an array of emotions in a short amount of time and gets the reader to understand at an in depth level her characters and what they go through. I loved this book and I was NOT disappointed
January 15, 2019
2.5 stars. The story was undeveloped, and it just felt short. I didn’t really mind the length though, because I wasn’t particularly invested in anything in the book.
The MC, Violence, has apparently spent the last few years completely mute by choice, driving the men in the Hunt with her crazy. She finally speaks when in the form of a single expletive when she accidentally breaks a law and touches a living human, taking his soul (or something) ahead of its time. I liked that she finally broke her silence to curse, and she obviously had to talk a bit after that because she was called before the king, but I have no idea why she kept talking after all that. It was framed as if meeting the human, Cameron, changed everything and made her want to speak, but I never really got why, and the change happened before they’d ever really gotten to know each other.
Violence really didn’t have any relationship development with any of the guys. Apparently just the fact that she could talk flipped some sort of switch: “As I trail back to the Wild Hunt, they look at me in a new light. The men watch me carefully. They look at me like I’m a real woman instead of a broken girl.” There needed to be more to it than that, but there wasn’t really. Her relationship with Link went from 0 to 100 in the blink of an eye, and her relationship with Nollix was overdramatic at times. She decides that she needs to do some self-sacrificing thing to save everyone, meaning it had nothing to do with her relationship with Noliix, but he doesn’t want her to go, so she tells him to give her a reason to stay (because apparently not dying isn’t enough), and when she doesn’t like his answer, she concludes that he never really cared about her. ??? This conversation had nothing to do with anything that was happening at the moment, and the whole thing was just weird. While she mourns the apparent breakdown of their relationship, she thinks, “I try hard not to remember the gentle way he kissed me.” Look, he never kissed her gently. His kisses were always rough and feral or whatever, so she wouldn’t need to try very hard to avoid remembering that nonexistent gentleness.
A few things in the plot confused me. At one point, someone says, “An Elder Warlock wouldn’t have a problem raising the dead, or bargaining with the devil for souls. Especially if the King’s daughter is the one retrieving said souls.” I had no idea why it would make a difference if the king’s daughter retrieved the soul, but Violence responded mentally, narrating, “I start to wonder why he’s making so much sense all of a sudden.” Look, he’s not. I also never really understood how their soul retrieval works. The Hunt seems to be some sort of filter between death and life, a transport to the underworld. My issue is that they eat the souls, so I’m very unclear on how the souls go from their stomachs to the underworld. Also, they don’t get called to retrieve souls very often in the book, so they can’t possibly need to go anytime someone dies, but I have no idea how the magic decides which deaths they need to go for.
Some other things bothered me as well. First, I thought it was weird that Nollix’s big reaction to the fact that Violence could talk happened after the second time she spoke rather than the first time. At one point, Violence fights the big bad guy and chops his arm off. Good for her, but she just stood there staring at him instead of pressing her advantage and going for his head. Also, 87% into this book, we learn that they’ve been wearing jeans this whole time in this high fantasy world. I hadn’t really been picturing them wearing anything specifc until that point, but I sure wasn’t picturing them wearing jeans. Also, I guess these fae can apparently touch iron because Violence didn’t react when she touched it, but why bothering mentioning that the fae prison has iron bars if iron doesn’t affect them?
The writing itself contained many of the grammatical issues that are typical of this author (malapropisms and spelling and punctuation issues), but this book had fewer issues than her other books typically do. Some areas just straight up didn’t sound good though, like this redundant passage: “It fumes a bluish tone. It smokes with color. Pure blue smoke rolls off of the blade and clouds around our feet as we stalk through the hall.” It was like the author was trying to decided the best way to express that and couldn’t choose her favorite sentence, so she just gave us all of her drafts. The author also used past tense instead of present tense in the dialogue at all times, and the author’s statements occasionally didn’t match what we’d actually seen for ourselves in the story. For example, Violence mentions her “constant unsteady thoughts,” but I hadn’t seen any unsteady thoughts, much less constant ones.
This wasn’t the worst Koonce book I’ve read, but I won’t continue the series.
PROGRESS UPDATES
37% “‘Do I seriously have to sit here and listen to him woo her?’ Nollix’s annoyance is heavy in his voice.” Yeah babe, that’s the genre.
The MC, Violence, has apparently spent the last few years completely mute by choice, driving the men in the Hunt with her crazy. She finally speaks when in the form of a single expletive when she accidentally breaks a law and touches a living human, taking his soul (or something) ahead of its time. I liked that she finally broke her silence to curse, and she obviously had to talk a bit after that because she was called before the king, but I have no idea why she kept talking after all that. It was framed as if meeting the human, Cameron, changed everything and made her want to speak, but I never really got why, and the change happened before they’d ever really gotten to know each other.
Violence really didn’t have any relationship development with any of the guys. Apparently just the fact that she could talk flipped some sort of switch: “As I trail back to the Wild Hunt, they look at me in a new light. The men watch me carefully. They look at me like I’m a real woman instead of a broken girl.” There needed to be more to it than that, but there wasn’t really. Her relationship with Link went from 0 to 100 in the blink of an eye, and her relationship with Nollix was overdramatic at times. She decides that she needs to do some self-sacrificing thing to save everyone, meaning it had nothing to do with her relationship with Noliix, but he doesn’t want her to go, so she tells him to give her a reason to stay (because apparently not dying isn’t enough), and when she doesn’t like his answer, she concludes that he never really cared about her. ??? This conversation had nothing to do with anything that was happening at the moment, and the whole thing was just weird. While she mourns the apparent breakdown of their relationship, she thinks, “I try hard not to remember the gentle way he kissed me.” Look, he never kissed her gently. His kisses were always rough and feral or whatever, so she wouldn’t need to try very hard to avoid remembering that nonexistent gentleness.
A few things in the plot confused me. At one point, someone says, “An Elder Warlock wouldn’t have a problem raising the dead, or bargaining with the devil for souls. Especially if the King’s daughter is the one retrieving said souls.” I had no idea why it would make a difference if the king’s daughter retrieved the soul, but Violence responded mentally, narrating, “I start to wonder why he’s making so much sense all of a sudden.” Look, he’s not. I also never really understood how their soul retrieval works. The Hunt seems to be some sort of filter between death and life, a transport to the underworld. My issue is that they eat the souls, so I’m very unclear on how the souls go from their stomachs to the underworld. Also, they don’t get called to retrieve souls very often in the book, so they can’t possibly need to go anytime someone dies, but I have no idea how the magic decides which deaths they need to go for.
Some other things bothered me as well. First, I thought it was weird that Nollix’s big reaction to the fact that Violence could talk happened after the second time she spoke rather than the first time. At one point, Violence fights the big bad guy and chops his arm off. Good for her, but she just stood there staring at him instead of pressing her advantage and going for his head. Also, 87% into this book, we learn that they’ve been wearing jeans this whole time in this high fantasy world. I hadn’t really been picturing them wearing anything specifc until that point, but I sure wasn’t picturing them wearing jeans. Also, I guess these fae can apparently touch iron because Violence didn’t react when she touched it, but why bothering mentioning that the fae prison has iron bars if iron doesn’t affect them?
The writing itself contained many of the grammatical issues that are typical of this author (malapropisms and spelling and punctuation issues), but this book had fewer issues than her other books typically do. Some areas just straight up didn’t sound good though, like this redundant passage: “It fumes a bluish tone. It smokes with color. Pure blue smoke rolls off of the blade and clouds around our feet as we stalk through the hall.” It was like the author was trying to decided the best way to express that and couldn’t choose her favorite sentence, so she just gave us all of her drafts. The author also used past tense instead of present tense in the dialogue at all times, and the author’s statements occasionally didn’t match what we’d actually seen for ourselves in the story. For example, Violence mentions her “constant unsteady thoughts,” but I hadn’t seen any unsteady thoughts, much less constant ones.
This wasn’t the worst Koonce book I’ve read, but I won’t continue the series.
PROGRESS UPDATES
37% “‘Do I seriously have to sit here and listen to him woo her?’ Nollix’s annoyance is heavy in his voice.” Yeah babe, that’s the genre.
January 28, 2019
Might have potential... maybe
The story was short. Really short. The start was confusing and really made no sense in the scheme of things. It truly would have been better and made more sense for to to start with her father exiting her to the Wild Hunt with her mother protesting. Seeing a little I'd her life before the hunt and seeing her meet the guys and seeing them grow together. Instead it was all rushed and it starts three years later and they are all strangers who never speak, yet we should believe that within a day some of them arriving love or at least overwhelming lust? Yeah, makes no sense at all. Even the story itself makes no logical sense. The bones are there for a story, but ok not so sure she's going to pull it off. This first book struck me as an author being very lazy and just skipping too much. Even the girls feelings, or maybe lack of feelings make no sense at all. She's kind of robotic in her actions and the way she analyzes everything. I do hope that changes quickly as she's not very likeable. I'm up in the air about whether to keep reading. I guess as short as this one is it would be a quick read.
The story was short. Really short. The start was confusing and really made no sense in the scheme of things. It truly would have been better and made more sense for to to start with her father exiting her to the Wild Hunt with her mother protesting. Seeing a little I'd her life before the hunt and seeing her meet the guys and seeing them grow together. Instead it was all rushed and it starts three years later and they are all strangers who never speak, yet we should believe that within a day some of them arriving love or at least overwhelming lust? Yeah, makes no sense at all. Even the story itself makes no logical sense. The bones are there for a story, but ok not so sure she's going to pull it off. This first book struck me as an author being very lazy and just skipping too much. Even the girls feelings, or maybe lack of feelings make no sense at all. She's kind of robotic in her actions and the way she analyzes everything. I do hope that changes quickly as she's not very likeable. I'm up in the air about whether to keep reading. I guess as short as this one is it would be a quick read.
July 16, 2018
So good!
Another good one, looking forward to more! Violence is intriguing to say the least. Still trying to figure out the other men in her life, but I will enjoy the time in this world.
Another good one, looking forward to more! Violence is intriguing to say the least. Still trying to figure out the other men in her life, but I will enjoy the time in this world.
July 9, 2018
3.5 stars
July 4, 2018
Consuming Darkness and a Violent battle ahead!
Oh Violence, what you've endured and what you must continue to endure! What an imaginative and darkly rendered tale of the Wild Hunt and a beautifully powerful huntress! I loved meeting Vi, Link, Nollix, and Cameron in this story. I will happily do without jerk face and the mad king. The action comes fast and brutal in this first installment and we learn of the major players. As a young fae, Vi is banished to the Wild Hunt by her father, the king. Hurt and just wanting to forget, Vi does not play well with the others, but soon makes a connection with a marked soul that changes her path and the path of the others of the Wild Hunt into something deadly and unknown. There is fantastic humor, cupcakes anyone? Attraction and sparks and heat! But there is also heartbreaking loss, unfulfilled wishes, and a dark and endless future ahead. The thing about our heroine, and our fearless author, is, though, they may travel the paths most gloomy, there is always hope for revenge, sweet justice, and redemption in the end. We, along with Vi, must travel the hard road first, look deep into ourselves for our true strength, and wait for our opening to strike the necessary blow. In the meantime, I'll wait in this barren and empty place with Vi, I'll be rooting for her and her happily harem after. We will all just have to work for it first! Man! I am loving this new series, and cannot wait to read more!
Oh Violence, what you've endured and what you must continue to endure! What an imaginative and darkly rendered tale of the Wild Hunt and a beautifully powerful huntress! I loved meeting Vi, Link, Nollix, and Cameron in this story. I will happily do without jerk face and the mad king. The action comes fast and brutal in this first installment and we learn of the major players. As a young fae, Vi is banished to the Wild Hunt by her father, the king. Hurt and just wanting to forget, Vi does not play well with the others, but soon makes a connection with a marked soul that changes her path and the path of the others of the Wild Hunt into something deadly and unknown. There is fantastic humor, cupcakes anyone? Attraction and sparks and heat! But there is also heartbreaking loss, unfulfilled wishes, and a dark and endless future ahead. The thing about our heroine, and our fearless author, is, though, they may travel the paths most gloomy, there is always hope for revenge, sweet justice, and redemption in the end. We, along with Vi, must travel the hard road first, look deep into ourselves for our true strength, and wait for our opening to strike the necessary blow. In the meantime, I'll wait in this barren and empty place with Vi, I'll be rooting for her and her happily harem after. We will all just have to work for it first! Man! I am loving this new series, and cannot wait to read more!
April 10, 2020
Violence (nickname Vi) has spent 3 YEARS with the men who make up the rest of her squad in the Wild Hunt. The whole time she has been giving them cold shoulder, and then all of a sudden she's all about these guys once the book starts. There was not enough development between Vi and the men to make the romance and RH believable. Neither did I really understand why exactly Vi had such disdain for the men.
The plot also felt aimless. What was the purpose of the story? What were these characters working towards? Because even when the MCs are clueless about the overall plot, they each should have individual goals or a purpose!
Darkness Rising could have been amazing: with a heroine named Violence and an RH based on the Wild Hunt. Yet, the lack of an MC that you could root for, let alone understand, made the novel fall quite flat.
The plot also felt aimless. What was the purpose of the story? What were these characters working towards? Because even when the MCs are clueless about the overall plot, they each should have individual goals or a purpose!
Darkness Rising could have been amazing: with a heroine named Violence and an RH based on the Wild Hunt. Yet, the lack of an MC that you could root for, let alone understand, made the novel fall quite flat.
July 1, 2018
This new book by A.K. Koonce is a promising start to what looks to be another amazing reverse harem series! A little short but definitely a great read, Darkness Rising is full of unique characters and an interesting setting that I can't wait to read more about.
This book follows Violence, a powerful fae princess being used by the King for an unknown evil. Sent to be a part of the Wild Hunt at eighteen, Vi works with three men, Jeriko, Nollix, and Link, to take the souls of murdered fae. Throw in a bond with a Warlock, a book of dark magic, and her psychotic father, and we get a fast paced adventure in a unique world.
I really enjoyed this take on the Wild Hunt. I've always been fascinated with this aspect of the fae world and its not something that comes up in many books like this making Darkness Rising one of a kind for me.
I'm excited to see where A.K. Koonce will take us in the next Severed Souls book!
This book follows Violence, a powerful fae princess being used by the King for an unknown evil. Sent to be a part of the Wild Hunt at eighteen, Vi works with three men, Jeriko, Nollix, and Link, to take the souls of murdered fae. Throw in a bond with a Warlock, a book of dark magic, and her psychotic father, and we get a fast paced adventure in a unique world.
I really enjoyed this take on the Wild Hunt. I've always been fascinated with this aspect of the fae world and its not something that comes up in many books like this making Darkness Rising one of a kind for me.
I'm excited to see where A.K. Koonce will take us in the next Severed Souls book!
July 10, 2018
**SPOILERS**
I have to say, I immensely enjoyed the book. It was crazy short, which was disappointing considering how interesting the storyline is. That being said, I loved this take on the Wild Hunt. The only other series I’ve read with this topic was by C.M. Stunich (which is also a great book, btw), and I was so happy to find that this one has its own unique take on the concept!
What this book is lacking is better character development. As interesting as the storyline is, the characters are less so to an extent. The males of the harem follow a pretty predictable personality type that is in all RH books. Besides that, I’m just not a fan of the insta-relationship. I mean, she doesn’t speak to them for the entire first THREE YEARS they’re working together and yet they are all about claiming her. There was no real development in the relationship aspect.
I’m really hoping that the next book fleshes out these characters more, to put them on par with the storyline.
I have to say, I immensely enjoyed the book. It was crazy short, which was disappointing considering how interesting the storyline is. That being said, I loved this take on the Wild Hunt. The only other series I’ve read with this topic was by C.M. Stunich (which is also a great book, btw), and I was so happy to find that this one has its own unique take on the concept!
What this book is lacking is better character development. As interesting as the storyline is, the characters are less so to an extent. The males of the harem follow a pretty predictable personality type that is in all RH books. Besides that, I’m just not a fan of the insta-relationship. I mean, she doesn’t speak to them for the entire first THREE YEARS they’re working together and yet they are all about claiming her. There was no real development in the relationship aspect.
I’m really hoping that the next book fleshes out these characters more, to put them on par with the storyline.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 9, 2018
Never before have I read a RH about the Wild Hunt. I have to admittedly say that I was a little unsure if it would be to my liking. However, I quickly became intrigued with the backstory to how Violence became part of the Hunt. For two of the three men to show interest in her towards the end was quite surprising. Link has a kind, caring spirit towards Violence, where Nollix only seem hostile and standoffish for so long. It was nice to see his feeling slowly be revealed. Jericho is a little of a mystery. He has me eagerly awaiting the next book to see what he might be up to. Plus, I can't wait for the relationships to develop into more. Definitely a series to add to any to be read list.
March 28, 2019
What can I say I’m sticking to the RH genre for now and trying to tick off books that have been on my TBR list for too long, this being one of them.
Darkness Rising is the first in its trilogy by A.K Koonce. It’s a slow burn supernatural romance featuring Fae and the Wild Hunt.
Violence (yes that is her name) has been sentenced to be a huntress in the Wild by her father, the Mad King and for the past 3 years she has been reaping dead souls along with Link, Nillox and Jeriko. When her father is up to no good Violence is forced to pick whether to save herself or the lives of her fathers kingdom.
I like the storyline and the characters are well written. I would consider these books a little longer than novella so bare in mind they are short and fast paced.
Darkness Rising is the first in its trilogy by A.K Koonce. It’s a slow burn supernatural romance featuring Fae and the Wild Hunt.
Violence (yes that is her name) has been sentenced to be a huntress in the Wild by her father, the Mad King and for the past 3 years she has been reaping dead souls along with Link, Nillox and Jeriko. When her father is up to no good Violence is forced to pick whether to save herself or the lives of her fathers kingdom.
I like the storyline and the characters are well written. I would consider these books a little longer than novella so bare in mind they are short and fast paced.
July 3, 2018
What did I just read!!?!? So when I started reading this book I wasn't sure what to expect. Yes I excepted it to be interesting, filled with some magic, and hot guys. But I didn't expect to be sucked into the Wild Hunt or to root for the jerk. I shouldn't be surprised since I have come to look forward to new books by A.K. Koonce but still. And of course I was so focused on all the happenings in the book I didn't realize it was the end until I was on the last paragraph!! You can't leave a girl hanging!! Luckily the next book will be out at the end of the month. If you like magic, hot guys, and action ... this book is for you. Did I mention hot guys??
June 27, 2018
This book was so good! It was such an interesting take on the Wild Hunt.
Violence was an interesting character. In the beginning she was kind of challenging, but towards the end she seems to grow and develop, and I'm curious to see where that development will go in the future.
The men in the harem were also interesting. I can't wait to find out more about them, especially Nollix.
This story was rather short, but the plot line was engaging. This was a quick, intriguing read, and I look forward to the continuation of Vioence's story.
Violence was an interesting character. In the beginning she was kind of challenging, but towards the end she seems to grow and develop, and I'm curious to see where that development will go in the future.
The men in the harem were also interesting. I can't wait to find out more about them, especially Nollix.
This story was rather short, but the plot line was engaging. This was a quick, intriguing read, and I look forward to the continuation of Vioence's story.
June 30, 2018
Short but Good
Violence is part of the Wild Hunt. She doesn't interact with the 3 other male members. Sent by her father she has built a walk around her heart. sucking souls. What a job. Violence and the other members of the Wild Hunt are drawn to those about to die, and collect their soul, they can't help themselves. A routine collection goes awry and things continue to snowball from there. Magic and darkness, they go hand in hand. This was a good story, but too short. Excited for book 2.
Violence is part of the Wild Hunt. She doesn't interact with the 3 other male members. Sent by her father she has built a walk around her heart. sucking souls. What a job. Violence and the other members of the Wild Hunt are drawn to those about to die, and collect their soul, they can't help themselves. A routine collection goes awry and things continue to snowball from there. Magic and darkness, they go hand in hand. This was a good story, but too short. Excited for book 2.
July 2, 2018
I’m not going to give away any spoilers of any kind because I do not like doing that!
So this is all I’m going to say about this book and that is I really enjoyed climbing into this story and becoming lost within its pages basically I thought it was amazing! I got hooked from the first chapter and stayed hooked right up until the very end!
So yes I most definitely recommend this book to anyone who’s needing a fantastic read to get lost in!
July 10, 2018
*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.
Wow just wow!! Incredible world building I must say. This is a take on the Wild Hunt that I have never seen before that really gave this story some depth to it. Violence is a unique character that I am looking forward to learning more about after everything that happened in this first installment. If you love paranormal book then this is the book for you. I totally loved it so I give it 5/5 stars.
Wow just wow!! Incredible world building I must say. This is a take on the Wild Hunt that I have never seen before that really gave this story some depth to it. Violence is a unique character that I am looking forward to learning more about after everything that happened in this first installment. If you love paranormal book then this is the book for you. I totally loved it so I give it 5/5 stars.
October 21, 2019
Interesting name
Violence is an interesting name to call a daughter. It's just another reason why people call the king, mad. Violence is one of the Wild Hunt warriors and she was put there by her father. I think it's strange that she decides to help Cameron. She hasn't tried to deal with her father in the three years that she has been in the Wild Hunt, so why does she get involved now? Even so I like her relationships with 3 of the 4 men.
Violence is an interesting name to call a daughter. It's just another reason why people call the king, mad. Violence is one of the Wild Hunt warriors and she was put there by her father. I think it's strange that she decides to help Cameron. She hasn't tried to deal with her father in the three years that she has been in the Wild Hunt, so why does she get involved now? Even so I like her relationships with 3 of the 4 men.
October 27, 2020
Intriguing first book!
I and definitely excited to see where this book leads.
I will say that is was way too short. I feel like we could have gotten to know and be a bit more attached to the characters if the book had more to it.
The writing is easy to read. There isn't too much world building which I think like the characters would benefit from a longer first book with more detail.
However, I am intrigued with what I have read so far and look forward to what happens next.
I and definitely excited to see where this book leads.
I will say that is was way too short. I feel like we could have gotten to know and be a bit more attached to the characters if the book had more to it.
The writing is easy to read. There isn't too much world building which I think like the characters would benefit from a longer first book with more detail.
However, I am intrigued with what I have read so far and look forward to what happens next.
December 1, 2020
What a strange family.
Violence Starling is a fae princess and her father is evil King Melic. He assigned her to the Wild Hunt. The Wild Hunt collects souls when they die. So it's now three years later and she is with Linkin Skyforth a fae, Nollix Forester who is half demon/half fae and Jeriko Niles a fae. Vi has always been very powerful even as a child now as an adult she many times times more powerful and her father the king knows this.
Violence Starling is a fae princess and her father is evil King Melic. He assigned her to the Wild Hunt. The Wild Hunt collects souls when they die. So it's now three years later and she is with Linkin Skyforth a fae, Nollix Forester who is half demon/half fae and Jeriko Niles a fae. Vi has always been very powerful even as a child now as an adult she many times times more powerful and her father the king knows this.
June 19, 2018
This book is great. You meet 4 members of the Wild Hunt Vi, Nollix, Link and Jeriko add in a Mad King and a Warlock you get a great start to a series. Awesome characters so far, gotta love the a**hole fae!I love the original spin on the Wild Hunt and I can't wait to find out what happens next with Vi and the Wild Hunt!
June 21, 2018
Another amazing book by A.K. This book had such an original story. Violence the female MC was very interesting and I really enjoyed her interactions with Nollix and Link. I can’t wait to see how the story continues in Book 2 . I can’t really say a lot without giving always spoilers so buy this book it is definitely worth it !
June 27, 2018
Wow...just wow!! Once again this very talented author has given us a new series that absolutely captivated the readers imagination and drags us into this story that is full of magic, powerful men, a super powerful women, suspense and excitement. Vi is such an interesting FMC and I am already fully invested in her story and hoping for what is to come in book 2...then you add in all the men...Nollix deadly, sweetish and intense, Link gentle and loving, Jeriko dark and dangerous and Cameron powerful and an unknown...all very different and all bring something different to the story. And don’t get me started on the King, Vi’s dad, i just want to king hit him, I hope we see Vi test her power on him in the next book and for sure test it out on Jerico as well!! I can’t wait for book 2..another highly recommended RH series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews