Nobody can hear your screams from the depths of hell…
Those who survived Halálház, never imagined going back.
But this isn’t Halálház, this is Věrhăza, and nothing can prepare any of them for this.
With General Markos in control of the new prison, torture and cruelty is taken to a whole new level. But what Brexley is forced to do, will not only change her, but the course of the future.
With her abilities starting to show themselves, Brexley risks everything to save those she loves from dying; but in doing so, she exposes her abilities to Istvan.
When she and Warwick are tortured and used as experiments, she finds that Istvan’s deceit and betrayal go far deeper than she could imagine.
Istvan will do anything to stay in control.
As Brexley’s powers grow, so does the hate and darkness inside. Her hands are marked red, her soul heavy in guilt. There has been so much death, pain, and agony.
When does someone break?
How much can one person take before the hero turns into the villain?
Stacey Marie Brown is a lover of hot fictional bad boys and sarcastic heroines who kick butt. She also enjoys books, travel, TV shows, hiking, writing, design, and archery. Stacey swears she is part gypsy, being lucky enough to live and travel all over the world.
better than the previous book (i.e. not filler), which is really all i was hoping for.
i wasnt sure how i would like the change of setting at the end of book #4. going back to where the story started in book #1 felt like a massive regression, like the previous books were pointless. but im glad that my worries were wrong. yes, its a bit repetitive, but it wasnt a plot regression, which made it worth it. especially with brexelys character development. im super excited to see what happens to her character next.
i do think this series is being dragged out as long as possible, however. i thought the next book, book #6, would be the last but, based on the way the story is going, i doubt it. as of right now, im okay with that, but lets see how how i feel after the next book. the law of diminishing returns might be starting to kick in…
This book was BRUTAL from the beginning and it kept getting worse in terms of brutality. The ending has me crying, throwing up and screaming all at the same time😭😭Like why😭😭😭
There were like zero happy moments in this book. Please give these characters a break😩😩
Now I gotta wait few days for the last book and my expectations are HIGHHH!! This has been such an amazing series, it's truly been a rollercoaster ride 👀 Manifesting happy endings for my favourite characters!!
The writing is nonsensical at times, I barely understand what the author is trying to convey. The style is more instinctual that reflective. The characters are either shouting each other's names or "noooo!"... or "fuck!" for that matter. Most of their conversations are so empty man, the dialogues aren't great. The spicy scenes are straight up from Wattpad, not that I'm complaining but I don't really give a fuck when I don't feel the chemistry. I feel like EVERYTHING is sexualized... like I get that he's a literal animal (wolf or whatever) and she's a demon I guess but hello... like how does their "sexual energy" increase the power of some nectar shit... The writing is extremely repetitive, especially regarding Warwick's physique. I also did not need to know the temperature of his liquid thank you. It was overly descriptive and almost painful how aware I am that his eyes, are in fact, the color of aqua.
"We weren't the type to speak our feelings out loud." To my dismay, and the reader doesn't get any deep emotional connection as their communication and relationship development is invisible to the reader but it's stated multiple times that they have this connection. But what happened to showing us instead of telling us that it's there???
I feel like the author made Caden say he was acting just for the readers to feel bad for him, and to create angst and tension. When it really takes more for me than that little statement, he needs to show it through his actions as he's been a little shit since book one. And when Tracker sold them out. The plot is dragged.
To sum this up, this is a personal opinion so to each their own! I don't know if I like their relationship dynamic and that is up to me, I tend to lean towards that emotional connection more than pure spice and empty words. I also prefer the writing style to be a bit more intellectual. But I loved the feminism shining through Brexley's character. I wished this book owed up to my expectations, I really wanted to love this but it took a different turn than I wanted it to. I guess it wasn't meant to be🥲.
This will probably be the last book I read in this series. It started off okay and got weirder and weirder as each book went on. The romantic relationship is…just strange. I forgot 90% of the side characters going into this book and didn’t really care to remember them? I mean…there’s a whole plot around this girl’s afterbirth?? There’s a scene where he blows opium smoke up her vagina???? Like are we okay???
Everything was so repetitive as well. They get captured and put in prison. They escape. Motorcycle chases, literally an explosion that serves as a distraction every time. Someone almost dies. Rinse and repeat.
I don’t know what this book was but I do know that if this girl called herself The Grey one more time I was going to throw away the whole Kindle.
I hate to say this because I LOVE the previous 4 books and was so excited for this release but I was SO disappointed in this book. It felt so redundant and it didn’t move the story along at all. Plus all the charming side characters that we’ve come to love barely get ANY screen time. I feel like Brexleys character development took a step back as well. I love SPICE and LOVE Brex and Warwicks relationship but I feel like this book put the plot on the back burner in order to give us unnecessary spice - these two didn’t have a single conversation that was about sex or foreplay. Like is the first thing you do after being shot and escaping imprisonment go to an Opium den and have sex out in the open when there’s a mark on your head? Because if so then you deserve being recaptured. Like how many times is Istvan going to threaten to kill Brexley and her friends ? Just do it. The stakes are so low everything is an empty threat with this man. I’ll definitely read the final installment because of how much I loved the previous 4 but I really am just so disappointed in this one.
“Fish?” I slanted my head, curving one brow. “You are mistaken.” I smiled tightly. “I’m a fucking piranha.”
If you follow me on Bookstagram, you know that I have made it abundantly clear that I am utterly obsessed with this series. I stumbled upon the series early last year through my own research on Goodreads.
I devoured the first two books in the series and books 3 & 4 were amongst my most anticipated reads of 2021.
Now that I’ve set the scene on my obsession, you can imagine how excited I was to receive an ARC of book 5, Blood Lands yesterday (Blood Lands releases 26 January). Thank you Stacey and The Next Step PR but making me a part of this journey.
This was my first ever ARC and now the bar is so high I don’t know if it will ever be beat!
Now as for Blood Lands specifically – If you’ve read the series, you know that each one leaves us with a colossal cliffhanger and book 4 was no exception. We pick up right where we left off in Bad Lands – in the new state of the art Halálház junior – Věrhăza.
In the spirit of this series, Blood Lands continues to provide us fast paced, violent induced entertainment as well as some much needed quality time with Brexley and Warwick.
The character development in this instalment of the series blew me away. I have always loved Brexley as a strong, female MC but we further explore her trauma in Blood Lands and it is everything I needed from this series.
We continue to get humour, anger, passion as well as the cherry on top of this series – gut-wrenching heartbreak.
We discover additional dimensions of the fantastic world Stacey has built and I am itching to understanding how the sixth and final book will bring this all together.
Now, again, if you’ve read the first four books, you know we are top heavy on questions with only a slither of answers weaving their way through and this is no different (although I do feel we get some pretty concrete answers here).
I devoured this book in less than 24 hours. Yes I am a fast reader but the main reason for this is the pure, relentless pace, character connection and Stacey’s art of miniature cliffhangers throughout the entire book.
If you haven’t read books 1-4, I urge you to do so immediately. Why? Well not only because they are fantastic but also because Blood Lands IS THE BEST ONE YET! I have always had a soft spot for book one as Brex’s character development whilst in Halálház was unrivalled. Until I got Blood Lands.
I don’t want to go into further detail because 99% of the reason I love this series is that fact that no matter how much you think you know what is going to happen, you don’t. The twists are unparalleled and the turns can give you whiplash but in a way that will have you begging for more.
Also, the absolute gem that Stacey is, Shadow Lands, the sixth and final book in the series, is only a few months away.
One final note, if you have been apprehensive about this series because of the number of instalments, do not fret my pets – the pace of these books will have you devouring them faster than you can say I love Warwick (and you will. But also hate him? I don’t know. It’s conflicting most of the time but I’m always leaning more towards love).
Reading this a second time, everything hits ten times harder. And I thought George R. R. Martin was brutal. 👀
There is nothing like the Savage Lands series. It’s raw, powerful, violent, dark, dystopian fantasy. But it is one of my favorites! The characters, chemistry, plot, and world building are astounding. And like I posted earlier… it’s hands down THE BEST enemies to lovers or found family tropes, I’ve ever read. Check trigger warnings, this might not be for everyone but damn do I love Brexley, Warwick, Ash, Killian, Lukas, Kek, Birdie, Opie, Bitzy, Scorpion, and the whole gang! It’s incredibly action packed & so fast paced that I have insanely high standards now. I’m anxiously awaiting the next & last book of this series… because honestly what will I do without more Warwick Farkas?!?!? Thank you Stacey Marie Brown for another absolutely incredible book!!!
⚜𝐔𝐏𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄⚜ The last book before the final installment of the Savage Lands series is released, I'm getting emotional here. This Re-read was painful but it was glorious. 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐋𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐫, 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈𝐬 𝐖𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐞?!.. I know it's not the saying but It would've felt wrong to say 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝 as an Atheist talking about two sexy, feral, wicked heathens. 𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐭. ]|I{•---------⋘⋙---------------•⪼⦕࿅⦖⪻•---------------⋘⋙---------•}I|[ I have no more love for this woman. 𝐅#𝐂𝐊, this book was beyond dark. It was no longer about them surviving, it was just them enduring a never ending streak of torture, pain, misery and sorrow. She kept adding every fu#king obstacles, enemies and roadblocks she could possibly think off to get in their way. As if this was some kind of twisted version of the hunger games. 𝐖𝐇𝐘?!?. This was way too 𝐅#𝐂𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 much. I'm a masochist, not a sadist. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 this book inflicted is criminal. ]|I{•---------⋘⋙---------------•⪼⦕࿅⦖⪻•---------------⋘⋙---------•}I|[ 𝐈. 𝐀𝐌. 𝐃𝐎𝐍𝐄. 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐎𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐌𝐄𝐋𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐌𝐘 𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐍. 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐅#𝐂𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐊𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐌𝐄. 𝐈 𝐂𝐀𝐍'𝐓. 𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 ����𝐓𝐎𝐏. 𝐌𝐘 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐂𝐀𝐍'𝐓 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐋𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐇*𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐘𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄. 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐋𝐘 𝐄𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇. You can't keep doing this to us, and now that i've finished this last book I'm experiencing the biggest book withdrawal unimaginable. What was i thinking reading this one before the Shadow Lands gets released. 𝐆𝐎𝐃𝐃𝐀𝐌𝐍𝐈𝐓, I'm a dumb 𝐁*𝐓𝐂𝐇.
I’ve literally never enjoyed a series more than Savage Lands as a whole. It’s packed with action, it’s filled with sexual tension and smut, it’s got a whole cast of lovable characters, plus the writing is on point.
We start back up where we left off, in the prison with Brex trying to fight for her life. One thing I love about this series is that people DIE. Important people, too. The stakes are up, there’s so much more in play than ever before, and we finally get a peak behind the curtain at Istvans actual plans for the future.
Buckle up because much like the past four books, you’re in for a bumpy ride with constant action (sexual and combat LOL).
Also smut spoiler ahead… A threesome I never expected coming was probably one of the more unique threesomes I’ve ever read!
No one is more excited than me for this next (and I believe) final book!
Title: Blood Lands Series: Savage Lands Series Book 5 Genre: New Adult, Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
ARC REVIEW:
Every single book in this series gets better and better. I know, you’re asking… how is that possible? Well… because Stacey is a queen.
Blood Lands gives you everything you want and leaves you wanting more all at the same time.
There are so many emotions you are going to feel while reading this book. Not only did Stacey ramped up the emotions, she blew the spice out of the park!
I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us in the final book in this series, Shadow Lands (book 6)!
Stacey is a Queen. I don't know what she puts in her writing, but its SO ADDICTING! This story is so captivating. If I could jump into any book, it would be this one! The action kept me on my toes. The spice is SPECTACULAR! The twists and turns were done perfectly. This book is a rollercoaster of emotions from start to finish. I laughed and cried and felt everything. I am eager to see how this series will end.
OK I have adored this series so far and my expectations were equally high going into this installment. Unfortunately, I felt really disappointed and exasperated after finishing this book.
75-80% of this book was rinse, repeat of all the things that have already occurred in the past installments. I understand the authors need to show a lot of twists and angst with the leads suffering to enhance the depth and strength of the characters, but this was downright tragedy. I don't think it's in any way exciting to see constant suffering and the leads being beaten up and captured and this happening for the entirety of the book with no progress in either their love story or in the plot itself.
There was no limit for us. We would walk into the valley of the shadow and death. And they would fear us.
I could sense the ghosts haunting this land, from wars past to the newly deceased, all coming to me like a beacon. Their light. Their Queen. I was life. I was death. I was the in-between. I was The Grey
I hunted and tracked down my prey. I was the threat, the danger. I was The Wolf
I felt like laughing reading these statements cause the leads were absolute opposite of this. The female lead didn't show a single speck of common sense, where on multiple occasions she could have easily killed the villain but she kept making one stupid decision after another and I was left reeling like
I wish the author had concluded the series with this being the last book and giving an appropriate ending since it just seems unnecessary stretched like a gum cause this one didn't have anything solid going for it.
P.S: Hope to see we get to see a more well paced ending with no repetitiveness in the next installment and the characters actually living up to the dialogues.
First of all, I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to Stacey and The Next Step PR team for giving me the amazing opportunity to read and review this book. The way I screamed in excitement was unreal and I'm so thankful for this. *All opinions are my own*
The entirety of this book was pure emotional suspense. The sheer intensity of this book far exceeded the previous books in this series. To say I couldn't put it down would be an understatement of the century. I DEVOURED this book. Each book has just gotten better and better as the series has progressed. I'm unsure what kind magical element you possess that makes you able to write this good but I'm not at all mad about it.
This book had it all, the angst, suspense, *trauma* and chemistry we so desperately love and crave from Miss Stacey. She spared no feelings in this book and the way my heart raced at each turn of the page just made me want more. Call me a masochist because I LIVE for the emotional damage she creates. Was I sobbing like a blubbering baby at the end of this book? Yes. Yes, I was, and I LIVED FOR IT.
With this being the fifth book out of six in the series, I'm already a trainwreck trying to rack my brain on HOW she'll tie this unforgettable series together. Knowing her, it'll be just as amazing and heart wrenching and I AM READY.
"Men never understood a woman's strength, the carnage which would paint the world when she broke."
What a remarkable, unforgettable and truly jaw dropping story you've written, Stacey. If I could give this 15/5 stars, I 100% would.
This book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. She did such a great job of setting such a bleak and desperate tone.
MY GIRL BREX!!!! Holy shit. She is so so powerful. I understand that she has been through so much, but I wish we could have seen a little more healing because these last two books have been SO dark and there were rarely any positive moments.
While I totally loved this book, I did feel like there was some plot recycling like in some of her other series. It felt kind of cyclical. The characters were already in the prison, and now they’re in a new prison. They had a quest to find the nectar, then they lost it to find it again to lose it again to sort of find it again. I feel like we are going around in circles rather than there being new and fresh plot points.
I really enjoyed books 1-3, book 4 was.... okay. Blood Lands, boring. It was very repetitive, the spicy scenes were okay to me. They weren't written with as much depth to them. Literally zero character growth from Brexley or Warwick. Caden was the most interesting character in this book, he's the one with the most amount of growth and he's got like, 10 minutes of screen time. There were spelling errors and typos. The dialog between Istvan and Brexley was literally the same from the first game to the second game. Like, this whole assed book wasn't necessary. She could have taken out so much material and had a better book 4. Instead, I see another book less than 300 pages and it ends on a cliffhanger. Am I going to read book 6, yeah, I'd like to see how this story ends, but holy fuck, this is my last series with Stacey Marie Brown. Just, disappointed and bored.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Is anyone else frustrated with the plot of this story? I love that Brex and Warwick are finally acknowledging that they want/need each other - but DANG. They escape, they get caught. There is hope, they escape, they get caught AGAIN. I just find it so hard to believe that these two have that many lives (lol cheers to Brex making sure that Warwick does) that they can continuously withstand getting caught this many times!
Am I still going to read the next book in the series? Of course. Am I hoping that book 6 might be the last? Hell yes.
I've really enjoyed this series so far. Not a masterfully written series but addictive and has me wanting more. However, this one just felt very repetitive and I honestly couldn't wait for it to be over. The plot has moved along somewhat, but this one really did just repeat itself constantly. I'm still looking forward to reading the last one in the series though.
2.5/5 ⭐️ lmao another edit, changing this to a 2.5 from a 3.5, lmao
I never usually edit reviews but here I am for the first time 🙃
I’ve had a lot of time to really reminisce on this book and to be honest, it did not give…what was supposed to be gave? This one was honestly really repetitive - they were in Verhaza, then they weren’t, then they were, then they escaped, then they were recaptured…it lowkey drove me mad.
I also found that the ‘found family’ trope was lowkey lacking in this one, and those of you who know me KNOW that I live for that shit. I want more banter!! I want the ✨vibes✨
It was still overall a really enjoyable book (I remember laughing at parts that weren’t supposed to be laughed at but that’s okay, happens to everyone), & I sure as hell will be picking up the next one because although this was was a ~slight~ disappointment, this series still holds a special place in my heart.
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okay no bc these cliff hangers are driving me MAD. What the FAWK was that ending???? I don’t wanna wait until spring. I don’t think I have it in me y’all.
Bahhh I’m totally gonna be in a book hangover now! I need to wait till the next one comes out hopefully soon!! What an epic series it has been so far. This one was a bit darker but maybe because I’m emotionally attached to all the characters now! Bah can’t wait for book 6!!!
There was too much of plot-recycling going on here…they’re back in a prison, they have to fight each other again, they escape…then back in prison again… the nectar was found and then lost and then found. Brexley and warwick are together…yay. But gone is the sizzling chemistry, and now they’re just sappy and mawkish…I’m over it. Zero character growth for Brexley and Warwick…tbh Warwick is such a boring character. I wish she was with Killian or scorpion…or all 3 instead! They have sex and their bond/powers intensify. But even that has lost its appeal to read. Too much of the same thing is desensitizing to read. The bad guys are boring too, one dimensional without the intrigue they had in book 1. I also didn’t appreciate the violent cage fighting scene with the animals. The end is a cliffhanger. She finally is coming into her own powers, and to fit the stereotypical trope, she can’t handle her powers. Men tell her to stop. Wah-wah. Why can’t she be powerful and a bit evil, and just own it? I think the author should have consolidated her books into 3 or 4 instead of 6. Ill read the next installment bc I’m already invested in this series, and I hate stopping series half way. Hoping for more though.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.