King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair
Dark Fantasy
11/30/2021 by Bloom Books
ARC
Review by Jen
I’m on a roll with finding so many awesome books over the last few months. King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair has got to be in my top three, maybe top two? It was AMAZING!!!!
I first found this author when her series, Hades X Persephone, blew up on TikTok. I enjoyed those books a lot, and this one was EVEN BETTER. Enemies to lovers, Vampires, arranged marriage…all my crack in one delicious book. I couldn’t put it down.
If you’re a fan of the From Blood and Ash series, this one is a must-read. Some similarities, which was fine by me. Vampire Adrian has a big old Vampire army and Isolde is a human princess in a village/kingdom that Adrian is planning to conquer. The word is he kills and destroys everything in his path, taking over and dominating at every turn. The humans think he’s the worst baddie ever. Isolde’s dad, the king, negotiates a surrender to avoid bloodshed. Adrian comes to court and has one more demand. He wants Isolde to marry him. She sees this as a solution, an unwelcome one, but a way she can help her people. Her dad and her previous (yet not very skilled…) lover are understandably against the arrangement. Isolde wins and she’s betrothed.
Adrian’s origin story unfolds slowly. I’ve always been interested in the Salem Witch Trials and there are some familiar storylines between this book and that very real – and thoroughly awful – part of US history. Adrian and his new bride have red hot chemistry. No problem in bed, but Isolde is holding back her trust and heart. She’s not really sure what Adrian’s end game is. Everything that she’s learned her whole life about Vampires is now in question and she’s unsure of the real truth, who and what to believe.
The characters are terrific, they grow throughout the book. It’s such an imaginative world with a Red Palace, creepy dangerous creatures, relationships between humans and vampires, and Adrian’s own kingdom of Revekka. It ends on a cliffhanger- but not a huge OMG one, just the right size cliffie to keep you wanting more, but satisfied. I’m stoked to read book three.
Grade A+
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