
Afterdark TBR'd a book
2h

Black Sun
Rebecca Roanhorse
The first book in the Between Earth and Sky trilogy, inspired by the civilizations of the Pre-Columbian Americas and woven into a tale of celestial prophecies, political intrigue, and forbidden magic. A god will return When the earth and sky converge Under the black sun In the holy city of Tova, the winter solstice is usually a time for celebration and renewal, but this year it coincides with a solar eclipse, a rare celestial event proscribed by the Sun Priest as an unbalancing of the world. Meanwhile, a ship launches from a distant city bound for Tova and set to arrive on the solstice. The captain of the ship, Xiala, is a disgraced Teek whose song can calm the waters around her as easily as it can warp a manâs mind. Her ship carries one passenger. Described as harmless, the passenger, Serapio, is a young man, blind, scarred, and cloaked in destiny. As Xiala well knows, when a man is described as harmless, he usually ends up being a villain. Crafted with unforgettable characters, Rebecca Roanhorse has created a âbrilliant world that shows the full panoply of human grace and depravityâ (Ken Liu, award-winning author of The Grace of Kings). This epic adventure explores the decadence of power amidst the weight of history and the struggle of individuals swimming against the confines of society and their broken pasts in this âabsolutely tremendousâ (S.A. Chakraborty, nationally bestselling author of The City of Brass) and most original series debut of the decade.

Afterdark commented...
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Yes!! One of my motivations to finish Ninth House was to go into this. I need some adorkable characters and wry humour right now đ

Afterdark started reading...
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Bridget & Gabe Are Not Okay
Lex Croucher
Return to Camelot in the much anticipated and funny follow-up to the instant New York Times bestselling and YA Book Prize winning Gwen and Art Are Not in Love. They fell in love. They won a great battle. It should have been happily ever after. But now, Camelotâs famous couples have fallen apart. Newly crowned King Gabriel is having panic attacks in cupboards in-between council meetings. He can't tell Arthur just how not okay he is â so he's set him free, to find love with someone who can get through the day without breaking down. Bridget has lost her spark for sparring, forfeiting again and again in the lists. When sheâs invited to join Gabriel's round table, she hopes itâll be the change she needs. But trying to navigate the post-happily-ever-after reality of a relationship with Gwen, when Bridget no longer feels like the dashing knight Gwen fell in love with, feels impossible. With the kingdom still reeling from an attempted uprising, and rumoured sightings of the holy grail, the questing beast and the green knight happening across the country, the gang depart on a PR tour destined for disaster. Can Gabriel be the king his country deserves? Can Bridget get her jousting groove back? And will they find their way back to the courtly love that once seemed fated?

Afterdark commented...
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Thanks for letting me know!! immediately goes stalk author's page Did you read any of them?


leitmotif started reading...
4d

Mother of Rome
Lauren J.A. Bear
A powerful and fierce reimagining of the earliest Roman legend: the twins, Romulus and Remus, mythical founders of historyâs greatest empire, and the woman whose sacrifice made it all possible. The names Romulus and Remus may be immortalized in map and stone and chronicle, but their mother exists only as a preface to her sonsâ journey, the princess turned oath-breaking priestess, condemned to death alongside her children. But she did not die; she survived. And so does her story. Beautiful, royal, rich: Rhea has it allâuntil her father loses his kingdom in a treacherous coup, and she is sent to the order of the Vestal Virgins to ensure she will never produce an heir. Except when mortals scheme, gods laugh. Rhea becomes pregnant, and human society turns against her. Abandoned, ostracized, and facing the gravest punishment, Rhea forges a dangerous deal with the divine, one that will forever change the trajectory of her lifeâŚand her beloved land. To save her sons and reclaim their birthright, Rhea must summon natureâs mightiest force â a motherâs love â and fight. All roads may lead to Rome, but they began with Rhea Silvia.

Afterdark started reading...
1d

Bridget & Gabe Are Not Okay
Lex Croucher
Return to Camelot in the much anticipated and funny follow-up to the instant New York Times bestselling and YA Book Prize winning Gwen and Art Are Not in Love. They fell in love. They won a great battle. It should have been happily ever after. But now, Camelotâs famous couples have fallen apart. Newly crowned King Gabriel is having panic attacks in cupboards in-between council meetings. He can't tell Arthur just how not okay he is â so he's set him free, to find love with someone who can get through the day without breaking down. Bridget has lost her spark for sparring, forfeiting again and again in the lists. When sheâs invited to join Gabriel's round table, she hopes itâll be the change she needs. But trying to navigate the post-happily-ever-after reality of a relationship with Gwen, when Bridget no longer feels like the dashing knight Gwen fell in love with, feels impossible. With the kingdom still reeling from an attempted uprising, and rumoured sightings of the holy grail, the questing beast and the green knight happening across the country, the gang depart on a PR tour destined for disaster. Can Gabriel be the king his country deserves? Can Bridget get her jousting groove back? And will they find their way back to the courtly love that once seemed fated?

Afterdark finished a book
1d

Ninth House
Leigh Bardugo
Galaxy âAlexâ Stern is the most unlikely member of Yaleâs freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say sheâs thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the worldâs most elite universities on a full ride. Whatâs the catch, and why her? Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yaleâs secret societies. These eight windowless âtombsâ are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywoodâs biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.

Quite an interesting take on a completely unknown character in Greek mythology like Philonoe. Her character arc as someone who just seeks to be loved and accepted to finding self-love and her own voice is very compelling. Some story beats, like her conversation with Echidna about her dead children, are absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking. The romance, however, was overshadowed by all the questing and felt a little bit rushed.

Afterdark is interested in reading...
3d

The Phoenix King
Aparna Verma
The fate of a desert kingdom rests in the hands of a princess desperate for power and an assassin with a dark secret, in this action-packed debut of fire magic and ancient prophecy from a stunning new voice in fantasy. The Ravani kingdom was born of a prophecy, carved from unforgiving desert sands and ruled by the Ravence bloodline: those with the power to command the Eternal Fire. Elena Aadya is the heir to the throneâand the only Ravence who cannot wield her familyâs legendary magic. As her coronation approaches, she will do whatever it takes to prove herself a worthy successor to her revered father. But she doesnât anticipate the arrival of Yassen Knight, the notorious assassin who now claims fealty to the throne. Elenaâs father might trust Yassen to be a member of her royal guard, but she is certain he is hiding something. As the threat of war looms like a storm on the horizon, the two begin a dangerous dance of intrigue and betrayal. And the choices they make could burn down the world.


leitmotif started reading...
4d

Mother of Rome
Lauren J.A. Bear
A powerful and fierce reimagining of the earliest Roman legend: the twins, Romulus and Remus, mythical founders of historyâs greatest empire, and the woman whose sacrifice made it all possible. The names Romulus and Remus may be immortalized in map and stone and chronicle, but their mother exists only as a preface to her sonsâ journey, the princess turned oath-breaking priestess, condemned to death alongside her children. But she did not die; she survived. And so does her story. Beautiful, royal, rich: Rhea has it allâuntil her father loses his kingdom in a treacherous coup, and she is sent to the order of the Vestal Virgins to ensure she will never produce an heir. Except when mortals scheme, gods laugh. Rhea becomes pregnant, and human society turns against her. Abandoned, ostracized, and facing the gravest punishment, Rhea forges a dangerous deal with the divine, one that will forever change the trajectory of her lifeâŚand her beloved land. To save her sons and reclaim their birthright, Rhea must summon natureâs mightiest force â a motherâs love â and fight. All roads may lead to Rome, but they began with Rhea Silvia.