Category: Serena’s Reviews

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Book: “Anathema” by Keri Lake

Publishing Info: Bloom Books, September 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Only the banished know what lies beyond the woods …

There are whispers about what lurks in Witch Knell—the forest where sinners go to die. The villagers call it The Eating Woods because what’s taken is never given back. Only those who’ve lost their senses would dare to go near it.

Or the banished.

Maevyth Bronwick knows better than to breach the misty labyrinth of trees, but a tragic turn of events compels her beyond the archway of bones, to a boundary no mortal has crossed before. One that cloaks a dark and fantastical world that’s as dangerous as it is alluring.

It’s there that he dwells, the cursed lord of Eidolon. The one tasked to keep her hidden from the magehood that seeks to crucify her in the name of an arcane prophesy. Zevander Rydainn, known to his prey as The Scorpion, is the coldest, most calculated assassin in all of Aethyria and he’d sooner toss his feisty ward to a pack of vicious fyredrakes than keep her safe.

If only he could.

Maevyth’s blood is the key to breaking his despised curse and vanquishing the slumbering evil in Witch Knell. Unfortunately for Lord Rydainn, fate has other plans for the irresistible little enchantress. And his growing obsession with her threatens to destroy everything.

Including himself.

Review: This was one of those frustrating reads where I could see so much potential and, at times, was truly enjoying my reading experience! However, it was also one of those odd experiences where the phrase “less is more” comes strongly to mind.

To start with the good things, to say that this book has a vibe is an understatement. Gloom, dread, and gothic darkness permeate every scene, leaving readers with no escape from the heavy atmosphere of the book. On one hand, this can feel as heavy as it sounds, making the reading experience one that may require breaks instead of long reading sessions. But on the other hand, this strong sense of atmosphere fully drew me in, with truly lovely turns of phrase and descriptions sprinkled throughout (even if the topics of said descriptions were in themselves still quite dark).

I also liked the two main characters. With romances and romantasy novels, I often struggle to fully enjoy stories where the POV is split between the hero and the heroine. All told, I often find that I’d rather imagine the MMC’s perspective than hear it myself (too often authors make the mistake of writing men who simply lust after the heroine throughout their entire chapter, and I find this more off-putting than anything else). But in many ways, I think this book more closely aligns with a dark fantasy novel than with dark romantasy, as the romance is almost an afterthought throughout much of the story. This being the case, much of the focus of both characters’ POVs was more centered around their own arcs and story progression. They each had clear motivations of their own, focused on their various loved ones and goals. Of the two, I think I even preferred Zevander’s (hate the name though) story more, as much of his narrative was the driver behind the larger plot.

However, for all of these positives, this was one of those books where you truly felt its length. It’s a long novel, and at no point was I convinced that that page length was justified for the story we are given. From a pacing standpoint, the two main characters don’t even truly interact until nearly the middle point of the entire book, several hundred pages into the story! While they were both strong on their own, it did leave the book feeling as if it has a massive prologue tacked on before the true action picked up.

Further, while I liked the dark atmosphere, I also felt like this book was falling into what I call the “Ava Reid problem.” That is, there were many points, particularly in the first third of the book, where I felt like the author was including dark themes and scenes purely for shock value. Sure, these scenes were written in a compelling manner and were, indeed, shocking. But then the story would continue, and I would realize that that dark element was never really going to be touched on again or didn’t actually progress the story in any way. It was just darkness for darkness’ sake.

The combination of these two problems, an overly long page count and the inclusion of darker elements seemingly only in pursuit of shocking the readers, ultimately overcame my enjoyment in other areas. Frustratingly, both problems could be solved at once with some careful editing and paring down of some of these unnecessary scenes. In this way, the pacing would be fixed, the page length would feel appropriate for the story we have in the end, and the dark scenes would hit more forcibly, since they would be reduced to the ones that actually progress the story forward.

I’m curious to see what happens in the series going forward, but I will be cautious picking up the next book. A tome of this length is a commitment, and I’ll now be a bit wary going into the next that any exorbitant page length is truly deserved. That said, if you’ve enjoyed this author in the past or love dark fantasy stories, this might still be worth checking out! The writing is strong and the characters interesting. Just set aside plenty of time for it, I guess!

Rating 7: While there was a lot of promise here, I felt like the interesting story and good characters were buried under unnecessary shock content and slow pacing.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Anathema” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Original Stories . . . a Breath of Fresh Air and Magic, Adventure, Romance

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Book: “The Things Gods Break” by Abigail Owen

Publishing Info: Entangled: Red Tower Books, October 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: from the library!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: She has won the games of the gods, can she stand against the titans? Lyra may have survived the Crucible, but now she faces an even more dangerous test – a deadly race against time begins in Tartarus.

The games continue in the thrilling and highly anticipated follow-up to the bestselling romantasy The Games Gods Play. Welcome to Tartarus!

Previously Reviewed: “The Games Gods Play”

Review: Per my usual approach to Decembers, a notoriously light month for publishing, I’m back to checking out books that came out a few months ago that I was too busy at the time to check out! I was honestly surprised by how much I enjoyed “The Games Gods Play;” from the book description, it sounded like yet another tired deadly-competition romantasy novel. But instead I found an exciting, witty adventure with an actually developed romance at its heart. Yes, I had a few nitpicks with some of the magic elements, but overall, it was just a fun time all around. It did, however, end on a massive cliffhanger!

This one picks up right where the first book left off, which means readers are thrown right back into the action! I was actually a bit concerned with how this all would go. On one hand, it’s been an excellent fantasy adventure so far. But on the other, the central romance between Lyra and Hades has served as the emotional backbone of the series. So, now, with them separated, how do you maintain that relationship without immediately undercutting or making light of the dangerous and impossible-seeming circumstances that these characters have been thrown into? Well, I don’t want to get into too many details about how it all works, but I will say, I was incredibly impressed with how Owens managed this tricky threading-of-the-needle.

To my primary concern, the story in no way walks back on the true dangers of Lyra’s situation, now being stuck down in the deep depths of Tartarus, surrounded by the Titans, mad gods that the Olympians locked away thousands of years ago. But, of course, nothing is as it seems! And now, somehow this author has managed to write not only one “trials-based” fantasy novel that didn’t feel derivative or overly familiar, but has now written a sequel that heavily features another competition at its heart! Like the first book, the actual trials in these tests were incredibly creative, and Lyra didn’t simply waltz through them with ease. It’s only through grit, determination, and a growing reliance on the bonds she has with those around her that she continues forward.

What’s more, the book wisely doesn’t spend the entire story focused on these trials. Instead, the majority of the book is dedicated to fleshing out the history of the Titans and the Olympians. There were so many incredible twists and turns here, and I was impressed by how successfully the author was able to flip my emotions on a dime for many of the characters in question. By the end, there were definite tears, and not for the characters I would have expected!

And, of course, Lyra and Hades remained central to the story. Again, I can’t go into exactly how this was accomplished, but I was so impressed by the way this love story was expanded upon. Indeed, Owens actually managed to retroactively deal with and address some of the questions and problems I had with their love story in the first book! A truly impressive feat! Even without trying to keep up the intensity between two characters who are separated for almost the entire book, second books are notoriously hard for authors of romance trilogies.

All too often, the move is to introduce ridiculous and contrived angst and drama in an attempt to increase “tension” or something. For me, this usually backfires spectacularly, making me dislike one or both characters and struggle to continue. It’s all the more frustrating because it’s not like people fall in love and then all other challenges in their relationship and world magically disappear! There is plenty to explore in a new relationship without introducing ridiculousness everywhere. All that to say, hurrah for Abigail Owens for understanding this and giving readers an excellent second book in a romantasy trilogy that avoids the sillier side of angst.

Rating 9: Not only did I like this one, but it even made me like the first book more!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Things Gods Break” can be found on this Goodreads list: All the New Romantasy Books Arriving in October 2025.

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Children of Fallen Gods” by Carissa Broadbent

Publishing Info: Bramble, December 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: copy from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: No war can be fought with clean hands. Not even the ones waged for the right reasons. Not even the ones you win.

Tisaanah bargained away her own freedom to save those she left behind in slavery. Now, bound by her blood pact, she must fight the Orders’ war — and Max is determined to protect her at all costs.

But when a betrayal tears apart Ara, Max and Tisaanah are pushed into an even bloodier conflict. Tisaanah must gamble with Reshaye’s power to claim an impossible victory. And Max, forced into leadership, must confront everything he hoped to forget: his past, and his own mysterious magic.

All the while, darker forces loom — far darker, even, than the Orders’ secrets.

As Tisaanah and Max are ensnared in a web of ancient magic and twisted secrets, one question remains: what are they willing to sacrifice for victory? For power? For love?

Previously Reviewed: “Daughter of No Worlds”

Review: One of the great things about traditional publishers picking up books that were already published as indies is the fact that each title in the series can be released quickly! It’s only been a few months since the first book in this trilogy released, and here we are already with the second one!

Per Broadbent’s standard approach at this point (at least as far as I can tell), this second book takes an already ambitious world and cast and then expands it out exponentially. She takes it to the very edge of leaving the reader lost and confused, but always manages to reel things back in at the last minute. This was definitely the case here.

First off, while the complicated politics of this world and its history were introduced in the first book, the actual plot and Tisaanah’s arc were fairly straightforward, following her quest for revenge and to save the friend she left behind. But through the brief glimpses into Max’s past and the few brushes against other political forces, it was clear that not all was well. And this book starts with a bang on this front, throwing the entire tower of cards into disarray and setting the stage for the larger conflicts to come.

As much of the story deals with war and conflict, both in the present and in continued exploration of Max’s past, this is by no means a happy book. Both of our main characters are already hauling around a ton of trauma, and the author doesn’t go any easier on them here. Indeed, much of the story is focused on the world-weary soldiers who are once again called upon to fight. That said, these darker elements were nicely balanced by the sweet and deepening romance between these two. While there perhaps wasn’t quite as much on the love story front as I would have liked, everything we did get was excellent, living up to the high expectations that I have for Broadbent’s romances!

Like the more intricate plot, the character list is also expanded, adding two other POV characters. Honestly, this took me a bit aback when I first ran into it in the first few chapters, as I thought I had a pretty good handle on how these books would play out. That said, I was easily drawn in to these two new characters, and they added a whole new layer to the story. I really liked Aefe right away and came to enjoy Caduan as well, though his story is definitely one that shows a different sort of path than what we usually see in books like this. Indeed, the relationship between these two was very different than between our original characters and, by the end of the book, was again a point of tragedy and darkness. I’ll be curious to see how all of this will be handled going forward!

There were a few big twists and turns towards the end of the book as well. I felt like the big one was fairly well telegraphed, but that didn’t mean it didn’t land when it arrived. For being so lengthy, and a middle book to boot, the story did a great job of keeping me invested throughout, and now I can only wait with bated breath for the final entry!

Rating 9: Even grander in scale than the first, but just as swoon-worthy in the end!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Children of Fallen Gods” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Under the Radar Page-Turners and New Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy.