User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
I enjoyed the first ACSDAL book and Grey was my favorite character, so I was optimistic coming into the sequel, knowing that the second book would mainly be focusing on him. Unfortunately I found this to be a slump to get through; much of it felt like filler since the story just comprises of Grey traveling between two different kingdoms. I was looking forward to meeting the new female character, but ended up not being a fan of her, since so much of her story centered on her inferiority complex. While it’s understandable for her to deal with insecurities considering her upbringing, I think the book would have been better off with a more assertive female protagonist to balance out Grey, otherwise this book ends up with two passive leads that don’t really have tension or challenge each other. I also wish her character development in realizing her strength didn’t have to hinge on a man validating her. The most glaring issue I have with this sequel, though, is that many of the protagonists acted out-of-character for the sake of having conflict. Those who loved Harper and Rhen in the first book may be disappointed by how their characters are portrayed in the sequel: Rhen becomes unnecessarily awful and cruel, and Harper is so dismally passive without ever challenging him. We never saw these types of behaviors in the first book, so this was very jarring. So much of the conflict also depended on the characters being stubborn against each other, which felt forced considering that they’re supposed to have been such good friends and built all this rapport. I think there are lots of ways the sequel could have been more exciting even if it were filler, like having Grey transport between different worlds, but we didn’t see those opportunities get seized. I’m open to reading the third book of the series to see how the author concludes this trilogy and salvage some of these characters.
Rating: really liked it
#1 A Curse So Dark and Lonely ★★★★★
#2 A Heart So Fierce and Broken
DNF DNF @ 20%
No rating, obviously, because I didn't read nearly enough of this to really give a thoughtful opinion on it... but ow, my heart.
This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2020!
Curse was one of my favorite reads of 2019, I loved Harper and Rhen and Grey
so freaking much, I loved the plot, everything. My hopes were SO high — and then the mere first few chapters of this book snatched them up and threw them off a cliff into a rocky cesspool below.
*sigh*On one hand, the pacing is good and the first 20% definitely flew right by. On the other hand, that's probably because nothing happened besides a bunch of backwards character developments, some obnoxious new characters, and a new direction for the plot that I absolutely hate. Despite all of that, I was still torn —
do I cut my losses here while I can still love the first book, or keep trying and risk hating the whole series by the end? — but after I started reading reviews, I realized I just couldn't bring myself to bother. I hope others have a better experience with this one, but I'll be over here quietly pretending that
Curse was a stand-alone with an open ending. Really, it's better this way.
Edited to add: Because a few people have told me I would like this book more if I had continued it, I probably should mention that, after choosing to "officially" DNF it where I did, I skimmed forward and read chunks of the rest of the book here and there to see if I might be more intrigued by what was happening. I then also skipped ahead and read the last few chapters (I know, blasphemy, but this is something that has convinced me to continue a boring or disappointing book
many times in the past, so I was hopeful). Unfortunately, not only did I find the plot line predictable enough that literally NOTHING about the end surprised me, but I was even
more frustrated by the characters by the end that I can safely guarantee nothing that happened between the sections I read would have redeemed AHSFAB for me. :(
/end editThank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!———
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Rating: really liked it
oh wow. im quite conflicted about this one. this is my most anticipated sequel and release of 2020 and i am happy with this, but im also really let down by it. hear me out.
by the second chapter, it was quite evident this was going in a direction that i didnt like or support. although this picks up quite recently after the events of
‘a curse so dark and lonely,’ i feel like all of the characters went through some massive unseen change. they just didnt feel like the same people, with the same cares or motivations. its really bizarre. i even began hating a character that i so dearly cared for. it also doesnt help that this sequel is told by two different POVs. i understand the need to focus on them in order for the story to progress in the direction it went, but its such a dramatic shift from the first book that it took me awhile to get used to it.
after these unfortunate and unwanted changes, i had to read this book as if it were completely unconnected to ACSDAL and essentially a standalone. after doing that, after reading this story for what it is individually and not a follow up to another half, i started to enjoy this. like really enjoy this.
the writing is phenomenal. the pacing is top notch. the characters are so complex. talk about a fierce and broken heart - i couldnt help but empathise with grey and everything he was going through. i really appreciated the new characters and how their personal backgrounds and stories give depth to everything that is happening (iisak is sooo cool and tycho is a little cinnamon roll). one thing is for sure, the next book is going to be absolutely wild.
so even though this is not the sequel i wanted or was hoping for, once i put all of my expectations aside and just enjoyed this for what it is, i really had fun reading this. i hope other readers will be able to do the same.
↠ 4 stars
Rating: really liked it
harper, princess of disi, love of my life, protector of my heart, giver of my rights, you deserved more than one pov chapter and five appearances in almost 500 pages where your only purpose is to serve the character development of your male counterparts
Rating: really liked it
"Fear makes people act in ways we'd never expect." Kicking of 2020 with a 2 star review of one of my highly anticipated releases for the year was not how I imagined things going....but here we are. We're just going to dive right into this one because whew Lord, I have a lot to say. If you have not read the first book then definitely read this at your own risk as there are some pretty big spoilers for
A Curse So Dark and Lonely in this review!
What I Liked 📈 Transition and pacing. One of the things I can say that honestly did not disappoint in this book was the pacing. Sometimes fantasy novels fall into the trap of having a lull in the middle of the story up until the end but this kept me engaged when I was reading it...even if I didn't actually like what I was reading. And the transition from book one to book two flowed super well in my opinion. The author does a great job of recapping book one without ever making it boring or redundant.
👯♀️
Sister love. I can't say much without spoiling anything, but I really do love books with siblings who start off on not the best foot but admire each others strengths and come together when it matters.
And uhm yeah, that's about it.
What I Didn't Like 🤷🏻♀️
No point.
My biggest reason for not liking this was because essentially.... it's pointless.
A Heart So Fierce and Broken basically takes the plot from book one and lights it on fire. Literally, the plot of this book makes the first one feel like everything Harper and Grey went through to help Rhen be
"the good guy" was all for naught. Which brings me right to my next point.
👹
Rhen. Character growth? We don't know her. Every ounce of growth Rhen made in book one is so far gone out the window that it's not even funny, he was absolutely awful in this book. I get that his throne and people are all he cares about but the fact that he tried
SO DAMN HARD to not be the villain in book one only to become the villain in book two....no ma'am. Not on my watch.
👑 Princess Harper of Disi. The one and only is
NOWHERE to be found. A true tragedy. One chapter from her POV and then maybe five quick appearances? Are you kidding?! I understand that this is Grey's book so she would be in it a little less but what I did not expect was for her scenes to be so scarce and the only time she's really in the book she's all
"hey guys, I know Rhen is being trash right now but he's scared and under a lot of pressure. So, I'll help you guys sneak out of the castle but I'm gonna stay put with him." Having Harper be the silent little puppy who trails along after Rhen instead of the fierce take no shit type of gal she was in book one was a pretty bad move in my opinion.
🤰🏻
The pregnant lady. So, this is basically a personal issue and maybe it won't bother most people but it did
NOT sit well with me given the events of my life this past year. Rhen obviously sends his guards out to hunt down the heir, and there's one scene where Grey and his new group of friends are trying to get away from Rhen's guards, however, in the midst of all that a pregnant lady gets stabbed directly in the stomach. And then Grey, a newbie to his magic, is miraculously able to heal her and everyone is all
"THE BABY IS KICKING AGAIN!" after the knife is pulled out the ladies stomach. That was truly a hard no for me, like, did we really need to take it that far? Again, it's a personal issue but like, break an arm or cut off someone's leg for God's sake. Okay, rant over.
🙄
Cliche. Book one felt like a good
Beauty and the Beast retelling, this felt like too many fantasy tropes mashed together and spewed out on paper.
🛑
The end. Whew Lord, my blood boiled. After sitting through almost 500 pages of not liking it but trying to be a good sport and stick it out the ending really pissed me off. Just scroll back up and everything I said about Rhen is 100% confirmed, he is
TRASH. At this point I'm not even sure if I want to continue the series come next year.
All in all, I think it's safe to say that this was a fail for me. I think it suffered from whatever is worse than second book syndrome if I'm being totally honest. I know a lot of people are excited for this one, so I hope it works out much better for you than it did for me if you plan on picking it up!
Thank you Bloomsbury for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for a honest review!Blog | Twitter
Rating: really liked it
Pages: 464
Publication: January 7th 2020.A cross between an epic fantasy and a legendary romance.
This book was everything I hoped it would be and more! I definitely recommend it to everyone who likes Fantasy, Fairytales, Adventure and Romance. It surprised and delighted me in that it was not any sort of retelling. Though I did think A Curse so Dark and Lonely was one of the best retellings of Beauty and the Beast, even better than the Disney versions, since it dealt with a genuine beast that killed people.
A Heart so Fierce and Broken was truly a continuation of the original story, after curse was broken. It focuses on the character of Commander Grey instead of Rhen and Harper, though they both make appearances and we see what “Happily Ever After” looks like in the Kingdom of Everfall. I think readers will find it interesting to say the least.
Commander Grey was such a wonderful character in ACSDAL, he had sworn his life to the Royal family and to Rhen in particular. In doing so he had to detach from all his family and to forego any future family that could possibly ever be used against him to get him to turn on he royals or the Kingdom of Everfall. Even so, the evil mage Lilith still took his 9 sisters and brothers one by one while trying to get him to turn against Rhen.
Grey was always loyal to Rhen and then to Harper as well. He and Harper became great friends, and when he disappeared they both thought he was dead. In AHSFAB, Grey is still the noble and formidable warrior, but also intelligent and relentless in his drive to do what he thinks is right. He is still loyal to the Kingdom and to Rhen despite everything he has learned and gone through. Grey is a true Hero.
He meets some wonderful characters and they journey together throughout the majority of the story. Brigid Kemmerer is an excellent writer and makes each of the characters come to life. I could picture each one of them and though they start out as strangers and foes, the travelers become united and even friends. The love interest Lia Mara, is one of them.
Lia Mara is the firstborn daughter of Karis Luran of Syhl Shallow which is over the mountains from Emberfall. If you remember from ACSDAL, Karis Luran is the bloodthirsty Queen whose forces tried to invade Emberfall when she thought the royal family was gone and the Kingdom was at its weakest.
Though Lia Mara is the firstborn daughter, she is not the princess in line for the throne. Her mother doesn’t value her like her younger sister Nola Verin, whose nature is more like their mother. Lia Mara is not as small and beautiful as her sister and she is intelligent and caring and does not like bloodshed. While Nolla Verin is unfazed by killing others and only to happy to rush into battle.
Harper’s brother Jake and his partner Noah were brought to Emberfall near the end of ACSDAL, it was Grey who brought them with the magic cuff bracelet that he got from Lilith when she cursed Rhen. It was used to go back and forth from Emberfall and Washington DC to get girls for Rhen to try and break the curse.
Grey first used the cuff to grab Harper, then later her brother Jake and Noah who is a doctor. Now that the curse is broken Jake and Noah are stuck against their wishes. They blamed Grey for this, despite the fact that they arc traveling with him.
Another character named Tycho is a teen who ends up as Grey’s sidekick. He is a great character and it would be nice to see him get his own book. The last of the traveling partners is a scraver, a viscous creature that can slice into a person with his claws in the blink of an eye.
“I’m staring down at . . . a creature I can’t identify. It’s somewhat human-shaped, with dark-gray skin, the color of a cloudy night sky. Wings bound with rope sprout from its back, and there’s a length of tail that curls limply along the ground of the cage. It has clawed hands and feet, and a shock of black hair that’s matted with sweat. It’s not moving.”
I loved this book. It was as good or better than the first book. There were several villains and there were definitely some big surprises. Not all of them are good, but it makes for an amazing story. The ending is spectacular, there will be a third book, but it is not really a cliffhanger so much as an ending to one part of the story and the promise of a beginning of another.
I voluntarily read & reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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Rating: really liked it
I received this complimentary ARC from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.This was a buddy read with my dear, Gabriëlle!!!
Rating: really liked it
That was super good. I’m in love with Grey. I mean that goes without saying. AND, there were normal jerkhole stuff too! That ending! Once again, have to wait and see what’s going to happen.
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Rating: really liked it
GOT MY COPY! DESERVED A LOOONNNNG NAP! (Caffeine stocks left the building!)
Rating: really liked it
i'm sorry
i can't review this book fully. i don't even know what to write. all i want to say is that this was highly anticipated, but it let me down so so bad. I love LOVE LOVE A Curse So Dark and Lonely, but this one is literally boring, Grey was such a great character in the first book, but in this one he's sloppy and sulking like Rhen was in the first book and i wanted Grey to have action and a great persona. The heroine Lia Mara was a mirror of Grey (though she had so much potential), honestly Lia Mara you don't need to be a killer to be a hero sheesh. There is no story- ok maybe there is??? (view spoiler)
[ Lia Mara becoming the Queen was so random (hide spoiler)] HOWEVER I'M GOING TO READ THE NEXT BOOK LIKE FUCK I NEED IT LIKE I NEED THE INTERNET .
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pre-reading
Bye Mom! Bye Dad! I'm off to Emberfall to live in the kitchen where
FOOD MAGICALLY REAPPEARS 
Rating: really liked it
Hi, Cursebreakers!! Giveaway opportunities for ARCs will be coming up soon! Sign up here for more info: https://www.formpl.us/form/282236002
Rating: really liked it
Okay, listen - LISTEN!!
Here there be spoilers because I have a lot of feelings about this book and I CANNOT contain them okay? SORRY. And be warned that most of them are not positive - to my own surprise.
A Heart so Fierce and Broken has been one of my most anticipated releases for 2020 following A Curse so Dark and Lonely, which remains one of my absolute favorite reads for all of 2019. I
devoured that book, laughed and cried and fell oh so hard for every single character. Most of all the wonderfully fierce Harper.
But boy if I did not also lose my heart especially to the man himself; Grey. His character archetype is my kryptonite. So I was overjoyed when I realized that ACSDAL was in fact not only not a standalone as I initially thought (although I would argue that it
can be read as such), but that the follow up novel would actually revolve around my man Grey. So maybe this will help you understand why I feel a little let down now that I've read it.
Y'all ready? Because in
3
2
1
IT'S SPOILER TIME(view spoiler)
[I KNOW people do not like love triangles. Hell, I don't need love triangles in 99.998% of cases either, but this might be one of the rare ones where I would have preferred that over what we actually got.
I like Harper with Rhen. I also like Harper with Grey (shit, I even would have liked Rhen with Grey under slightly different circumstances). There undoubtedly was a spark between them in the first book, even if they didn't fully acknowledge it, and I was lowkey waiting for Grey to pull a Rhysand on us before I heard that he'd get a new love interest in book 2. But honestly, in AHSFAB Grey and Harper still had more chemistry on the like 2 pages they spent together than Grey and Lia had throughout the whole. damn. book. That's .. unfortunate to say the least.
So I knew he would get a brand new LI in this one before I got into it, and at first I was on board with that idea as well. Then reality happened and it all just fell kind of flat. I can't even pinpoint why exactly it did, but it did.
Lia Mara is alright. She's likeable enough and there is nothing obviously wrong with her character imho. But she is not nearly as compelling as Harper. Occasionally she even felt like a lesser version of Harper and I'm just not here for that (I mean can we talk about the way she killed her mother? Is everyone proficient in knife throwing now or??) Mostly she's just kind of .. there and cries a lot. I cry a lot too, so no judgement, but that romance just doesn't feel genuine. I didn't even recognize Grey during 90% of their "moments" together. Writing secret little love notes like a school boy, REALLY? Errrrrr #notmygrey
And don't come for me like "oh he's different now because he's away from Rhen and his duty!!". Like yeah, sure, character development is expected and appreciated. I was happy to see him smile and form bonds with people for a change that did not purely rely on a master and servant dynamic. He's precious and deserves the world. But there's that and then there's not even recognizing a character's fundamental traits anymore.
Which brings me to Harper, my girl. She's barely in this book. I kinda expected that, seeing as ACSDAL was mainly her and Rhen's story and AHSFAB was always supposed to be Grey's. But it's still all interwoven. The story could have used a little more of her, or at least of the brave, stunning girl we got to know in book one. Somehow I don't think that same girl would have forgiven Rhen for FLAYING A CHILD, BUT HEYYYY .. that's just me :'))
I maybe, maybe, maybe could see that for a person who grew up in the brutality of Emberfall. But please let's not forget that Harper was raised in our society. She has our moral code ingrained in her. Our world might be cruel too, but I don't know a single person with half a decent heart who would watch their SO do something like that and be like "Eh .. that wasn't okay. Still gonna stay though *shrugs*"
Noah seems to be the only one who truly has his shit together anymore, and even though he's mostly trapped in side character hell, I found him to be one of my favorite people in general still.
I'm not even sure what to say about Rhen. Am I truly surprised by his actions? No. That man has gone through some intense shit for literal decades, and while not an excuse, it's certainly a bit of an explanation for the way he feels and acts. No matter how I feel a character inside the book should have reacted to him in light of the aforementioned display of cruelty, I as a reader still find him compelling. Kind of like - dare I say it - Tamlin. Who, surprise, I also don't hate lol.
I'm not a fan of the discord between Rhen and his brother. Especially not since I believe that Grey's love for Rhen had a whole lot more to do with breaking the curse in ACSDAL than Harper's had at the time. It feels kind of forced. Did so at the beginning, when I found myself wondering if it might not have been better for Grey to be honest. Unlike him, I wasn't so sure of the fate that would have awaited him in that case. And it certainly feels forced now when Karis Luran (boy, was she one dimensional btw. Same as Lilith. Interesting villains they are not .. and I say that as someone who almost always roots for the villain :/) is dead, and ☆.。.:*pacifist queen Lia Mara*・°☆ is ruling Syhl Shallow.
Bringing Lilith back last minute seems like a mildly lazy way to ensure some more conflict for the next book, which could otherwise have long since been solved if people only talked to each other. It feels like the author knows that too. Nothing else explains that twist in my opinion, if you can even call it that. Because I can't say I was surprised <.< Obviously she was gonna come back. No reason to shove her uncertain fate into our faces as often as it happened otherwise.
In general, AHSFAB's storyline was very predictable. I've heard this said by many people about the first book too, but didn't feel so myself. Or if I did, it was only in the sense that I saw the obvious red thread behind it all because .. well .. it is a retelling. I found that comforting if anything, but not boring. And while I was not necessarily bored reading book two (I read this very fast for my standards too. Brigid Kemmerer's writing style is very fluid and easy to read), I knew exactly what was gonna happen next, to a point where I honestly asked myself if it's worth actually reading some of the chapters or if just skimming would be enough.
It wasn't limited to the storyline either, which I might have been able to forgive. My heart beats for character driven stories over plot driven ones in most cases. That coupled with good writing is usually enough to satisfy me despite story shortcomings, except I didn't find this here. Where things seeming kind of predetermined in book 1 made a degree of sense and didn't bother me, here it just took away any kind of edge or wonder I might have otherwise felt / would have found engaging. Lia and Grey seemed so set in stone for honestly no good reason right from the start, it was ridiculous.
With that all off my chest, I have to say that I will still pick up book 3, hoping that it might surprise me and turn all this around again, but yeah ... my hopes ain't that high, people. (hide spoiler)]**This review is based of an arc I own, not the final version of the book. But unless half the story is rewritten until pub date, my opinion stands.
Rating: really liked it
After how much I loved the first book in the series, I went into
A Heart So Fierce and Broken with both excitement and caution. I know it's hard to follow up a thrilling first book with an even more so second book, especially when there are amped up expectations to take into account. But I needn't have worried, because I come away having thoroughly enjoyed myself.
I'll say right off the bat that this story is an unexpected follow up to the first. It doesn't so much extend it as it does a pivot away, both from the characters we loved as well as the storyline we were following. Going in, I was warned by many that this would be the case, so I had time to prepare myself. As a result, what I got was what I was expecting, which made the changes less startling and more palatable.
Being the middle book of a trilogy, there's a little bit of a slow down in terms of pacing. The urgency of book 1, in trying to break the curse, is gone. Instead, there is time devoted to setting up a different focus and in laying down the groundwork for what must be the big final conflict in book 3. Yet, the story still captivated me, and I was just as riveted with it as with the previous one.
What I loved about the first book is all still in the second. The characters are flawed, but also warm, kind, and courageous. We meet some new ones, and they are just as loveable as all the ones we already know. The love story is a slow burn that takes a while to come to fruition, but when it does, it feels rewarding. The conflicts and the disagreements still make sense, especially when taken in light of that most unexpected ending.
Speaking of the ending, what a setup for the next book! I am already anticipating starting the third book. I don't think I can wait very long, and can only pat myself on the back for having had the foresight to wait until all three books were out before starting this trilogy.
Rating: really liked it
Thank you to Bloomsbury for the advanced review copy!This is so different from book one that I'm so interested to see how everyone is going to react. The first 200 pages of this were very dry and political, and I couldn't quite make sense of what was happening. It felt like the escalating drama could be solved with better communication, so I was frustrated why the author was dragging out so much hardship. In the last half, however, pieces started falling in place and the plot picked up.
I really LOVE Grey. He reminds me of Geralt from The Witcher because he's very stoic and contained but sharp and tactful when he needs to be. That combination of gentleness and wanting to do what's right mixed with absolute lethal power is so intriguing to me, so I liked it when the story focused on his development. Also, the new characters in this book were so much fun to read about. I love Lia Mara and Tycho, and even side characters from book one like Noah and Jake grew on me.
The one thing I can't figure out about this is (view spoiler)
[how the characters we loved in book one are becoming villainized. It's definitely an interesting take to see these characters pitted against one another, especially after learning more about them and the ways they hold each other's lives at stake. But actions Rhen took in this book and the way he spoke to Grey just made him completely irredeemable for me, and I almost consider the Cursebreakers series about Grey rather than Rhen at this point. (hide spoiler)] While I was reading this book, I couldn't shake the feeling that although I was enjoying it, I don't think I would continue with a third book. The ending of this changed my mind, though. Also I'm a bit confused and upset about the way the characters are behaving, I do really want to know how this is going to end, because I don't foresee it being pretty.
Rating: really liked it
I've had such tough time with fantasy (my favourite genre) for the last 7 or so month that getting back into this story was like a breath of fresh air! I just love Brigid's writing style so much, it's so simple yet punchy! You don't always need to go on for pages to get your point across in a meaningful and beautiful manner, you will not find paragraphs of descriptions of those 3 bushes by the river in this book!
I was nervous getting into this as I knew we will be following a different character and also having a new one to top, but I shouldn't have worried - I got back into it and fell in love with them in maybe 40 pages tops.
At no point was I bored. Characters are constantly in danger of some sort and because there's so much emotional backstory and journeys with them you actually feel invested for a change!
This was a 9.0/10 on CAWPILE so juuuuust got 5 stars, the only reason it wasn't a strong 5 is because of the last chapter. One of my least favourite tropes happened and just overall it wasn't satisfactory for me.
Apart from that, however, loved it!
