Author: Liv Zander
Genre: Dark Romantasy
Format: Kindle, Paperback, Audio
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Series: Court of Ravens
Synopsis: {via
Goodreads}
More treacherous than war... are the battles within a heart.
Feathers so Vicious is a full-length dark fantasy romance novel, and book one in the Court of Ravens duet. The two-part story features two morally gray raven shifters, a young woman at the mercy of their shadows, and a HEA. This world contains dark elements, violence, and themes some may find disturbing. Readers can find more detailed information on the author's website. What this book doesn't contain is a hero - because villains do it better. And two do it better than one…
Review:
⚠️May contain Spoilers⚠️
This one has it all and I am here for it. Feathers so Vicious is the first of two in a series/duology. As such, it's left on a cliffhanger--a wild cliffhanger I did not see coming! I almost always hate cliffhangers, but thankfully book #2 is already available on Kindle Unlimited to pick up right where I left off. Otherwise, there's some chatter on Goodreads about this book being maybe too dark, but I enjoyed it. It is dark, so if you enjoy that kind of thing this might be for you but I feel inclined to say there should be a mountain of trigger warnings on this book. Check out the author's Trigger Warning page for information before you pick this one up.
Tropes:
💫 Fantasy
💔 Enemies to Lovers
💋 Reverse Harem
❤ Shadow Daddy
🏰 Forced Proximity
🐦⬛ Shapeshifters
🥀 Betrayal
⛰️ Cliffhanger
The Characters:
The characters in this book are all intense in their own ways. The FMC, Galantia, and two MMCs Malyr and Sebian, are all broken in ways it's hard to come back from. Each of them are unique, they've each suffered, sometimes at one another's hands, and the men in this book are a bit more than morally grey... Malyr, at least, tips the scale into full on morally black. The things they've suffered, sometimes as children, are unthinkable, so as adults they're all spectacularly broken. The way they continue to break one another, even as adults, is sad but also befitting the darkness of the story.
The most interesting thing I found about the shifters in this book was the description of them shifting into an unkindness. As Ravens, they don't just turn into one bird, they turn into a whole unkindness, complete with birds that do specific things, like harbor their magical gifts. It's unique and beautiful. The descriptions of their society are very well done. The way they nest in pillows in their human forms, how they collect things like glass, ribbons, and nails. The way they bond for life and care for their mates. The ravens are a lovely touch.
And, maybe it's a spoiler, but seriously watch out for Cici! 💔🗡️
The Plot:
Wow, the plot in this book is, well... dark. There's a war happening because of course there is. The raven's are at war with the humans, or perhaps vice versa. While I won't give away more than that, the war plays a backdrop role in this book. There're not huge battle scenes, no battle scenes at all, but you do see the effects of war. The ravens look pretty bad as this book starts, but you come to understand them a bit better as the book goes on. The setting is also appropriately dark and the book is paced perfectly. It's never too slow or too fast, and you're never wondering why you're learning about this character or that's past. Everything plays into the story. Every little detail is important.
The relationships between Sebian and Galantia, and Malyr and Galantia are, for the most part, also perfectly paced. There's a point when you wonder at Malyr's sudden niceness, but otherwise the reverse harem is in full effect for most of this book.
At the end, there's a cliffhanger I did not see coming... at all. Zander got me and, I would imagine, a lot of other people with this cliffhanger ending. You're left feeling raw for the characters, but also... rooting for Galantia? The second book seems to pick up right where this one leaves off, but I haven't finished that one yet so I don't have much to add there.
Rating:
❤❤❤❤❤/🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ - Wonderfully Spicy!! This one is appropriately dark, if you like that sort of thing, but seriously check out the trigger warnings before you decide.
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