Review: Twilight's Dawn - Anne Bishop

New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels novels have enthralled readers and critics alike. Now, in Twilight’s Dawn, she returns to the Blood realm with four captivating novellas...

WINSOL GIFTS

Daemon is settling into his first year of married life with his Witch Queen Jaenelle. But as the celebration of Winsol draws near, he finds himself pulled in multiple directions playing host to his formidable family.

SHADES OF HONOR

When wounded Surreal returns to Ebon Rih, her former lover Falonar ruthlessly challenges the rule of her family, testing Surreal’s resolve not to succumb to the darkness burning inside her.

FAMILY

When someone lays a vicious trap for Queen Sylvia and her sons, the ruling family of Dhemlan must uncover the identity of a vicious warlord before he returns to finish what he started.

THE HIGH LORD'S DAUGHTER

After losing two important people in his life, Daemon has built a wall around his heart. But when he inadvertently forges a new connection, will it be enough to free him from his loveless existence?

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
Twilight's Dawn is an anthology containing four stories set in the Black Jewels world, all set after the end of Tangled Webs and beyond. I'm going to talk about each story separately but I apart from a few shocks along the way I thoroughly enjoyed this collection. My review will be spoiler free for the first 3 stories but I can't talk about The High Lord's Daughter without giving away MAJOR spoilers so be aware of that before you continue reading.

Winsol Gifts:

This story is set during the first year of Daemon and Jaenelle's marriage and shows the whole family come together to celebrate the winter holiday Winsol. It's a really light hearted and fun story that shows the whole family together and one of the highlights was watching Daemon, Lucivar and Saetan trying to corral Daemonar so that he doesn't destroy all of the presents. I enjoy spending time with this whole group, especially when they're enjoying some downtime together rather than rushing from one disaster to the next.

Shades of Honor:

Surreal has avoided spending time in Ebon Rih since her break up with Falonar but after events in the spooky house both she and Rainier need time and space to recover. Lucivar considers her a sister and wants to make sure she's looking after herself so he brings her home where he can monitor her condition. While there Surreal realises that there's a traitor amongst the Eyriens and that Lucivar's life is in danger.

This was easily my favourite story in the collection, I adore Lucivar and his family and we never saw as much from his point of view in the main books so I love any chance to spend more time with them all. Some of the Eyriens might think that Lucivar is a pushover because he's done his best to make his people welcome in his home but when the traitor tries his luck he'll soon realise he's made some dangerous enemies.

Family:

When Queen Sylvia and her sons are targeted by a vicious trap it's up to Daemon and Saetan to try and protect Sylvia's boys while they hunt down the warlord who attacked them. This was a really dark story that was quite upsetting in places, there is a warlord out there targeting young children for rape and murder after all, but I did like the way things turned out for Syliva and Saetan. I did always like them as a couple so it was great to see them find that happiness again, even if it was in the most horrible circumstances.

The High Lord's Daughter:

This is the most controversial story in the collection, something I didn't know before I read this book because I always avoid reviews and blurbs for books in series that I'm already invested in. Anyway, I went into this blind and was completely shocked by not one but TWO deaths in this book. To be honest I'm still not completely recovered from this story now!

The High Lord's Daughter actually starts a year after Jaenelle's death and I honestly couldn't believe that she was really gone, I know she wasn't one of the long lived races like Daemon but I had it in my head that Witch would somehow survive through the centuries at Daemon's side! They had seventy happy years together but that doesn't really seem like much considering he waited a thousand years for her to be born in the first place. Events in this story take place over more than 20 years, at first Daemon is understandably consumed by grief but Jaenelle made him promise to keep living so he has to find a way to try and move on with his life.

I was so shocked and horrified when I first started this story that I nearly just quit reading the book there and then. I was heartbroken by Jaenelle's death and then totally blindsided a second time when another major character dies later on in the story. I thought I would hate everything about it but I surprised myself by liking how things turned out. Daemon ends up finding peace and although he'll never forget Jaenelle he does move on and find a new kind of happiness which I was really pleased about. I didn't want to think about him potentially spending centuries alone and I thought he was well matched with the person he ends up sharing his life with so I was happy for him in that respect.

This still seems like a strange story to have as part of the series and I can understand why so many people hated it but this is a dark fantasy series and that means we were never promised a happily ever after for all the characters involved. I suppose we should be grateful that some of them got to have their happy endings.

Source: Purchased

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Review: Shalador's Lady - Anne Bishop

For years the Shalador people suffered the cruelties of the corrupt Queens who ruled them, punishing those who dared show defiance, and forcing many more into hiding. And even though the refugees have found sanctuary in Dena Nehele, they have never been able to call it home.

Now that Dena Nehele has been cleansed of tainted Blood, the Rose-Jeweled Queen, Lady Cassidy, knows that restoring the land will require all her heart and courage as she summons the untested power within her, a power capable of consuming her if she cannot control it.

And even if Lady Cassidy survives her trial by fire, other dangers await. For the Black Widows see visions within their tangled webs that something is coming that will change the land - and Lady Cassidy - forever...

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
Cassidy has worked hard to be accepted by the court in Dena Nehele and she has won over everyone apart from her first escort Theran. Unlike the others Theran is unable to see past the image of a queen he dreamed up before he even met Cassidy, he wanted someone more powerful and more beautiful than her, and because of that he is completely blind to all the good that Cassidy has done for him and his people since she arrived. Then the arrival of Cassidy's nemesis Kermilla threatens to destroy everything that Cassidy has started to build. Theran is immediately drawn to the younger, prettier queen not realising that she is just as poisonous as the corrupt queens that Dorothea forced them to serve in the past. Kermilla's arrival threatens to destroy Dena Nehele completely but will Theran be too blind to see the truth in time to save his people?

I loved the first book in this duology, Cassidy is a brilliant character and I really enjoyed seeing her settle into her new home and how hard she worked to show her court how life could be with a proper queen, one who wouldn't use and abuse them for her own pleasure. She actually cares about her people, not just those of the Blood but also the humans who live in their town and she wants to make life better for everyone. I also really loved Gray and was thrilled to see him growing into the man he always should have been in this book. After Kermilla's arrival most of Cassidy's court are extremely protective of her but Theran is so stubborn and stupid that I found him extremely frustrating to read about. If there was ever a character I wanted to shake some sense into it's Theran and I was disappointed that he took so long to realise his mistakes.

I hate to say it but Theran came close to ruining this book for me, if it hadn't been for the rest of the court moving away from him so that he didn't have such a huge page presence in the second half of the book I'd have struggled to keep reading. Cassidy and the others saved it though and I also loved the glimpses we get of old favourites like Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar and Saetan - I can NEVER get enough of those four! I was really pleased with how Cassidy and Gray's story ended so this book was definitely worth reading but it wasn't my favourite in the Black Jewels series.

Source: Purchased

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Review: The Shadow Queen - Anne Bishop

In a tumultuous world ruled by witches and warlocks who wear their power as jewels, one Queen’s chance at redemption is the last hope for a desperate people in this novel set in the world of the Black Jewels...

Theran Grayhaven is the last of his line, desperate to restore the land of Dena Nehele. But first he needs to find a Queen who knows Protocol, remembers the Blood’s code of honor, and lives by the Old Ways.

Languishing in the Shadow Realm, Lady Cassidy is a Queen without a court, a castoff. But when she is chosen to rule Dena Nehele, she must convince bitter men to serve once again.

Theran’s cousin Gray is a Warlord Prince who was damaged in mind and body by the vicious Queens who once ruled Dena Nehele. Yet something about Cassidy makes him want to serve—and makes him believe he can be made whole once again.

And only Cassidy can prove to Gray—and to herself—that wounds can heal and even the whisper of a promise can be fulfilled...

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
The Shadow Queen introduces us to Theran Grayhaven, the last of Jared and Lia (from The Invisible Ring)’s bloodline. Set a couple of years after Jaenelle cleared the taint caused by Dorothea, and killed many of the Blood of Terrielle in the process, we see Theran trying to rebuild Dena Nehele but he’s in desperate need of a Queen who knows the old ways of the Blood to help him. Since there are no Queens strong enough left in Terrielle he turns to Daemon for help in the hope he can persuade a Queen from Kaeleer to help him.

Lady Cassidy may only have a Rose jewel but she has all the knowledge Theran needs to help set up a new court at Dena Nehele and she’s the only Queen who doesn’t already have a court of her own. Cassidy is nervous about travelling so far from home and worried that Theran’s people won’t accept her but she knows she is their only hope so she agrees to serve as their queen for a year hoping that will be enough time to teach them protocol.

I absolutely loved this book, we get to see some of my favourite characters again which is something I can never get enough of, but I also really loved getting to know Cassidy and most of the people we meet at Dena Nehele. I have to admit I was more than a little annoyed with Theran by the end of the book, he is disappointed when he first meets Cassidy because he wanted a Queen who was not just more powerful but also more beautiful so he never seems to fully support Cassidy no matter how hard she works to prove herself. Luckily Theran seems to be the only member of her court who is quite so stubborn and the other characters made up for his bad attitude. I particularly loved Gray, someone who suffered unbearably when Dena Nehele was ruled by Dorothea’s pet queens but who is able to look past his fears and see Cassidy for who she really is. I’m totally rooting for a romance between Gray and Cassidy and at the moment I’d be quite happy for Gray to overthrow Theran to get him out of the picture completely!

I’m really looking forward to reading more of Cassidy’s story in Shalador’s Lady and I know this whole series is one I’m going to revisit time and time again in the future.

Source: Purchased

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Review: Tangled Webs - Anne Bishop

New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop returns to the "bewitching" world of the Black Jewels with a tale that will "leave readers' hearts pounding" (Publishers Weekly).

The invitation was signed Jaenelle Angelline, she who had been both Witch and Queen...

Surreal SaDiablo, the former courtesan and assassin, is the first to arrive--only to find herself trapped in a nightmare created by the tangled webs of Black Widow witches. And if she uses Craft to defend herself, she risks being sealed in the house forever.

Now, Jaenelle and her family must rescue Surreal and the others inside without becoming trapped themselves--and uncover the monsters capable of designing such an evil place...

Includes the Black Jewels short story "By The Time The Witchblood Blooms"

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
Everyone knows that Jaenelle and Marian have something spooky planned for Halloween so when the family all receive an invitation to the grand opening of a haunted house they don’t really question it. Not until Surreal, and her companion Rainier, find themselves trapped inside a house full of dangerous magical traps trying to keep a group of human children safe. This is a powerful trap but it failed to capture the entire family and now it’s up to Daemon and Lucivar to find a way to free the others.

I absolutely love Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels series so it was fantastic to have another full length novel about the core group of characters from the original trilogy. This is quite different to the other novels in the series, the plot is more focused and there is less of the outside world than we’re used to but it still has all the fantastic character development you’d expect and I absolutely love getting the chance to spend time with all of these characters and seeing how they’re all getting on now.

There are so many wonderful moments in Tangled Webs showing the loving relationship between Daemon & Jaenelle, happily married Lucivar who dotes on his wife and child, the growing relationship between Daemon and his mother, Surreal slowly rebuilding her friendship with Daemon, and of course poor Saetan who is watching over his ever-growing family with love and bemusement. I could read about these characters every day and not get bored so I loved every minute of this book. There was enough tension and action to keep me hooked but really it’s the relationship development and getting to see these characters finally living their happily ever afters that I’m here for and I can’t get enough of that.

Source: Purchased

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Review: Dreams Made Flesh - Anne Bishop

The Black Jewels Trilogy established Anne Bishop as an author whose "sublime skill...blend[s] the darkly macabre with spine-tingling emotional intensity"(SF Site). Now, the saga continues in this collection that includes four more adventures of Jaenelle and her kindred...

Jaenelle is the most powerful Witch ever known, centuries of hopes and dreams made flesh at last. She has forged ties with three of the realm's mightiest Blood warriors: Saetan, the High Lord of Hell, who trains Jaenelle in magic and adopts her as his daughter; Lucivar, the winged Eyrien warlord who becomes her protector; and the near-immortal Daemon, born to be Witch's lover. Jaenelle has assumed her rightful place as Queen of the Darkness and restored order and peace to the realms, but at a terrible cost.

Collected here are the beguiling stories about the origin of the mystical Jewels, the forbidden passion between Lucivar and a simple hearth witch, the clash between Saetan and a Priestess, and the choice Jaenelle must make, between her magic and happiness with Daemon...

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
Dreams Made Flesh is a collection of short stories and novellas set in the world of Anne Bishop's Black Jewel series, the stories add in some extra backstory and also work as an extended epilogue to the original trilogy so I wouldn't recommend reading this book until after Queen of the Darkness. If you enjoyed the first three books then I'm sure you'll love this collection though, it gives so much more insight into some of the character's backstories and I loved getting a chance to spend more time with some of my favourites.

Let's talk about each story individually though to give you an idea what to expect:

Weaver of Dreams:
This is set well before the beginning of the series and gives a bit more insight into the dream weaver spiders. The story is very short and I have to admit I didn't enjoy it as much as the others in this collection but it was interesting to read something from the point of view of a spider.

The Prince of Ebon Rih:
In my opinion it would be worth buying this book for this story alone, I loved Lucivar's character in the original trilogy but even though I was glad that he had found a HEA I was disappointed we didn't get to see it happen for ourselves. This story fits into the timeline during Queen of the Darkness and lets us see how Lucivar and Marian first met and fell in love. They meet under dark circumstances but their actual romance was really sweet and heartwarming and I loved the way Marian stood up for Lucivar against an unwanted rival.

Zuulaman:
Another fab story this gives us a bit more background into the relationship between Saetan and Hekatah long before Daemon or Lucivar were born. This was pretty heartbreaking and made me love Saetan more than ever even though he takes truly drastic measures to get revenge after something horrendous happens. It never ceases to amaze me how low Hekatah is willing to sink in her quest for power but this shows us exactly why she's so terrified of Saetan throughout the series, he really isn't someone you should mess with!

Kaeleer’s Heart:
This story is like an extended epilogue to Queen of the Darkness that shows us the fallout from Jaenelle's sacrifice both physically and emotionally. There's no denying what she did saved the world but the aftermath put a lot of strain on the relationship between Jaenelle and Daemon that they now need to work through in order to move forward. I really enjoyed seeing how Jaenelle was affected by what happened and how all of the family reacted to that. I also really liked how this story tied back in with The Prince of Ebon Rih with the reappearance of a certain character who desperately needed to get her comeuppance. I'll never get enough of this world or these characters so was thrilled with this glimpse into their happily ever after.

Source: Purchased

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Review: The Invisible Ring - Anne Bishop

New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop returns to the world of her Black Jewels Trilogy with a prequel that follows a man who is determined to rebel against the course set before him...

Jared is a Red-Jeweled Warlord bound as a pleasure slave by the Ring of Obedience. After suffering nine years of torment as a slave, he murdered his owner and escaped—only to be caught and sold into slavery once again.

Purchased by a notorious queen, Jared fears he will share the mysterious fate of her other slaves—never to be seen again—and so prepares himself for death. But the Gray Lady may not be what she seems and Jared soon faces a difficult decision: his freedom, or his honor...

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
I have to admit I was a little disappointed when I realised that The Invisible Ring is actually a prequel to the first 3 books in the Black Jewels series and is about a whole new set of characters that I don't remember being mentioned previously. I was excited to be back in this world but I love Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar and Saetan so much and was sad we weren't getting to spend more time with them. Having said that I still found myself really enjoying this story and we do get a few glimpses of Daemon that show how he was always trying to defy Dorothea in any way he could long before Jaenelle came along!

This story introduces us to Jared, a Red-Jewelled Warlord who has been kept as a pleasure slave thanks to the Ring of Obedience. He's already escaped once only to be recaptured and sold back into slavery so he is extremely unhappy to find himself being purchased by a Queen who is known to kill her slaves. The Gray Lady may have purchased Jared but it quickly becomes clear that not everything about her is what it first seems. Perhaps if Jared can look beyond the surface he'll find a Queen he is actually willing to bond himself to but with Dorothea trying to capture the Gray Lady and her entire party they have to find a way to work together if they want to survive.

This story wasn't quite as dark as the previous three, yes it's still a world where rape and torture is considered normal in certain circles (you can thank Dorothea and her like for that one!) but there are people who still respect the old ways and know that women and men have an equally important role to play in a happy and productive society. Just because some people have twisted the system doesn't mean everyone is like that but it can be very hard to know who can be trusted. I actually really enjoyed the chance to see what a real Queen should be like, one who will protect her people at any cost to herself and who wouldn't dream of hurting the people who depend on her. Jaenelle is the same but she started out as a damaged child and had to learn the old ways after being horrendously abused so it was a little different for her.

While this wasn't my favourite book in the series so far I'm glad I read it and I'm now excited to see what else Anne Bishop has in store for us and this world that she's created.

Source: Purchased

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Review: Queen of the Darkness - Anne Bishop

A taint now creeps across most of the Blood - those born into power - bringing war to the Shadow Realm, Kaeleer.

In the face of such corruption, Jaenelle, the Witch Queen who rules the territory, is powerless to prevent its spread. Especially while her chosen consort - and the person needed to complete the prophecy - Daemon, remains lost.

But the Dreamweavers' webs show two paths. One will see the blood of millions spilled, the other will see the taint destroyed, and only one person need die: her.

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
I have been absolutely addicted to Anne Bishop's Black Jewels trilogy ever since I discovered Daughter of the Blood and after the huge changes at the end of Heir to the Shadows I couldn't wait to start Queen of the Darkness. This book was everything I'd hoped it would be and then some and I didn't want to put it down for a second. I can't believe how much I've come to love these characters and I'm was so incredibly invested in their stories that I desperately needed to know what would happen to them all. I'm going to assume that if you're reading this review you've already read the last two books so although this review will be spoiler free for Queen of Darkness I will be discussing events in previous stories. If you don't want to see these spoilers then look away now but before you go I will tell you that the Black Jewels trilogy is one of the most complex, compelling and utterly addictive fantasy series that I've discovered in a long time and if it's one you haven't started yet then you're seriously missing out!

Still with me? Well, in that case I'm going to assume you're already an Anne Bishop fan and high five you for loving the series as much as I do! At the end of Heir to the Shadows we saw Jaenelle claim her territory so that she was able to protect her Kindred friends. Jaenelle now has a court of powerful Queens, Warlords and Kindred who would all do anything for her but she takes that responsibility seriously and will protect them with her life if needed. I have loved seeing Jaenelle grow into her power, she really is an incredible character and after so much suffering in her life she has now become a strong and confident young woman. I actually feel very proud of everything that she has achieved and I couldn't wait to see her figure out how to deal with the enemies who have done everything they could to destroy her.

One of the things that I was most excited about was seeing her reunited with Daemon. I missed his presence in the last book but I understood why that distance was needed, he has suffered enough though and it was time to see both of them find a way to happiness. Daemon has finally found his way out of the Twisted Kingdom and taken his place at Jaenelle's side as her consort but it is a role in name only as the two of them struggle to communicate their wants and needs to each other. I really enjoyed seeing someone as experienced as Daemon so unsure of himself, he loves Jaenelle so much and is terrified of putting pressure on her but as inexperienced as she is she has no idea how to make the first move. It was great seeing Saetan, Lucivar and the others help the two of them work through things and I loved seeing them all spending time together building or rebuilding their bonds. Things between Saetan and his sons are incredibly complicated but we get to see them slowly get to know each other and learn to trust themselves.

Jaenelle is the most powerful Witch born in thousands of years and she can feel the evil that is trying to destroy all three realms. She knows what has to be done to stop it and she knows that she will pay the ultimate price but that is something she is willing to do to protect the people she loves. Her friends aren't quite so willing to let her bear that cost though and they are determined to find another way. The love that all of these characters have for her is absolutely heart warming but I've also thoroughly enjoyed seeing the friendships build between them as individuals and getting to see some of my favourite characters find love and happiness in their own right.

I don't want to say too much more about what happens in this book because I think it's much better if you can enjoy the journey for yourself. I will say that I absolutely loved every minute of this book. This entire series has taken me on an emotional roller coaster, one where I've both laughed and cried. There have been times when I was so mad that my blood was boiling and others where I felt emotionally drained and exhausted but I have also fallen in love and met some of the most fantastic characters - ones who will stay with me for years to come. I can absolutely guarantee that this is a series I'll return to again in the future and I'm glad that I've still got some short stories set in the same world to devour before the journey is completely over. I may be a fairly new fan of Anne Bishop but I'm now a die-hard one and I can't wait to discover more of her books!

Source: Received from Jo Fletcher Books in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Heir to the Shadows - Anne Bishop

Witch - the woman who would bring freedom to the realms - has come, but now she is lost in darkness, and has a long road to recovery ahead of her.

While her adopted father Saetan waits for her to return to the living world, the third side of the triangle needed to complete the prophecy - the love, Daemon - walks in the Twisted Kingdom on the edge of madness.

As insidious whispers and dark schemes ferment treachery and betrayal, Jaenelle must make a choice: to protect those she loves, she must be more than an heir, she must become a Queen.

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
Daughter of the Blood may have been an incredibly dark and at times shocking story but I loved every minute of it so although I had to brace myself beforehand I couldn't wait to continue reading Jaenelle's story in Heir to the Shadows. I was expecting an intense read when I picked up this book and I wasn't wrong but I was also pleasantly surprised to find it isn't quite as dark and disturbing as the first book. Although this sequel wasn't quite as painful to read it does still contain scenes of mental and physical torture so I should probably warn anyone new to the series that you need to prepare yourself for the worst. I'm not trying to put anyone off because it's a FANTASTIC series but if you don't know what to expect you'll end up getting quite a shock! You also need to make sure you read this series in order, the world building is detailed and complex, there are a lot of different characters to keep track of and they have all had significant growth just in the first two books. You'll be completely lost if you pick up the books at this point and I would hate to see people to ruin the series for themselves.

As much as I enjoyed Daughter of the Blood I loved Heir to the Shadows even more, I can't tell you how grateful I am to already have my hands on the next book because as soon as I've finished writing this review I'm diving straight back into the world Anne Bishop has created! I just can't wait any longer to discover what happens to all of my favourite characters next. I don't think I have it in me to write a review that will fully explain what an amazing book Heir to the Shadows is or just how much I adore this series but I'm going to do my best in the hope of convincing you to read it for yourself.

At the end of the previous book we saw Jaenelle suffer the worst kind of physical and mental torture imaginable, it actually hurt my heart thinking about everything she went through and it's the kind of thing that no woman should ever have to deal with - let alone a 12 year old child. It was hard to see how Jaenelle would survive, let alone come out of the ordeal mentally stable but I had underestimated the amount of love and faith her friends and adopted family have and they pulled together to help her through. It takes 2 years for her mind to heal enough to return to her body but Saetan never loses faith in her. She has blocked the memory of the event that nearly killed her but she is still a very different girl to the Witch we met in the beginning. She is much more wary and finds it hard to fully trust even the people she was closest to before, she is also angry and has much less control over her temper. It takes a long time and the help of some very close friends before she starts to emerge as the fun loving and friendly girl she used to be but even then there will always be lasting effects from her trauma.

I absolutely loved meeting some of the friends that she'd spoken of in the previous book but that we hadn't been introduced to. We knew she visited lots of people besides Saetan, Daemon and Lucivar but now we get to meet her Kindred friends for ourselves along with the other young witches and warlords she has met over the years. Jaenelle draws both people and animals to her, they feel her power and know that she is the longed for Witch who has the ability to bring peace to the realms but that isn't the only reason they care for her. Jaenelle has no intention of setting up a court or taking over the duties of running a territory but she is still incredibly protective of the people she cares about and will use the power she was born with to keep them safe no matter what it costs her.

One of the characters who nearly broke my heart in the first book was Lucivar, every time we saw him he was either being tortured or being forced to watch someone else suffer and his POV made for some uncomfortable reading. I badly wanted to see him escape and find some happiness so I was absolutely thrilled with how things progressed for him in this book. He is finally reunited with his father Saetan and he is at Jaenelle's side like the protective older brother he's always wanted to be. Jaenelle needed men around her who had no interest in her sexually and I loved her interactions with both Lucivar and her adopted father Saetan. Their family dynamics are difficult at times because they all have reasons to distrust each other but there is such a sense of love between them and that really shines through in every conversation.

The one person missing from the family reunion is Daemon and although I understood his absence I'll admit I missed him because he doesn't play such a big role in this part of the story. Daemon is the one who saved Jaenelle's life but mentally throwing himself into the abyss to reach her cost him dearly and now he's paying the price. Daemon's memories of what happened to Jaenelle are vague and now he's not even sure if she's dead or alive. Worse still, he can't remember what caused her injuries and he is terrified that he did something to hurt her. His anguish over her possible death and the role he may have played in it have caused him to lose his mind and now he is walking in the Twisted Kingdom completely lost and alone. The only person who has the power to reach Daemon and bring him back is Jaenelle but when she blocked the memories of what happened to her she also blocked out the time she spent with Daemon. The most important question is will she remember who he is in time to save his life?

I've already said that this story isn't quite as dark as the first one but that doesn't mean things are all plain sailing and there are still plenty of enemies out out there making plots against Jaenelle and her family. I was glad we see some people start to get what they deserve but others like Hekatah and Dorothea are still plotting and getting ready to cause more trouble. In a lot ways the focus of this story is Jaenelle's recovery and seeing her build a network of close friends and allies that I think she will need on her side in the next book though. This instalment almost feels like the calm before the storm and I have a feeling things are going to go downhill fast for our favourite characters as the series continues in Queen of Darkness. I just hope Jaenelle and her allies are strong enough to face whatever is about to be thrown at them.

Source: Received from Jo Fletcher Books in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Daughter of the Blood - Anne Bishop

Seven hundred years ago, a Black Widow witch saw an ancient prophecy come to life in her dazzling web of dreams and visions.

Now the Dark Kingdom readies itself for the arrival of its Queen, a Witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But she is still young, still open to influence--and corruption.

Whoever controls the Queen controls the Darkness. Three men, sworn enemies, know this. And they know the power that hides behind the blue eyes of an innocent young girl. And so begins a ruthless game of politics and intrigue, magic and betrayal, where the weapons are hate and love--and the prize could be terrible beyond imagining.

The Black Jewels Series:
Daughter of the Blood
Heir to the Shadows
Queen of the Darkness
The Invisible Ring
Dreams Made Flesh
Tangled Webs
The Shadow Queen
Shalador's Lady
Twilight's Dawn

Visit Anne Bishop's website for more information

Review:
Daughter of the Blood is a really difficult book to review and I think that's partly due to how uncomfortable it made me feel when I was reading it. This is a DARK fantasy story, if you're looking for an easy read then that's not what you're going to get here. However, if you're looking for a story that is as compelling as it is disturbing then this may be just what you're after. If I'd known the kind of things this story included (everything from child molestation, rape, incest, abuse, torture and much much more) then I would have been wary about picking it up but no matter how squeamish reading it made me feel there was never a point where I wanted to put the book down and walk away. I was so engrossed in this world and the characters that I just had to know what was going to happen next!

Anne Bishop has created a fascinating but brutal world, one where power has completely corrupted the people in charge. Society is ruled by those of the Blood, men and women with magic whose abilities are defined by the colour of jewel they receive at birth. It is a matriarchal society where territories are ruled by the Queens who have the strongest magic and they are served by their male counterparts the Warlords. There was peace and happiness for centuries until they fell under the power of a dark and twisted High Queen, Dorothea, a woman who thinks nothing of terrorising the people under her command. In fact she has encouraged the other Queens to treat men as worse than nothing, they are often little more than sex slaves who are under complete control of Dorothea and the other Queens that she allows to rule over smaller territories. The world is split into three different realms - Terreille, Kaeleer and Hell - but most of this story takes place in Terreille and Hell (I have to admit I'm a little confused about how Kaeleer fits into the picture but I'm assuming that will become more clear as the series continues). The realms have been divided and under Dorothea's reign Terreille has become a dark and terrifying place. There is only one hope for the realms to be reunited and prophecy has long since told of Witch, the most powerful Queen to be born in centuries, one who will either heal or destroy the world.

For centuries Saetan, the overlord of Hell, has awaited the birth of Witch and finally she is here. Jaenelle is just seven years old when she finds her way to Hell and befriends him and he instantly recognises her for who and what she is. It will take years of training before she is ready to fulfil the prophecy but that is only if he manages to keep her safe from those that seek to harm her. Jaenelle is already capable of incredible and terrifying things but she doesn't have proper control of her magic and desperately needs the lessons he can give her. Saetan is a father figure to Jaenelle and he would do anything to help her but that isn't easy when she is so determined to follow her own path, she is a wanderer who has friends throughout all three realms and in her own way she is just as determined to protect those she cares about. She refuses to stay safe in Hell when her friends need her help and she keeps secrets about things that happen because she tries to spare Saetan the pain of knowing the kind of trouble she is in.

Jaenelle also befriends Saetan's two sons Daemon and and Lucivar although her relationship with them is very different to the one she has with Saetan. Daemon and Lucivar are both slaves who are under control of Dorothea, they have spent centuries being abused and tortured biding their time until Witch comes into her power and can free them. We don't see a great deal of Lucivar here but whenever we do get his point of view he is either suffering the worst kind of torture or watching it happen to someone else. I'm actually glad we don't see more of him because his scenes were incredibly difficult to read about, I just wish I could say they were the worst in the book and unfortunately they weren't! Daemon is a pleasure slave who has spent centuries forced to do the bidding of Dorothea, but in spite of that he actually has a kind of innocence to him, one that Jaenelle brings to the surface through their friendship. Daemon would do anything to keep Jaenelle safe, he would go through any kind of pain or suffering himself if it meant she didn't have to but even he isn't powerful enough to protect her the entire time. Scenes towards the end of the book absolutely broke my heart and I have no idea how Jaenelle is going to come back from what happened to her. Thankfully the abuse she suffers is one of the few scenes that isn't detailed graphically in the story but the aftermath is more than enough to show just how badly she suffered and it makes for difficult reading.

Daughter of the Blood is a fascinating but brutal story, it is graphic and unflinching when it comes to showing the darkest that the world has to offer. This is a compelling book that hits you where it hurts and makes it hard to keep breathing but one that you can't look away from. As much as I'm kind of terrified to see where Anne Bishop will take us next I'm in it for the long haul and there is no way I can stop reading this series. The world building is absolutely fascinating and I am so invested in these characters that I want to see them get the happy ending that they deserve. Apart from Dorothea and a few others who are evil to the core - them I want to see suffer in the most brutal ways imaginable!

Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

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