276°
Posted 20 hours ago

A Dawn of Onyx: The Sacred Stones Book 1

£9.9£99Clearance
ZTS2023's avatar
Shared by
ZTS2023
Joined in 2023
82
63

About this deal

We truly have an original, round character in here, a strong woman who’s brave while still being soft and feminine, a girl who loves deeply but is specially loyal to herself. The last chapter was devastating but incredible when it comes to Arwen’s mentality shift. Arwen Valondale never expected to be the brave one, offering her life to save her brother’s. Now she’s been taken prisoner by the most dangerous kingdom on the continent, and made to use her rare magical abilities to heal the soldiers of the vicious Onyx King. I think what made this book so entertaining to me are the characters. Arwen Lily Valondale is a healer from a small village in the Amber Kingdom. The continent named Evendell worship the nine Holy Gemstones and consist of kingdoms named after the holy stones such as Kingdom of Garnet, the Pearl Mountains, the Opal territories, the Peridot Provines, and the most ruthless of them all—the Onyx Kingdom. I will definitely be continuing on with this series now it’s managed to easily capture my imagination and I can’t wait to see how this all evolves going forward though this one is to be continued it didn’t feel like it ended things on a major cliffhanger, so I’m happy to anticipate the second book without wanting to throw my kindle vibes. If you like fantasy slow-burn romance that focuses on the world building this is the series for you. I voluntarily reviewed a copy of A Dawn Of Onyx (The Sacred Stones #1).

With that said, overall, I think it has a decent story with okay-ish characters. It didn't blew me out of the water nor did it tells a unique story. Some of the plot, you can almost expect what was going to happen before it even unfold. Some of the dialogues were a little jagged and dare-I-say cliched. Honestly, those parts weren't that fun. Soon, amidst enemies, she will have to find her inner strength to survive, using her enigmatic power. if youre a fellow mood reader and you are wanting a fantasy enemies-to-lovers romance set in the middle of warring kindoms and fae magic, then this book is what you need. Arwen and Kane's first encounter was pretty unconventional, but the tension was there from the beginning and you can only imagine how it escalated when they were forced to be in close proximity to each other. This said, I can’t wait to read book two and I hope Arwen as well as Kane will grow even more and have great character arcs. They already started to change and I’m convinced they’ll continue to do so in the sequel. Moreover, there is a lot of potential in this story and I’m so curious what Kate will do with it. Considering the ending everything is possible and I really like this! So many ways and possibilities in which the story and its characters could go and develop! ;-) All told, I had a blast reading “A Dawn of Onyx” and if you like a smug alpha male that is soft for his love interest and a strong heroine that fights him tooth-and-nail before she allows herself to fall for him, this book definitely will be for you. ;-)

Become a Member

I definitely recommend this for any fantasy romance reader who are looking for an entertaining and immersive fantasy romance with a sprinkle of spice. The characters are well-written and aren’t decor but active elements in the plot. I think there wasn’t a single one that wasn’t riveting. I have many favorites, like Arwen, Mari, Leigh, Dagan or Griffin. Talking about Mari, she’s definitely an endearing one. I wished I had a best friend like her! I loved that she had an adventurous spirit in her (and quite a naughty mind, she was rooting hard for Arwen and Kane lol). She’s cute, bubbly and a good friend. My only real complaint is Arwen. She’s naive and reads really young for a new adult romantasy. Some of her decisions made me want to head bang the wall. But with the epic ending, I can see how there’s so much room for character development. By the last chapter, she’s already changing into what I can guess is a total bad ass. So patience I have. Elara was such a breath of fresh air-- funny, honest, and powerful. Enzo has my heart forever (smug and sarcastic is already a dream combo, but with a heart of gold? Sold.) If you’re a fan of The Serpent and The Wings of Night, The Witch Collector/City of Ruin, The Last Storm- you HAVE to add this to your TBR list. Solidly written, excellent world building, magic, beasts, fae….

You’re hurt. Why didn’t you say something?” “It’s nothing, just a bruise.” Anger simmered in his eyes. “Who did this to you?” To protect them, Arwen makes the fateful decision to offer herself to the Onyx kingdom and this is how she finds herself faced with an uncertain future and placing her hopes on the shoulders of a handsome stranger. By the end of the story, we will have an emboldened Arwen, trusting in her abilities. She’s been put to the test and came victorious. I do appreciate a good character growth. From mouse to warrior. I have no military training. I���m not nobility and I’ve only seen two maps of our contingent in my entire life” It’s everything I love about Romantasy but the story was too rushed. I would have loved to have more world building, character building and a slower burn.Arwen is such a lovable and relatable main character! She is strong, resilient, and driven, but also flawed and not amazingly good at everything she does as soon as she tries it. Overall, she felt very human and real. She is thrown into a new country with her enemies surrounding her, and she is obviously afraid, but that’s where her strength shows and her bravery shines. There was a time or two where she made choices or had reactions that annoyed me a little, mostly when she acted like a jealous teenager wanting to mark her territory with Kane, even though they were not involved romantically or physically together, but besides those few rare instances, she was amazing and I can’t wait to see more of her and see how she continues to grow and gain confidence in the next book. And sure, there were other well-developed characters from Mari sassy BFF with her own storyline, Commander Griffin who constantly gives MC shit, Dagan grouchy old man, and a mysterious Lady Kleio who I think will return in sequel with larger part.

Here's the thing: if you like fantasies with contemporary-sounding, accessible dialogue and heroines that are basically just self-insert vehicles for moving the plot towards the villain-but-not-really love interest, this is going to be your jam. It's a very marketable jam and I'm jealous of the people who have a taste for it because they look like they're having fun when they read and squeal about these books with their friends. But I do not like the jam. I just really enjoyed this book! The heroine was my kind of sassy and learned to defend herself. Seriously, any book where the MC is relucant to learn to fight/develop powers/ be a Nesta IS THE BANE OF MY EXISTENCE.

Success!

Romance: 3.5/5 (I give details on this later, but overall, please note that I do think this is a sweet romance. I just have some small hold ups with it.) There are also a lot of great gals helping fellow gals/frenemies out in this book and I loved that! I don’t want to quote them because that will spoil a few things for you but be on the lookout for it!

Authors, if you are a member of the Goodreads Author Program, you can edit information about your own books. Find out how in this guide. In the heart of Onyx's Army, she starts uncovering truths about the war, the Fae. After meeting their King, Kane Ravenwood, however, she finds it hard to get him out of her head. ― I must admit, I totally get it. The man's 🔥 After no word for a year the family obviously think the worst so when Ryder suddenly appears injured and running from the Onyx kings men in his possession stolen enemy gold the family's only real option really is to run using the pilfered gold to try and buy safe passage somewhere far away from this awful war. But when a chain of events then places Arwen in a position where she is now the prisoner of the notorious Onyx king Kane her life changes beyond all recognition. And I can’t mention my favourites without speaking of Mari! Her friendship with Arwen was so fun and precious, I adored her. She may have encouraged (or initiated) those iffy choices, but I loved her nonetheless.One of my favorite parts of this book is that even though there's a mystery… I never felt like I wasn’t being given enough information! The absolute audacity of some authors to keep us in suspenseful purgatory for too many installments in a series is truly appalling. Kate Golden does an incredible job at dropping tidbits along the way to keep readers interested. But this one? Had me WHEEZING, CRYING, LAUGHING, HEARTTHROBBING! Featuring a unique world, hilarious character dynamics, and who doesn’t adore the grumpy x sunshine trope.

Asda Great Deal

Free UK shipping. 15 day free returns.
Community Updates
*So you can easily identify outgoing links on our site, we've marked them with an "*" symbol. Links on our site are monetised, but this never affects which deals get posted. Find more info in our FAQs and About Us page.
New Comment