I absolutely loved this story. With lies, betrayal, political intrigue, magic, and more, it is a brilliant epic romantasy and one I would highly recommend. Special thanks to the author for sending me a copy of the book. I loved it so much, I plan to buy a physical copy for my bookshelf. This first book ends not so much on a cliffhanger, but with a lot for our couple to resolve (have delicious angst/tension over) in book two. The non-romantic plot is closed up a bit more, but hints toward a bigger battle to come. 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.

Looking ahead, I have some definite expectations for the sequel. I especially hope the author carefully works to differentiate the cultures and buildup of each court, so that they aren’t all basically the same with just a different gem color scheme *cough pathetic don't do it* MC has big boobs. Every dude is looking at these boobs. Man looking at her? Let the MC remind us of her "generous features". 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.) Kane didn’t even wait for me to finish. He stalked over to Halden, eerily calm. “You love this woman?” Halden looked right at me with fervor. “More than anything.” Bleeding. Stones. Kane nodded curtly. “Good.” Then he looked to the soldiers behind Halden, “Kill him.” You aren’t mine. You don’t belong to me. You can spend your time with whoever you please. All I hope is that they treat you with the respect you deserve, and I will try every single day not to think of ripping out their still beating hearts.”

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BONUS: Was I entertained, and therefore, can Kate be considered successful in her endeavor to charm a reader and gain a new supporter? Yes. + .5 stars. Kane, the king, is burdened with the responsibility of leading an entire kingdom, with the weight of its fate resting on his shoulders. Despite his position of power, he's tormented by an unknown past and is fighting a battle shrouded in secrecy. With a multitude of secrets hidden behind his enigmatic demeanor, Kane is a complex character that's difficult to read. Despite this, he's a great man who possesses a soft spot for the main protagonist, demonstrating a protective nature and genuine care for her well-being. Throughout the story, he constantly encourages her, urging her to develop her strength and hone her skills so she can better protect herself. A cliche is just one of the things to look out for while writing. They can slip in unnoticed and ruin an otherwise great paragraph. Then there's the passive voice, accents, misspelling, typos, incorrect data. The list is long.

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! And the true star of this show was Arwen. She had such strength, but it wasn’t so excessive as to be unbelievable – no, everything about Arwen was so realistic. Her fear was evident, but her bravery despite that fear was what made me love her, and I can’t wait to see her growth in later books. I’m not going to lie, she made some… interesting choices, that perhaps irritated me a little, but hey, everyone makes mistakes!The King is a pathetic edgelord that gives Timmy Chalamet vibes than a terrifying overlord that would skin you alive for fun. I just read {A Dawn of Onyx by Kate Golden} in a matter of hours. I have to recommend it to everyone, it’s book 1 in a trilogy.

We follow Arwen as she trades her healing abilities in a rival kingdom in exchange for her brothers freedom. She tries to get a mysterious prisoner to help her escape. EDIT: I’m adjusting this to 5 stars based on the fact that I literally can not stop thinking about this book. It lives in my head rent free and that deserves a full 5 star rating for me ❤️‍🔥🫶🏼 ANOTHER BOOK WHERE I definitely predicted most of the main twists but it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment! Maybe I’ve just read too many books at this point so it takes a lot to surprise me, idk 🙈😅 The twists at the end felt like they came outta nowhere because there were no hints or lead up. It left me feeling cheated. And the ones that I could guess were things you could find in a typical fae romance anyway.A Dawn of Onyx is a solid NA Fantasy Romance debut and easy to devour in one-sitting for readers looking for an immersive fantasy romance.

I liked Kane as a character he was surprisingly level-headed and protective when it came to Arwen. I initially thought this was going to have a much darker vibe mostly because of the beginning scenes but the building bond between these two was actually very sweet and Kane was patience personified when it came to Arwen's many mistakes.

The characters are the best thing about this book, 5/10. Arwen is a very independent girl with a little more to her than the average person. Kane is the King and is alright, not a huge fan. Mari is the MAIN reason I gave the characters 5/10. Overall, I felt like the characters were awkward and just weird. There was just something missing between Arwen and Kane that made them awkward to read about. Not my favorite couple. I do feel like if they were written differently and had more time to create an actual relationship the reader could see, it would have been easier to get into. Firstly, you may call me Kane. King Ravenwood is a little formal for someone I’ve made blush as many times as you.” This book was such a fun read. The world building is so well done. The romance? The will they / won’t they, TENSION, enemies to lovers was so perfect. Kane, the mmc, is broody and secretive; Arwen is trying to figure out where in the world she belongs. I loved the two of them. Alsoooo it’s grand because he falls first.