Of Shadows and Blood

🌶️ Spice Level: 6/10

Description:
Liv wakes from a coma with fractured memories and discovers that the world she knew is not the world she has awakened into. Transported into the mysterious kingdom of Lux, she finds herself surrounded by Vampyrs, magical sorceresses and humans who believe she is the next queen destined to rule. But Liv has no memory of this life — or of the powerful Vampyr King she is apparently meant to marry. As she tries to piece together her forgotten past, she becomes caught between ancient politics, dangerous bargains and an increasingly complicated attraction to the cold and enigmatic king. With vampires, lost memories, forbidden romance, a mysterious kingdom, political intrigue, dangerous secrets and a complicated love triangle, Of Shadows and Blood is a dark, atmospheric romantasy filled with yearning, mystery and supernatural danger.

Reviews:
Readers are particularly drawn to the vampire atmosphere, mysterious world and growing romantic tension, with early reviews highlighting the yearning between Liv and her love interests and the eventual payoff into spicy scenes. The romance has a strong forbidden and dangerous quality, particularly because of Liv's complicated connection to the Vampyr King and the secrets surrounding her identity. There is definitely on-page spice, but it isn't the main focus of the novel, with much of the story devoted to Liv's fractured memories, political intrigue, supernatural mysteries and figuring out who she can trust. Some readers praised the second half for becoming much faster-paced and more action-packed, while others struggled with the shifting timelines, amnesia storyline and love triangle. Overall, this is best suited to readers who want vampire romantasy with a moderate amount of spice, rather than a book where the sexual content dominates the reading experience.