Reviews

Empire Of The Damned by Jay Kristoff

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debchan's review against another edition

4.5

blown away, i couldn't put this book down.

in fact, i might need to go back and re-read all his books to re-evaluate bc reading this finally made me *get* him. his writing style, his vibes etc. i dont think i ever read propery or knew what what going on in the Lotus War trilogy or the Neverknight chronicles... but this one had me hooked

and that's bc i had no idea what was going on half the time in the first book but this provides me with maybe the patience to go back and read it again. the tales about his schooling and then his just pure rage weren't compelling but here? gabriel became a more interesting character and so did the others.

if there is one thing about jay kritoff, it's that he's gonna worldbuild. i love his ability to write not just dialogue but histories of important things we need to know and not make it mind-numbingly boring or awkward. it makes me more interested in what this world is about. the different kinds of vampires, the weapons they use, every detail is accounted for and really brings you into the story. it was like i was watching an epic movie, that's how good the storytelling was.

gabriel: i think like all kristoff's characters you kinda want to shake them for being so hot-headed all the time. but also applaud them bc they're really never going to give up. genuinely don't remember if he possessed this humor before but his jokes with dior were refreshing without seeming too try-hard. his grief and fear of feeling that again spurs him on to care for dior and he had his ribs broken like fifty times for it. but everything he did made sense and i was cheering him on (which i usually don't do for main characters)

celene: oh boy is she a mixed package. gabriel's sister who has some questionable past deeds and lots and lots of secrets. but she, like gabriel, has dior as her main priority which was intersting to see them both with such strong motivations and two completely different ways to go about it. ok yeah she's so sus but if she also wants to bring about the end of forever night then i'm all for it.

dior: we got so much more of her this book and i love it. we got a lot of her toughness in the first book that i was so pleasantly surprised at the sheer amount of goodness she has. that she always cared for the weak and wanted to do the right thing even if it meant doing something incredible stupid. but she has such a strong will too to do some difficult things. she develops a friendship (and maybe more) with an ossian princess that is really cute and i hope jay kritoff lets continue on.

she literally came back to life mr kristoff i need answers now!!

phoebe: did not know she was going to feature this much but i'm not complaining. i love her humor, her gentleness, her strength bc i really would love to see more fight scenes. her and gabriel are iconic comedians and i need her to survive bc they really do deserve each other.

lachlan: lachie!! what a character we're introduced to. i love his conviction (at times) and his sheer ability. bc while he suffered horrible things, he was still able to come out on the other side. i enjoyed his relationship with gabriel, though it did get rocky. his viewpoints are challenged again but in the end he was a brilliant character. and his illustration was soooo good. :)

aaron and baptiste: angst is what it is but also hope. get someone like baptiste who believes love is stronger than blood and will do anything to get you back. aaron was probably my favorite character from the first book (i just loved the bickering/brotherhood with gabriel) and this was awful to read and see him like that. i hope they get better together.

nikita and lilidh: absolutely terrifying. these are the kinds of villains you love to hate (and hate to love too). that illustration of them was *chefs kiss*. if only they weren't bloodthirsty murderous demons. the blackheart and the heartless. i would read a whole book about their history just because they're such interesting characters. and especially nikita's reaction to fabien bc that one interaction was so charged with tension i need to know what happened. in fact, i need the gossip on all the vampires and their bajillion's years of fighting. i would love to know all of their politics.

jean-francois: i know he's not a Good Person but i just liked him. bc as much as he scares everyone, he's just as scared himself. and he has to deal with both gabriel (again) and celene to write down their stories. it's probably faked but the guy can fake compassion so well i was like yeah i'd also tell you everything if you asked. this whole jean-francois/gabriel situation also has me like hmmm what 🤨 is going on here... i don't hate it either...

meline is such a genius for being so suspicious of dario. i guess we should've known when jean-francois kept calling him mario. bro is literally joaquin! like incredible plot twist!

the illustrations really stepped up a level bc i don't rememebr the first book having this many. there was like one every 30 or so pages. and they were sooo good. and helpful visually. so thank you to the illustrator and also i guess jean-francois for being the one who drew them.

jay kristoff knows how to write an ending. the cliffhanger is going to haunt me until the next book.

unreliable narrator much? so like were gabriel/celene pretending this whole time and why/how would that happen. and i'm so glad my girl dior is alive bc i was like well there's a third book so what now...

anyway this did not have second book slump syndrome at all! in fact, the pace was incredible and choosing for the plot to be told in narrative really was the best decision. bc the characters are obviously just going to talk about the things that happened to get the story where it is so it was relly excitement after excitement. and now i can't wait for the third book.

bournea's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

cboughner97's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time and the last 20 pages had me SCREAMING.

More of what I loved about Empire of the Vampire. The wit, the dark humor, and vivid emotions paired with a new installment of adventure and heartbreak.

I will not feel at ease until I know the release date of the final book.

the_midwest_library's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

What a great installment in this world, but not without a few small flaws. Book one was just so fantastic I think some of the changes in book two weren't my fav. The first of those was the additional POV(s), while in the end I understand why we had them, I like Gabriel too much to be stuck with someone else's narration lol.

The middle of this book dragged, the pacing, around the time of the first.major POV shift was just a brick wall of plot progression for me. Now it did pick back up but the 40-60% of this book was a drag for me.

I loved some of the arcs we saw with Gabriel this book, forgiveness, betrayal, healing but ultimately Gabriel has been insufferable because he's always right and knows you'll always get "fucked in the face' (iykyk) regardless of what you do.

Great installment, not quite up to the 5 stars I gave book 1 but sooo close....maybe it's a 4.5/5 lol 😆