Member Reviews
This entire series was written so well!!! I loved each character, the world building, the romance. Actually when I finished the last in this series I went straigh ahead and bought the others in the spinoff! Highly recommended if you like fairy tale retelling with romance and fantasy.
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. A Heart So Fierce and Broken is the sequel to A Curse so Dark and Lonely. I love a good fairytale retelling like the first book in this series. I had to grab this one as soon as I saw it. It did not disappoint. If you enjoy fantasy or fairytale retelling, check out this series!
this series is so good although i definitely enjoyed the first book more! this one was just abbot of a let down, maybe my expectations were too high but i felt like it was lacking something. i enjoyed it sooo much of course, the world and the characters was AHHH YES, so good!
I have not had a chance to get into A Curse So Dark and Lonely series like I had hope to when this title was "read now.” I am marking this one as a DNF for now as I am not currently interested in YA fantasy as much as I used to be. I know many people will love this fantasy retelling series though!
Omg.I laughed, I cried, I was broken. I was team Rhen, but now I am team Grey. Once i strated reading I could not put this book down. This book was so well writen, I felt like i was there with Rhen, Grey, Harper and Freya. I do not like reading romance in books but this book has change my mind in what I read. The romance was slow and steady and perfect.
I love this series so much! "A Heart to Fierce and Broken" picks up right where "A Curse so Dark and Lonely" left off, only now you're reading from two different characters' perspectives.
Diving into this fantasy from new eyes only adds to the magic of this series. I found it to be refreshing and interesting and I could not put it down (just like the first book).
I really cannot wait to see what Kemmerer has in store for us with the next book.
A Heart So Fierce and Broken did not go in a direction I thought it would. It was a good book! I liked seeing some secondary characters develop.
Such an incredible sequel! I loved A Curse So Dark and Lonely but this was on a whole new level. If you enjoy retellings that are loose in plot development I would definitely recommend this series.
If you're into girl power in the middle of a fairy tale, then A So Fierce and Broken is for you! The characters are a continuation of those introduced in A Curse So Dark and Lonely, but it is totally a stand alone book. Kemmerer takes us deep into the world of Emberfall after the curse from the first book has been overcome. Grey, a reluctant hero, goes on his own quest not to be recognized as the true heir to the throne. His adventures with Lia Mara are a true tale. I loved this book!
This was nowhere near as good as the first book. I think the characterization of Rhen really didn’t make sense and I found myself disliking him more in this book, which is sad, because I loved his character in the first book. I also wish there were more of Harper’s perspective. While I love Grey, I just didn’t want to stay with him as much as with Harper and Rhen. It felt like I was reading a totally different series and I just really wasn’t my thing.
If you remember my enthusiasm over book one of this series, A Curse So Dark and Lonely, you'll understand that I went into this book with expectations at the topmost turret. While book one covered the happenings of Harper and Rhen in Emberfall, this one deals with their Commander and dear friend Grey, and Lia Mara, the young woman he meets who is the elder sister in the royal family of Emberfall's supposed adversary Syhll Shallow--but not, as one would expect, the one chosen to one day rule it. As in book one, A Heart So Fierce and Broken sweeps the reader along and sparks total investment in the fates of the characters. I put off reading this for fear it would take the story to a place I didn't want it to go, and it turns out those fears were justified. However, it managed to do this is in a way that earned my pleased acceptance. I didn't love this quite as well as I did book one, but I'm still so glad I finally picked it up.
Impressive sequel!
A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer
Rumors abound about and rewards are offered for the lost heir of Emberfall. Grey is working as a stable boy and goes by the name of Hawk. He mostly keeps to himself except for his stable companion and coworker, a young boy named Tycho. One night Grey tests out the silver bracelet Lilith gave him for transport into Harper’s world. He didn’t know if it worked anymore but when he touched the bracelet, he left the stables and when he returned, Tycho was staring at him. The ruthless leader that threatened Emberfall before has returned with her daughters to force Rhen into an alliance. The daughter named heir is like her mother while the other cares for people and their well being. Rhen brutalizes Grey and Tycho and the group escapes Emberfall because Grey unintentionally uses his magic. Grey doesn’t trust either kingdom or their rulers but the kind, wise daughter convinces the group to go to her kingdom despite worrying about her mother. A tremendous amount of character development bonded me with this story. I thought A Curse so Dark and Lonely was a wonderful read but this sequel is just as good! 5 stars for this impressive sequel that introduces even more great characters!
So I really enjoyed the first book in the series, but this one! Oh my goodness! Just the best! The development of the world, plot and characters! I loved the development that the characters and world that this book had. Brigid Kemmerer is now one of my favorite authors ever!
I needed to read the first book in the series to be comfortable in this fantasy. I enjoyed the fact that the two sisters so different were still good friends. For the most part, I felt that most of the characters lacked depth.
Loved Grey’s story in this book! Getting to know Lia was enjoyable. That ending though........ I NEED book three now!!
Loved this story! Lia Mara is a strong character and I very much enjoyed getting to know her. Grey is back in all his wonderful glory! I do not envy the decisions he has to make come book three. And the ending! I wanted to scream... them punch multiple people in the face. Can’t wait for book three!
Professionally, my students were begging for this months before it was released. They were so grumpy when the found out I had an ARC. We’ve since ordered our library copies and they haven’t been on the shelf since.
An excellent second installment to this series. Honestly, I don't remember the last time I've devoured a book so quickly and been so anticipating the last book!
I found that I took me a little longer to get into this one than the first mostly because I was so attached to book 1 characters BUT once I did settle in to the new set of characters I was hooked.
I cannot wait for book 3!!!
I greatly enjoyed this title. There are a growing number of fairy tale adaptions hitting the market recently and I feel this series stands out among them due to the addition of diversity to the cast and looking at the repercussions that happen when a kingdom is left abandoned for decades.
Return to Emberfall, where the curse is broken but the story is most definitely not over.
Months ago, Grey killed the magesmith Lillith and learned the horrible truth: he is the true heir to the Emberfall throne. Relieved of his duty as commander of the guard, Grey has gone into hiding, working at a tourney in a city. He just has to keep a low profile, and never let anyone know about his former life. Or that he is actually Prince Rhen's older half brother. Or that he--supposedly--has magic. Especially since he knows that Rhen is searching for anyone with magic, and thus anyone who could possibly be the true heir.
Lia Mara is the oldest daughter of the Queen of Syhll Shallow, but not the heir. That title goes to her younger sister, who is everything Lia Mara is not. Hard-willed. Skilled in battle. Their ruthless mother's perfect protege. Lia Mara fears that her mother will once again go to war with Emberfall--something their kingdom cannot afford, something Emberfall cannot afford. She will not let her people be so brutal to Emberfall again. Against her mother's orders, she sneaks away to try and broker peace with Prince Rhen.
When fate throws Lia Mara and Grey together, it seems that neither of them will get what they want. Lia Mara must learn that her weaknesses are not what they seem, and Grey must come to terms with his heritage and determine if he will accept his birthright.
A phenomenal sequel to "A Curse So Dark and Lonely", we see the ramifications for the actions of all of the characters, and the many different ways it manifests. The people of Emberfall have finally begun to be suspicious of the country of Disi from which "Princess" Harper supposedly hails from, Rhen is terrified and is still figuring out how to run a country, Grey reconciles with being a man who has taken orders his whole life and never truly knowing who he wants to be, and Lia Mara comes face-to-face with the damage that was wrought by her mother and her people, and how that all ties into decisions made long ago before any of them were even born. They can't change the past. But they can all have an effect on the future.
Which makes the year long wait for "A Vow So Bold and Deadly" even more painful...
This book was incredible! All during the first book, I wanted Gray’s story. This is so much better than I could have imagined. Positively incredible! The last page? I’m itching for the next! My library has several copies of the series, and every child I’ve recommended this series to LOVES it!