This book is so refreshing and unique. I love when a fantasy author comes up with something completely new. I am looking forward to the second book because this was such a strong start.

Lovely debut!

“I didn’t remember how long we talked, but somewhere amidst her laughter and smiles, I decided I would rip the world apart for her.”

I loved this book, it was one of the best reads of 2022. I started reading the digital version but almost immediately had to buy the paper version as much as I was enjoying it!
It’s Amber Nicole's debut novel and it’s part of the Gods and Monsters series. The second one will appear in 2024 (can't wait).

The book tells the story of Dianna, a woman who traded her life for save her sister. This cost her humanity because she became a monster.
Samael is the King of the Gods and he’s also the last one left. He has always lived isolated from civilization due to trauma.

When the two meet they will have to question everything they believe in to be able to defeat a common enemy.

World building is very complex, as is the book in general.
I also enjoyed the writing very much and the characters are masterfully described.

The plot tells not only of a war but also of love and friendship.
It’s an enemies to lovers with slow burn and the famale character is a villain, there are the one bad, the forced proximity and the forbidden romance tropes.

I absolutely recommend it, go read it!

Thank you NetGalley and Rose and Star Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Rose and Star Publishing, LLC, Amber Nicole, and Netgalley for the copy for an honest review.

When a nearly 850-page book gets out of hand, you wish it had at least 200 more, you connect with the characters so intensely, and you KNOW the story is going to expand so much more than what you read in the book. first book... there you know that reading is 5 stars.

I don't understand why I haven't heard about this book on bookstagram, on facebook, on goodreads, I don't understand. I DON'T UNDERSTAND.

When I started reading it and saw that it had almost 850 pages I said "where did I get myself?" because one knows that it will take time to read it, that sometimes these types of books, so extensive, can be a lead... but no. The Book of Azrael was a literary beauty. Is someone going to publish it in Spanish? I need more people to read it.

Here we find ourselves with an immense universe that the author only detailed for us a little, but she did it so, so well that I didn't notice that it was heavy, dense or a kind of history as has often happened to me in some fantasy books. The characters are being described and presented in a slow, precise and in-depth way, which allows us to empathize with them, understand them and feel close (although we are far from that). I liked the full range of characters presented here and I see a lot of potential for this book to be the start of a huge saga.

The book takes place from the perspective of Dianna and Liam, our protagonists. Here we live a REAL enemies to lovers because they really start being mortal enemies and little by little this is transformed, but it is not fast, nor does it come out of the galley. Come on, it's an 850 page book and the author knows exactly what she's doing.

I loved Dianna, with that unique personality in a female character that I hadn't seen in a while. It reminded me of Katniss at certain times, a person who does EVERYTHING for who she loves. That he faces what he must do without question, without thinking, even if it carries great consequences.

There were certain predictable things but I don't see it as a bad thing, it just didn't surprise me or I saw it coming.

When I read that the second book is coming out in 2024 it was devastating. But if I have to wait that long to read a second book as tremendous as this one, I expect that and more.

Undoubtedly a surprise, a reading that scared me to start it but I am very happy to have read and discovered. You HAVE to read it. Of course.

The review will also be published on magui.world (ig)

This story was absolutely addicting! I loved the morally grey FMC and the enemies to lovers trope. The writing style was enjoyable and the book was fast paced and held my attention. It ended on a cliffhanger… so beware!

This book hit all my favorite checkboxes--exciting, action-packed, tense, sexy, morally-grey MC, enemies-t0-lovers, and a cliffhanger ending (well, I love/hate these TBH!). I'm anxiously awaiting the sequel, and I'll definitely be recommending this to my bookclub!

Thank you to NetGalley and Rose and Star Publishing for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

At first glance this book reminded me so much of "kingdom of the wicked" and it was what drew me in. The vibes were immaculate.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, although I did find it a little hard to follow at some points - mainly some transitions between scenes.
I liked both main characters - Diana was unapologetically not good at times (when she blew up that building) but it just made her more real in the end.
The ending was a cliffhanger so I need the next book sooner rather than later and I will reread this one before I read the second. The world-building was hard to follow as I said above, but extremely interesting, so a reread is definitely needed to fully understand everything before moving on.

This book exceeded my expectations. It is a fantasy book that has literally everything. It kept me guessing and I cannot wait for book 2. I love a good slow-burn romance and even more so when it's part of the story but not the entire story. I love a good female MC and Dianna did not disappoint. So freaking good!

Lately, romance have been the only books able to grab my attention. But nevertheless, I was willing to give fantasy a try. Unfortunately, the beginning of this book just failed to grab my interest. I was hoping I'd eventually be more intrigued but ultimately gave up within 20% of starting.
Coming back to this review months later, I think I'd be willing to try again sometime. However, as of right now, the winding exposition and boring dialogue thus far were not enough for me.

Cool idea, but unfortunately a confusing implementation

Getting into "The Book of Azrael" by Amber Nicole was quite difficult for me. You're just thrown into the fantasy world and it took me a while to begin to sort through what's going on. And to be honest, I was really confused until the end. Unfortunately, the flashbacks to the past have only added to the confusion.

The idea behind the story is really cool, but I don't think it was executed that well. The protagonist Dianna will do anything to protect her sister Gabby, even killing her best friend. She is very cheeky and not at a loss for a saying. I actually really like characters like that, but in this story, their behavior really got on my nerves.

Unfortunately, I didn't find Liam, also known by the name Samkiel, as well developed and I often had my problems when the company was told from his point of view.

All in all, "The Book of Azrael" didn't convince me and gets 2 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

Liam and Dianna are both centuries old on the other side of a war. Neither are really where they want to be. Just floating.
Liam captures Dianna and they agree to work together to find a book.
Enemies to lovers

Wow, what a book! It took some time to start it (RL sucks sometimes) but once I started I could stop. It was addictive af!! Dianna and Liam are just awesome and the story is as well!!
I really wanted to read a book where the female protagonist is the villain and I wasn't let down. Dianna isn't the good girl. Sure, she isn't bad bad but she is definitely not good. And Liam is.. I don't know how to describe him. Once a fuck boy and now a traumatized "hard shell, soft core" kinda guy. And I'm down for that combination!
The plot was interesting and I couldn't predict most of it, so well done! As I said, it was addictive! I'm so excited for the second book!

A world exquisitely constructed, with a wide variety of supernatural creatures. A resilient and powerful protagonist: a beautiful and deadly monster, with an all-too-human heart.
A God who has renounced to himself.
A world to save
A love story.
What more can you ask for from a book?
The three stars are for the writing, which didn't always feel up to par with the story it wanted to tell. Even so, I'm looking forward to the possibility of enjoying the author next projects.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

.....


Un mundo exuberante en su construcción, con una amplia variedad de criaturas sobrenaturales. Una protagonista resiliente y poderosa hasta más allá de la razón: un monstruo hermoso y letal, con un corazón demasiado humano.
Un dios que ha renunciado a sí mismo.
Salvar el mundo.
Una historia de amor.
¿Qué más se puede pedir de un libro?

Las tres estrellas son por la escritura, que no siempre se sintió a la altura de la historia que quería contar. Aún así, espero ansiosa por la posibilidad de disfrutar de las próximas entregas de la autora.

Gracias a NetGalley y la editorial por concederme un ARC a cambio de una reseña honesta

If you like the writing of Sarah J mad then you’ll love this. This book feels like all her book pushed into one big book. You will not regret buying this book.

I loved this book! The plot line was so unique and addictive. I can’t wait till the next book! The author did such a great job with the world building and absolutely holding my attention in a death grip.

Wow! This was such a rollercoaster of emotions. It was addictive, sexy, and absolutely riveting! I love love love The Book of Azrael so much. It may possibly make it onto my list of favorite books I read this year. The worldbuilding was superb- giving readers enough information about this world we are thrust into without bombarding us with too much information. While the length of the book had me pause in starting, once I read that first page, I knew I wouldn't even notice how many pages pass by. It was one of those books that readers can lose themselves in and not wake up until it is finished (if that makes sense). The characters were detailed, complex, and flawed. There were morally gray characters everywhere and I loved it. This book had so much going for it and it delivered and then some! An enemies to lovers romance with a slow-burn relationship! Fantastic action sequences! The ultimate road trip! The one bed trope! Snarky vampires! The list can go on forever- it was just such an entertaining and unforgettable book. I am on the edge of my seat just waiting to hear news of the sequel now. The Book of Azrael is a powerful fantasy romance that is sure to become a new favorite. I'm looking forward to reading more by Amber Nicole in the future!

When reading other reviewers’ thoughts on Goodreads, I’m actually wondering whether we read the same book. I see everyone giving this book 4, 4.5, or 5 stars and I’m really wondering why. I thought about how to review this book very long, I thought about ways to perhaps make my 2-star review into a 3-star review, but I just can’t do it and I will explain why.
This book has 841 pages, where it could have easily told the same story with only 200-300 pages. There is a lot of information that doesn’t actually tell a story or contributes to the main point of the story and it felt very useless to read these parts. The story was told with many more words than needed, which resulted in long and confusing sentences and losing track of the story easily.
Moreover, the sexual activity and tension in the novel felt useless and forced. It was definitely not needed for the story and in my opinion only denigrated the female lead. At times she was described as some sort of sl*t who sacrificed herself to the man who saved her and her sister in order for her sister to have a great life. It was unnecessary for the story, since she could have had the exact same position in his army, but then without the sex, and the story would have the same impact. The romance with the second man was less useless, but also described in too much detail. It was not needed for the plot.
The plottwists in the story were unexpected, without warning and useless. They were not surprising in a positive manner to the plot, but they caused confusion and weird situations.
Why, then, did I still give the story 2 stars? Well, I did like the character building and the fantasy creatures. The characters were well-developed and each had unique features, but were still connected to each other in one or more ways. The creatures were original and had some addition to the plot, so that, I did like.
However, when evaluating all these points, I just can’t give the story more than 2 stars and I also cannot recommend this book. I just did not like it at all and I am a fervent Fantasy reader.

A very popular Booktok recommendation - and I can see why. A romance, fantasy with twists and turns that kept me glued to my kindle until I finished.

I could not put this book down!! I read it all in less than a day because the story had me wanting more and more! The world building and the story line was so fun and unlike anything I had read lately! The author is 100% going on my must buy list and I can not wait to read more from her in the future!! Also totally need more books in this as a series!

this book was absolutely amazing! The characters are so well written and I loved the world building.

A friend recommended it to me and I’m so happy I got to read it.