3.5 stars.

I reread The City of Dusk right before I read The Midnight Kingdom, and I do think this is a stronger novel over all. There's definite improvements to pacing and plot balance. Angelica continues to be my fav and I loved her character growth.

Dante and Bea's chapters felt a little rushed. I didn't get quite the feel of time passing from their chapters as I did from the others. Also, some language felt anachronistic and too modern. It wasn't enough for me to DNF-- not like when 'mom' is used in a fantasy novel (hate that, immediate DNF, please don't ask me why, I don't know)-- but it did make my brain reboot when it happened.

Overall, The Midnight Kingdom was enjoyable and I liked it. Definitely excited for The Dawn Court! I can't wait to read the conclusion!

Overall rating: 3 stars

I didn’t realize this was the second book in a series but the author has a very good, very long summary of the first book. I love seeing queer people in a fantasy world so this immediately hooked. Some of the chapters were a bit boring but overall pretty enjoyable.

I enjoyed the Midnight Kingdom. The book starts right off where City of Dusk left off with the heirs all in different yet potentially dangerous situations. I really appreciated getting to explore the different realms and meet a whole lot of different characters.

Thank you to NetGalley, Tara Sim, and Orbit for giving me an eARC

The midnight kingdom! Second book in the series. Did I like it? Yes! Was I confused? Also yes! The queer representation in the book was amazing! I’m happy that authors are honest and truthful with their works. An author who writes from the heart is one who produces much better works of art!

The Midnight Kingdom is one of my favorite ARCs I have received. This book is the second book in the series. In my opinion, it was even better than the first book.
Each character and their story has so much complexity. Risha and Jas’s story is one of grief and mourning but also of love. As someone who lost a parent at an early age, I appreciated how the author handled this subject. Nik’s story showed how despair and self doubt/loathing can make a person feel like giving up is the best option. His growth throughout this book was so genuine and made me enjoy his character so much more. I also loved the LGBTQ+ representation in the book. The romance that is formed between the characters is done beautifully, with bonds formed that are so strong and loving. I love when fantasy books add in romance.
I loved Taesia and Julian’s storyline the most. They are accompanied by three other characters and their adventures pack the most punch. There’s so much action yet heart warming moments.
An overarching theme of this book is “finding one’s self”. Julien has to decide if he is a monster, a guardian, or both. Angeline has to grow through her privileged upbringing and learn how to survive while caring for others. She has to learn how to go against what was drilled into her and make her own choices. Nik has to overcome his faults and doubts to become a better and braver man. Risha has to learn to not be as selfish and how to let go. Taesia has to learn how to balance standing up for what she believes in versus doing her duty. All of these journeys make the book so intriguing and I couldn’t put it down.
I wasn’t as in love with Dante, Brailee, and Saya’s chapters. However, they were necessary for the story and did show how strong the bond between siblings can be.
Another reason why I loved this book was because of the world building. It felt like I was transported to the different areas described in each chapter. The different mythical creatures involved and lifestyles hit all the marks for a fantasy book. I especially loved the dragon like creatures. I mean who doesn’t love dragons?
I would definitely recommend reading this series, especially for this second book. The ending made me so happy yet so sad. I can’t wait to see what Book 3 of this series has in store for these characters.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book for free and give my honest feedback and review.

Series Info/Source: This is second book in The Dark Gods series. I got a copy of this on ebook through NetGalley to review.

Thoughts: I am reluctant to even write a review for this since I stopped reading it about 15% of the way in. However, I got a copy of this to review and the fact I am struggling with this book says something and I feel like I should let other readers know my struggles. I defaulted to 3 stars.

I remember enjoying the writing style of the first book in this series but being a bit confused by all the POV changes, characters, and their powers. This book is even worse than the first one was. I was completely confused about what was going on here and couldn't remember any of the characters or their powers. Sim does zero recapping and doesn't do a good job (or any job) of putting in subtle reminders for her readers. You are just supposed to remember every intricate detail of the first book and remember exactly where everything left off.

I went back and read the notes I had from the first book and apparently I found that book somewhat confusing as well. My notes were not detailed enough to help me start this book. The expectation seems to be that you are going to re-read the first book in detail before you read this one. Unfortunately, I don't have time to do that with the rather large first book that I didn't love and never planned on re-reading. I might come back to this if I have more time at some point. However, for now I just don't have the time or patience to struggle through figuring out what is going on in this book.

My Summary (3/5): Overall, I stopped this 15% of the way in. I just could not figure out who was who and what was going on. If you loved the first book, I would definitely re-read it before picking up this book. This book dumps you right into the deep end without any reminders of the complex settings, multitudes of characters or intricate magic system. I just don't have time to re-read the rather large first book again right now. I have really enjoyed Sim's other series but this one is going to be a pass for me and I am going to be more cautious about picking up books by Sim in the future. Sim is an excellent writer but I think in this series she's taking on too much at once.

Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for an eARC of the The Midnight Kingdom!

Full review incoming!

Wow! What a great debut!! I am on the edge of my seat for the next book by Tara. The world building was so great, it didn’t seem to forced, it was given at a readable pace that made sense

The pacing did fall a little flat for me at times in this one. I think that may be typical when there is a story with a lot of perspectives and there are some characters that you just don’t connect with as much. But I think Tara Sim is really good at keeping all of the plot lines connected, and making sure each of the characters plays a crucial role in the overall story arc. This is such a rich, complex fantasy and I loved finally getting to be transported back into this world Sim created. I love how much more depth we get into the story world and the lore. This is a very character-driven story, with each of the heirs having their own motivations, trials, and development. The world and magic system are very in-depth. The plot, while engaging, is a little slow for my personal reading tastes. I think experienced fantasy series readers are used to that and will love these books. I tried to jump right into this one but quickly realized that I didn’t remember as much as I thought I did so I ended up re-reading the first book again. I remember loving it so much at the time. I will say, I didn’t love it as much a second time. I think this is a result of evolving reading habits, moods, and preferences. Nonetheless, I was really looking forward to this book and it didn’t disappoint. These are some chonky books! I wish they were a little shorter, with a little tighter pacing, but I still really enjoy them. Excited for the epic conclusion!

Thank you to NetGalley, Tara Sim, and Orbit for giving me an eARC of The Midnight Kingdom in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the Midnight Kingdom. The book starts right off where City of Dusk left off with the heirs all in different yet potentially dangerous situations. I really appreciated getting to explore the different realms and meet a whole lot of different characters. Personally I appreciated getting to learn more about the world as a whole. The one thing that I struggled with was the pacing. This book felt very slow and like it was trying to bridge the gap between the first book in the series and the events that will likely take place in the third book. While I truly enjoyed reading the different perspectives, I often found myself wishing that the pacing was a bit faster.

Personally, I am really excited for book three and to see how it all wraps up. While this installment as a whole was not my favorite, I still love the series as a whole.

This was a fantastic book 2 in The Dark Series. It was action packed, dramatic and the complex world building was top notch yet again. I will say that on of the POV's dragged a bit for me, but I understand why they were needed. Can't wait for book 3!

The Midnight Kingdom picks up right where book 1 left off. Although I felt this continued plotline was a bit less dynamic with the characters being split up than The City of Tusk, I'm still completely in love with the series.

If you love dark fantasy this is definitely a series you'll want to pick up. The Midnight Kingdom is book 2 in The Dark Series and you'll want to read book 1 first.

Amazing follow up to the first book, the story only gets better , the develop on this one is beyond and really happy I keep on reading this series

what an absolutely STUNNING sequel to such a unique and compelling fantasy story. I absolutely love each of the characters and their individual journeys now that they're all split up. As always the world building is fascinating and captivating, I love to dive into this world that Tara Sim has created. All the new background information we're given and all the lore that it digs into is a treat all on its own, and seeing new realms and countries was something I was so hoping we'd get to experience after seeing how vast this world is in the first book. I'm so incredibly excited to see where book 3 takes the story and all these loveable characters!

The Midnight Kingdom is the incredible sequel to The City of Dusk. I love Tara Sim’s writing and The Midnight Kingdom is an excellent installment to the trilogy. The opening places readers right where we left off in The City of Dusk. The city is poised on collapse, the group has split, and they must find a way back together to harness their powers to defeat the gods. Angelica fights for control of her destructive powers on a sensitive diplomatic mission. Risha traverses the land of the dead and hopes for a miracle to restore someone lost to her. Taesia finds herself in the realm of eternal night and finds some unlikely allies to help her in quest. But how long can she resist the pull of the god of the realm? A battle for their world is coming…

The Midnight Kingdom would be ideal for readers who love complicated fantasy world-building and compelling characters. The web of relationships between all the POV characters and the supporting cast was beautifully done. Initially, it took me a little bit to get my bearings in the complex world-building again. Once that clicked, I felt completely invested in the story and characters. Sim’s writing is inclusive and the world-building is very impressive. Multiple realms, POV characters, and different magic all flow seamlessly together. The dialogue was also hilarious, especially the banter between Angelica and Cosima. I was particularly invested in Angelica, Nik, and Taesia’s journeys as they fought for their families and themselves against vengeful gods and goddesses.

I would recommend this series for readers who enjoy M.A. Carrick (Rook & Rose trilogy) and Andrea Stewart (The Bone Shard trilogy). If you enjoy high-stakes politics, complex fantasy world-building and rebellion against the gods then you will love this installment! I’m looking forward to the final book in the series!!

Thank you so much to Tara Sim, Orbit Books, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, Storygraph, and Barnes & Noble etc

This book was a great follow up to the City of Dusk,for about 50% of it. As most fantasy series do, they start in a central location where the primary character's main problems occur, where in the next books it expands to the larger world, larger enemies, and larger forces to deal with. I found reading Angelica's sectons the most enjoyable, it felt like a true expansion and great addition to the main book's storyline. Everyone else, I briefly skimmed over, they weren't poorly written by any means, but just not as enjoyable to read plot wise. This book brought out more from the side characters and the lore building regarding the relationship to the gods and their impact. But it also follows the normal for a fantasy series, where the middle or second book tends to have some filler, which I really felt. I think Angelica's sections really brought up the rest of the book and I cannot wait for the third one to be released as I need to know what happens next. Sim really knows how to captivate an audience and keep them interested.

This book was a lot of fun and interesting. I like the twist at the end and wonder where it will go into book 2.

I enjoyed this book breaking up our main characters from the first book and sending them all on their own unique journeys to arrive at a common destination. While I loved following most of the storylines, the one with Nikolas and Phos bored me and I wish there had been more to the Dante arc. The pacing on this book also took some getting used to, where we would have long stretches of little action, a ton of inner dialogue, and a host of new characters to keep straight, followed by serious action for a couple pages.

I did like the introduction of the other realms and i specifically loved the new characters brought in by Angelica's storyline. And following Taesia's struggle to accept her darker side was done very well (although it is still weird to me that Nyx is a man in this book) At the end of the day I felt the book was just very....long, but I still enjoyed it just not as much as book one. Can't wait for the next one though!

I will say that at the beginning I was confused. I wish I would have done a reread of City of Dusk before reading this. I do love that you get the multiple POVs in this series. My ADHD did start acting up something fierce while reading this book.
I loved City of Dusk a lot and I was worried the sequel would not live up to the hype. I was so wrong.
A very good multi-POV story, with a lot of layers and second guessing of events. I've never read anything by this author previously, but I'll be adding her books to my tbr in the hopes her other works replicate the success found with this one.

The Midnight Kingdom is the epic sequel to City of Dusk, and it is just as gripping and action-packed as the first book. The Midnight Kingdom picks up where City of Dusk left off, with all of the heirs mostly separated and all in some sort of peril.

*Spoilers for City of Dusk included in review below:*

Taesia, Julian, Nik, and Fin find themselves at the hands of the God Phos in Noctus. While Risha is traversing Mortri, Angelica finds herself in an unexpected partnership with Dante, as they set off to find a way to bring the others back. Once again, each character is excellently written. The reader truly feels the emotions of the characters as they struggle through obstacles and face daunting challenges. By far, Nik's chapters contained the most frustation, angst, and emotion. The kind-hearted Nik is held hostage by Phos, who is controlling him. Nik, who no longer has control of his free-will, is forced to do Phos' bidding. I aprpeciate the strength of all of the female characters, especially the strong-willed Taesia and the determined Risha. Angelica's story arc is beautifully written and her character continues to develop. I cannot wait to follow all of these characters in the next book.

I cannot say enough about these books.; they are some of my absolute favorites. From the world to the characters to the story, everything is done with detail and care. I will be recommending The Midnight Kingdom (and City of Dusk) to everyone! Another easy 5 Stars.