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.

This book picks up right where the first one left off, with the heirs being split up in different realms and having their own tasks they are focusing on accomplishing. The author clearly spent a lot of time outlining this story and figuring out how each individual task an heir was doing fit into the larger picture. While some pieces seemed a little too convenient (e.g., Brailee’s powers, the link between the volcanoes), I loved seeing how everything came together. I feel like we saw a lot of character development here too, with Angelica coming into herself by figuring out what she wants in life, the heir’s younger siblings having important roles throughout the story, and the heirs being a little less selfish. We got to know more about Julian’s power, how it is somehow related to another demon we know, and his role as the fifth heir.

I also feel like we got a lot of background and lore throughout this installment. We were able to learn more about Noctus and the history with the Lunari family. We learned more about Mortri and the hierarchy of power in that realm. We got to explore the original realm through travels to different countries, which also allows us to see how the other countries view the gods. I cannot wait for the third book to see what happens and root for the heirs as they attempt to take control back! 4 stars!

Thank you Netgalley and Orbit books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

After the fallout from Godsnignt, the heirs are scattered across the realms. Taesia, Nik, Fin, Julian, and Phos/Rían are on Noctus; Risha and Jas are in Mortri; and Dante, Brailee, Saya, and Angelica are in Nexus. They must all work together from across the realms to get back to each other, reopen the portals to revive the realms, and defeat the greedy gods.

There was just so much *book*. It was so dense. I think it was necessary to fully convey the story but jeez Louise it was a lot of book. I wish we got to see Julian use his power more and I think we could’ve gotten more explanation on why the gods are at war and so weakened. Also Camilla was not quite as developed as I wanted her to be in this book. She’s definitely a secondary villain to the gods but like cmon she was so nonchalant about everything.

Character 5| Plot 4.5| setting 5| Writing 4| Enjoyability 5

Overall rating: 4.7

~Thank you to Orbit for giving me an ARC to review via Netgalley~

I loved City of Dusk a lot and I was worried the sequel would not live up to the hype. I was so wrong.

What is fantastic about this book is that it contains 5 different POVs and this novel has them all seperated(except Julian and Taesia)

Angelica continues to be unhinged( go do your girl boss shenanigans ily girl)

Nik continues to make me love him.

Risha continues to be responsible and hating it.

Taesia continues to make terrible decisions

I did like we got to see povs from non of the five mains. I liked we got to see the other siblings thoughts.

I cried during many chapters and a Sim loves to give you that angst! I really loved the way she tore at us and I can’t wait to see what she does in the third book to destroy us further.

I didn't realize this was a book 2 - and I happen to already have a copy of City of Dusk in my TBR pile! Oops! I moved it to the top of the pile, and I will be coming back to Midnight Kingdom later. I am excited to read this author's work.

Five stars are marked but they don't mean anything. I didn't start it yet as I didn't want to spoil book 1.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for the ARC.

This book was a wild ride and I think I even enjoyed it even more than the first. In the second installment of the Dark Gods series each of the characters is launched into different adventures/challenges they need to overcome. I got a much better understanding of the world the story takes place in and really enjoyed going deeper into the realms that were only alluded to in the first book.

Thank you to Orbit and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book!

Gorgeously descriptive and lush as the first, lovers of The City of Dusk will devour The Midnight Kingdom whole, savoring every word and paragraph. The arcs and journeys begun in book one flourish in book two, with thick and heavy blooms to entrap readers.

Though far more spread out than they were in the first book, the protagonists are able to ensnare a reader’s attention and remind readers of what happened in previous chapters. Though I still think there’s perhaps one too many POVs and not everyone has equal amounts of page time, the journeys started, continued, and left on cliffhangers are fantastic— can’t wait to read the third book!

The Midnight Kingdom by Tara Sim continues the story right from where the first book in The Dark Gods series, The City of Dusk, left off. After the devastating events on Godsnight, the heirs of the Houses find themselves scattered across different realms. Taesia, Julian and Nic are now in Noctus, Risha is in Motri, while Angelica is in Vitae. Betrayed by their gods, stripped of their privileges, and forced to abandon their once lofty ambitions of power and thrones, each heir must embark on their own separate journey to confront the seemingly impossible task of defeating their gods.

While there were moments where the world building may have faltered, overall Tara demonstrated her ability to skillfully describe diverse realms and countries that we encountered in this book. The introduction of new characters like Lilia, Marcellus, Kalen, Val, and Kazue added a fresh and enjoyable element to the story. Additionally, it was gratifying to see previously established supporting characters such as Cosima, Braillie, Eiko, Fin, and Saya being given substantial roles in this installment.

Although the plot may not have reached the same mind-blowing heights as The City of Dusk, with its multitude of intertwined storylines, it remained solid and managed to effectively combine various elements together. The cohesion and integration of these different plotlines were done well, providing a satisfying reading experience overall.

The romantic chemistry between the characters was exceptionally well-written. The gradual development of relationships such as Angelica and Cosima, Nikolas and Fin, and Taesia and Julian as love interests was portrayed beautifully on the pages. It was a delight to read about their evolving connections, as the author skillfully captured the nuances of their interactions and the blossoming emotions between them. The way these romantic storylines unfolded added an extra layer of depth and enjoyment to the overall narrative.

One aspect of Tara’s writing that I’ve always admired is her ability to depict intimate scenes between characters. While even renowned romance authors may resort to basic and crass descriptions in such moments, Tara truly shines with her choice of words. She skillfully maintains a sense of class, infusing these scenes with a poetic and emotional quality without sacrificing the essence of these intimate interactions. It’s a testament to her talent as a writer that she can capture the depth and beauty of these moments while still treating them with grace and sensitivity.

To be completely honest, at the beginning of the book, I found myself somewhat disconnected from the pace of the story. I believe this might be because I had certain expectations based on the first book, which was filled with fast-paced action from beginning to end. In The Midnight Kingdom, however, the entire first half of the book was dedicated to world-building and the introduction of new characters. This approach was understandable since the characters were now in different settings compared to the first book. However, I didn’t notice any significant progress or plot growth during this initial half, which left me feeling somewhat disappointed in comparison to my experience with the first book. On the bright side, the second half of the book was fantastic. That’s when everything started to pick up and the story became more engaging. We were treated to thrilling action sequences, unexpected twists, and turns, and all the different plot lines began to converge. It was a captivating experience to see how everything came together and unfolded in such an exciting manner.

Another aspect that I sorely missed from the first book was the dynamic among all the heirs when they were together as a group. Their banter, humor, and friendships, including the constant bickering between Taesia and Angelica, were truly refreshing. While the supporting cast of new characters in The Midnight Kingdom was remarkable, I don’t believe it quite matched the camaraderie and chemistry that the group had as a whole when they were united. It was that sense of togetherness that added an extra layer of enjoyment to the story, and I found myself longing for more of those interactions in this sequel.

I had another minor issue with this book, and that was in a few chapters during the latter half where I found myself unsure of whose perspective the story was being narrated from. It wasn’t a consistent problem throughout the book, but in those specific chapters, it did create some disorientation for me as a reader.

Although Taesia was my favorite character in The City of Dusk, Angelica managed to steal that title in this installment. The reason behind this shift was that Angelica’s story was more captivating and intriguing compared to the other character arcs in this book. However, I did find myself wishing for more chapters from Dante’s perspective. While I understand that he may not have had as much to contribute to the overall plot, I still felt that his perspective could have added depth and further enriched the story.

Overall, The Midnight Kingdom was a solid book, although it didn’t quite reach the same level as its predecessor, The City of Dusk. I feel it was a challenging task to begin with, given how amazing the first book was. While The Midnight Kingdom may have fallen short in comparison (in my opinion) it still served its purpose as a satisfying second installment in the series. I am eagerly anticipating The Dawn Throne and discovering which of these heirs will ultimately claim the coveted throne. I extend my sincere thanks to NetGalley, Orbit Books, and Tara Sim for providing me with the opportunity to read this advance copy.

Rating:
3.5

I will post the full reviews on the below mentioned links on 22nd July 2023.