After the cliffhanger ending of the first book in this duology, I knew I needed to read this sequel. It picks up right where This Vicious Grace ended, and I didn't realize how much I had missed the setting. The world building really is my favorite part of this story. The first third of this book was so good and had me hooked right away. When we got to the middle and the end though, it started to lose steam and I lost a bit of interest. I powered through and I honestly feel much like I had with This Vicious Grace. There's just something missing from this so I can't commit fully to 4 stars. I do like how the novel ended, but I guess none of this duology surprised me. Like I already knew how this was going to end. I do think this will be great for those who enjoyed the first book, but it could lack the umph it needs for others to fall in love.

Thanks so much to Wednesday Books for the advance copy of this book!

This Vicious Grace was in my top fantasy reads of 2022, and I immediately preordered This Cursed Light. The magic system is so unique and you honestly just can’t beat the Italian setting!

This Cursed Light is a great end to this duology. There’s mystery and adventure, a carryover of our beloved characters and romance, but also new characters and a new setting that propel this story toward its end. The banter is SO good and I loved the second romance storyline that developed in this book SO MUCH.

Note that while this is YA, it’s closer to NA and may not be totally appropriate for the younger YA crowd!

Ugh, it pains me to say this, because I loved the first book... but I DNF'd this book at Chapter 10.
Firstly, it took me a while to remember what happened in book 1, and there wasnt much on that reminded us of what had previously happened.
Secondly, I wanted more of Dante and Alessa, instead I felt like the side characters got so much more space on the page than they needed (and it was all about their relationships - not moving the plot forward - unless that plot was Alessa/Dante being insecure about their relationship).

I wanted to love this, but I just could connect with anyone - the Dante I loved was not in this book, and that was a huge bummer, there were glimpses but not enough.

Thank you to NetGalley, St Martins Press/Wednesday Books for this advanced copy.

Read this if you liked:
•bodyguard turned lovers
•romantasy
•fantastic banter
•YA. / borderline not YA reads

I devoured this book in less than 24 hours. The writing is fantastic and this book is so good. You do have to read book 1 in the duology so you’re not confused but they are both great books.

Thank you for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I thought This Cursed Light was a great conclusion to this duology. There was action and romance, it was emotional, and that ending was very satisfying. While it is a bit slower in the middle we get to learn a lot more about Dante and his past and get more with the other characters I think it was worth it, especially once we get to that epic conclusion. The final battle did feel like it all happened very quickly, but it was also very emotional and had me feeling all kinds of things for Dante and Alessa.
I absolutely adored both books in this duology and can't wait to see what Emily Thiede is going to come out with next.

I adored This Vicious Grace and was so excited to receive an advanced copy of the sequel. While I do think This Vicious Grace could have been a stellar stand alone, it was fun to continue on with the characters. 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4).

My biggest peeve was that I found the miscommunication between Alessa and Dante irritating and out of character. They were so strong and communicated so clearly in book one, that their relationship in the sequel frustrated me. It was necessary for the plot - but felt disingenuous to why I loved them together in the first place.

The plot was very convenient, but it was still a fun ride.

Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martin’s Press for an advanced electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a bit torn on how I feel about this book! The most important thing is that it maintained my interest throughout and felt well-paced, so I do believe this is worth the read for anyone who enjoyed This Vicious Grace. This did feel FAR more NA than YA to me.

Things I enjoyed:
➕ I continue to love the beautiful, atmospheric writing style and setting! I will definitely read future work by Emily Thiede.
➕ I truly love Alessa as a character. I love how flawed she is and how desperately she craves affection and connection. Her trauma deeply influences her actions, and it feels incredibly real.

Things I didn’t love:
➖ The big one: I wish there had been far more depth given to the “villains” and the conflict between the gods in this book. It is the underlying premise of this entire series and felt untapped for how frequently they’re discussed. The same goes for side characters, who felt more decorative than substantive in this sequel.
➖ Alessa and Dante’s romance, which was my favorite part of TVG, really lost its spark here. I struggled with the combined miscommunication and constant insecurity. I enjoyed Dante’s POV, but he lost a bit of his appeal to me personally as a love interest.
➖ The plot moved in different directions than I anticipated and introduced new characters I did not personally enjoy, as it all felt like it was lacking depth. I’m very torn on the ending.
➖ One weakness I felt and heard often of TVG was the lack of training and preparation present leading up to an apocalyptic battle. This book went in the opposite direction. There were SO many repetitive training scenes that added little value.

Many thanks to Netgalley & St. Martin’s Press for this ARC!

The Cursed Light is a triumphant finale to Thied's This Vicious Grace, providing all the gorgeous prose, hilarious dialogue, and heartbreaking narrative of the first book with a satisfying conclusion that leaves the reader breathless. Thiede manages to weave humor through a powerful story of love in the face of duty, guilt, and trauma. As the characters fight their way through an overwhelming threat, their unyielding love and dedication to one another is both heartwarming and gutwrenching as they continue to sacrifice their own happiness for the sake of others.
While set in a world of epic fantasy and magic, this is ultimately a story of grace and love as the characters learn not only what it means to care for someone against seemingly insurmountable odds, but also what it is to believe oneself worthy.
This is a powerful story and one that belongs on every school and library shelf.

This second book in the Last Finestra series has it all. A cast of many, a new mission, and the romance between Alessa and Dante continues, or does it?

Most of this second book is about the angst both lovers feel and won't confide in the other. Alessa feels as if there is a darkness in her that came from touching one of the demons sent by a "god" to destroy her beloved island, Saverio. Dante recently risen from death, no longer has his powers and is reluctant to tell her that his recent "cure" is only temporary.

I generally like a cast of characters that actively engaged with each other on a group quest. In this second book, Alessa, Dante, her non-magical brother, a Fonte from another island, and the rest of her Fonte's must travel to a mythical island to gather help with the next demon battle which is quickly approaching. These usually occur every 5 years but they learn that another attack is coming in 6 months.

I had a love/hate relationship with some of the characters in this second book. Their changes in character were strangely abrupt and totally unrealistic.

In the end things have a way of working out, but the manner in which it occurred was an unrealistic stretch for me. YA reads have either that "something else", like the first book in the series, This Vicious Grace, or not. This book strained to bring about the grand finale.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this generous ARC. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.

Unfortunately this sequel just didn't work for me. I absolutely loved the first book, but as with many sequels these days, I just didn't feel the same way. I felt a lot of characters lost their spark. The banter between the two leads lost its luster, which was such a bright light in the first book. The prose was still beautiful, but the tension seemlingly disappeared. Everything was resolved too neatly for my liking.

This vicious grace was one of my final reads of last year. I was so excited for this sequel and it did not disappoint. I really enjoyed the plot, meeting my favourite characters again and the compelling twists. Following Dante and Alessa as they navigated their relationship and their own struggles was engaging and seeing their individual character development was rewarding. The romance was so swoony and the battle scenes were not confusing (which was lovely because it is easy for some authors to lose me in them sometimes). This is definitely a satisfying sequel and finale to a great series. I definitely recommend that you pick it up if you are a fan of YA romantasy books.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, but I ADORED the second one. We pick up where we left off with our heroes trying to solve problems that have been around for a long time! It has the perfect balance of adventure, romance, and danger.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2023. And I think my expectations were way too high.

First of all, the plot was too similar to This Vicious Grace. I wanted it to dive deeper and to get more epic and tense. It didn't feel tense to me at all. And once again, the villain is so removed from the story that there's no tension besides an impending deadline. I liked this plot in This Vicious Grace, but it felt too repetitive and lackluster in This Cursed Light.

I also was disappointed with the romance. Alessa and Dante lost all their witty banter and their loyalty to each other. There was too much arguing for my tastes, and it felt like they were either mad at each other or lusting. I missed their old relationship!

I also was annoyed with the dialogue in general. It felt immature, especially with all the innuendos. The dialogue felt young adult, but the innuendos felt out of place. I also didn't love the side characters as much, and their dialogue came off as too cheesy for me.

In my opinion, I wished This Vicious Grace had been a standalone. There really is no need to continue their story with this sequel, and I think I'll pretend that this one doesn't exist. Maybe my expectations were just too high for this. I hope it finds readers who love it more than I did!

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 3
Plot/Movement: 2
Character Development: 2
Overall: 2

Thank you, Wednesday Books and NetGalley, for the arc!
Release Date: December 5, 2023

Trigger/Content Warnings: a couple brief open door scenes, fighting violence and death, swearing

I could say so much about this book. Dante and Alessa will always hold a special place in my heart. This story is all about family, healing, love, and so much more. I can’t recommend this enough, even without going too far into details to remain spoiler-free since this is the second book in the duology. I will say that if you are a fan of romance against all odds, self-discovery, and beautiful, witty writing, then this book is for you.

An absolutely stunning conclusion to the Last Finestra duology.

I will provide public feedback when St. Martin's Press addresses the recent actions of its marketing team on social media.

The sequel to "This Vicious Grace" takes place six months after the end of that book, and focuses on Alessa and Dante's search for the giotte to fight the (next) upcoming battle and hopefully restore Dante's powers. The setting remains strong, an Italian-inspired fantasy world, but I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as the first. Thiede does a good job alternating between Alessa and Dante's POVs as they each work through their individual past traumas, but the magic I felt between these two in book one was nowhere to be found here. They were way too angsty about each other and I missed their stellar book one banter and chemistry. I could have used a little less drama and worrying and more time with all the really enjoyable side characters. Also, the huge battle the book is leading up to is a major letdown - I think I was at 90% before it even started! I hope that Thiede writes some books or at least short stories featuring her side characters, as I will definitely come back for those. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for a digital review copy.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed being back in this world, though I was having some difficulty remembering some of what happened in the first book. I think ET did a good job of referencing past scenes without detailing too much and I found myself remembering what was probably the most important parts.

But I'm having mixed feeling about this sequel. It started off pretty entertaining and I was intrigued by the storyline that was going to unfold, but the whole middle of the book just sagged for me. And I didn't end up connecting to this story half as much as the first. The writing felt very surface level with very little development. It felt like I was reading a play-by-play of what was happening without any of the emotion.

I enjoyed the end once everyone really started working together, but I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. Since everything was very surface level for me, I can't tell if the ending was just an easy way out or if that was what was supposed to happen considering Dea and her godly mechanizations.

Overall, the characters were very enjoyable and I liked the overall teachings that this book was trying to impart, but it fell a little short for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this earc

I’ll start with the fact that I absolutely loved book one and couldn’t wait to read the sequel

Sadly, the sequel didn’t bring out the same feelings in me as the first book did.
The relationship between the main characters definitely felt off. Don’t get me wrong. I understand that they had to find they way back to each other. But they just lied so each other so much. Like Alessa’s blackouts. And Dante not really having his magic back.

The plot for this book also fell flat for me. Everything just felt a little too convenient. Exactly, the couldn’t find any ghiotte for years but it took Dante asking one person and there they are. They had a date when the big batter would happen? Just weird. Dante lost his powers but don’t worry. They got magic waters to fix that. Every time there was an issue, the fix came way too easily.

The ghiotte is no better. They barely let them in but then forgave all the lying? Didn’t feel right.

I also wasn’t a huge fan how every person had to be paired up with someone. Again, going back to everything just falling into place.

After the first book, which kept you on your toes the whole time, book two was very predictable and left very little to chance.

I didn't really enjoy the first book in the series, but was really hoping the second would win me over because I really do love the concept of this series... Sadly, that was not the case.

While I had a good time reading the first book in this duology, I found myself quickly losing steam with this book. While the prose is equally as well written and smooth as the first book, the general sense of the story feels much younger on the YA spectrum than the beginning of the story. It fell into more predictable traps and typical YA holes, which ultimately took a unique story and made it fairly run of the mill. The surprises were easy to guess and made the story feel like it wasn't heading anywhere exciting.

That being said, there were a lot of elements that I enjoyed, particularly the whole Dante and Alessa being unable to touch and building that tension between them. It added a nice extra layer to their relationship and kept me invested in seeing them through to the end. I also love a good queer found family, and being able to dig into Dante's backstory was very entertaining.

All in all I think this book is doing some things pretty well but not doing enough to really sell the whole package. As someone who has read a ton of fantasy, this one didn't stick out for me personally. The few bits and pieces that I liked weren't enough to really get me invested, but I can see younger audiences who are just finding their love of fantasy books really enjoying this duology. I'd give this a 2.5 for my own personal tastes, but I'll round up to a 3.