A gripping second book of the series picks up where the first left off and will not disappoint the reader. I love Jay's writing style, and this series is written so well. There is a lot of action in this book, so be ready to be addicted.

(Completely spoiler free. Vibes only! 😬)

“𝙊𝙣 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙚. 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙛𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛—𝙠𝙨 𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚.”

I was “lucky” enough to receive a sample of one of my most highly anticipated 2024 releases, and oh what a tease!

I have no idea what percentage of the books I was given as a sample, but I will say, it is a similar length to many other books. 🤣

Needless to say, I loved what I was given. It was wonderful jumping back into this world, and Kristoff gave us just enough summary material at the start of the book to remind me of all the chess pieces on the board. (I did only read 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘝𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦 a few months ago, so I wasn’t TOO rusty on the details anyway.)

It was fun, it was exciting, it was gasp-worthy. Loved it. Can’t wait to read the rest!

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for providing me an eARC sample of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What this book is giving:
✅ Dark Fantasy Saga
✅ Vampires, duh
✅ Violence & Gore
✅ Battles
✅ Characters
✅ That thing that just happened right before my sample ended!! 😱🤯

Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ /5

Thought this was the first book being re-uploaded for download so I will be holding off on reading this sampler for now!

I was lucky enough to get an eARC copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is the sequel to Jay Kristoff's first vampire novel Empire of the Vampire. Empire of the Damned continues with Gabriel De Léon telling his story. But we also now have another point of view in the story from his sister Celene who is a Esani Vampire with some pretty cool powers. I loved the addition of Celene because now we get to see some from the vampire point of view instead of just Gabriel's half vampire/vampire hunter perspective.

Over all, I enjoyed the book. It feels more like a fantasy book to me than the last one did. EotD feels like it is building more towards the battle that is looming in the horizon. EotV felt more like Kristoff was telling a bloody background story for Gabriel. EotD feels more like its a world building novel that is building up on the lore of the series. Being a lore nerd this was just awesome for me. There are a lot of questions from the first book that do get answered which I was very happy about.

If you are wondering, yes Gabriel is just as big of a jerk as he was in the first book which kind of annoyed me. But I still kind of understand it because he is still captured and isn't in control of the situation. So for characters like Gabriel this does not always bring in the best of their personality in this situation. The good thing is that characters like Celene and Dior are moving to the forefront of the story, I liked that because sometimes I admit I did want to hit Gabriel with a 2x4. Getting other main characters than Gabriel was very enjoyable and a nice break.

If you are a fan of EotV you will enjoy this book. It's not a perfect book. But it is a very enjoyable gory vampire story with imperfect characters that makes me want to read the next book like EoTV did.

This sampler was EVERYTHING I needed and also not enough at the same time. I cannot wait to dive into this book - March cannot come fast enough.

Wonderful sampler. Cannot wait for this release! Jay Kristoff is a fantastic author and has a way with words!

Thank you netgalley for this opportunity.

The sampler doesn’t give much. I’m torn if I want to read the other 700 plus pages. I expected more to be honest.

Apparently I need to work on my reading comprehension, as I wasn't expecting just a short sampler. That said, it did it's work-- I'm now looking forward to reading the full text.

Samplers don't really tell you that much about a read in its entirety, but they do tell you if you are going to want to stick it out for over 700 pages of the story.

I don't want to this time, to my surprise; I felt fatigued almost from the start, like I was just being lectured at. This was not at all what I expected.

Disappointing, but YMMV.

Thank you for allowing me to read this much anticipated follow up to EOTV. Jay Kristoff’s writing style is engaging and thrilling. I felt transported to the world he created. Absolutely adored this book and I’m greatly looking forward to the next one.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

THIS SAMPLER IS CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT BECAUSE NOW I WANT MORE!!

I was so excited about the read now for 48 hour email that I didn't realize it was just a sampler! I think it's a great start and I can't wait to read the rest! I really feel like I can't review the whole book, until it's finished. I will do so on my blog and various social media pages!! Thanks for the sample but just a heads up to everyone...

Well, that was rough haha I got to luckily read a sampler but also unlucky because that was not enough! Just got me back in the world again, There were some of the stunning art pieces in the sampler, can't wait to see the full book and all the art! It's like a picture book for adults!
But I can tell you we are back to Gabriel telling his tale to that shifty historian, Jean-Francois, because it does seem like Gabriel desperately wants his story told and told in full.
Can't wait to read the whole book when it is released.

While a full review is elusive due to the limited sampler provided, the initial taste of Empire of the Damned leaves me optimistic and, quite frankly, a little intimidated. I echo the sentiment of other reviewers: transparency about the 700+ page count upfront would have been appreciated. I devoured the first book and I foresee a similar epic saga with this sequel.

Despite the looming page count, the teaser chapters brim with Jay Kristoff's signature charisma. The writing is sharp, witty, and darkly atmospheric, drawing you into the world with its seductive blend of horror and historical fiction. Gabriel's voice remains as compelling as ever, his internal struggles and sardonic humor carrying the narrative with aplomb. The glimpses of new characters spark intrigue, hinting at fresh layers of complexity and conflict.

Overall, this early peek at Empire of the Damned excites me about the story's potential. It promises to be a worthy successor to its predecessor, offering a deeper dive into the world and characters we've come to know. However, the sheer volume throws up a cautionary flag for readers like myself who struggle with marathon-length novels.

Should you bite into this monstrously delicious tome? If you thrive on sprawling narratives and Jay Kristoff's brand of storytelling, then by all means, sink your teeth in. But for those prone to attention-span fatigue, be prepared to pace yourselves or enlist a reading buddy to share the journey. One thing's for sure: whether you tackle it in chapters or chunks, Empire of the Damned promises to be a blood-soaked odyssey worth venturing into.

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this sampler of book 2 in the Empire of the Vampire Series by Jay Kristoff. At 215 pages, this sampler is a great taste of what's to come in this March 12th 2024 release!

Alright. I'll read the rest of it.

In full disclosure, I didn't read Empire of the Vampire; I did read (and really enjoyed) the Nevernight series and Kristoff's last solo teen series, LIFEL1K3. I'd felt like I'd had quite enough of grim-dark edgy vampire revenge stories, especially those with a male protagonist; so I didn't realize this was pretty much Nevernight inverted, right down to Kristoff incorporating criticism of his literary style into the text. I'm sold on it, now to tackle the brick that is the first book.

Anyways, like Nevernight, Kristoff's grimdark fantasy is, as usual, delightfully self-aware. Characters engage in soap-operatic theatrics and bloody derring-do, but seem entirely aware of the absurdity of their situations, despite being caught in the middle of them. This is a fine needle to thread, and the sarcastic humor, and witty dialogue make it fun, elevating the grim-dark pulp scenario.

I'd give this five stars probably—since it immediately convinced me to go back and read the first book—but since it's a sampler I have reservations about giving it full marks without reading the rest of the complete text.

Opinions are my own and don't reflect the institution I work for.

Like the other reviewers have said, very hard to rate and review since I only received a sampler. Wish this was disclosed before downloading, but what I did get to read it was pretty good. The only concern I have is the length; at over 700 pages no matter how good it is, books usually lose my interest at about 300 pages. My attention span isn't that great, lol. I had to read the first one in three chunks like weeks apart because it was a beast. I feel like I'll have to do the same with this based on the sample.

I'm excited based on what I read though, seems like another good novel by Jay Kristoff and a promising continuation to the Empire of the Vampire series!

10 out of 5 stars! THIS.BOOK.IS.PERFECTION! I honestly don't know where to begin?! First, I will say a HUGE thank you to the people over at Macmillian Publishing. I was denied access to the Digital Galley through Netgalley. Which is a bummer, because I do prefer the digital versions. However, a lovely person over at Macmillian sent a print copy, and access to the sampler.
When I tell you I RAN after finishing the sampler to my print copy. Not even kidding. I RAN.
I was not quite sold on EOTV. However, Kristoff brings it up about 16 BILLION degrees in EOTD. It blew my socks off. The writing, the plot, the EVERYTHING. This will quickly be one of my top all time books! You cannot stop. You cannot rest. You HAVE TO FINISH this book.
Pick up a copy, or 43 copies. It's an amazing, thrilling, poetic, beautiful book! Thank you all again!

Didn’t realize this was a sample. I don’t feel I can give an accurate review without reading the whole book.

Empire of the Damned-SAMPLER

Wow. I love Jay Kristoff’s writing. This was only 200 pages of the book but the writing is impeccable and I cannot wait to read the entire book!!