3 Out of 5 Stars

Rin Chupeco is back with their Gothic, fantasy, queer vampire series in Court of Wanderers.

This book picks up right after Silver Under Nightfall, with Remy, Xiaodan, and Zidan making their way to the seat of Zidan’s court, Fata Morgana. Tensions are high in the group as Xiaodan recovers from her fight with the Night Empress, and Remy and Zidan process the fight in Aluria. Once the trio arrives at Fata Morgana, a familiar pattern falls between them. But with Xiaodan not back to her full strength and Remy having nightmares about the Night Empress, things cannot return to normal. While dealing with these new issues, the leaders of the eight courts arrange a meeting, and Remy must act as Xiaodan and Zidan’s human familiar in a new environment with different rules. The three navigate their relationship while dealing with murders and the growing threat of the Night Empress.

The second entry in Rin Chupeco’s Reaper series sees the return of the beloved characters from the first book.
However, this book does not contain the same level of fun and adventure. In the first installment, I wished for more information on the eight vampire courts, and boy, did they deliver in Court of Wanderers. Each of the courts – the ones that survived – appeared in this book, which resulted in a significant amount of politics. While I believe that it is necessary to have at least some politics in a fantasy book, it seems to drag on in this book.

Other than the slow-moving political discussions, this book is well-written. Chupeco does a great job of building his characters after the first book. The characters are the best part of this series, and I enjoy seeing how they evolve. They react believably to the situations they encounter, and I love how the main three lean on each other for support. The various locations of the vampire courts are also well done. I enjoyed seeing some of the seats of the courts. Chupeco compellingly shows how each setting fits the vampires who rule over the locations.

Although Court of Wanderers is not as fun as its predecessor, I still liked this book. The characters are well-written, and the fantasy world is fascinating. The book had some downsides, but the characters and queer relationship are delightful to read, and I would recommend this book to others.

I think I did this book a disservice by picking it up right after finishing an amazing 5/5 fantasy book. I felt like this sequel moved away from focusing on the characters and their arcs to just plot. I still really enjoyed all the characters and their relationships but all of that was developed in the first book and we didn’t get much more from them in this one. The plot too, this is where I thought maybe I shouldn’t have picked this book up after a super intense fantasy read because the stakes in this book felt underwhelming.  But overall, it was an enjoyable duology with a unique world and great representation.

After fighting the Rot, Remy, Malekh and Xaoidan work to bring the remaining vampire covens together to defeat the Night Empress. The story turns into betrayal after betrayal.

The story was engaging enough, I suppose, but nothing like the first book. The crew falling for each other in the first book was so engaging, I had a hard time putting it down. This one was much slower and not nearly as much spice. Hardly any on-page spice, mostly fade to black.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me an advanced copy of this book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster, and Saga Press for sending me this ARC!

I read the first book of this series, Silver Under Nightfall, in December and fell IN LOVE with the story and characters. I’ve said it before, I would die for Remy!

I was excited to get into the second book to see how the first book’s cliffhanger resolves itself, and I must admit I did not enjoy this book as much as I did the first. I devoured the first book in a day, meanwhile this one took me three because I would get bored and allow myself to get distracted. It didn’t hold my attention.

I feel like there was less action, less connection with the characters, and it all felt a little bit surface level. The pacing was a lot slower than the first book. The first bit of the book was good, but then a good 50% of the book in the middle just felt like filler that could be taken out. Finally, the final maybe 20% was good and capturing. I chalk it up to a sophomore slump.

I didn’t dislike the book, I still think it’s a good and decent book. It’s not the worst in any measure of the word. However, when I allow myself to compare the first book to the one, I do feel little let down. I also feel like once we got to a really good pace at the end of the book, it felt too rushed and I didn’t have time to enjoy the “good” part.

It releases on April 2nd, and I wouldn’t still recommend you to read both books!

I freaking love these books. I have been wanting to find the perfect vampire series and this didn't dissapoint! i highly reccomend

It was great and I always love poly bisexual vampires especially this set! I just feel like it needed to be more character focused and less drama focused like the first one was. Hopefully it’s a trilogy bc this feels like a middle book, not an end. Thanks for the arc. .3.75

I love this series. The romance aspect was still going strong, and this book add more politics into the story- which I loved that's always something that I enjoy in fantasy books, I will say I also love when stories are character driven and this book dropped in that which was disappointing but I give it grace- it can't help the second book syndrome. And with that BRB while I go reread the first two books until the third is in my hands.

I think I actually preferred the plot and pacing of this book to book one, which seems at odds with the rest of the reviews.

This was a bit more sexual than book one, but again, the scenes were fairly fade to black. But it was a lot more prominent as Remy plays the part of a pet or, what Xiodan endears, puppy.
Yeah, um, not for me. Keep it in the fanfiction.

Again, I have to express my disappointment for this series as I went in with such high expectations coming from her other books and hearing the hype it got on social media.

I just want to leave this last quote but basically sums up the series. Remy, I love you, but…

"Remy, I swear to every thing you consider holy that sometimes you are the densest person I have ever met."

I said it in my last review, and I’ll say it again, I LOVE this world and cannot get enough of it. If you were a fan of the first book, the sequel is /definitely/ worth your time.
Here are some highlights for me.

The story is just as engaging as SUN but in completely different ways. While the first was more action packed and rapid fire plot this is a little more slow burn plot with lots of intrigue and court politics. It was nice to have a book that doesn’t just copy and paste all the elements of the previous book to try and recreate the success. The world and characters obviously stayed the same, but the plot style and pacing brought a new flavor to the story.

The world building is absolutely phenomenal! In this book we got a deeper dive into some of the vampiric lore/history of the world and it. is. so. interesting. Chupeco is a very talented writer and has become an instant buy author for me because of this duology.

The tenderness between Remy, Xiaodan, and Malekh is /everything/. Watching the continued development of that relationship felt so rewarding and beautiful. You get to see them supporting each other as they each grapple with their own hardships and troubled pasts. The spice is still /hot/ but the depth of the emotional intimacy takes the forefront.

My only qualm is that the story is over! While the ending was very satisfying and well done, I am still ravenous for anything set in this world. Truly the most engaging read I have come across in awhile! The ‘book hangover’ from this book will be a rough one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC of this book!

Cover of Wanderers was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024. After reading, silver under nightfall, I knew that this book had to be amazing. And it would have been if it hadn't been for the pacing for me. I felt there was just too many downtimes where all they did is sit around and talk politics. Which I absolutely love court politics, especially when it comes to vampires. But also, it was just so slow and there wasn't enough action in between the politicking to keep me in thralled the way I was with the first book. I did not get as much of the conflict between Remy and his father that I wanted throughout the book. The relationship between the three main characters was still excellent. I found it to be so tender and loving. And a really great contrast to the violence that was inherently throughout the first book. I was looking for some more of that same feel from the second book and I just didn't get it.


That being said, it's not like I did not enjoy this book at all. It was a very middle of the road average Book for me and I would still recommend it. But I would only recommend it to those who are OK with a slower pace, more heavy on the court politics, kind of reader I would not recommend it to the same type of reader I would recommend the first book too, which would make it overall a harder ideology to recommend.

Okay, listen. If you read and adored the first book, you will read and adore this book, even though they are both quite different. Book one was quite action packed, while this is much slower and more mystery-based as opposed to fighting action (though there are several action scenes, don't get me wrong! Just not as many as book one). The thing about this sequel is the /tenderness/ of the relationship between our main three. Chapter one resolves the conflict of book one's ending, and then the whole rest of the book is just them learning how to love each other more deeply and beautifully, taking care of each other and knowing each other and what the others need. And it is so. fucking. beautiful.

Remy is leaning into his confidence, learning that it's okay to be loved and to love in return, and that he IS worthy of good things, of gentleness and care and adoration. He's dealing with his own anxieties and griefs through the whole book, but Malekh and Xiaodan are right there with him for every step of the way, comforting him through nightmares and supporting him through everything. And he, in turn, is there for them as Xiaodan wrestles with understanding who she is without her sun, and Malekh as he takes on the first court's memory. They are all so tender and gentle with each other, giving endless support through everything and being so fucking /good/. If romance was like this in other books, I wouldn't read anything else.

The relationship is definitely the best part of this book, though I really do wish we'd had some more of them at the end, but oh well. I really liked Remy's journey with the Night Empress too though, and all that was revealed through that. It was heart breaking but beautiful and brought a much richer depth to the story. His resolution with his father was good as well, though complicated given their history.

The writing was beautiful, as always, the mystery heart-stopping and intriguing. Lots more spice here, though once again so touching and beautiful because of how richly emotional this book is. Easy 5 stars again. My only regret is that I've started 2024 with reading this duology because it has completely ruined me for any other books! Would that there were a thousand books like these that could touch my heart so deeply and make me so irrevocably in love with fictional characters. I'm not being dramatic when I say that I will spend the rest of my life trying to find books like these.

I had zero expectations going into Silver Under Nightfall, and that book absolutely blew me out of the water, so I was beyond thrilled to receive an ARC of its sequel. That said, I had much higher expectations for this one—which, admittedly, is my fault—so I'm not surprised I was a teensy bit let down.

I want to start on a positive note which is that, my god, their relationship is SO. GOOD. Every time Remy, Xiodan, Malekh were alone together, I just couldn't help but grin from ear to ear. Their chemistry is absolutely unmatched; like, the sexual tension is through the roof EVEN THOUGH they have sex CONSTANTLY. HOW!!! I am losing my mind. And when they aren't having sex (rarely) (I'm not kidding, probably a solid half of this book is sex or talking about sex. I am not complaining), the three of them are so sweet and wonderful together in their own different ways. Their personalities are expanded upon from SUN, which I do feel was much needed in the case of Xiaodan, especially, and it's great to have all these tender, loving moments together. (And the ending. AHHHHHHHH. Rin Chupeco I owe you my life.)

Okay, I'm normal now. Onto the part I didn't like as much.

My god, the pacing. This book has so many scenes of characters sitting in rooms and talking about stuff, and while this is not usually an issue for me (I LOVE some good fantasy politicking), the first book was much more action-packed in comparison, which I found myself missing. Don't get me wrong; the action is still there, and it's really good; it's just not as much of a focus this time. And while I, personally, don't have an issue with this book having so much sex in it, I know some people will. If that's not your thing, I get it! It's mine, apparently, but definitely not for everyone. There's a plot here, absolutely, and stakes and tension, but it's not as much of a focus in this one as it was the first.

Do I recommend this book (and this duology in general)? Absolutely. I think Court of Wanderers has a satisfying, if a bit rushed, conclusion and ties up most of the threads from Silver Under Nightfall with a neat-ish little bow; if you're in it for plot, I think you'll have an alright time, especially if you were interested in the Night Empress and her backstory. If you didn't care about (or actively disliked) the romance in book one, maybe skip the sequel and thank me later. If you, like me, are here for a good time and not a long time and just want to see some polyamorous bisexual vampire lovin', read on and enjoy the fun!

Court of Wanderers wrapped up the threads of Silver Under Nightfall perfectly for a duology. The story started right where the last ended with Remy traveling to the Third Court with Xiaodan and Malekh. As the story unfolds we learn more about the Night Empress and the politics of the vampire courts. Other mysteries are introduced along the way with a bit of a locked room murder and people not being who they seem. As a whole it was a really enjoyable series to read and I liked the interpretations of vampires in Rin Chupeco's world.

Remy's character arc was nice to read as he increased in confidence in both himself as a person and in his relationship with Xiaodan and Malekh. The character of the Night Empress is also flushed out a bit more and we learn of her backstory and how she came to be. However, I felt Xiaodan and Malekh kind of faded a bit more into the background in this book and wished they had a bit more of their own storyline.

Overall, the pacing was sometimes difficult with many pages of worldbuilding after an intense action seen. The pace was never slow or fast but more of a stop and start, where I would have preferred a steady increase. I think that is the aspects of the romance plot coming through that while I enjoyed, seemed to somewhat slow the plot.

That being said I like how the romance unfolded and Remy, Xiaodan and Malekh all had things that they gained through their relationship in terms of character growth.

Lastly, I really enjoyed the horror elements of this duology. The creatures created were ghastly and their deaths gruesome and that kept me coming back for more.

Thank you Rin Chupeco for giving the gays everything they've ever wanted. (I'm gays.)

This one was definitely slower than Silver Under Nightfall. There's a lot of characters talking politics for chapters on end that definitely drags the pacing down for most of the book. However, Remy, Xiaodan, and Malehk are absolutely perfect. I love them whole-heartedly and I'm glad that the vibe from the end of book one was swiftly taken care of. Remy remains THE character of all time.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc! I must say, it was a pleasant surprise to receive the approval email. I should start by saying I adore silver under nightfall, it was an endearing fantasy and plus VAMPIRES.
In all honesty, I struggled here. As a follow up to Nightfall, I guess I expected that same feeling of excitement to read and escape but it never came. Reading this inevitably felt like a chore, and for that reason, I had to rate it as I did. Not quite 3 stars but, not as low as a 2. I love the world and the writer but this installment didn’t hit As hard as I hoped.

A most anticipated return back to the world of Silver Under Nightfall! In this sequel we see the return of our main trio of Remy, Zidan, and Xioadan with a few other familiar faces along with some new ones. I liked learning more about court life, especially finally getting to visit the Third Court, and vampire political intrigue. I must be honest and say that our main trio really make this series and any interaction with the 3 of them shines in this book. Overall I can say that this book was fun, while not perfect … I think there was some weird pacing choices throughout, I enjoyed it a lot and kept picking it back up. If you enjoyed SUN l think you would also enjoy the sequel.

My rating: 4.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Press!

I had such high high hopes for this book after how much I loved the first one. Court of Wanderers focuses much more on the politics of the vampire courts and the relationship between the 3 main characters. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I missed some of the action of the first book. There were parts where it just read more like a history book than what I expected. I did still love this book, but the ending also felt rushed for this to also be the end of the series, I want to know so much more.

I read Silver Under Nightfall in January of this year (2023) and was so excited to read Court of Wanderers as soon as it came out so I was so excited that I was approved for an eARC by Saga Press and NetGalley.

Court of Wanderers expands so much on the world of the vampire courts and I loved learning more about them. I also thought the ending to the main plot in the two books was handled really well. I was anxious about the ending of the romance but I wasn’t disappointed!

I really love Rin Chupeco and I can’t wait to read more from them.

I’m going to start this off by saying. Book 1 (silver under nightfall) was my favorite book in 2023. And court of wanderers became my most anticipated read. I preordered a physical copy ($30). I could not stop thinking about book 1 so I tried to re read it. And then I found out NetGalley was offering this as an arc. I jumped at the opportunity to get this book. So imagine my disappointment when this was one of the worst books I have ever read. I loved these characters but they were not enough to push me through this book. Reading is subjective I know that but I canceled my preorder and will never read another series by this author. This book was drastically different from book 1. Everything you love in book 1 was taken out of this. My favorite part was the characters. They have no development whatsoever in this book and that’s what I wanted to see. They were still in the awkward stage of their relationship where they can’t even talk to each other. And Remy is still questioning whether or not they want him. But their sex life is perfect. I saw a review that said you can sum up all these characters in 2 words on good reads and they were not lying. Xiodan (kind and horny), Remy (talkative and horny) and Zidan ( smart and horny). Their whole relationship is built off sex. In the first book it was more of a slow burn and tons of tension and in this book I was hoping that it would progress and have some spice sprinkled throughout the book. But all we got was non stop arguing scenes between the characters. And then badly written smut scenes in every chapter and not only that but it was halfway fade to black. So it wasnt even worth it. What’s the point of writing spice in every chapter if it’s basically fade to black? And then when they weren’t having sex they were talking about it!!! And the vampire court politics involves sex. How am I supposed to take them seriously if they are having Remy and Xiaodan perform sexual acts in front of all of the vampire court nobles. Not to mention the human pet sex slaves?!? This book was creepy and weird. I like smut just like the next girl but this was horrible. And where tf was the plot?!? If you liked book 1 you might like this. But if you wanted development, plot, and amazing tension between the characters like you got in the first book then skip this and pretend book 1 was a standalone. I feel horrible if the author sees this review. But if they do I hope next time they decide to build off of what they already have written rather then whatever this was. I’ve heard some people actually like this so still give it a shot. But I’m just so grateful I was able to read this book here for free rather than the $30 hardcover. Because $30 for this disastrous book would have sent me over the edge. That’s all. Ima give it 2 stars on here but tbh it’s like 1.5 stars. And I rated book 1 six stars.
(Sorry for any grammatical errors. I won’t be editing this review)

Court of Wanderers was going to be one of my most anticipated books of 2024, but I got to read an ARC in October!!! And since this is only a duology, I was able to finish this amazing series in less than one year! It's such a bittersweet moment, and I'm going to miss Remy, Zidan, and Xiaodan. Ugh. That's the sad part about duologies and bingeing series, the magic is over too quickly. But, these books have captured my vampire-loving, fantasy-obsessed heart, so a reread may come in the very near future.

The three main characters are all back for this sequel, and they're trying to navigate their new relationship while dealing with bad vampires and undead monsters. Remy, as always, is a cinnamon roll in knight form, and I LOVE that his is the only POV we get. Too often authors use dual POV and it takes away from the mystery of the other characters, especially when it comes to romantic tension. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a romance. It's a fantasy similar in vibes to The Witcher, Empire of the Vampire, and even Van Helsing, the Hugh Jackman gothic paranormal film (not the original Dracula character). But all of those also have some interesting romances within the overarching storyline, and there's plenty of action, politics, and scheming to keep everyone entertained.

As for our other two characters, Zidan and Xiaodan, they're trying to figure things out. Zidan with leadership thrust upon him, and Xiaodan with her unreliable powers. I just adore these three characters' dynamics. One kind-of human, two vampires, and a lot of trouble.

With the plot, everything was so fast-paced, in a great way. I devoured it all. And even though I did forget a few details between reading book one and book two, it was very easy to get back into the world and story. It's a digestible fantasy. I will say that the ending was a little crazy and convoluted. Nothing terrible per se, but I would have preferred a little less chaos in that last 10%, or at least another chapter or two to settle things down after the craziness. There were also a few too many villain monologues, which made those last chapters a bit cheesy. Still loved the book, however.

All in all, I read Silver Under Nightfall in August of 2023 and got to read Court of Wanderers in late October, and now I feel like no other book will live up to this story. I want more! Ugh! Just give me domestic Remy, Zidan, and Xiaodan scenes, Rin Chupeco. Please! But anyway... Trust me, if you're a fan of The Witcher, Empire of the Vampre, Van Helsing, From Blood and Ash, or any other vampire paranormal story, this duology should be your next read.

4.5 stars

*Note: I received a copy of this book to review via NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion/review.