Heir to Dreams & Darkness is the final book in the Court of Broken Bonds trilogy, so if you haven't yet picked up this series, you can now binge it all at once!

In Heir To Dreams & Darkness, we return to Aldian for, among other things, a suicide mission, the impossible task of defeating a powerful otherworldly demon, and epic battles.
Amidst all the action, at the heart of the novel, are all the relationships Max has forged over the course of the series: found family and family found. I loved the dynamics between the siblings, and the passion between Max and Simion. In the end, we get a hard-earned and perfectly bitter-sweet conclusion to Max and Simon's story.

You will enjoy this series if you love:
- Elemental magic and mages
- Dragons and dragon riders
- MM romance
- Arranged marriage
- Deadly trials
- Some spice

This was such a wonderful conclusion to the series. I binge read the entire trilogy in little over a week and was not disappointed by the outcome. I have read many other of Alderson's books so I had high expectations for this series finale. Max and Simion's relationship is so beautiful, painful, and so well rounded. There was the perfect amount of action and romance. Often time many fantasy books overwhlem the book with romance, but their story fit perfectly. What is so interesting about this series and specifically this book is the time travel, many fantasy books do not deal with time travel, but the way it functions in this story is perfect.

I did shed some tears towards the end of the book and was overall satisfied with how it was all wrapped up. Definitely one of my favorite reads of 2024 so far.

I have been enjoying this series from book one. Queer, magic, dragons and trying to save the world, what's not to love?

I loved seeing Max come into his own. From not knowing who he really is to being a power, dragon riding mage. Max and Simion's relationship evolution from the beginning of book one to book three was a delight to read. Everyone deserves a partner like Simion! I also love that all the other characters felt fleshed out, interesting and I really cared about what happened to everyone involved.

I enjoyed how the magic and power worked and were explained. Not everything came easily and characters had to work for what they receive. Throughout the series the stakes continued to get more and more dire and the ending felt earned. It's also difficult to write time travel and have it make sense, so kudos to Ben there!

Also can I please bond with and have dragon?!

Anyone who was wishing Merlin turned out gay, loves magic and dragons will enjoy this series!

Thank you to Ben Alderson, Netgalley and Second Sky for the ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The thrilling finale in the Court of Broken Bonds Series opens with a suicide mission, continues with an impossible task and ends with an epic battle. Seriously, how much more could we want?
I cried so, so much during this book. (Why Ben? My heart) There was so much lost and more won and I just couldn't handle it.
I fell in love with the characters and the ending is making me think there's the possibility for more in the same world.
I would love more stories in this world (but pls don't break my heart the way I think you're going to, Ben, oh my god).
The romance was extra steamy and really well written. I genuinely could not put this book down, but I can't really explain why without spoilers so you have to believe me.
You want to cry about gay mages? This is the book for you.

Yet again, another amazing series by Ben!

Heir to Dreams and Darkness was an incredible conclusion to the Court of Broken Bonds trilogy.

I was smitten and obsessed by Max and Simion's story and I was constantly full of anxiety about how this series would end as I wanted our lovebirds to be happy! I was not disappointed. The chemistry between Simion and Max was fantastic as always.

I was overly emotion during the battle with Lilyth, crying at the sacrifices being made! But I consumed this book and regret nothing! No spoilers I promise but DRAGONS!!!

It's a bitter sweet ending due to the fact this series is now finished but I loved every moment of it and will continue to read Ben's books!

I will read anything Ben Alderson writes, but this series started off so strong and just aas a let down by the end of it. There was a new person to care about just to die by the end of the book every book in the series and it just became predictable. The tension failed to deliver for me because it felt so formulaic. And I wish that the tension between Simion and Maximus had held out for longer. That Max betrayed everyone and they just went yeah we knew already and its fine actually because we stopped you lost me. This series lacked payoff for how excited I was from book one. Not enough that I've lost my trust in Alderson as an author, I will still read him religiously but I won't be revisiting a court of broken bonds

📕~ Heir To Dreams and Darkness
✍🏻 ~ Ben Alderson
⭐~ 5/5
🌶️ ~ 2.5/5

✨ I received an ARC, and anything shared in this review is solely my opinion! ✨

Wow, what a heartfelt ending to an amazing trilogy from the start. This last book had me in so many twists and turns that I spent nights continuously up to read the following chapters. 

Ben's writing has always captured my attention from the very beginning, and he did it from chapter one of this book. I always say that Ben has a way to instantly put the reader into his world, like you actually see all the scenes before your eyes unfold. It is like being transported there and having a front-row seat to all of what's going on. 

Max and Simion will always have a special place in my heart, as from the first book, they were crafted and written for you to love them. They went through some battles in Book 3, but in the end, they came out as the winners. The love between them conquered all! 

The plot of the story continued to develop at an increasing pace, getting back to its starting point, where everything was slowly coming to an end and forming a puzzle for the story. I would say that book 3 was heavily featured in the plot, though it has some spicy scenes. I will forever and always keep in my heart Simion and Max's story, which Ben wrote in an incredible way.

Thank you to Second Sky Books and Ben Alderson for the opportunity to read Heir to Dreams and Darkness! This meant a lot to me!

Thank you first and foremost to Ben Alderson, SecondSky Books & NetGalley for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Where to begin, A Court of Broken Bonds has captured me and my attention since the very first book. I have adored Max from the beginning and this bond between him and Simion has held my heart in its hands from the moment they met.

Book Three... the final book, the finale... something I wanted desperately to read but never wanted to end. This book, much like the previous two, broke my heart and made me cheer and laugh in so many ways. I have shed tears of joy and sadness in near equal measure. I will be forever changed by this book.

“As one we are great, as few we fail” - great spin on “United we stand, divided we fall.”


Maximus – From the moment I met you in Book 1 I knew you were going to be special. Just how special I had no idea. From one book worm to another I love you, so much. Your love of literature, books, knowledge has made it so easy to slip into your shoes. Watching you mature and grow over 3 books has been an honour.

In this book you took up the mantle of protector, of mage, of King in a way made me love you and nearly hate you in equal measure. Your need to do everything on your own made me ache, I cried for you when you lost so much and yet still pushed on, pushed further, did what you thought was right to protect your world. The things you were willing to give up, to lose, in order to make things right were... incredible and painful and watching you make those decisions, mostly on your own, was nearly heartbreaking. I am so glad you got your happily ever after with Simion.


Simion - every word you speak, every action you take makes me love you just that little bit more. From the moment you arrived in Book 1 to who you are becoming now in Book 3, I am so happy & honoured to have been on this journey with you and Max.

"Because *you* are my passion, Max." Simion! You beautiful man!

“Power is not in what we have, but what we do” - chapter 13

These are two of my favourite quotes from our dear Simion. The silent strength, the beautiful love hold for Max and the life you two build for and with each other is absolutely incredible. You know Max so well and your ability to work with him even when he insists on trying to do everything alone just makes my heart swell with love. We should all be so lucky to have such an amazing partner as you.


Oh Leska - I hated you at first even if I understood your grief and pain, but you have become one of my favourite characters and your relationship with Max has grown so beautifully. I hate the pain you've gone through this book but oh, oh the strength and determination that has been wrought through it is incredible. I will never forget you Leska, you have been an amazing character to get to and grow to love. Thank you for everything.


Beatrice – As Max's best friend and Simion's sister you've had a front row seat for so much of this. You've lost and gained so much but stayed as true to yourself as possible. I love you so much you beautiful badass.

The Story – ho-ly shit what a roller coaster. When I started this series I never would've imagined that it would have ended like this. Time travel very often makes my brain hurt and while it did on occasion in this book I love how it was explained, I love how it was made possible, and as heartbreaking as they were, I love that travelling into and “messing” with time had consequences. And not easy ones either.

The search for Celia, the search for the conduits and the ultimate battle all slotted into place in such a way that it all made sense to me within the world of Aldian and the magic and beings that Lilyth created. Do I wish that the antagonist had a different name? Maybe a little bit but she was still incredible.

I never wanted this book to end, I wanted to stay in Max and Simion's world forever, to learn more about the new Sorcerers and what happens after the final battle in more detail.

I loved the time jump at the end, being able to see what Max and Simion are up to so many years later, how they're dealing with Max's condition just all of it was a lovely surprise.

I would absolutely read another 3 or another dozen novels set in this world, it wouldn't even need to follow Max and Simion, maybe a book about Beatrice and Elaine? Or others we've met and learned to love (or hate) along the way.

As sad as I am to see the series end for the first time, I can't imagine not re-reading at some point because I love these books so much, I love these characters so much and I have loved their story from start to finish and every happy and heartbreaking moment in between.

Such an amazing MM romance with fantastic world building and thrills! This story was fantastic, well written and incredibly dynamic!

Loved it . I have started reading all of this author’s books . The world building is great the characters are always loveable. A great read. Can’t wait for the next series. Gripping stuff.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book! It was an amazing fantasy with all sorts of characters plus MM romance. Which was beautifully done! I will now be reading his entire backlog!

Well it has been a few days since I finished this book and I am still thinking of it. I thought book 2 was an emotional roller-coaster, but this was like the roller-coaster was going at warp10. As with other two books in the series I was always team Max and at times either wanted to give him a big hug or give him a shake and ask him "what he was playing at".
The chemistry between Simion and Max was on fire and I enjoyed reading their journey to find love with each other.
This book had me torn, One I was eagerly swiping the pages as I was drawn into the battle with Lilyth, nearly brought to tears with the sacrifices they all had to make but then I didn't want the story to end I wanted to read more of this found family.
The epilogue wants me wanting more and if there was a spin off then I will be the first in the queue to buy it. I am glad that I have found this author and I am off to read their other books

What an amazing conclusion to this trilogy!!

To start: of course a villain named Lilyth is going to make me want to scream in frustration. I love a well-written enemy and she definitely fits the bill!
Max and Simion FINALY get a break at the end and I was so happy to see their HEA. They had gone through so much with battles, losing friends, and being kept apart that I felt like I could let out a huge sigh of relief when they finally got together.
Thank you Ben Alderson and Second Sky Books for letting me be an ARC reader through the entire series!

This was a beautiful and fantastical story with lots of wonderfully written scenes full of magic and romance. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and how we each character was developed. You can tell that the author, Ben Alderson pays attention to detail and that he develops his characters in a clear and descriptive way that helps you immerse yourself in the story. His world building is equally as good and I got a true grasp for what the environment looked and felt like along with the characters and how everything interacted cohesively.

My one hang up was that the magic itself seemed to not have much precise development, especially with where its limitations were, and a lot of it was more interpretation than concrete understanding.


The romance between Simion and Max alone is worth the read.

★ ★ ★ ★ • 4

Another fantastic sequel to a great series by Ben Alderson. I enjoyed Heir to Dreams and Darkness just as much as the previous books, but at this point I have to admit that I’m at least a little biased because anything Ben Alderson writes you can bet that I’ll be reading. New book by one of my all-time favorite authors? Immediately yes.

There’s really not much I can say about the plot, because this book is the third in the series… But if you’re seeing this review and you’re not familiar with the series, in a nutshell Court of Broken Bonds is for fans of BBC’s Merlin TV show that wished Merlin and Arthur ended up together… (So really, what’s not to like?)

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"Power is not in what we have, but what we do."

I'm this third and final book in the Court of Broken Bonds series, Max, Simion and others have to prepare to fight a world-consuming demon that's quickly approaching, and doing so required uniting the North and the South, which have been at war for longer than anyone can remember. Will they survive, or will Lilyth kill off another planet, like she has others before?

The publisher promised a story "full of spicy romance, heartbreak and epic action"—and they weren't wrong! There was lots of epic action scenes, battles and monsters and magic. I can't even begin to count the amount of times I felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest because of things that happened to the various characters! And there was definitely more spice in this book than the first two combined, so be warned!

One thing that caught me off guard with this book is how funny it is! Max and Simion made me laugh out loud so many times from the start, with their sarcasm and snarky replies! But I also love their love for each other—every time Simion called Max "my love", I absolutely melted!! I'm completely in love with them as a couple and I can't believe I've reached the end of their story! Ben Alderson really knows how to write relationships—the love, the communication, the consent and the care they have for each other... It's every person's dream, to find someone who treats them the way these to do each other. I absolutely loved witnessing their relationship unfold, through good and bad, and I was not disappointed with the ending, despite the emotional roller coaster leading up to it!

Of course, there's also drama, and the end of the world approaching. Dragons and Dryads, Nymphs, and Phoenixes that possess people... And time travel!! That was new to this book, and I found it fascinating how it works, and the effect it had on the story!

I'm writing this at 3am because I could not put the book down. It got to a point where I'd planned to stop but because of how the chapter ended, I couldn't, and I just kept reading until I reached the end! This book was highly addictive, and I couldn't recommend this series more, if you like gay fantasy romance with lots of action and magic, ancient gods, stories about friends, family, war and sacrifice, and happily ever afters (with a chance of a bittersweet ending)!

"In that moment, hidden on an island surrounded by ocean and storm, bathed in the light of phoenix flame, I learned that we could carve our own place in the world no matter where it was."

I also want to just throw it out there that I spotted a couple of ways in which spin-off books/series could emerge, and I definitely wouldn't be opposed to that!

Thank you so much, NetGalley and Second Sky Books for the ARC of the 3rd instalment in the Court of Broken Bonds series! I've been reading books 1 and 2 over the last few days because I got this ARC and I can't even begin to express how lucky I feel that I was able to dive straight into book 3 as soon as I finished book 2!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5!

A thrilling conclusion to the Court of Broken Bonds series. The stakes are ever higher to defeat Lilyth and so are the sacrifices. I liked the build up to the climax, but it could’ve been a little faster- I felt like there was a lot of waiting. I did appreciate that there wasn’t a magical fix-it for Max, I hate when books take away the sacrifices- it makes them cheaper and I’m glad Alderson didn’t do that. I do have some questions about the epilogue, but that’s okay.
Overall this was a nice conclusion to the series!

Heir to Dreams and Darkness is the titillating and exhilarating conclusion to the Court of Broken Bonds series and I devoured this book because of how much I enjoyed it!

Maximus Oaken and Simion Hawthorn have been a lot in a short amount of time. They've been pushed to the limits, had their bodies broken & mended, and through it all have continued to fight for their love. If you have been enjoying the other books in this series, then you know that everything at the start of this book is tense. Large threats are coming for them and those that they hold dear and the fate of the world is quickly coming into play as this conflict begins to play out. Introduce one of the most terrifying villains, Lilyth, and you have the recipe for this fantastic finale!

Let's talk about the fun fantastical elements of this story (and series). First and foremost, the magical system in this series feels inherently fun. Although we don't get the most explicit of answers on how it works, I love how emotionally impactful the magic system is. It just feels tied to the flood of emotions that the characters feel and I think that made it so much more fun in the middle of the fight scenes. Also, speaking of fight scenes, all of the fun mythical creatures that made an appearance in this series were a blast. I loved Ben's depictions of dragons, phoenixes, dryads, and nymphs. I loved how elemental it made this series and I loved how it all culminated together in this final story.

Another amazing element of this series is the romance. BEN ALDERSON KNOWS HOW TO WRITE ROMANCE. His stories are just full of heart-racing spice, delectable witty banter, and more. Max and Simion's love story is one that I was rooting for throughout this series and although I can't say how this story ends, the ending felt so right to their characters and this story.

In the end, I was racing to read the final pages of this series and found myself rooting for these characters as they faced their final battles. Readers are going to love this!

What a great and fun book! I really enjoyed the writing style it was a very easy and fast read with a great story and phenomenal built characters. Looking forward to reading more from this author. Was completely entertained!

I really enjoyed this final installment of the series and thought the ending tied everything up very well. There was a lot packed into this last book though which means that there was a lot to unpack. I'll be honest and say that some character development suffered as a result and new people were not given the time for us to actually care about them.

The ending was brilliant but there were two little scenes at the end which just felt incredibly odd. Obviously setting up for a spin off series rather than actually adding anything to Max and Simion's story. I didn't take away from the book though which was brilliant and brought all of the strands of Aldrian together beautifully.

I can't say much more without giving away spoilers but I will say that this has been a great trilogy and I have loved following Max as he grows from a servant to a king, and then on to honorable warrior.