Audience: Adult
Plot: 4 out of 5
Characters: 4 out of 5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5 out of 5
Keywords: Romantasy, Fantasy, Romance, Vampires, Magic, Amnesia, Memories, Friendship, Betrayal, Love Triangle, Dragons
Tea Pairing: Dragonfruit Desire Herbal by Plum Deluxe

Favorite Quotes:
“Trust yourself, always. Don’t fear the darkest path for it will always lead to the brightest light.” — Chapter 39
“We are stars colliding and night defying.” — Chapter 41

I received copies of this book through NetGalley from Bramble/Tor Publishing Group and Macmillan Audio. Thank you! All opinions are my own.

The Night is Defying is the continuation of the Nytefall trilogy, following the events of The Stars are Dying. Defying is a romantasy that focuses on the newly found Star-Maiden Astraea, who is determined to discover her memories, keep her freedom, and help those who have been awaiting her prophesied return. Meanwhile, Nyte is determined to stop his brother Drystan from raising a vampire army to conquer the world. Are these star-crossed lovers destined to destroy the world or save it?

Defying is told through dual-POV between Astraea and Nyte, which is denoted by the chapter headings. I thought the overall pacing of the novel was very well done – there was action, adventure, romance, and intrigue. Readers are piecing together Astraea’s lost memories along with her, with the hopes of discovering who had betrayed her and caused her death from before. Readers are left wondering who to trust, and who may have ulterior motives.

I have enjoyed this novel immensely! Readers who enjoy spicy romantasy should consider adding the Nytefall series to their TBR. I would recommend this series to fans of Carissa Broadbent (Crowns of Nyaxia series) and Jennifer L. Armentrout (Flesh and Fire series). I look forward to the conclusion of the series with The Dark is Descending at the end of 2025.

*The Night is Defying* is an absolutely incredible sequel! I adored every page of this book! I’m really trying to avoid giving away spoilers from the first book. One thing I can say—dragons make an appearance, and it’s awesome!

Astraea’s journey in this book was so satisfying. Watching her piece together her memories and fully embrace who she is made her even more of a badass in my eyes. I love how she refuses to let others dictate her choices or her identity. Her loyalty to Nyte is unwavering, and I admire how she doesn’t let other people’s opinions of him sway her feelings. Plus, the chemistry between them is *off the charts*! The spice factor is definitely turned up in this one.

We also get to experience Nyte’s perspective in this book, and I’m here for it! His love for Astraea is so deep, he’s willing to risk the fate of entire worlds just to be with her. Swoon-worthy, for sure. I also enjoyed seeing him open up a bit—though he won’t admit it, he’s got some friends now, and it’s nice to see him happy. Plus, he’s that perfect mix of morally gray and dangerously charming. Shadow daddy vibes all the way.

There are plenty of familiar faces, but also new characters who bring fresh dynamics to the story. Some I absolutely loved, and others… not so much. The new characters really expand on the world-building, making this dark and magical world feel even richer. My theory about one particular character turned out to be right, and let me just say, the reveal in the middle of the final battle was both devastating and thrilling. I’m still justified in my dislike for a certain character, though!

The ending left me gasping, “WHY?” I can’t believe I have to wait for the final book to see how this all wraps up! But at least it’s releasing in December, so not too long of a wait. The anticipation is killing me!

I sadly could not finish this book. I got 29% into this book which is 130 pages. The plot was boring and the Main characters were annoying IMO. I also didn’t like how much unneeded spice was in this book. I don’t typically like books with spice but can skip it if there is not too much. Also Nyte didn't really have much of a personality either. It seemed like he was just there to please and obsess over Astraea and do nothing else. I want the characters to have some depth.

Excuse me while I go stare into the abyss for the foreseeable future, or at least until book 3 comes out… Chloe really did that to us. Damn.

Another action packed book from this author. I didn’t think I could love Nyte any more than I already did from book 1, I was wrong. Nyte is like a mix of Xaden, Hunt and Casteel, but he’s also his own character with swoon worthy quotes. Another example of women writing for women. There were a few plot twists I saw coming a mile away and then some smacked me dead in the face and I had no clue. I was thoroughly entertained.

I still have so many questions!!

4 stars!

From a purely aesthetic standpoint, the covers and edges on this book are absolutely worth it. That alone has me itching to buy the shelf trophy despite having an online ARC from Netgalley. If that wasn't enough, the story certainly is. I love these characters so much. I love the growth Astraea keeps going through. I love poor Nyte and all his edges. I love their little found family. I resent being left on another cliffhanger but I will wait for bated breath for the next in the series and I'm certain it will be worth it.

ARC Review 4.5/5
This book was stunning. I took WAY too long reading it, and at some points I thought it was because I was frustrated with the story, but I’m looking back and realizing it wasn’t in a negative way. It wasn’t boredom or frustration with the story, it was with the characters because I wanted them to see what I did and choose a different path. That’s how you know you are invested, and I was.
I love Nyte and his endless support and obsessive love throughout Astraea’s journey to discovering herself again. He was lowkey so funny in this book and watching Astraea come to throw quirks back at him was delightful. Any lying by omission or deception was left in book one and I appreciated that just as much as Astraea did. She needed someone to trust and I’m so so so glad it was him. With the twist that book two ended with, I was extremely scared of what might occur in this next portion of their story, but I am holding out hope that our Nyte gets to not only be her villain, but her salvation for eternity.
The story may feel a little choppy, I felt it too, but I believe it’s set up that way to account for the process of her memories returning. So stick with it, I promise their love is worth the war.

“There is no star in the sky that shines as bright as you.” I combed fingers through the locks tipping over his eyes. “There is no darkness that defies the night like you.”

The Night is defying will have you feeling all of the emotions. There is a lot of character growth, with new friends we meet along the way. The betrayal at the end will leave you wanting to scream. The ending will leave you heartbroken and counting the minutes until we get the final book in the trilogy to see how it ends.. I liked the first book in the series and am happy I continued the series with this one and will be waiting for the next book to come out.

This was a very good sequel to The Stars Are Dying. The vampire romance and star crossed lovers trope reminded me of the Crowns of Nyaxia mashed with Zodiac Academy. With the added cliffhanger I just can't wait to read the next book!

First, thank you to Tor Publishing Group for this digital early copy!

Now for the review..

HOLY F-ING SH!T

The emotional rollercoaster I went on with this book..I’m still crying. Book 2 gives us so many answers to questions we were wondering in book 1 which I love. As we see the past unfolding, discoveries are made that I was not expecting at all. Also got to connect more with the characters and made me fall in love with them even more. I decided to purchase the audio and WOW! The narrators, Corvin King and Jacci Prior, did a phenomenal job with their performance. The audiobook is in duet style which is my favorite and truly brought the story to life. The way they were both able to voice multiple characters and voices had me in awe. Chloe please expect my therapy bill for this beautiful piece!

Overall rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I wanted to enjoy this so deeply but I found myself reading page after page and not feeling satisfied. I struggled to get through the last half of the first book but was really hoping that it was a me problem. I find that I’m not attached to the characters and for a character driven plot I feel that it’s necessary to at least enjoy one of the main characters.
Nyte is so hot and cold and delivers some great one-liners, but I wasn’t enamored with him as an MMC as I usually am two books into a series,
I’ve noticed that with both books in this series I found myself having to re-read pages because a chapter ended and I wasn’t sure if I missed something or not. I’m hoping that I feel different about this series with time, especially considering I love this authors Heir Come To Rose series.
All in all, not my cup of tea but I have no doubt that lovers of the first book will enjoy this second installment.

~ Forbidden Love
~ Dual POV
~ Found Family

✨ My Thoughts ✨
This was just a magical journey. We start off right where book one ended. Astraea is learning who she is. I loved reading her journey to do so. Nyte has my full heart. Getting his POV in this book was so nice. He truly is a villain you will fall for. I highlighted so many of his quotes. The banter and tension was so good. The spice was absolutely fire. The angst of the forbidden love was probably some of favorite. I loved seeing some of the side characters again. I loved the found family in this book. I love finding all the easter eggs from book one come into play with this book. This book also took me on emotional journey as well. The last hour of this book my heart racing, crying, and my jaw on the floor. I loved every minute of it. I am excited to get the final book in this trilogy.

The Night is Defying is book two in the Nytefall series. This series is recommended for 18+. As always please check TW before reading.

The Night Is Defying is an emotional, atmospheric journey filled with heartbreak, dark intrigue, and forbidden love. Chloe C. Peñaranda delivers a powerful sequel that sets the stage for even greater stakes in the Nytefall series. If you love morally complex characters, star-crossed lovers, and high fantasy with a dark edge, this is a must-read.

As a second in a romantasy trilogy, this falls hard into second book territory. Even more confusing, the timelines switch constantly, in a way that is very jarring from the story that the reader is already working desperately to grasp.

I found the first book, especially at the beginning, to be hard to follow but I was eventually sucked in. The structure of this book was such that not only was I not sucked in, but also as soon as I started to get into the groove, the timelines would switch and I was left scrambling for understanding.

The readers are brought back to the story of Astraea and Nyte, star-crossed lovers. Astraea is the daughter of dusk and dawn, the star maiden, who is just now getting her memories back from her prior life. Nyte, also known as Night's Death, is a fae-turned vampire, son of the evil king, and from another world. Being together is causing the stars to die but they cannot seem to stop boning.

I really think this series needed someone to sit down with some serious editing scissors because I kept asking myself, where is the point and how do we cut to it? I will read the next book because I hate when I am left without a conclusion. I see a ton of potential within this story and world but really need the editing.

If you are a romantasy fan, you may want to add it to your collection but I would recommend reading it first. This is a great public library purchase for those that already have the first book.

Thank you to Tor, Bramble, and Net Galley for the DRC. All opinions are my own.

So I did write a review already for this book on Goodreads , I’m sorry I wasn’t aware I needed to do both. I loved this book so much! I fell in love with the first book and honestly this book just sold me on the story completely . You’re doing great .

I love love loved this book! I can not wait to have it in my hands in the next week or so. I love this story, the world the love. It’s all just so magical and I can’t express how I love her writing.

Thank you for the opportunity to read The Night is Defying, it didn't quite work out how I hoped it would.

3.75 stars rounded up

I found the second installment in the Nytefall series to be a more fast, action filled read than its predecessor; Although at times the pacing did jump around a bit much which felt a bit inconsistent especially around the middle.
I adored Astraea and how her evolution as a character truly developed throughout the story, I genuinely felt as if i was going through her journey with her and I felt every bit of her emotional growth.
Nyte delivers on the tragic, dark, starcrossed vibes in spades and I am here for it. I feel like we got a bit more complexity with the layers of how nothing is ever completely one thing. You can be a villainous monster and yet have depth and be a victim with painful softness.

I genuinely adored the complete chaos, fast paced emotional investment that tugs you towards beautiful devistation. That ending!
Cannot wait for the next!

Thank you netgalley, Chloe C. Peñaranda, and Tor publishing group for allowing me to read this arc!

This sequel ended up being quite disappointing for me.

I fairly liked The Stars are Dying, admittedly with its major flaws. Despite the trope overload and sometimes absurd shifts in plot and in character, the premise was compelling. I was hoping that we would get some answers in the sequel to some of the glaring plot holes so I could make sense of it as a reader.

Unfortunately, I did not get that. One of the things I like about romantasy is that we get the complexities of circumstances and worldbuilding with romantic tension and exciting characters. The plot in The Nights are Defying is all over the place - we have flashbacks but only a couple, but then we have another romantic lead but also a rebellion? It wasn't clear where one plot point came from and how it connected.

The other issue I had with this sequel was the literal hot and cold vibes from Nyte: I totally get he is supposed to be the "big bad" but sometimes he is just fucking mean to Astraea and she goes in between hating and then falling head over heels for him. I love my enemies to lovers but sometimes there was just no lovers, just enemies and he was just being a dick for literally no reason.

I also did not care for some of the holes in the worldbuilding: I'm still not sure why they can't be in the same place at the same time (because they are both too OP? I'm not sure).

I would have loved this immensely more if we had more cohesive worldbuilding and a consistent plot. This had so much promise but I was unfortunately very disappointed.

Thanks to Tor Publishing and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for this review.

The Night Is Defying by: Chloe C. Penaranda

“Nyte isn’t the savior you pray for. But he’s the one you hope will answer anyway”

The Night is Defying started off a bit confusing and I was lost for second until I realized we went back in time and have dual point of views. It was so fun seeing the world and Astraea from Nytes point of view (he’s the villain we all love)

The Night is defying will have you feeling all of the emotions. There is a lot of character growth, new friends we meet along the way but also betrayal that will leave you seething. The ending is total chaos that will leave you heartbroken

If you’re looking for a romantasy with complex characters, romance and spice and dragons the Nytefall series is for you!

A big Thank You to NetGally for offering me the chance to read the Earc for The Night is Defying!

This book seems like it should have came before The Stars are Dying. Additionally, the beginning of the book didn’t connect with the ending of the first book. Both books actually seem like they could be standalone books. One might read both books to lock in who the characters are.