This was such a great sequel! Love to see it!

And this really sped by for me (it probably helped that I read this back to back with The Hurricane Wars, the first book). This book picks immediately after the events of The Hurricane Wars.

I was so invested in what was going on. This world's politics - amazing! And, to me, it feels like the fantasy elements heighten in this book because of the incoming war. More things in this world get explained and shown to the reader (and I really liked that). I could see some people getting confused by it, but I really appreciate a world opening up as a series goes on.

Talasyn has to get married to Alaric (for strategic political reasons, of course) and they're trying to navigate that AND the politics of the world AND their actual feelings for each other AND what that all means for them and the world. And yes, they have fantastic banter. Their arguments are so good which makes their relationship very exciting (and sometimes frustrating to the reader, but it feels like it's supposed to do that). So they are very very slow-burn! And who doesn't love a slow-burn! But honestly, Alaric is smitten since day one, so he's pathetic in the best way (if you know, you know).

I am fascinated with the whole void situation and need to know more. I need more of the magic explained and shown to me (which means I need the next book!!). AND THE ENDING! This is a cliffhanger (in my opinion), so you have been warned.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My review on Goodreads is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly wrap-up.

WOW. I am speechless. It's SO rare for me to love a sequel more than the first book, but Thea Guanzon just said CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. And holy $h!t did she deliver!!! This book absolutely consumed me and it continues to live rent free in my head.

I thought The Hurricane Wars was such an interesting and well built world and I absolutely loved the influence of Philippine mythology. Thea did an incredible job of using the first book to create this world, develop the two main characters (and their enemies to lovers relationship) and really set things up perfectly for A Monsoon Rising.

From the instant I started this book I was hooked. I couldn't get enough of Alaric and Talasyn and I was an absolute sucker for every single one of their interactions. They just made my little heart so happy and I was LIVING for their banter and ALL the sexual tension!!! And the ending of the book had me in utter shock!

Honestly this book is a 1,000/10 for me and is without a doubt one of my top reads this year!!! My only complaint is that I need book three immediately. Like I would sell a kidney to read book three as Thea was writing it lol. BUT until I can get my hands on the third book, you can find me staring longingly out the window...or crying in the corner until Thea takes pity on me and gives us more Talasyn and Alaric!!!!

Good grief, this novel was absolutely outstanding! As much as I loved The Hurricane Wars — which I truly, deeply did — A Monsoon Rising has surpassed it in every way.

The world-building, character development, and intricate lore drew me in completely. The journey this story took me on was nothing short of captivating, and I’m on the edge of my seat, dying to know what comes next.

I wholeheartedly and enthusiastically recommend this series to anyone who loves immersive and compelling fantasy fiction.

First, I received and arc from Net Galley!

This has been a tough book for me to get through. The action is mild and the politics are a bit much for my liking. However, it is well written. If you can get through the first few chapters, it’s gets better.

I love this series!! I would recommend it for any Reylo lover out there. It has fantasy, drama, romance. They perfect bundle of everything.

4.5 ⭐️

Ok so, I loved The Hurricane Wars and I was hoping I’d love the sequel, A Monsoon Rising, just as much and I’m so glad that I did! I loved the storyline in this one and how it progressed from the first book. The plot of this sequel brought our 2 main characters together more than in the first, which was so fun, stressful, interesting, and frustrating and all in the best way 😂

A Monsoon Rising is definitely more romance leaning than politics leaning, which I didn’t mind at all. I definitely think that the next book (the third in the trilogy!) was set up to be more politics heavy, based on how this one ended, and I’m super excited for that! The tension between Talasyn and Alaric was sooooo good. There was so much will they/won’t they, should they/shouldn’t they.

If you liked The Hurricane Wars then I think you’ll love this sequel because I think it totally holds up!

Thank you Harper Voyager and Harper Collins for my copy of this!

A fantasy and romance spun in just as compelling and beautiful a way as its introduction, A Monsoon Rising is the perfect follow up to The Hurricane Wars. It is sure to be as large a hit as the first one. While it is difficult to review this book without giving too much away it picks up as though nothing else had happened after the first book, making the flow effortless and even more compelling. As someone who didn't read the first book until receiving access to the second (I heard terrifying things about a cliffhanger and they were not wrong) I was grateful for the way the books were divided up. I was easily sucked into the world and the characters and the second book kept that immersion feeling just as enjoyable as the first book. I cannot wait for A Monsoon Rising to publish so I can talk about it with everyone else!!

The way I begged for this ARC… Totally worth it!! Thank you so much, Avon and Harper Voyager!

This was a thrilling sequel to The Hurricane Wars. Packed with action, delicious tension, bickering turned banter, are we fighting or flirting vibes, and DRAGONS.

Thea really FED us with this book. It’s so good. The balance of the action you want from a fantasy book and the action you want from a romance was done really well, if you ask me. I loved watching these two go from enemies, to reluctant temporary allies, to all of a sudden not wanting to kill each other anymore.

And that ending?! My jaw is still on the floor. How soon can we get the next book??

Lastly, I just want to say I am one proud Filipina reading this book. I feel like I get to appreciate little details at a deeper level because I know what they are, but at the same time I don’t feel like it takes away anything at all if you don’t. Thea does such an incredible job incorporating our— and other SE Asian—culture into her stories and it’s just wonderful.

Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thea expect an itemized bill from my therapist because the ending of this book is CRIMINAL!!! 😭😫 How am I supposed to wait until next year for the final installment? I am SICK with worry!!!!

Y’all - this book doesn’t come out until the end of the year, and I am BEGGING you to read it. Omg. It was SO GOOD. Every moment between Talasyn and Alaric had me clutching my chest while simultaneously kicking my feet and giggling. We really get to see in this book them agreeing and working towards a better future together as they begin to lean in toward their feelings and trust each other.

Guanzon has me itching for more. I need to know what happens !! I need everyone to be okay !! GAHHH. Buddy reading this ARC helped me to sit and appreciate each section after reading and I know the final book will have me screeching like a pterodactyl the moment I set eyes on it.

If you enjoy enemies to lovers, Reylo fanfics, magic, dragons, forbidden love, constantly being stressed as you turn every single page, then this is the book series for you!!

CW: violence, sexual content, war, child abuse, torture, blood

This series has become a bit of an anomaly for me. It has so many elements that I love, but honestly I find myself skimming through so much of it just to get to the next romantic interaction between the two main characters. This is strange in itself because if you've read any other my.other reviews, you know that romance is usually what I enjoy least about a book.

There is something about this author's writing/world building that is so difficult for me to follow. I wonder if the audiobook would serve me better in that regard but truly full paragraphs are nearly unintelligible to me.

Also, I am really not a fan of miscommunication or lack of communication to drive the conflict.. It's incredibly frustrating. I LOVE a slow burn, but at a certain point (after two books now) can't they just have a real conversation?

Hey Thea! I have words for you about this ending!!!

Truly another spectacular hit from Thea and I enjoyed every second of it.

I love that we got more of the dragons and sort of history/folklore of them in this. There were so many twists where we found out new things and I couldn’t predict any of them.

This was also steamier than THW and I LOVED it. The angst combined with the fact that they are already married to each other was just amazing. The possessiveness and overall just WANT they had for each other was so intoxicating.

My heart hurts for them in such a huge way because of how future events are all up in the air and they come from different sides of the war. The third book is going to be positively painful.

This book set up the third one so well while also just being a great second book in a trilogy. I would read this over a million times. So! Good!

I also loved the relationship between Talasyn and Elagbi growing more fond and also the interactions between Elagbi and Alaric.

This book was just so funny at times, I couldn’t help laughing out loud. The banter and just overall humor of the characters was fantastic.

The tender moments and sharing in this made me want to sob!!! I want to hug Talasyn and Alaric so badly and never let go. They are my favorites forveer and ever. I can’t wait to see how it all goes down in the next book.

Thank you to HarperCollins Voyager for the ARC!

This was an amazing sequel to the Hurricane Wars! I felt it was really well paced and kept me wanting to know more! The Romance and the etiquette amount of spice is definitely a must-read recommendation. As a person who enjoys Romantasy books I still really enjoyed the dynamic and where it left off from the first.

This sequel. Oh my goodness, the things it has done to my sanity. I loved this book even more than the first. There were some times where the pacing felt a little bit slow, but it was quickly rectified within a chapter or two. And the ending has me absolutely reeling. I'll be thinking about it for months (or longer depending on how long it takes for the third installment to be released).

Talasyn and Alaric obviously made it through their wedding with minimal hiccups outside of themselves. Denying the attraction between the two of them is getting more difficult as they spend more time together. However, neither wants to get too close because of the secrets they harbor against each other. But emotions are definitely getting in the way of underlying politics in the best way possible.

I can't help but root for these two at every turn. They're both so lonely, so starved for affection, and so used by others that their honesty and unsurety is precious. I drink of every moment of it like my life depends on it. Obviously, their story isn't done yet. And I cannot wait to see how everything else unfolds around them.

AHHHH! Thea’s done it again. I knew she would. A Monsoon Rising is the PERFECT sequel to The Hurricane Wars. Our characters are even more rounded, the story had me on the edge of my seat. I’ve been obsessed and I stay obsessed. Chefs kiss.

Thank you to Avon Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the advance reader copy of A Monsoon Rising by Thea Guanzon.

I don’t often read Romantasy books but enemies-to-lovers and marriage of convenience…. say no more.

As we pick up with A Monsoon Rising, these two are very much still resisting each other. This book had the perfect balance of action for me (romance action and action action). I love these two - getting to see their thoughts and things left unsaid to the other is one of my favorite parts of this book. Even with the things left unsaid, these two further develop their relationship (Alaric has Talasyn giggling ya’ll!). Book two solidly takes us forward to the next phase of the story and now I settle in for the wait of the next book! Also, Thea Guanzon knows how to write some spectacular chapter endings!

A Monsoon Rising picks up where the first book left off - with Talasyn and Alaric married for political convenience yet also secretly (and not so secretly) lusting for each other while also attempting to save the world from the Void Sever in a whopping 4 months. I have some mixed feelings about this series in general. While the first one read a little YA, this second installment feels a bit more adult (a given with the more frequent spicy scenes) and a lot more romance heavy than politics heavy. It also felt as though the events weren’t high stakes: they are trying to save the world in 4 months from (essentially) a thousand-year-in-the-making explosion and they only practice together 4 times?! I get they needed the eclipses to make their magic stronger, but I think a little more prep would be warranted. Plus, the two did not really seem fazed by having to save the world. Also, the ending felt a bit rushed. We get this big scene while they are trying to save the world, a pretty big event happens, and then they move on to the masquerade party? And then more happens at the party that feels like it came out of nowhere. Despite all of these critiques, it was still an entertaining, fast read. I like the world and the magic system and I felt like we got some more background on our main characters that helped explain some of their decision making.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed book two. I feel like we got to see Alaric and Talasyn growing more together but with that said; I still just can’t stand Talasyn. I still feel like she’s very immature and I didn’t really see any character growth.

Now, Alaric; I love him. I liked him in book one and I love him in book two. I still feel like he’s too good for Talasyn but maybe book 3 will put me on her side.

I also didn’t see that ending coming and it makes me thrilled to see what happens next and to see how Alaric is going to react!!! I really just love him.

This is quickly becoming a favorite series of mine!!!

Thank you Harper Voyager for my gifted copy!

For reference, I am primarily a romance/romantasy reader so this book was definitely appealing to me.
When I received this ARC, I hadn’t read the first in the series so before I dove into A Monsoon Rising, I made sure to read Hurricane Wars. I have to be honest, I didn’t love Hurricane Wars, but again maybe it’s the romance and romantasy that I was seeking and that it lacked.
However, this book definitely made up for it a lot more. This book is higher in romance than the first in the series! We watch our two main characters brood over each other and we hear a lot more from our MMC! Good spice, good tension, overall a fantastic romantasy!

While I recommend this book, you most definitely need to read the first. Since I didn’t love the first one as much, it would be up to the reader if they’d like to dive into the series itself. You have to read a LOT of world building and multiple (it felt like) story lines before you get to this one.

This is a love letter to A Monsoon Rising.

Dear A Monsoon Rising,

You are amazing. You were everything I hoped you would be. Where your former self, The Hurricane Wars, was a lot of world building and the slowest burn of burns in the romance department, you were fast-paced and romantic and left me SWOONING. I am going to buy every special edition copy of you that is produced. Never change.

P.S. I simply cannot wait until the next book. I might die from the anticipation.

Love,

thatsalattebooks

5x1000000 stars

If you love romantasy, please go read the Hurricane Wars if you have not yet! You'll love this series.

Thank you netgalley for the e-arc!

“Oh, my sweet, guileless politician—what have you done now?”
I would like to begin this review with a tremendous thank you to HarperCollins for providing me the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for my honest thoughts. Congratulations also to Thea Guanzon on this publication and the success it has already earned!
“A Monsoon Rising” is the second installment in “The Hurricane Wars,” a Romantasy series that follows the enemies-to-lovers arranged marriage between a rebel warrior and the heir to the Empire. The former is a fiery, optimistic young woman, whereas the latter is a brooding, abused prince who is actually a *gigantic* cinnamon roll. Despite the tense backdrop of a brewing war (and possible world annihilation via natural disaster), much focus of the book rests upon the budding romance between our two newlyweds. Thus, readers should be aware—if you are ready for an indulgent romance, this book is perfect. If you want strictly high fantasy… I would keep this on the back burner until your mood swings toward romance, especially if you are a worldbuilding nut.
A huge strength of this book is the characters. Talasyn and Alaric are likeable and quirky, albeit a tad naïve. They possess tons of chemistry, and although each tries hard to hate the other, they cannot resist caring for each other. Talasyn and Alaric are the epitome of idiots in love, and I say that with fondness. There are plenty of moments that elicit laughter and amused groaning alike. Additionally, I like that this installation has portrayed more nuance to the conflict between the rebels and the Empire. Sometimes with this rebels-government dynamic, one side is clearly idealized as blameless and “good”, but not the case here—both sides have their winning moments, but both have committed atrocities. I found this much more satisfying and realistic, especially when I watched Talasyn and Alaric try to support each other while not sweeping their prior allegiances under the rug.
That said, Talasyn’s naivety can be a bit… frustrating. Yes, she was not raised in the royal life, but since serving under the tutelage of her grandmother and father, one would expect her to be more politically savvy or at least wary. Instead, she frequently accepts the words of politicians and potential enemies at face value—without question. She learns answers to the questions that burn within her through little effort, and both lead characters frequently ignore major red flags in the political situation around them—for example, if I was in their shoes, I would be *way* more concerned that the previous Emperor possessed enough strength to wipe out a whole warship. Although the romance is strong with this one, the political maneuvering is more aesthetic than substance. Additionally, this reader isn’t particularly fond of smut. The presence of smut in this book doesn’t make it bad (it’s totally a personal preference), but readers should be aware that this is an R-rated title.
In the end, I rated this book 3/5 stars—although I frequently had to suspend my disbelief, it was entertaining and cute, and I will pick up the next one!