I really loved this one. At times it was a bit more difficult for me to focus, but the story itself, to me, was nice and fresh. Keep on writing, you're doing great. ♡

It took me a few chapters to really get into this book but once I’d adjusted my reading style preferences to vibe better with the authors writing style.. What a story!

I really enjoyed the unique world Rebecca has created and Cali is the most wonderfully flawed but badass FMC. I will absolutely be picking up the next book! It’s an absolute NEED to see how Calista and Azkiel get out of the unholy mess they’re in!

Thank you to NetGalley, Rebecca L Garcia and Victory Editing for sending me this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this ARC for my honest review.

This was intriguing to me but it just didn't land with me right now. I don't know if it is just not my reading vibe currently but I will pick it up again at a later date and retry it.

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC. It was alright. I was intrigued by the tournament, but it just was not for me.

I really enjoyed reading this book and am so sad it ended the way it did without the next book readily available. :( This book is a dark fantasy about witches/warlocks and gods and is a dual POV following Callista and "Death" Azkiel. It definitely threw me for a loop towards the end and I am anxiously on the edge of my seat while waiting for the next book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Victory Editing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my own opinion.

When you hold the power of a god that you shouldn't have, it's usually best to keep it a secret. But when one mistakes forces Calista to use her power in order to save her best friend, the future as she knows it is turned upside down.

When the vengeful God of Death, Azkiel, learns he cannot use his powers to kill Calista, he goes out of his way to make her as miserable as possible. But when he selects Calista's sister for the Harvest, a competition to the death every ten years, he doesn't anticipate Calista joining those on the island with the intention of saving her sister.

These two love to hate each other with every fiber of their being. The tension is definitely there. Neither can stand to be away, but they can't stand each other's presence, either. As they journey through the competition with the intent of stopping a long foretold prophecy, everything changes among them and their cohorts. Will they stop the prophecy? Will everyone make it out? Are they going to actually express their interest in one another? These are questions that continued to spiral during my read.

Dual points of view? Check
Slow burn? Check
Twists and betrayal? Check
God magic? Check

Complex world building and compelling characters - this is a great read for fans of Sarah J. Maas "Throne of Glass."

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review !

I wanted to love this, and I did at times, but there were times where it fell flat.


What I liked:

- The plot was SO good. I was extremely into the plot - who is the one in the prophecy? how were they going to figure out how to save that one? who was the person / people to trust? I loved that the book kept me guessing.

- This read like a short book. I finished this book so quickly.

- I did enjoy the world building. I didn't actually find it to be info dumpy as most reviews are complaining about. I thought the author did a great job blending it all in in the beginning,

- There was decent banter at times!


What I didn't like so much:

- I couldn't connect to the characters. I was like ALMOST there with the MFC and MMC. They share starvation for affection that neither of them have ever gotten, and I appreciated their backstories,

- The MMC was morally grey, and his redemption ARC was kinda there ? But I still wasn't swooning or really rooting for him.

- I also didn't get how we got from enemies to lovers - yeah they have trauma, but where was the yearning?? Where was the chemistry? I didn't get either of those.


Overall, I honestly still enjoyed the plot so much, I hope with the second book we get a bit more development in the characters and more chemistry.

A very interesting concept. I love a good villian gets the girl story. Unfortunately I found myself losing interest as there was too much needless inner monologue. I still would give this author another try as there is good bones to the book.

If you are a fantasy romance fan then you will absoltuely love this book. The world building is good and easily understandable, the characters are amazing. I don’t want give any spoilers but I am sure that this is going to one of the new tik tok books of the summer. Go buy it now

I really liked the plot of Night of Death and Flowers. I thought the magic system and overall world-building were unique and enjoyable. The cast of characters was actually fairly small. We do get introduced to a lot of side characters but they get little to no development. The bulk of the story focuses on four characters: Azkiel, Calista, Arabella, and Drake, which is honestly fine. I don’t really think the story suffers from it. It didn’t feel like we needed additional characters.

Unfortunately, I did have some issues that prevented this from being a 5 star read for me. First off, while the beginning and end of the book were pretty strong, it fell a little flat in the middle. Once they reached the island, it just dragged a little until those four characters all synced back up, which took a while. Second, I think there was a lot of telling going on rather than showing. I just wish some stuff was fleshed out a bit more so we as readers could experience how the characters felt rather than just being told.

Now, for my third issue, I would definitely suggest taking this with a big grain of salt as I read an ARC of this book: it needed a heavy amount of editing. Normally I wouldn’t really mention it or care much about typos in ARCs because they are often uncorrected proofs, but Night of Death and Flowers had a lot of errors. Typos and repetition were the biggest culprits, though there were also a lot of issues with sentences being incomplete as written. Basically, I had to make a lot of inferences as to what I think was meant to be written, and while I do think I was able to infer everything, it slowed me down and broke immersion a bit. It is entirely likely that these issues were fixed prior to publication, but I did feel I needed to mention it just because the content itself was affected by a fair amount of these editing issues. Once again, the editing issue may be totally resolved in the finished copy. So I would definitely recommend reading it to find out for yourself.

That all being said, I really did love the plot and characters of this book, which is why I’m still giving it 4 stars. The story is great, and I’m excited to see where it goes in the next book! Night of Death and Flowers is a fun new romantasy that I think it worth checking out if you’re a fan of the genre.

Thank you Rebecca L. Garcia, NetGalley, and Victory Editing Co-Op for the ARC of Night of Death and Flowers. All opinions are my own!

WOW!

This was a fantastic fantasy novel! This book filled my ACOTAR withdrawal completely!

I can’t wait to get my hands on a hard copy and I definitely can’t wait for the second book to come out.

The premise, the world building, the creatures, the gods themselves, and the tension between the main characters was *chefs kiss*

I don’t want to give too much away but the plot twist had me gripping my kindle. I definitely didn’t see it coming. The novel left us on a cliff hanger but it set up the second novel beautifully.

Again, amazing novel.

Fates Carved In Stone. Others Created With Blood. A Dark, Gothic Fantasy.


Calista lives in Dahryst, a place home to witches, that is watched over by the gods. It is safe for those who live there, but deadly should Calista's secret come to light. For Calista has the ability that only the God of Death should possess. This is against the very laws of nature, and Calista must keep this truth from ever being revealed.

Death's touch could end Calista's life, ending in tragedy before she even had a chance to live. She swears she will never give the elders reason to end her life, except when the Harvest comes. The Harvest is a deadly tournament, a macabre event that Calista must put an end to. Even if it means the elders learning of her dark gift.

Now, her life is not the only one on the line. Calista's friend is now threatened by the power of the Elders. An Ancient prophecy is revealed to the reader when the God of Death returns. Azkiel reveals that his end will come from Calista's own hand. This cannot happen, and the Death God makes a plan that involves forming an alliance with the girl.

The story then reveals Calista grappling with her dark gift, her resistance to such a menacing magic. It is a part of her, and she hates herself for it. There are ancient mysteries that are slowly revealed over the course of the book, more truth arising.

Calista must save her friends and deal with a vengeful god.

This is truly an enemies-to-lovers. We see Calista slowly coming into her own character, accepting her power and herself, slowly, over time. It is a confidence and defiance against a dark fate. Calista becomes brave and learn of rituals and sacrifices.

The hunger game bit where 12 contestants fought to the death was not my favorite. I enjoyed the touch-her-and-you die trope that slowly began developing between the morally grey main characters. Also, I am always a sucker for a reincarnation twist. 🌟🌟🌟🌟/5 Stars!

• he falls first
• enemies to lovers, at its finest
• family drama
• delicious tension
• messy, but extremely fun banter scenes
• witches be "sandy spots on islands surrounded by the sea"
• gods/goddesses are "Richards"
.... all of this plus more!! Shadow daddy included!

Upon reading the blurb, this seemed exactly like my kind of book. I am such a huge romantasy reader and had extremely high hopes going in. That being said, I had quite a hard time getting into the story. I knew early on that the writing style was not for me personally. There were many instances where I felt as though there was more telling than showing and each character's thoughts were very repetitive.

I did really enjoy Calista's character! Her tenacity and fierceness which is vital in a strong FMC was so fun to see. The development of the relationship was so rushed and I wish we got to see a build up of their dynamic together. Overall, this book had an extremely interesting lore and magic system which I thoroughly enjoyed, however, there were many pacing issues that could not be overlooked and made it quite hard to get through. Since this is an arc review, I do understand that there could be changes to the final product and I will absolutely give this book another try and continue on with the next one.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Spiiiiicy! Loved this book. I think the characters were well written and thought out. The only critique I have is that I can’t stand authors who use cliffhangers. They are a cheap writing tool that good stories don’t need. This was likely encouraged by an editor, whose main jobs is to sell more books. Otherwise, the story itself had a good premise and setup the reader to get invested in the heroine’s happiness.

It was an easy read but left me somewhat disappointed.
I could not connect with the writing style, I felt it was a little to descriptive and obvious. I prefer when there's a bit more "show" and less "tell", if that makes sense.
The plot is very good though, just disappointed that it wasn't better explored.
Also feel like they weren't real enemies, the love part was too immediate.

"Night of Death and Flowers" is a thrilling dark fantasy romance that plunges readers into a world where fate is forged by blood and powerful deities maneuver in the shadows. Rebecca L. Garcia's meticulous world-building and robust character development craft a narrative that is both intricate and engaging.

Set in Dahryst, a sanctuary for witches, the novel introduces us to Callista, a witch with a deadly secret that could either save or doom her. When the ancient Harvest tournament threatens her and her loved ones, Callista’s resolve to end this brutal tradition collides with the return of Azkiel, the formidable God of Death. Their fates intertwine amidst prophecies and betrayals, leading to an intense enemies-to-lovers dynamic that sizzles with tension.

Garcia’s creation of Dahryst is a feat of fantasy literature, with witches wielding diverse magical abilities from dream manipulation to creation magic. The extensive glossary and pronunciation guide are thoughtful additions that enhance the immersive experience, allowing readers to delve deeper into this darkly enchanted world without hesitation.

The narrative excels in pacing and is laden with suspense, making it hard to put down. The romance between Callista and Azkiel is as intense as it is complicated, adding layers to both characters as they navigate their contentious yet irresistible attraction.

However, one aspect that puzzled me was the townspeople’s apparent obliviousness to the unfolding prophecy. For a society deeply entwined with divine will, this oversight seemed slightly out of place, slightly diminishing the otherwise stellar plot.

Despite this, "Night of Death and Flowers" is a captivating read that skillfully balances dark magic, divine machinations, and heart-pounding romance. The ending leaves readers eager for the next installment, hoping to uncover more about this intricately crafted universe and its compelling inhabitants. Garcia’s novel is a testament to the allure of dark fantasy and the power of well-crafted storytelling. Four stars for an enchanting literary journey that promises even more in its sequel.

Night of Death and Flowers by Rebecca L. Garcia is a wonderful Dark Fantasy Romance.
The character development and the plot development were amazingly written.
I loved reading every page of this book - there literally was not one boring chapter. The world the author has created is unique and the story is so intriguing it was almost impossible to put down.

Thank You NetGalley and Victory Editing for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you so much for the arc at NetGalley! I enjoyed this book so much. It had a magical hunger games theme to it as well as the Gods being thrown into the mix. You have two sisters who are complete opposites but are willing to fight and sacrifice for the other. While the MFC learns to embrace the darkness that her family has rejected her for she falls in love with Death himself. I cannot wait for book 2!