Radiance (Wraith Kings #1) by Grace Draven
“He saw her as she’d always seen herself – as simply Ildiko. For her, it was enough; for him, a gift beyond price.”
As the “spares” in the royal hierarchy both Ildiko and Brishen both did not expect a marriage of importance. To solidify an alliance, Ildiko a human is married to Brishen a Kai. Though one is natural to day and the other natural to night, they learn that even coming from different backgrounds their hearts soon become entwined.
The Story
This book is the definition of a slow burning romance. Really, although there are a few moments in the book not spent getting to know each other, nothing really happens….the whole time. With that said, it’s still incredibly easy to gobble this up and watch as Ildiko and Brishen adapt to each other. Since they are mutually repulsed by each other, it was a joy to see how their hearts changed the way their eyes saw each other.
Disclaimer:The epilogue sets the pretense for the next book and therefore may be construed as a cliffhanger.
Also, to be clear, I hate this book cover. I have seen good reviews on this, but thought it the perfect book when I saw that the 2018 POPSUGAR book challenge included “a book with an ugly cover”. So even though this isn’t the ugliest I still consider my ugly book cover accomplished.
The World Building
The only world building is really spent on the Kai culture. The small details that make a wraith race seem a little more magical really helped with accepting the inter species romance more palatable. Having the POV change from Ildiko to Brishen really made a unique story as you got to see each of their cultures through a stranger’s eye.
The Characters
Okay, let me just say I love both of our main characters. BUT, they are just too perfect. Ildiko is just too adaptable and accepting. Brishen is just too respectful and admirable. Our characters pretty much had zero flaws except for the fact that they weren’t more important to their kingdom.
The Soundtrack
Radiohead – Creep
