They serve no real purpose outside of trying to force a competition format, and the performances for an adoring crowd distract from the rulers’ actual goal of trying to ‘solve’ the prophecy. The demonstrations come off as side quests to a larger storyline, and that larger storyline is…..guessing where things are and then going to look for them. It can get repetitive and feel as though the plot is stalling, and during those slowed-down periods you keep wondering things like, ‘ So why did nobody try working together to free themselves before?’ or ‘ What was the point of making official alliances if people can just ignore them?’ or ‘ Why are the townspeople cool with hosting all these balls for the aristocrats who can’t seem to solve, like, one (1) riddle?’ A hundred hints that say they actually care about you? I still think you want to kill me and I refuse to consider anything else. Some of the book subscription boxes do sell individual titles. (Their subscription books are also fantastic, but I tend not to find a use for all the added merch they come with, so they’re not super cost effective in my case.) Some of the most popular subscription services include:

First and foremost, it's impossible to get a real grasp on stakes. These lands have been suffering with their curses for five hundred years. And some of the curses are gnarly! The wildling's curse is that they have to eat a human heart every month to survive. But then, the people here live to be very old? Which, presumably means that they don't have very many children. The population can't be that high, because it wouldn't be sustainable if people are living longer. So how do they have even a year's supply of hearts? It's explained to us that the wildlings are dying, that their realm is losing power, that they don't have enough hearts to sustain them, but it's so hard to have a good grasp on exactly what's going on because there are so many variables that are vaguely explained. Are they at half their power, a tenth? How big are they compared to other realms? How many people do they lose a year? We need to understand the stakes! Please! this was disappointing on SO many levels, i don't even know where to start. i almost screamed when i got the audio-arc thingy cause this was on my "anticipated releases" tbr and all, but now i regret even requesting this book on netgalley (it was probably an auto approve arc anyway lol). i've been following alex aster for a while now and she seemed like a really nice author, replying to my messages, and i have nothing against her but alex, really? i mean, come on. this book wasn't even good. hell, this book didn't even contain the TROPES and QUOTES that we were promised, you know, the ones she posted on tiktok for the purpose of PROMOTING her book. ironic, right? ok also the other two female realm rulers are basically identical when you look at their character art. they’re both white and very pale with light hair and their realms are night sky based. their names also both begin with the letter C. idk why you would do that. the curses attached to all of the realms are uneven and silly and the mechanics needed to break all of them are absolute gobbledygook. i had my friends explain the rules to me like five times, which is bad considering i got all of the mistborn worldbuilding while listening to the audiobooks too. Sequel is called Nightshade (duh, Isla is half Nightshade because her dad was some Nightshade general and all signs point to Isla x Grim endgame)Grim was in bed with Aurora. Oh I didn't really talk about this but like, the whole reason Aurora/Celeste even managed to spin the curses was because she promised to sleep with Grim if he found her the heart of Lightlark. Yeah the heart that took Oro and Isla like 50 days to find?? Grim found it in one night in exchange for sexy times. Diversity? An attempt was made. As we learn more about the world, we see more people, and they're more diverse than in the first book. I have my criticisms about how in books like this, race only feels skin deep, but an attempt was made. Is it a successful attempt? It was a step in the right direction that's for sure. With maybe one of the most interactive cover reveal processes ever (letting readers vote on TikTok and then revealing the winner on a Times Square Jumbotron), it’s probably safe to assume that the early hype around Lightlark is going to be enough to propel it to the top of many people’s TBRs. But these kind of super popular YA Fantasy books are usually hit or miss for me, so I went into Alex Aster’s debut excited, while also managing my expectations. How do I find exclusive, special and limited edition books? Advice from a long-time collector. Introduction

Grim (bootleg Rhysand - seriously, he comes from a night themed realm/court and can read minds - but somehow, 13239x creepier. Every time he's mentioned he's "raking his eyes over Isla's scantily clad body." Not at all swoony. I would not trust this man to hold my drink.) my point in this review is not that this book is good. i don’t think it is. it’s that comparatively, i find it unfair for y’all to shit on it but then go read (insert book) and sleep with it under your pillow every night. If you take away everything else, this book is just poorly written and nonsensical. It’s bad. And not in a guilty pleasure sort of way, but in a “I’m offended that you thought you could sell this to readers” sort of way. And honestly, if I was the editor that was in the YAlit Reddit thread arguing with people in the comments, I would be embarrassed to admit that I edited this book. If this is the final product, I can’t imagine what a first draft looked like. while threatening a ghost] Isla pulled her new dagger from her waist and brandished it. “Don’t take another…float.” I also suspected Isla's dad was probably Nightshade so I'm glad Aster came through on predictability there.Update: I was kindly given access to an audiobook on NetGalley and can now divulge a full, honest review! Fair warning, I was right about this being an ACOTAR ripoff with terrible prose. I feel thoroughly validated lmao i would like to make one thing clear- i am a hater first, and a human being second. i legitimately can not believe that i’m typing this review out in DEFENSE of a book. i’m almost repulsed.