The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King

by Carissa Broadbent

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

If you threw your copy of The Serpent of Wings and Night across your room out of sheer disappointment that it ended — the sequel is finally here! Return to the world of Nyaxia with plenty of more romance, action and court intrigue.

This new hardcover edition of the bestselling The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King features new case art, a detailed map, and a never-before-seen bonus chapter!

From the New York Times bestselling author Carissa Broadbent, comes The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King, the gutting second installment of the Crowns of Nyaxia series, full of heartbreak, redemption, blood intrigue and heart-pounding action.

Love is a sacrifice at the altar of power.

In the wake of the Kejari, everything Oraya once thought to be true has been destroyed. A prisoner in her own kingdom, grieving the only family she ever had, and reeling from a gutting betrayal, she no longer even knows the truth of her own blood. She’s left only with one certainty: she cannot trust anyone, least of all Raihn.

Raihn’s own nobles are none too eager to accept a Turned king, especially one who was once a slave. And the House of Blood digs their claws into the kingdom, threatening to tear it apart from the inside.

When Raihn offers Oraya a secret alliance, taking the deal is her only chance at reclaiming her kingdom–and gaining her vengeance against the lover who betrayed her. But to do so, she’ll need to harness a devastating ancient power, intertwined with her father’s greatest secrets.

But with enemies closing in on all sides, nothing is as it seems. As she unravels her past and faces her future, Oraya finds herself forced to choose between the bloody reality of seizing power—and the devastating love that could be her downfall.

Reading Order:
The Serpent & the Wings of Night
The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250343154
Publisher:	Tor Publishing Group
Publication date:	06/04/2024
Series:	Crowns of Nyaxia , #2
Pages:	608
Sales rank:	298
Product dimensions:	5.38(w) x 8.25(h) x 1.35(d)

About the Author

Carissa Broadbent has been concerning teachers and parents with mercilessly grim tales since she was roughly nine years old. Since then, her stories have gotten (slightly) less depressing and (hopefully a lot?) more readable. Today, she writes novels that blend epic fantasy plots with a heaping dose of romance. She lives with her husband, her son, and one perpetually skeptical cat in Rhode Island.

Editorial Reviews

04/08/2024

Broadbent completes her Nightborn Duet duology (after The Serpent and the Wings of Night) with a satisfying if somewhat overlong resolution to the political turmoil within the House of Night and the relationship between its two fated heirs. Half-vampire Oraya of the Hiaj is still reeling in the wake of her father’s death at the hands of her lover, Turned vampire Raihn of the Rishan, who has tenuously assumed the throne of the House of Night. Publicly, Oraya is Raihn’s captive queen, but privately he seeks her sincere allyship. As Raihn struggles to establish his authority both within the House of Night and with the vampires of the other houses, Oraya attempts to learn more about her father’s legacy and her own power. She discovers that, through her blood connection to her father, she’s able to use several of his magical artifacts and may be able to access his grandest treasure, the captured blood of a dead god. Broadbent builds realistic and gripping tension as Raihn and Oraya navigate the roles of rivals, lovers, and potentially co-rulers. While the first installment was delivered primarily through Oraya’s point of view, here Broadbent alternates between Raihn and Oraya, giving readers a deeper sense of Raihn and supporting a pivot toward stronger romance. There’s plenty here to sink one’s teeth into. (June)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King:

"Broadbent builds realistic and gripping tension as Raihn and Oraya navigate the roles of rivals, lovers, and potentially co-rulers... There’s plenty here to sink one’s teeth into." – Publishers Weekly

Praise for the Crowns of Nyaxia series:

“Fans of dark romantasy won’t want to miss this.” – Publishers Weekly, starred review

“[A] haunting, action-packed political fantasy with a doomed romance at its center, full of heartbreak and intrigue.”– Library Journal, starred review

“Danger, intrigue and a hell of a lot of blood are splashed across the pages of Carissa Broadbent’s gripping fantasy romance” – Bookpage

"A heart-pounding, ultra-slow-burn romance." – Bustle

"Slow burn that pays off" – Vulture, "12 Romantasy Authors to Know"

"Carissa Broadbent's The Serpent and the Wings of Night has all the fun of A Court of Thorns and Roses, but it will also appeal to Twilight fans." – Insider

"This suspenseful, unputdownable novel is perfect for fans of The Hunger Games — with a fantastical vampire twist!" – Woman's World

"If you are a fan of dangerous fantasy worlds, bloodthirsty vampires, swoon worthy romance and a completely terrifying deadly competition, The Serpent and the Wings of Night is going to be a book you will love." – Book Briefs

"Unputdownable!" – FIRST for Women

From the Publisher