From bestselling author Danielle L. Jensen comes a thrilling new novel in the Dark Shores world, a series that Sarah J. Maas called “everything I look for in a fantasy novel.” THEIR BATTLES ENDED IN VICTORY Lydia returns to Mudaire to enter training at the healing temple. But instead of fighting to save lives, she’s convinced she is doing more harm than good. She delves into the history of the … delves into the history of the gods only to discover a truth that will change her life forever.
His birthright as commander of the Royal Army is finally in his grasp, but Killian feels anything but victorious. Burdened by his past, he embraces the darker side of his mark–and in doing so, risks starting a war.
BUT THE WAR HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN
Having defeated the tyrant Urcon, Marcus struggles to form a lasting alliance with the Arinoquians. But he is plagued by the knowledge that there is a traitor among his friends, and it could cost him everything that he’s fought for.
Torn between her growing allegiance to the Thirty-Seventh legion and her need to liberate her people, Teriana finds herself mired in a web of secrets. She embarks upon a path that will either save everyone she loves–or put them all in their graves.
Readers may read either Dark Shores or Dark Skies first!
Suggested series reading order:
1. Dark Skies or Dark Shores
2. Dark Shores or Dark Skies
3. Gilded Serpent
At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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If you enjoy action-packed, high-stakes adventuring fantasies with star-crossed romances, you will love this book.
WOW! what a brilliant and emotional fantasy story full of angst, and a slow burn romance that will grab you and won’t let you go. The whole series has been a fantastic ride. You need to read this series, is one of my favorites and this book is the best in the series. Please go reading the first book to enjoy the all. This is a very refreshing original series, with multiple POV that enriches the story and takes it to another new level, with a lot of action and adventure like Danielle L. Jensen knows how to deliver, and the world-building is phenomenal. The series starts with the prequel Tarnished Empire, then we have Dark Shores and Dark Skies, and ending with this astonishing book Gilded Serpent. Marcus, Teriana, Killian and Lydia will get you hooked from the start and the ending was mindblowing. Bravo Danielle you got me to do a standing ovation with this series!
Rated 4.5 Stars
Gilded Serpent was amazing. It was a little slow to start but when things got started my heart was in my throat the entire time. This book was truly a roller coaster ride in regards to my emotions and all that took place. A lot happened, questions were answered but there’s so much more I need to know. The was much action, intrigue, twists, turns and a cliffhanger that just might kill me. I need to know how this all ends as soon as possible. I highly recommend this series and eagerly anticipate the final book.
Copy provided by publisher through Net Galley
I am completely obsessed with the Dark Shores series. When the end was reached I cried a little because I’m so sad to be leaving this thrilling, chilling, and wonderful world and having wait another year for book 4 just because I want to spend more time here. These four main characters have embedded themselves in my reading heart and are not going to budge. I read Gilded Serpent on the heels of reading the first two books in the series so I’ve spent 1500+ pages with these characters and relished every single word and moment.
The story telling and structuring, continual world building, and beautiful writing of Danielle Jensen is a gift to readers who love Young Adult Fantasy/Romance books. Her writing is impeccable as she weaves tales of a magical yet corrupt world where four young adults are making decisions that impact themselves, their people, and each other. They meet their matches and have been fighting since the beginning of book one to maintain their scruples yet find a way to fight against those trying to silence and control them all the while falling and changing and growing. Between the four of them it’s hard to pick a favorite. There are secondary characters who make the story richer as well. Even the villains of the story are captivating in their unique way.
I’m just enamored with these fantastical adventure books. I put my Kindle down and told my husband I want to be a path hunter now and find my own xenthier stem to the Dark Shores just to play cards with Teriana, hug Marcus and Killian, and visit a library with Lydia. This is compelling reading set in an extraordinary world that is so well written, engaging, and just plain fun. I absolutely cannot wait to read them all again in anticipation of the release of book four.
Gilded Serpent is a phenomenal addition to the Dark Shores series! I love the Roman gladiator vibes, the love stories, the varied and immersive settings, the fantastical elements, the non-stop action, and Jensen’s writing style, which pulls you in from the first page. Told from all four main characters’ points of view, we get Teriana, Lydia, Marcus, and Killian’s perspectives throughout the story.
Teriana, Marcus, Lydia, and Killian are richly developed characters, and their stories are complex and complicated. I loved their different perspectives and how Jensen weaves their journeys together into one fluid, layered, and captivating story. Plus, the romances are wonderful, slow-burning, angst-filled swoon-tasticness!
The romance between Teriana and Marcus is perfection! This enemies-to-lovers pair is absolutely swoon-worthy and has amazing chemistry, witty banter, and wonderfully romantic scenes. Their experiences in this story definitely brought them even closer, and as they let their guards down, their bond grows even stronger. I loved their love story and how they support and help each other. The way they hold each other up and work together shows how connected they are. This pair went through so much in the story, yet their strength and their love felt unwavering. I love that Marcus reveals more of his vulnerable side and lets Teriana see behind his tough and unemotional exterior.
I found Marcus’s personal journey fascinating. As he faces betrayal among his men and is exposed to some of the harsher realities of politics and war, Marcus begins to question his role and his leadership. While coming to terms with his actions, Marcus also recognizes the political and military influence that guided him. He is a good man who is starts to question whether he is on the right side of the fight. There are interesting and thought-provoking concepts about good and evil, overcoming obstacles, moral responsibilities, choice, and personal change/growth in Marcus and Teriana’s story.
Killian and Lydia have many obstacles to overcome as well. They are so in love with each other, and their story is filled with angst, as too much stands in their way. They struggle to communicate and speak to each other about their feelings, and they are conflicted between their love for each other and long-standing duties and oaths. I am so rooting for this couple, but like Marcus and Teriana, Lydia and Killian’s eventual pairing seems impossible.
All four characters face difficult choices and obstacles which could tear them apart, and it seems like there is no way for them to be together. However, I’m still hoping for their happily-ever-after. I can’t wait to see where their journeys take them in the next book, especially after that ending!!
In addition to the four main characters, there’s another who really stood out – Agrippa! What a fascinating, confusing, greedy, honorable, treacherous, brave man. I’m so intrigued by this complex character! Talk about morally grey – Agrippa’s motives are so unclear, and just when you think you have him figured out, he does something so out of character that it makes you question everything he did before.
With tons of intense action and nail-biting scenes, this is one suspenseful read! From surviving under extreme circumstances, traversing river rapids in enemy territory, trying to evade murderous wolves, and not falling prey to the manipulations of those in power, there is never a dull moment for our four main characters! I love the constant twists and turns, the unexpected revelations, the unfathomable obstacles, and the fantastical elements. It all adds so much intrigue to the story.
If you like fantasies with immersive and vivid world-building, gripping stories, richly developed characters, and tons of suspense and intrigue, then you should read the Dark Shores series. Thanks so much to Netgalley, Tor Teen, and Danielle L. Jensen for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.
So. Things have definitely gotten worse for our band of merry heroes. Not surprising given the way Dark Shores and Dark Skies both ended, but the stakes are quadrupled here and things go from bad to much, much worse. This was almost non-stop action and I was very stressed the whole time. Angst, chemistry, secrets, betrayals, twists and turns. It was almost too much, the reader hardly ever given a chance to breathe because the entire book is go-go-go.
This was a great addition to the Dark Shores series. I swear, the printed version must be 800 pages, but the book never drags. It’s full of incredible world-building, politics, action, and more than one forbidden romance. We’re treated to all four character POVs here, but it’s never confusing because each character (Marcus, Teriana, Killian, and Lydia) is so very distinct. And the blending in of Agrippa from Tarnished Empire was so expertly done, and to do it in the way that the author chose to was probably quite a challenge. Marcus and Teriana unfortunately (or maybe fortunately?) never cross paths with Killian and Lydia, which I was really hoping for. But I have a feeling it’s going to be explosive when they do. Add Agrippa to the mix and I honestly have no idea how Danielle Jensen is going to weave all of these plot points together in book four for a satisfying ending.
I highly recommend this series. Excellent writing, epic world-building, fantastic characterizations. It’s one of the more underrated series out there that I wish more people would read.
Ok do not start with this book because the stories before it really draw the reader into this world. Written about four very different characters and if you enjoy seeing things from different points of view you will be overjoyed with this. Yes its fantasy but there’s almost a Roman empire feel to it as Marcus is pretty much a much younger Russell Crowe type General. He is charged with not only marching his Legion and conquering but also using his prisoner Teriana to help him find magical passages that connect the Empire to the other side of the world.
Ok so that’s one couple and then we have Lydia and Killian. They have both been touched by the Gods but Lydia is a healer and Killian a consummate warrior. As the book begins unlike Marcus and Teriana they are on separate journeys neither knowing exactly where the other is or even if they are alive. The Empire might not be the greatest threat to life though because there’s a devilish, magical blight taking over land and indeed people. Here is when Lydia truly shines fighting to stop the death that so many are unaware of. Yet she cannot do it alone and needs Killian to help her track down the woman that ironically keeps them apart !
I really enjoyed this and even though Marcus is the seasoned soldier I absolutely loved reading about Teriana saving him and boy did they experience hardship. Don’t worry though because Killian and Lydia are no slouches as they travel into enemy territory. Oo I so wanted all four of them to meet up and that ending just about tore my heart out. Whether you enjoy fantasy, star crossed lovers or even just a good old yarn this book with its action, adventures, humour and yes romance will certainly have you eagerly turning the pages. Roll on the next book because I for one cannot wait !
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair
Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read and review what is possibly the best book of 2021!!
Whatever you are expecting, disregard it.
Whatever you think may happen or how, disregard it.
Be prepared for an emotional and heart stopping journey that is going to leave you wanting the NEXT book immediately! Yes, I said next book. This is NOT what I was expecting but I am oddly (and masochistically) happy about it. (This is not a spoiler as the author has shared there will be four books.) As much as I wanted the story to be wrapped up so my heart could have closure, I am sooooo happy we are not done with this world. There is so much going on and it is deliciously complex. No matter how long the book, there were just not enough pages to bring this story to a close; and Jensen definitely did the story justice by letting it unfold without rushing it.
I am so impressed with the writing, world building, character development, and story as a whole that I am struggling to come up with words to convey the chills this book gave me. Gilded Serpent is by far the best book in the Dark Shores series, and not just because we have all four main character POVs. (We also see Agrippa in the story!) The timing between events, chapters, and every scene change felt like a mini cliffhanger making me want to read continuously without stop. So sleep was lacking this week for sure!
If you have read any of Danielle Jensen’s other books, hold on tight for a ride like no other! I for one loved ALL of Jensen’s other series, but this book shook me to my core and I was not ready for it.
So get ready and start stockpiling your coffee, tea, or other caffeine of choice now! You are going to need it.
#teamkillianforlife
For more reviews, check out my bookish blog: http://www.toallthebooksivelovedbefore.com