You know when you like an idea, but then it just doesn’t come together? That was me and A Vow in Vengeance. I waned to love it and for things to click, but they never did. Keep reading this book review of A Vow in Vengeance for my full thoughts.
Summary
Rune Ryker has nothing left to lose. Everything’s been stolen by the Immortals—her family, her home, her freedom. But she’s done playing by their rules.
Each year, humans are forced to journey into the Immortal Realms, but twenty-year-old Rune orchestrates her own selection, determined to find her family and destroy anyone who stands in her way. Rune is used to doing whatever it takes to survive, and now she must endure the Forge, a cutthroat college for the Immortal druids’ elusive tarot magic. When Rune’s magic reveals itself to be the rarest and most powerful, she must live with its only other wielder—Prince Draven. As arrogant as he is ruthlessly ambitious, he’s the last person she can trust.
Rune’s abilities also draw the eyes of the most dangerous druids in the realms. Some want to use her. More want her dead. Draven offers to train her . . . for a price. As Rune becomes ensnared in Draven’s dangerous games, she learns there are secrets at the heart of the kingdom that some will kill to protect.
And Rune and Draven’s growing attraction may be the spark to ignite a brewing war.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
A Vow in Vengeance has everything I should have loved. It begins as a story of revenge born of flames. Rune has organized her selection so she enact her revenge on the Immortals. And then we are thrown headfirst into an academy like setting where Rune learns more about her very special magic and the intricacies of the social system of the druids. That’s where things began to fall apart for me. I was pretty lost by the world building here. To be fair, I’m not super familiar with the tarot card deck, but there’s a lot of confusion and information left out until we desperately need it? It’s super focused on what Rune needs, but I don’t get a good overall sense of the world around that.
In terms of the druids, I also don’t really understand their whole community, and especially the animosity. It’s something that Rune is just thrown into and while there isn’t necessarily an info dumping, there’s just a level of shallowness. And secondly, the romance. I didn’t get why the LI is obsessed with Rune. Especially considering the premise and their initial meetings, I’m really not sure what else draws them to each other besides a push and pull dynamic. Maybe I just didn’t get their initial spark, but it just made what follows feel a bit shaky. In general, the characters felt a bit flat and except for their main quality, not a lot of rounded depth to some aspects.
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I wanted to love the elements of A Vow in Vengeance, but it just didn’t come together for me. It’s a shame when things just need a bit more time, or some more pages, but I just wish this had gelled a bit more. Find A Vow in Vengeance on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.