The Wolf and the Crown of Blood is my latest obsession. I loved the vibes, the blood, and the romance. It’s a story about power, agency, and sacrifice. If you love Carissa Broadbent books, this is for you! Keep reading this book review of The Wolf and the Crown of Blood for my full thoughts.
Summary
Now, centuries of fragile peace are on the brink of collapse…
Bryony Devaliant was born to die — again and again. In Vartena, royal blood is the currency of peace, with every monarch sacrificed and resurrected to appease the gods. But when rebellion stirs, the god-king sends his deadliest weapon to restore order: an immortal assassin known only as the Wolf.
Evander has perfected the art of killing over centuries — until his latest target becomes the one person he cannot destroy. When forbidden desire burns between the assassin and the sacrificial princess, their connection threatens the fragile boundary between gods and mortals. And when that boundary shatters, empires crumble. Because when gods fall in love with mortals, mortals are always the ones to break.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The Wolf and the Crown of Blood explores the importance of choosing our own demise, our own sacrifice, what our life really means. Bryony has been robbed of every choice, destined to be sacrificed over and over again just searching for a way to make a mark that hasn’t been dictated. But she’s a spark in a simmering hearth. While she may be living in a gilded bird in a cage showered with ‘love’ and ‘adoration’ she’s tired of being cut open for others. Bryony and Evander’s story, while they seem so different on the outside, is a story about wanting to be able to choose, to take these moments where we can just exert our own impact.
The Wolf and the Crown of Blood gave me serious Carissa Broadbent vibes. It reminds me of monsters made, not born. Of bodies are scars of our deaths, our sacrifices, and our battles. With touches of Beauty and the Beast and Eros and Psyche, their story is one that defies all sides. It’s a story that focused on blood, violence, and sharpness. But even more importantly, it focuses on softness, on vulnerability, and someone who would see the worst of us and open their arms. We can be molded into forces of anger and rage, but is that all we are? If we expect a monster, we will find one and we will never stop to think about what else or why.
Overall
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I loved the world in The Wolf and the Crown of Blood and cannot wait for the sequel. I am completely obsessed with the romance here and how they want to cut out their vulnerability, but that is what keeps us alive, our hearts beating. It’s loss that fills us and has the potential to destroy us. We want someone who will support us, let us fall and become stronger, and doesn’t take our choice to fall from us. Find The Wolf and the Crown of Blood on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.