Thank you to Little Brown Book Group and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Some spoilers ahead - especially if you haven't finished book 1.

Following on immediately after finishing book one in this trilogy by Nisha J Tuli, we find our heroine Lor now in the hands of the Aurora Prince's son Nadir, once again in captivity. As with the previous installment I was completely hooked on this one; maybe not as much due to the story but as I was further drawn in with the characters and the world this story plays in.

In terms of story I have to admit this is lackluster, as not too much in terms of plot development happens - especially in the first 3/4 of the book. What really worked for me though is the tension betweeen the characters, the banter (even though at times cringey I was eating that shit up) and the spice - I felt myself completely drawn in and couldn't help myself than to keep turning page after page after page devouring this within 2 days.
Although I did start falling out of love with the FMC, I found her whiny, inconsequential and just a little bit bratty with her back and forth with Nadir, this still worked for me insanely well - when I think about it now I can't put it into words - it's just tension and insane vibes, page-turning prose and character-driven excitement, which I love if it's done well (which in this case it is).

Towards the end of this installment the story did pick up but unfortunately we were met with a cliffhanger, in my opinion, just as things started to get good. That being said I am in rapt expectancy for book 3 and have extremely high hopes that it will end up being an epic resolution to the conflicts we have started to discover in more detail in book 3. The only good news is that I have 6 months or so reprieve to be productive, as I just know, as soon as this book 3 comes out I will instantly lose my mind and I genuinly can't wait to delve back into this world as soon as possible.

>> Review also posted to Goodreads.

Wait a minute. Just, hold on.. how many times book two in series is 1000% better than book one? And how should I rate book two, if book one was already 5/5⭐️ read?

Lor becoming a lost Fae princess, heir to lost Kingdom wasn’t that surprising but still - WHAT? 😮

Atlas being a second place villain? Ok, I didn’t expect that 🤭

Everything about book two in Artefacts of Ouranos series had so much sense! I loved Lor’s character development, she grew up even more stronger and self-confident that in book one.

Trial of Sun Queen is over, mirror refused to take Lor as a Sun Queen and Nadir - heir to Aurora throne, succeed in his attempt to kindap Lor. Now she is kept hostage, treated as a criminal. Scared about what is happening with her siblings, she is forced to work with Nadir to keep them safe. Because nothing unites more than common enemy- his father, her arcenemie - King of Aurora.

Plot twist in Lor’s story is real, I didn’t expect it will take turn like that, but I loved every page of that book. The enemies to lovers in book two is something that kept me untill late at night because I had to finish and know what will happen.

If you love:
👑 Fae world full of magic and mysteries
👑 enemies to lovers (real ones)
👑 forced to work together in common case
👑 only one horse
👑 only one bed
👑 he falls first
👑 political plotting
👑 forced proximity
👑 fated mates
👑 hidden powers

this book/series is for you!

♾️/5 ⭐️
1.5/🌶️

We're straight back into the action with book 2 - no gentle ramp up of tension here.

There is a bit less action in this book - but we get to see more of the other kingdoms/queendoms and explore just why Lor and her siblings were imprisoned. The current day events are interspersed with scenes from centuries past, where Lor's grandmother brings the realms to the brink of extinction.

The dual POV allows us to see the festering anger and mistrust that Lor deals with. She's attracted to Nadir but is also appalled by this due to his proximity to the Fae who killed her parents and incarcerated her. Then we get to see what is running through Nadir's head - which consists of "Why the heck am I attracted to this inmate?" and "if I don't pin her to the bed now I'm gonna die" and similar! It's safe to say that there is way more spice in this book than in book 1! Nadir is very good at bringing down Lor's defences and Lor can bring Nadir to his knees!

The old fine line between love and hate is quite definitely trampled by these two. Their in open warfare with each other yet still try to protect each other. Nadir constantly referring to Lor as Inmate was obviously a way to try and distance himself from his feelings for her.

There is a "heist" vibe to this story - all the super secret squirrel subterfuge to gain intelligence on the Aurora King and the Queendom of Heart. Lor also adds more strings to her bow - she's no longer this feral prisoner fighting for her life but a strong, intelligent, decisive and she'll use any and all advantages to get what she wants. She really needs to get a handle on that temper though!

You can't help but see some parallels between Lor and Nadir and grandparents. But where they were set on power and prestige, Lor really just wants to keep her family safe.

Tropes: One horse/fated mates/found family/enemies to lovers

What was that ending?!?!?! When is the next installment?! I need it now!!

The second book in this series steps it up a notch! The pace is insane, and the angst phoooweee its spicy.
Nadir is the perfect *chefs kiss* romantic interest, and Lor grows from strength to strength, while the journey isn't easy she's resilient and brave, determined to get back to heart and unlock her magic.

I loved Serce's back story too - usually I'm not a fan of back in time pieces but this was blended PERFECTLY.

5 stars doesn't seem enough for this incredible sequel.

First of all, I'd like to thank you NetGalley, Little Brown Book and Nisha J. Tuli for providing me with a free advanced reader copy
⭐️5/5
🌶️ 3/5

It's amazing that this is a 2nd book in the series, but the idea for the plot of this book is completely different!


Tropes:

enemies to lovers
fated mates
found family
touch her and die
forced proximity
kidnapper/captive
political plotting

First, I would like to thank the author & NetGalley for the eARC opportunity. Like always, this review is voluntary & honest

OMG, this book!!
enemies to lovers, forced proximity, one bed, kidnapper/captive, hidden identity/powers
And the tension was absolutely fantastic.
It just keeps getting better and better.🥰

The spice was delightfully dialled up.

The slow burn between them was incredible, the best slow burn I have read in a long time. 

The world building in this series is amazing.
Again, with this author, I feel captivated by her writing.
This is by far one of the best series I have read.
I already want more! I wanna start them all over again 🫣🫣


“I just had my tongue inside you, Inmate. Didn’t you know that Fae are very territorial?”

“I am not his conquest. I am not his to claim. I’m not part of their royal line. I have my own family. And I am my own fucking castle.”

Rule of the Aurora King has anti-second book syndrome and I would argue, this installment was better than the first. This book saved me from my reading slump. There’s a new POV that I ended up loving and adds an interesting insight to the backstory which really ends up bringing the whole story together. Unlike TotSQ when Lor is fighting to win the trials, RotAK brings us on a quest in the search for artefacts which adds to the world-building, historical explanation, and character background.

I still really love how fierce Lor is and she continues to be a pillar of strength, even after all the horrible things she has been through. She is 100% unapologetically herself. She may be impulsive and rash at times, but she is growing and learning. She demands those around her to respect her boundaries. I think we could all be more like Lor.

This book really has it all: enemies-to-lovers, slow-burn, found family, fated mates, forced proximity, plus so many more of our favorite tropes. All-in-all, a fantastic follow-up to Trial of the Sun Queen and I’m excited for the next installment.

The same issues I had with book one but compounded. I’m just not connecting with the characters. The world building is pretty good, though and I was entertained. I just wasn’t wowed.

Preferred book one but this was still enjoyable. I'd have liked to see more of an expansion on the story itself and less on the romance but it was enjoyable enough.