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Review: Crown of War and Shadow by J.R. Ward
Crown of War and Shadow
J.R. Ward
Kingdom of the Compass Series, Book 1
466 pages, Hardcover
First published February 17, 2026
An outcast burdened with a curse and a mercenary who’s out for himself collide in this star-crossed, slow-burn, high-stakes romantic fantasy from #1 New York Times bestseller J. R. Ward.
In the dead of night, passions rise and empires fall.
Welcome to Kingdoms of the Compass.
The Fulcrum is failing, and demons are slipping into the mortal world, stalking the night.
No one is safe.
Especially not Sorrel. An orphan and an outcast, she’s spent her whole life within the walls of her small village, ostracized for her mystical abilities. She wants to survive…and maybe find somewhere she can call her true home. But Fate has other plans.
Sorrel has been chosen. Cursed.
She must cross the Badlands to return the Queen’s crown and convince the fearsome female to save their world from destruction.
Well aware she’s no brave hero, Sorrel makes a dangerous deal with Merc, a brooding, commanding mercenary known only by his unscrupulous profession.
The deal? A night in his bed that she will never forget, in exchange for her safe passage.
But Merc has secrets of his own, and even though passion runs hot between them, enemies are around every corner, and danger and betrayal threaten at every turn.
Crown of War and Shadow is the first book in the Kingdoms of the Compass series.
Crown of War and Shadow
*Forced proximity/Only one bed
*Chosen mates
*Dark mercenary
*Who did this to you?
*Touch her and die
*I’ll die for you
*Hidden magic
4 Stars
J.R. Ward was one of the first authors that I fell in love with when I began my reading journey after my son was diagnosed with autism. She is one of my top contributors as to why I love paranormal romance. If you were looking for a fantasy version of the black dagger brotherhood, this is not it. Does this book hold up with the BDB? Yes, I believe it does, however it is a different writing voice with a different subject matter.
Crown of War and Shadow is a perfect example of phenomenal world building. As we navigate through this new world, the reader is given visit imagery that allows you to transform the words into a scene in your mind. Sorrel is an orphan who is carrying a curse. She has never known any family and has lived out her entire life confined within the walls of her small village. Working as a bar maid, but she carries an ability that makes people look away from her. She has skills she doesn’t understand or even know where they came from. Merc does not have the typical night in shining armor reputation. He is a mercenary that has his own set of rules and plays his own game.
Over the course of the book we embark on a fantasy journey. A slow burn romance with betrayal and secrets, truth and magic, love and self discovery. J.R. Ward hit the dark romantasy world with a bang. Crown of War and Shadow gave me some very Anne Rice feels while reading. Honestly, that has to be one of the highest compliments I can get. The setting and scenery descriptions are absolutely amazing, the world building is fantastic and even though it may take some time to see it, the characters have depth and growth. I very much look forward to see how the rest of the story plays out.
Review: Storm Wood by Donna Grant
Storm Wood
Donna Grant
Elven Kingdoms Series Book 3
359 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 13, 2025
Donna Grant always takes her readers on an adventure. It may be dangerous, but it’s always got a happily ever after at the end. Storm Wood is an enemies to lovers story that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Rohan and Farah are on the same mission, but yet neither one knows exactly what the other is doing. Both have lost their sisters, both have put their lives on the line to find them. An attempt to save his sister Rohan embarks on a wild plan that involves kidnapping Farah and using his leverage to be able to have her help him find his sister. Rohan may know exactly what Farah is,
but he does not know her reasons. Each of them have their motives and each of them will do what it takes to save their loved ones however, what they didn’t count on was overtime actually developing feelings for one another.
I said it before and I will say it again Donna Grant is a master world builder, and her imagination comes up with amazing stories. Storm Wood is a dark, dangerous and magical journey of two people trying to find their loved ones that end up finding love themselves. From where their journey begins to where it ends, Rohan and Farah discover a lot about themselves and the people that they love.
Lilith Enraptured by Michelle M. Pillow
Lilith Enraptured
Divinity Warriors #1 by Michelle M. Pillow
Published January 16th 2012 by The Raven Books
Sorin of Firewall lives in a land forever at war. In fact, the Starian men are so busy fighting, their marriage ceremony has been reduced to a “will of the gods” event where they simply pick a woman out of a lineup and claim her as a wife. With women becoming scarce, it’s necessary to trade the offworld Divinity Corporation for brides. Duty-bound to attend the ceremony, Sorin has no intention of picking a bride, let alone one from another dimension. That is, until he sees Lilith, the bewitching woman sent by the gods to reward—or punish?—him.
Lilith, a data analyst for Divinity, is betrayed by the Corporation and wakes up in a primitive, uncharted dimension filled with warriors who know only war and duty.Her fear of becoming a sex slave to a big, beefy knight becomes all too real when a warrior of god-like proportions claims she’s his new woman. As Lilith discovers, there are worse fates than being the focus of Sorin’s skillful and earthy seduction.
4 STARS
Lilith Enraptured is a fine example of awesome world building with a great story and steamy love to go with it. The book starts off as a futuristic sci-fi story, filled with medical and technological advances. Then thrust us back in time to a medieval love story. I loved the warriors of Starian. Loyal and honor bound to fight the ongoing war that is known to their land. They are Alphas all the way. All the know is duty, war and honoring ones family. Too many in need of a loving woman.
Lilith, taken from all she knew and left to a race of warriors who “claim” their woman in marriage. Yes, I found her whiny at times, but then I know I would be too. She fought a battle within herself, while knowing that was not her home, she couldn’t keep herself from loving him. Then the battle became how do you love someone who doesn’t know the concept of love.
Sorin, is like a dream on a stick. The perfect Alpha male. He is big and built, a leader in battle, but war is all he knows. He says, the Gods told him that she was the one to be his wife. I believe that it was love at first sight. In a race that in so wrapped up in war and the females a few, preserving the race is a forbearer to love. He had a need to protect her at all cost and I believe that there was more than just duty and honor to it.
I had the pleasure of listing to Lilith Enraptured as an audiobook. I thought it was a pleasant listen. The narrator did a good job delivering this tale. She did a great job of distinguishing who was who and brought the emotions of the written word to life with voice.
Ms. Pillow delivered a great story with Lilith Enraptured. The more I listen to the book the more I wanted to hear. Super steamy love scenes with hot warriors will have you fanning yourself. Yes the book is HOT! A wonderful mixing of genres that gives the reader a very unique world to explore. Well done, Ms. Pillow.
I was given an audio copy of this book from the author for an honest review.
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