Defy the Night

DNF@30%.  When the prince and Wes ended up being the same person I just knew it's time to bail 😂 was a pretty bland read till then anyway

Dnf at 60%. I was very torn on this because i LOVED the romance set up - that it's friends/almost lovers to enemies to lovers again. Verrrry cool set up. I think I just couldn't get into the story because the dialogue felt a little cringey and the characters felt flat. Maybe i'll try this again in a few months and end up loving it.

The book was insanely good; the plot was plotting, the royalty was royaltying, the rebels were rebelling. Though I wished there were more romantic scene but this was a solid read. The beginning was quite slow and it took me a lot of time to get into the world so I rated it a 4.5 ⭐ but other than that, this book is a highly recommend read!! Such good tension, angst, twists and turns, and I loved that ending!! ❤️💕

Ok so this book did absolutely live up to the hype.

The moral quandary in this book is definitely what gets me. Corrick is such an interesting character; constantly fighting a battle of doing what must be done vs. doing the right thing. Always having to ask himself what is more important? His brother, the King, or the Kingdom they're supposed to be protecting? That's the kind of turmoil and angst I LOVE to see in a main character.

I still liked Tessa as a character but I feel like her arc wasn't as impactful as Corrick's. Yes, she had to come to terms with how she felt about Corrick and everything he'd done as the King's Justice, but it didn't feel like it was much of a fight with her. She quickly saw things from his point of view and although she was still hesitant, it felt like it was...somewhat easy? For her since she already had feelings for him and she was biased towards him just a little bit.

I'm hoping to get more development for her in the rest of the trilogy, hopefully some more scenes focused on her and her abilities because it felt like she was really reactive in this book instead of proactive, if that makes sense.

I do like that it didn't just end on a full cliffhanger. I feel like most fantasy books in series do that nowadays and it's not that I don't like it as a plot device, but it's refreshing to have things in this book end on a tense yet slightly hopeful note rather than just having me gasping and upset by the end.

I'll be picking up the next book, and I'll be interested to see if there is enough substance here to make it an entire trilogy. 

Spoiler-Free Review:

I've had this book for what feels like forever. In fact, I feel like it was one of the first books I bought after starting this page, and it was definitely a “cover buy”. Over the last few months I've been seeing it floating around Instagram, and I finally decided to dive in! Is this yet another book I wish I'd read sooner? Absolutely yes! This is the first work I've read by Brigid Kemmerer, and I absolutely will be continuing this series! I went in completely blind, and like usual, it really was beneficial here. There's a twist that I didn't see coming that literally had me picking up my jaw from the floor! This book is dual POV and follows Tessa, a poor young woman who's only goal is to help her people survive the fever that has plagued their lands, and Corrick, the royal prince and the King's Justice in charge of enforcing the laws of a land on verge of revolution. There's great world building, awesome storytelling, and amazing character arcs. This is a slow burn enemies to (almost) lovers fantasy that sits pretty firmly in the YA category in my opinion. I cannot wait to read Defend the Dawn and see where the story is headed for these two characters. This is a YA fantasy, 16+ for violence

Fue difícil engancharme a este libro, es decir me tomó casi un año, pero ahora no me arrepiento de haberlo retomado.
Tiene una construcción del mundo muy cargada, pero lo hace muy bien.
En cuanto a los personajes, me cautivaron, ambos rayan la línea moral, creo que todos, creo que toda la historia y eso me gustó, la forma en la que fue explorado por sus acciones y pensamientos, uffas.
Tanto Tessa como Corrick son muy humanos y creo que eso no lo siento a menudo. Sentía como si estuviera leyendo las cartas de un amigo.
Tengo que admitir, Corrick se posicionó en la pequeña lista de crushes literarios. Sí, soy picky con eso, pero es que este hombre...nunca había conectado ni sentido tanto por un personaje masculino. Quizá Percy, pero bueno, ahora los dos tienen un lugar en mi corazón.
Ah y Quint...espero saber más de él, me fascina su personaje y yo ya lo estoy shippeando con el rey Harristan. Por favor, IT NEEDS TO HAPPEN, THEY'RE IN LOVE YOUR HONOR.
En cuanto a la historia es mucho de planes políticos y acción y la verdad amé ✨
Tengo miedo de leer la segunda parte porque no quiero quedar en cliffhanger aaaa pero sí, léanlo

I found this to be a quick and enjoyable read. Somewhat fast paced but in a good way. No lulls or scenes overstaying their welcome. The stakes were high, the romance was captivating and I'm eagerly awaiting the next book in the series. 

I enjoyed this book. I hope there is a sequel because that is how it is set up but at the same time, I appreciate it as a stand-alone with the kind of ending that's left open on purpose with the promise of a better future for the characters.

“He looks like revolution. He looks like compassion. Blue eyes and gentle hands and quick feet and a core of strength and steel”
~
We are introduced to Tessa and Wes, Robinhood figures, stealing medicine from the rich to give to the poor, but trouble comes when there are sparks of revolution and they have to pick a side; side with the dangerous rebels or the royals trying to uphold the law. Kemmerer has given us characters to love and hate, and maybe a bit of both, and woven a tale that keeps us on the edge of our seats. A delight to read, and highly recommendable!

• Young Adult
  - Fantasy
  - World Building
  - Enemies to Lovers
  - Royal Family
  - Hidden Identities
  - Strong FMC
  - Moonflower
  - Helping the sick
  - Rebellion
  - Part of a Trilogy

Another solid read from Kemmerer, who is becoming one of my favourite ya writers. Bonus points for not having a cliffhanger ending while still leaving me wanting more of these characters.

3.5

Yessss give me a heroine with a mission and a tortured prince in a moral quandary any day. Exciting, heroic, swoon worthy.

I finished reading Defy the Night in less than 24 hours. I had so much fun reading it!
The story was captivating, the world-building was interesting and I enjoyed the characters a lot.
Very Robin Hood-esque entertaining story with a slow burn romance. A specific scene wasn't well thought out and seemed very over the top for me, hence the 4-star rating.
The way Tessa entered the castle... sigh.
I'm intrigued about the next book!

I wanted to love this book, I really do. But, like, I was so bored by everything. There was so much wasted potential. The worldbuilding could have been so much stronger. It shouldn't have been first person POV. Everything about this book was just fine.

This was a really nice book, but it was quite predictable for me, that's why I can't give it 5 stars and I will only give it 4. The revelations and plot twists did not surprise me because I had already figured them out, so...
I'm excited to read the next one and see where the story goes!

This book was a breath of fresh air. After reading a lot of thriller and horror books, a YA was just what I needed. And as much as this one has action, twists, and turns, it leaves you feeling good. I'm used to dystopian style books (especially those in a series) leaving your stomach in knots. This one left me with some hope.

This book has a wonderful romance trope (won't tell you what to not give it away). There are multiple points of views that are done very well. The main characters all have layers and secrets that make their stories very interesting. Tessa has a wonderful personality. She's strong willed, kind, and honest. She's a great female protagonist.

Overall, I very much enjoyed this book. It was such a nice change of pace. I'm excited to read/listen to the rest of the series when it comes out. I'll be waiting patiently. I listened to this on Audible and the narrators were wonderful as well.

Highly recommend for those that like dystopian, YA, romance, royalty, and medical dramas.