One word review: YES 😍😩

Slightly longer review:
Danielle has delivered another masterpiece in the third Dark Shores/Dark Skies series.

Apparently my brain can’t keep up with more than 2 POV switches 🙃 This one was harder for me to keep straight who’s POV I was reading. It didn’t take away from the story at all, in fact I think it wouldn’t have worked as well without all the POVs, it just meant I had to be more conscientious about who’s chapter it was.

About halfway through, I decided to read all of Marcus and Teriana’s chapters, and then go back and read Killian and Lydia’s chapters after. This did help a lot, so maybe they could have been separate books? Either way, great story, great characters once again!

I found myself much more interested in Marcus and Teriana’s story of their fight to get back to the West, than I did with Lydia and Killian’s fight against the blight. However, the stories played off each other well to develop the world even more.

Also.... AGRIPPA. DANIELLE WHAT THE HECK I NEED MORE ANSWERS.

I’m so excited for the next installment!!

Make sure you read Tarnished Empire BEFORE you read this one. Trust me, it makes this one a lot more enjoyable!

Gilded Serpent comes out in April so make sure you preorder this one! You don’t want to miss it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review!

This series is just the best! In this third installment, the storylines from the first two books are getting closer and closer to intersecting. Lydia and Killian are fighting against the blight, trying to save the West. Marcus and Teriana find themselves back in the East, trying to get back to their fight in the West. This book is like the perfect, chaotic, building to an explosion of plot! I am so happy that I was chosen to receive an ARC so that I didn't have to wait until April, although now the long wait until the next installment seems even longer.

In this highly anticipated installment, you will find amazing well-written characters and a story that seems.... disjointed. I loved the lead up throughout the novels but this book wasn’t my brand of tea. I strongly recommend it!

I could not put down this book! It moves along at a brisk pace, with lots of action, like the other 2 books in the series.
The story alternates between the POVs of Teriana, Marcus, Lydia and Killian. Marcus and Teriana are my favorites, and I liked Dark Shores more than Dark Skies although the latter was good as well. The cool thing about this series is that you can read Dark Shores or Dark Skies first, followed by this book which picks up the story of the first 2 books. The 2 pairs do not meet; Marcus and Teriana’s story continues on a separate arc from Lydia and Killian’s. I actually kept skipping ahead to their chapters because I was more curious about their story and then came back to read Lydia and Killian’s story with no problem at all. This is like 2 books in one.
Killian’s story starts out a little slow, then he meets up with Lydia when it starts to pick up speed, and in the end gets really interesting. Marcus and Teriana’s story was awesome. There are a lot of obstacles in their way, which is to be expected since they come from such different and difficult circumstances. How will the the Legatus and the Maarin princess have a future together? It will be interesting to see how their seemingly irreconcilable problems get sorted out eventually. At some points in the narrative, the story started to get a little far fetched but rallied back to the page turner it is.
The ending - well, good news and bad news. The bad news is - you’ll have to wait for the next book. The good news - there is a next book to wait for! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Thank you for the opportunity to review it.

I couldn’t wait to read this third installment of the Dark Shores series. After all of the torment Lydia, Killian, Terriana, and Marcus were subjected to in the previous novels, it was exciting to finally get to see their stories connect. The characters are well developed and we care what happens to them . What Ms. Jensen gave us instead was often disjointed, drawn out, and sometimes unnecessary suffering that leaves the reader feeling robbed of any resolution. Normally, it takes me less than 24 hours to devour a Danielle L. Jensen novel. This one took me a week. Perhaps, prior to actual publication, some sections can be pared down such as the crossing of the mountains and the dire wolves. I hope that future entries will return to some culmination of the stories together versus individually.

**Review to be posted on blog on 3/29/21 nearer to publication date.**

My Attention: read in 2 days

World Building: epic world building and so much more traveling in this one through xenthier stems and a deadly trek through Sibern

Writing Style: kept the intensity throughout

Crazy in Love: slow…angsty, forbidden love stories

Creativity: I love the Dark Shores series, it has everything

Triggers: violence, killing

I Liked:
*I love that even though this book is told through 4 perspectives, the chapters are so short, each person has enough book time. BUT…I was worried I’d be attracted to one couple more and for me personally, I was drawn more to Teriana and Marcus. They two of them are just so intense, so strong-headed and Marcus is just stuck in a tight, tight spot. Killian and Lydia are complicated as well, but they have other problems.

*There is an intense time for Teriana and Marcus and let me tell you it gets so rough for them. All seems lost, they are losing hope but they each carry one another through this difficult time. There is a sex scene between them (honestly it had to happen! haha), so that’s why I thought it was more New Adult than Young Adult. Except for that scene though, they are pretty chaste.

*Killian and Lydia goes through hardships too but their story seems slower because they are apart. It picks up steam in the ending. Most of the book they are apart with Lydia under Quindon’s tutelage now and Killian making his choice of putting they kingdom before anything else. The angst between these two frustrated me, Killian frustrates me! The good thing about Killian and Lydia’s scenes were learning more about the blight and Rufina’s history.

*The distrust growing in the Thirty-Seventh adds so much tension and complication to Marcus’ life and it gets even crazier in the end when Cassius thwarts him again. Seriously Marcus gets such a bad deal!

Random Notes:
*I made a big mistake reading this book assuming this was the LAST BOOK in the series…at the midway point of this 500+ book, I was like…wait a minute this book cannot be ending this way, nothing is being wrapped up. Yeah…it’s not the ending of the series at all! 🤦🏻‍♀️

*These couples cannot be together for so many reasons. Killian and Lydia have a chance, but Marcus and Teriana…what will Marcus do? I just want them all to come out of this happy and ALIVE.

*The author took the characters in this book and seriously put them through the wringer…😭 this can only mean good things are coming in book four, right? But the ending…is madness!

Final Thoughts:
You know, I think I would have been happy for a book of only Marcus and Teriana again because they are my favorite. I think Killian and Lydia’s story is about to get more intriguing because of the reveal at the end but they could have had their own book also. I assumed in this book the four would meet up together, but I was wrong. I’m glad the series isn’t over yet, because I love everything Danielle L. Jensen writes. Give me more romance, angst, political intrigue and action. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series!

I really loved this series so I was excited to read the next one by this author. I loved it so much and flew through the whole book! The characters and plot were so interesting and full of action. I will be recommending this book to all of my friends.

It's no small secret that I LOVE the Dark Shores series, and as such, I had big expectations coming into this book - not only were those expectations met, they were exceeded so drastically, and so many times that I almost dropped my iPad in the bathtub about 12 times while reading.
Unlike the previous installments, GILDED SERPENT follows 4 POVs: Marcus, Teriana, Lydia, and Killian. As much as I love multiple-perspective novels, there usually ends up being one character whose chapters I want to skip - not so was the case with this book. None of the four main characters sound anything like each other in terms of voice, and the flawless switch between their chapters gives GILDED SERPENT a fast-paced, (but not unpleasant)whiplash-like effect. I'd mourn the loss of one character's perspective only for the 0.02 seconds it took me to become invested in the next. Every chapter was imbued with expert pacing, manicured prose that had me flying through the book, and even though GILDED SERPENT is a CHUNKY BOOK, I finished it in only a few days.
I hesitate to say much of anything about the plot, because the eARC was released so early and I don't want to give *anything* away, but I will say that tensions are heavier, stakes are higher, and Jensen crafts a darker and bolder world in GILDED SERPENT, even while stoking the romance between the main characters.
As always, I find Legatus Marcus to be an absolute delight, even though his path nearly broke my heart: growing closer to Teriana has driven a wedge between himself and the legion he's trusted nearly his whole life. The complexity of the relationships between Marcus, his legion, his family, and Teriana herself would be enough to make me fall in love with this book; but as it is, we also get steamy (LITERALLY) romance, wickedly horrifying new monsters, an examination of different types of strength between Lydia and Teriana, and nonstop, heart-pounding action. These books are so riveting and I'll be waiting (impatiently) for the next installment.
Thank you to TorTeen and NetGalley for the e-ARC!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I think the cover is attractive, and the writing is okay. I am not really sure what is was about this book that I didn’t like though.

Book Summary:

THEIR BATTLES ENDED IN VICTORY

Lydia returns to Mudaire to enter training at the healing temple. But instead of fighting to save lives, she’s convinced she is doing more harm than good. She delves into the history of the gods only to discover a truth that will change her life forever.

His birthright as commander of the Royal Army is finally in his grasp, but Killian feels anything but victorious. Burdened by his past, he embraces the darker side of his mark—and in doing so, risks starting a war.

BUT THE WAR HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN

Having defeated the tyrant Urcon, Marcus struggles to form a lasting alliance with the Arinoquians. But he is plagued by the knowledge that there is a traitor among his friends, and it could cost him everything that he’s fought for.

Torn between her growing allegiance to the Thirty-Seventh legion and her need to liberate her people, Teriana finds herself mired in a web of secrets. She embarks upon a path that will either save everyone she loves—or put them all in their graves.


Here we go!!!! Combining both the first and second book together, we finally have a book where all the stories are taking place at the same time. The story is told in 4 POVS and boy was this a hefty one. There is a LOT of ANGST and Romance, but mostly angst. So much angst. Marcus and Teriana are a new couple trying to build a relationship with trust yet they have to hide their relationship and deal with the fact that, oh yeah, they’re both enemies and the circumstances for them are NOT GREAT. Lydia and Killian were separated at the end of book two with Lydia being taken to be a healer while Killian was sent off to fight. Lydia is tasked with identifying “the dead” to be exterminated but she is desperate to find a cure, but when the cure comes, it will come at a cost. Killian is still regretting having Lydia taken from him and can barely think straight. However they do end up together again and from there they are on a quest, one that will challenge them and change their relationship forever. Marcus and Teriana are attacked and finally reveal their feelings only for that rug to be snatched from under them and more trouble ensues. Literally this entire book was a series of unfortunate events for each person and their relationships. IT WAS PAINFUL. It ends painfully and I am already begging for the next book because I need to know what happens to them all, I JUST WANT THEM TO BE HAPPY. But the consequences of all their actions, their decisions, and the lies and secrets... who knows if anyone is going to get a happy ending by the time this series wraps up. So yeah, please read this book series as it is really great! Its got forbidden romance, assassinations, morally grey characters, and everything inbetween.

*Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for sending me an arc in exchange for a honest review*