“She clutched at him, his name on her lips a plea for salvation. He’d kneel at her altar and pray for their lives.

We start the book with Alessa on her way back from a celebratory trip and Dante having bought the bar where he used to fight – I guess they paid him for helping defeat those bug things?

“Slayer of demons, she wore the spoils of victory on her skin.”

Anyway, Alessa and her Fontes were away, and Dante was having dreams of blood and death.

“No more demons. No more wars. It was time to begin the rest of her life.
Happily.
Ever.
After. “

But no one believed him – and you know what? Alessa should have believed him.

“Ciro and Diwata’s vessel was larger and more elegant than any of Saverio’s, but it was still a floating death trap. She eyed the smudged horizon warily. If the crew felt it was safe enough to depart, it must be. Then again, hundreds of ships had sunk throughout history after crews made similar decisions. Thanks to the Cittadella’s logs of maritime deaths and injuries, she knew of a dozen ways to lose a limb or perish at sea.”

I wish the adventure part of this book was a little more detailed, or longer because I love when characters have to travel somewhere in books.

What?” Kaleb clutched his chest in mock outrage. “You mean to tell me this gods-sanctioned marriage of convenience hasn’t evolved into a love match?

I didn’t really care for Kaleb much in book 1, he was kinda just there, you know? But I enjoyed the fluff out of his character in this book. He was pretty much the definition of comedic relief and I highlighted a ton of quotes from him.

“Dea and Crollo disagreed about whether humanity deserved to exist, so they made a bet, and we’ve all been pawns in every round since. But all games end eventually, and now things have changed.”

I want to emphasize that I did like this book, it was funny (a saving grace honestly, the funny parts were great) and had some nice plot twists, but the negatives started to overpower the positives in the end for me.

“Dante leaned, a mere sway toward her, then caught himself, dragging a hand through his hair with a low “Fuck.””

The banter between Alessa and Dante was still really great, I love how they respond to each other, but I do wish there was more of them in this story. If they had been separated for the book, that would have been understandable, but they were all still together and yet, not?

“He never knew how to soothe her when she dreamed about his own death. It had happened a few times in the months after, and she’d been wracked with guilt each time, as though he might have forgotten that he’d died if she didn’t remind him.”

Alessa was clearly having issues in the beginning and middle of the book, but instead of trying to understand them and manage them, she just hid everything or brushed it off as nothing. That isn’t a theme in books I like, so that was an issue for me. I get not telling her friends, she hasn’t had friends in a long time and she didn’t want to frighten them off, but not even admitting to herself or Dante? No.

“He’d been too damn busy feeling bad for himself and mad at the world, and mad at her—there it was, yes, mad at her—to see it until that moment. Not mad because she’d taken the life he’d willingly offered, but because she’d given it back with a piece missing.”

This leads me to my next issue – Dante. I realllly liked him in book 1. This book? Not so much. He was wallowing, whining, rude to the Fontes and Alessa, constantly thinking about how much this sucked, and just generally feeling sorry for himself. I know that his powers were integral to him, but it was kinda annoying. And when he stopped this internal (and external) behaviour, it was so abrupt that it was rushed and not well done.

“I’d spend a hundred years in chains for one day with you.”

The ending was also very short, I would have liked more of everything. Overall, I still did enjoy this book, but it wasn’t as much as I enjoyed book 1.

“I’m so sorry.” Alessa reached up to touch Dante’s cheek. “You have to let me be the hero this time.”

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and the author for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

“You just need to find the right person.”
“Ha!” Saida chucked a pillow at her. “Easy for you to say. You found your true love at eighteen.”Alessa’s cough sent a puff of powdered sugar into the air. “And he died.”
“Yeah, but he’s fine now,” Kamaria said. “All’s well that ends well.”
“I can barely touch him!”

THIS CURSED LIGHT is the finale in THE LAST FINESTRA duology and follows Emily and Dante six months after the events of THIS VICIOUS GRACE.

I absolutely adored reading THIS VICIOUS GRACE and was so excited to receive an arc for its sequel. Emily Thiede is a master of worldbuilding, characterization, and swoon-worthy romances.

I loved the new side of the world we visited in this, with the home of the ghiotte. I did miss some of the characters from the last book, but I loved the new characters we met! They were all so well-developed and had their own complete arcs.

Dante being edgy and dramatic in the beginning was a little difficult to power through, but it was justified, given all he was going through. Despite that initial struggle, I really enjoyed having Dante’s POV added. The character voices were distinctive and Thiede switched between them with ease. And the character! Development! Not just for Alessa and Dante (though they learn and grow a LOT) but for the minor characters as well!

I also appreciated Emily showing the trauma that Alessa and Dante went through and them trying to work through that while preparing for a second war that they want no part of, instead of them blindly jumping into it like we see in a lot of fantasy books. Their reluctance to save the world a second time was honestly refreshing to see and felt very realistic.

THE LEMON-THROWING FIGHT SCENE?? RIP ME IN HALF IT WAS SO CUTE and the perfect balance right before the pain started. I was smiling and giggling the entire time!

THE ENDING MADE ME CRY SO HARD when Alessa was dying and noted that the people we lose are all around us as long as we’re around to remember them. It was a bit of a quick wrap-up for a battle they spent the entire book preparing for, but it made me so emotional that I didn’t even care.

I would love reading more in this world, but I love that Emily quit while she was ahead and made this a duology instead of stretching the series out unnecessarily.

In all, this is definitely one of my favorite duologies of all time, and I highly recommend it!

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I'M NOT CRYING; IT'S JUST RAINING ON MY FACE. A perfect ending to the duology: funny and emotional. The banter between Alessa and Dante is romcom perfection, and the dual perspectives allows the reader incredible insights into both of their minds and hearts. It also answers a question not many books do: What happens to the boy and girl after they save the world? The supporting cast add to the story perfectly; they're all well-rounded and each stands out on their own. And, of course, the plot is fascinating and fast-paced. Just make sure to have some tissues handy, okay?

4.5/5

I was a little nervous to read this one because I have a few other series that disappointed me this year. They were good, but they didn't quite deliver for me. But...BUT Emily Thiede wrote a conclusion to her The Last Finestra duology that is packed with themes of sacrifice, belonging, and a whole lot of heart.

I'd forgotten how much I missed Alessa, Dante, and the rest of the gang. The continuation of their story was powerful and bittersweet. Theide did a nice job of balancing the heavier subjects with cute interjections of Alessa and Dante's flirting as well as humor from some of my favorite side characters (Kamaria and Kaleb).

The plot moved along pretty quickly. It dipped a couple of times, but Theide always made sure to pepper in moments of action to keep the story lively. The conclusion of the story did a nice job of wrapping up some unanswered questions.

I can't wait to see what Emily Theide does next, but I am a fan. Definitely add this duology to your list if you haven't already.

This was a fun ride! I want a Kaleb spinoff, more of him please.

Alessa and Dante kind of annoyed me but maybe I’m just moody this week. Over all i genuinely enjoyed.

Our characters should be in the clear after the last book… right? Except Alessa’s story was never the typical one in their culture, and the danger is not over yet.

The second in the duology, this installment starts some months after the last book ended, and we get to catch up on all that’s changed with our characters. Dante has lost his powers, and Alessa is finally beloved by her people (you know, after they all but turned on her).

I’m a romantic, so I was instantly worried for Alessa and Dante’s relationship— for good reason. Can they touch each other? How is everyone going to treat Dante, who was basically a pariah before? Especially now that Alessa is in such a different position?

We have high stakes! Save the world, and two young people finding their way back to each other as circumstances divide them. And it’s well done. No spoilers, but I love how these character gravitate toward each other regardless, and how great their friends are. The community they live in annoys me sometimes (as it’s intended to), guiding them in the wrong direction, but I do love YA characters who ignore the much older adults telling them wrong. (I’m sure my mother is screaming somewhere, ha!)

If you want a satisfying and powerful ending to an excellent YA fantasy romance duology, read this! Read both books— they’ll be up on Best YA Fantasy lists to come, deservedly so! I highly recommend— this publisher and their authors do right by the genre and readers.

Firstly, I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher, Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

'This Cursed Light' is the sequel to Emily Thiede's 'This Vicious Grace' where we follow the story of Alessa and Dante and some other wonderful characters. This sequel takes place following the events of the first book and let me just say, I did not feel like this second book suffered from that "sequel book syndrome". I loved that we got so much more of Dante's POV in this book. In the beginning I found myself on this rollercoaster of annoyance right alongside him. Following the events of the first book, we really got to travel through all of the characters fears and frustrations and how all of these events built up new conflicts and worries amongst the characters.

Alessa and the gang travel in efforts to find the other Ghiotte in hopes of uniting together to fight against the upcoming threat that Crollo is sending. And also in hopes of restoring Dante's powers. But all is not so simple hehe and right when you think they got it figured out... they don't. Live for the drama.

I think this this a perfect YA duology for younger audiences and even fans of YA. The dialogue is fun and the banter is my favorite.

My only thing was I think the pacing in the beginning to middle is what through me off slightly because it took off so fast and then I felt like suddenly I was trying to get through 75 or so pages.

Otherwise, I think this was a wonderful read and I can't wait for more from Emily Thiede.

Emily Thiede is so good! I knew from the first book that I was going to love these characters. This was another one I added to the classroom library.

I originally read This Vicious Grace in May of last year. To say I was waiting for the sequel with baited breath would be an understatement. The first book just touched on so many of my favourite themes; feminism, love, fantasy inspired by non-Anglo influences, finding autonomy, etc. However, while I did like This Cursed Light, and I do believe it functions decently as a sequel, I also think that it detracted from the story of the first book more than it added to it.
While in no way bad—This Cursed Light is still beautifully written with some amazing world building—it just so happened to fall into a few pit traps that normally would have me steer clear, had this not been book two in a duology. The main one being some intense miscommunication between Dante and Alessa. I was a huge fan of their dynamic in book one, especially near the end, but the circumstances of this narrative forced a shift. So much of their back and forth in This Cursed Light was just them lying to each other that it made their romantic relationship feel disingenuous. Then having that hyper focus on their deteriorating personal relationship meant that so much of the plot that was occurring outside of their bubble felt glossed over. However, what was there was amazing, and the build up to the end kept me engaged and coming back for more, despite the fact the pacing was quite a bit slower in this book when compared with its predecessor.
All in all, if you have read or are planning to read This Vicious Grace, I would definitely recommend This Cursed Light as well. It doesn’t quite live up to the first, but it is still a worthwhile conclusion to the series as a whole.

I loved this conclusion to the duology! I loved it slightly less than the first book, but it was a solid ending to the story. I loved getting to see more of Alessa and co., and I really loved the ending.

Alessa and Dante as characters are so compelling and relatable. I love the way the characters mirror each other but also have very unique struggles and traits. Alessa’s struggles with anxiety and ADHD made her feel so real to me, and there were so many of her qualities that I see in my own life. She’s just such a great character, and I really loved reading more of her story in this book.

The only drawbacks for me in this installment were that I wanted a bit more of the banter that Alessa and Dante had in book one and that the plot felt less logical than the first book. Neither of these issues were so egregious that it significantly deteriorated my reading experience.

I would definitely recommend reading this if you loved This Vicious Grace, and I highly recommend this duology to lovers of fantasy romance!

(Also, Emily Thiede, if you read this, please write a story about those budding romances we saw in this book 👀👀👀🙏🙏🙏)

Great follow up for this fantasy, the story develops do well and cohesive towards this book, loved where is going and definitely enjoyed

I really enjoyed reading this cursed light I really enjoyed the writing style and will be keeping my eyes out for more by this author!

I've been sitting on this review, trying to figure out how to word this, and the best I can think of is... meh.

Where book 1 immersed you in magic abilities, friendship, and non-stop action, this one had crappy, unsupportive females, lackluster execution, and relationships taking major backslides, undoing any character development made in This Vicious Grace.

Alessa and Dante are constantly lying to each other because that's a thing they now do. Talia is an awful person. She hasn't seen Dante in years, since he was a child, really, but suddenly, she knows what's best for him even though she barely knows him. Not to mention how controlling and possessive she is.

There was so much dialog that didn't move the story forward, and when we finally got to what I hoped was some excitement, I must have blinked too long because I missed it.

I didn't hate this book but hoped the momentum would continue. Some people really loved this one, though, so perhaps that's just me.

Thank you, St. Martin's, for the advanced copy.

This was a tough book for me. Parts I liked and parts not so much. Glad to see Alessa and Dante together. His homeland was interesting. The whole fight with Crolle not so exciting. Sequels are difficult. The first book was just so good, it was hard to followup. Would be interested to see what the author writes next

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book of this series and was excited to pick up where we left Alessa and Dante at the end of This Vicious Grace. This Cursed Light begins six months after Divorando with Dante, Alessa and their friends searching for other ghiotte to help restore Dante’s powers and to raise an army capable of defeating whatever the gods may test them with next.
Despite being a relatively quick read, there were parts of the story that felt dragged out. The story felt overly focused on Dante and Alessa hiding things from each other and whether or not Alessa’s touch would be harmful or not with very little focus on what they could be facing from the gods. I felt Alessa’s “growing darkness” was very lightly touched on and could have been better developed. I would say 80% of the story was spent preparing for an unknown showdown that received very little page time once it arrived.

just finished reading This Cursed Light and it was ✨ incredible ✨

5 lemons ⭐️

TCL picks up a few months after we left our heroes in This Vicious Grace (if you haven’t read it, you need to!) and takes the reader on a fantastical journey exploring self identity, ptsd, love-filled angst, and mischievous gods.

As a sequel I thought this held its own well and actually loved the inclusion of dual POV. A great wrap up for these characters and story.

Since these were Emily’s debut books, I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Loved This Vicious Grace and This Cursed Light did not disappoint. The middle dragged a little bit as they were preparing for war, compared to in the first book it had more action. The end tied up everything pretty good which I like in series books. And it’s comforting that Dante and Alyssa are solid throughout.

I'm so sad to say this was a DNF at about 30%. I loved the first book, but I could not connect with this sequel and I felt that by 1/3 of the way through the book nothing had really happened and there had been no character growth. If I had more reading time I probably would have tried to continue, but felt like it was best to move on. 3 star rating based on what I had read so far - it was fine.

I loved this book so much didn't think the series could get any better but this book proved me wrong

Wow! What a fantastic way to end the duology. We are taken yet again on an exciting quest to save the world and save a true love story.