♥We Who Will Die♥
By: Stacia Stark

5/5 Star Review
4/5 Spiciness Level

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon & Harper Voyager publisher, and Author Stacia Stark for allowing me the privilege of reading this as an eARC for my honest review. Thank you!

I do highly recommend this book for someone looking for a slow burn romantasy and epic fantasy! There is immense world-building with a deep and dark storyline and hope for a better life for our main characters and a better world for all. There are emotions, action, suspense, and paranormal things. An amazing book!! It does end on a mild cliffhanger.

Genre, POV & Tropes:

We Who Will Die is a Romantasy and is book #1 of the brand new Empire of Blood series by Author Stacia Stark. First person POV of the FMC, Arvelle. Tropes include epic fantasy, slow burn, vampires, magic, paranormal, telepathy, gladiator style fighting competitions, an evil emperor, vengeful gods, “I saw her first,” and a book that makes the reader’s eyes bleed when trying to read it! I’m sure there are many more tropes I have not listed.

It is best to go in blind, so if you want to do that do not read any further because there are some small & moderate spoilers below it that will ruin some of the surprises. Just stop here and read the book! Once you read it, you may come back and get a recap here before reading book #2.

Favorite quote:

“There’s no worse feeling than watching someone you love die. The helplessness slices you into pieces. And grief sets those pieces on fire. Until you’re nothing but ash.”

STOP HERE IF YOU WANT TO GO IN COMPLETELY BLIND.

Brief Rundown:

After being manipulated to return to the arena by a vampire in order to save her brother’s life, the FMC Arvelle has to overcome the loss of her best friend years ago in the same arena, manage coming face to face & working side by side with the man who shattered her heart, and fulfill the demands of the vampire by killing the evil emperor Vallius Corvus which she knows will likely end in her immediate execution. Her quest feels impossible, but she has no choice but to try. Her brothers are worth her sacrifice, as she does not care what happens to herself as long as her brothers are safe, healthy, and happy. There are murders taking place with an unknown assailant, an evil is lurking and building in the depths of the *arena*, old feelings are being rekindled and there may be new ones sparking to life between her and someone unexpected. Not all is what it seems and not everyone is who they seem. So, who will she end up with? At this point, I’m not entirely sure! Can’t wait for book #2!!

FMC:

Arvelle Dacien is 24 years old & from the impoverished town of Thorn. She is emotionally damaged for many reasons. She is a sigilmarked, with her sigil gold but broken. Early in the book someone makes a comment about what a waste her sigil is, as gold sigils are normally the most powerful. She has a birthmark on her shoulder that resembles a skull and I ponder whether it will become important in later books. She was in love, but he up and left without a word years ago, shattering her heart and closing her off to ever seek love again. Also, after the loss of her best friend and losing her mother to an addiction on top of that, she is very much a loner trying to get through life with the minimal amount of ties to other people as possible.

She has two brothers that are twins and 14 years old, Evren and Garith. It is because of Evren that she is manipulated by the vampire Bran to return to the arena. At age 8, when their glister addicted mother was not paying attention, the boys snuck out and end up caught in the aftermath of a mine explosion which caused severe damage to Evren’s lungs. Arvelle must keep giving him lung tonics to keep him alive. Bran buys out all of the tonics in her town and all the neighboring towns, essentially forcing her to agree to his terms or watch her brother die. Her brothers also both have gold sigilmarks, though they’re only just beginning to awaken. Bran takes her brothers and puts them into the care of another vampire with the agreement Evren will be healed upon her completion of their agreement. This also means they are at his mercy and can be killed at any point if she does not work for Bran or if he so chooses. The boys are taken north to the place Arvelle always hoped to end up once she had the means. She will do anything to keep them safe.

Kassia, her best friend & closest thing to a sister, died years prior in the arena. Kassia’s father, Leon, was the closest thing to a father Arvelle and her brothers ever had up until Kassia died. Arvelle blames herself for her death and Leon seems to blame her as well. So, it is hard for Arvelle to ask for his help upon returning to the arena. He does agree to go and train her, as he trained both Arvelle and Kassia their entire lives up until the tragedy.

MMC:

At this point, there are two MMCs. They are brothers, Tiernon and Rorrik. They are sons of the emperor so they are vampires. They are very much at odds with each other by design of their evil father. If they would work together, they would be powerful enough to destroy the emperor and he can not allow that.

Tiernon is 8 years younger than his brother. He is the boy who kept coming to visit with Arvelle as children and as they grow up together they fall in love. He is the one who shattered her heart when leaving Thorn without a word to her. She did not know who he truly was. He could not tell her and was trying to protect her from his horrible father. Now, he is Primus which is the leader of the imperius, an elite force of soldiers working directly for his father, the emperor. He never wanted to become Primus and does not want to be a leader. He is the one who takes any punishment dished out to the imperius to save his soldiers from having to endure it as he sees any of their failures as his own failure. He never stopped loving Arvelle. He does try to keep his distance, but they seem to be drawn to each other.

Rorrik, the older brother, is shown to us to be a ruthless, evil killer with no conscience. Though, as the book goes on that is all thrown into question. Is he really evil or is he the hero of the story? There seem to be some rather big sparks flying between Rorrik and Arvelle, but she hasn’t acknowledged that yet. He is very much her enemy in her mind. I am predicting he falls for her first, or maybe already has? I am very much looking forward to seeing where it goes. As it seems though, he is morally black regardless.

STORYLINE/PLOT:

A world with vampires, sigilmarked, maginari, and mundanes. Vampires, like the MMCs and the evil emperor, are sly and cunning, most of them gaining more power the older they become. Sigilmarked powers belong to the people like our FMC, who have differing strengths of magic and have a sigil mark being either bronze, silver or gold on their forehead that flares when active. Maginari are magical creatures such as griffins, pixies, centaurs, harpys etc and they are mostly killed or imprisoned by the emperor. Mundanes I believe are just humans with no magical powers.

I believe there are two plots, a plot for this book which is resolved by the end, then a bigger plot that will last throughout the whole series. The plot for this book is Arvelle returning to the arena because she was forced by vampire Bran. His goal is to return vampires to the sun. As vampires, the sun will kill them. He thinks he can change this. She must kill the emperor Vallius Corvus. When she agreed to do his bidding, they made a blood vow which can only be broken by completion of the vow or death of one or both of them. This plot does come to its finish toward the end of this book, but of course I will not spoil how.

“Bow Before the God of Ruin” is on the front cover of the book. This seems to be the bigger series long plot. The God of Ruin is Mortuus, “embodying despair, decay and chaos.” He is an evil god who is recruiting people to help aid in his escape so he can enslave the world to him.

Spicy Content:

Sweet kisses around 30% & 41% in. More intimate scenes at 66% & 73% in.

Final Thoughts:

There are so many characters in this book and the politics & world building are very in depth. I am going to make some better notes and will come back after release day and add those in here for a better recap of all the people and places. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!! Thank you!

Happy Reading! ♥☻

It took me far too long to finish this book, but it was a great book and I have no doubt it will be a big fantasy book come release!

I personally feel like there was so many details that I had to try to keep up with the entire book. It was very hard to focus on the main plot line, because it just felt like there was so much going on everywhere. I felt like I truly struggled reading the book because there was so many details and it got confusing during certain points in the book. Maybe I’m not huge on straight fantasy books, and that’s what this is?

Essentially, this book is a gladiator themed fantasy. Our female main character is tasked to compete in a tournament style gladiator type of competition essentially. I loved the gladiator aspect of the book a lot! Where I struggled, though, were the competitions, and how they were explained it just felt hard to visualize, and also see why the main character made the actions she made?

Also I’m very shocked this was not a romantasy book!! Like there was romance, but also, none?? I was confused and rooting for a situation that never happened. I am intrigued to see how relationships grow in the next book, and I am kind of upset that I’m gonna have to wait forever to read book 2 since this was an ARC read!

All in all, I believe this was a great read in this book is going to be a big hit in the fantasy community when it releases!

5/5 ⭐️

First I want to start off by thanking NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for allowing me to ARC review this book.

When I first read about this book I knew it was one I would be 1000% interested in. I won’t lie though I’ve been let down by a lot of new releases and feel like some authors aren’t doing their research when it comes to taking points from history and incorporating it into their stories…. Stacia though obviously did her research.

This book had me in a choke hold. I loved everything about this book. I feel like the characters had growth and some of the enemies were people I would have never guessed. I don’t know if there is something wrong with me because even though Arvelle chose Ti I was rooting for Rorrik the whole time. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!

I know there's an audience for this but it wasn't for me. I have no real issues with the writing, but the entire romance aspect was so draining to read about. Love triangles are tricky and I'm very picky about them. This one drove me crazy. I lost most interest before the halfway mark and honestly after finishing, I kind of wished I had just DNF. There are many too convenient moments where the FMC manages to figure something out accomplish something - it was much too easy. Also each character is very flawed and I found myself not feeling very attached to any of them. You ever read about characters and not care what happens with them? That was this for me. Also I typically LOVE vampire books but I almost wish this had a different vibe going for it because it never felt quite right. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

We Who Will Die was an amazing read! This Roman Empire-inspired world, teeming with vampires and a uniquely dark magic system, instantly captivated me. It's unlike any other fantasy I've read! There is so much world building and character introductions that I had to re-read a few parts and will definitely re-read before the next release. To me that shows that it is a good fantasy series though. The ending delivered some truly unexpected twists and the cliffhanger was bad but not HORRIBLE .
4.5⭐️
Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Roman inspired, vampires, deadly trials, and magic, yes please! This is a compelling new romantasy from one of my favorite authors, Stacia Stark.

Arvelle won the deadly trials known as the sands but lost her best friend during the trials. Left by her love Arvelle is now left working as a bodyguard to help care for her sick brother. When a vampire shows up on her doorstep offering her a choice, he will save her brother’s life if she enters the trials the Sundering and kills the emperor.

This is a high stakes fantasy romance filled with tension and trials all within a roman/ gladiator setting. The ruthless political setting is so compelling. I loved the vampire ruling class and the divide and tension with the sigil-marked who have magical powers.

Arvelle is such a compelling FMC, you understand her motivation and I love that she has made her way because of training and hard work. She’s also been hurt in the past and doesn’t want to depend on anyone.

I am not generally a fan of a love triangle but I am so invested in this one and very much rooting for Rorrik the darker more dangerous MMC although Tiernon has the past and is considered more of the good guy MMC.

I can’t wait to see what happens next!!

Read if you like:
- Slow burn
- Deadly trials
- Gladiators
- Vampires and magic
- Forced proximity
- Hidden identities
- Political intrigue

This book was a fun and awesome to read. I enjoyed the vampires, emperor and guards in this story. The plot twist was crazy. I liked it. The characters are awesome. This is one of the fantasy books that I would recommend readers to read.

thank you to netgalley, Stacia Stark and Harper Collins for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review!

5 star read ! I swear this will be the biggest trending booktok book upon its release!

i am absolutely feral for this book. from the grieving heart that Arvelle has for Tiernon to the tension with Rorrick, the hatred for the emperor, the compassion and heart for Leon and Maeva it gave me everything i wanted.

the plot of this book really reminded me of the hunger games and divergent but with so much different energy. with different kinds of magic, i felt it added more depth to the characters due to the crowning process.

from the competition of the sands won, and trials faced in the sundering Arvelle shows to be a strong fmc without knowing her own power but choosing to stand on her own.

*vampires
*magic
*badass fmc
*Gods
*mythical creatures

the ending has me in a choke hold, and I can't wait to see where Ti, Rorrick & Arvelle's storyline leads us! im so excited to learn more about the magic system and to see the relationships grow more.

Thank you to Harper Colins and NetGalley for the opportunity to arc read 'We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark.

Wow, this was such a good book. An Ancient Roman inspired world. A little slow in some spots but overall a well paced story. Politics, power and class diversity between, Mundanes, Sigilmarked and Vampires.
A second chance forbidden romance with all the tension. Arvelle our FMC heroine that fights for who she loves. Her character growth was outstanding in this first book. Tiernon our protective Vampire MMC, he is devoted, good looking, loyal and would do anything to protect the one he loves.
Rorrik, our villainous Vampire, he is moody, handsome, cocky and dangerous. Rorrik and Arvelle have great tension and banter. Not sure of the direction the romantic relationships but is Arvelle needs to choose, it won't be easy. Great world building, unique magic system and rememberable side characters.
Official rating 4.5 stars and 1.5 spice rating

I loved We Who Will Die! I was completely hooked by the storyline and couldn’t put it down. I loved the concept of the trials, but I was relieved that the trials weren’t the main focus of the whole book like so many other books where the MC is entered in a series of trials. I appreciated that there were so many other story lines. I really didn’t want this book to end, and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!

OH MY GOODNESS. We Who Will Die is a slow-burn romantasy set in a Roman-inspired world ruled by merciless vampires. Filled with breathtaking combat, vengeful gods, and magical creatures, it’s the epic first installment in an enthralling new series.

This book was SO GOOD. I loved the Roman aspects and the gladiator themes, and the small dive that we saw into mythical creatures. I saw other reviewers saying it was similar to The Vampire Diaries and I think I can see where that comes from (I’ve only watched like 5 episodes, but I get the vibe).

My only qualm with the book is that SO MUCH happened in such a short book. Not that it’s bad, because it’s definitely building up for the rest of the series, but I feel like my attention was going all over the place.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

3.5. This book was a mix of really great and not so great. I always love a trope of a powerless
MC in a world of powerful creatures. However, it irks me when the main character is lacking key intelligence. Arvelle repeatedly makes decisions that are impulsive and dramatic that do not track against her main goal. I would get so frustrated it would take me out of the story.

Stacia Stark, the woman that you are. I'm not sure what she put in this book, but I could not put it down.

Ancient Rome meets vampires meets mortals with and without power. Arvelle, the FMC, is utterly human in her fears, trauma, and grief, which I loved. She is terrified most of the time and still persists.

I am not usually a big love triangle girlie, BUT I couldn't get enough of it. While I liked Tiernon, I have enough of a soft spot for broody, misunderstood anti-heroes that I am FIRMLY Team Rorrick.

If you want a unique romantasy with twists and turns that will have you in a chokehold throughout the whole book, this is it.

The only downside to this is that I don't quite know how I'm going to wait for the second book when the first isn't even published yet.

Thank you SO MUCH to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon for the eARC!

4.5/5 stars

I had such a good time reading this book.

Arvelle is a Young magic-wielder who has lost all the adult/partner figures in her life and has to scrounge alone to take care of her 2 younger brothers. She is coeerced by a vampire to compete in gladiator-style deadly trials. She is blackmailed using medicine her brother needs to survive.

I really enjoyed the history and the romance with Ti and liked seeing glimpses of them together through memories and through the moments they were able to sneak away. I wanted so much more of their relationship together.
I was also ready to go all in on Rorrick at one point when Ti was refusing to have a full conversation with Arvelle. I was waiting for the Damon Salvatore moment where she realizes who the brother is at his core and what motivates him and falls for him. Especially with all of the hurt and secrets with Ti. This had such Vampire Diary vibes for me.

I loved watching Arvelle gainstrength *both physically and mentally) and figure out how to let people in and learn to share her emotions and struggles, especially after having been betrayed or abandoned by everyone who she had counted on.

I found that I did have to reread some sections because I got confused about what had happened, especially when many things were happening at the same time or in short succession.

I will absolutely be continuing the series!

A huge thank you to HarperCollins and Netgalley for this ARC!

I wanted to love this, but it felt like something I’ve read before. The first half moves really slowly and the pacing is all over the place, then suddenly it’s giving full ACOTAR-meets-Hunger-Games vibes without much that feels new. There are flashes of a great story here and the world has potential, but it might just need tighter editing since this was an ARC.

4.5 stars, but I'll round up cause I truly enjoyed everything else about this book. And I will hold my slight disappointment at bay until the next book.

This story is a marriage of my favorite things, roman-fantasy and vampires. And it was a perfect blend. Premise was also one of my faves: joining a high-stakes death tournament (gladiator fights!). Our FMC, Arvelle, was engaging in her brightest and darkest moments. Many of the side characters were interesting and made you want to learn more about them. It really hit so many of my fave things in a fantasy story.

So why was I disappointed? Purely a personal gripe. I loathe a love triangle spanning multiple books. The synopsis did warn me and I gave it fair shot. But I just did not enjoy this aspect of the story.

I'll go into the sequel both excited and wary. And I will be hoping the love triangle isn't dragged out beyond book two as well.

PUT THIS IN MY 2025 TOP 5 IMMEDIATELY. Roman gladiators meets vampires meets magic powers meets mythical creatures meets HOT BROTHERS in power (and I’m in love with both of them).

In all seriousness, this book is a love letter to eldest daughters and those who have loved people in addiction. I fall squarely in these categories at the same time. I cherished and saved the quotes where the author explained what this experience is like. She nailed it and I felt seen.

The rest of the time I was just thoroughly entertained and enjoying the hell out of this fun and fast paced ride.

Thank you to #NetGalley and @Avonbooks and @HarperVoyagerUS for this eARC in exchange for my review. I had the time of my life reading this one.

I loved this book! I couldn't put it down as soon as I started reading. Arvelle is a complex, interesting protagonist and unlike many romantasy FMCs, she makes coherent choices that brought me along and kept me engaged and rooting for her. This was also grittier than I was expecting - there's violence and murder and not just by the bad guys. I liked the difficult situation Arvelle found herself in and I never knew exactly what was going to happen next. There were unexpected twists and turns that surprised me, and I am so excited to see where this series goes. I was bummed when I finished it knowing how long I will have to wait for the next book to release!

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the ARC!

3.5 (which I hate to do and may change my mind)

I love Stacia Stark, so much. Her writing always keeps me engaged and her style is just perfect for my taste.

That being said. Wowzers. I said this about another super popular book last year, but this needs to be two books instead of one. I got halfway through and thought this.

Let's be clear, there is SOOOO much in this book. You've got the fight trials, the romance but maybe a triangle/why choose, but mourning the loss of her best friend six years ago, and you've got to kill the emperor to save her brothers, find out who's killing people and to train to be in the emperor's protection detail...there's more but I think you get it.

It's just too much to make a great book. I wish the fight trials, the FMC training and getting over her losses in life and introducing the romance could've would've been a knock out with how Stacia writes. Like it's all there and just needs to be flushed out into more books.

Sigh, like I said. I'm absolutely torn about this rating. I'm a ride or die for her, I just wish other decisions would've been made.

I'll continue the series and I can guarantee this will be a HUGE romantasy read in 2026.

Looking forward to less of the kitchen sink in book 2.

Thank you endlessly to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the eARC!

Gladiator meets Vampire Diaries vibes... I was instantly drawn in to the brutality of the world and the devotion Arvelle showed for her brothers. The plot jumped immediately into action and had my heart racing within the first few chapters. I felt a deep connection with Arvelle almost immediately and appreciated the way the flashbacks helped to paint the picture of the past and develop the character better. The MMC gave off 'Stephon' and 'Damon' energy. My only complaint is, much of the information was mentioned offhand about the rebel vampire groups and rebelling against the vampire emperor. I think I would have been more fully immersed into the story if I had a deeper understanding of the politics. Over all it was a good read for me. I give it 4.5 stars