I received this as an ARC and was excited to see what it was about! If you are looking for intricate worldbuilding and depth this won't be for you. But if you're looking for a good time come on in!

Nadi is a shapeshifting fae who is seeking revenge for her parents death after 80 years. We don't know much about the world, other than the humans and vampires somewhat work together and all things wild (where the fae are) needs to be contained. We also don't know much about how this all happened - or maybe we do and I just missed it on the audio, but I am hoping we get more answers in the second book.

Nadi catches the girl that Raziel is supposed to marry and sends her off with a bribe so she can shift into her and take her place. She hates him so much but of course instantly lusts after him because well, he's a hot vampire right? How Nadi doesn't see how obvious she really is about her not being a little farm girl is beyond me but it's fine, we can just suspend that reality because I really did have a good time. There is a lot of similar inner dialogue throughout and honestly she seems more of a mess than an assassin but the scene where he tied her up? Worth it. I was waiting for her to get caught and was happy with the ending and am definitely excited to see what happens next!

I was sent the e-arc and audio and I enjoyed the narration. I wish it was duel because I'm not big fan of when voices are changed for male characters but I enjoyed it and listened to it fairly quickly!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Serpent’s Bride by Kathryn Ann Kingsley

Vampire mafia + enemies to lovers + revenge bride?? Yes, please.

Nadi is a shapeshifting fae who takes on the role of Raziel’s sacrificial bride to get close enough to destroy the vampires who murdered her family. She’s fierce, determined, and willing to risk everything for revenge.

Raziel, on the other hand, is the broody vampire prince of the Nostrom clan—magnetic, ruthless, and impossible to ignore. His ruby-red eyes, dangerous charm, and powerful presence made every scene with him addictive.

The tension between them was my favorite part—full of banter, chemistry, and that true enemies-to-lovers spark that keeps you hooked. I just wish we got more of the vampire/mafia world itself, because it’s such a unique setup that I wanted to see explored even more.

Still, this was an exciting and addictive start to the series, and I’ll definitely be picking up the next book to see what happens with Nadi and Raziel.

Unfortunately this book wasn't for me. It had everything i usually enjoy, Dark romantasy, Enemies to lovers, Marriage of convenience but i just couldn't have myself like the characters and i couldn't finish the book. I thought i will like it but i didn't. Our FMC i Maybe liked her in start the shapeshifting fae assassin who was after revenge but then the first moment she saw Raziel she was already losing it? And Raziel i didnt see any redeeming quality in him. It wasn't also much enemies to lovers either. This book did not hit. I could not get into it. They went from enemies to obsessed pretty quickly and i just couldn't have myself continue.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the Arc of this book!

𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭'𝐬 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞
𝐛𝐲 𝐊𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐲𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐧 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬𝐥𝐞𝐲
𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐀𝐮𝐠𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝟐𝟖𝐭𝐡

- - -

If you are a fan of vampires, fae, revenge, mafia, and dark fantasy romance, then this book is for you.

I was hooked from the prologue. Revenge? Vampires? Oh, tell me more!

This book is such a page-turner. Throughout the story, you sit on the edge of your seat cause it's so action-packed, fast-paced, and lots of twists and turns. The plot twist and cliffhanger were so surprising, I totally did not see that coming. It was brilliant!

This book has some explicit sexual content, and there's also murder, abuse, violence, and grief. Just FYI!

Now, the main characters, a vampire and a fae, true enemies, are so vicious. How such different species have so many (some disturbing) things in common. That's what make them a very interesting couple. I can't wait for more character development in the second book.

So please, hurry up, Kathryn! I want to see what happens next.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the ARC!

This book felt like an interesting blend of genre’s. It’s a paranormal vampire romance with mafia vibes. Nadi is a shape shifter and assassin who is set on killing the murderer of her family Raziel, a vampire. She poses as his fiance Monica, to get close to him.

There is a lot of tension between these two. This is definitely a true enemies to lovers romance. We get both Raziel and Nadi’s POV’s and they both despise one another but there is this attraction they are both fighting. I liked the little glimpses into Raziel that we get in this book. Is he actually as evil as he seems to be or was he forced to be this way by his family? I suspect we will dive deeper into this in the next books.

The ending of this book was done really well. The cliffhanger will definitely have me checking out book 2!

3.75 stars, this book and audio were entertaining, the plot was interesting, and the writing was great! I am intrigued to find out how this series continues.

Beware! This book ends with a jaw-dropping cliffhanger that will leave you tumbling straight into the abyss and stuck at the bottom with me, impatiently waiting for book two!


I absolutely loved this story. The FMC is a fae shapeshifter who is fiercely independent, sassy, and yet still so relatable. The MMC delivered everything I could have wanted from a vampire prince, and I can’t wait to see more of him as the series unfolds.


I did an immersive read and I highly recommend it! Both narrators in the audiobook were phenomenal and truly brought the story to life.

I will disguise myself as the vampire’s bride.
I will win over his family.
And then I will murder every last one of them.

Woahhh babyyy! What a wild ride that was... pun intended (you'll get it if/when you've read it). 🥵 That tagline/quote up above is what had me hitting that add to tbr button in a heartbeat! That and I'm a sucker for a dark vampire romantasy, and this one was definitely dark. This was the first book I've read by this author, and I literally could not put it down. I nearly gave in and let it consume me, but I somehow found the will to slow down and savor it at the same time. This was a true enemies-to-lovers, and oh my gosh, how I freaking loved it! It was well written, the characters were interesting, and the storyline had a real hold on me. I was not expecting that twist at the end. Why? I don't know. But I wasn't. And oh my gosh, that ending! THE ENDING! Ughhhhh. I need book two. Like now. Please. 😩 I absolutely can not wait to find out what happens next! I'm also really excited to read more of this authors work.

If this sounds like something you'd enjoy and you're a fan of tropes like: enemies to lovers, vampire mmc, shape-shifting fae assassin fmc, marriage of convenience, and mafia... I recommend adding The Serpent's Bride to your tbr!

I really enjoyed this book! It's one of my first of this genre. I definitely will be looking forward to future books from her.

ALC/ARC Review!!!

As my first Kathryn Ann Kingsley book, I can easily say I was not disappointed! Who doesn’t love an intense, steamy romantasy?! I loved the characters, the story, the plot and twists, and that ending!!! Nadi as the FMC was brilliant and badass! Raziel definitely stunned me in that last chapter! Absolutely cannot wait for the next book!

The audiobook was very well narrated. I like how the narrator changes tone for the different characters and how she makes the story flow so smoothly.

I'm a sucker for vampires, arranged marriage/forced proximity and enemies to lovers so I was superrrr excited to see this one land on my NetGalley shelf.

This was a deliciously dark setting with the enemies to lovers just done right, it felt a littleeee insta-lovey but hey, if I was faced with Raziel as my husband I would be too!! The push and pull between Nadi and Raziel was well done with the story unfolding from their new dynamic, I stuggled to connect to the MMC at first and found him to be a little bland/remorseless for the innocents he killed but after that ending? I need book 2 now please and thank you.

ARC Review of The Serpent's Bride by Kathryn Ann Kingsley
* * * * *
A bloody thrilling spicy supernatural read that will have you hooked for the day that will have you just making a deal with the devil to know what happens next!

Nadi is on a mission: to take down the monster that slaughtered her family. Raziel Nostrom. This shapshifting fae now assassin has her mind set on making him pay.
Her revenge plan is simple...ish. Using the skills and training she has accumulated over the years, she has thrown herself right into that blood sucker underworld pit of snakes, ending up right where she wants to be.
She has a role to play.
How long until feelings and emotions and other ambitions begin to complicat the plan? Or worse, how long until her target discovers what and who she is?

I was unsure about giving this a read, only due to my mood and all. However, something about this read lured me in. Happy to say it was absolutely worth my afternoon!
The ending!
The agreement!
This marriage!
THE TENSION!
What could possibly come from the second book when I am already thrown back from this first?
Better watch out Nostrom family, things are starting to look a little deadly!!!

Unfortunately I don't think this one was for me. The premise of the story is that a fae shapeshifter goes undercover as the human bride of a vampire to exact her revenge on him because he killed her family. It sounded great, but basically the moment she met him it felt like instalust. There was no real connection between the main characters and I felt like that didn't change throughout the entire book. I kept waiting for there to be some sort of plot twist or something that would give the MMC any sort of redeeming quality and it just never happened, so I didn't see what the FMC saw in him that made her seemingly abandon any chances at getting her revenge and take actions that seemed unnecessary. It became repetitive with the FMC saying that she would get revenge, but then never really doing anything that would help get to that goal. There was potential in the story, but this one just fell flat for me.
Thank you Second Sky for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5 stars

Thank you NetGalley & Second Sky for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was soooo obsessed with this book. It’s dark, but not overly spicy, and I didn’t expect that balance to work so well. This is a true enemies to lovers story within an arranged marriage plot. The constant push and pull of them wanting to kill each other while also wanting each other! I'm always down for this kind of dynamic.

The dual POV in 3rd person was done really well, and I loved getting to see both sides of the story. That said, the inner thoughts did get a little repetitive at times. Like, yes, I know you came here to kill him, I didn’t need to be reminded so many times.

Still, the pacing was great, the action kept me hooked, and the cliffhanger at the end made it perfect. Now I cannot wait to get my hands on the second book.

Let me preface this review by saying that this is not my usual genre. I'm a dark romance beginner so take this into account when digesting my review! I have read others books by this author so I was used to her writing style and strong character development.

There is no way you would ever accidentally call Raziel morally grey. The man is heartless, violent, selfish. Nadi is no shy retiring violet. She has moulded herself into a weapon, an assassin, in order to get the revenge she has been set on of decades! They are on opposing sides from the start and are inescapably linked through a trauma that he wrought and she lived through.

Nadi doesn't want innocents hurt during her plot but Raziel has no such compunctions. The story of well crafted and the pacing is really well done. The world building hasn't been over done but sometimes I did feel I needed a wee bit more context on the wider world.

The spice isn't particularly over the top but it's more the relationship and the bonds between the main characters that puts this on the darker end of romance. The constant game of one-upmanship between them was entertaining.

There was a doozy of an ending - bloody and intense with a WTAF moment.

Thank you NerdFam and Second Sky for the audio arc of this book. The narration is very well done and really helped me get in the mind of our FMC.
I loved Nadi as our FMC. She is a fae shapeshifter and goes undercover as the vampire rulers bride. I enjoyed the back and forth between Nadi and Raziel though sometimes their thoughts got very repetitive. Also while I loved Nadi, I never really grew to like Raziel. To me it felt like he didn't have much a backbone to his family and let them walk all over Nadi and him. Also he doesn't seem to have a redeeming qualities to make me root for him since he kills many innocent people and just doesn't care. Honestly I was kind of rooting for Nadi to complete her mission and kill him.
The ending of this book though does make me look at Raziel in a different light and I'm excited for the sequel.

Firstly thank you second sky and nerd fam for an ARC of this book.

3.75⭐️ I read this alongside the audio and while the audio didn’t grip me as much, I did enjoy the story. I just felt like the inner monologues of the characters kind of repeated and Nadi’s need for revenge seemed to vanish quite quickly. It felt as if she kind of kept putting it off.

Although that ending left me gasping for more!

🔴Vampire mafia boss X shape shifting fae
🔴 enemies to lovers
🔴 marriage of convenience

The Serpent’s Bride was dark, ruthless, and honestly such a fun ride.
Think vampire mafia vibes with morally grey characters who thrive in the chaos—definitely not one for the faint of heart.

The plot itself was pretty straightforward, but it kept me hooked with its steady pacing and short chapters. I flew through it because it was just so hard to put down!

If I had one wish, it’d be for more world-building. I’m so curious about the Wild, the fae, the vampires, and how the humans fit into it all—there’s so much potential there.

The romance? Deliciously messy.
That enemies-to-lovers tension and those burning stare added an extra spark, especially as they started catching feelings they weren’t ready for.
The spicy scenes were hotter than what I usually read—not too wild, but definitely turned up a notch.

And that ending? Chaos incoming!
I need to know what happens next with these two because things are about to get even more intense, I can feel it!

Overall, this was such an addictive dark fantasy romance.
It was my first read from this author, but definitely not my last. That cliffhanger got me good, and I’m 100% continuing the series.

Highly recommended if you’re into stories with marriage of convenience, enemies-to-lovers, vampire MMC x shifter fae assassin, mafia drama, and morally grey characters galore.

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: blood, murder, death, sexual content, violence, torture, kidnapping

spicy vampires, gave a bit of mafia vibes along with Fae. we follow our FMC as she tries to infiltrate a powerful vampire family in the name of revenge. spicy, twists turns and an ending that left me gagging for book 2 like yesterday

Thank you Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read an advanced copy!

Unfortunately this book did not hit. The writing wasn't up to par with typical dark fantasy romance reads and I could NOT get into it. They went from enemies to obsessed pretty quickly and I just didn't have it in me to continue on.