4 Star read from me.

This is a really great take on divinity, with characterisations and motivations not seeming human. For comparison, we normally see divinity in fantasy romance who have human motivations, personalities and depth - Noctis and Rada however feel removed and colder than humanity around them which makes them intriguing as characters and ultimately makes the book subject matter feel more organic.

The thrill of their initial romance in which they don't trust each other but have undeniable draw and connection is chefs kiss. The background and build up of the world is also fantastic. I enjoyed the time jumps, revealing more of Rada and Noctis as characters. Noctis was a great lead who while he has his own motivations and faults is ultimately compelling and a great match for Rada. Amazing chemistry and a great read!

Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC, this was well written and extremely well thought out!

Two fallen gods. A love scarred by betrayal. A choice between saving the world—or destroying each other.

Rada, the exiled Goddess of Light, is forced to face her past when her former lover, Noctis, the God of Darkness, appears on her farm, broken and near death. Torn between letting him die, turning him in to the God Council, or offering him shelter, Rada soon realizes that his enemies are not far behind. To save their village (and perhaps their entire world), they must decide if they can fight side by side, despite millennia of betrayal, love, and heartbreak.

This book is sweeping and immersive. It alternates between the present and the past, showing us not just the stakes of their world, but the tragic beginnings and endings of Rada and Noctis’s relationship. From creation itself, to endless wars, to their heartbreaking fall, you feel the weight of their history in every moment.

At first, I struggled to understand their animosity when their goals aligned, but once the past unfolded, their pain and mistrust became so much clearer. The romance and the plot are perfectly balanced—each driving the other forward.

Yes, it could have been shorter, but the length allowed their story to breathe, and by the end, I was fully invested. I ship Rada and Noctis hard, and even though betrayal seems inevitable and another war looms, I can’t help but hold on to hope for them.

Spice: 🌶🌶

Thank you @NetGalley and Sarah Lee Wohn for this ARC! You can bet I’ll be eagerly waiting for book two.

Tropes:

- Fallen gods
- Lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers
- Second chances
- Star-crossed romance
- Betrayal & redemption
- Slow burn
- Dual POV
- Dual timeline
- Forbidden love
- Villain gets the girl

A Lyrical Review

“Even in the void, love leaves its trace — a spark where there was once a star.”

Sarah Lee Wohn’s Darkness Births the Stars is not just a story — it’s a myth reborn, a celestial ache wrapped in silk and shadow. This lush debut blends epic fantasy with aching romance, written in prose that reads like whispered poetry and storm-tossed longing.

💔 The Story

Rada was once the Goddess of Light — radiant, powerful, and immortal. But when her heart was broken by betrayal and war, she chose to fall. Now she lives quietly on a remote farm, where her days are simple and her nights are haunted by memory. But peace shatters the night Noctis — the God of Darkness, long thought dead — stumbles back into her life.

He is wounded, changed, and far too familiar. Their past is full of fire: love, war, heartbreak. Their present? Full of tension, secrets, and a slow-burning desire that threatens to consume them both.

Together, they must face a rising force of Chaos threatening to unmake the world — and perhaps find redemption in each other.

✨ What Makes It Shine

Emotionally Raw Romance
The relationship between Rada and Noctis is breathtakingly human, despite their godhood. Their history drips with pain, tenderness, betrayal, and hope. It’s not just enemies-to-lovers — it’s lovers-to-enemies-to-something-more, and it hurts in the best way.

Lush, Mythic World building
Inspired by Nordic myths, the world feels both ancient and intimate. Think divine temples fallen to ruin, cozy forests guarded by strange creatures, and celestial storms crackling with forgotten power. It’s immersive and poetic, never overwhelming.

Dual Timelines That Build Tension
Flashbacks deepen the emotional stakes, slowly revealing what tore Rada and Noctis apart while their present-tense story gently pulls them back together.

Quiet Moments That Speak Volumes
Some of the most touching scenes are the quiet ones: Rada tending to her animals. Noctis learning to live with less power. Shared silences that say what words can’t. These moments give the story its soul.

🌟 Final Thoughts

Darkness Births the Stars is a tender, aching, beautiful read — a story of lost gods and lost love, and the fragile, shining threads that tie them together again. It’s a soft place to fall, even when the world is burning.

If you’re looking for a book that’s both fierce and gentle, romantic and mythic, slow and utterly satisfying — this is the one.

Thank you to netgalley for providing me with this ARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

This fantasy was a swoon worthy treat! It has been a long time since I’ve read two MCs who were this down bad for each other and HATED it at the same time. I absolutely ate UP the lovers to enemies to lovers trope! Rada and Noctis were multilayer flawed individuals who despite having a very rocky history (like almost ending the world rocky), try once again to be in each others orbit even though Rada is terrified of letting Noctis back into her life and maybe even her heart?

The dual POVs between the two of them were so fun! And getting to switch between current day events where they’ve been reunited after 10 years and the past when they first fell in love and then the consequences of that love was riveting.

Plus with this dual POV and timeline situation you get to experience this new world at two different times: one of peace and impending war and one of creation and learning their places in the world.

This book had me rooting for the main couple from the second Noctis (bloody and almost dead) appears on Radas doorstep! I mean how could you not when it starts with a: “I had nowhere else to go” right outta the gate? I’m not strong enough to resist that let me tell you?

Overall, It is a very strong start to an epic love story that I’m itching to find out what happens next!

Note:
Review is posted on both Goodreads and Fable!
Instagram review will be posted @stargazer.reads on August 21st!

Thank you to Sarah Lee Wohn for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I had such a great time with this book. The cozy farm setting stole my heart, and I loved how much Rada adored her animals (special shout-out to the cat 🐈). I also really enjoyed learning about the Ten, their unique powers, and how the different beings came to exist in this world—it added such wonderful depth to the story.

The opening chapters leaned into an info dump and felt a little heavy with description, but once the story found its rhythm, I was hooked. It The story was very character driven for most of the book. The banter and flirting were delightful, and her friends were great.

And I have to admit… (a bit of a spoiler) the mingling/mind-reading of feelings during the spicy scenes definitely worked for me, haha.

It did run a bit long in spots, but overall, it was a good read that left me smiling. I’ll definitely be picking up the next one as soon as its available!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book. A 4 star rating from me. Loved the plot and the storytelling and relatable, likable characters. Loved every single second reading it.

“Cold and spicy, with a hint of ashes and lightning.
Darkness and Chaos. Him.”

"No one will ever be permitted to hurt you while I still live."

"Careful, Baradaz," I said, my voice all but gone. "If you wander too far into the darkness, you might lose your way."

"In my darkest nights, one guiding star will always remain."

This book was … magnificent !!! I loved it. Loved it. Loved it. Her, previous goddess of star. Him, ex gods of darkness and chaos. She was promised to his brother, but their attraction was inevitable. Between flashbacks of their past and his sudden reappearance when she thought he was forever lost and dead, this book will guide you through Noctis and Rada’s story and you will loose yourself in their love, their angst, their hope and their impossible happy ending. Or is it? They were enemies before becoming lovers. And then enemies again. They are forced together by a fate crueler than words. Chaos will reign if he falls deeper into darkness. And if she falls … it will be complete doom. This book was action. Tension. Banter. Anger. Pining. Spicy. Romantic. It made me obsessed. And the ending … damn but I need more!!!

"I'll tell you a secret, little menace." I stared at the door she had vanished through. "Countless ages could pass, and I would never forget her."

"Rage at me, curse me, but I will not let you run away from this, from us. Not anymore."

“I don't care if it is madness. I don't care if you're a goddess, a queen, or a mortal farmer. I want you to be mine. Mine alone. And that will never change."

You can't have the light without the dark.

Talk about star crossed lovers. I adored the couple in this book. You get dual POV plus flashbacks to explain the entire story. It is is so heavy on the miscommunication trope. There were definitely times that I was so frustrated with the MCs, especially our FMC due to this, but I understand the need behind it.
I will say the first 50%-60% of the book was kinda slow. It built the relationship but not a ton of action happened. The ending was great and just what I was hoping for. All in all, I really enjoyed this book and will read more by Sarah Lee Wohn!

✨ What happens when two “fallen” gods, whose connection could destroy the whole world if they let it, reconcile after being torn apart by fate and politics? THIS BOOK. ✨

💭 My take:
Once again, I must thank the Instagram algorithm by delivering me another STUNNING author account suggestion, which then led me to request her norse mythology-inspired book on NetGalley 😍 I feel like a different Tiegan to the person I was before I started this book.

✨ The standout aspects (without revealing too much):
- The flashback chapters (and you won’t hear me saying that very often lol) which deliver all the feels and give you a heartwrenching account of the characters’ history
- The most torturously slow of slow burns in existence, and an incredibly satisfying… climax 😉 Hehe.
- Sarah’s writing style is so lush, so lyrical, so articulate, so emotive, so… Perfect. ;-;
- The surprise reveal at the end (NOT a major cliffhanger, in case those scare you haha)… *shakes my fist at no fictional character in particular* lol

📚 Would I recommend?
Yes!! Especially for those who love a character-driven second-chance romance story, “will-they-won’t-they-vibes”, and an extremely generous dose of tension and pining set against a rural backdrop.

⭐️ 4/5 stars
🌶️ 2/5 spice

This review is up on Goodreads and will be on Instagram soon, as soon as I can finish the graphics! 🫶

This read blew me away. The plot in and of itself is slower paced; people who like fast paced romantasy where the action is consistently gripping you to the edge of your chair might find it too slow for them! I LOVE Noctis and Rada, their pining and wanting were so drawn out in between the pieces of the past that came up in the chapters, which really makes you want more coming from their pining.. Rada is a goddess of Light who has fallen for reasons that are SPOILER, and Noctis is the former God of Darkness who has been cast into the mortal world as a mortal because of the atrocities he committed against the other God/desses and the world in general. He ends up on Rada's doorstep in the mortal world at the brink of death and just wanted to see her one last time, but she ends up bringing him back to health. Things from the past unravel and bring more questions to the surface of machinations and manipulations from the other Gods and Goddesses that they weren't able to see originally, and by the end you're just wanting more. This was a refreshing 5 star read for me, and I loved the slow burn. It felt so rewarding each time they got a bit closer and opened up more to one another.

It is my first ARC, thank you for this opportunity. I requested it because I loved the cover, the title, as much as the description.

I’m not going to lie, the beginning was hard. It is hard to start a new book with a lot of names, battles, and places. We also alternate between present and past, which can be daunting at the beginning. But a few chapters in and I fell for it, I was hooked. And everything is made perfectly for a better and good understanding of the story.
I genuinely love the good dynamics and the chemistry of Noctis and Rada. There is good character development through the book. I’m going to be a fan girl, but oh God I loved Noctis and his story line.
I found the world building well put together. As I like in this kind of book, we can find a map at the beginning to go to when lost. Though not easy on the Kindle, you got to buy the book. I always prefer to have a physical copy. Anyway, as I said though a hard beginning on my part, once you’re in the story everything goes well. I mean for us readers, not the Characters (obviously). We can see the works of the author in the book. She must have worked hard to give us a story like this. And thank god, she did!

Tropes: Fantasy, Slow burn, Spice, Enemies to lovers, Fallen god, Dual POV, Dual Timeline, Forbidden love, villain gets the girl.

Spoiler alert, book 2 is coming 2026, can’t wait to put my hands on it.

4.5stars 🌟(0.5 from the HP shipper inside me)
I think I might have found my romantasy holy grail.🌙✨

The characters
This book delivers “I hate everyone but you” cinematic tension without the rapey/douchebag behavior. The main character? Rada is strong female protagonist that has agency and the intellect to see through Noctis’ plots, a powerhouse with magic that scares even other gods. The male lead? Noctis is tall dark and handsome, gets jealous but isn’t forceful (love a man who respects boundaries), and to top it all off, he's the god of darkness and of chaos.

Enemies to and lovers(it’s more of a cycle?)with a divine twist.
They both try to deny their love to themselves, to the world and to each other at first, but whenever someone tries to mess with one of them, the other is like “not on my watch!” Like, literally( not literally), their love for each other is their superpower. I know seeing a high-stakes fight unfold on the page shouldn’t be sweet but I’m smiling and kicking my feet anyway. Through jumping timelines and shifting point-of views, we get to see the complex tapestry of how their relationship took place and centuries of conflict, longing, and how that weaves together.

Did I mention they’re also gods?
The gods setting is a stroke of genius—it subverts the problem of an implausible relationship and cringey dialogue. “He hurt you. I would kill him a thousand times over for that insolence”,you feel the weight of eternity behind it. Their romance feels natural, the millennia of history between the two shines through every encounter. I will say that they are both reduced to mortal forms from the start of the novel, so the “gods” part doesn’t come into play in that aspect. But though reduced to mortal forms, their immortal perspective bleeds into everything, avoiding becoming too OP while making their connection larger than life.

Spice🌶️
This book is NSFW, with open door explicit content, but the steamy scenes don’t take away from their intellectual & emotional connection. The physical descriptions are there but done in moderation(no paragraph long ogling).

The bonus 0.5 stars
When I first saw the cover it gave me major Snape and Lily vibes. (runs away in hp fan girl) That alone is worth it.

All in all this was a flaming hot, brain-melting, five-alarm piece of brain candy! Can’t wait for the sequel.

Read this if you like:
The villain gets the queen
Booktok shadow daddy minus toxicity
“Us against the world” with teeth
Myth-based heavy world building.
Yearning in every word and glance
Sizzling chemistry

#NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and Sarah Lee Wohn for this ARC!
Will be posted on goodreads on August 11.

Oh Lyr, this one was just so stinking good!! I need the next asap. Rada is a queen of light drawn to the chaos & darkness. Noctis is pure chaos & darkness. This man’s love for her is literally to die for. The yearning, the tension, mwah chefs kiss. If you are looking for an Epic fantasy that involves gods, creation, power, good vs evil, dark vs light, & love & hate, then this one is THE one. The world building the writing is everything! If I could give a higher rating I absolutely would!

From the first few chapters, I was pulled into this world of gods, grudges, and slow-burn tension. Noctis and Rada aren’t just two people circling each other — they’ve got years of tangled history, and it bleeds into every glance and every decision they make. I liked that it never felt simple. They’d push each other away, then be pulled right back together, and it kept me on edge in the best way.

The world itself is rich with magic and mythology, layered enough that you can tell the author put thought into every part of it. There’s always this undercurrent of danger — even in quieter scenes, you can feel the weight of what’s coming. I will say, the writing is on the dense side, and it slowed me down a little. By the time I hit the ending, I was ready for it to wrap up, but it kept going a bit longer than I needed.

Still, the payoff was worth it. The characters stayed true to themselves, the emotions landed, and I closed the book already thinking about where their story might go next. If you’re into morally grey characters, enemies-to-lovers that actually burn before they get there, and worlds that feel ancient and alive, this one’s worth the time.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Epic, Emotional & Utterly Immersive

"There is no light without darkness" - and this book proves it in every way.

Darkness Births the Stars isn’t just a story - it’s a full-bodied experience. It’s the kind of romantasy that pulls you in by the heart, crushes you with longing, and keeps you turning the pages for just one more chapter until suddenly it’s 3 a.m. Nordic-inspired mythology, forbidden love, fractured loyalties, and morally grey gods create a world so vivid you can almost taste the ash in the air.

Noctis and Rada’s history is a centuries-old wound - full of betrayal, devotion, and the kind of magnetic pull that neither time nor tragedy can sever. The dual POV and dual timelines are brilliantly executed, weaving the past and present into a narrative that feels inevitable and yet constantly surprising.

The romance doesn’t overshadow the fantasy - it strengthens it. Every character is perfectly flawed, painfully human in their mistakes despite their divine nature. The writing is sharp, quotable, and emotionally devastating in the best way.

And that last chapter? Wow. I did not see that coming at all - it’s the kind of twist that makes you sit back, stare at the page, and desperately want the next book immediately.

I’m genuinely surprised a major publisher hasn’t picked this up yet - it’s easily on par with, if not better than, many traditionally published romantasy debuts. This deserves to be on every bookstore shelf and in the hands of readers who crave tension, passion, and high-stakes magic.

Perfect for fans of The Cruel Prince, Gild, and When the Moon Hatched, this is book one of a trilogy that already feels like it’s destined to be something special. I’ll be first in line for the sequel.

Thank you to the Author and NetGalley

★★★★★ Epic, emotional, unforgettable

“There is no light without darkness…” — and this book proves it in every way.

The goddess of light, once complicit in divine betrayal, has spent the last ten years in exile, without her powers, hiding her true nature while scraping by on a remote farm. Her quiet life ends when Noctis, her former lover and presumed-dead, god of darkness collapses at her doorstep — wounded, vulnerable, and very much alive.

Despite her vow to kill him, her resolve falters. Old feelings resurface. Chaos stirs. His former followers now hunt him, eager to claim the power of Adept of Chaos for themselves. What follows is a story of redemption, pain, love, and the eternal struggle between who we were and who we dare to become.

Told in dual POV and across two timelines, the narrative masterfully weaves past and present into a slow-burning, emotionally charged tale of star-crossed lovers. The romance doesn’t overshadow the fantasy — it deepens it.

The writing? Sharp, emotional, and quotable:

“My little queen was making a bloody hero out of me. The shitty thing about trying to be a hero was that heroes tended to die. I should know; I had killed my fair share of them.”

Oh, and yes — he smells of cold and spice, with a hint of ashes and lightning.

I need the sequel like Belekoroz needs Baradaz….


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

Darkness Births The Stars is a typical fantasy romance in that it is filled with yearning, loss, war, forbidden love and tragedy. This one is heavy on myth and folklore, and centres around a group of gods/deities who were created by the ‘allfather’ to live on earth and serve as his very first creations. Think of it as you would the Greek Gods from myth, but with a norse twist.

I can’t wait to see what will happen with this series in the future, but it was a lot of fun! I think the world building and magic systems and just overall way of telling the story was very on par with Lord Of The Rings, and there were so many moments where I could picture scenes vividly as if I was watching the films!

This one is also super heavy on the forbidden love and yearning, the “I would cross oceans of time to find you” vibes, and I ATE IT UP, ok?
There is nothing quite like seeing the villain get the girl, but especially when the girl is married to your mortal enemy and you get a second chance at trying to fix everything that was broken in the past.

I really really really liked the way that the author portrayed all of these characters too! Obviously they are gods, they are worshiped by mortals and have been alive FOREVER, and yet they are constantly making mistakes, falling prey to ‘human’ emotions, and doing things without thinking. They honestly seem more human than ethereal, and even though you would think they know everything from being alive for so long, EVERY SINGLE CHARACTERS BIGGEST DOWNFALL is that they are filled with way too much pride! It honestly made the book a delight to read, even while it was infuriating.

Overall this one was really enjoyable and super easy to get into, but there were a couple things that made progressing through the story a little harder to get a grasp on.
The one thing that stood out the most to me was how we were just constantly jumping around all over the place, the timeline wasn’t linear at all, and we were kind of just expected to realise/know when flashbacks were happening, and when we were back in the present. This wouldn’t have been hard to do if it wasn’t for the fact that there were multiple different points in time that we kept jumping back to, so it became super messy and hard to understand where the characters were at any given time, and what it was that they were doing.
Maybe this is just a problem I faced, but I really think that it took a lot away from the story. It seemed like we were just getting to know what was happening in the present timeline, and then we were swept away from it in favour of being show things that happened when the gods were at war with each other? I don’t know how to explain it, but It just seemed like these switches happened at the worst times, and like more thought should have been put into the structure and pacing of the story?

Darkness Births the Stars by Sarah Lee Wohn is a sweeping epic that dances between light and shadow. It’s a story about gods fallen from grace, love shattered and reforged across time, and the slow, painful work of redemption. If you’re in the mood for romance carved from myth and tragedy, this one delivers it in spades.

We begin with Noctis, the God of Darkness—believed long dead—and Rada, the former Goddess of Light, now stripped of power and living a fragile, mortal life. Their divine bond lingers like an open wound, stitched with longing, betrayal, and the weight of expectations they never chose to carry. When they find each other again, the story aches. This is centuries of heartbreak and devotion layered into something that feels operatic in scale and completely devastating in its intimacy.

Yes, the pacing is slow at first—almost meditative—but it works once you settle into the rhythm. The dual POV and dual timelines help you sink into the emotional complexity of Noctis and Rada’s relationship. The structure mirrors the characters themselves: fractured, slowly reassembling, never quite whole. Watching their past and present lives unfold in parallel only heightens the tension. You know what’s coming, but you still hold your breath.

Wohn’s prose leans lyrical—rich, textured, and occasionally dense. At times, it veers toward the ornate, but that fits this kind of story. It’s mythic, spiritual, and saturated with emotion. The world is layered with lore that fans of The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, and Star Wars will appreciate. There’s magic, rebellion, ancient prophecies, and yes—animal companions that steal every scene they’re in.

For readers who like:
-Star-crossed lovers
-Dual POV + dual timelines
-Slow burn romance

Final Verdict
Darkness Births the Stars is myth and romance intertwined—a haunting, lyrical love story that spans millennia. If you’re willing to wade through a slow start and embrace the depth of emotion at its core, this book will reward you with one of the most unforgettable romances in romantasy. The ending leaves you dangling on the edge of something monumental.

Grateful to NetGalley and Sarah Lee Wohn for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing for the eARC!
I devoured this book. There is yearning that stretches millennia, delicious banter, steamy tension and an interesting plot twist at the end.
🌟 I had no where else to go
🌟 You’re in my veins
🌟 I told him not to touch you
🌟 None of them were you

The story started slowly but beatifully. Writing hit me first. It was not a simple story telling. Back and forth, first we saw how ruined they were. How hurt. Then suddenly we went back. Understood the intrigue and the slow blooming love. This time skipping brought real depth to the story. Sometimes daily dialogues, banter and sometime came gut wrenching yearning. Ah yearning.. I have never read such. And so beautiful. Layer by layer the story united and I understood how deep their love was, equally deep their hurt.
I have never resd such perfectly written story. Such palpable yearning. In a fantasy world like no other. Richly built with complicated system..
One of my top five reads in 2025. I am shaken deeply-in a good way..