Radiance by Grace Draven

Radiance by Grace Draven
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book 1 of the Wraith Kings series
Read: 12 Mar 2019

I sought out this book at my library solely on the recommendation of a YouTuber and Goodreads member who goes by Fangirl Musings. Although I don't read much medieval-style fantasy these days, she gave this book such a glowing review that I decided to check it out mainly for the romance. Thankfully I wasn't disappointed.

Radiance is the story of Ildiko, a low-ranked member of Gauri royalty and Brishen is the brother of the Kai heir apparent, commonly known as the "spare heir". They were joined in a contract marriage designed to strengthen an alliance between the Gauri (a human race) and the Kai (a humanoid race with razor-sharp teeth and talons and grey skin). The Gauri and the Kai find each other repulsive physically, but Ildiko and Brishen were able to look past that right away to find personality traits that they vibed with. Furthermore, there were none of the tedious misunderstandings between the couple that are present in other romances. The drama came from the heroine Ildiko learning to adjust to being the only human living among her husband's people as well as the political tensions.

If you are a fan of the slow-burn romance, this is for you. As I mentioned, the two races do not find each other attractive physically, and that extends to the hero and heroine, Brishen and Ildiko. They enjoyed bantering with each from the very first day, however, and this along with their mutual respect slowly changes the way they view each other physically.

As much as I enjoyed this book, I don't know if I will continue with the series. The second book, Eidolon, seems to put the battle between the races at the forefront, and I'm really just here for the romance. However, the love story in this book was enjoyable enough that I don't think I will miss continuing on.

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