This was a perfectly pleasant read that didn't do anything wrong, but wasn't particularly original either. Our heroine Alessa cannot touch anyone without killing them and our hero Dante is a grumpy bodyguard. The banter between the two leads was good and I enjoyed the Italianate setting, but overall, this won't be a very memorable read for me.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This was such an interesting and incredible read, there was such depth and intrigue. I found myself completely entranced by the story.

The novel is well-written and engaging. The characters are complex and well-developed, and the plot is fast-paced and exciting. The world-building is also impressive, and the author does a great job of creating a believable and immersive fantasy world. One of the things that I really enjoyed about the novel was the relationship between Anya and Emilia. The two women are from very different backgrounds, but they quickly form a strong bond who are both willing to fight for what they believe in. I found them to be one of the most compelling bits of the novel.

The other thing that I enjoyed about the novel was the magic system. The magic in the world of This Vicious Grace is both dangerous and powerful. The author does a great job of exploring the different aspects of magic, and she shows how it can be used for good or for evil.

Overall, I really enjoyed This Vicious Grace. It is a well-written and engaging dark fantasy novel with complex characters, a fast-paced plot, and an impressive world-building. I would definitely recommend it

Audio ARC provided by NetGalley


Audio review: Great narrators. Easy to listen to. Brought plenty of nuance to the characters.


Main review: I think I've aged out of the target audience for this one. In terms of a personal reading experience this was a perfectly fine 3 stars. But I acknowledge that ten or fifteen years ago, I would have loved this. It's definitely a better example of this kind of YA. The characters are likeable and the story is at its best when Alessa and Dante are interacting. In fact that was an example of a YA romance I actually believed. It's very rare to get me on board with those - it was rare even when I was a YA!

This book also says some intelligent things about the trappings of organised religion, and how we humans like to over complicate faith. And worse, deliberately obfuscate and mislead in an effort to control. There was also commentary on how certain social and religious structures deal with power they do not have direct control over, especially power wielded by young women. I don't feel these ideas were fully explored but then they weren't the point of the story. I didn't much care for the nebulous threat of 'demon insects' which felt like a placeholder for the real threat which was the organised religion surrounding the fenestra.

However, I loved the proverbs and while Alessa's backstory was a bit typical for 'girl gets power' YA, Dante's was very nicely rounded out.

Overall a good read. I probably won't continue the series but that's just because I'm not really the target audience. No reflection on the book. If you like YA fantasy with a twist on the chosen one trope, you'll probably really enjoy this.

Absolutely loved this Vicious Grace. Loved the Italian inspired setting, the danger, the banter. But most of all, I loved the ending, choosing to destroy the idea of a fonte+finestra as the only way to beat evil and focusing on allying forces instead. Found families are where it's at, and I hope the side characters will be further developed in book 2.

This was a really interesting and thrilling read. I liked the fantasy elements and how it weaved in with the other genres. The writing was done really well and it kept me hooked all the way through as i wanted to know what happened to Alessa and Dante. The action set pieces were exciting and i enjoyed the tonal pacing as it done well and appropriate for the set up written by Thiede. I'm really looking to follow up books in this series as this one was such a good read.

This was a real surprise. I didn't think I would love this as much as I did. An easy 5 star. 5 star plot, 5 star characters, 5 star love interest. Some of the plot points seem like something you might have read before, but theyˋre done so uniquly and well, that you dont want to put the book (or audiobook) down. I loved the found family aspect, again, it´s something you don´t expect, because of how everything is set up and the expectations other books might have given you. I love it, when authors play with the reader´s expectations like that. One of my favorite reads this month, maybe this year? I can´t wait for the next book.

I didn’t know much about this book going in to it but what a great surprise! I loved the Italian influences, the friendships and the storyline in general.

I really felt for Alessa as she was so lonely with nobody able to touch her without dying and on top of it, she is tried to be assassinated by her own soldiers. She employs Dante, an outcast, as her bodyguard and things liven up from there. I had a great time and look forward to the sequel.

Full review will be posted soonish and I'll add links to blog as well.

I would like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

4*'s. Loved the Italian inspired setting, loved the angsty romance (which I think is only going to get angstier in book 2!), loved the found family vibes and enjoyed the magic and the mythology of the world! I was irritated by the brother a lot and wish that the found family element came into the plot a little earlier. Looking forward to continuing with this series and I really enjoyed the audiobook! Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for providing me with an audio arc.

It has been too long since my last audiobook, but what a good story to get back into them with. This Vicious Grace appeared to have all the right elements for a book that I would enjoy, a fantasy book with magic, the need for survival, and some political intrigue, which it definitely delivered on. It also has a really interesting setting, there are strong Italian influences in the book, or maybe ancient Roman influences is more accurate, but whichever, it helped conjure the atmosphere of Saverio clearly and easily.

I really enjoyed the story but what initially drew me in was that Alessa couldn’t touch anyone without killing them, she is supposed to have a Fonte to help in the fight against the Scarabeo but all her options have so far died in training. I loved that from the outset Alessa feels like an outsider to the tradition of the Finestra because her gift is not working the way that it has for those before her, it made for a fascinating story as the people of Saverio are questioning whether she is the real Finestra or whether she will be able to save them.

Cue the hunt for a bodyguard and the introduction of my favourite character, Dante, mysterious and secretive with a sharp wit and a lot to lose. Dante and Alessa together were great, at first they barely tolerate each other but as they spend more time together he really starts to bolster her confidence and pushes her to be the Finestra that the people need to see. I love how their relationship develops as well, there were plenty of moments in this book that I enjoyed that were just the two of them getting to know each other and building a connection that felt very deep and supportive.

Alessa’s development in this book is great, she starts as a very meek character and feels very ostracised from those around her as she can’t get ahold of her gift and is under a lot of pressure. Still, she soon starts to make decisions that go against the grain and shows a little resilience. This leads to a quiet defiance of the traditions that the Finestra usually adheres to and standing up for herself and against people who are actively working against her. I loved that she kind of made her own family out of the remaining Fonte’s and that they all come round to her eventually even though they are a little afraid of her.

I have to say one of the things that maybe let this book down a little was some of the side characters, there were quite a few and they all were important to different parts of the story but I felt like there were some that I really couldn’t tell apart. This was mostly true of the Fonte’s, there were quite a few of them and some of them blended together for me and I couldn’t remember from the names who each of them were, they did have some defining characteristics but maybe just needed slightly stronger voices.

The narration in this was great, Carlotta Brentan was the voice for the majority of the book and did an excellent job, there was also a chapter narrated by Michael Gallagher, which was interesting. I quite like that they added this new voice in to denote an unusual scene in the book but it was also a little strange at the same time to hear a different voice for a character that Carlotta had already given a voice to. Overall though I really enjoyed listening to this and feeling that tension in the character’s voices as Divorando gets closer and closer, it was very well done.

This Vicious Grace is a very exciting book, with action and scheming and plenty of secrets all around, and an ending that has me looking forward to seeing what happens next for Dante and Alessa and the people of Saverio.

i really love this book, and i love the narrator! i'm not really an audiobook fan but i was intrigued by the use of italian and i wanted to see how would it sound (it was great!) also, this book is going straight to my favorites

4.5
This was seriously great. So much action, adventure, drama. It has the found family trope that we all love and cherish and a good enemies to lovers that develops in such a way you’re right there along with the characters.
Cannot wait to read the next one.

I listened to this one on audio.

It is about Alessa who is a Finestra and has magic abilities. But everyone she touches seems to die. She has already accidentally killed 2 or 3 husbands to be.

Then she meets Dante and they have a romantic connection. This relationship was the best thing about the book, but it was so obvious that this was going to happen.

I got a bit lost in places in the book, but overall, it was just ok. I don't think I would continue with the series.
3/5 stars

This book was one of those books you really have to concentrate on. The plot is complex and the themes in the story are deep. It is entertaining, you just have to focus to follow what’s going on.

In the city of Saverio the Finestra needs a fonte. Their joint power can defeat the scarabeo army during the Divorando. However, the newest Finestra, Alessa, already killed three Fontes (actually, it should be Fonti), not intentionally, but still, they are dead. Who is going to save La Cittadella? Who is going to protect this island?

The first few chapters are a full-on info dump in Italian, which makes an Italian native speaker who reads/listens books in English, such as myself, cringe. Passed the Italian rigurgitare (it means to throw up), you can finally follow the story and it gets easier to follow.

To be fully honest, there are many things I didn’t like about this story.

The plot is easily predictable, in particular Dante’s middle plot twist, I had a hunch, but at least I was relieved that his secret was out there straight away and didn’t drag to the end. The side characters are massively underdeveloped. For a start, the evil character of this story, Padre Ivini, does not make sense, you don’t know his true intentions or what he is after. The last Finestra and her Fonte, Renata and Tomi, are they friends or foes? Or one of the Fonti, Kaleb, which all of a sudden stops being petulant and becomes the mascot of the group and you don’t really know why.

Kaleb's sudden redemption highlights the weakness of this story, which is the gaps throughout the whole plot, more evident towards the end. Towards the last chapters, the narrative becomes fully jarred. Padre Ivini’s destiny is completely abandoned and it reiterates the general lack of structure of the story and its debut nature.

So why am I giving 4 stars? Good question. This Vicious Grace reminded me a lot of Serpent & Dove. I truly loved the banter and the sexual innuendo between Alessa and Dante. It’s a good slow-burn romance. Those two characters (and Kaleb) grew on me. Alessa, with her loneliness, is a relatable character and despite the weaknesses of this story, the ending still got me curious to continue to read. The dialogues between Alessa and Dante make it worth continuing to read the series.

I’m fully aware of the risks of starting a new series, so I really hope I will not look back in anger at this review.

Believe me when I say I am obsessed with this book! I’m so sad it’s over. Major book hangover.

From the beginning I was completely enamoured with Alessa’s story, the world she lives in, the life she was thrust into. Seeing her grow and learn was amazing.

The world building was so luscious and the imagery was so strong. I felt like I could see everything as I read.

And the romance? Damn. I loved it. I loved everything!

I feel like listening to the audiobook definitely added another level to the book. Hearing the Italian pronunciation immersed me in the story more than I think it would have if I’d merely read it on a page. The narrators were amazing and really brought Emily Thiede’s words to life!

This was fun.

I liked the characters. Alessa has a bit of a rough life since she's been chosen to protect humanity from evil, which she has to do by bonding with a partner, and she keeps accidentally killing her partners. Oops.
She ends up recruiting her broody love-interest Dante as a bodyguard.
Alessa and Dante had good chemistry and I enjoyed their slow-burn romance.
The plot was entertaining too, but the romance was the part I was mainly invested in.

Overall a good book and I really want to read the sequel.

To begin with I found this slightly complicated but as I continued I began to enjoy this. It is a good debut with some lovely world building and character development. There were a few unanswered questions but I am hoping they will be resolved in the next book.
I loved the concept around this land that needed protecting and the count down to the invasion of the creatures but who are these creatures and where do they come from?
A nice easy read with a suitable amount of romance.
The narration was good and made the listening experience immersive and enjoyable.

A romantic fantasy set in in an Italian like setting. I loved Alessia and Dante and couldn't stop reading.
Excellent storytelling and plot/character development. A compelling and entertaining story that kept me hooked.
I listened to it while reading the book and it was a great experience and I loved the narrators
I can't wait to read the next book in this series
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine