<i>"For what it's worth, I don't find you expendable. You are a very rare rose in a dying world of perished gardens."</i>

Arya has spent her entire life training in the mountain with one goal in mind: to be Chosen by the Queen to be a runner, a messenger through the vampyre-infested wastelands. Regardless that many Chosen perish in the field, Arya lives to one day be free of the mountain and see the sky above her that is permanently shrouded in night.

But a chance encounter a handsome winged Watcher has everything Arya believed to be true upended. Taken to the Watcher's kingdom in the sky, Arya comes to learn she may be the Huntress, the only one capable of saving their kingdom from vampyres and the eternal night. Fighting what she has always thought to be true to save her kingdom could cost Arya everything she never knew she wanted.

A debut novel from Alexis Menard that not only put her on my instant buy list, but had me telling anyone that would listen how amazing this was. The writing and imagery conveyed is so gorgeous, easily one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read. Arya is sassy and determined, if a little broken, and it is not hard to find a piece of yourself in her. And Azriel? One of my favorite male characters. His words, his demeanor, his wit. He is hard not to love. The emotions both of them individually and between them were so raw and pure that I felt their hurt, their pain, their successes. There were definitely more than a few scenes I found myself sobbing to.

I can only hope that we see more of them, even just a short epilogue to catch up with characters that feel like I truly knew them.

This was my Sunday read..

Thank you NetGalley for this book.

Rating 2.5🌟
Spice 1🔥
Plot : was so so..

I feel like the story had a lot of potential, but I’m the end it was pretty boring and underdeveloped. It seemed like it hadn’t been through through at all.

The world building was subpar at best. The story didn’t flow as it really should have. I mainly gave it 2.5 because the author obviously put a lot of work into it to write the story, it’s not easy to write a full book.

I will highlight tho that I loved the herion’s smart mouth and prideful nature.
I will also say that I liked the hero.

Their banter made the story better.

But the Vilain could have used some more padding out… even Loren could have used more padding out. The fact that at the end it’s revealed that he was in love with Arya and I could not pin point where it should’ve been obvious to us confuses me..

Either way it was a nice story just not great.

This review is posted on Goodreads

This book. THIS BOOK. Once I picked it up, I couldn’t stop reading.

You’ve got a badass female MC in Arya. She’s trained to be a runner for most of her life—meaning she’s fast, agile, and strong. The goal: become Chosen and be able to leave the inside of the mountain to act as a runner for the Queen under the starlight. However, not only vampire-like monsters exist in the dark outside world…

Leaving it there because I think it’s best to jump in without knowing too much!

A fast-paced fantasy romance, this story has got some amazing elements: twists and turns, a sweet and protective man, with a touch of spice. Some favorite tropes pop up—forced proximity, enemies(ish)-to-lovers—highly recommended!

Special thanks to NetGalley & City Owl Press for a free ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

A Night of Wings and Starlight exceeded my expectations. I was hooked from the beginning; the book was well written, there’s magic, there’s vampyres and men with wings, romance, a villainous queen, honestly everything I want in a book. There was a bit of insta-love, but other than that I loved this book and can’t wait to read more from this author.

A very different type of fantasy than we're seeing a lot of nowadays, a refreshing and intriguing story,
The plot is solid; full of twists and heart-wrenching moments, I was on the edge of my seat throughout and couldn't put it down for the life of me!
The villians antics paint a disturbing picture, you root for good throughout and the descriptions of some of the atrocities Adzehate has inflicted upon her subjects could be triggering for some. However, the sincerity of the tale adds only to its intrigue.
"𝓣𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝓶𝓪𝔂 𝓬𝓾𝓽 𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓲𝓻 𝓽𝓸𝓷𝓰𝓾𝓮𝓼, 𝓫𝓾𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓷𝓸𝓽 𝓬𝓾𝓽 𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓲𝓻 𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓽𝓼."

A definite recommendation for anyone who loves HIGH slow burn.
"ɪ'ᴍ ɴᴏᴛ ꜱᴄᴀʀᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴋɪꜱꜱ ʏᴏᴜ - ɪ'ᴍ ꜱᴄᴀʀᴇᴅ ᴏꜰ ʟᴏꜱɪɴɢ ʏᴏᴜ."
I can tell you from personal experience that I was writhing in my seat, I honestly didn't know if I could take much more at one point, the spice suffers for this and it isn't too heavy, however the romance definitely makes up for it! IMO I would categorise as a New Adult.
"𝔾𝕠𝕕𝕤 𝕒𝕓𝕠𝕧𝕖, 𝔸𝕫𝕣𝕚𝕖𝕝, 𝕚𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕕𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕞𝕖 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕟𝕠𝕨, 𝕀 𝕞𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕝𝕚𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕪 𝕕𝕚𝕖." Yeah, I felt that too, not gonna lie.

FMC, Arya: "тнє яυииєя fяσм ωєѕт мιятн. тнє ∂ιѕнσиσυяє∂ ¢нσѕєи. тнє нυитяєѕѕ σf ναℓ∂ιня. ѕσ мαиу тιтℓєѕ fσя ѕυ¢н α ѕмαℓℓ gιяℓ." Lived her whole life in captivity under the illusion her life only had one purpose, when finally she ventures outside of her stone prison she finds that nothing she thought is as it seems. Throughout the story, Arya blossoms into a strong woman, who learns her true purpose and calling. A time sensitive journey ensues to a mysterious place, with the hope of freeing her homeland from eternal darkness.
"ᵂᵉ ᵈᵒ ᵗʰⁱˢ ᵗᵒᵍᵉᵗʰᵉʳ, ᵒʳ ⁿᵒᵗ ᵃᵗ ᵃˡˡ."
An alluring and handsome immortal 'Watcher', Azriel, accompanies her after saving her life from the evil Vampyrs roaming the wastelands. They are thrown together and the attraction continues to grow minute by minute, a recipe for disaster or happily ever after?
As the story unfolds they begin to learn that things aren't always as coincidental as they seem. A swoon worthy MMC, full of sweet nothings and extremely loyal.
"𝙽𝚘 𝙷𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚜, 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝙸 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞. 𝚃𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚎, 𝙰𝚛𝚢𝚊, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒'𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚢𝚘𝚞." "𝙸'𝚖 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜." 𝙸 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚍."

The supporting characters, although few and not overly present throughout the story, play imperative roles to the story and are all memorable in more ways than one and our villian(s) are more cunning than they seem.
I would have enjoyed a little more rapport and friendship throughout the story and a lot of Azriel's present life doesn't seem to be explored much in this installment, fingers crossed for more in the next one! I feel Arya didn't get enough closure with Loren and after him being such a vital part of the story, it seems a little sad. I would have liked more explanations from him.
"𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧." (Hoping to see more of Evander and Azriel's friendship, fingers crossed. And hopefully more support blossoms for Arya.)
The inner struggles faced by the FMC throughout the book will definitely stick with me - some of the ways that Arya felt resonated with me and the way it was written about was done so beautifully.
"ᵀʰᵃᵗ ⁱˢ ᵇᵉᶜᵃᵘˢᵉ ʸᵒᵘ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵇᵉᵉⁿ ᵗᵃᵘᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʸᵒᵘ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵗᵒ ᵉᵃʳⁿ ˢᵒᵐᵉᵒⁿᵉ'ˢ ˡᵒᵛᵉ, ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʸᵒᵘ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵗᵒ ᶜᵒᵐᵖᵉᵗᵉ ᵃᵍᵃⁱⁿˢᵗ ᵒᵗʰᵉʳˢ ᵗᵒ ʷⁱⁿ ᵃᶠᶠᵉᶜᵗⁱᵒⁿ, ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʸᵒᵘ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵗᵒ ᵇᵉ ᶜʰᵒˢᵉⁿ ᵗᵒ ᵇᵉ ʰᵃᵖᵖʸ."
Watching Arya realise what she truly deserved was so satisfying! "ᴮᵘᵗ ˡᵒᵛᵉ ᵒⁿˡʸ ʳᵉqᵘⁱʳᵉˢ ᵗᵒ ᵇᵉ ᵍⁱᵛᵉⁿ, ᵗʰᵉⁿ ʳᵉᶜᵉⁱᵛᵉᵈ. ᴺᵒ ᵖᵉʳqᵘⁱˢⁱᵗᵉˢ, ⁿᵒ ᵒᵇˡⁱᵍᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿˢ, ⁿᵒ ʳⁱˢᵏ ᶠᵒʳ ⁱᵗˢ ʳᵉʷᵃʳᵈ."

This solid 4 star rating was evaluated using my scoring system, as well as the opinions above.
Plot: 5/5
Spice: 2.5/5
Romance: 4/5
Readability: 4/5 (due to a some errors in my copy)
Characters: 3.5/5
Slow Burn: 5/5
Favourite quote (and my fave that has been used to describe a true couple in a long time):
"𝓣𝓱𝓲𝓼, 𝓱𝓸𝓵𝓭𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓱 𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓻𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱 𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓭𝓪𝓻𝓴𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓶𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓼, 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓼𝓽 𝓷𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓶𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓭𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝔀𝓮'𝓿𝓮 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓫𝓮𝓮𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓻𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱 𝓽𝓸𝓰𝓮𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 - 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓼𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓽𝓻𝓾𝓵𝔂 𝓵𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓮𝓭 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮."

Thank you NetGalley and City Owl Press, Mystic Owl for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've got to start by saying this book had a lot of potential, it has a map which I know is a big plus for some people and for me all of the names were easily pronounceable because my pet peeve is names where they've just shoved a lot of consonants together.

One thing about this book was it was a quick read and the story flowed really quickly. So much so that the love interests get together and about 3 days later they're professing their love for each other and one can't live without the other. If you're into instalove this is for you.

The ending to me felt a little flat, we have the build-up of how powerful the Queen will be once she is released but we got a quick fight scene at the end and all is right with the world again.

I'm sure there are people who will really love this book but for me, it's a like not a love.

Well, this was like a rushed love-child between Drowned Empire and FBAA. I still can’t decide if my brain just blocked everything out from the moment our angel’s name was dropped or the chemistry really lacked sustenance, but I didn’t feel anything. The whole story felt rushed, including the romance that was pure insta-love. Unfortunately I couldn't connect with either of the main characters and ended up skimming a lot from around 60%.

I think it is sad because it had all the ingredients to be a great story.

I have received an ARC from Netgalley, for an honest review.

Thanks, Netgalley and Publisher for the opportunity to read and review!
A very intriguing read! The story is quite fast-paced and well structured for a debut novel! The world-building isn't complicated, we have a strong female main lead, and we have a few very nice plot twists. The communication between the other main characters is also very interesting to follow. However, I missed a better slow-burn and don't think the hot scenes fitted well into the story.

I really enjoyed this book, it was well written with well developed characters and a compelling storyline. The world building was good without being fully in your face to make the world solid. The book has vivid descriptions and rich imagery that evokes the freaders imagination. I really enjoyed it.

“𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺 - 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵.”

A female Runner has never been Chosen, but that has never stopped Arya from training to be the best, so that one day she might step into the eternal night, feel the wind on her face, and see the stars. She is stronger and more determined than any runner before her, but she is also innocent to the truth behind the night.

A Night of Wings and Starlight follows Arya’s first run, and all that changes along the way, as she meets the winged Watchers and is forced to question her role as Chosen. For they call her something far greater, Huntress. The baron, dark, wasteland of Valdihr is painted beautifully through Arya’s eyes, as she fascinates with the world outside the granite walls she called home.

Arya proves herself to be a worthy hero, refusing to allow those around her to take advantage of her mortal form. She trusts her instincts and fights for what she believes in, not what she is told. And as her relationship with silver-winged Watcher Azriel grows, she fights for what she wants there too. The banter between the two creates some light relief against the dark of the night sky, before in turn they each must choose between the bond they share, and the greater good for all humankind.

A Night of Wings and Starlight is fast paced, easy to read, and “unputdownable”. It’s refreshing to read a fantasy that isn’t overly heavy with world building. The story doesn’t end of a cliffhanger, but leaves plenty open to keep readers impatiently waiting for the next book to be released.

Thanks to NetGalley and City Owl Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars for this fast-paced fantasy read!

It's giving me acotar, it's giving me From Blood and Ash and a dash of Throne of Glass. I was wonderfully surprised by this one. It's the first time I've read a book by this author and I was hooked.

It reads fast, the plot is interesting and there's no overly complicated world-building. There may be an overuse of adjectives in some points but nothing too serious.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and honestly can't figure out what comes next. I doesn't end on a cliffhanger per se but it does leave the door a tiny bit open for more.

4⭐️
Firstly, thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the E-ARC of A Night of Wings and Starlight. The below is my honest opinion!

This is Alexis's debut novel, and all I can say is it is an amazing fantasy story! I devoured this book in an afternoon. The plot is paced nicely and keeps the reader entertained. The world build is gradual and flowed naturally unlike some novels that info dumb. The characters were interesting and the main character was portrayed vividly.

Summary:
In a world cloacked in darkness and abandoned by the gods, Arya has lived a tough life under the mountain devoting her mind, body and life to one day becoming a Chosen runner to serve the Queen. She pushes herself hard as a runner in hopes to escape the mountain and enter the outside world and breath fresh air. After a number of runners are lost to the outside world and its creatures, Arya is sent out to bring a message to the Queen. However, the world isn’t what Arya was prepared for and after an encounter with a beautiful and arrogant being, she begins to make choices for herself. With the knowledge that the world is cursed, Arya sets out with a new fire blooming in her, a new outlook on her life and the help from a beautiful winged man, Arya sets out to change the course of her world and her future.

The things I enjoyed:
- the world build
- The strong non-damsel female character
- The banter between the main characters
- The deception/plot twist
Why I rated 4 stars rather 5.
- I was left with some unanswered questions that have to do with the world and plot
- The instalove: I think the story would have been a lot better with a slow burn and although I enjoy a good sexy scene, it didn’t flow 100% in the story
- Would have loved more character development and backstory

I definitely recommend this for those who enjoy novels by Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer L. Armentrout. I look forward to reading more books set in this fantasy world.

I devoured this book in a day! The plot is so fast paced and exciting, there was always something coming around the next corner and the main character (Arya) is incredibly strong and loveable. The world and the creatures were dynamic and captivating and I appreciated the slow burn of information provided throughout, it felt like perfect info pacing (opposite of info dumping for sure) and created a lot of mystery and excitement. Also, THE BETRAYALS. I went in blind and wasn't expecting it at all and I LOVE a good betrayal to spice things up I may or may not have been screaming "WHAT" at my bookshelf.

As exciting as the plot movement was, I did sometimes feel that the secondary characters, and the relationships Arya cultivated with secondary characters, were a bit one-dimensional. I think there was a lot of potential in her friendships that wasn't fully fleshed out. That being said however, I would love to see where they might go in the future!

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I would rate it 3.5 to 4 stars. I think it's perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer L. Armentrout and I can't wait to see it on the shelves!

Night of Wings and Starlight
by Alexis L. Menard
Fantasy Romance

In a world where night has claimed the land for 100 years and vampires roam, there is a civilization living inside a mountain ruled by a queen. Among her people, there are a few who are trained to become runners, and their job is to run from the different sanctuaries under the queen's rule.

Arya is one of these potential runners, but the queen has not chosen a woman to be a runner, and if Arya isn't chosen soon, her hopes of seeing the world outside the mountain will be gone.

After the death of Arya's fellow runner, a boy she loved like a brother, the queen chooses Arya to run to the nearest fortress to retrieve the information the queen desperately needs to free them from the mountain.

On her way, she runs into a vampire and a man with wings.

I liked the snarky back and forth, but the 'darling' got irritating.

Not a bad story, between a slow and medium pace. While the MC and a few closest to her were lifelike, most of the other characters were not. I could say the same for the storyline. The history of the world wasn't detailed. It was more written like, 'this happen'. Then a few pages later, 'and that happened', as if the author didn't have a clear idea of the world and how it was created, or even what it was like before. There were ample places for the different 'sides' to tell Arya about the history.

What really irked me was about halfway through when something happened, and then Arya was so shocked that because of that something she had to let happen, ended up a certain way, and then shocked that it happened, even though the foreshadowing was so clear that it could've been painted, but it was just so shocking and upsetting to her. As a reader, it made me dislike the MC for being that stupid. I saw it coming from ten miles away.

And the one X scene wasn't needed.

Because there weren't a lot of vivid descriptions and character depth, the lack of history from both sides, and only two vampires, I can only give it

2 Stars.

Firstly, thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the E-ARC of A Night of Wings and Starlight. The below is my honest opinion!

This is Alexis's debut novel, and what can I say other than you all need this in your life! 5🌟

It's amazing. I was hooked from the first page. I loved everything about it. The world building is fantastic; it's got enough background information that it doesn't overload and the action 😉
I don't want to give anything away, but 😭 I loved the main character, Arya. she's not a damsel in distress; she's strong and bold and fantastic for a main character.
And Azriel (swoon), he's so sweet, and he's definitely added to the book boyfriend list😍 There's so much I want to say about him, but I'd spoil the book.
I can't wait for book 2

Thank you to the publishers for this eARC of A Night of Wings and Starlight

I had read lots of positives feedback for A Night of Wings and Starlight and I thought to myself - I need to read this book.
I wasn't disappointed! I could not put this down! I finished it overnight!

A Night of Wings and Starlight pleasantly surprised me, I thought it was just a romance story but boy was I wrong!
This is more than a romance, it's filled with adventure, betrayal, horror (not in the spooky sense, but in the horrific sense) and of course love.
Arya's character was strong and brave
Her upbringing made her more determine to succeed and right the wrongs. I loved her determination and convictions. She knew how to stand for what she wanted.
Azriel was just perfect and I loved his banter with Arya. I was shocked by some of the events and had a mixture of shock and relief by the outcome.

Alexis L Menard built this world perfectly, she brought all of her characters to life and created a unique and perfect story.
This is a fantastic debut and I can't wait to read more of her stories.

A Night of Wings and Starlight is Book 1 in the Eternal Night Series By Alexis L. Menard.
I'm already wanting more. And can't wait for book two!

I was not expecting to love this book as much as I did! If I could give this book every star possible I would!

I never wanted to put it down!! I loved the writing, the badass, interesting characters were some of the best I've read about in some time.
I loved the magic and this world. The world-building flowed naturally and beautifully.
The setting was really awesome.
Regarding the main characters, such phenomenon.
There is never a dull moment in the book. It moved at a fast pace from start to finish.
I adored this book. It was atmospheric, engaging, this was perfect from start to finish.
Menard is truly a gifted storyteller.
This is definitely a new favorite

I am super grateful for the opportunity to read this eARC!

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Mystic Owl,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my platforms, blog, B&N and Waterstone closer to pub date.