The story was definitely intriguing and I enjoyed the main character however the book felt quite forced as a lot of things that happen are very convenient obviously being a YA book you come to expect this however it did feel a bit much. I also felt there was a lack of world building and character development.

I went into this book not expecting much, but I loved it!

Alessandra is such a cunning and ambitious woman and her new quest is to seduce and marry the Shadow King. Then to kill him and take over his throne. However, as she gets closer to him, she finds herself struggling to not fall in love with him.

The plot is very basic YA. But it's a good basic YA. The world crafting is excellent and really gives you a feel of the place. The character development was also amazing and I loved Alessandra, she was very morally grey with villainous intentions which made her so exciting to read.

The slow-burn romance between Alessandra and the Shadow King was also amazing, and I loved their chemistry. The plot also had so many skillful wists and turns and it always left me hooked.

This was an incredibly fun read and I highly recommend it.

Thanks to Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

When I started this book I wasn’t expecting anything special but the author did prove me wrong by the end!

I was most surprised by the main character who I found to be completely different to other protagonists and I loved being inside her head.

The plot was interesting although I found the pacing to be a bit slow in the first 60% and then almost too fast at the end. The resolution was definitely surprising and I didn’t see it coming.

I did enjoy watching the romance play out but I didn’t feel the connection between the characters as much as I wanted to.

Overall I really enjoyed the book and found the world and story interesting.

A deliciously saucy fantasy romp. Alessandra is a murderous woman whose next biggest conquest will surely be the Shadow king, because why not? She's beautiful, witty and utterly devious. This funny, charismatic book had me from the first page. I tore through this in a day and will definitely be checking out some of Levenseller's other books.

This book is dripping with sexual tension. The Shadows Between Us builds a friendship and an unlikely alliance between the main characters, Alessandra and Kallias, the Shadow king. Their discussions of their own moral codes and past is honest, making it so much more believable when they start having feelings for each other.

Rhoda and Hestia were also great friends! It was refreshing to see a female MC have friendships where there isn't any jealousy, and very supportive of each other and their happiness.

Throw in a spot of murder and plots to kill the king, and you have a tonne of political intrigue and mystery, which makes it a race to the end of the book. The final twist managed to catch me off guard and was a pleasant surprise in-keeping with the rest of the book.

Definitely a book I would recommend for fantasy and romance lovers.

This book had me hooked from the first line. I love Alessandra so much, she is smart and evil and a total badass. The slow burn was real in this one but it was done so well! Her and Kallias's relationship was obviously villain x villain, and these 2 did not want to change a thing about the other. In here for it. I love Tricia's ability to write a badass FMC.

Gripping, enticing and loaded with tension, The Shadows Between Us swept me into it's beguiling shadows and didn't let go.

Tricia Levenseller's The Shadows Between Us is a captivating and thrilling standalone fantasy novel that will leave readers spellbound. The story is centered around Alessandra, a cunning and ambitious young woman who wants nothing more than to rule the kingdom. To achieve this, she concocts a plan to seduce and marry the Shadow King, only to kill him and claim the throne for herself. However, as she gets closer to the Shadow King, she finds herself struggling to keep him alive and not to fall in love with him.

One of the strengths of this novel is the vivid and well-crafted world-building. Levenseller does an excellent job of describing the kingdom, its customs, and its people. The setting is richly imagined, and the descriptions of the Shadow King's powers and the shadows that swirl around him are particularly fascinating. The author also does an exceptional job of developing the characters, especially Alessandra, who is a compelling and multi-dimensional protagonist. She is smart, ruthless, and charming, and readers will find themselves rooting for her despite her villainous intentions.

Another aspect of the book that stands out is the plot, which is full of twists and turns. The author has created a well-paced story with a series of mini-mysteries that keep the readers engaged and guessing until the final revelation. The romantic relationship between Alessandra and the Shadow King is also skillfully developed, with a slow-burn romance that builds up to a satisfying conclusion.

Overall, The Shadows Between Us is a delightful read that blends romance, fantasy, and intrigue in a unique and captivating way. Levenseller's writing is engaging, and the book is filled with witty dialogue and clever plot twists that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. It is also refreshing to read a standalone fantasy novel that is not part of a series, and the author's ability to wrap up the story in a satisfying way is impressive. This book is highly recommended for fans of YA fantasy who are looking for a fresh and thrilling read.

Such a good read and I loved that it was a standalone. Read this in what felt like no time at all. So much tension, deliciously slowburn, fast paced, definitely one I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

Romantasy that dors what it says on the tin. This was fun and fast paced and Alessandra was a likeable heroine who refreshingly stayed herself despite the romance. Maybe it didn't include any real surprises but it was great escapsim and is definitely one of the finer examples of the genre.

This did not disappoint me, a great story with some twists and turns. I love a strong female character who knows what she wants and Alessandra was exactly that.
This was perfect fantasy escapism with plot twists and a great ending.
So far I have loved everything by this author.

I liked The Shadows Between Us.
It had a fun premise and was well written.
Sadly I just really struggled to like the main character as well as the romance.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

A huge thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press for giving me the chance to read The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller in exchange for my honest review.

"They never found the body of the first and only boy who broke my heart"
I've wanted to read this book for so long, one of the main reasons being that first sentence. The book has you hooked from the very beginning, the opening sentence promising a protagonist that is formidable and dangerous in their own way.
Alessandra is indeed dangerous, cunning and scheming, ambitious and at the very least morally ambiguous if not morally grey. Match this energy with that of Kallias, the enigmatic and mysterious Shadow King, and you have yourself the recipe for a successful couple of protagonists.
I personally enjoyed the use of greek names for many of the characters -you don't see that a lot in books that are not greek mythology inspired- and the various plot twists that caught me anaware and at the very least made me want to read more.
The story that is basically a "how to not stick to an original plan" because people and circumstances change, flows effortlessly as the chapters pass by and half the time you don't realise how fast the passing of the story goes.
Overall, I enjοyed the book and would definetely want to reread again in the futuren just to see if i can spot any foreshadowing for the plot twists before they happen.

It was really hard to rate this book, but then I decided to trust the emotions so I gave it 5 stars.
I know it has its flaws (for example the long descriptions on the clothes worn by the protagonist, which didn't bother me anyway) but it kept me so glued to the pages that I decided to pass over it. It really entertained me and I loved it!
The peculiarity is that the protagonists are both really, really, really morally grey 😈
I absolutely need the sequel!

This book was alright. I wouldn't say it was bad, but also wouldn't say that it was particularly good.

The beginning made a strong first impression and immediately intrigued me.
It was good to have a cunning protagonist like Alessandra who actually followed her goals for the most part and came up with clever plans.
I also liked that she didn't reject her femininity and rather embraced it to empower her.

The plot was very fast-paced, although it could be a bit too hurried at times which led to a lack of more interactions and deeper characterisations of characters. Overall, the characters were drawn out fine though with aspects making them distinct from one another, but also similar in other aspects. The writing style was plain, but direct which helped with the fast pace.

The magic in the book was also unique and was interesting to read more about.

However, there were often too many very detailed descriptions of the characters' features as well as Alessandra's outfits which felt like an info-dump and took me out of the story. It was just an interrupting block that felt like it was squeezed into that tiny space.

Additionally, Alessandra could occasionally come off as quite one-dimensional and kept repeating points.

The plot twist at the end was alright, but I have to admit that it disappointed me as it was too rushed and sudden. Further, parts of it were very predictable.

Overall, the book entertained me, but didn't impress me.

I love that this is a well written fast read with plenty of plot and interesting characters. It's entertaining to read, and for the most part, that's exactly why I read in the first place. I'm not looking for groundbreaking ideas, I just want to have fun.

And I had fun reading this. Is it the best book I've ever read? No. It's predictable, It has little to no worldbuilding and could probably be considered pretty shallow. But does it matter when it's fun and easy to read? I don't think so, and I really like the idea of two murderous villains falling for each other.

Read it.

Thank you to the publisher, the author Tricia Levenseller & NetGalley for this ARC 🫶🏻

I opened this book to a dedication promising a Slytherin style dark romance and Damon Salvatore vibes and I just knew it was gonna be good.

From the first sentence, I was obsessed with the female lead Alessandra, who hates men, love and anything shaped like romance. It was refreshing to read a fantasy were the fmc was more of an antagonist and who was driven by her own selfishness and desire to prove herself better than her sister.

The market is so oversaturated with grumpy x sunshine that it was nice to read about two assholes finding love for once!

My only problem with this book was the lack of world building. We hear about all sorts of random kingdoms in passing but the only real glimpse of the world we get is that within the castle walls. I also wanted Kallias, the male lead, to be a bit dirtier, I felt like he didn’t quite live up to Damon or Malfoy but it was a good effort.

Overall, a really great concept & standalone novel that kept me up reading through the night.

This is the first book I have read from this author, and I would definitely read more of her books.
That said, there were things that I didn’t get on with in this story. It took me a long time to become invested in the lead female, Allessandra. In fact it would be fair to say that I really didn’t like her to start off, which made the first half of the book a bit of a slog.
However, things changed in the second half and she grew on me and I became much more engaged in the story.
I liked the style of the author’s writing, it had a nice flow to it, and whilst I didn’t love this book, there’s definitely enough that I liked to make me read other books by the same author.

Alessandra is a great heroine, morally grey, ambitious and ready to do everything to get what she wants.
That said I thoroughly enjoyed this well plotted and entertaining story.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

I can get that Alessandra may not be everyone’s favourite character but at least she’s honest and I kinda like her power mad ways , how strong and determined she is. . I honestly really liked her although I get the feeling I’m not meant to. The relationship with The Shadow King was good and the development of their relationship is nice, but I found a lot far fetched, like he’s conquered half the world buts scared Togo out, I know that simplified but just didn’t fit, I enjoyed this, but think it could have been better. 3.5 stars

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

It was an entertaining book, however it felt like a very similar structure to many books in this genre. The strong female lead wanting power and then falling for the man she wishes to take power from. It doesn't feel like there's much unique to it, even though the first page led me to believe there would be. I did enjoy the read still.