What led me to this arc initially was the author. Stacia is a great writer but I honestly didn't realise how much I would really enjoy this story.

It has so many different things to love - Roman-inspired world / setting, vampires, magic, found family, love, gladiator style fighting in an arena, grief and politics.

The plot was really engaging and kept me hooked. I liked the idea of the evil emperor and how different factions hate and love the current rule. The vampires are being kept from the sun and this is stirring up rebellion.

The characters - now the FMC Arvelle did get on my nerves at times however I loved her unwavering loyalty to her brothers and how she would do anything for them. She's strong but her powers never fully awakened like everyone else, and she assumed this was just the way it was supposed to be for her. I loved her in the arena and how she's so horrified by the violence and corruption around her but she still tries to help people. She loves the people in her life unapologetically fiercely.

There's two MMC's in this book. One is a past lover Tiernon who broke out FMCs heart years before but he's got a good heart and cares a lot for Arvelle. The other is Rorrik the son of the emperor who quite frankly gets my vote of approval. Shows how many dark fantasy romance books I read when I'm rooting the borderline evil guy gets the girl. I like his humour, and that he's so mysterious. Definitely more there than meets the eye!

The romance plot wasn't centre stage but I liked the glimpses into the past and how things played out for them to get to this point. "I missed you more than I miss the sun". There is chemistry with Tiernon and Arvelle but the banter and tension between Arvelle and Rorrik was much more of interest to me. I can't wait to see this play out in the next book!

The friendships and camaraderie in the book is such a strong point. I loved the part where Nyrant tries to punish Arvelle for missing training by making her fight everyone in the imperius squad one by one but then they all play fight! 🤣

The magic system in this book is really interesting. There's those with powers called "sigilmarked" and then there's vampires. There's others in the world itself - Maginari, who seem to be more mythical. Griffon, centaurs, kelpies, pixies, and a wyvern! They are hunted and kept prisoner by the emperor who is fearful of anything that might rival his power. We only briefly meet them but I hope we see more of them in the next book.

It doesn't end on a cliff hanger, but the ending is very interesting and the prospect of my two fav characters being in much closer proximity in the next book has my attention. I know I'll be giggling and kicking my feet! 🤣 I also can't wait to see how Arvelle develops her powers and what is next for her.

This is such a great opener for this series. I absolutely can't wait for the next book! I completely understand I am in for a long wait but it is going to be so worth it!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and Penguin Random House for the arc. This is my honest review of the book!

Arvelle lives in the Thorn district. A paid bodyguard whose only focus in life is caring for her younger twin brothers, Gerith and Evren, whilst procuring enough money to buy lung tonics, without which Evren will die.
Then one day a vampire giving and makes her the offer of a lifetime, but for a price.
Faced with no choice, Arvelle makes a magically binding vow to do the impossible:
Enter and win the Sundering - a set of 3 trials in a gladiator style arena where death is near certainty, but victors are given the opportunity to become the emperors guards. Then… kill the emperor.

𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉

So first of all, the dedication, not even 30 seconds in and I was tearing up 🥹

Arvelle is that eldest daughter we either know, identify as or read about. She’s fiercely protective, guarded and emotionally complex. Due to past trauma she has a hard time letting people in, the only exceptions to that rule are her brothers. Even through all this pain she still has a strong moral compass and won’t stand for the weak being oppressed or slaughtered for entertainment. She feels everything while struggling to show nothing and it reminds me so much of another of my favourite FMC’s Katniss Everdeen.

This was a fast paced read that I refused to put down and finished in one sitting. It has everything you could want in a fantasy, vampires, gods, forbidden romance, found family and magical creatures! All set in this Ancient Rome inspired world with gladiator style battles with political intrigue thrown in for good measure 👀

If that isn’t enough we have not just one, but TWO dark brooding MMC’s 🥵

I’ve read and loved Stacia Starks other series so I was thrilled when this eARC was approved.

I throughly enjoyed this and gave it 4 stars. My only comments would be that due to the amount of different themes it felt a little overwhelming at times, I plan on a reread shortly before it’s released next January though, unfortunately I’m in the middle of one of my pain flare ups so it could just be that my mind wasn’t taking in the details properly 🖤
The transitions from past to present felt a little choppy, however this could just be due it being an eARC and it may look different when published.

Overall this was an amazing high stakes read full of tension and intrigue.

This is a fast paced book without any filler. Theres not a dinner scene, a getting ready for bed scene or just randomly going around the place scene. Our girl Arvella doesn't stop. Action action action.

This is about Arvella, a 25ish(?) woman who survived a hunger games style gladiator game 6 years ago. Her best friend died in those games and she's pretty much been angry and grieving. Her grief is portrayed quite well and has stopped her from truly living. She's solely raising her young teen twin brothers and one of them has a lung sickness.
Fast forward to end of chapter one and she has no choice but to get into an unbreakable bond to save her brothers life, she must survive 3 rounds of a brutal gladiator style trials and then secretly assistinate a really powerful emperor who is protected at all times.

This has vampires as the all powerful citizens who lord over the sigilmarked(ranked citizens who have a magic gift and work for the vampires) and mundanes who have no rights pretty much.
There's modern day humour and dialect but in a roman colosseum paranormal setting.

This was mostly about our girl Arvella and her trials and stages of her grief. Every page is action pact and a well thought out.
There's some mystery elements and some gods thrown in the mix.

Theres a romantic interest but I would say this book is a prelude to book 2 where I think the romance element will soar!
I've got so many theories on the mysteries in this book but also the realllllly subtle foreboding. I'm dying to know if my hunched are true!
And dare I say there might be a TRUE enemies to lovers trope coming.

This is a truly five star read by a fantastic author who knows how to make the story the main focus of a book and not drag out enjoyable reads!

Ok Vampire Diaries meets Ancient Rome, this book had my attention! I love Stacia Stark and this book didn’t disappoint! We meet Arvelle, who is just trying to keep her family alive and is thrust into gladiator style trials in order to keep them safe…by agreeing to kill the Emperor. Throw in two brooding vampire brothers, ancient gods, magic, murder and a whole load of fast paced high stakes events and you’ve got a very addictive book! I really enjoyed this, I loved Velle and I love the fact that I am just going to say I’m not going to comment on the males in this… I cannot wait to see where this goes! Thank you Michael Joseph for this eARC!

“I don’t want to be your friend, Velle. I want to be your everything.”

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC of 'We Who Will Die'.

Stacia Stark books don't disappoint and this one was no different.

It's giving vampires, it's giving gladiators, trials, and it's not too spicy!

The perfect combination of all of the elements and I can't wait for book 2!

Wow, this is gonna be the romantasy hit when it comes out, I really loved it
Trials, vampires and magical bonds is right up my street
The magic system and world building was done perfectly and simply so that I could easily understand what was going on
The only thing I did struggle with was knowing who was who at some points, there are a LOT of names and I don’t know if I missed a part where they were all introduced but maybe I needed them introduced more apart so that I could process the information first
I actually really didn’t mind the use of the love triangle in this book and it didn’t fall into too much of the stereotypical which is great!
I did find it hard to connect with the MFC at first and only really started to love her at about 50% which could be because of her cold outer shell to begin with
I cannot WAIT for book 2!

We who will die is being advertised as vampire diaries meets gladiator. And while that may be an incredibly accurate description of the base of this book, it is so much more than that. Not only does this book take a deep dive into addiction, what It's like to have a family member with addiction, and what it's like to constantly blame yourself and live with the guilt for that addiction, but @staciastarkauthor ability to intertwine serious, real life issues into such a heart-wrenching and entertaining story is absolutely phenomenal, better than any other story I've ever read.

Arvelle has finally won the sands, a deadly competition. More money than she could ever imagine. But her drug addictive mother causes all of that money to be stolen. Leaving her and her younger twin brothers to survive on their own, while one of the brothers is fighting a deadly disease. Arville is given the opportunity to save her brother, the only cost is killing the emperor. When she is up against this deadly task, she comes face to face with the only man she's ever loved, who ghosted her and left her dry on her brother's deathbed, and a life filled with addicts. She finds help in the most unlikely of places and all hell breaks loose. Holy. Shit.

I recently found out that this is going to be a trilogy and this one doesn't even come out until JANUARY OF 2026!!! If you need me I'll be begging @avonbooks for the next one as soon as humanly possible, because how the hell am I supposed to wait to find out what happens next?!

We Who Will Die By Stacia Stark
Publishing date - 18th December 2025

Stars - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice - 🌶️🌶️

We Who Will Die is the first book in a brand new trilogy by Stacia Stark.

In a world with roman gladiators, roman mythology, vampires, an interesting spin on rune magic, political intrigue, and a splash of romance we follow Arvelle, as a 24 year old oldest sister raising her 14 year old twin brothers in the impoverished Thorn, Arvelle has a lot on her shoulders but when manipulated into a vow to kill the emperor she finds herself with so much more to deal with than she could ever imagine.

When given the opportunity to read this as an arc I was hesitant, I haven't really wanted to read a vampire book recently but the roman setting caught my attention and I'm so glad it did! This is one of my favourite books that I have read so far this year. With a lot of characters it is easy to fall in love with at least a few of them, I definitely have my favourite but I will keep that to myself and see where we're taken with their storyline in books 2 & 3. We might just need a character guide in book 2 to keep track of the characters and mentions of off page characters though, the gods especially.

As for the ending of the book... I'm going to need a lot of distraction while I wait for book 2! So many questions were left unanswered and I am so excited to see where Stacia takes these characters!

5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A Spellbinding Romantasy That Has It All
We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark is an absolute knockout. A gripping blend of everything I crave in a romantasy. Think: high-stakes gladiator-style trials, bloodthirsty vampires, slow-burn spice, complex romance, and a dash of mythical chaos. Add in elemental magic, heart-wrenching loss, the raw exploration of addiction, and a compelling murder mystery, and you've got a book that sinks its teeth into you and doesn’t let go.
Stacia delivers once again. Her writing is magnetic, her world-building rich, and her characters impossible not to care about. The main character is fierce yet vulnerable, caught in a whirlwind of power, pain, and—possibly—a love triangle (we’ll see where Book 2 takes us 👀). I was hooked from the first page and devoured every twist and turn.
Yes, the wait for the sequel might be long and painful—but if it’s anything like this one, it’ll be so worth it. If you're looking for a five-star romantasy that blends danger, desire, and depth, this book should be at the top of your TBR.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free ARC in exchange for a review! Rating- 3.5/5 stars

Ok....I'm conflicted with this one. A lot of the previous reviews have mentioned how this will be the next big romantasy book in 2026, and to be honest, I agree with them. This will definitely do well over on Booktok. But did I like it/ think it should be the next big book? ....Not really.

Don't get me wrong, this was a fun read, reasonably fast-paced, and the world itself was quite interesting. However, the world building itself felt incohesive at times, as if the author had just smushed two favourite tropes together for maximum effect. There was a bit of an info-dump regarding this at the start of the book too. Similarly, the flashbacks felt quite jarring in the narrative, and not clearly delineated enough for me.

As for our characters, Arvelle was...fine. She wasn't a standout FMC, but had quite a cool personality- I just personally didn't quite mesh with her or feel real attachment. The love interests were similarly a bit bland and didn't truly give off any romance/ attraction to me.

This book was fast-paced and reasonably original, so still worth a read, but not my personal cup of tea.

Thank you again to Netgalley and the publisher!

I really loved the Kingdom of Lies series so I was really excited for this book. But I think this book just was t for me. It’s very exposition heavy in the beginning which takes away from the tension of the main character. It’s also unclear why the main character is so physically unfit when she works as a bodyguard, which she even states means that she has to get into physical fights a lot. And she trains other fighters herself. So the fact that she is so out of shape never really makes sense, it just feels like a way for her to feel less likely to succeed. I just think this felt a bit rushed and with a bit of polish this could be a really interesting concept. I like the main character and her devotion to her brothers, and the world being based on Ancient Rome is interesting. I think it just needed a bit more editing and time.

It was my first ever book from Stacia Stark and oh my god did she not disappoint! This is going to become the next big romantasy book, make my words.

This book was SO GOOD. It’s hunger games meets gladiator. It has everything I love in a romantasy book - good world building, amazing characters growth, intriguing storyline, and of course romance.

The characters are honestly amazing. I absolutely loved Arvelle, the FMC - she is deeply grieving and trying to survive as much as she can when we first meet her; and throughout the book we slowly see her becoming stronger, growing into herself and healing from her past. Her growth is so inspiring. I just love when the characters are flawed because they’re so much more reliable and the growth is so much more genuine.

The other characters (I won’t say too much as I don’t want to spoil) are honestly great too - so many of them made the story even better. The “villain”/dark MMC is CHEF KISS and I cannot wait to see where his storyline goes…

I honestly loved the Ancient Greek/Roman touches, mixed with vampires, Mythical creatures and magic/power.

So many things happened throughout the book (it’s drama packed) without it being too confusing; it all just flows really well and comes together perfectly : rebellions, gladiator games/hunger games style training, murders, Gods being Gods…. The plot twists were very good; some I guessed before it came out and some I was actually very surprised!

The romance is also 👏🏼 it’s not overwhelming at all and definitely comes second to the rest of the story but it’s making it even more intriguing. I’m genuinely SO curious to see where the author is going to go with that “love” triangle.

Honestly if I could give it 6 stars I would. I CANNOT wait for book 2!!!

Arvelle, a sigilmarked whose powers never awakened, is forced into a deadly contract with a vampire who holds her brother’s life in his hands—literally. In exchange for the medicine he needs, she agrees to enter the Sundering: three brutal arena trials where only the smartest and strongest make it out alive. If she survives, she’s given one final task—kill the Emperor.
Along the way, she forges unexpected alliances, and the story takes twist after twist that kept me absolutely hooked.

I devoured this. Honestly, it’s one of my favourite reads of the year so far. It was gripping from the start and impossible to put down. The pacing was on point—so much happens, and it’s packed with reveals, betrayals, and turns I never saw coming. (Some I definitely saw coming, but it didn’t take away from the experience at all!)

It had everything I love: gladiator-style games, vampires, murder, found family, long-lost loves, gods, dark and dangerously compelling bad guys—this book really delivers. The magic system was super unique too—slightly confusing at first, but it made sense the further I got into the story.

Arvelle was a strong female lead. She did irritate me a few times, but honestly, by the end, most of that was explained really well, and it made sense—so she’s fully forgiven. I also loved the romantic threads and the glimpses we got into her past relationships.
I am fully team Rorrick.
No notes. I’m so invested in these characters it’s actually a problem.

The only negative is that this isn’t published until December, which raises the urgent question: when is book two happening?? Because I need it yesterday.
Also, I’m going to need significantly more Rorrick in the next one. Please and thank you.

Thank you to Stacia Stark and Michael Joseph, Penguin Randomhouse for the ARC. I’m leaving this review voluntarily.

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
This book was so much fun! Deadly games, blood-soaked battles, a murder mystery, and not one—but two brooding, hot vampire brothers? Count. Me. In. 😍

This was my first Stacia Stark novel and definitely won’t be my last. I loved the writing style, the pacing, and the electric character dynamics. It gave me major Hunger Games training montage meets Gladiator meets The Serpent and the Wings of Night vibes (take that with a pinch of salt—this book isn’t a carbon copy of any of those, but it carries that same intense, survivalist energy).

I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure at first—what with all the talk of Gladians, I half expected the FMC to be running around in gladiator sandals and a toga 😂 Thankfully, my girl was wearing armour. (I’m a simple girl with simple wants when it comes to my fantasy, and togas aren’t one of them.)

The ending? Sensational. The found family vibes, the intense Gladian rivalries, the yearning (oh my god, the yearning)—absolutely swoon-worthy. And Rorrick?? He stole the show for me. Smug, sarcastic, a little dangerous… I was obsessed. But don’t worry—our broody main love interest still brought the angst and mystery I live for. Every main character had their moment to shine, and I genuinely loved (most of) them ✨

All in all, I went in unsure and came out obsessed. I’m SO glad I gave this a chance—and now I’m counting down the (painful) days until book two.


🪬Tropes🪬

• Childhood friends to Lovers
• Enemies to lovers (⁉️)
• Deadly games
• Rivalries
• Found family
• Murder mystery
• Hot vampire blood-drinking scenes
• Hidden identities

This is a fantastical book based in a roman empire setting with vampires and magic. The magic system was unusual and intriguing, it was exciting to understand. The world building was complex and felt quite heavy, there's a lot to take in alongside the story, characters and magic system.

This was such an easy five star! We Who Will Die captured my interest right from the beginning and gave me that five star feeling from the first few chapters!

I absolutely loved the combination of a Roman Empire inspired world with vampires! It worked so well and the Emperor was such a wonderful and believable villain.

The pacing was great and there are a few separate plot lines woven together so you’re never quite sure what’s about to happen. I was constantly trying to work out where the story was going but the reveal towards the end caught me off guard completely. The magic system is interesting and mysterious, it feels like there’s a lot we still don’t understand about it that will get explored in later books.

Arvelle was a likeable character and I enjoyed reading from her perspective. I won’t say much about the romance here. I feel like it’s more fun if you go in blind like I did, but I absolutely adore the direction it seems to be going in. It feels like we haven’t even scratched the surface of the tension and relationship drama that’s to come but I’m already obsessed.

The only thing that didn’t work for me was the sheer number of named characters. It was difficult to keep them all straight which made the plot confusing at times and didn’t give the opportunity to get to know any of them or get attached enough to care if they were killed. I feel like the story would have benefited from fewer, more developed side characters and I hope we get a bit more of this in later books. I really liked what we saw of Maeva and found her backstory interesting so I’d love to see more of her especially.

We Who Will Die has easily made it into my favourite books of the year and I can see this series being an all time favourite once it’s complete!

Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me an e-ARC of this book! It did not influence my review and all opinions are my own.

This was my first ever Stacia book, and it did not disappoint. This has convinced me to read every other book she’s written! Let’s get right into the review because I need to spill my feelings!!

First of all, sign me up for any other books in this series. You want my firstborn? Done. You want my soul? Done. I would give anything for the next book.
In terms of the characters, the development throughout the book is nothing short of incredible. We have a few morally grey characters who we can’t help but love, we have the worst people imaginable who we absolutely hate, and we have characters who are in between who we probably like but aren’t huge fans of. The depth of these characters went above and beyond my expectations. I see a lot of myself in the FMC; she feels responsible to keep everyone around her safe, she battles with grief and guilt, she has difficulty trusting others, but we can’t help but love her. I would put my life on the line for the MMC, and probably his brother too (I love a damaged boy I can’t help it. The more he’d ruin my life the better). It’s so refreshing to see a FMC who is aware of all of her faults but is actively trying to fix them.

The plot was to die for (no, really). There were a few twists that I literally said ‘oh my god’ at because I didn’t expect them at all. This kept me hooked through the book and made me want to keep reading. If someone asked me for a book that is going to ruin their life, I’d recommend this one.

There’s clear inspiration from Gladiator/The Hunger Games/Greek mythology, but this book was so beautifully unique in its own way. My favourite Greek reference was the gorgon!!
The diversity was wonderful too, and I hope Maeva and her girlfriend live beautiful happy lives.
Tropes included forced proximity, trials, forbidden love, magic, and there was plenty of angst.

Overall, an excellent Stacia novel, although I’m sure nobody is surprised!

Rating: 5/5 stars (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

I was really excited to dive into this one, after loving the series Kingdom of Lies, anything new from Stacia Stark is an automatic addition to my TBR!
We Who Will Die kicks off a new romantasy trilogy inspired by Ancient Rome, with a unique magical twist involving sigilmarked humans and vampires. The concept is bold and imaginative, and as always, Stacia Stark’s writing is incredibly engaging. Her world-building, especially early on, is rich, immersive, and full of vivid detail that pulled me in right away.

That said, I’ll admit the mix of vampires, Roman influences, mythical creatures, vengeful gods, and an entirely new magic system felt a little overwhelming at times. There was just a lot going on, and my brain struggled to keep up with it all at times!

The core plot does follow some familiar romantasy tropes, but it still hits all the right beats for an enjoyable read. I was entertained throughout, and I’m completely hooked on Rorrik, he’s hands down the standout character for me. I have to know what “he saw her first” really means! I’ll definitely be picking up the second book, if only to find out where his story goes.

Thank you NetGalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for the ARC.

We Who Will Die is fast paced and full of drama. The magic system was unique and interesting, although the world building itself was a bit more difficult to grasp.
I found some elements of the setting harder to believe, it impacted my rating a lot.
I think this would appeal to fans of Blood of Hercules and also perhaps Quicksilver.