Week 49 Review: Our Deadly Designs

From Goodreads:

The Shadows Between Us meets The Scorpio Races in the epic conclusion to NYT bestselling Kalyn Josephson's This Dark Descent, called "a fierce and darkly magical thrill ride" by acclaimed author Ava Reid.

The Illinir may be over, but the race for Enderlain's future has just begun. The hunt for the old king's lost heir is on, and the first to find them will win the throne.

Mikira has allied herself with the rebels in pursuit of the lost heir, but the deeper her search takes her, the closer she gets to the royal family's wicked past.

Ari is struggling to control her own growing power as she grapples with a dark secret that may be her undoing — and the truth behind Damien's greatest foe.

Damien, the new head of House Adair, joins the race to find the heir and secure the crown. But as his influence at court grows, so does his paranoia and hunger for power.

Reid is trying his best to stay true to the friend who's always had his loyalty — and the flame who has his heart — while trapped in a web of chaos and lies.

But a darker force is festering in Enderlain's underbelly, and Mikira, Ari, Damien, and Reid will need to find a way back to each other — and themselves — before the kingdom is torn apart. Hearts will be broken and new bonds will be forged in this explosive finale to This Dark Descent, where spellbinding fantasy meets Jewish mythology in a cut-throat race for the throne — and Enderlain's survival.

My Review:
Oh, this was such a fantastic read! I really fell in love with this series with the first book, I already knew that I enjoyed her writing (once I realized that this was the same author of The Storm Crow) and oh, the world and characters of this series were so superb! 

The way things ended, with Mikira and Damien being on the outs, and Ari being possessed, probably by one of the Heretics, yeah, the gang is kinda broken up, which wasn't great for them, but was excellent conflict for us readers. Oh, and there was some romantic drama, because of the betrayals from the first book, so I really enjoyed all that, and all the representation that gave us, I was kinda expecting the one relationship! 

The politics and magic of the world were in the forefront of the first book, but it was mainly focused on how it applied to what they were currently with, and just dropping tidbits of information. So having achieved their goals, the focus was broader in this book, and I loved learning more! We were briefly introduced to the rebellion in the first book, and all the reasons why it exists in the first place with the corruption of the current system, yeah, I was excited to see what they were going to do about it! 

I really came to care for these characters, their situations kept changing, and the trouble just kept increasing. I had to know how they were going to get out of it all alive. That ending was absolutely spectacular, and I loved where it left them! 

Loved reading this book and I can't wait to read more by Kalyn Josephson! 

Author: Kalyn Josephson 
Series: This Dark Descent #2
Read: November 30th, 2024
Source: NetGalley
Reason Why: Love her writing and this series, and it's a End of Series 2024 Book, Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2024 Book and a WoW Book! 
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Published: September 24th 2024

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars