#a heart so fierce and broken

[galamurphy]

"He stalked across the room like he wanted to wage war, but he kisses me like I'm the most delicate thing in the castle."

"A Heart so Fierce and Broken" by Brigid Kemmerer

#fantasy quotes #fantasy books #a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken #book quotes #fantasy #inspirational #romance quotes #ya novels #brigid kemmerer #fairytale #fairy tale book #fairytale twist #fairy tale twist #romance #young love #love quotes #literature quotes #treat me like a princess #romantic #intimate #passionate #passion #lovers #the cursebreaker #cursebreaker #harper and rhen #rhen and harper #emberfall #beauty and the beast

[rapha-reads]

After sending the summer dissecting A Curse So Dark And Lonely (amongst a corpus of other novels) to study contemporary rewritings of Beauty and the Beast, now that the thesis is done, I went and read the sequel, A Heart So Fierce And Broken.

I think I love A Heart more than A Curse.

Grey and Lia Mara have something so agonizing that Harper and Rhen lacked. Or, to say it otherwise, Harper and Rhen, for all that they are very modern versions of Belle et la Bête, are still constricted by the role they must play. The story, their story, has already been written, and they must play their part until the end, no matter the side quests on the way.

Of course, because A Curse is a play on B&tB, it's a variant, a critical adaptation, so reducing Rhen and Harper to just their motif is a bit mean. I honestly really love A Curse. I might be biased against it after months of learning about the og tale inside and out.

Meanwhile, Grey and Lia Mara occupy spaces of their own. Academic deformation or thesis post-trauma stress, I'm trying to think but I can't find the tale-type they'd belong too. They're not fairy tale archetypes developped into Fantasy characters, they are Fantasy characters exploring their own as-of-yet-unwritten story (all the stories have been told, but also, all the stories are still waiting to be told).

They are honestly fascinating, the guard turned long lost heir and the princess discarded who turns out to be the real power. There's so much anguish in them. So much self-sacrificing, self-effacing. Gods I should have included the book in my thesis, I could have drawn parallels between Rhen stuck in his role of Beast and Lia Mara in her role as the spare, Harper as the Beauty and Grey as the unwilling Prince... Dammit I'm having ideas now. Oh, well, let's keep them for when I'll give the PhD a try. Some years down the line.

Quote, because that passage made me weep a little. The weapon boy and the quiet reading girl. Oof. If that's not exactly my kind of favorite dynamic!

Also I'm a sucker for messy yet intense sibling relations and I'm soooo here for Harper and Jake, Lia Mara and Nolla Verin and especially Rhen and Grey. That's totally my jam.

#a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken #brigid kemmerer #beauty and the beast #the cursebreaker series #spoilers from the book but the fact that lilith is back and if she hadn't been there rhen and grey could have an actual brother relationshi #i'm yelling #rapha talks #rapha reads #books #literature #book recs #so i might be a bit traumatized by my thesis so what

[books-in-a-storm]

Today is just going to be a lazy day after all the walking I did yesterday at Comic Con.

#mybooks #booklr #bookblr #sock sunday #books #funko pop #funko and books #brigid kemmerer #a heart so fierce and broken

[roses-red-and-pink]

I am STRUGGLING through this sequel. The main characters from the first book have been turned into background characters. And from the new main characters pov they are only making bad choices and it’s super hard to sympathize with them. I keep reading hoping for a glimpse of the characters I love. Just trying to get to the next book because apparently they play more of a role and make less bad decisions.

#my life #a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken

[tiredandadventurousnerd]

A Grey Rant

I reread the Cursebreakers trilogy last month and then read Forging Silver into Stars.

Grey was and is my favorite character in that series/world. I really enjoyed A Heart So Fierce and Broken because his POV was one of the main ones.

And anytime I see the word grey, I think about him. And I can't get over him.

Back when I was reading the books, I posted a couple of posts about a couple of his lines that got to me.

Just...Grey is stuck in my mind and I have a crush on him. And I don't think I'd have it any other way.

That is all.

#grey #a curse so dark and lonely #books #books and reading #booklr #reading #cursebreakers #a heart so fierce and broken #a vow so bold and deadly #forging silver into stars #fantasy

[bookscoffeandmusic]

« You trusted me once. What have I done to lose it? »

« You left. »

A Heart So Fierce and Broken

#a heart so fierce and broken #booklr #brigid kemmerer #a curse so dark and lonely #quotes #books and reading

[caffeinated-bibliophile]

Someone hold my hand and hype me up to finish A Heart So Fierce and Broken lmao 😬

#i have 5 chapters plus the epilogue remaining and i feel like I'm going to crack a tooth #currently reading #the cursebreaker series #a heart so fierce and broken

[afoolsingenuity]

You’d think I’d learn never to trust a YA trilogy. I’ve just finished A Curse so Dark and Lonely and it was great. It had a nice romance and lots of action and drama. But then I picked up book 2 and it was obvious from chapter 1 author was about to do me dirty and totally change the MCs I’ve grown to love. Harper is stepping back and unwilling to challenge Rhen (wtf) and Rhen is suddenly bloodthirsty and ready to turn on Grey for no apparent reason? Like wtf? It makes no sense! I’ve hopped into the reviews for books 2 and 3 and it’s safe to say the Cursebreakers trilogy goes down hill fast and I now have deep regrets buying the third book. I just wanted a good fantasy YA read and this series looked like it would deliver until it all went wrong.

I should know better, ya trilogies rarely end well for me. It’s like I forgot about the Divergent fiasco.

#reading #cursebreakers #a heart so fierce and broken #a curse so dark and lonely #a vow so bold and deadly

[booksandfantasies]

I went into Forging Silver into Stars fully expecting a Jax/Callyn/Tycho love triangle but instead I got Jax/Tycho as the main romantic pairing and I'm so not mad at that.

#forging silver into stars #brigid kemmerer #a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken #a vow so bold and deadly #I'm loving this book so much #love tycho and jax so much #callyn and alek not so much #forging silver into stars spoilers

[wakingupnexttoyou]

The conclusion of the cursebreaker series by Brigid Kemmerer. I'm so excited for this one!!!!

#today's read #what i'm reading #a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken #a vow so bold and deadly #brigid kemmerer #fantasy #ya books #romance #booktok #popular books #fantasy romance #canadian #canada

[missaddamsworld]

Beauty and the Beast retelling 😍📚

#a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken #brigid kemmerer #bookaddict #books #bookstagram #bookaholic #bookworm

[maricanread]

(A heart so fierce and broken - chapter 37)

#a heart so fierce and broken #grey #lia mara #grey and lia mara #cursebreakers 2 #a heart so fierce and broken quotes #a curse so dark and lonely #books #reading #quotes #ya books #book quotes #romance books #fantasy books #romance

[jessread-s]

✩📃🌷 Series Review: * Enemies-to-lovers * Slow Burn * YA Fantasy * “Beauty and the Beast” Retelling With “Forging Silver into Stars’” release date on the horizon, I finally got around to reading the Cursebreaker trilogy! I am so glad that I did because “A Curse So Dark and Lonely” is one of my favorite reads of 2022 and the absolute best fairytale retelling! Kemmerer’s writing is fantastic. She created characters that I have grown dangerously attached to and sucked me into the world of Emberfall with her beautiful descriptions. I cannot wait to see what she does with Tycho’s story! If you have not yet preordered “Forging Silver into Stars,” be sure to do so! You are not going to want to miss out. ➤ A Curse So Dark and Lonely: 4.5 stars ➤ A Heart So Fierce and Broken: 4.25 stars ➤ A Vow So Bold and Deadly: 4.0 stars ➤ Overall Series Rating: 4.25 stars

Cross-posted to: Instagram | Amazon | Goodreads | StoryGraph

@brigidkemmererwrites​

#cursebreakers #a curse so dark and lonely #acsdal #a heart so fierce and broken #ahsfab #a vow so bold and deadly #avsbad #emberfall #princess harper of disi #prince rhen #vincent aldrhen #scary grey #commander grey #lia mara #tycho #brigid kemmerer #ya romance #ya fantasy #ya retelling #YA Books #YA literature #book review #booklr #book blog #book blogger #bookish #bibliophile #book rec #Book Recommendations #bookaholic

[books-in-a-storm]

JOMP December 2023 BPC: Day 19 Festive

#justonemorepage #jompbpc #booklr #bookblr #funko and books #a heart so fierce and broken #brigid kemmerer #funko pop #book photo challenge #december 2023

[neverlearnedtoread]

A Heart So Fierce And Broken

⭐⭐; there are certain angles grey can work and 'person in a position of power making a tricky decision' is NOT one of them 😭😭

Oh?? 👌😉😏

the way the world was expanded and the isekai aspect of the story was well-handled. it was realistic and also (more importantly) brought tension to the story in a way that i didn't feel derailed the main conflict

in particular the 'women warrior' culture of Karis Luran wasn't overplayed - there wasn't a sense that their culture was any less myopic than any other about gender roles, which was very refreshing to read after Strong Feminist Harper in book 1

No.. ❌🤢🤮

the protagonists of the previous book take a sudden turn for the worse. i don't think its a character assassination per se, but i do find it jarring how the main characters in bk1 became antagonists in this (the actual concept of them becoming the antagonists, i have nothing against, but the execution fell flat for me). i just wasn't finding the situation believable enough for that kind of sudden 180

it wasn't that there wasn't anything happening, but nothing that was happening was something i felt emotionally invested in

POV characters that don't do nothing in the latter half of the book (when they should, absolutely, be DOING SOMETHING, OR AT LEAST FEEL LIKE THEY ARE)

Some spoilers under the cut - this is the second book in the series!

Summary: I've read cliffhanger endings before, but talk about stepping off the rollercoaster of the first book into the Tower of Terror of this one! Let's look at the pros first: the curse that held Prince Rhen and his guard Grey has been broken, and Lillith left dying on the streets of Washington, DC. Harper's still alive, as well as her brother and his boyfriend. As for the cons, well: remember how in the first book they told a bunch of lies about Harper being a princess and constructing an elaborate ruse to rally Emberfall together in the face of ruin? All that's about to bite us in the ass, because not only is the ruler of Karis Luran threatening to invade them after three long years of skulking around their borders, but the rumours that Prince Rhen is not actually the firstborn prince are true, and the real heir to the throne is Grey, who, upon finding this out, has cut and run with his deadly secret like a wolf afraid of his own shadow. It's not the best start for a would-be-king, and it honestly doesn't get better.

Concept: 💭💭💭 The last part of the first book really clawed its way up to four stars (Harper guiding monster!Rhen - on a murder spree no less - was so fun!!) and set the scene for an interesting bk2. I was so excited! I liked the idea of having Grey as a more pragmatic, even-keeled POV to contrast Rhen and Harper's strong-minded narrative voices in bk1. I also love 'stoic bodyguard' / 'guard dog' tropes and was stoked to see Grey as a main character.

Execution: 💥💥 Grey, darling....what happened?? i mean i know the author was trying to write you as a character floundering in situations you were ill-suited to, but did you have to become that annoying in the process?? dont even get me started on rhen. and the thing is, kemmerer's justifications for what happens in this book make sense; on paper, it does work! but all the interesting parts of the story were sacrificed in the process, and that's not an acceptable outcome for me. i was told why the characters were doing what they were doing (ie torture), but i didn't actually believe it. it would have really helped if the sense of urgency and desperation kemmerer wanted us to feel was made more concrete - like, maybe there were hordes of people literally making their way to the castle to demand prince rhen reveal the heir and/or step down, or evidence of karis luran's troops (not just the princess) on the wrong side of the border. and have our POV characters run into these groups, instead of vaguely saying 'they're around!'

Personal Enjoyment: ❤❤ I didn't enjoy this book, but I was also invested enough in the drama to skim-read at a speed that would make it seem like i was really into it. it took me less than a day! more than halfway through i had to admit to myself that anything i would have wanted to happen wasn't going to pan out, including cute rhenxharper scenes, lia mara being kind and whipsmart (or balancing both depending on the situation), and grey making any attempt to rise to the damn occasion. by the end, i was just trying to be done with the book 😕

Favourite Moment: this was a bummer of a book for me but the mental image of grey launching himself out of the window after sneaking into lia mara's room, I WAS LOSING IT 🤣 man said BYE! 💨🤸‍♂️🧗‍♂️

Favourite Character: lia mara? harper? its actually hard for me to pick any character, that's how difficult this book was for me to enjoy. i liked what i THOUGHT i was going to get but it became too clear about halfway through kemmerer was trying to write characters into certain positions / state of mind for bk3 for me to fully invest in what was happening. i will say lia mara SHOULD have been my favourite (i wanted her to be so badddd) except that my vision of a politically savvy and whipsmart heroine that didn't have to resort to violence or threats to garner power (while grappling with her innate sense of justice and kindness) crumbled into her just being 'girl stuck in tower' for like. the last third of the book. like baby! stand up!!

#a heart so fierce and broken #ahsfab #brigid kemmerer #books #book review #booklover #bookblr #reading

[tiredandadventurousnerd]

Favorite Books - Oct. 2023

A Heart So Fierce and Broken

Forging Silver into Stars

A Curse So Dark and Lonely

All written by Brigid Kemmerer.

Got the idea for this post from this post from @themelodyofspring.

#a curse so dark and lonely #a heart so fierce and broken #books #forging silver into stars #brigid kemmerer