Review: The Emperor by RuNyx
5 STARS + ABSOLUTE FAVORITE SERIES
Alright, I’m sorry, this is going to be a long review. I tried. I intended it to be short and sweet and then, well, it got long. . .xo
Finally, the King and Queen get to tell their story and oh-my-god what a story it turns out to be. Deeply romantic, heartbreaking, and swoon-worthy. The first half is forbidden secret love and the second half is redemptive second-chance love. Altogether, the threads weave together beautifully.
The Emperor goes back to their beginning, the first half of the novel focuses on just that, where these characters I’ve come to love from the first two novels come from and how the bonds between them were formed.
“Where Tristan’s obsession was a visible thunderstorm, Dante’s was more like the wind-ever-present and life-sustaining but invisible.”
The glimpses of the past and the intricate details that are woven into the beginnings of these relationships are squee-worthy. I finally understand just how deep Tristan’s obsession went, and why Vin was kind to Morana, we also get a glimpse of The Reaper himself – that entire encounter was a moment that I highlighted the crap out of. Amara’s tragedy and burgeoning friendship with Tristan and her love for Dante is delved into and my goodness, it’s epic and sad, and oh, so beautiful.
There is just so much to unpack and all of it is a treat to the soul.
“in that moment, she was just a girl and he was just a boy, and somehow, their broken pieces matched.”
The interactions between Amara and Dante from the first two books make complete and utter sense after reading and processing their beginning and the secretive nature of their relationship. When the second half of The Emperor begins, it slams us right into the midst of Dante and Amara’s side of the story that was playing out in the first two books. And oh, me, oh, my, it’s good y’all. Really good.
“Her hero could be the villain in someone else’s story.”
I wasn’t sure going into this book if I would love Dante as much as I love Tristan. And I was kind of right, but – and I say, but – I did really love Dante. He’s kind of epic in his own way. He and Tristan are tied in my head for very different reasons and yet similar reasons all the same. Dante for all of his power and position really does have a tragic beginning. His father is a psychopath for sure and I detest him with every breath of my lungs. Dante though, he for lack of a better word, blooms through the hardships. Becoming a master on the chess board and maneuvering as only a King can do. His friendship with Tristan is sweet and my goodness, they need each other, even if my baby Tristan won’t admit it.
“And so they sat that night, two young killers, one fresh and one seasoned, swallowing down alcohol to drown the chaos inside them, and knowing that love truly didn’t have a place in their lives.”
And Dante with Amara. Oh-my-god. I love him with Amara. Love. They are so perfectly matched. He’s a dirty talking, possessive, sweet, dangerous man and she is a strong, yet soft, determined, equal Queen. Together, their chemistry explodes off the pages.
“You’re the beat to my heart, Amara,” he whispered against her mouth. . .”
“She was the beat to his heart and he was the beat to hers, both of them pulsing together. Maybe they were both the same beats. Maybe, theirs was the same heart.”
While romance is the main dish served here, there are still the pesky dangerous machinations of The Syndicate, mass amounts of secrets, lies, and of course mafia magic. This book/series is so so so good. Highly recommend. Read the previous books though. This is not a standalone series, they build one on top of the next and it’s so perfectly done and worth every moment of reading time.
I love RuNyx’s prose and style of telling a story. She could write up a grocery list at this point and I’d be all in. And! The easter eggs that connect to Gothikana were a pure delight to behold, I grinned like crazy. I’m loving this series so much. I can’t wait to see where RuNyx takes us next. I’m here for it, all in, and totally ready to revisit these characters that I’ve come to love so very much.
AMAZON + GOODREADS + Book One Review + Book Two Review
Synopsis:
What happens when a legacy of ruin mates with a realm of blood?
Heir to the notorious Tenebrae Outfit, Dante Maroni has been trained since birth. A silent rebel in the shadows, he has learned to hide his ruthlessness under his charm, his brutality under his suits, and his love for one woman under his silence. Infiltrating the Syndicate responsible for the missing children, Dante discovers information that shatters his reality and forces him to trigger a lethal game.
Daughter of the Maroni housekeeper, Amara has loved Dante for longer than she’s known it. Abducted and tortured at the young age of fifteen, she loses herself, her life, and her home as she knows it. Years after, unknowingly protected, she’s found some semblance of normalcy when her world collapses again, forcing her to join the game.
Mysteries are unraveled. Secrets are discovered. And their young love is transformed, replaced by a deep intimacy, power, and survival.
The reluctant king and inevitable queen play.
An empire of death is born.
