Title: King of RavensAuthor: Clare Sager
Series: Upon a Broken Throne #1
Pages: 480
Publication Date: Jan. 27, 2026
Publisher: Forever
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Fantasy / Romantasy
Synopsis:
He’ll do anything to keep her. She’d do anything to escape.
Rhiannon is dying—of what, she doesn’t know. Kept protected by her family in their remote seaside cottage, she spends her days searching for a cure. Her world is torn apart, however, when a fae King of the Dead invades her home.
Cold and cruel, Drystan offers her a descend to the underworld as his bride or watch her family die. Trapped in a twisted bargain, Rhiannon is thrust into a world of withered gods, scheming courtiers, and ancient magic, but she refuses to be a pawn in a game she never agreed to play. She attempts over and over to run away, until Drystan offers her a new escape his deadly labyrinth, and he will set her free. Fail, and become his bride.
But in a court where every promise has teeth, Annon must make an impossible return to the home she’s always loved or claim her place in a world where she might finally belong.
This blog uses affiliate links for some book recommendations, and if you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this little bookish corner of the internet!
This one of those books that you end up thinking about long after you finish it. It’s such an engrossing read, and I stayed up way past my usual bedtime to find out what happened. I just couldn’t put it down! I buddy read this with Leslie @ Books Are the New Black, and she did the same thing. It had us both in a chokehold!
Drystan is everything great about morally grey MMCs. He’s complex and charismatic, discerning and disdainful, and, as the King of the Underworld, this fae owns his darkness. At first, his treatment of Annon, a human, makes him tough to love, but I think I fell for him right alongside Annon because by the end, I thought he was fantastic. He’s so broody and lethal and confusing, and layered.
Annon is great too, and I like that, at 33, she’s a bit older than the typical FMC, even if she’s still very naive and gullible. There were a few parts where she frustrated me, and I thought she should have been a little sharper, but her reactions made sense considering the amount of lies, betrayal, isolation, and trauma she’s suffered. Chronically ill, Annon is thrust into a world where weakness can be lethal and make you a target, and Annon must hide how dire her situation is.
The romance between Annon and Drystan is slow-building and slow-burning swoon-tasticness. Whew, these two have so much chemistry, and they certainly make enemies-to-lovers look good! The banter, the snarky and funny nicknames, the way they challenge each other, the sexual tension and angst – it is all so well-crafted. I loved seeing their relationship evolve from an unwanted arranged marriage to a much deeper and more emotional union. There are some really powerful and poignant scenes between them where their vulnerability is on full display, and their feelings for each other are palpable. There’s also a budding romance between two of my favorite secondary characters, and I’m hoping we’ll see more of that relationship as the series continues.
Other relationships, like the friendships Annon develops in the Underworld and her relationship with her brother, are another highlight of the novel. They definitely stand out among the lies, backstabbing, and dark, intense, and dangerous setting. The Underworld is a dangerous and fascinating place and very much sets the tone for the story, standing in sharp contrast to the friendships and Annon’s more positive and optimistic disposition.
I think this is a fantastic start to the series, and after that ending, I’m a little feral for the next book. MY WORD!!! The last 20 percent of the book is relentless with some major shockers, twists and turns, a scene that made me absolutely ugly cry, and a romance to end all romances. The end felt a bit rushed, but it still left me reeling. I spent hours the day after I finished it thinking about the story and messaging Leslie, trying to wrap my head around some of the characters’ actions and reactions, the crazy twists, and a few revelations that still have me spiraling.
- arranged marriage
- grumpy/sunshine
- enemies to lovers
- morally grey mmc
- Hades x Persephone
- forced proximity
- political intrigue
“You aren’t just breathtaking -You’ve got Death himself forgetting what it is to breathe.”
“You’re looking at me like you want to eat me?”
“I’m starving, Annon.”
Great review!! I find it so funny that we both stayed up so late to finish!! haha. It was a great book.
Thanks, Leslie!! It was totally worth losing a little sleep over. lol