Radiance

by Grace Draven

Series: Wraith Kings (1)

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
636	42	37,070	(3.95)	4
Fantasy. Fiction. Romance. ~The Prince of No Value~Brishen Khaskem, prince of the Kai, has lived content as the nonessential spare heir to a throne secured many times over. A trade and political alliance between the human kingdom of Gaur and the Kai kingdom of Bast-Haradis requires that he marry a Gauri woman to seal the treaty. Always a dutiful son, Brishen agrees to the marriage and discovers his bride is as ugly as he expected and more beautiful than he could have imagined.~The Noblewoman of No Importance~Ildiko, niece of the Gauri king, has always known her only worth to the royal family lay in a strategic marriage. Resigned to her fate, she is horrified to learn that her intended groom isn't just a foreign aristocrat but the younger prince of a people neither familiar nor human. Bound to her new husband, Ildiko will leave behind all she's known to embrace a man shrouded in darkness but with a soul forged by light.Two people brought together by the trappings of duty and politics will discover they are destined for each other, even as the powers of a hostile kingdom scheme to tear them apart.… (more)

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Showing 1-5 of 41 (next | show all)

Radiance is a great read. The development of the characters and their relationship is really well done, and it's easy to care about what is happening with them. The world is interesting and I'm excited to read more in the series.

My only complaint is about the flashbacks. The chapter would start and a character would think back to events that happened between chapters. The flashbacks were interesting, but I generally like for stories to be more linear. (

)

zeronetwo | May 14, 2024 |

The friendship and banter between these two was pure gold.

4 Stars

Content: torture, scenes between a married couple that can easily be skipped (

)

libraryofemma | Apr 18, 2024 |

Thoughtful romance, filled with kindness, mutual respect, and sense. No instalove. No instalust either. The two protagonists are physically repulsed by each other, but mentally attracted. They start out there marriage with goodwill, decency and sense and move on to true love and romance.

Very refreshing. (

)

zjakkelien | Jan 2, 2024 |

I really enjoyed Ildiko and Brishen's love journey. Their story gives friend to lovers vibe considering they were honest about how they felt for each other since they met. Although Ildiko describes Brishen and his clan as ugly, his protectiveness actions make him attractive. I like how they are willing to try each others cultures. Ildiko doesn't try to change his culture to make it more like hers, like other female characters in other novels do. Which is great.

There is a sort of cliffhanger at the end which I don't really enjoy in my readings, but this one was interesting. Overall, can't wait for the next one. (

)

JLloves | Nov 23, 2023 |

This is an interesting one.
The two main characters are almost perfect which usually is a bad thing.
For some reason, this didn't bother me here at all.
It was refreshing to not have to suffer through the same endless flaws that threaten romantic relationships constantly in other stories.
The writing style is weirdly impersonal and emotionless in many places.
It feels a bit like a dry history book a lot but the story being told was interesting enough to keep at it for me.
I think the old "show don't tell" concept would've gone a long way here.
The pov cycles between the two mcs each chapter but the 3rd person view is very distanced and removed which makes it hard in places to even tell which pov one is currently reading. This gets distracting at times and leads to a bit of head-hopping in places.
First-person even tho it is generally considered a bit harder to pull off might have helped a lot to get close and personal with the mcs.

It was a nice departure from the default romance I've read countless times before but the plot didn't captivate me enough to keep on reading the series. (

)

omission | Oct 19, 2023 |

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Canonical title

Radiance

Original title

Radiance

Alternative titles

Original publication date

People/Characters

Important places

Bast-Haradis kingdom (Imaginary place)

Gauri kingdom (Imaginary place)

Important events

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Epigraph

Dedication

Dedicated to those who inspire and those who make it happen:

Mel Sanders, Lora Gasway, Isis Sousa, Emma Ricks, Kim Sayre, and Cheryl Schnitzer

Thank you.

First words

Today was Ildiko's wedding day, and if she managed not to retch on herself or a guest, she'd consider the entire event a resounding success.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Original language

Canonical DDC/MDS

813.6

Canonical LCC

PS3604.R3836

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▾Book descriptions

Fantasy. Fiction. Romance. ~The Prince of No Value~Brishen Khaskem, prince of the Kai, has lived content as the nonessential spare heir to a throne secured many times over. A trade and political alliance between the human kingdom of Gaur and the Kai kingdom of Bast-Haradis requires that he marry a Gauri woman to seal the treaty. Always a dutiful son, Brishen agrees to the marriage and discovers his bride is as ugly as he expected and more beautiful than he could have imagined.~The Noblewoman of No Importance~Ildiko, niece of the Gauri king, has always known her only worth to the royal family lay in a strategic marriage. Resigned to her fate, she is horrified to learn that her intended groom isn't just a foreign aristocrat but the younger prince of a people neither familiar nor human. Bound to her new husband, Ildiko will leave behind all she's known to embrace a man shrouded in darkness but with a soul forged by light.Two people brought together by the trappings of duty and politics will discover they are destined for each other, even as the powers of a hostile kingdom scheme to tear them apart.

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~THE PRINCE OF NO VALUE~

Brishen Khaskem, prince of the Kai, has lived content as the nonessential spare heir to a throne secured many times over. A trade and political alliance between the human kingdom of Gaur and the Kai kingdom of Bast-Haradis requires that he marry a Gauri woman to seal the treaty. Always a dutiful son, Brishen agrees to the marriage and discovers his bride is as ugly as he expected and more beautiful than he could have imagined.

~THE NOBLEWOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE~

Ildiko, niece of the Gauri king, has always known her only worth to the royal family lay in a strategic marriage. Resigned to her fate, she is horrified to learn that her intended groom isn’t just a foreign aristocrat but the younger prince of a people neither familiar nor human. Bound to her new husband, Ildiko will leave behind all she’s known to embrace a man shrouded in darkness but with a soul forged by light.

Two people brought together by the trappings of duty and politics will discover they are destined for each other, even as the powers of a hostile kingdom scheme to tear them apart

Haiku summary