Book Review: The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

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A human battling vampires in a fight-to-the-death set of magical trials to win over an empire — while falling for a fellow contestant? Count me in. I picked up The Serpent and the Wings of Night because the entire romantasy internet told me to, and the premise alone earns the hype.

The spoiler-free setup: Oraya is a human raised by the vampire king — adopted prey in a world of predators — and her one path to power is the Kejari, a legendary tournament where the prize is a wish and the entry fee is usually your life. Her most useful ally is Raihn, a vampire competitor she cannot trust and cannot quite stop noticing. Alliances in death tournaments have a shelf life. That’s the tension, and it’s a good one.

What I Loved About The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

This book is super solid, and I mean that as real praise: the writing is polished and thoughtful in a way a lot of self-published-turned-megahit romantasy isn’t. Broadbent takes the worldbuilding seriously — the vampire courts feel distinct, the trials have actual rules, and the stakes stay legible even when the body count rises. As a writer, I appreciated how deliberately the whole thing is constructed.

And the ending genuinely surprised me. I won’t say more than that (no spoilers, ever, on this blog), but it recontextualizes the book in a way that made me start the sequel immediately. A final chapter that upgrades everything before it is a rare trick.

What I Didn’t Love About The Serpent and the Wings of Night

What I found myself missing is harder to name: wit. Energy. The sense that the book might crack a joke or break its own patterns. It plays everything a little somber and a little safe, the dialog is more functional than clever, and the love interest stays blander than the premise deserves for a long stretch — I wanted the tension between Oraya and Raihn ramped up two more notches. If From Blood and Ash is all banter and this book is all brooding, my heart lives somewhere in the middle.

Final Thoughts on The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

My final score: 3 out of 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice rating: 2 out of 5 🌶️ 🌶️

Do I recommend this book? 👍 Yes — for tournament-arc lovers especially.

A polished, serious vampire romantasy that I respected more than I adored — and still liked enough to continue the series, which is its own answer. If deadly trials are your favorite trope, don’t skip my Quicksilver review, and the whole rated shelf is at book reviews.

🔥 A New Romantasy on Kindle Unlimited: The Ash Trials

Speaking of deadly trials (my favorite trope, clearly): My romantasy novel The Ash Trials is on Kindle Unlimited: deadly trials, a slow-burn romance, and a heroine with everything to prove. If tonight’s the night you stay up too late with a book, I’d love it to be mine.