Blood of the Sands by S.C. Grayson

Blood of the Sands by S.C. Grayson | A Review

Hi Readers!!!!

Welcome to Quills and Pages. This is Quills and today I am going to be reviewing an amazing book that is creating quite a hype among the booksta community. I would like to thank The Nerd Fam and Aethon Books for the gifted book. The Book is Blood of the Sands. It is the first book in the series of The Ballan Desert and it is written by S.C Grayson. so, let's start the review shall we

BLURB

Keera is used to protecting herself from the dangers of the Ballan desert. Guarding her heart may be the most difficult challenge of all.
Keera is an exile struggling to survive, forced to rob passing travelers or face starvation. When she steals from the wrong man—a vicious masked warrior named the Viper—his hand around her throat awakens an ancient magic within her, and she uses it to escape his clutches. Now, Keera must master her power to protect the city of Kelvadan—the only place an exile like her can find a home—from the Viper and his growing army.
The Viper serves the magic of the desert, but the sins of the past threaten to destroy it. To protect his home, he will do everything it takes, even marching on the great city of Kelvadan. However, the real key to healing the desert’s magic might lie in the infuriating but intriguing exile who slipped through his fingers and now fights for his sworn enemies.
Keera and the Viper are on opposite sides of a war to save the Ballan desert, but the strange bond they share could be the key to saving their home—or destroying their world as they know it.

GENRE
Romantasy

THEME AND TONE
Detailed and Beautiful

LANGUAGE AND WRITING STYLE
Easy to Read

CHARACTERS
Multilayered Complex Characters

TROPES

☙ Desert is Magic, terrifying and beautiful world of Ballan Desert

☙ Slow burn

☙ He falls first

☙ Enemies to Lovers

☙ Morally Grey MMC

☙ Trials to win the Champion of the Desert

☙ Political Strife

☙ A Quest to save the Desert

☙ Tribes and Clans

☙ Breathtaking description of the desert and the life in there

MY REVIEW
The Book starts in a promising way and it sucked me into this beautiful terrifying world of Ballan dessert. I love the description of the desert from the start. The nights, the days, and how tribes live. The story starts with some tension going on among the clans as one clan is getting powerful and trying to unite other clans spread throughout the desert. The mission of this union is to save the desert which is behaving erratically.

So, I wondered how it was behaving erratically I found the answer terrifying creatures are rising up and attacking people and clans living in the desert. There is also a city at the border of the desert that is known to keep peace but the clans have some other goals in mind for that city. They do not want peace. The world-building is immaculate and I want to read more about the mystery around the desert and its magic.

There are two main characters The Viper and Keera; both are very much interesting and complex. I loved how the author described both characters and their traits in so much detail I loved them instantly to be honest. They both are at the opposite end of this whole clan and city tension. the build up and slow burn to the end result was beautiful and worth it.

I love the book in short. I cannot wait for the next books to come out. It's a 5 star read for me without any question. Add it to your tbr for October reads. it's coming out today.

MY RATING
Overall: ★★★★★ | 5 Stars

Plot: ★★★★★| 5 Stars

World Building: ★★★★★| 5 Stars

Characters:★★★★★ | 5 Stars

Pacing: ★★★★★ | 5 Stars

Mystery: ★★★★★★ | 5 Stars

Ending: ★★★★★| 5 Stars

Spice Level: 🌶🌶| 2/5

Book Cover:★★★★★| 5 Stars (Perfection)

THE PARTS I LIKED
☙ The world building

☙ The concept that the desert is alive and filled with magic

☙ The slow burn between Keera and the Viper is 🤌

Best Words

“It’s a miracle he hasn’t taken a bite out of you yet.” Keera shrugged, patting Daiti’s nose as if she hadn’t noticed my tension at the mention of Kaius.

“I like wild things.”

Of course, she would.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

S.C. Grayson has been reading fantasy novels since she was a little girl, which has developed into a love of writing and storytelling. She is currently focused on fantasy and paranormal romance. When she is not sitting in a local coffee shop writing and consuming an iced americano, Grayson is a nurse researcher with a focus on breast cancer genetics. She lives in Maryland with her loving husband and their two cats, who enjoy contributing to her work by walking across her keyboard at inopportune moments (the cats, not the husband).You can find her books on her website(link).

☙ Kindle

☙ Paperback

☙ Hardcover

Happy Reading!!

Get to know me!!

❤ 🎧☕️🕯️📖 ❤

The Awakening | Zodiac Academy Series written by Caroline Peckham and Suzanne Valenti | A Book Review

Alright, here I am, sharing my thoughts on the first book The Awakening from Zodiac Academy series written by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti . I decided to start reviewing this series as it falls under the 'enemies to lovers ' and 'bullies romance' genres, which are right up my alley. I'm a sucker for this type of book and I am always on the hunt for such books. Someone made a video of this book on TikTok and I was like I had to read it. So, I began reading the book and I fell into a rabbit hole of Magic Academy, hot assholes, and alternative Fae world. It felt like diving into a more mature version of Harry Potter. Needless to say, I absolutely loved this first installment. GENRE Bully Paranormal Romance THEME AND TONE Mystery, Drama, Action LANGUAGE AND WRITING STYLE Easy to Read CHARACTERS Growing and Changing characters TROPES ☙ Bully Romance ☙ Insane Chemistry ☙ Lost Princesses ☙ Multiple Love Interests ☙ Teacher Student Romance ☙ Hate to Hate and ...

Tiktok made me read it | My Fault | Culpa Mia (Culpable 1)

This line is fire... How did I fall? Easy. He turned my world upside down My Fault is the book I found out from TikTok. I watched the movie first and then I thought why not give it a read. This review aims to provide insight into the book and the movie adaptation. I will analyze the plot, characters, and writing style, and give an overall rating. It will assist you in deciding whether to indulge in the book the movie or both. "My Fault" written by Mercedes Ron is a captivating book that tells the story of a love-hate relationship between Noah and Nick. This book has been adapted into a movie that has caught the attention of many romance enthusiasts. I was surprised to find out that the book is very well written as many books that go viral on TikTok are not really well written. there were no plot holes, no dragging, simple and steady storyline. The story centers around Noah and Nick who are step-siblings and both are grappling with personal demons. Noah is dealing ...

Where is Molly by H.D Carlton | A Review

Where is Molly is a stand alone book written by H.D Carlton. It is set in the Universe of Haunting Adeline. The story revolves around Molly...the girl we found in Hunting Adeline. Her diary was founded by Adeline under the floor and us readers always wanted to know if she succeeded in running away from that awful place. Blurb A spinoff of the Cat & Mouse Duet... “Molly Devereaux has been missing for more than two weeks, and police are still searching for the girl who seemed to vanish out of thin air. The world still wants to know... Where's Molly?” In my dreams, I never escaped the Oregon woods. Life after death isn't easy to accept, especially when I still feel like a ghost. Now, I live deep in the mountains of Montana—the paradigm of beauty. But they are also the home of horrors. Horrors that I only unleash at night. When my pigs are allowed to feast. It is strongly recommended to read Haunting Adeline and Hunting Adeline before reading Where's Molly. Important No...

Plated Prisoner Series | A series review (Spoiler Alert!!!)

Have you ever stumbled upon a series that not only captures your imagination but also challenges the norms of classic narratives? Recently, I had the privilege of delving into the spellbinding world of the Plated Prisoner series, written by Raven Kennedy. If you haven't yet experienced this literary masterpiece, be prepared for a rollercoaster ride of intrigue, deception, and personal growth. Embark with me on a journey through the twists and turns of these books, where the conventional story of King Midas and his golden touch takes an unexpected and captivating turn. A Twist on a Classic Tale The foundation of the Plated Prisoner series rests upon the iconic figure of King Midas and his fabled golden touch. However, Kennedy masterfully introduces a twist; King Midas, rather than possessing the golden touch, is revealed to be a fraud, capitalizing on the real power held by this beautiful character Auren. Auren, with her genuine golden touch, becomes the linchpin of the plot as ...

Lightlark by Alex Aster | A Book Review

A Fellow booktoker recommended me this book. She talks about it all the time and makes really catchy videos featuring this Duology. I got interested and purchased this book. Lightlark is the first book in the series written by Alex Aster. I got to know some pretty interesting facts about the Author and how this book was published. You should learn it too this is not my story to tell 😅. Anyhow I started reading this book in March and finished it one week. Somehow I got late in writing and reviewed all the books I read in March. So now I am starting again. This is the brief of this book on Goodreads; Welcome to the Centennial. Every 100 years, the island of Lightlark appears to host the Centennial, a deadly game that only the rulers of six realms are invited to play. The invitation is a summons—a call to embrace victory and ruin, baubles and blood. The Centennial offers the six rulers one final chance to break the curses that have plagued their realms for centuries. Each ruler has somet...