C. N. Crawford

City of Thorns

C N Crawford

I never thought I'd be singing happy birthday to myself in a dungeon. And yet when a sinfully sexy demon crashes happy hour, that's exactly what happens. He's known as the Lord of Chaos, he's mistaken me for my succubus doppelgänger. Happy birthday to me. When he tastes my blood, he finally understands I'm mortal. And I realize we have something in common: we both crave revenge. So we make a deal: I can stay in the forbidden city to hunt for my mom's killer. In return, I'll help him get the vengeance he craves. I just have to pose as a sexy succubus. One problem--he's my number one suspect. And that's increasingly hard to remember as he teaches me my role: seduction. With each heated touch I drift further into peril. And if I fall under his seductive spell, death awaits me. "I flew through this book... Hot demon lord-check. Action-check. Romance-check. And there's spice! If you love my books, you definitely want to read this one." -Laura Thalassa

prawnie

Takecia Bright

Jasmine

Actual rating: 2.5 Stars
Yeah, I try not to rate books two stars unless I found next to nothing enjoyable about reading them, but I was so annoyed by the MC and how lifeless this book felt to me that I knocked it down half a star. One-dimensional characters, annoying MC I didn't care about, predictable plot, and the cliffhanger didn't leave me wanting to pick up the next book right away. Overall I was disappointed because this premise sounded entertaining and the story had promise in certain areas but the execution fell flat. One thing I will say is that it was a quick read but also a pretty forgettable one. This is my first C.N Crawford book and I'm not against picking up another but at the same time I can't see it being anytime soon.

This book was such an easy read. It's not overly long and the writing is somewhat simplistic. The plot kept me intrigued enough to finish it in one day tho lol.

I would have liked to see more depth in the characters. I feel like the background given was surface level there could have been more personality portrayed throughout the story for each of them.

There was consistent tension between to the two MCs but I would have loved to have some more uncontrollable lust and barely restrained desire! Especially since the MC is pretending to be a succubus.

All that said, I enjoyed the story very much and immediately downloaded the second book to read the next day!

amidpages

This book was such an easy read. It's not overly long and the writing is somewhat simplistic. The plot kept me intrigued enough to finish it in one day tho lol.

I would have liked to see more depth in the characters. I feel like the background given was surface level there could have been more personality portrayed throughout the story for each of them.

There was consistent tension between to the two MCs but I would have loved to have some more uncontrollable lust and barely restrained desire! Especially since the MC is pretending to be a succubus.

All that said, I enjoyed the story very much and immediately downloaded the second book to read the next day!

Mallory Abley

3.8 ⭐️

Dope plot twist and my first succubus book. Had some slow moments and the main character enjoying being a straight up bitch is awesome.

Sara Gómez 

3-3.5✨
Podría estar mejor ejecutada la idea... Porque la premisa es muy atractiva.
Me gustó y me tuvo entretenida, la verdad es que devoré el libro en una sentada casi, pero tengo que coincidir en que el word-building es más bien escaso y no hay mucha profundidad de personajes tampoco. 
Es una lectura ligera y entretenida. Me gustaría que fuera menos obvio el desenlace pero espero que el siguiente me sorprenda.

Shay Henrion

I honestly enjoyed this quite a bit more than I anticipated.

Woah! There is just something about books with the enemies to lovers trope that lure me. I can't help it, what can I say? I am addicted to the tension!! This story was not only a rollercoaster but it was one of those type that once you sit down to read you can't stop. 

I loved the characters! We all know I'm always that one that roots for the morally gray character, umm yes, yum, and thank you! Orion was that character that just makes you want to do bad things and feel good about it. The dynamic between him and Rowan was *chef's kiss*, that angst and the build up is what I love about stories like this. The whole start of the book was a whirlwind of action. 

Rowan's character was filled with sass and determination. Her development throughout the book was I love when characters have qualities like these along with the self doubt that makes it so much more relatable. Rowan's inner thoughts had me LOL-ing. I truly loved her character. In my brain this was such a gothy sexy vibe, it worked so well...especially with the tension between Orion and Rowan. The plot and weaving of the story was well paced, it left no space for confusion whatsoever. Super easy to follow but at the same time the world was beautifully built. Wow, just wow! 

I am such a sucker for that angst and love/hate relationship. Seriously, I need the next book asap, there are so many scenarios I have in my brain with possible theories. I must know! 
Thank you so much to the author for sending me this book, this was a great one to dive into for sure. 

I recommend this if you are as much of a lover of romance as I am!

samantha youngclaus

felt like a combination of a psychology textbook and demon smut and i’m not complaining

Erin Banning

I'm very.....underwhelmed. When I first read the little blurb on Facebook, I was pretty excited to read it. It sounded interesting and I was hoping for some good spice, but I was sorely disappointed. The plot seemed to be all over the place, the pacing was off (everything happened wayyy too fast) and the only spice was very, very short. Not that any books NEEDS spice, but it adds a little extra something something. Rowan is cool, I like her spirit and the fact that she has a lot of flaws but her ending was very predictable and I hate predictable characters. All in all, it was just meh.

Autumn Hunsinger

I’m glad to find a fantasy book that isn’t Fae like all the rest. This one definitely kept me guessing and I can’t wait to read the next one in the series! 

Shelby Goodwin

"𝙄 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣'𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣 𝙗𝙮 𝙢𝙮 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙘 𝙖𝙗𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙚𝙩, 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨."

THIS BOOK Y’ALL, I SIMPLY CANNOT--I need the sequel literally yesterday and I need for more people to become obsessed with this one so we can talk about it. It deserves ALL the hype!! I devoured this one throughout my first week back teaching and I could not have dreamed of a better escape into such a dark, fantastical world of steamy seduction. 

Rowan’s dark academia vibes spoke to the former goth girl still thriving inside me and I loved how much I related to her, especially the college kid experiences. Overall, I absolutely adored this brilliant heroine and her transformative character arc!! It was so much fun to get inside her head and feel the depth of her burning desire for revenge as well as witness the warring within herself when it comes to all things Orion. 

Speaking of the drop-dead-sexy Lord of Chaos--GAHHH. Like, as much as I love a morally gray love interest, I’d never ever considered that one day as a reader I’d be fully falling head over heels for an actual DEMON but here we are and I. LOVED. IT. 

A standout highlight for me was the brilliant inclusion of psychology elements throughout that spoke volumes of Rowan’s intellectual strength and contributed largely to my love for her as a protagonist. The way Crawford detailed her analyses of various characters’ thoughts, words, interactions, etc. was so fascinating and I seriously feel like I learned so much while reading about these characters. 

I cannot freaking WAIT for more in the Demon Queen Trials series! I recommend this for fans of paranormal/steamy dark romance and new adult fantasy adventure!!

Chiara Vitale Zelaia

Actual rating: 4.5/5 stars

There’s something extremely satisfying about finding a book you love so much you can’t stop reading. I binge read CITY OF THORNS in two days, and for my standards, that’s fast! I’ve been looking for a good demon romance for a while. I’ve tried others, but as much as I love demons, sometimes they’re either too evil or too…not demonic. With City of Thorns I found the right balance between wicked and seductive, and I couldn’t get enough. Let me tell you a bit about this book.

The story follows Rowan, a young woman trying to stay afloat her student loans. She has one goal: get into the City of Thorns—the city of demons—and find out who murdered her mother. However, on the night of her birthday Rowan is abducted by Orion, a sexy demon known as the Lord of Chaos who is convinced Rowan is her succubus doppelganger. Orion and Rowan have something in common: they both want revenge. So once Orion is convinced that Rowan is human, the two form an alliance. Orion will help her investigate in the City of Thorns to find her mother’s killer, and in return Rowan will play the part of her succubus doppelganger to help Orion’s revenge plans. Only problem is…Orion is one of a handful of demons on Rowan’s suspects list, and this becomes progressively more problematic as Orion teaches her the art of seduction… Want to know what happens? You’ll have to read the book to find out!

This book was addicting. The story has a very quick pace and there was never a dull page. Orion and Rowan have chemistry for the ages. Their banter was spunky, filled with tension and sexy as all hell (pun intended). Their relationship embodies some of my favorite tropes: rivals to lovers, fake relationships…and a twist that comes toward the end that I won’t spoil. But know that it made my jaw drop!

I adored the romance, but the reason it was so successful is because both Orion and Rowan were amazing characters. Orion is the demon of my dreams. Not only does he have white hair, which is a weakness of mine, but his personality was that delicious, devilish blend of demon arrogance, violence and outburst of passion and unpredictable compassion. He was a surprising dreamboat with a magic touch. I envied Rowan so many times! *dries her sweat* As for Rowan, she was the sort of protagonist I love: sassy but also relatable. I really appreciated her development from start to finish and loved watching her grow more confident and empowered as she played the role of the succubus, which may have become a new obsession of mine.

In short, loved this book! The story had exciting plot twists and I was only able to guess one of them, so there’s that. I 100% recommend this to fans of adult paranormal romance and demons!

Thank you so much to the author for gifting me a copy to review. All opinions are my own.

yasmin

absolutely loved the story! brilliant, funny, spicy. can't wait for book 2 💛
as usual a full review will be on my blog soon

Maria Elena Vitale Zelaia

Do you know that feeling when you scream into your pillow because you feel too many emotions and you just need to let them out?

This book made me feel that. 

City of Thorns was a real page-turner. The moment I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down. I was reading it alongside another book, which I am enjoying very much, and yet it was a struggle for me to stop reading this one. The atmosphere, the tension, the chemistry between the characters, the passion! I loved everything about this. 

Demons in this book act like actual demons, some being extremely vain, others selfish, all of them dangerous. Even Orion, the love interest in this incredible book, is a Demon with the capital ‘D’. He’s sexy as hell, with a nice British accent and piercing eyes, but you never forget that there’s a dangerous creature beneath all that. He possesses a lethal grace and honesty, and he proves he’s the real deal on a number of occasions. It was so refreshing to read. Many times, demons tend to be romanticized to the point that they’re diminished to the role of brooding love interest. But the author portrayed Orion just the way I like him. Redeemable? Yes. Dangerous? Also yes. But despite that, Orion and Rowan’s interactions never felt toxic or imbalanced. It never felt like he was imposing himself in all his demon glory on her, which I appreciated so much.

Do I love him? Affirmative. 

As you can tell, I have many feelings about Orion, but I haven’t forgotten Rowan, the protagonist. She’s amazing. Resilient, intelligent, a normal young woman who throws herself in a dangerous role to find out the truth about her mother’s murder, and who doesn’t back down from talking some sense into a demon even though he’s…well, very scary. I loved how she took control of the narrative and did everything in her power to get out of tricky and terrifying situations. 

And finally, the storyline. The plot was mysterious and interesting. The fact that I was very invested in the interactions between Rowan and Orion didn’t distract me with trying to figure out the mystery behind Rowan’s mother’s death, and also what Orion’s endgame was in regards to the king. Though I started to develop some theories—and I still have so many for the sequel!—I was completely surprised by the turn of events. And devastated. And very excited for the sequel, which I need immediately!

In short, I have another book to add to my favorites.

I recommend this to all lovers of romance! This book was phenomenal and I can’t wait to see what happens next. I feel a book hangover coming. 

Thank you to the author for sending me a copy. Opinions are my own.

Angel Myers

Steamy, Unpredictable, So Awesome!

I loved it! This is such an amazing new series! There's so much mystery and excitement throughout the story and it really kept me guessing almost all the way to the end. There were so many times I was sure I had Rowan and Orion figured out and I was pretty close but not quite there. I absolutely love when a book is able to keep me guessing through the majority of the story. Not to mention the steam factor in this book is crazy high. There is so much tension between Rowan and Orion I almost couldn't stand it! This is definitely one of those books you just cannot stop reading once you've started, so clear your calendar and don't start it at bedtime! I can't wait for the next book in the series!!!

Genesis (@whisperingchapters)

Maybe because it's the season or something, but I'm all for reading Urban Paranormal! City of Thorns took me completely by surprise by how much I enjoyed it! 

We have Rowan who's a mortal in a demon world who gets confused for a succubus by Orion, a demon prince. This creates a lot of issues, starting with Rowan impersonating the succubus she was confused for. And Orion, who hates everyone, slowly develops a soft spot for our MC.

City of Thorns is a wonderful start to a new series. The fake-dating and revenge plot had me so giddy, the banter and snark was on point, and the enemies-to-lovers-to-frenemies-to-lovers was so well done! I'm so eager to read the next book!

City of Thorns

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