The Songbird and the Heart of Stone (Crowns of Nyaxia Book 3)

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars | 10,153 ratings

Price: 6.99

Last update: 12-28-2024


About this item

New York Times bestselling author and BookTok sensation Carissa Broadbent returns with a brand new novel in the Crowns of Nyaxia series, Songbird and the Heart of Stone, where A Court of Thorns and Roses meets Dante’s Inferno, in an epic fantasy romance of love and treachery between mortals and gods.

Mische lost everything when she was forcibly Turned into a vampire–her home, her humanity, and most devastating of all, the love of the sun god to whom she had devoted her life. Now, sentenced to death for murdering the vampire prince who Turned her, redemption feels impossible.

But when Mische is saved by Asar, the bastard prince of the House of Shadow with a past as brutal as his scars, she’s forced into a mission worse than execution: a journey to the underworld to resurrect the god of death himself.

Yet, Mische’s punishment may be the key to her salvation. In a secret meeting, her sun god commands her to help Asar in his mission, only to betray him… by killing the god of death.

Mische and Asar must travel the treacherous path to the underworld, facing trials, beasts, and the vengeful ghosts of their pasts. But most dangerous of all is the alluring call of the darkness–and her forbidden attraction to Asar, a burgeoning bond that risks invoking the wrath of gods.

As her betrayal looms, the underworld closes in and angry gods grow restless. Mische will be forced to choose between the redemption of the sun or the damnation of the darkness.


Top reviews from the United States

  • Jennie_reader
    5.0 out of 5 stars Carissa did it again
    Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2024
    The Crowns of Nyaxia trilogy includes Carissa Broadbent's evocative and atmospheric dark fantasy romance, The Songbird and the Heart of Stone, which explores themes of betrayal, atonement, and the conflict between light and darkness. It presents readers with Mische, a heroine who was forced to become a vampire and is now struggling with losing her humanity. In order to bring the god of death back to life, Mische sets out on a perilous journey into the underworld with the mysterious Asar, a scarred and melancholy vampire prince. Her own redemption story, shifting alliances, and her forbidden attraction to Asar—which puts her at odds with the gods themselves—must all be negotiated along the way.

    The narrative takes readers on an epic journey through terrible landscapes by fusing dark fantasy with mythological elements. With its creative, gray, and inverted settings, the transition into the underworld accentuates Broadbent's deft world-building. The plot explores Mische's background and her psychological struggle between her faith in the sun deity and the lure of darker powers, striking a balance between action and character introspection.

    Mische's development is a prominent subject matter, as she struggles with her guilt and the possibility of forgiveness. Asar, the gruff but highly layered love interest, enriches her trip with his own terrible background. Their interaction, characterized by tension and slow-burning romance, gives emotional dimension to the story. Fans of morally ambiguous characters and strong, multifaceted relationships will find much to like in their collaboration.

    The realm of the Crowns of Nyaxia continues to captivate with its deep layers of mythology, politics, and the supernatural. The picture of the underworld, with its perilous challenges and alien animals, provides a vivid setting for the story's high stakes. Broadbent expertly integrates these facts into the story, making the world feel both broad and very personal.

    Broadbent’s writing, with its lush prose and intricate character studies, shines in this installment. While the deliberate pacing might not appeal to those seeking nonstop action, fans of emotionally resonant, atmospheric fantasy will find The Songbird and the Heart of Stone a captivating read. It’s a story that lingers, both for its powerful imagery and its poignant exploration of light and darkness within us all.
  • amber
    4.0 out of 5 stars Best in awhile!
    Reviewed in the United States on December 20, 2024
    I have to jot this in a jiffy but if you like romantasy with rich world building and well developed characters, READ THIS BOOK!
    The first FMC I haven’t wanted to strangle halfway through in forever, someone who was interesting despite her trauma rather than because of it. A MMC that managed to be complex without cruelty. A cliff that hints at adventure on the ride down rather than a tired continuation of the same situations shaken in a box and tumbled back out as new.
    I greatly enjoyed this one and am looking forward to the next!
  • EO
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic
    Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2024
    Broadbent is a fluid, skilled writer, and it is always a pleasure to read her prose. It is her nuanced understanding of the human psyche, however, that infuses her writing and makes it extraordinary. Out of all of her books, this one impacted me the most (and that is saying something) -- the human empathetic and emotional depths she goes to here are unprecedented. The crafting of the character development and relationship arcs here are incredibly deep, one in which any romance elements are actually in service of a greater human evolution (and not the other way around). It's refreshing, to say the least. The integration of character development, adventure progression, and riveting, transformational pathos is seamless and deeply resonant. I loved the profound, (literally) soul-wrenching depth of this novel and highly recommend it.
  • Customer
    3.0 out of 5 stars This book tried so hard to be cool it fell flat.
    Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2024
    Idk what happened to cassandra but the writing wasn’t great. Her characters were meh and unrelateable and annoying. The world building was okay but it couldn’t make up for it. I rated 3⭐️ and felt it was all due to the weird creature and souls in the underworld or whereever they found them.

    ****SPOILERS****
    Characterization
    Mischa felt like she was absolutely nothing like the character that was introduced in the first two books. Soo idk that felt so off for me and turned me off. She kept passing out at every moment of action. She kept talking about how powerful her magic was blah blah but we hardly saw any of it.

    Asara/Asra idk and idc whatever his name was, was okay but my god was it so ????. Our vampy book “boyfriend” even plays the piano and wants to learn the cello, could this get anymore cringey??

    The story itself was interesting at times but for the most part it fell pretty flat. Like example, we get introduced to some vampy daddy and daughter who capture mischa but somehow they are forgotten for like 59% of the first chunk of book? Like what?

    I sadly am unsure if I will continue the series but I will still praise her first novel as that was very well written so I know she can write excellent, so idk what happened with this book but it wasn’t great.
  • Jen's Reviews
    4.0 out of 5 stars 4 Stars for a Complex Underworld
    Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2024
    ✔️ Single POV (Mische)
    ✔️ Set in the Underworld
    ✔️ Open-door romantasy (3/5 ????️)
    ✔️ Tropes: Road trip romance (hear me out); slow burn
    ⚠️ Cliffhanger ending!

    I was so excited to see Mische’s POV after the 5-star Crowns of Nyaxia Book 1 and 2. It didn’t disappoint. It is a SLOOOWWW BURN. The main characters had zero chemistry for the first 45% of the book. It heats up and is worth the wait.

    Mische is drafted into a quest deep into the underworld. You get to go through five circles of absolute hell (pun intended). No, I still don’t understand how a sword can kill a wraith, which is technically already dead. Otherwise, the world mostly makes sense. There are twists, for sure, but they mostly exist within the bounds of a magical structure that’s well defined.

    • Best Sellers in

     
     

    His Prince (Unexpectedly Twisted Book 2)

    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 144
    5.99
     
     

    Holiday Romance: A totally hilarious and unforgettable Christmas romantic comedy (Catherine Walsh Christmas romcoms)

    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 19,905
    3.99
     
     

    Promised in Blood (Broken Bloodlines Book 2)

    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 8,625
    4.99
     
     

    James: A Novel

    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 44,724
    14.99
     
     

    Demon Reform Academy: Term 2

    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 309
    4.99
     
     

    The Silent Watcher (Vegas Shadows Book 1)

    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 11,863
    5.99
     
     

    The Christmas Fix

    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 33,636
    5.99
     
     

    Close Your Eyes

    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 7,466
    4.99