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⭐️⭐️⭐️ | It’s Okay. Still Recommend.
Welcome to the fantasy buffet, babes — The Ascended by Greenwich and Lennox is serving gods, immortals, deadly trials, chaos magic, and twin main characters who are done playing nice with a corrupt system. It should’ve been an instant obsession… but your girl Page has Thoughts. Buckle up.
Summary:
In a world where divine power bleeds into the mortal realm, Thais Morvaren has mastered the art of deception. To her seaside village, she’s just a fisherman’s daughter, serving oysters to summer tourists. In secret, she hides her ability to forge weapons from starlight—a power that would force her into the deadly Trials of Ascension.
But when a priest’s ritual exposes her divine heritage, Thais is seized and conscripted into the trials against her will. Now trapped in a competition she never wanted to enter, she transforms her fear into purpose: to kill Olinthar, King of the Gods—the father whose divine touch proved fatal to her mother.
To take down a god, she must become one, even if it costs her everything.
Worse still, the selection ceremony binds her to a mentor: Xül. A necromancer prince with blood-soaked hands, a sharp tongue, and dark secrets of his own. From the moment they meet, sparks fly. He’s insufferably arrogant, she’s stubborn to the bone, and neither has any intention of yielding to the other… or to the heat between them.
Each trial survived brings her closer to godhood, but beneath the spectacle of competition, something ancient and malevolent stalks the shadows of the divine realm—a darkness that threatens to unravel the heavens themselves.
Thais may have been forced into the Trials seeking survival, but she’ll finish them seeking vengeance.
And the cost of godhood is rising.
Because some stars aren’t meant to be weapons.
Some stars are meant to fall.
📖 What’s Inside:
- 💞 Twin bonds
- Gods & mortals 💪
- Badass power sets
- Deadly trials that make The Hunger Games look like summer camp
- Enemies to lovers
- Dual POV
- 🌟 Unique magic system
- “Good girl” moments
- Explicit language
- On-page intimacy 🔴
✨ Vibes:
Think From Blood and Ash (ascension & immortality) crashes into The Hunger Games (the trials) and then collides with Blood of Hercules (god-tier power). It’s like all my fave stories got tossed into a blender. Somehow… the smoothie tastes a little off.
💭 My Thoughts:
Look, the book starts out STRONG. Like:
- Content warning list? Love it.
- Pronunciation guide? Dare I say necessary.
- Chart of beings? Inject it straight into my veins.
- Chapter titles? HELLO, YES.
And then BAM. The authors hit you with emotional devastation before you even warm up your reading spot. There’s a plot twist at 12% that had me making feral noises. Truly iconic behavior.
The trials? NEXT-LEVEL.
Unhinged. Terrifying. Carnage everywhere.
But the last trial?? A wet noodle.
And okay, confession time: The MMC was… not my flavor. I know I know — piercings, jewelry, braids — some of y’all love that. But your girl Page is shallow and petty sometimes. His vibe wasn’t for me, and “Xul” pronounced “zool” didn’t help. (My brain simply renamed him Handsome and kept moving.)
Then around the 40% mark… the brakes slammed. HARD. The pacing fizzled, the worldbuilding thickened, and suddenly reading felt like wading through magical molasses. (High fantasy girlies, this is where you will thrive. I am not one of you.)
This book sat at 80% finished on my nightstand for a month. A whole month. I kept looking at it like, “Maybe today?” Spoiler: No. When I finally powered through, the ending was fun and packed with action, but after that long slump… it didn’t hit as hard as it could’ve.
Some readers are going to DEVOUR this.
I… nibbled politely.
Should You Add The Ascended To Your TBR?
Maybe.
If you love:
- Detailed, immersive worldbuilding
- Unique, bold MCs
- Wild, dangerous trials
- And don’t mind some pacing hiccups
Then this one might just be your next obsession.
If you’re like me and prefer dialogue + vibes + chaos over dense lore… proceed with caution.
🌠A Falling Star Can Still Shine Bright
This one tried to ascend… but sometimes even gods trip on the stairs.
Now tell me this, fantasy fiends: Are you picky about high fantasy worldbuilding too? Like, sometimes you inhale every detail like it’s gourmet lore… and other times it feels like wading through a bespelled bog? Because SAME. Did The Ascended hit that sweet spot for you, or did you find yourself skimming like I did? Let’s talk in the comments!
✨ Loved book review? Don’t lose track of it! Scroll down and pin this post for later so you’ll always have your next fantasy escape ready. ⬇️
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