Wild Savage Stars: A Sweet Black Waves Novel (The Sweet Black Waves Trilogy, #2)

by Kristina Perez

When Branwen used magic to save her country's future, she never expected to destroy her dreams for her own.

Now, the love she and Tristan built is destroyed and her relationship with her cousin Essy is shattered. But Branwen does not have time to dwell on her heartbreak. Essy's betrothed, the king of a rival nation, must never discover Tristan and Essy's affair, or it could mean war.

Branwen goes to desperate lengths to stop the king from discovering the truth, but the price may be even more terrible than she could have imagined.

Can Branwen master her magic before it becomes her own undoing?

• ISBN10: 1250132835
• ISBN13: 9781250132833
• Publish Date: 27 August 2019
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 16 August 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 448
• Language: English

Reviews

[cornerfolds]

Read more of my reviews at Cornerfolds.com!

Last year I read Sweet Black Waves and was immediately pulled into the amazing world Kristina Pérez created. The retelling of Tristan and Iseult was unique and heartbreaking and I could not wait to dive back in, so of course I was thrilled when I received an early copy of Wild Savage Stars!

This story picks up immediately after Sweet Black Waves leaves off, with Branwen, Tristan, and Essy arriving in an enemy kingdom. Everything and everyone is a mess after the shocking ending of the first book and Branwen, despite knowing her role in Tristan and Essy's betrayal, cannot bring herself to move on.

I loved all most of the characters so much in the first book and was so utterly surprised when Essy and Tristan betrayed Branwen that this book was extra hard to read. I hated seeing Branwen at odds with both her cousin and Tristan, but I could completely understand why she felt the way that she did. Her desperation and pain was tangible throughout the book and I was rooting for her so hard to find a solution! I did find that, while I also sympathized with Tristan, I did not love him this time around (but maybe that's to be expected).

A new character, Ruan, is also introduced in this book. I had a lot of reservations about him at first, but really came to love him. It does create a bit of a love triangle situation, but it's one that absolutely works and I am here for it. King Marc was also a surprisingly great character!

Wild Savage Stars is full of political intrigue in addition to the fantasy and romance elements and I loved it! Politics can be hit or miss for me, but Kristina Pérez did a wonderful job of keeping my attention. I was constantly on the edge of my seat trying to guess what Branwen would do or what solutions she would come up with. She's the real queen here!

The ending of this book absolutely broke my soul! I don't know how I'm expected to make it another year until book three, but I guess I'll find a way. I can't say much more without spoilers, but if you enjoyed Sweet Black Waves you'll definitely want to get your hands on Wild Savage Stars immediately!