Charmanda Reads

Solace of Dusk by K.V. Meadows
Would I Recommend: Absolutely 100%; 10/10; Yes
Read: 11/26-12/7/2025

Wow. What a book. For real.

I received a copy of this book alongside the eARC for the sequel as result of a giveaway from the author and a bookstagrammer (@luna.reads.things on Instagram). After the tsunami that was the Twilight Saga, I was in the mood for something fresh. Nothing could be fresher than a book I knew nothing about that ended up on my doorstep, so in I dove.

This is an epic fantasy novel centering around the POV of two very strong female leads. One hot headed fireball, and the quieter strong survivor. This book has some great world building. In this world, there has been a cleansing of “Undesirables” – those accused of having magic but are presented as people with disabilities (stay with me, this is for a reason). Our first main character, Durvla, is deaf and suffers from an unnamed chronic illness. She is living for her brother, whom I speculate is autistic. She must do everything in her power to protect him and hide him from the strong arm of the kingdom’s mercenaries. Durvla is caught, not for her brother, but instead over perceived theft of her own knitting.

At the heart of our kingdom, we have Princess Carys. Her mother is dying and she is left with the weight of choosing a husband and running the kingdom. She is a messy young woman who is struggling with being a princess that needs to take charge and a young girl who is losing her mom. Carys takes out her frustrations with alcohol and sex with many different characters (bi-representation, hell yeah). There are memories she is missing and when the reveal themselves, it turns everyone’s world upside down.

I loved this. Love love loved this. There is excellent disability and LGBTQ+ representation. There is a variety of different racial presentation in the characters. The burn is slow but there is movement every step of the way. I was absolutely hooked; there was no way I was going to put this down unless I absolutely had to (I was regretfully very busy when I read this and I hated that). This is 100% my favorite book of 2025 and it is quite the buzzer beater. I now have my hands on a physical copy of the sequel, and I will be diving into that soon.

I encourage you to read this, blog visitor. If fantasy and magic is your vibe, this is for you. If you love strong female leads, this is for you. If you want to see yourself in a fantasy book with a disability, a sexual orientation, personal representation in skin and hair type, this is for you.