Our Vicious Oaths: Characters, spicy chapters, triggers & review

Written By Esta Pinto

Our Vicious Oaths is a dark fantasy romance or romantasy with a strong, warrior princess main character, Kadeesha Mercier.

It’s brutal, it’s imaginative, it’s spicy AF.

If that sounds like something you might be interested in, I wrote a wee little blog post and book review covering Our Vicious Oaths characters, spice levels, where to find the spicy chapters, because there is a LOT of them. 

I’ve also covered the synopsis, a book review, trigger warnings and other FAQs, which you can find below.

Hope you have fun with this one. We need more Black, Brown & diverse main character fae and shadow daddies in our lives amirite? I don’t mean… thrown in as an afterthought to the supporting cast. And I also don’t mean ambiguously tanned and vaguely ethnic… I mean: actually melanated.

As always, happy reading friends!

 

Our Vicious Oaths synopsis.

Enter a new world of romantic fantasy from award-winning author N.E. Davenport—a journey of powerful magic, enemies-to-lovers, and political intrigue—as a warrior-princess and a vengeful king from rival fae courts form a fierce alliance to take down a merciless despot.

Princess of the Aether Dominion, Kadeesha wants nothing to do with fae politics. She is a warrior, first and foremost, and believes her greatest strength is leading her squadron of elite winged serpent flyers to protect her homeland. But bound since infancy to be betrothed to the Hyperion High King, ruler of all Dominions, she has no choice but to do what men have chosen for her.

Repulsed by the idea, she decides to spend one last night of freedom—in the arms of a dangerous stranger who takes her to sexual heights she’s never experienced before…but who is only using Kadeesha to set a trap for the High King.

For the High King and the kings of his six Dominions were responsible for the decimation of the Apollyon Court, and its new king, Malachi, wants his pounds of flesh.

On Kadeesha’s wedding day, Malachi and his special forces attack. Her father is killed, and Malachi wounds the High King, ultimately taking Kadeesha as hostage back to his land.

But she is no true hostage. The two form a pact: she will help lure the High King so Malachi can kill him once and for all, and he in turn will not harm Kadeesha or the Aether people. And as much as Kadeesha hates politics, she is now the Queen of her folk. Fae bonds are unbreakable…and so, perhaps, is the attraction Kadeesha and Malachi feel for each other. For even as they must publicly display their connection to provoke the High King’s jealousy, they struggle to resist the powerful allure between them in order to achieve their ultimate goals.

Get Our Vicious Oaths here.

 

Our Vicious Oaths characters.

Character art shared by author @nia.davenport via Instagram. Artist 🎨: @peixell

Main characters.

Our Vicious Oaths is told in third-person narrative from the female main character, Kadeesha and male main character, Malachi’s points of views.

Kadeesha Mercier.

Kadeesha is a clever, strong and defiant princess, raised in patriarchal society. She’s been betrothed since a young age to a red flag of a king, named Rishaud, and she’s not happy about. What might be worst of all, is that her father is the one who arranged it, and he won’t let her out of the marriage arrangement.

Malachi.

Meet Malahizrien, more commonly known as Malachi, our confident and morally grey male main character. He’s a powerful shadow daddy with void magic, merciless and just a bit arrogant.

Other supporting characters.

  • Zahzah (Kadeesha’s kongamato--half avian half draconic winged serpent)

  • Leisha (Kadeesha’s second in command)

  • Samira (Kadeesha’s third in command)

  • Rassa

  • King Sylas Mercier(Kadeesha’s father)

  • Rishaud the Conqueror

  • Nychelle

  • Trystin (Malachi’s cousin)

  • Dedrick

  • Shionne

  • Zayvier

  • Kiyun

  • Jakobi

  • Yashira (Kadeesha’s mother)

  • Lady Arrenia

  • Cassius (Malachi’s cousin)

  • Lady Remi Niyarre, The Stone Warden

  • Gengin

  • Theo

  • Lady Keeya

  • Voshon Tareek

  • Taodrick Tareek

  • Isiadora Diamundis

  • Cyinthia Niyarre

 

Review: Our Vicious Oaths by N. E. Davenport.

View my review and follow me on GoodReads here.

My rating: ★★★★★

Our Vicious Oaths was so fun and the kind of fun that makes you want to overthrow tyrants and the patriarchy and flirt with your very attractive enemy whilst plotting to overthrow them too.

But first and foremost. Spice tolerance is subjective, as are books/art. So PSA: This is spicy and it gets the full 5 out of 5 chilli rating from me. Never have I ever given out a full 5 chillis before, and I read a lot of romantasy. It wouldn't be so far-fetched to classify this as erotica.

If you’re spice-averse, technically you could skip those parts if you wanted to. But you’d be skipping, what, ten chapters approximately? There are stretches where the plot takes a backseat because the characters are... occupied and good for them. I interpreted it as the main character Kadeesha’s confidence and ownership of her desires as part of the characterisation, and I like that. But you can also see a transition from physical to more emotional intimacy as part of the development.

I wouldn’t call it enemies to lovers since it’s kinda insta-lusty. Perhaps enemies with benefits to allies with benefits to… ? (I will leave that hanging for y’all). But I think it’s an interesting take on the traditional tropes and very different in the way it changes up the execution of the tension between Kadeesha and Malachi.

But yeah anyway, besides all that, Our Vicious Oaths is about power and autonomy and about a woman who decides she is not a vessel or a pawn or a prophecy but a person with agency and wrath and a story that belongs only to her. And it says all that while everyone’s hot, dangerous and immortal, so yay.

This is a big call but I won’t be surprised if everyone’s new favourite shadow daddy is Malachi. He's arrogant and dangerous but he's got a tragic past, and he will do anything for his loved ones.

Also did I mention the fae are melanated? Love to see it.

I probably speak for many when I say this is a standalone book, but no one would be upset if there were another 3-4 or even say, 7 more books set in this world. Also, how do I get me a half-bird, half dragon sidekick who I can chat to telepathically? Zahzah is adorable and by adorable I mean won’t hesitate to burn asshats to a crisp and eat their bones.

I’m giving this five stars because it was fun, escapist and a bit unhinged, in the best way. If you love brutal fantasy/romance with courtly politics, lots of decapitation (oh yeah forgot to mention, this is pretty dark and bloody--mind your triggers!), shadow daddies with a grill, found families, epic fae worlds and lore, you’ll most likely enjoy this too.

Thank you so much to NetGalley & HarperCollins UK for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

 View my review and follow me on GoodReads here. I chat about books a lot.

 

Our Vicious Oaths FAQs.

SPOILER ALERT:

⚠️ Some answers may spoil The Isle in the Silver Sea if you haven’t read it already. Proceed with caution. ⚠️

Here are the answers to all your common FAQs.

Is Our Vicious Oaths a series?

No, Our Vicious Oaths is a standalone.

Is there spice in Our Vicous Oaths?

Yes there are open door spicy scenes in Our Vicious Oaths! They’re frequent and very explicitly described and fairly long scenes.

What is the Our Vicious Oaths spice level?

Spice level: 5/5

🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶

In my personal opinion, this gets the full 5 out of 5 chilli rating. It’s the only book I’ve ever given a 5 chilli rating to before and I’m an avid romantasy reader.

What are the spicy chapters in Our Vicious Oaths?

  • Chapter 2:  🌶️

  • Chapter 4: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 

  • Chapter 9: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

  • Chapter 10: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

  • Chapter 21: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

  • Chapter 22: 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🫧

  • Chapter 23: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

  • Chapter 24: 🌶️🌶️

  • Chapter 36: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

  • Chapter 37: 🌶️

What are the tropes?

The tropes in Our Vicious Oaths are:

  • Enemies to lovers (but more realistically like enemies with benefits to allies with benefits to lovers)

  • Only one throne

  • Fake dating (sort of)

  • Marriage of convenience (sort of)

  • Political intrigue and scheming

  • Found family

  • Magical creatures

  • Microtrope: He washes her hair

  • Fast burn

What are the content and trigger warnings?

  • Violence

  • Murder

  • Death of parent

  • Religious bigotry

  • Death

  • Toxic family relationships

  • Injury details

  • Blood

  • Sexism

  • Misogyny

  • Grief

  • Decapitation

  • Blood drinking

  • Pregnancy

What is the age rating for Our Vicious Oaths?

Our Vicious Oaths is classified as adult so 18+ due to graphic and frequent explicit sexual content as well as adult themes.

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