Carissa Broadbent’s vampire fantasy romance has a reputation for heat, but readers keep asking the same practical question: where is it, and how much is there? Short version: The Serpent and the Wings of Night spicy chapters are few and arrive late. We rate the book 3/5 (Steamy). The two chapters reader guides point to are Chapter 38 (a sensual feeding scene and a kiss, no sex) and Chapter 44 (the main open-door scene). Before that, the romance runs on tension, and the book is first a deadly-tournament fantasy.
Chapter numbers are used throughout instead of page numbers, because page counts shift between hardcover, paperback, ebook and audiobook. If your edition looks different, check the chapter headings rather than the page.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night Spicy?
Yes, in a moderate, back-loaded way. The book is open-door: when the romance turns physical, it happens on the page rather than behind a fade to black. But the explicit material is limited to a small number of scenes, and it appears in the final third. Readers who describe it as spicy usually mean the scene in Chapter 44 and the charged build-up around it. Readers who wanted more are common too. One StoryGraph reviewer said they would have liked a few more spicy scenes, and a Goodreads reader noted it took nearly 400 pages to reach the heat.
The balance is roughly this: tournament trials, political intrigue and survival drive the plot, and the romance between Oraya and Raihn grows alongside it. Official book copy sells it as heart-wrenching romance, dark magic and bloodthirsty intrigue, and compares it to From Blood and Ash and A Court of Thorns and Roses.
The Serpent and the Wings of Night Spice Level
Spice ratings are subjective, and every reviewer uses a different scale. This is the editorial 0–5 scale used in this article:
| Rating | Label | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Clean | No romance, or no physical intimacy |
| 1 | Sweet | Kissing and hand-holding only |
| 2 | Sensual | Strong tension, closed-door or fade-to-black |
| 3 | Steamy | A few open-door scenes; heat is present but not constant |
| 4 | Hot | Frequent, detailed open-door scenes |
| 5 | Scorching | Explicit content is central to the book |
Our rating: 3/5, Steamy. Bookish Goblin and The Otherworld also land on 3/5, and the MoodReads app lists it at level 3. Other reviewers disagree in both directions. One Kindle Unlimited roundup scored it 2/5 (“not super spicy”), while Penguin UK’s marketing describes it as intensely spicy. Treat 2 to 3 as the realistic range.
Three things get conflated, so it helps to separate them:
- Romantic tension: present from the early alliance chapters, constant, and the main source of the book’s “heat.”
- Kissing and sensual scenes: the first real physical moment arrives in Chapter 38.
- Explicit scenes: concentrated in Chapter 44, with the romance heavily emotional rather than purely physical.
The book is not continuously explicit, and it is not among the spiciest romantasy on the shelf.
The Serpent and the Wings of Night Spicy Chapters List
Spoiler warning: the table and the two chapter sections below describe relationship developments. They stay non-graphic, but skip ahead to “Is It Dark Romance?” if you want to go in blind.
| Chapter | Scene type | Heat level | Description (non-graphic) | Essential to the relationship? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33–34 | Sexual tension | Mild | Rooftop conversation and shared-apartment chapters. Attraction and flirtation, no physical intimacy. | Yes, for the build-up |
| 38 | Kiss, charged feeding scene | Moderate | A vampire feeding turns erotic. A kiss follows; one character stops things before sex. | Yes |
| 44 | Open-door intimate scene | Explicit | The couple’s first sexual encounter, written on the page. | Yes, it’s their emotional turning point |
Heads-up on a non-romantic scene: a Part 5 flashback (an unnumbered interlude placed before Chapter 31) depicts a past sexual encounter that becomes non-consensual. It is not a spicy scene and it is covered by the author’s content warnings below. If you are skipping sensitive material, skip this too.
Do the sources agree? On Chapters 38 and 44, yes: Bookish Goblin, The Otherworld, a SuperSummary study guide and another reader guide all point to the same two. They differ on how to label Chapter 38. One calls it “explicit,” while chapter summaries describe a kiss and a feeding that stops short of sex. We side with the summaries and label it moderate. If you want a closed-door read, Chapter 44 is the one to skip, and Chapter 38 can be read without sexual content, though it is sensual.
Related Books:
- Two Twisted Crowns Spice Level: Spicy Chapters, Romance & Content Warnings
- One Dark Window Spice Level: Spicy Chapters, Romance & Content Warnings
What Happens in Chapter 38?
Chapter 38 is the cave scene, and it is a sensual feeding scene with a kiss, not a sex scene. Oraya and Raihn shelter from the sun after a brutal trial. Raihn is starving, and Oraya offers her blood because the alternative is watching him die. Because of Oraya’s history, this is a major act of trust.
In this world, a vampire’s bite can heighten desire, and the scene leans into that. Oraya kisses him afterward; Raihn stops it, saying he wants her genuine consent rather than desire amplified by the bite. Nothing explicit follows. The chapter matters more for the relationship than for the heat: it is where trust and consent become the foundation of their romance.
Spoiler level: moderate.What Happens in Chapter 44?
Chapter 44 is the one most guides call the main intimate scene, and it is described as open-door. It comes shortly before the final trial, after a stretch of events that has changed how both characters see the stakes. The couple finally give in to their attraction, and the scene is a mix of physical intimacy and emotional vulnerability: Oraya’s walls come down, and a study-guide analysis frames it as the point where she realizes how much he matters to her.
This summary stays deliberately non-graphic, and we are not reproducing any passage from the book. If you want to skip it, confirm in your own copy where the scene begins and ends, since editions and audiobook chapter breaks can vary.
Spoiler level: moderate; it does not reveal the ending, but it reveals the relationship's progress.Oraya and Raihn’s Romance
The romance is best described as reluctant allies to lovers with enemies-to-lovers edges. Oraya, the adopted human daughter of the Nightborn vampire king, has lived by a strict code: never trust, never yield, guard your heart. Raihn is a rival vampire, an enemy to her father’s crown, and her greatest competition in the Kejari tournament.
How it develops, without major twists:
- Initial distrust: they are tournament rivals first, and a required alliance forces them to rely on each other.
- Slow burn: attraction builds through shared training, secret hunts and quiet moments before anything physical happens.
- Emotional tension: both know that, in a battle royale, one of them may eventually have to kill the other.
- Plot connection: the romance isn’t a side dish. Trials, politics and family loyalty keep testing it, and the stakes are the same ones that drive the fantasy plot.
Mische, Raihn’s close friend, adds warmth and humor, and Oraya’s father Vincent is the force her loyalties pull against.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night Dark Romance
Not in the strict sense. It’s better described as dark fantasy romance. Dark romance usually centers a morally compromised or coercive love interest and treats taboo or abusive dynamics as part of the romantic appeal. Here, the darkness comes mainly from the setting and plot: a vampire court that treats humans as prey, a lethal tournament, war between houses, and a heroine with real trauma.
The romance itself is closer to mainstream romantasy. Raihn is dangerous and a killer, yet the story presents him as warm and protective of Oraya, and reviewers disagree on how “morally grey” he is. The violence and moral complexity are real, but being dark is not the same as being dark romance. If you want a wholesome read, this is not it; if you want a cruel-hero dark romance, it may feel too soft.
The Serpent and the Wings of Night Tropes
- Enemies to lovers / reluctant allies: rivals thrown into an alliance. Read more about Best Enemies-to-Lovers Romance Books
- Slow burn: the physical payoff comes late.
- Forced proximity: shared quarters inside the Moon Palace.
- Deadly trials and tournaments: the Kejari, held by the goddess of death.
- Morally grey love interest: debated, as noted above.
- Vampire romance: feeding scenes carry much of the sensuality.
- Political intrigue: the vampire houses are at the edge of war.
- Survival and betrayal: trust is dangerous, and not everyone is who they seem.
The Serpent and the Wings of Night Trigger Warnings
Author-confirmed warnings. Carissa Broadbent’s official book page lists: violence, torture (off page), a flashback of rape in which consent is withdrawn, self-harm, emotional abuse, slavery, and references to sexual abuse.
Reader-submitted notes (not author-confirmed): StoryGraph reviewers additionally flag graphic sexual content, gore, war, death, murder, classism, and, as a minor item, animal death and grief.
Neither list is exhaustive. Check a community database such as Romance.io if you want more detail before reading.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night Worth Reading?
Plot and pacing. The opening is slow and some readers drift, but most reviewers say it accelerates sharply in the back half. Bookish Goblin, a lukewarm reviewer, still called the last 100 pages the best part.
Worldbuilding. The vampire houses, the goddess Nyaxia and the Kejari are widely praised as immersive, though critics wanted more depth and found some tournament rules inconsistent.
The relationship. Oraya and Raihn are the core draw. Critics say the pairing follows familiar romantasy patterns; fans say that’s the comfort.
Romance-to-fantasy balance. Roughly even, with fantasy leading until the final third.
Who will enjoy it: readers who like The Hunger Games-style trials, A Court of Thorns and Roses, Fourth Wing or From Blood and Ash, and who accept a slow start. Who might not: anyone wanting constant heat, a light read, or avoiding the content warnings above.
Crowns of Nyaxia Reading Order
The Serpent and the Wings of Night is Book 1 of the Crowns of Nyaxia series and the first book of the Nightborn Duet. The author’s own reading-order page gives:
- The Serpent and the Wings of Night (Book 1)
- Six Scorched Roses (optional novella)
- The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King (Book 2, last book of the Nightborn Duet)
Six Scorched Roses is a standalone novella that introduces characters who matter in Book 2, so it sits between the two books but is optional. The series continues beyond the duet, but this article doesn’t cover it. A separate guide on The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King spicy chapters will cover the sequel.
FAQs About The Serpent and the Wings of Night
What are the spicy chapters in The Serpent and the Wings of Night?
Reader guides most often list Chapter 38 (a sensual feeding scene and kiss, no sex) and Chapter 44 (the main open-door scene). Chapter numbers may differ slightly by edition.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night spicy?
Moderately. We rate it 3/5 (Steamy): the romance is slow-burn and the explicit content is concentrated late in the book.
What is the spice level of The Serpent and the Wings of Night?
3/5 on our editorial scale, matching Bookish Goblin and The Otherworld. Other reviewers range from about 2/5 to higher, so ratings vary.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night open-door?
Yes. When the romance becomes physical, the scenes are on the page, though they are limited in number.
What happens in Chapter 44 of The Serpent and the Wings of Night?
Oraya and Raihn have their first sexual encounter shortly before the final trial. It is the book’s main open-door scene and an emotional turning point for the couple.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night dark romance?
It is dark fantasy romance rather than classic dark romance. The darkness is mostly violence, war and a dangerous setting, not a coercive romantic dynamic.
Are there any spicy scenes in The Serpent and the Wings of Night?
Yes: a charged but non-sexual scene in Chapter 38 and an open-door scene in Chapter 44, plus a lot of tension in between.
Is The Serpent and the Wings of Night part of a series?
Yes. It is Book 1 of the Crowns of Nyaxia series and the first book of the Nightborn Duet.
What is the reading order of Crowns of Nyaxia?
Start with The Serpent and the Wings of Night, optionally read the novella Six Scorched Roses, then The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King.
What are the trigger warnings for The Serpent and the Wings of Night?
The author lists violence, torture (off page), a flashback of rape (consent withdrawn), self-harm, emotional abuse, slavery, and references to sexual abuse.
Hi, I’m Nisbah – a blogger with over 2 years of experience creating content and a fantasy enthusiast who loves exploring magical worlds, fantasy books, captivating stories, and unforgettable characters. I share book recommendations, reviews, fantasy insights, and story discussions and creating guides to help readers discover their next great adventure.
