Lada Dracul isn’t nice. She isn’t the "strong female lead" who eventually softens because a boy looked at her the right way. No, she’s a girl who would literally chew through her own arm to get what she wants, which is usually a throne or a pile of dead enemies. When Kiersten White released the And I Darken book back in 2016, it felt like a slap in the face to every sparkling vampire trope we’d been fed for a decade. It’s gritty. It’s sweaty. It smells like horse hair and spilled blood.
Most people coming to this series expect a historical romance because of the "YA" label. They’re wrong.
Basically, the And I Darken book asks a very specific, very terrifying question: What if Vlad the Impaler—the actual, historical Vlad III—had been born a girl? It isn't a fantasy novel with magic or dragons, despite what the covers might hint at. This is a brutal, political chess match set in the heart of the 15th-century Ottoman Empire. It’s about Lada and her brother Radu, two Wallachian royals abandoned by their father as political pawns. They grow up in the court of the Sultan, and honestly, it ruins them both in completely different ways.
The Problem with Calling This a Retelling
You’ve probably seen it marketed as a gender-swapped Vlad the Impaler story. That’s true on the surface, but it’s actually a deep dive into the psychology of power. Kiersten White didn't just change a "he" to a "she" and call it a day. She reimagined how a woman in the 1400s would have to behave to command respect in a world that fundamentally hated her existence. Lada is ugly. She's mean. She's incredibly violent. And the And I Darken book doesn't apologize for any of it.
Contrast that with her brother, Radu. Radu is beautiful, sensitive, and eventually, he converts to Islam. He finds a sense of belonging in the Ottoman court that Lada treats like a cage. Their relationship is the actual spine of the trilogy. While Lada wants to burn the world to save her homeland, Radu wants to find a world worth saving.
It’s complicated.
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Historical fiction often suffers from "modern brain," where characters in the past act like 21st-century teenagers who just happen to be wearing corsets. White avoids this. She leans into the religious tension of the era. The fall of Constantinople is a major plot point, and the way she handles the internal conflict of Radu—being torn between his sister and his faith/devotion to Mehmed—is nothing short of masterful. It’s not just "who will she kiss?" It's "which civilization will survive?"
Why People Get the Romance Wrong
Everyone talks about the love triangle. Mehmed, the future Sultan, Lada, and Radu. It sounds like a typical trope. It’s not.
Mehmed is a conqueror. He is obsessed with his own destiny. He loves Lada because she’s the only person who doesn't fear him, and he loves Radu because Radu is his most loyal shadow. But in the And I Darken book, love is a tool. It's a weapon. There are scenes where you think you're getting a tender moment, and then someone uses that tenderness to manipulate a troop movement or secure a border. It's ruthless.
Radu’s pining for Mehmed is heartbreaking because it’s so quiet. Lada’s relationship with Mehmed is more like two predators circling each other. They’re both too big for the room. You can't have two suns in one sky, and the book shows you exactly what happens when those egos collide.
What Actually Happens in the Later Books
If you haven't finished the trilogy—Now I Rise and Bright We Burn—you need to know that the stakes don't just escalate; they shatter. Lada goes back to Wallachia. She becomes the "Prince" she was always meant to be. The impaling starts. And White doesn't shy away from the horror of it.
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- Lada’s obsession with her "land" becomes a toxic, all-consuming deity.
- Radu is forced to choose between the sister who raised him and the empire that gave him a soul.
- Mehmed realizes that being a Great Leader means being a Great Monster.
The Real-World History Behind the Fiction
Kiersten White clearly did her homework. While she takes liberties for the sake of the narrative, the geopolitical landscape is surprisingly accurate. The Janissaries, the Byzantine politics, the sheer logistical nightmare of 15th-century warfare—it’s all there.
Historically, Vlad the Impaler was known as Dracula. His father was in the Order of the Dragon (Dracul), and Vlad was "Dracula" (Son of the Dragon). In the And I Darken book, Lada takes that name and wears it like armor. She doesn't want to be a princess; she wants to be the dragon. The way White mirrors Vlad’s actual history—his time as a hostage, his struggle for the throne against the Boyars—gives the book a weight that most YA fantasy lacks.
It’s worth noting that Radu is also based on a real person: Radu the Handsome. He was Vlad’s younger brother, and he really did become a favorite in the Ottoman court. He really did lead Ottoman troops against his own brother. The tragedy of the series isn't invented; it’s just distilled from the blood-soaked pages of Romanian history.
The Nuance of Faith and Identity
One thing most readers overlook is how Radu’s conversion to Islam is handled. It isn't a plot device to make him "different." It’s a genuine exploration of a boy searching for peace in a violent world. The way he finds beauty in the call to prayer and the community of the mosque is written with incredible respect. It contrasts sharply with Lada, who views religion as just another thing people use to control each other. This ideological divide is what makes the second and third books so much more than just war stories.
Acknowledging the Limitations
Is the book perfect? No. Some readers find Lada too abrasive. If you need a protagonist you can "root for" in a traditional sense, you might struggle here. Lada does things that are objectively terrible. She isn't a hero. She's a protagonist, which is a very different thing.
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The pacing in the middle of the second book, Now I Rise, can feel a bit sluggish as the characters travel back and forth across Eastern Europe. But the payoff is the third book, Bright We Burn, which is essentially a 400-page explosion.
Actionable Next Steps for Readers
If you’re looking to get into the And I Darken book or you’ve just finished it and don't know what to do with your life, here is how to proceed.
Read the actual history of Vlad III and Radu the Handsome. Understanding the real-life betrayal between these two brothers makes the fictional version even more gut-wrenching. Look up the "Night Attack at Târgoviște"—it’s a real event that shows just how chaotic and terrifying the warfare of that time was.
Don't stop at book one. The first book is the foundation, but the true brilliance of the series is watching Lada and Radu grow apart. The tragedy is slow-moving, like a glacier. You have to see it through to the end to get the full impact.
Explore the "Dark Historical" subgenre. If you liked the tone of this series, look into The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang (though that has more fantasy elements) or The Wolf Hall trilogy by Hilary Mantel for that same sense of claustrophobic political dread.
Analyze the themes of nationalism. Think about Lada’s "Wallachia First" mentality. It’s a fascinating look at how patriotism can easily turn into something monstrous when it’s tied to an individual's ego.
This series isn't for everyone. It’s for the people who want their history messy and their female leads uncompromising. It’s for the readers who aren't afraid of the dark. By the time you finish the last page, you’ll realize that the title isn't just a phrase—it's a transformation. Lada doesn't just enter the darkness; she becomes it.