Tag: adult

Let’s Talk: The Best Books to Read this Fall

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Happy autumn! It’s officially the start of my favorite season and coincidentally the time of year with the best books being published. With so many books coming out over the next few months I’ve been wanting to share my curated list of fall book recommendations. I’ve been buzzing for months about some of these so here is my somewhat complete list of the books that should be at the top of your tbr for the fall season. It can be overwhelming to wade through the sheer amount of books making their debut, to the ones already published so I’m keeping it simple with just nine titles. Whether you’re craving a gothic romantasy, historical fiction, vampires, young adult, witchy romance, or an expansive fantasy epic I have you covered. Look no further for your next fall read!

Heir by Sabaa Tahir

Return to the world of An Ember in the Ashes, following a new generation of characters across the empire as they encounter a grave threat that could endanger their world. Heir is a bittersweet reunion with characters from books past and an introduction to those who are carrying the torch for the future. Come for the cameos of our old trio, and stay for this masterful expose into corruption and vengeance. Sabaa Tahir’s talent for storytelling across three intersecting points of view and unique timelines is undeniable – as is her penchant for putting the characters we love through the most horrific things imaginable. Expect the Sabaa Tahir standard of having the rug swept out from under you in the most ingenious way. Once I figured out what she was doing I had to close my book and stare at the wall for several minutes it was that good. Heir is not only an incredible book, it’s a timely one. The connection to justice being rendered immobile in the face of violence against innocents, particularly children was very clear. That the path to justice accomplished through further suffering is not justice at all. Centering one figure’s descent and others fighting despite, Sabaa Tahir gives voice to resistance and the power of those walking that path, and the task for those of us bearing witness.

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The Republic of Salt by Ariel Kaplan

The sequel to Ariel Kaplan’s, The Pomegranate Gate is out this October. Kicking off a slower pace than its predecessor, but aided by the momentum from its chaotic conclusion, The Republic of Salt brings further context to the mirrored mortal and mazik realms, on the brink of war with La Caceria. The Gate city of Zayit is predicted to burn unless the Cacador’s conquest can be brought to a halt, and Zayit’s salt trade could be the key. Deviating from book one, The Republic of Salt features a variety of perspectives across the realms like scattered pieces within the mirror fracturing and mending against an inevitable destruction. My favorite of these continued character arcs is certainly Toba’s. A buchuk of the original Toba now dead, Toba Bet struggles with her identity in the face of her creator’s beheading and her being the one that remains with those memories and experiences. Despite this, Toba is steadfast in her way forward and finds an unlikely path in allying with her sister, Tsifra, the very person who killed her prime self. Connecting two realms and building up to an irrevocable confrontation, Kaplan’s sequel is as immersive as its first installment, providing further context to a wonderous fantasy series.

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Januaries by Olivie Blake

With fall officially here I am retreating into fantasy worlds and there’s no better break from reality than with Olivie Blake’s upcoming collection of short stories, Januaries. Split into four seasons these fairy-touched tales strike at the monstrous, twisted, fetid, and endearing love and the magic and power-hungry beasts inside us all. The guardian of a magical bridge that grants wishes desires more than her stationary existence, vampirism allows a young woman agency and a way out of her situation, two spouses play a centuries-spanning game of murder, and more. Aided by Blake’s punchy flair and signature prose, Januaries has stories for every kind of fantasy reader. Journey through the year with stories that hit right at the heart of the seasons. While I loved all of these stories my favorites were probably Wish Bridge, The Audit, and The Animation Games. However, this entire collection is top-tier. There are certainly a lot of fantasy story collections coming out this fall, but Januaries deserves to be at the top of your list.

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The Ending Fire by Saara El-Arifi

Saara El-Arifi is one of the best writers in fantasy right now and her Ending Fire trilogy has been one of my favorites to follow over the last few years. The Ending Fire, its conclusion, is just as gripping as its former two books and has only further solidified her as an epic fantasy writer pushing boundaries within the genre. Simmering with magic, blood, and sacrifice, the battle over the future of the Warden’s Empire has begun. Sylah, Jond, Hassa, and Anoor have all been set apart on different paths, but in this final fight, El-Arifi draws them back together to face their pasts and the hurts that have further sundered them. After three books we get some truly gratifying concluding arcs – Hassa standing in her place and having a leading position, Jond choosing the future he never thought he could have, and Sylah and Anoor finding their way back to one another. This trilogy is flawless, from its character journeys to the dissolution of a flawed empire. The commentary on history as a tool for control and the powerless becoming powerful was incredibly well done across this series. While I am sad to be putting this series to rest I will continue shouting about it because it is THAT GOOD.

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Now Comes the Mist by Julie C. Dao

Julie C Dao’s adult debut is a blood-soaked gothic delight that gives the character of Lucy Wenestra the depth and journey into depravity she so justly deserves. Vietnamese and queer, Lucy has always felt isolated in English society, playing a part she abhors and desperate to free herself from the inevitable confines of marriage and motherhood. But it is her fascination with death that leaves her sleepwalking through her family’s mausoleum and caught in a mist that seems to be beckoning her somewhere…or to someone. Unfortunately, her dreams are more than fiction and they have a price. Now Comes the Mist explores the darkness at the heart of immortality and the true cost of freedom for women at this time. Lucy’s desperation is palpable and it’s easy to understand her desire for agency in a world that seeks to confine her. Through vampirism, Julie Dao explores the flawed nature of this freedom, tying in purity culture and an individual who seeks to further limit her. Now Comes the Mist is the best Dracula retelling I have read in years and if you are deciding between the myriad vampire books published this fall, let it be this one.

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One Burning Heart by Elizabeth Kingston

Now this book has no bearing on the fall season, I just happened to read it in September and needed an excuse to talk about it. Elizabeth Kingston is at the heart of my September reading, from her medieval to regency historical romances something about her writing was scratching that itch for me. One Burning Heart is a continuation of her Welsh Blades series and follows William, the ambitious Lord of Ruardean, and his pious wife Margaret, whom he has not been able to stand since they were wed. But what he doesn’t know is that is by her design, as Margaret hides her true self so that she can undermine his plans to aid the king and the Church in funding a new Crusade. One Burning Heart is quite a hilarious novel, featuring a tempting blend of romance and history – specifically the deviations from the Church’s teachings and their consequences. Religious piety as a facade for many to prop up their agendas is central to the plot and the conflict between William and Margaret, who work to build trust while confronting the true nature of the church they serve. I really love how much of this was about moves and countermoves, up until the resolution. This has one of the most astonishing first lines I have read this year. Read it and tell me you don’t want to buckle in for this wild ride.

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Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma

Descended from an ancient family known only to the secret society she fled from in childhood, Kidan Adane has spent her life avoiding her fate. In the aftermath of her younger sister’s disappearance, all clues lead back to Uxlay University and Susenyos Sagad, the vampire bound to her family’s bloodline. To unravel the truth, Kidan will enter the grounds of Uxlay and take on the mantle of the Adane heir, because someone took her sister for a purpose, and the plot for control runs deep into the heart of this ancient society. Immortal Dark is a stunning debut that laces vampires with dark academia and just a tinge of romance. With such a unique twist on the vampire mythos, this was already at the height of my list of vampire books to read this season and it did not disappoint. Prepare to delve deep into the history of this secret society, vampires, and family bloodlines as Kidan seeks to discover the truth and contends with the vampire companion determined to best her. There’s more of a focus on the academic aspect, but I fell in with the competing families, emerging friend group, and lore. The enemies-to-lovers romance was also a nice addition and really rounded out the story. Count me in for the sequel and anything else Girma writes!

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Phantasma by Kaylie Smith

A bloody, gothic feast of a debut, Phantasma will trap you inside its twisted walls and a manor full of secrets where bargains are struck and broken, and one necromancer will contend with its deadly competition to save her sister and receive the elusive wish granted to the surviving player. I have long been an admirer of Kaylie Smith ever since her young adult series debuted and Phantasma is quite possibly my new favorite gothic romance and book from her all in one. Combining a foreboding gothic atmosphere, a competition influenced by the nine circles of hell, and a cursed bargain with a mysterious stranger, Smith casts her shining romantasy with formidable claws. Ophelia Grimm confronts the seen and the unseen, what’s real and what isn’t, and Smith enmeshes this with some stellar OCD representation. Phantasma is the very definition of having your cake and eating it too, it’s smart, sexy, horrifying, rageful, and somehow all of those can coexist without being contradictory. I’m completely under Kaylie Smith’s thrall and not at all upset about it.

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Best Hex Ever by Nadia El-Fassi

Author Nadia El-Fassi brews up a delightful blend of magic, wedding shenanigans, pesky hexes, and sizzling romance in one bewitching debut. In a magical cafe in London, a kitchen witch fends off a love hex by guarding her heart from potential love interests and focusing on perfecting magical bakes for her clientele. Too bad her handsome new customer is the best man at her friend’s wedding and avoiding him is impossible as they’ll be stuck together for the entire weekend. Best Hex Ever promises a twist on that classic witch story imbued with coziness and served piping hot with a side of chai. Dina and Scott have the kind of instantaneous connection that had me hooked on their every interaction. Best Hex Ever is a wonderfully magical romance with sparks that ignite into an inferno (seriously this book is so hot). Nadia El-Fassi proves that romance and magic are often intertwined and some connections are their own kind of magic. I’m certain many readers will find themselves in this miraculous romance novel about charting your path and opening yourself up to love again. Nadia El-Fassi brings together a one-of-a-kind witchy debut that I plan to read over and over again.

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Review: The Last Hour Between Worlds by Melissa Caruso

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Kembral Thorne never imagined that a turn of the new year party, her first outing since childbirth, would throw her back into the action she had been desperately trying to avoid. A member of the Guild of Hounds, Kembral’s job is to leave the prime reality and enter echoes, layers of reality beneath our own, to rescue those unluckily enough to fall through. Just as the clock strikes nine Kembral bears witness to a poisoning that leaves most of the party guests dead, but before she has time to comprehend the murders she and everyone at the manor enter an echo, one plane of reality beneath their own. Everyone is alive and well, but unable to tell they are in an echo, all except Kembral. The only other privy to this sinister shift is Rika Nonesuch, notorious thief, and master illusionist, Kembral’s rival and greatest mistake. Rika’s skills are undeniable, and together they piece that an echo relic is to blame for sending them down from the prime reality, the grandfather clock ringing out the hour. The first echo is only the beginning. At the end of each hour, a horrific murder takes place by strange figures just before they are sent down into the next plane of reality, and time resets. Growing ever enlightened to their strange circumstances, Kembral and Rika will risk everything, even their uncertain future together, to unmask the real players and reset their world before their violent reality turns permanent.

A turn of the New Year party brings on the intrigue and mystery in The Last Hour Between Worlds – a startlingly layered series debut that disentangles a campy, sinister locked room murder mystery spanning twelve different layers of reality. Featuring a postpartum agent on leave trying to stop the murders and a sapphic cat-and-mouse game between two rivals who team up to solve the case, Caruso’s latest is an ambitious cocktail with ever-changing flavors, all of which remained entrenched in my memory long after I finished reading. Caruso plunges her characters into alternate realities that grow more and more bizarre, as she untangles her complicated web of humans, echoes, and empyreans playing a dangerous game to decide the fate of the upcoming year. With twelve new realities to wade through before the game is up, The Last Hours Between Worlds introduces a new kind of fantasy mystery that completely rewrites the possibilities of its genres and the types of protagonists featured at their center. 

Wading into Melissa Caruso’s fantasy murder mystery set over twelve warped realities folding into alignment was as mind-bending as these phantasmagorical realities themselves. Set on the eve of The Crux Year, the party brought into focus could not be more unusual, apparent by the bloodshed commencing on the prime reality and dragging down beneath the echoes. As different planes of reality converge whoever makes a kill on that reality binds it to the one preceding, and the person with the most blood spilled at the twelfth and final layer of reality can dictate the outcome of the new year. Kembral Thorne, mother and fierce member of the Guild of Hounds steps into the role of unmasking the true players of the game, from the iridescent beetles swarming the house, to the mysterious masked attendants, and a horned being of pure chaos who shows up to doll out violence according to birth moon. Not all players are inhuman, from the corrupt politician directly responsible for kidnapping Echoborne children, to his spirited adversary, or the host of the evening who willingly brought the echo relic into her home – the clock driving them ever deeper into the echo planes. Superimposing a series of ever-bending realities, Caruso manages to unveil her true purpose as her characters encounter increasing violence and investigate the corruption at the heart of their evening and the motivations of all.

The Last Hour Between Worlds is a revelation in so many different ways, but largely in its central protagonist Kembral – a new mom encountering the challenge of balancing her role in motherhood and her career within the Guild of Hounds. Both are fulfilling in their own unique way but marrying the two seems impossible. Her current situation seems to prove that all the more. As she struggles to balance her diverging worlds Kembral is quite literally thrust down into ever bizarre imitations of her world where she steps back into her former shoes and learns just how she can find harmony. Like layers of a cake all with astonishingly different flavors, the echoes shift – one entangling the house in jungle vines, another an insipid rot, to a lake of blood running throughout the house lapping at our characters’ heels. Caruso attaches these layers to her mystery and everything revealed within the repeat of a single hour. Staving off reaching the twelfth and final layer, Kembral uses her talents as a Hound to untangle the truth connected to the heart of the Crux Year and the relationship with her rival Rika. The reveals to the motivations of our cast and to the true players of the game were completely illuminating, as humanity becomes a playing field and our characters puppets for the machinations of empyreans and the echo beings beneath the prime reality.

Melissa Caruso has left me completely stupefied by this inventive series debut. Playing on the traditions of Agatha Christie and the investigative duo, but integrating concepts of the multiverse and centering queer characters, Caruso puts her own stamp on the classic whodunit and the fantasy mystery crossover. Impressive in its magnitude, The Last Hour Between Worlds is a groundbreaking beginning emboldened by what is sure to be a boundary-spanning series. I’m so impressed by the twists that didn’t lose their punch and how deeply layered this managed to be. I was put through all the emotions from start to finish and though I can’t easily encapsulate the full experience of reading The Last Hour Between Worlds, it is truly brilliant and deserves to be read by everyone this November and beyond.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: blood, murder, death

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Review: The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Malini has fulfilled the prophecy of the nameless gods, crowning herself empress of Parijatdvipa. Yet she will not take it further from the throne to the pyre, decrying the unnecessary sacrifice of the women who burned before her. Back in Ahiranya, war looms. After thrice surviving the deathless waters, Priya thought there would be no consequences for the power simmering beneath her skin. Driven to betray her love, Priya walks a dangerous path against the Yaksa who unveil a plot that will further transform her world. Beneath the deathless waters lies the powerful Yaksa, Mani Ara, who instills faith in Priya, but whose support comes with an irreversible consequence, Priya herself. Led far away from her sister and home, Bhumika is without her memories, her connection to her powers and the Yaksa irrevocably severed. On a path to learn how to destroy their subjugators, Bhumika and Jeevan evade their pursuers by hiding out in small towns desperate to learn information that could turn the tide in this war. Set against an enemy ancient and powerful, three women torn apart by fate and their respective roles must reconcile or see the destruction of their kingdoms and the entire world.

The Lotus Empire is the third and final installment in the Burning Kingdoms trilogy, tethering three women across kingdoms against a grave threat that will further transform their already unstable world. Tasha Suri sets Parijatdvipa alight with further consequences as Malini, now empress, stands against the priesthood and taking to the pyre – the ultimate sacrifice, and Priya and Bhumika rage against the control of the Yaksa who have now taken over Ahiranya with sights set beyond its borders. Though old enemies have been ousted, a new fight is on the rise. Drawn outward like a flower in bloom, The Lotus Empire unfolds a deadly approach to the war with the Yaksa and the true cost of defining the future of an empire. Tasha Suri leaves no hold barred in this astounding series finale that tests the depth of our characters’ loyalty and the paths they will walk to reverse the hold of an unknowable enemy on their world. Its breadth of perspective and world scope increasing steadily outward as the stakes only intensify, The Lotus Empire challenges not just its former two books but how one rounds out an epic fantasy trilogy. 

Before I sank into the treacherous waters of The Lotus Empire I decided to double back and read through the Burning Kingdoms trilogy in its entirety – quite possibly the best decision I could have made considering just how much I had forgotten from my initial read-through of this series. Witnessing the seeds of the plot unfurling over books one to three was so rewarding and made this finale all the better. The Lotus Empire brings more to the world stage with our three characters scattered to the winds, but slowly unifying against the fight to come. The character arcs given to Priya, Malini, and Bhumika across this final act are my favorite in the trilogy – Malini, desperate to hold fast to her position as empress and facing an alien enemy, Priya at a crossroads with a power that could save her people that comes at the expense of her autonomy, and Bhumika without her core memories on a path to destroy the Yaksa. The way these three narratives intersect and twine throughout the book is sheer perfection and it’s some of Suri’s best plotting so far. Tasha Suri uncovers the depth of the deception of the Yaksa, promising a better world that can only be accomplished through bloodshed and subjugation. Through Priya’s experiences and those working to find a weapon to use against them, The Lotus Empire elevates the history of the Yaksa and the Age of Flowers. Some of my favorite parts of this series have been the intricate histories and cultures, the past hidden from view, and that being unveiled after two books was just nothing short of spectacular. The revelation that the Yaksa fled their homeworld because of violence, making their way to Parijatdvipa where they place that burden of war and violence upon its peoples was a necessary tie-through for this novel’s exploration into empire and its roots. 

After attempting to excise Malini from her heart in exchange for her safety and the aid of the Yaksa, Priya confronts her decisions and the truth of what the Yaksa truly desire. Going into this finale I had no idea how Suri was going to reconcile Priya and Malini after the events that concluded The Oleander Sword, only that it was going to be extraordinarily painful, and I had the right idea. Within her decision to turn away from the pyre, Malini grasps all the power she can and wields a weapon that could save her former lover and kingdom, and hold back the threat of the Yaksa. But all power comes at a price, one that Malini must weigh against crown politics and her intricate alliances. Though she went to such painful lengths to walk away from Malini at the end of The Oleander Sword, there’s a shift in equilibrium, with Priya walking into Malini’s orbit to save herself, ultimately casting off the protection the Yaksa granted those in Ahiranya. The callbacks to the wedding garlands with the gold necklace Malini uses to tether Priya away from the Yaksa’s influence was exactly the kind of pain I expected from Suri. But Priya accepts this willingly and reconciles how she went about saving Malini from the wrath promised by Mani Ara before her betrayal. That Priya views her betrayal as an extraordinary act of love because she was saving Malini and she would walk that painful path again even knowing where they are now completely shatters my heart. From dream sequences to confrontations, Tasha Suri ramps up the tension between these two, culminating in a send-off that feels fitting to their characters but no less devastating.

The Lotus Empire is a brilliant blossom of wrath and enduring love set ablaze in a final fight over Parijatdvipa’s future. Full of rage and unbridled determination, The Lotus Empire is a testament to Suri’s craft and everything her characters have fought so hard for, clawing their way toward a future of their own design. With her signature chapters jumping between our core three characters and other side perspectives providing necessary contexts, Suri brings an ending to fruition that honors the entire journey across this trilogy. There’s plenty of sapphic yearning, epic fight scenes, and emotional endings to cling to and leave you completely bereft by the end of this final chapter. This finale was everything I was hoping for and The Burning Kingdoms trilogy as a whole is some of the best in fantasy and deserves all of its flowers. Tasha Suri is an absolute legend and I need everyone to bear witness to her talent with this life-changing conclusion.

Thank you to Edelweiss and Orbit Books for providing the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: blood, death, violence

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Let’s Talk: New Favorites & Upcoming Releases

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Folks we’re over halfway through the year and I still have so many books to talk about! As we transition into early fall, I’m focusing on some of the advance releases that have been wasting away in my inbox and steadily sharing my thoughts with you all on the titles that I’ve read from this summer. While I am currently in a science-fiction fantasy reading mood, I read quite a few romances this summer to balance out the heavier stuff. I have been reading so much fantasy, most of which was dragging me into a reading slump, so a lot of these were the books I picked up to drag me back out. I took a stab at the cowboy romance trend, read some sapphic recommendations from friends, and returned to my historical romance roots. Here are my thoughts on seven new favorites!

Lost and Lassoed by Lyla Sage

It’s Cowboy Summer

It was indeed all about the cowboys this summer and I decided to hop on this trend with the third book in the Rebel Blue Ranch series, Lost and Lassoed. Lyla Sage is a fan favorite in this subgenre and this is the first I’ve read from her. Now all I want to do is double back and read the other two in this series because this was a wild ride. This hate-to-love romance between chaotic fashion-minded Teddy Anderson, out of a job and down on her luck, and far too dependable Gus Ryder, the one man she cannot stand, brought on the heat. I have always had a soft spot for forced proximity romances but I must say, forced proximity but cowboy is on a completely different level. Sage composes this quiet vulnerability as these two cohabitate and open up to one another in their shared evenings. Teddy is definitely my favorite, charming, but equipped with a rough edge to match. THE cowboy romance heroine of cowboy romance heroines. Lost and Lassoed is my first Lyla Sage and it certainly won’t be my last. Just the perfect summer read!

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A Sweet Sting of Salt by Rose Sutherland

Never let your husband stop you from finding your wife.

There’s nothing I love more than a hidden folkloric fantasy gem, but make it sapphic, and the speed at which I will run to read it will shatter Olympic records. This was recommended to me by the lovely, Emily Hamilton (thank you, icon), and I had the best time reading it. A midwife living on the outskirts of her village discovers a woman in labor on the night of a terrible storm who seems determined to flee to the water and after helping her deliver the baby harbors her suspicions upon the arrival of the woman’s husband. Retelling the Selkie Wife, Sutherland weaves a seaside folktale centering around those isolated within their communities, domestic abuse, and the marginalized pushed to the outskirts. A Sweet Sting of Salt is a unique story that centers strongly around the unsettling mystery of what happened to Muirin – with a slow-burn romance to offset the strange forces at play. I found the focus on midwifery in a seaside town and the commentary on Jean’s skills & labor as what allows her to remain in her community after her “transgression” especially compelling. The ending with this one is fairy tale levels of perfect so don’t be afraid to wade into the strangeness.

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The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim

When he only likes two things: coffee and her>>>

A fallen god turned detective and his new assistant who is actually behind the murder of his most recent case solve a series of strange murders that could tear apart the city. Getting back at the insufferable trickster god who frequents your coffee shop by becoming his assistant to throw him off the scent of a murder you committed is only the beginning of this fabulous urban fantasy. Sophie Kim sprinkles some reluctant allies to lovers, hidden identity, and slow-burn romance into a plot to uncover a murderous demon. The God and the Gumiho is as bracing as that first cup of coffee in the morning, filled with delicious banter and the intersection of myth with a modern setting. This book has been compared by many to a Kdrama and that is absolutely spot on, with the humor and romance uplifting the darker elements, and those shocking emotional moments that cut to the core and send you reeling. The God and the Gumiho is a fun one, but don’t doubt you’ll be left in tears.

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The Worst Duke in London by Amalie Howard

Ten Things I Hate About You but make it historical romance?? oh, I ATE THIS UPPPPPP. Amalie Howard is only getting better and this whole series is impeccable

The Worst Duke in London is a sublime historical romance twist on 10 Things I Hate About You featuring a financially destitute Duke and a headstrong wallflower brought into one another’s orbit by a sly bargain. Amalie Howard is at the top of her talent with her latest series twisting classic romantic comedies into sparkling regency love stories. Loved that the entire addition with this one was: what if there were animals everywhere and the duke was attacked by kittens. Now I have always counted on Amalie to bring that incredible heat, but this was somehow even steamier than I expected. Gage and Evangeline already have an incredible connection from their initial hatred to their mutual bargain, and that translates perfectly as they engage in a physical relationship. Historical romance that retells an iconic romantic comedy with animal activism and Bridgerton vibes? What more could you want. The Worst Duke in London is a delightfully steamy historical romance romp and a fitting nod to its source material. Lovers of animals, men undone, and scandalous agreements unite!

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Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake

Happy HoliGAYS! Ashley Herring Blake is gifting us the holiday romance of the year. It’s cute, angsty, and hot as hell.

Reading a holiday romance in the dead of summer was a feat in and of itself, but for Ashley Herring Blake I will quite literally do anything, even wade into the holidays before it’s time. Make the Season Bright is a second chance romance between two ex-fiances invited to stay in Colorado for the holidays, only for them to end up being stuck in the same town, with nothing to do but deny they know each other. Ashley Herring Blake does an incredible job focusing on characters Brighton and Charlotte separately, particularly with the different perspectives of what exactly went wrong in their relationship and how those differing views can be reconciled. Make the Season Bright brings that holiday warmth and sapphic angst like a bittersweet Christmas cocktail with all the sweetness from the season meeting the lingering bitterness in acknowledging the past. Christmas is a time for memories old and new, and that is honored throughout this holiday standalone. With the past impacting the present even as these two try to give it another go, Herring Blake proves it’s never too late.

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Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis

When you’re determined to ignore your hot new wizard librarian but he keeps befriending all of the crows and obsessing over fountain pens.

Hidden identities and castle coziness combine like the most bewitching magic spell in this brand new romantasy series. In the vein of Ella Enchanted and Legends and Lattes, Stephanie Burgis delivers an unforgettable romantic fantasy that is uproariously funny and packs an emotional punch right among the coziness. A feared sorceress hires a wizard to aid her in the dark arts and straighten up her massive library, but little does she know he is actually an Imperial Archduke in disguise and the one she considers to be her greatest enemy. Combine castle antics with a bit of found family, intrigue, and romance and you get this book. Burgis traps two unlikely allies in a castle and makes them confront the facades they’ve upheld and the loneliness they could stand to leave behind. I love the focus on who people are behind the masks they wear and how it can be protective, or a lie to uphold to gain power over others. An all-around hilarious beginning that I will continue through for the other witches’ love stories. Read this for the massive library and crow companions alone.

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A Fire in the Sky by Sophie Jordan

Sophie Jordan I am familiar with your game, but with historical romance, so in a more real way I am unfamiliar with your game.

A Fire in the Sky brings together political intrigue, a marriage of convenience, and dragons in a fiery new romantasy series from author Sophie Jordan. Tamsyn, a young woman in the royal court, has spent her life in the palace raised alongside the royals to endure the beatings and punishments for their transgressions. Her life changes drastically when she is made to trick a feared warrior into marrying her instead of the princess he expected. Playing off of the marriage of convenience trope, Jordan stakes out the space for a new series featuring genre staples and brand-new elements intertwined. Having read an abundance of Sophie Jordan’s historicals I knew that the romance was going to be the star of the show, but considering how this ended I am even more excited to see where she takes the history behind this world and the dragon lore. A Fire in the Sky is a classic romantasy revitalized, with dragons and complicated characters meeting fate and a truth that could reshape their world. Utterly addictive and I cannot wait to read more.

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Review: Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Chloe Liese

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

Before heartbreak shattered her romantic notions, Juliet Wilmont was a fervid romantic ready to chart her great love story wherever it would take her. Seven months have passed since she called things off with her emotionally abusive fiance and yet Juliet cannot find it in herself to put herself back out there with love and dating. During a brief holiday in Scotland, Juliet meets Will Orsino, who invites her to dance with him in a pub where sparks inevitably fly. Despite their obvious attraction, Juliet walks away and never assumes anything more from their brief meeting. The last thing she expects is for Will to turn up fast asleep in her family greenhouse when she finds herself caught in a downpour over half a year later– or that he is the college friend of their next-door neighbor, Christopher. As soon as she gets over her fright of seeing him again the two form a friendship that they quickly realize could have mutual benefits. Juliet wants to put herself back out there, but needs a trial run, while Will needs a safe space to practice romance before he wades into a real relationship. Practicing a relationship that already feels real puts Will and Juliet at odds, with the relationships they’ve resigned themselves to, and the real imperfect beating thing between them.

Once Smitten, Twice Shy closes out Chloe Liese’s Wilmont Sister trilogy, a series where she entwines Shakespeare’s plays with modern-day romances. Reimagining Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, Liese entangles two opposites in a practice romance that verges on something more real than they ever could have anticipated. Juliet Wilmont, once hopeless romantic turned cynic, and Will Orsino, a shy and reserved highlander lookalike chart an unexpected way out of their romantic blocks by agreeing to partake in a practical dating experiment together. From the moment I read the first book in this series, I knew Chloe Liese had created something special and that has not changed from book one to now. Chloe Liese has become one of my favorite romance novelists. Her surefire depiction of contemporary love meeting all aspects of life from mental health, to chronic illness and neurodivergence is both powerful as it is necessary. In her third and final book in this trilogy, Liese showcases her capacity for flawed characters driven to better themselves contained within an effortlessly swoony romance.

Once Smitten Twice Shy, the third and final installment in the Wilmont Sister series offers up an emotional opposites-attract story combined with a fitting homage to Shakespeare. After ending an emotionally abusive relationship, Juliet Wilmont heads to Scotland on a much-needed holiday where a meet-cute in a Scottish pub sparks familiar flames, but ones she can’t hope to fan – not even for a gloriously tall redhead. Hopeless romantics who have turned cynical is a particularly heartbreaking character archetype within the genre and one that Juliet unfortunately embodies. As she steps out after an emotionally abusive relationship she navigates conflicting ideals of love and dating – her innate belief in sweeping love stories clashing with the dark kernel of cynicism instilled as a result of her former partner. But Juliet still believes in love’s possibilities, evident in her extensive historical romance collection and love of the genre. What she doubts is her own notions causing her to overlook flawed behaviors in potential romantic partners. As she practice dates with Will she rediscovers herself and learns that real love doesn’t mean you have to compromise yourself. Will in turn is impacted by his belief that he is a lot to take on as a partner. These competing views are challenged the further they wade into their practice romance and find that for the right person no part of yourself is ever too much to handle. 

The representation of chronic illness continues to be a bright spot across this series. I love that Juliet learned to lean on Will when she needed it and that it didn’t focus on diminishing her identity. Owning her chronic illness through the use of her cane and speaking up around her family made me so unbelievably happy. Liese’s depictions of chronic illness and what it means to live as a chronically ill person within the sphere of contemporary romance are profoundly important and I can’t wait to read more from her. Once Smitten Twice Shy is a resounding ode to romance readers and those still discovering exactly what they want out of life and love. My favorite love stories are the ones that celebrate love as discovery and Will and Juliet embody that in the sweetest possible way. Remember that it’s love if she wacks him with a giant shovel and he still has heart eyes only for her (it’s romantic okay). Once Smitten Twice Shy brings a bittersweet conclusion to the Wilmont sisters series. Getting to the end of this trilogy has been an emotional experience and one I am not quite yet ready to leave behind, but I do know that Chloe Liese will be there to deliver more exquisite romances now and forever.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for review.

Trigger warnings: emotional abuse, ableism, anxiety

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Review: The Mask Falling by Samantha Shannon

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This is book four in a seven-book series. As such, former books and events contained within will be discussed. Proceed with caution.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

London is no longer safe. Paige Mahoney, dreamwalker and fugitive, survived her torture at the Westminster Archon, but now fleeing her city is the only way to survive. Secreted away at the turn of the year by new allies, Paige and Arcturus find themselves in Paris, holed up in a safe house awaiting orders from the mysterious Domino Programme. Though she survived the brutality of the torture at the hands of Scion, Paige’s next trial will be to overcome the physical and mental wounds left behind. Left alone in the Paris safehouse with Arcturus, Paige slowly finds her way back to herself and begins to mend, but the resistance cannot wait long, not even in Paris. Paris is a city wholly unlike the one she left behind, complete with a clairvoyant syndicate slightly removed from the martial law of London yet innately entangled in the struggles of the Grey Market and Sheol II, the next clairvoyant Bone Season. With orders from Domino to infiltrate the French government using her dreamwalking abilities, Paige returns to the action and uncovers secrets even her Ranthen allies hoped would stay buried. In a short amount of time, the shadow of the anchor has stretched further over the free world and Paris now stands on a precipice. United, Paige and Arcturus could sway the outcome, but revolutionaries so rarely get to see the fall.

The Mask Falling marks a divergence from the former three books of the Bone Season as the shadow of Scion spreads over the free world and revolutionary and clairvoyant Paige Mahoney fights to come back to herself in Paris after a period of horrific torture. Framed within a quiet Parisian interlude, Paige and Arcturus take stock of their situation and break free from the roles that have guided their paths thus far to decide who they want to be to themselves and to one another. Lulled into a false sense of security, Samantha Shannon waits to dissolve this peaceful home and pull these two back into the gravity of a different clairvoyant underworld, one that plays off the nightmares of Paige’s experiences and the worst of Scion. In her fourth installment of the Bone Season, Samantha Shannon pulls free the bulk of her delicately designed plot to embark into her next act –one that bites as much as its predecessors but leaves significantly deeper scars.

Fleeing into an inverted world of clairvoyants, Paige and Arcturus are entirely on their own in Paris. Drawn down deep into the dank and decrepit catacombs of the Parisian syndicate, Paige physically confronts her wounds – the waterboard where she was tortured and the emotional scars left over from her entire experience at the Archon. Much of the external environment has sharpened to match these experiences. Water falling down upon window panes, showerheads, headboards, and even the solace of Arcturus are overwhelming and send her right back to the basement where she endured her torture. With the Parisian syndicate, Samantha Shannon broadens her playing field. The catacombs filled with human remains and scattered souls waiting to claim helpless voyants were startlingly claustrophobic to wade through as the scope of this world literally delves ever deeper. Paris introduces a world outside Paige’s element and by extension the reader, a shift in the epicenter of Scion and its plots against the remainder of the free world. The Mask Falling engages fully with the idea of Scion as a puppet government upholding the desires of the Sargas, and questions who is comfortable cutting or transitioning those strings to another power. Is freedom even possible if you are trading one cage for another? All of these are things Paige contends with in Paris alongside her future within the Scion resistance outside of London.

The Mask Falling is a book that haunts you in its finality. Both an interlude that wraps you in its comfort and a shipwreck caught up in a tempest, casting you wet and ragged back upon the shore. I am still held in equal parts disbelief and awe at its ending. Representing the next stage in the resistance against Scion, The Mask Falling is a deeper evolution of Paige and Arcturus as individuals. Though she lost a large part of herself in her torture at the Archon, Paige isn’t given long to compartmentalize before returning as a clairvoyant power and face of the Scion resistance. But in Paris, Paige can keep her armor on around others without having to return to the rigid roles she walked within London. Paige remarks to Arcturus that they are finally on equal footing – as fugitives they can be whatever they want to one another without fear, or even shame getting in the way. Much of this book centers around rebirth and the masks that we cast off or place upon ourselves to survive. Yet, Arcturus desires Paige without any facade or artifice but must confront his shortcomings if he is to meet her unmasked. As a Oneiromancer, Arcturus is someone led by memory and it has become its own kind of prison. Though he has held back the weight of mortality for centuries, his attachment to Paige and her mortality to him by extent has left him led by fear. Paris is a place where they both realize that fear has no place within their relationship and that they can be more to one another without feeling like it will detract from all that they are trying to accomplish. Arcturus is her partner in all things, and the safe house in Paris highlights that despite the initial lack of romantic confrontation. Arcturus taking care of Paige during her convalescence, them watching movies together in the living room, and the sunsets on the roof were these little bright patches pushing back against the darkness. I honestly wished they could have stayed there forever despite all that was needed of them. 

The support Arcturus lends Paige as she struggles to reassemble herself after torture is extraordinarily gentle. It was gutting to hear him compare his own experiences being tortured alongside the other Ranthen, to hers at the Archon. “But you were alone, Paige” is a simple statement that strikes back at the profound loneliness at the center of what she went through. Unburdening herself is freedom from walking that path alone, and Arcturus is someone she trusts to walk it with. The idea Arcturus purports of identity as something ever fluid, that every day we die because we are constantly in a state of transformation relating to Paige’s recovery of her identity after torture was really lovely. Paige and Arcturus evolve their emotional intimacy and trust substantially during their time together in Paris. Samantha Shannon calls forth this mutual view of the other as home, as both Paige and Arcturus had to flee their homelands because of violence and have found a solid landing place with each other. The revelation that Arcturus’ dreamscape is a reflection of the Guildhall – representative of the safety and trust he found with Paige, but also where she burnt down their prison and freed them both is further proof of that. The overture sequence in Paige’s bedroom after Versailles is them embracing all that they are. In the dark room with Arcturus, Paige learns that her body is not just a weapon to be wielded for pain or for power, but something that can bring her pleasure that belongs entirely to her. Paige and Arcturus find courage in choosing one another despite fear and build a new room together to stave off the pain of their memories.   

The Mask Falling is just Arcturus and Paige scheming, healing, and yearning with decidedly mixed results. I love just how much of this book is centered around these two taking in a new side to Scion together and communicating and problem-solving against their new allegiance to the Domino Programme and the Parisian syndicate. Paige confronts her personal limitations after torture and puts herself in some horrible situations but Arcturus is there to remind her that she doesn’t have to push herself to perform and she is more than just her power. Her unconventional decisions hit quite a high point here. The assassination attempt at Versailles ending with Paige burning the entire palace down was pure chaos and honestly, I expected nothing less from her. She’s experienced the horrors of Oxford and won’t let anyone else be subject to another Bone Season and she’ll burn down a centuries-old building to ensure it.

The Mask Falling is so many things at once, a quiet moment to heal before danger darkens the door, and love and trust giving way to betrayal. Part of what makes this fourth chapter so devastating is how quickly Samantha Shannon instills a sliver of doubt and then pulls back the curtain just as fast, but it is quite literally too late. Paige running through the streets of Paris as airstrikes commence desperate to rescue Arcturus, only for a bomb to level the building and Cordier to kidnap her as she frantically screams out her lament was entirely surreal. The Mask Falling introduces key new players – members of the Parisian syndicate, rephs, and the dreamwalker Cade Fitzours stake their claim on the chess board, and will undoubtedly appear in the fight over the future of the Scion Republic. In Paris, Paige Mahoney became something more than Underqueen and Dreamwalker but much like the removal of masks, the shift from those armored facades leaves all doubts laid bare. Merciless in every sense, The Mask Falling is a pivotal forge forward in the fight against an unconstrained empire and the courage it takes to stand unmasked in the face of further violence. 

Trigger warnings: blood, violence, death, murder, grief, panic attacks

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Review: The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Paige Mahoney, the Black Moth, has emerged triumphant in the Rose Ring. Crowned Underqueen over the clairvoyants of London, Paige leads the syndicate on a brutal campaign against Scion who have unveiled a new technology, Senshield, that at its core would allow clairvoyants to be identified on a level previously unforeseen. Assisted by the faction of the Rephaim resisting Sargas rule, Paige desperately seeks to train the clairvoyant factions against this new reality. But the betrayal of Jaxon Hall, the White Binder, and her former mentor cuts into her newly established reign as Underqueen. Jaxon has taken the title of Grand Overseer and aids the Sargas who once held him prisoner in Oxford in their campaign against clairvoyants. With his intimate knowledge of the clairvoyant syndicate and their safe houses across the city, there truly is no safe place left within London. The fight may be over before it could even take wing. When she learns of a Senshield weapon component housed in Manchester, Paige and a few of her voyant allies travel there to attempt to undo the technology set against their kind. There she will confront her past which has more of a hold over her than she realized, and the cost of her place within the Scion resistance.

The Song Rising, the third chapter in Samantha Shannon’s Bone Season series serves as a bridge between the existing state of the clairvoyant underworld and the ever-expanding threat of Scion. Where the Mime Order revealed traitors within the London syndicate and Paige Mahoney assumed the mantle of Black Moth and Underqueen, The Song Rising puts her newfound reign to the test. Samantha Shannon does not give the narrative a second to reorient itself, jumping back to the betrayal of a close ally, marking an irrevocable shift within the clairvoyant syndicate. Brutal in its unflinching perspective of resistance and its personal costs, The Song Rising exposes cracks in the facade of the clairvoyant underworld now facing outright culling through new Scion technology. Walking a fine line between her connection to Arcturus and the cost of leading a revolution against the Scion Republic, Paige must come to terms with her newfound identity in the face of increased onslaught from Scion and where best to place herself within the resistance that she initiated.

Rocked deep by the betrayal of her mentor and the intensifying campaign of violence against clairvoyants, this third chapter introduces significant challenges for Paige. Though she is now a leader with the power to bring about change, there is a deep loneliness at the heart of the role she occupies. Desperation holds immense sway over Paige as Scion enacts the next stage of their horrific scourge against clairvoyants with a technology strong enough to hunt them down in mass. Paige’s entire ethos within the syndicate is further uprooted in the reveal that her mentor, Jaxon Hall, was the one who betrayed Arcturus and the other humans who tried to escape from Oxford decades ago. In the face of immense betrayal, Samantha Shannon contrasts Paige with Jaxon – two individuals who had the capacity to resist at Oxford but who walked down different paths. Opposite to Paige, Jaxon’s core weakness comes from prioritizing his place within the system which comes at the expense of others and is something he will pursue incessantly, caught in a perpetual cycle. Paige’s decision to spur a revolution back in London pulls tighter the thread of her personal history having radicalized her – from Ireland and the Dublin Incursion to the ownership of her power within the clairvoyant underworld. Her resistance comes from her agency and her experiences within the syndicate, but also the violence she witnessed as a child. All of this makes it impossible for her to allow others to meet the fate of the gallows or another Bone Season.

The scene at the Thames at the beginning of The Song Rising marks a profound shift for Paige, with the identity of the arch-traitor now revealed and his new role as Grand Overseer giving him the ability to bring further violence down upon the clairvoyants of London. While Paige acknowledges the emotional abuse she endured from Jaxon Hall when she was at his right hand, she considers his reservations, leaving him room to drive a wedge between her and her main source of strength, her relationship with Arcturus Mesarthim. Pretty much since the moment they met, Arcturus has been someone who can contextualize situations for Paige as he is slightly removed from them and has further objectivity. At Oxford, Arcturus could see that Jaxon viewed Paige as an object of power and a commodity, and he repeatedly made that known. Jaxon’s power over Paige is evident in his ability to cloud her perception of what is, and only unburdening herself to Arcturus will alleviate these doubts. Even so, they reach a divide where she is struggling rather intensely and he can’t show that support publicly for fear that it would reveal the truth to their relationship. Even though Paige and Arcturus find openness with one another time and time again, they both still fear being the first person to stand on the precipice of their feelings, and there are still many things that have been left unsaid. But the romantic moments between them in the dark and empty rooms when the world quiets for a second hold their own kind of power – their romantic connection a resistance to prejudice and the powers that want them to be enemies. Arcturus has this quiet reverence around Paige that is just so bleeding romantic I don’t even know how to explain it properly. Very few characters can make saying a first name so romantic but somehow Arcturus manages to make simply saying her name a kind of benediction. His steadfast support as she struggles and his commitment to reminding her of her strength when she doubts herself is not only deeply admirable, it makes him one of the few people in her corner to see her for who she truly is. 

Throughout this third chapter, Paige is fighting a losing battle for control. The belief that she can exert control over her feelings and by extent protect Arcturus leads her down a path with severe consequences. The weight of Paige’s increasing personal blame and guilt is tangible across The Song Rising, building in the background to an irreversible choice. The scene in Edinburgh where she leverages giving herself up to Scion in an attempt to destroy Senshield from the inside was almost too agonizing to read. The psychological callbacks to the Molly Riots and the fear and death in a crowd gunned down are all called forth in startling clarity. Paige endures a horrific period of torture in Westminster at the hands of Suhail and Nashira. Yet her courage is not outweighed by the decision to give herself up. Paige has always been a chancer and flirts with martyrdom at Westminster for even the chance to cripple Scion and the Senshield technology.

What makes Paige such an interesting protagonist is that she is complicated, she’s still figuring herself out and makes plenty of mistakes in her journey as a revolutionary. But her tenacity and tremendous courage in the face of such violence is heartening. Paige Mahoney is driven by her convictions and her unconventional moves do reach a satisfying resolution (no matter how stressful they may be to read). The chaos is just part of her charm. The Song Rising reveals an entirely different atmosphere than the first two books in the Bone Season series. Its hopeless energy overtakes the initial momentum gained from The Mime Order as Paige Mahoney, beset by enemies on all sides makes the worst possible choice to get to the right resolution. Though it is the shortest out of all the books, it by no means holds itself back from depicting the harsh realities of resistance. Desperate and full of personal consequence, The Song Rising builds a resounding call to action against continued persecution as Paige Mahoney unwittingly reaches a crossroads with her place within the clairvoyant syndicate and her opposition against the Republic of Scion.

Trigger warnings: torture (graphic), violence, death, murder, grief, gun violence, drug use

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Review: A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft

Robin4 Comments

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Folklorist Lorelei Kaskel has always been set apart from her peers. None more so than Sylvia von Wolff, her long-time academic adversary, whose scintillating intelligence is matched only by an arresting beauty. All Lorelei dreams of is becoming a naturalist, a profession that will open up the borders to her world and allow her to travel without restriction. But first, she will have to prove her talents on a dangerous expedition to unearth the location of the fabled Ursprung – believed to be the source of all magic and said to harbor untold power. The untested power found within its waters is coveted by Brunnestaad’s king, Wilhelm, who wishes to claim it so that he can forcibly unify his patchwork kingdom. Alongside five nobles and her fearsome mentor, Ingrid Ziegler, Lorelei embarks on an expedition never believing what is in store is the murder of her mentor on their first night on board. Trapped with five other people with competing motivations, one of whom is the murderer, Lorelei faces the likelihood that the violence has not been curbed. Finding their way to the spring has become more pertinent, but Lorelei will have to rely on the only person she knows is innocent, her bitter rival, to make it there. Unburying the truth and discovering a spring known only in myth is enough of a challenge, without bruised hearts and unkindled longing setting them even more adrift.

A Dark and Drowning Tide is an elegantly fashioned fantasy novel that delves deep into the heart of folktales and their origin, as two women in academia fight for their place in the world and what they mean to one another. In her adult debut, Allison Saft serves up a fantasy adventure with a slice of academic rivalry that is both endearing and ardently romantic. Part romantic adventure, but centered strongly around a murder plot, A Dark and Drowning Tide brings a lot into focus but expertly uncovers what lies beneath its mirrored surface. As a longtime reader and admirer of Saft’s writing, there was little doubt in my mind that the yearning in this novel would be excruciating and the prose sublime. Since reading her young adult debut back in the pandemic, Saft has leveled up her craft tremendously and that is no more evident than with her foray into adult romantic fantasy. Exposing the flawed foundations of folklore and their influence, Allison Saft highlights the enduring power of connection in transforming ourselves and finding belonging, with love itself as the catalyst.

Reading A Dark and Drowning Tide was undeniably immersive like the crystalline pools our academics trek towards, holding the key to immeasurable power. As if ensorcelled by a faerie spell, Saft draws you down into dark waters and hits the mark with her mesmerizing prose and snippy back and forth between heated rivals. Stuck on an expedition with five nobles hardened by their shared experiences in childhood and war, Lorelei Kaskel is the odd one out. A Yeva in the kingdom of Brunnestaad, she is granted the status of a second-class citizen, kept inside a gated community with restrictions on travel outside of those walls. Lorelei is haunted, caught up in the grief of the murder of her brother and the feeling of sundering her Yevani identity the further she wades into academia. Trapped with only a narrow way forward, as ghosts from her past and her brother, Aaron, linger on, Lorelei adds another individual to her hauntings – Ingrid Ziegler, her mentor horrifically murdered on the night they depart on their expedition. Hardening her heart and barbed with protective thorns, Lorelei sticks to what she knows to uncover the truth about the murder, yet her rival Sylvia manages to worm her way past those defenses, and all for the better. 

Wishing to be a naturalist, Lorelei was instead handed a pen and told to document folktales. In accepting her fate as a folklorist, folktales have become their own kind of armor – something worn as a shield against the horrors of the world but also protection for her vulnerable heart. Allison Saft attaches the meaning behind every story across this novel, as Lorelei uses folktales to make sense of her world, contextualizing human behavior and her experiences along the Ruhigburg expedition. Opening up to Sylvia is in part removing the barriers that have protected her for so long, and acknowledging how they have pushed away someone who could have been a friend and ally. The romance between Lorelei and Sylvia was the slowest of slow burns for one reason and one reason only: these two are idiots. Lorelei and Sylvia were idiots to lovers first and academic rivals second and I love them all the more for it. There’s tension between their misperception of the state of their relationship that plays out rather comedically as they begrudgingly become allies. Lorelei is head too full of thoughts, none of them the right ones, and Sylvia is just unbridled longing and a desire to be seen. Dissolving these barriers is a journey in itself, as they ride across snowy plains on the back of Mara’s, go deep sea diving with Nixies, and endure only one tent trope one night after the next. Allison Saft takes her time drawing together the story these two can write side by side, but it’s one that is entirely hopeful and leaves them in control of the narrative.

In A Dark and Drowning Tide, Allison Saft harnesses folktales as a reflection of societal wounds, and the hurt and hate they reflect and in turn, spur. Lorelei is intrinsically caught up in this as a folklorist and a young Jewish woman, but she inadvertently becomes trapped by story.  Lorelei deals with having to sunder parts of herself and her faith if she ever wants to survive outside of the Yevanverte and make a name for herself as a naturalist. Caught up in grief and enduring memory, Lorelei finds power in charting her own story and honoring the memory and sacrifices of those who came before her. Her love story with Sylvia is an extension of that as they navigate a course out of an impossible situation discovering exactly how they were wrong about each other and choosing a future that they can write together. A Dark and Drowning Tide has struck a wonderful harmony with a romance between misunderstood rivals and lost souls finding respite. It’s the kind of book I want to stay wrapped up in forever. Wonderfully layered like what lies beneath some hidden well of power, Allison Saft’s talent lies in her capacity to depict intense yearning, the flaws in believing you know your enemy, and the traumas endured but ultimately survived. This is a story that will undoubtedly resonate with many, leaving behind a kernel of hope that will kindle and then spark into an inferno.

Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: violence, death, murder, blood, war, panic attacks, colonization, antisemitism

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Review: The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Paige Mahoney has escaped from Oxford. Alongside her clairvoyant allies at the Bicentenary, she finds herself back in London confronting who she was before with everything she had to become to survive. Having angered her employer Jaxon by refusing to abandon her allies at Oxford, Paige must decide if she wants to return to his side as the Pale Dreamer. Her desire for justice cannot be accomplished alone and though her Rephaim allies could provide aid, it is her place within the London Syndicate that could give her a fighting chance to enact change. Paige courts danger with her growing ire towards Jaxon and plans that could reveal the truth behind Scion to the public. When the Underlord of London is violently slain, the fight for power within the London Syndicate will play out in a brutal arena to crown the next leader. Jaxon Hall plans to place himself as the next Underlord by emerging victorious in the upcoming Rose Ring, with Paige at his side as Mollisher Supreme. Yet with everything she has endured and the knowledge that the Bone Seasons may not have been a complete secret within the syndicate, Paige knows that challenging Jaxon and winning the Rose Crown may be the only thing that saves them from the threat of Scion. At Oxford, all she could do was survive, but in returning to London Paige will become something else in order to win.

The Mime Order is the gritty and violent succession to Samantha Shannon’s, Bone Season and recenters the world back on London and its underworld of clairvoyants now facing a voyant killer and a leadership struggle within the syndicate. Paige Mahoney, Dreamwalker, and Mollisher to the White Binder learned to survive in Oxford, but back in London resists being pinned within the confines of her former roles. To continue the revolution that began in Oxford, Paige must first uncover a conspiracy within the syndicate and decide how she wants to transform in the face of her previous experiences. With the board strictly set, Samantha Shannon brings in new threats to the fight against the Scion Republic and the truth behind the Bone Seasons. With strong foundations from its very first moments, The Mime Order expands upon the scope of this world, aided by Samantha Shannon’s meticulous plotting and high attention to detail. The Mime Order is another exquisite foray into the world of clairvoyants resisting Scion, and Paige Mahoney, the one person who could stand to unite them into a force to be reckoned with.

The Mime Order is easily one of the best sequels out there, drawing on what is known and yet to be revealed to design a gilded stage over which the fate of the London Syndicate will be decided. Returning to London after six months held as a prisoner at Oxford, Paige confronts former memories and the knowledge of who she got to be outside of the orbit of Jaxon Hall. Like a round peg in a square hole, Paige finds she cannot just cast off her experiences to become Jaxon’s prized puppet once more. Samantha Shannon hones in sharply on this relationship and Jaxon’s narcissistic tendencies that make it impossible for him to see any way forward outside those of his own desires. Paige by extent is a commodity, The Pale Dreamer a persona to be pinned down and presented as another representation of his power. Paige’s unwillingness to return to who she was before allows her to move forward with her plans which could shake the leadership within the syndicate. Propelled toward action by a brimming rage and a desire to correct the injustice of the bone seasons and the truth to Scion, Paige cleverly bides her time until the opportune moment, culminating in an immensely gratifying outcome within the Rose Ring.

Where the Bone Season was a literal descent into darkness, mirroring the shattered reality of Scion, The Mime Order is a journey back into the light. This physical return into a life lived around daylight is a warped reality for Paige who knows the truth to Scion and fights to reveal it to the Clairvoyant Syndicate. Samantha Shannon melds Oxford with London and it’s interesting to see the staggering differences in temperament between the Oxford clairvoyants and those who live and exist freely in London – even if that freedom is limited. Knowing the truth about Scion further ostracizes them and impacts their return to the paths they walked within London. A very niche trope that I love is one character who sees another so clearly that they can’t help but believe the best in them and be a source of reassurance when things get difficult. That’s basically Arcturus in London. He’s still committed to his stoicism but he places himself by Paige’s side and aids in her plan to oust Jaxon and become Underqueen. He’s still her strongest ally even as Samantha Shannon brings focus back on those outside of Oxford. The Golden Cord that binds them together is as mystifying as ever but is layered further with the Rephaim lore and the history of their decimated homeland. The romantic moments between Paige and Arcturus continue to center around truth and the sharing of their lived experiences, which are made all the deeper with these revelations. Those quiet moments in The Old Lyre and her bedroom were like a bolt of longing shot directly into my chest and I fear that I will never recover. These two are just so earnest with one another that you can’t help but hang on to their every interaction. Their newfound romantic relationship being something that can just be for them in the face of everything else they must share with the world is way more devastating the more you think about it. That for all the pieces they’ve carved out of themselves to walk the path of revolution, it is their connection that can remain sacred.

The Mime Order brings mystery and unrest sprawling into the criminal underworld, building to a violent takeover within the Rose Ring as clairvoyant fights against clairvoyant for a chance to win the Rose Crown. This has to be one of the best finales– vindicating and the exact level of ruthlessness befitting Paige Mahoney. Paige’s triumph in the Rose Ring as the end result of the Scrimmage was exhilarating to bear witness to. Her taking on the mantle of the Black Moth and reclaiming a symbol which to the Sargas is representative of weakness but to her is power centered within struggle was another brilliant twist. Samantha Shannon dreams up a sequel that takes this series from passive enjoyment to full-on obsession. Succinctly plotted and executed with finesse, The Mime Order will leave you desperate for more from this fully realized world.

Trigger warnings: blood, violence, gore, murder, imprisonment, drug use, human trafficking

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Review: Nightstrider by Sophia Slade

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

The mirrored realms of the Wake and the Reverie are intricately tethered. Very few beings possess the ability to bridge between them, except for dreambreakers, whose powers are coveted and whose very existence is deemed an abomination. Wren is a nightmare, a physical manifestation of the dark dreams of humans, and wholly at the mercy of her creator and jailer Para Warwick – the only creature in exception to dreambreakers that can cross the boundary between realms. Nightstrider and weapon, Wren has long yearned for revenge against the Para and finds a chance by aiding the rebellion. Back in the Wake, Ila, a young queen shoulders an arranged marriage to the son of the Warwick, a man who will eventually inherit his violent legacy under a crown of bone. But Ila is secretly a Weaver, responsible for patching the frays within the boundary of the dreaming and waking worlds. Her marriage to the naive Prince Caine comes after the loss of an important weapon – that in the wrong hands would give the Warwick untold power. Ila prepares to retrieve it at all costs, but unintentionally drags Caine with her into the Reverie. Across the realms, four individuals: nightmares, weavers, and one disgruntled member of royalty will come together to end the reign of the night creator Warwick before the very tapestry of their realities is torn asunder.

Nightstrider is an unfathomably good dark fantasy novel manifesting the rage of the controlled into something altogether sharp and devastating. Sophia Slade debuts a nightmare in book form, vicious and as long-lasting as any nightmare can be upon the waking mind. Tethering four unlikely allies across realms and slowly drawing them together to unite under a common struggle, Nightstrider feels like your classic fantasy novel but turned all the deeper with a core focus on the marginalized fighting back against an imperial power with untested limitations. Slade brings together an array of unique personalities but centers strongly on those who have had to harden themselves to become weapons in the face of hostility and the difficulties in entangling those lifelong practices of self-preservation. Complete with romance to balance out the darkness, Nightstrider is a comprehensive fantasy novel striking right at the heart of what I love about this genre. If I were to boil it down to one thing, Nightstrider is just reluctant allies to lovers core and so incredibly bisexual. Everyone say thank you, Sophia Slade!

Filled with dark and rageful energy coalescing inside a dynamic world, Nightstrider left me dazed as if caught up in my own bewildering dream. I love it when stories take their time to ground the external world-building and work to gain a foothold across a first novel and Nightstrider brings that into the forefront. Sophia Slade sets clear goals with this first installment to draw out the background of two unique realms and the conflict between the imperialist power centered around the figure of Para Warwick. Relationships are gradually brought into the centerfold, but Nightstrider mainly serves as a catalyst to bring our core four characters together, united in the fight to come. So much of what impressed me with this debut is how much everything is earned. Nightstrider is an amalgamation of so many favorite tropes that it felt like an indulgent feast made specifically with me in mind but made all the more impactful by the actual substance. The character work across four unique perspectives was especially well done and balanced out this integration into two worlds divided.

As a lover of soft female characters the world has molded to be cautious and cold Ila and Wren are my weakness. Ila is someone transformed by her reality, hard-natured out of necessity, and loth to trust anyone outside of her inner circle. Where Wren is the complete opposite, built to be a weapon in the hands of a frighteningly abusive and power-hungry man. Several sources of heartbreak are that with Caine, Ila saw someone sheltered and left unmolded by the world, unlike her, and how Wren is someone who wholeheartedly believes that she is too far gone to save. It broke my heart to see both of these women shoulder their burdens, but the kernel of hope that emerges towards the end made me feel all the more victorious. I love how Slade challenges these competing notions of good and evil and the idea that just because you are empowered to do good does not inherently make you a good person. This builds into an epic concluding act in the Reverie that will certainly carry through into its sequel. Nightstrider was at the top of my most anticipated reads for this year and it exceeded my expectations in every possible way. Filled with every kind of night terror imaginable, Nightstrider is a ruthless dark fantasy novel weaving together dream beings and nightmares on a path to unburden two opposing realms.

Thank you to Orbit Books and Netgalley for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: violence, murder, attempted sexual assault, torture, emotional abuse, xenophobia, suicidal ideation, imperialism

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