Review
Thank you to Macmillan for an ARC of this book!
I’m going to be upfront about this – I had guessed the entire book by the very end of the first act. And I say that, not because I think it totally detracted from the book, but because I think it didn’t.
This book was well written, and it was atmospheric too. I was really intrigued by the world itself, and honestly I think sometimes when books are contained in one area versus a whole world it works better, especially for a standalone fantasy.
The plot in this book was great! I felt like it was a unique take on Saints and religion. This book definitely feels more steampunk/gaslamp fantasy than your typical generalized fantasy. Another aspect of this book was the “gothic” aspect. I’m not 100% sure I’d apply the gothic label to this book, but I could see it all the same. I feel like it also trends more towards horror.
One aspect of the book that I really liked was the familial relationships. I loved how they were developed and we got to see different varieties. One thing I almost wished for more of was the romantic relationship. I don’t know — I just didn’t love the relationship. There was something about it that didn’t quite work for me.
Maybe part of it was because of how it was setup? Not sure, but the romance fell very flat to me.
I will definitely be checking out this author’s future works though!