A fun, gothic fantasy, perfect for fans of the gothic classics who want something modern!
Nadya is your typical, strong female heroin in these fantasy novels, with a very notable exception: she can hear the dead Gods. They communicate with her as she trains in secret to hone her magical powers and connection with her Gods in order to save their country.
The monestary which she is studying at is attacked, and a blood mage is sent to find her. The ensuing quest keeps you on the edge of your seat.
I did struggle however, with the lack of emotional depth and ability to experience romantic feelings where they were laid out to have been, but without the asexual rep that it could have been. Nadya clearly had the ability to feel love, intimacy, and the like, but because she is our "strong, fierce female protagonist" she does not let herself.

Wicked Saints by Emily A Duncan was an interesting book. I was drawn in but by the end I was a little bored. The characters were interesting to a point. I loved the religious aspects because for someone who is not religious this book shows why blindly following a religious dictate without question is not always the right path. There is still an emphasis that religion can do good things but not to follow it blindly. I did finish the book so an automatic 2 stars. I was left wanting to actually read the second book so I can bump it up to 3 stars. There is room for growth in the plot and keeping the audience's interest.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a free copy this is an honest review.

I struggled with how to write this review for a while. It's not because I didn't enjoy reading it but due to the fact that it is a uniquely woven novel that I didn't know how to write a review without it containing any spoilers.

With that being said, this was an overall good book to read. It seemed to have a similar type of take as Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone. I definitely saw how readers who enjoyed Shadow and Bone could get into this book but at the same time it felt as if I was reading a book inspired by the grisha series. The ending was action packed and everything I would have liked to read from the book. Overall, this was a highly enjoyable book to read and one I would highly recommend others to pick up.


eARC was kindly provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.

A prince in danger must decide who to trust.

A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.

Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.

-I was totally into the first couple chapters, but then it happened...bleh. I was really expecting the books to be a bit more fun, scary, and intriguing, but no luck. I had to stoop reading it. I couldn't read it was just really boring for me.

I had a lot of expectations for this book, but it did not live up to it. This read more like a Darkling fanfiction, and I love the Darkling, so it was even more puzzling why I wasn't into this. The characters were flat and nothing happened for a significant part of the story, and I guess this is just not for me.

I wanted to love this book so much. Unfortunately, I was bored for the majority of it. I enjoyed the magic system and the dark gothic bloodletting it involved. I also enjoyed the twist at the end that I didn't see coming, but the characters felt very one dimensional, and it seemed like too much build up for the pay off. I probably won't be continuing with the series, but I might try another book by this author because I did like her writing style.

Great first instalment, you are drawn into the characters and their world. It's got lots of twists and turns and I can't wait to see what happens next!

I found Wicked Saints to be a novel that enveloped me in its world of magic, blood, and politics, with a cast of interesting characters. I found myself especially drawn to Malachiasz, whose background fascinated me and his conflicting relationship with Nadya. While the plot interested me at first, I think I found myself meandering from investing wholeheartedly into the conflict at hand between the different factions and agendas in the novel. I'm not sure if I'll pick up the sequel necessarily, but I did appreciate the nods to the steep traditions of magic the author seemed to draw from and will keep an eye out for this author.

I gave this a four out of five stars. I really enjoyed this book, I ended up finishing it in one day. I can't wait to read the next book in the series. I had put it off to read this but I'm glad I've finally read it. I absolutely recommend this and will recommend this to others.

"We're all monsters. Some just hide it better than others."

I'll be entirely honest from the start - this was not the book for me. I had such high hopes for it and they were shot down so hard within the first 100 pages that this eventually ended up a DNF. I pushed myself to finish so I could write a proper review, but it just didn't keep my attention. Why is this being posted in November of 2019 when it was granted to me MONTHS ago? Because I really did try.

This book was incredibly slow. The first few chapters focus on a raid, an 'invasion' of sorts, and that alone should have been enough to keep the reader's attention. Until the antagonist is introduced and you realize he's an extremely predictable 'bad boy' character named Serefin under the guise of a 'mage Prince.'

I'm usually all for the bad guys. I LOVE villains, I love their backstories, and I think they're always useful. In Wicked Saints, I didn't see the point in any of them whatsoever. Even the main character, Nadya - she didn't feel like the right character to be front and center. I'm not sure there WAS a character to be front and center.

I hate to give this a 2/5, but since I didn't finish it, I can't give it any higher. I can only hope the rest of the series is better and I'm glad to see others enjoying it for what it is.

Oh, wow, this book was a fantastic read! The series name is very apt, and I can't wait to see where the story is going to go! I absolutely loved spending time in this world with these characters, it's dark and interesting and there's so many mysteries!

I think there's a bit of a Russian influence on this book. Or maybe a lot. There's names and nicknames that seem in the same vein. And this style was hard to get into, to get the names straight, which is why I started it months ago, put it down, and then picked it up again just now.

There are two main strengths and focuses on this book, for me. One, is the characters and their motivations. They are tossed into this precarious situation, and it's amazing! The second is the magic and the world, and I'm so fascinated by how it all works, and I need to know more!

That ending was just incredible! I don't know how it all worked, but it was really awesome to read! But man, is there going to be fall out from that, and I can't wait to see what's going to happen! This was a world changer, guys!

Loved this book so much, it was a wonderful read, and I can't wait for the sequel, and I'm glad that I don't, so hopefully I'll read it next week!

Very dark and interesting. Not my typical read, but very unique and a fresh take on the fantasy genre.

DNFed at 55%, but honestly I was ready to at about 10%. Insufferable characters with no depth, a glacially paced plot, and an unpleasant focus on blood magic that reads more like a glorification of self-harm. It honestly reminds me of the ‘edgy’ fanfic classic My Immortal with how hard it is trying to be gory and cool.

I DNF'd this at 25%. I started this in late March and continued to read some of it through April. I just don't care about the characters, the pace is way too slow for such an interesting premise, and I feel like the main character isn't really the true focus of the novel.

I'm just not into this book and I don't think I will be in the future.

The author also said some sketchy things, but my opinion of the author does not affect my reviews or ratings unless they do something so terrible that.. well you get the gist.

I've just decided to not invest my time in books that I know will just be bleh.

The book was interesting and I am still sitting with how I felt about it. The pace was a bit irritating and it was hard to follow along sometimes. What I can say is if you are into blood magic and gore this is probably right up your alley. It is a dark and gothic and twisty YA book and is a bit different than I expected. Two countries one with religion and one without they set out to stop war and kill him. This is a book with dark and light fighting for it's place and the results will be shocking.

This book was very hard to follow and took me a long time to get into. The unpronounceable names were very distracting and took away from the story.

Very different and interesting. By the end I found myself invested in the characters and plot, but there were times that the writing and plot and reveals were confusing enough to hinder my reading and comprehension.

<i>*This book was given to me by NetGalley in return for a honest review*</i>

Okay, I'll be honest, I kept putting off reading this one. I was worried the religeous aspect would outweigh the magic. I was wrong, I loved this book and it characters. Sure, there are some things I wish were different, like more clarity on how the connection with the gods works. I also would have liked a little more backstory on Nadya. But the relationship between Nadya and Malachiasz??! I'll ship that all day long....

My Rating: 4/5 stars!

Cover Rating: 5/10 a standard book cover. I like the darkness of it. It just doesn’t give me a wow factor. I do like that the kingdom is in the cover though. That’s pretty cool.

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Publish Date: April 2nd, 2019

Number of Pages: 385

Received: Netgalley provided an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase: Amazon

Synopsis: “An instant NEW YORK TIMES bestseller!

“Prepare for a snow-frosted, blood-drenched fairy tale where the monsters steal your heart and love ends up being the nightmare.” – Roshani Chokshi, NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of THE GILDED WOLVES and THE STAR-TOUCHED QUEEN

A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.

A prince in danger must decide who to trust.

A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.

Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.

In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light. Wicked Saints is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holytrilogy.

“This book destroyed me and I adored it.”- Stephanie Garber, NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of CARAVAL“

Opening Sentence: “Death, magic, and winter. A bitter cycle that Marzenya spins with crimson threads around pale fingers. She is constant; she is unrelenting; she is eternal. She can grant any spell to those she has blessed, her reach is the fabric of magic itself.—Codex of the Divine, 2:18

The calming echo of a holy chant filtered down from the sanctuary and into the cellars.”

Musings:

This book reminds me of why I love fantasy. A whole world in your fingertips that can be as dark and magical as you dream it to be. Emily writes such a tale. Something where everyone has their own agenda and manipulation and truth within lies makes world views shatter and the fate of whole kingdoms lying in the balance of all of it.

What I Loved:

The writing. There were some chapters of this book where the writing was positively addicting. The reason I say some is only because certain chapters were written like dreams and the elegance of those chapters shown, while others served the purpose of showing action and furthering the plot and that isn’t a bad thing. It made the book very well balanced and thoroughly enjoyable.

Falling for the wrong guy. It’s nice to see a story that shows someone making a mistake about the person they fall for. It happens to all of us and in this story it had some dubious consequences. Although I loved the attraction between Nadya and Malachiasz. I think I have a thing for male characters with M names “cough Morpheus cough Mephistopheles cough” with a penchant for magic and very charismatic personalities. It’s a sad that Malachiasz would probably kill me before showing me any sort of interest.

The unwinding of truth and lies. Nadya has lived her life incredibly sheltered. She lives to serve the Gods and has practiced a perfection of being and devotion that is tested and bent completely as the book unfolds. She uncovers lie after lie. Something about the way everything is revealed to her was sort of grossly beautiful to me. Because it makes me think what sort of incredible fury she will unleash in the next book. I want to see this girl rise and I have a feeling she will and I can’t wait to see it happen.

The magic itself. There isn’t really much limitation to how the magic in this world manifests. It does have limits from person to person, but in general there is a lot of variety to the spells that are very personal to who is casting. This makes for some beautiful scenes where the magic manifests in very unique ways that I really enjoyed.

All in all:

This book is a great one! The way things enfolded has me very excited about what is to come and what adventures await Nadya in the future! I love a book with intensity and Wicked Saints had that aplenty.

While this book sounded promising and dark, fairytale like but bloody, the first half was like slow death, I kept putting it down and even forgot about it for months. But after literally pushing through a few chapters, the second half was almost decent enough.