Terrific cover, but I'm afraid that was the highlight of this emotionally stunted, repetitive, overly simplistic book with a heroine who has basically zero understanding of the world around her.

**Disclaimer: I was given a free e-book of the below in exchange for an honest review as part of a tour hosted by Xpresso Tours via NetGalley.**

Title Beware the Night (The Offering Series #1)

Author Jessika Fleck

Release Date March 12, 2019

Description from Amazon

When her world divides, pitting light against dark, Veda must join a dangerous revolution to save her grandfather and fight against injustice…even if it costs her the boy she loves.

On the island of Bellona, life is peaceful–as long as the citizens dutifully worship the Sun, which protects them from all harm. Seventeen-year-old Veda knows that keeping the Sun happy will protect her and her grandfather from the Night, the dangerous people who snatch innocent citizens from their beds under the cover of darkness, never to be seen again. As long as Veda follows the rules, she will be safe. But when Veda’s grandfather is offered up as the next sacrificial offering to keep the Sun’s favor, she starts to see that the safety she’s been promised comes at a dangerous price. Maybe there is more to fear above than there is below.

With a mysterious young man, Dorian, at her side, Veda has to figure out if the scary bedtime stories she grew up hearing are real–or dangerous lies.

Initial Thoughts

This description gave me the feeling that it was going to be a combination of The Village and The Hunger Games. I was really excited to unravel the lies and mysteries surrounding the mysterious Night.

Some Things I Liked

World building and political intrigue. I really liked that this story doesn’t utilize any magic. It’s purely a story of revolution set in a really interesting fictional land.
Undetermined time line. I like that I’m not overthinking the time period of this story. I found that I was constantly trying to pick apart the sci-fi nature of The Hunger Games but I loved that I wasn’t trying to that here. The time frame was completely irrelevant to the story and the setting was well designed.

One Thing I Wasn’t Crazy About

I’m not a big fan of love triangles. There are two main reasons: the first is that I don’t like who the main character ends up with. Don’t give me choices and then make me ship the wrong one! The second is when both love interests are equally good for the main character and I don’t want to see one of them disappointed (or, in extreme cases, die). I didn’t love the love triangle here because of the second reason. I liked Dorian and Nico and Veda is not doing a super job of choosing between the two.

Series Value

Even if I wasn’t scheduled for a tour post on the sequel to this book next month, I’d definitely read the next book. I am totally hooked on this duology and I’m dying to know what happens next.

I also love that this is a duology. I haven’t read a good two-book series in a while and I’m excited to see how this ends.

Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed this book. It was on my TBR before I was chosen for the tour for Defy the Sun. I am really glad I finally read this book and I am excited to read the sequel.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Recommendations for Further Reading

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – if you liked the revolutionary vibes as well as the concept of “the offering” in Beware the Night, definitely check out The Hunger Games trilogy.
Frostblood by Elly Blake – if you liked the love triangle as well as the idea of a persecuted group of people that leads to the main character smack in the middle of a revolution, try this trilogy by Elly Blake.
Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan – if you liked the mysterious, revolution vibes as well as the day / night duology, check out this series. The sequel, Ruthless Gods, is coming out in April.
Defy the Sun by Jessika Fleck – this is the sequel (which I have not read yet, but am starting as soon as I finish writing this post). I can’t imagine anyone not wanting to find out what happens next after reading the end of Beware the Night.

The island of Bellona is divided. Veda is a member of the Basso, the lower class citizens. She and her grandfather live in fear of the Night, the dangerous beings that live underground and terrorize the island at night. But what happens when Veda meets a member of the Night and is introduced to their underground world.

Beware the Night was a good book. It was a really quick read and kept me intrigued and engrossed until the end. Seriously, I read it in a couple days. The plot was interesting and I loved the mythology of the Sun and Moon and the fallen Star. Which made it kind of a bummer when the whole Lunalette thing turned out to be a hoax. I was invested and it definitely made me disappointed and commiserate with Veda in that moment of discovery.

Veda was a pretty good main character. She was protective, strong-willed and loyal. She definitely had her flaws, though. Her flip-flopping with Nico and Dorian was annoying and unneeded. It also created unnecessary issues. The whole ending would have been totally different if she hadn’t been selfishly thinking about herself and her wants. She had the potential to be another Katniss, but the love triangle sort of ruined that potential. Maybe she’ll have a little more growth as the series continues and I’m looking forward to reading more.

Beware the Night by Jessika Fleck
Book Review by Dawn Thomas

320 Pages
Publisher: Macmillian Children’s Publishing / Swoon Reads
Release Date: March 12, 2019

Teens & Young Adult

Veda is a Basso living with her grandfather on one side of the island of Bellona. Her friend Nico is Dogio and lives with his parents on the other side. There is a huge difference between the Basso and the Dogio; the Basso are poor and the Dogio are wealthy. The Imperi guards make Offerings of the Basso people to please the Sun. They do this as an honor to provide food and keep the peace. There is a third group on the island – The Night. The Basso are told the Night comes to the village destroys houses and kidnaps people. When Veda meets Dorian, he makes her question everything she has ever known. Who is telling the truth?

The book is written in first person point of view in present tense. It flows well and the characters are developed. The book kept by interest and I couldn’t stop reading it until I finished it. The last chapter is written from Nico’s point of view and ends with the reader wondering what is going to happen next. This is the first in the series and I look forward to the release of the second book.

this was a relatable read and I think works with current affairs and puts them in a different light - no pun intended. It rings true in many societies. You're taught there's only one right and one wrong, but you receive no benefits from doing the "right" thing, so it only seems natural to rebel. The people so hell-bent on the "right" thing are the ones who benefit from it and the sheep that follow those blindly, not questioning anything.

As any curious or free-thinking person, if you're not benefitting or not seeing the point in the "right" thing, you're going to start questioning it. What if the "wrong" thing is the right thing for you and isn't as "bad" as it's been made out to be? Everyone in power has an agenda and they want and need others to conform to it, so they will do everything they can to keep that narrative. This was a fun fantasy-like spin on a very relatable/current tale and it definitely deserves a lot of attention.

While I did enjoy the writing style of this novel as well as the plot, I felt like the plot was something I've seen before. I still enjoyed my time reading it, but it has a lot of stereotypical tropes that are in a lot of YA novels.

The premise of the story sounded interesting, and it did take a different turn than I was expecting. I originally thought there would be magic elements in here, but I wasn't too upset when it went down the rebellion trail. It did feel slow at times, but it's a good read if you stick through to the end. Readers that liked the Hunger Games-esque books will enjoy it.

I wasn't sure what to expect before start this, Beware the Night by Jessika Fleck. I was pleasantly surprised with it though. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

Beware The Night has gorgeous world-building with vivid imagery that creates a delicious backstory to the novel and many of the characters (such as Veda) are uniquely their own peeps. Although I wasn't particularly fond of the slow pacing or the unoriginal chosen one trope -- I still found the world itself and the way it impacted the characters to be a strong appeal here.

I genuinely look forward to where the series is going and would heartily recommend.

Beware The Night is a bit of a slow burn, so you need to bare with the book on the beginning. Good stuff is coming, but it’s a bit slow to start.

There is some beautiful world-building here, and Jessika Fleck has the ability to fill her writing with rich imagery that paints a beautiful world. The downside to this is that there are quite a few descriptions, but it is necessary to understand where the story is taking place. It provides backstory, history and gives the reader an idea of how the world works.

I like Veda. She is down-to-earth and well rounded. I read I Reviews criticizing the “chosen one” trope, but I don’t really mind it. Honestly, I just read to get lost in a story. It’s worth mentioning though.

Overall, this is a good start to a series I would like to continue reading. I recommend checking it out because I think the storyline is only going to get better from here!

A welcome addition to the YA fantasy genre - fast paced and imaginative. I know some people find love triangles to be a dealbreaker for them, but honestly I love them (give me the drama!) and it worked well here. It was maybe a touch TOO romantic for my tastes, but I think a lot of people will be into the chemistry and swoon factor. Definitely a good getaway read!

Beware the Night left me feeling frustrated and at a loss for words. I dislike cliffhangers as a rule, because they leave you with more questions than answers, and I feel like it's a dirty way to leave a book. I don't mind when books are part of a series, but I also want them to be able to stand on their own. When you're left not knowing what happened to one of the main characters, that's really annoying. Books take time to write, and not all books get a sequel, so I firmly believe that every book should have a beginning and an ending. If they want to set up future books, fine, but don't leave me feeling like I've wasted hours of my time by failing to provide even a hint of resolution.

Next, there's a love triangle, and an unnecessary one at that. I will say that I think the author handled this one better than most, but I still don't like that it was there. We have Nico on one side, someone Veda has known since childhood, and Dorian on the other. He's a new addition to her life, but an important one. I really wish one of them could have remained her friend, while the other was a love interest, because kissing them both on the same day (and claiming they were both perfect, or heavenly) was ick. She felt at home with Nico, but she also said her kiss with Dorian felt like they'd been doing it forever. People are planning for a war, and she's thinking about which boy she likes more (or questioning everything always).

My third issue is likely due to the fact that I read a review copy, because I really hope the inconsistencies were straightened out before publication. Someone would be sitting, and then they would stand, but then they would stand again with someone else. Veda was given keys, but then she couldn't unlock a door because she didn't have keys, and then she's thanking the Sun for having keys later on. It was a little obnoxious, but again, not holding it against this book since my copy was for review.

I enjoyed the lore behind the Sun and the Moon, but it was also confusing. Bellona is supposedly a child of the Sun, so where does the Night come from? Why did they start worshiping the Moon? Was it done just to oppose the Imperi, or were there other legends that weren't shared with us? I know the Night had tapestries and stories that were passed down over the generations, but then Veda finds something at the end that made me question everything that I thought I knew.

Actually, there's a lot about this book that doesn't make sense. The Night was planning on someone returning to them, but they didn't make arrangements until a few days before her birthday. It felt like they simultaneously knew and didn't know that Veda was the person they were waiting for. Apparently, the Sindaco had made plans prior to someone seeing her scar, but then the plans started after her scar had been seen. I'm confusing myself trying to explain how it was confusing.

I wish the information had been presented a little differently, and definitely more thoroughly, because I don't like feeling confused and frustrated when I finish a book. I love stories that make me think and question what I know, but not books that make me feel like I went in circles for hours. I want things to be explained to me in a way that leaves no room for doubt or confusion. If it's a new world with new rules, I want to believe in it wholeheartedly. Alas, Beware the Night made a halfhearted attempt at best, and I wish the story had left me with more than a vague sense of doom.

I'm curious enough to possibly continue this series, but it's not one I'm eagerly anticipating. If the first book ended with a cliffhanger, it's safe to assume the author would do it again. I don't know... maybe I need to read a finished copy to see if some of the messiness it sorted out. If you've read a published copy of this book, what do you think? Were you satisfied with it overall?

Originally posted at Do You Dog-ear? on March 14, 2019.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but I enjoyed reading this. An interesting story with fun characters. Well written.

The cover is what drew me to Beware the Night. The other is the fantasy genre and YA tags. I’ve been reading more general fantasy recently and wanted to pick up a YA book for lighter reading. While this book didn’t end up being for me, following are 5 reasons you may want to pick up this book.

5 Reasons to Read Beware the Night

1. As a young adult novel, it features the coming-of-age story of a girl figuring out her place in the world.
2. The plot is similar to many other popular YA fantasy books such as Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.
3. If you like love triangles and romance.
4. It picks different people groups against each other, putting the MC in a situation where she must uncover what is truth, what are lies, and what she believes.
5. It features a fantasy world, something that I enjoy exploring.

The premise of separate kingdoms for night and day reminds me of Stain by A.G. Howard and the film Mune: Guardian of the Moon. If you enjoy these works, you may want to check out Beware the Night.

Beware The Night was a beautifully written story about doing whatever it takes to protect the people that we care about. Veda knows that she needs to be safe by not going out at night but that means not being able to provide for her family. When her grandfather is chosen as a sacrifice for the Sun, Veda will fight against the odds to keep him safe from harm.

Veda was a great character that had doubts about what she was being told and what she should believe. I loved her spirit and determination and Beware The Night will keep you on the edge of your seat at you follow Veda’s journey as she struggles to find the truth about the stories that she has been told. This is a great story and shouldn’t be missed.

I was excited about Beware the Night because of its cover, & I did enjoy it, but if I’m honest it was incredibly average. If you’re new to YA I don’t doubt that you’ll enjoy Veda’s story, but as someone who has read A LOT of YA it became kinda predictable. The writing was good though & I did like the world-building!

I was hooked right from the beginning. The premise alone is beautiful and exciting and definitely drew out my curiosity. The cover is bait! The storyline is gripping and will lure you in.

I love the Roman-style setting and the island vibes. The world-building is lush and interesting. The social system in Beware the Night is a strong voice that speaks about discrimination in history lasts even until now. It not only tells poverty, it shows poverty. Beware the Night emphasizes the fine line between the rich and the poor, and shows the reality of the government: corrupt, selfish, and without justice.

The characters intrigued me right from the beginning, especially Dorian. This book tells of the past but at the same time rises to the future, which filled in some knowledge gaps that I had. Veda, however, is very impulsive despite the advice from the people around her. She is complex and her actions annoy me sometimes, but she is her own, unique and insecure person. And what I love is that as the story goes on, she gains inner strength.

One of the things I love about this book is the character development, especially Veda’s. There’s something inspiring about reading about a girl journey to gain courage despite the sea of chaos around her.

The downside is that it’s utterly predictable. The plot of this book similar to that of dozens of other books. It’s quite dramatic.

The vivid writing is great and has a lot of depth. The pacing is average, but the book was sort of a heavy read for me compared to other dystopian books.

If you like: prejudice, forbidden love, rebellions, mysterious group, and ‘The Chosen One’ protagonist trope, then this book is for you.

Beware the Night isn’t the best book so far, but I really enjoyed reading Veda’s story. Reading this was one cool roller coaster ride, no matter how predictable the events of the story are.

Beware the Night took me on a fun, compelling, heart-pounding adventure that I won’t soon forget.

So, initially this book sounded like something I HAD to read. The synopsys gave me so many thrills, I can't even put into words how excited I was to tackle this novel. *Insert WHOMPS* I definitely enjoyed the novel, but it was not what I expected, nor what is seemed to be by the hype. It felt like I was reading a retelling of any number of other YA novels - especially the Hunger Games. I really enjoy dystopian novels though, so I sucked it up and kept going.
There were MANY things that I really enjoyed about the novel. The mythology, or back stories behind the sun and moon worshippers was very well done. I enjoyed the tension between each class, that felt real and palpable. It was easy to forget at times that they lived on a tiny island, with how divided they were. This was mostly because of how complex each of the cultures were . That really did justice for building characters and situations. Each character did have their own layered personalities and flaws, which was refreshing - since a lot of the other aspects seemed like regurgitated YA tropes and plot lines.
I felt like the novel had SO much potential. It really seemed to aim for that potential at first, and then plummeted through the earth to hang with the Night. It just kept pulling me back to the "I've read this before" thoughts.

The Deja Vu tropes dropped the book from 4/5 stars to a 3/5 stars for me.

Beware the Night is a fascinating mix of the familiar and the unknown. By setting Bellona in a world where there are sacrifices and a coliseum with very specific social classes, Jessika eases readers into a world of her own making.

And that world is one of complexities. Like an onion, Jessika slowly peals back layers that provide sharp and sometimes jarring revelations. Though there are some slower sections throughout Beware the Night they add a nice contrast and create suspense where needed.

Beware the Night ends with a surprising cliffhanger that will leave readers a tad frustrated and wishing the next book in this planned series was already out.

People on the island of Bellona are divided between two classes: Dogio - they are upper class, soldiers and rulers & Basso - oppressed one, living in poverty and forced to follow the rules. They worship the Sun, including offering lives in Offering in hopes that the Sun will protect them from the Night. People of Night come in the cloak of the night, kidnap people, ravage the homes.

We follow the life of Veda, seeming ordinary girl, Basso, living with her grandfather Poppy. She is hard working but loves to break rules sometimes. Her best friend is her total opposite. Nico is from Dogio family, that is very powerful and he will soon follow in their steps. Their friendship is unusually, but saving grace for both of them.

One night, after being out in the dark, they are both almost caught. Veda barely escapes, with help of Dorian. He takes her underground to the place when Night people live. The experience opens her eyes, to what is really going on.

I love the world described, it is so interesting and well developed. The island just jumps from the pages, there are different classes, religious beliefs, politics, two opposing forces and it's just so good. :) The story starts slow, with a bit of world-building, there are lots of unexpected twists and turns and it's soo good. :)

Characters jump from the pages. My favorite was Poppy and Dorian. Poppy is just the sweetest man and Dorian is full of surprises. Who I didn't like is Nico, something about him just annoyed me. :)

Highly recommend to fantasy lovers. :)