I absolutely loved this book! It was a long time since I read an exciting book that involved the real world and the magical world. I have always been fascinated by voodoo and New Orleans, by its magical and mystical charm. I took the opportunity to visit this city in "virtual mode" through this book, which I also recommend to those who want to approach for the first time to the fantasy genre.

The book becomes more and more dark as the story progresses and the characters discover secrets and mysteries that involve them in the first person, bringing them to difficult and drastic decisions.
The main character, a white boy grown up in India, decides to move to America in search of his father and is housed in a Buddhist temple. In the meantime he meets a bunch of people, all different, who reveals his true nature. All those nightmares that the boy is experiencing are nothing but existing beings living in another world, hidden from ordinary people sight.

The magic system is very interesting: mixes ancient stories, legends, voodoo, witchcraft and a little ' invention of the author.
The highlight of the book is probably the city: if there were no New Orleans as a place of setting many scenes would have been false and unreal. Instead, the mere fact of saying that the book is set in New Orleans opens a much more ambling and evocative discourse, which can lead to many developments in the plot and the magical system.

The book was translated and I would be very curious to read the original text, because I thought I read a text written in a very fluent and direct English, which I really liked. Especially because the book took my attention right away and did not leave it except at the end of the book

The theme of this book drew me in and this book sure will send you on a wild ride. We meet our main character Elisse. He is on a journey to not only find out who he is and why he is constantly seeing monsters, but also looking to find more information about his father. I liked the way that this story was told and how it is told from a few different points of view. The author did a good job making sure you could tell each character view you were reading from. I liked how this story took a twist that I was not expecting and if you’re like me and you love to read a good fantasy story with plenty of monsters and action then this is the book for you. I got sucked into the world Palova created and I can’t wait to be able to pick up book two! Though this book was slow in the beginning it picks up and I had a hard time putting it down. The characters were all unique and I found myself identifying with one of the characters. I also liked the relationship between the main character and others around him as well as being able to watch him grow as a person and discover that he is stronger than he ever thought he could be. My favorite character ended up being a man named Tared. The way he cares for those around him and the strength and compassion he is able to give to his friends astounded me. Though I was not crazy about the ending of this book, that is part of the reason I knocked one star from my rating. We learned a bit of information about a character then the story just ended on a cliff hanger and was very abrupt. When I finished this book it left me with some questions but defiantly left me wanting more and I can not wait to pick up book two and continuing on this journey with these amazing characters.

Another story written in present tense. Why do they do it? This one fooled me because the Prologue was in past tense and drew me in, but when the story proper starts, it's in present tense and sometimes switches to second person.

Elisse is a white boy who is used to living in a Tibetan temple in India, but he has been sent to New Orleans for his own safety when the Chinese raid the temples. His English is heavily accented and he has been in a refugee camp, where showers are a luxury. Culture shock is the first of his challenges.

The narrative sometimes changes mid-chapter, slipping from first person to second person. It's a little jarring, as is the sudden changes of tense or person and what looks like a misplaced chapter of a detective story that interjects into the story about Elisse without explanation, albeit set in the same city. This gets tied in a little later.

The writing itself is good, apart from the person and tense anomalies, but intermittent continuity made the early chapters rather difficult to follow. There's a supernatural aspect involved that kept me wanting to see where it was going to go. Elisse sees demons and explains away his occasional injuries as sleepwalking and nightmares, knowing that explaining the truth would land him in an asylum.

The plot itself is very interesting and Elisse is an easily likeable character. Things start heading towards explanations about a quarter through and I found myself wanting to keep reading at the end of each chapter.

All things considered, an unusual and original story worth reading, despite the tense and person changes that kept throwing me off.

I sort of hate myself for this review.

When I started, I thought that this quite possibly could be the best read not only in February but in 2019 as well! It was that good! I loved the story setting, loved the background, the magic part, and the main character was amazing!
Elisse is an androgyny male, and several characters are confused about whether he is a male or a female at the beginning of the story. And I was confused as well for a moment, and I thought that it was so well done.

I loved how he was getting used to the Western world after coming from India.

The story was going so well until it was not.

Suddenly the whole world crumbled.

Nothing made any kind of sense. Elisse started calling a group of strangers his family or/and his brothers. I did not get the connection. I did not like their relationship cause it was so fake it was hard to even read their conversations.
And suddenly I did not even like Elisse where at the beginning I liked him and thought that he was a great protagonist now it was gone, and I did not care one bit for him.

About 60% I almost gave up on the book but I did finish and I have to say that I liked Samedi and Loas but that's about it.

A story about nightmares where a young man has been haunted. It's a great read, I'm hoping for more from this author.

Hello, review will be posted to instagram, blog, and goodreads on March 4th. I will add the review to Amazon & Barnes & Noble (if applicable) on March 5th, 2019. Links to review will be added once they are live.

Title: The Lord of the Sabbath (Nation of the Beasts)
Author: Mariana Palova
Genre: Adult Fantasy-Paranormal, Horror
Rating: 2 stars
Publication Date: March 5th, 2019

eARC provided by publisher through NetGalley

->Click for Synopsis<-

Since Elisse came to New Orleans from India a storm has been brewing. He left everything behind to find out the truth about his father and leave the creatures that haunt him. He will learn more than he thought in the swamps. Not everything wants him alive and he will have to battle his nightmares to stay alive.

One thing that drew me to this book was the cover. It is absolutely gorgeous. The synopsis also sounded amazing and something up my alley and without much hesitation I decided to request this interesting book. Although I wanted to love this book there were a few things I didn't like about it that ultimately made me give it a lower rating.

When it comes to Elisse, a little bit was said about his background in the first few chapters since part of the plot is about finding his father in America. Throughout the rest of the book he just felt really flat and nothing interested me about him and so I lacked connection. Throughout his journey in New Orleans, we are introduced to other characters and again, they felt really flat to me. I didn't connect with one which was a huge bummer!

The plot was interesting and it was nice to see the author add voodoo into the mix since the setting is New Orleans. My one big complaint with the plot is that at times it felt like there was too much being thrown in and it left me confused with why certain events were taking place. The action was also very subtle and it didn't leave me feeling interested in the fights against the creatures. I also wasn't a fan of the writing style and that may have contributed to my issues with certain parts of the plot.

Overall, this book just wasn't a fit for me. I know others will enjoy this book even if I didn't. If you are into voodoo, Loa gods, and zombies, you should definitely give this book a try!

A fast paced mix of folklore and cultures. Dark, raw and filled with the unknown.

I don't think I've ever seen such a mix of New Orleans voodoo, Native American spiritualism coupled and Hinduism. There is so much rich history interwoven into this one story.

I am always fascinated by New Orleans and the atmosphere that it creates. And I've always been interested in Native American beliefs. So I knew that this story of self discovery would really speak to me.

If I had anything negative to say it would be that it can sometimes be confusing as to whose voice you're reading. The story is told from multiple view points but all of them are in first person. Therefore it is a little hard to understand who's viewpoint you're reading from until several pages into a chapter. But this could be down to it being translated from Spanish to English, I'm not 100% sure.

The way it is written could easily be translated to screen and I feel that a TV adaptation would do this fantastic story, justice.

A wild ride from start to finish.

Mariana Palova's Lord of Sabbath is a darkly imagined work of art. She writes with such detail that her creatures jump off the page and Elisse's adventure becomes a movie inside one's mind. Beautifully written in dual first person with just a hint of second person in some chapters make for an interesting read.

This tale takes on a vibrant mix of fantasy and history with mythological ancestors set in beautiful New Orleans the hometown of voodoo old school hudu and magic.
A dark fantasy tale with a coming of age story intertwined within.

Elisse one of out main protagonists is a complicated character as he sets out to embrace his destiny though many obstacles stand in his way including his own weaknesses and doubts.
A well written full of depth character that was interesting and often relatable.
The second person point of view writing style was unique and fit in well with the tone of this tale.

There is however a discombobulated pace to this book some parts are well paced with descriptive scenes and energetic back story with vast context and others feel rushed and context looked over or missing which meant for a fair bit of re-reading.
The storyline however is really captivating and had me easily drawn back into the tale despite the wayward pacing at times.

Overall a wonderfully diverse tale with a great mix of cultural and mythical heritage well rounded depth filled characters and a rich backdrop for fans of dark fantasy with a mystical element this is one for you.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishing team for this advanced copy in exhange for an honest review.
(All opinions expressed are my own and are unbiased)

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This review will appear on Goodreads.

Nation of the Beasts is a mysterious tale filled with New Orleans style voodoo and mythical ancestors. It is rich with a mix of history and fantasy that entertains any lover of dark tales. Elisse is on a journey to find a family of his own and to awaken the ancestor, a powerful creature that gives him strength and powers, within him. Mariana Palova weaves a wonderful coming of age story about our young hero who has to overcome his own weaknesses in order to embrace his destiny. Along the way, he learns about the true meaning of family and what sacrifices it takes in order to save the people he loves.

There are two protagonists in this story, Elisse, the young Indian-American who has just moved to the United States as an Indian born American and I think the second narrator is an unknown entity of some sort. It reminds me a lot of Markus Zusak’s novel The Book Thief which showcases many scenes from the point of view of Death. It’s an interesting take on being able to show multiple scenes which don’t involve Elisse and gives a lot of information and insight to the reader that we wouldn’t usually have. I’m not a fan of the second person point of view though as the character refers to everyone as “you”, “You try to take a sip of tea, but your hand trembles.”

“I want to let myself be overcome by my evilness”

Truly my favorite line of the book because it shows how human Elisse is even after all that he suffers. At times the book feels rushed and tends to vaguely skip over exposition and at other times the novel slows down to extend scenes of importance. While reading, there were several times when I started to get bored because of the slow pace but as soon as I thought of putting the book away for the night, a new, exciting moment would happen and I would be hooked again.

One thing that I was displeased with was how the narrator, Elisse, sometimes relayed information as if the reader hadn’t already been privy to the information. For instance, one scene where he is returning to the voodoo shop he states “I loathe this place, not only because of the eccentric owner, but also because it’s where I came across the bone monster for the first time” which we already read about earlier. There were several instances of this happening that stuck out to me. I also have mixed feelings about the emotional capacity of the main character. I’m not sure if this was lost in the translation of the book or possibly cultural differences between the native Mexican heritage and my own. Since this is the first novel in a series (duology? trilogy?), I think there will be more secrets revealed about the relationship between Elisse and the other tribe members.

Overall, Palova wrote an exciting tale about mythological ancestors and voodoo. I thought the book was a good read and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in the darker tales.

This book was received as an ARC from The Mage's Lantern LLC in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is basically Spanish mythology come to life. Elisse to me represents Odysseus and the weather and storms he brings across Spain torments the world and changes it forever. The book also had a Game of Thrones feel when it came to the war scenes but mostly I had a little Greek Mythology vibe while reading this book. While I was very invested in the story, I do say it did take a while into the book to really fully understand the plots and the motives of each character. That alone I know for our readers is a turn off because of the frustration it causes while reading a new book. Unless the book is beyond great that everyone will appeal to it.

We will consider adding this title to our Sci-Fi collection at our library. That is why we give this book 4 stars.

Nation of the Beasts is a compelling reading. I loved every part of it and I could not wait to go back to it every time I had to put the book down. I'm actually glad that someone did the translation from Spanish or I would've missed this amazing book as I'm not a Spanish native.

It reminded me a lot of Caraval meets Game of Thrones somehow. It's quite dark and the characters are well developed. I'd suggest this read to anyone who love dark stories!

Nation of the Beasts is the first fantasy novel from Mexico that I've read. The translation is well done. No holes or hard to understand phrases. Intriguing story with engaging characters. Overall a good read. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I originally read this in Spanish, as I'm bilingual, and was so excited to see it would be available in English! It was enchanting in every way possible, and as definitely been added onto my preorder list! It's very rare for a full on Fantasy novel coming from Mexico, but this definitely sets the bar high! It's one I would recommend to everyone, and it should definitely be advertised more.

I'm so happy I requested this ARC because it's amazing.
It's a wonderful fantasy, well written and entralling.
I look forward to reading other books in this series.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC