I drawn to this book by the cover because it looked like a Victorian/Edwardian postcard Impressionist painting. Once I read the description of the book I knew I had to request an advanced reader. This was an enjoyable read - the dialogue was engaging from the start. The plot flowed very nicely and you truly got the sense of all of the characters trying to rebuild themselves after being taken down by through circumstances intentional or unintentional. This book is different from any other dark fantasy I've read in the past 2 years and I would encourage you to add this lovely title to your library. Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read this great debut author's book.

Down Comes the Night is an incredibly atmospheric story. It follows Wren Southerland, who is a healer in the Queen’s Guard. After receiving a letter from a lord asking Wren to come heal a servant from a mysterious disease, Wren sets off to try and prove herself. Upon arriving, Wren discovers that the servant is Hal Cavendish, a sworn and wanted enemy of her kingdom.

This story is a page-turner filled with beautiful descriptions of gothic manors, realistic characters, and a world full of clever politics. These characters were emotional, and I loved how they needed to work through their feelings and prejudices in order to overcome the real evil. The plot is well-written and full of surprises. I loved all of the twists and I couldn’t put it down.


I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed this story.
We follow Wren, she is the bastard niece to the queen of a country ravaged by war. Wren is a healer in the military who seems to always get things wrong. After making yet another mistake on the field, she’s given a risky opportunity to prove herself, she’s invited to a Lord’s mansion to heal a friend of his. Things take a turn when she realizes the guy she’s there to save is the most notoriously deadly soldier in the opposing country’s military. A story about war and love, accepting who you are and making things right.
Although i enjoyed it, there were some aspects that fell a bit short for me.
The magic system was really interesting but I felt it could’ve been expanded on a lot. We really got to know Wren’s magic and her healing abilities, but aside from that we know of like 3 other people with magic.
It was atmospheric and gothic, however I felt at times it dragged.
From the synopsis you can tell there’s going to be a hate to love romance and it was done alright. We see them develop and get to know one another, but I wasn’t super invested in their relationship.
All and all, a fun fantasy story with magic and war but nothing super different. I’m interested to see what the author does next.

Wren, soldier and healer for her country, which had been in a war for decades, only wants to win the queen's (her aunt) favor. But Wren continues to make fatal errors; it seems her heart is just not meant for a soldier's life... at least that's what her commander and her queen keep telling her. So, after she is banished from all she knows, she answers a summons that may allow her to reclaim her life and the queen's favor. Or perhaps she may find something else...
Overall, a decent read that is action-packed and suspenseful with a dash of romance to keep up the sparks.

Nondescript. Poorly drawn and an insufferable heroine made for an unengaging read that I would not recommend to anyone.

I want to start this off with the most important part of this review, and that is that I would die for Wren and Hal.

This book made its way onto my list because the words, gothic, romance, and enemies were used in the span of a sentence. I honestly didn’t need to know anything else about the book other than that. Of course, when I did realize it was two kingdoms about to be at war again with each other and the main character had magic, I dove head first into this book.

I don’t think I ever willingly put this book down, except when I first started, simply because I thought I was reading it too fast and didn’t want it to end. That was just me at 20%! Next time I sat down I made it 70% and only put it down because I had to return to work. Safe to say that I didn’t take it slow for the ending of this book. I devoured it. I couldn’t stop reading it. Like yes, we had these two kingdoms at war, and I thought I would want to see the action of that, but since this story takes place mostly within this manor? Estate? You get a more creepier feel to it.

I don’t even know what more to say that wouldn’t be spoilers and isn’t just more of me screaming about how much I loved this book!

Down Comes the Night is an epic tale, full of mystery and intrigue. It sweeps you away from the first page in to a well crafted and fully immersive world that makes you feel you are experiencing the story along with the characters. An absolute must read.