I went into this book excited to get a chance to read it, but it did not live up to my expectations. The characters were great, and I love the relationship between family members in this one. I didn't mind the romance although I wouldn't say I feel strongly about it. This was a new adult book that reads like a young adult read minus a few scenes. The world building was a letdown, with descriptions being so vague that I struggled to picture what the world looks like. This book just didn't feel dark and horror like. I will say I did love the end of this book.

One Dark Window has been one of my most anticipated releases for so long, and it did not disappoint! I loved reading from Elspeth's perspective. She was smart and savvy, and her relationship with the Nightmare was endlessly fascinating. I also adored the tarot-themed magic system, which was unlike anything I had ever read before. I would absolutely recommend One Dark Window for YA readers who are looking for an accessible adult fantasy novel, or anyone who loves a dark fantasy with a dash of romance!

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this one!

"The Cards, The Mist, The Blood."

A dark, gloomy atmosphere. The main character, Elspeth, dealing with an unknown entity insider her head. It was gothic to its core with the imagery, a disease, supernatural powers, ancient entities. I really loved the concept of magic in this one being 12 Providence Cards, each has a power to grant, but can also take from the user the longer it's used. There are others that can be infected and gain unknown magical abilities that are shunned and illegal in Blunder. With magic, everything comes at a price.

I really enjoyed reading this book from Elspeth's POV, you rarely know what's going on outside of what she knows and I enjoy that in a book. I loved everybody in the Yew castle, Ravyn, Jespyr, and ahhh Elm, I love Elm lol I'm excited to see what comes next in the second book, especially after that ending!!

I absolutely loved this book! I couldn't put it down. The balance between Fantasy and Romance was perfect. I need to sequel ASAP.

Wow, this book was great! I have been anticipating this book for a while - since I first heard about it months and months ago - and it did not disappoint. I really liked Elspeth's character, and the relationship with the monster in her head as it continued gaining strength. I thought the love story between her and the Captain of the Destriers, I thought it was well-written.

And the ending - what a cliffhanger. I'm so excited for the sequel!

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit books for access to this e-ARC.
•
One Dark Window is everything a dark, gothic fantasy should be. It is pressurized, volatile, unsettling and mesmerizing. The world is fully realized and seeped in lore. You can smell the salt and feel the cool mist that seeps through the pages. You are as desperate to understand the riddles unfolding as Elspeth and her allies. You fear the nightmare in the night, and get caught up in the tangled stories of the Shepherd King. You will balk at the true cost of the Providence Cards. You will find yourself turning the last page before you are ready, and you will be eager to discover what secrets lie, as yet untold, in the next book. I know I certainly am.
•
An easy 5 stars.

Elspeth tries to help find all 12 of the Providence Cards which will cure the land, and her.

I absolutely LOVED this dark fantasy. It constantly kept me on my toes. Elspeth has another 'voice' or creature in her mind who talks to her and helps her at times but we keep questioning if we can trust it. She finds herself with a rag-tag group of people who are commenting treason with the best of intentions. The banter with all the characters is so fun. Each chapter begins with a rhyme, of sorts, within what looks to be a card. I really enjoyed those. The creature, Nightmare, that lives inside Elspeth's head speaks in rhymes and riddles at times. It's such a cool feel. Sometimes if gave me Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde vibes. Some twists were pretty surprising to me. At one point I kept going back like, 'did I miss something!?' Ugh! So so good! Highly, highly recommend.

The romances is a crazy mesh of tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fake courting, 'will they, won't they?'...absolutely well done. I would consider this more upper YA or even New Adult though with one, very elegantly done bedroom scene.

I really enjoyed this book. The tone was spot on, and the characters were enjoyable and root-worthy. While the book reminded me quite a bit of Vespertine at times, it was also very different in tone. The Nightmare was ominous, scary, and snarky all at the same time, while Ravyn was a great ally for Elispeth. The magic system/world-building was really well-done. I enjoyed this book so much that I went out a bought a hard copy!

My first thoughts starting to read through One Dark Window were how I’ve never read anything quite like this before. The writing hooked me in and I couldn’t stop reading.

The world building was gradual and easy to follow, I didn’t feel very lost making sense of everything.

There was a scene that happened that was intimate. Not to wordy but enough.

I feel like I read this book at the perfect time. Our weather has been very dreary and even foggy some days, so it fit in with the atmosphere of this book perfectly !!!

The cover is really stunning and I found myself going back to look at it throughout my time reading.

It leaves off on a cliff hanger of sorts, so I’m excited for the release of the second book!

This story threw me into a book hangover that I’m still not quite over…I loved this spooky, atmospheric tale and didn’t want it to end!

🖤 According to the author, this story was inspired by the beloved poem “The Highwayman” (which I was completely <i>obsessed</i> with in middle school). I think this book has more in common with the overall vibe and cadence of the poem, more so than the actual plot (besides a few key points). I LOVED the lines of poetry from <i>The Old Book of Alders</i> at the beginning of each chapter, and how the Nightmare that lives in Elspeth’s head is always speaking in rhyme.
🖤 Magic being outlawed is nothing new in fantasy, but the Providence Cards were a GREAT opportunity for unique worldbuilding to shine - and to showcase the political corruption, scheming and secrets afoot in the kingdom. (And on the flip side re: the Nightmare, I’m always a sucker for the Venom-but-make-it-fantasy trope 🙂)
🖤 The story featured a great cast of varied characters - including a tight-knit found family, and quite a few characters that you love to hate (looking at you, Hauth 😒)
🖤 The romance was sweet (and even a little bit steamy!), with slightly older protagonists which I always appreciate. Elspeth did read a little young to me because she was sheltered/in hiding for so long, but she had no problem taking the reins of her own life once the opportunity arose.
🖤 The adventure, life and death secrets, and tension you can cut with a knife (that truth or dare scene, anyone??) kept me on the edge of my seat! The ending was wild and left me with so many questions…how are we going to fix this??? I can’t WAIT for book 2 to release!

Major thanks to Netgalley, Orbit Books and the author for the opportunity to read an eARC in exchange for my thoughts!

A huge thank you to Netgalley, Orbit publishing, and Rachel Gilling for the advanced readers copy of One Dark Window.

My review of this is occurring after the publishing date, but I am so glad I read this stunning dark fantasy!

Do you like enemies to lovers? Found family? Forced proximity? A very cool magic system?

Congrats! This book is for you.

This book has it all, an excellent plot, compelling characters, romance that didn’t completely overtake the plot, interesting side characters, and interesting twist and turns.

The pace for me was a little slow at times and with any powers / magic / abilities books it took me a moment to get the magic system and how it worked. But once you get about a third of the way into the book everything just seems to click.

I’ll be reading the next book in this series as well as buying a paperback when it comes out.

Loved.

This is one of those books that I am really glad that I went into knowing nothing other than "fantasy" and "tarot" because I get the impression many readers were let down by the marketing buzzwords used around this book that weren't quite accurate. I can see their points, and I also agree that this book does toe the adult/YA line.

Anyway- I went into this with no particular expectations, and I was very pleasantly surprised! I am admittedly a sucker for anything that involves tarot, and I love how Gillig worked those elements into this novel. I really enjoyed the little poems and illustrations, and I totally dug Elspeth's special connection with the cards. The whole magic system in this book was fun, even the "disease affliction" aspect isn't totally original.

I will definitely continue with this series- I found it very compelling and binge-worthy and it definitely scratched whatever reading itch I was feeling at the moment.

(Also, I really love the cover- so great job to the designer!)

Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy!

Rachel Gillig's One Dark Window was a great novel to end the month and usher in the spooky season. A countryside filled with a menacing mist. Monsters that talk to the main character. Political machinations. Family drama. It is quite the story, and Elspeth is quite the character. Between the Nightmare, her partnership with the highwaymen, and her complicated relationship with her father, Elspeth has to deal with more than your average female. She does so with courage, passion, and compassion. The ever-growing presence of the Nightmare adds its complications and fascination to the point where I tore through the novel too fast and finished it too quickly. Now I have to wait until the sequel, and that's just too long.

A compelling, lush fantasy with world-building that dominates and a romance that will delight fans of Hannah Whitten and Sarah J, Maas. I will definitely be reading more from Rachel Gillig in the future.

This book is incredible. I love the relationship between the magic and users in this book. I need the next book in this series ASAP!

This book took a minute to get into and was a little confusing at first in regards to the magic system. Once I got into it however, it was almost impossible to out down. Gillig wrote a very interesting world and very interesting characters (that I can't wait to read more of). It started out kind of in a YA vein, but takes some dark and violent turns that make it more of an adult fantasy.

The relationship between Ellspeth and the Nightmare was very engaging. Sometimes it seemed like it wanted nothing more than to be in control, but at the same time, it seems to have at least some caring towards her. Ellspeth's relationship with Ravyn was also rocky at the start, and their journey towards each other was quite good. Almost no one else seemed to accept her the way he did... even when he was suspicious about what she was hiding.

I am quite excited to read the conclusion of this adventure in the next book and I hope to see a good ending for Ellspeth.

This book was a breath of fresh air in a vast sea of dark fantasy novels. I sincerely can’t think of one thing I didn’t like about it.

Oh! I know! It’s that I don’t have the second book in my hands right this second.

“One Dark Window'', and Gillig’s writing in general, remind me of Hannah Whitten, Ava Reid, and even a bit of Margaret Rogerson. I’m loving these fantasy writers who aren’t afraid to shy away from the dark side of fantasy, especially when it comes to instilling that dark side in their female protagonists. Shying away from toxic masculinity where they can, giving their females power and agency to make their decisions about what to do with that power–for ill or for good–and not insulting their readers by beating it into our heads that balance is the key, because we all know that by now.

At the same time, Gillig also reminds me of those same writers because of the evocative imagery, the lush prose, the thought and care put into her very intriguing magic system (and can I just say I’m loving it?), and the care she puts into her characterizations.

What does seem to set Gillig apart here is her imagination. Nothing in fantasy is original, but Gillig has found new and unique ways to spin just about every trope, trick, and “way of doing things” to her own tune. I’d give you some examples, but there be spoilers. Let’s stay away from those shoals.

If you’re looking for a great dark fantasy read, I definitely recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for granting me access to this title.

Please note this review is being written as part of a series of backdated ARC reviews that were due earlier in the year but, for one reason or another, I wasn’t able to get to them by the publication date.

File Under: 5 Star Books/Fantasy Series/Dark Fantasy/Fairy Tale/Fantasy Romance

This book surprised me! I loved the world building and the relationships. I need the second book asap! If you love enemies to lovers and romance fantasy, this is definitely the book to read!

I was Super excited to see another Gothic fantasy novel as I love Gothic stories, especially ones that can lean a little bit dark or a little bit more spooky. I can definitely see why it was recommended for fans of the wolves or uprooted as it definitely had similar vibes at parts. The nightmare was fantastic and I was really excited once the plot started ramping up. The romance was wonderful and I cannot wait for the next book to know more about what happened!

My bad that I didn't check it was only Book One! Grrrr. It was like Caraval/Uprooted and The Bear and the Nightingale, with bits and pieces of each type of story interwoven here. It was actually interesting and engaging and I like the premise and the characters. Hopefully book 2 will take us in a new direction, bc there's alot unanswered while still feeling like there was already a full story.