THE STARVING STAINS is beautifully written despite the descriptive text being confusing from time to time. It made some of the major plot points, including the ending, seem unclear. What I did enjoy was the pacing. Starling provides a meticulous outline between the exposition, climaxes, and the in-between horrors once the Saints arrive.

Since this book has cannibalism (due to manipulation and trickery from the saints who make their way into the castle), so keep this in mind if that isn’t a taboo you like to read about.

Thank you Harper Voyager for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I usually like Caitlin Starling, but honestly, this was just boring. A waste of a pretty cover. The stage setting at the beginning was intriguing but then it quickly lost steam and didn't go anywhere. I wanted more horror and spook.

The premise of this book really intrigued me, but I had some issues with the plot and execution. The horror aspect of this book is very well-done, There's an ever-present sense of dread and unsettledness, Starling does a great job in constructing atmosphere, and I thought the tightly focused setting helped the characters shine at the forefront of the story. However, there is an overall muddiness to the plot itself and in the writing that weakens the overall narrative. I did think the medieval horror setting was really unique; it brings something fresh to the genre. I also thought the recurring themes of hunger and hierarchy were fascinating.

Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for sending an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really thought I knew what I was getting myself into with this book. I was so wrong, and I’m happy I was. I’ve heard others describe this book as a sticky fever dream, they are a 10000% correct. It felt like a roller coaster that just kept going, with no end in sight. If this was turned into a movie, I could see a Nicholas Cage freak out somewhere mixed in. This book is probably what his dreams are made of. It kept me on my toes & always trying to guess what was next. If you want a fast paced, fever dream with sprinkles of some cosmic-esque horror, get this. I will be adding this to my collection for the cover alone, ugh, it’s everything!
Thank you so much to the Author, Publishers, NetGalley for this ARC.

The Starving Saints is a unique Gothic horror set in a medieval period within a fictional world. It follows three women who live in a castle that has been under siege for the last several months. The inhabitants are starving to death, and one of the main characters is tasked with coming up with a miracle: make food out of nothing before they all die. This impossible task seems no longer necessary when the saints they worship, such as the Constant Lady and the Loving Saint, appear offering them their magic to save them all from starvation. What follows is odd, dream-like, as the main characters try to keep their people alive.

The story alternates between the points of view of the three main characters at the end of each chapter. The madwoman, tasked with making miracles, the knight who serves the king, and a woman who has her own agenda in the castle. Each of the characters was very distinct. However, I felt like there wasn't a lot of world-building outside of what was currently happening inside the castle walls. Only one of the main characters had a substantial backstory, and the lack of world-building made it challenging to care about the characters. The whole world just felt very empty. And once the saints arrive and magic is happening, there is little explanation or exploration of why or how things happen. If you don't mind not understanding the magic going on, this is a pretty interesting story that keeps you engaged. Just don't expect to understand everything in the end.

Trigger Warnings: cannibalism

If you like original, dark, and weird books, definitely give The Starving Saints a try. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

Who doesn't love medieval fantasy-esque world with a healthy dose of hedonism and horror? I know I do!

⭐️4.5

This is one of the most unique stories I’ve ever read. It really throws you into the story with no background information, which makes everything feel like a fever dream the entire book. This did a great job at blending horror, gothic, and queer in a way that kept me guessing at every corner. I loved the religious honey/bees aspect and the eerie and claustrophobic atmosphere. It’s probably not for everyone, but it was for me

KINDLE. I really enjoyed this one, did not understand a lot of what was happening and felt like there were parts that weren’t mentioned??????? But that’s totally the vibe of this book too so that would make sense. This was super fun to imagine my friends in the main character roles too.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC of this book for an honest review.

Where to begin with this one? In simplest terms, I loved it.
The atmosphere of this book really sells it. The characters are stuck, trapped in Aymar's castle, surrounded and starving. The tone is already dire, and only grows more so as the book goes on. The book has a slow start, with things only kicking up in pace when the saints arrive. However, there are small references and motifs that play a huge part in the end without you even realizing it. Masterful writing truly.
I loved the main characters. they are ruthless, clever, and so very human. Phosyne's equal parts cowardliness & ruthlessness were one of my favorite aspects of character work throughout the book. Voyne's perspective was probably the most depressing, but also showed an optimistic point of view that the other characters don't care to acknowledge. And Treila, I wasn't expecting to like her, but she has definitely grown on me. At some points she felt like the most level headed character out of the three.
The magic in territory was intriguing, it felt like an original concept I haven't seen before. The saints were amazingly creepy and the visual sentient horror towards the end was delightful. I will never look at honey the same again.
The only qualm I had with this book was the quick ending. I wish there was an epilogue of some sort. regardless, the ending stuck the landing

Thank you NetGalley & Avon and Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read and review The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling.

Actual Rating 3.5

This was such a weird read, which is exactly what I was hoping for. It's pretty disjointed near the beginning (for about the first 20 to 30 percent), which made it difficult to become immersed in the story or the characters. But it soon found its rhythm as the POVs merged more, making it much more enjoyable. The last 40 percent of the work was much better and flowed more smoothly/felt more cohesive overall.

The writing style and genre mashup of this one contributes to its oddness. It feels somewhere between literary fiction, magical realism/light fantasy, and light horror. I don't have much to say about the characters. I didn't really like them or dislike them, and it was hard to say if they were written well and just got somewhat lost beneath everything else going on.

I can't say much due to spoilers, but I LOVED what the author chose to do with the Lady and the Saints. As soon as we got more information about them, my rating jumped up a whole star, and the more we saw of them, the more I enjoyed the work. The lore included with them was excellent (though the author didn't tell all, which left plenty of room for imagination) as well as the way they were written and their personalities. It was honestly perfection, and I would love to see more fantasy authors go this route.

If you're looking for a weird fantasy horror that feels like a fever dream more often than not, then this is a must read. Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper and Avon Voyager for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was a wild, horrific ride and I loved every minute of it. Once the saints arrived I couldn’t put the book down, eager to turn each page and find out what happened next.

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager for the e-copy ARC of The Starving Saints! Involving a castle under siege, starving residents, a loyal Ser Voyne, a sorceress who was once a nun, and a woman hell-bent on revenge this story has it all! Driven to the end of their rope with no hope of salvation and dwindling food reserves, the King suggests a food source no one would dare speak of. As their castle is crumbling from this desperation, saints somehow enter castle. Dark forces are at work in every corner of this castle - trust is not so easy to be earned. This sapphic story leaves you questioning every entity encountered and the true price of bargains. I enjoyed the character development - especially for Phosyne. The story pacing was good, and the characters were interesting. I recommend this story to Fantasy lovers!

Medieval horror intrigued me, but this felt more made up than actually medieval historical fiction. Starting off the castle is under duress, but we don’t know why or what is really going on. Slowly, we get little pieces, but the story felt very much like a maniacal fever dream, which I enjoyed… until I didn’t.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot to enjoy for a horror reader, it’s unhinged, atmospheric, a tiny bit sapphic, visceral, cannibalistic… but it also felt like a long, slow, build up for not much of an ending. I enjoyed it but I also felt confused and annoyed if that makes any sense at all. I’ll definitely still read more from Starling. Thanks to Harper Voyager for my eARC.

This was bizarre in all the best ways. The culty aspect was also just fascinating. The way the toxic codependent relationship was shown was *chef's kiss*. This was such a compelling, weird read. Creepy and well-written, I highly recommend everyone check this out!

Was super excited to read this! Very cool concept, but I had a hard time following the thread. The characters were so compelling, but I felt like at least one of the POVs fell flat. What a tangled, horny web. Wish I had liked this a lot more than I did.

I absolutely Loved this story, the characters, the twists and turns, as well as the magic. It was such a great ride. I Really do love the Mix of medieval times, the unique religion and horror, and psychological aspects that are intertwined in the story It definitely left me on the edge of my seat. Plus who doesn’t love a queer romance mixed into that.

One castle. Three women. And a starvation siege broken by a horrifying miracle, one which may cause the trapped occupants to wonder if they were better off without it.

This was a very surreal and dreamlike novel, but one I appreciated for how starkly different it is from anything else I've recently read. It very much operates on what I might call 'vibes'; the plot and prose bask lovingly in the themes of body horror, hunger, devotion, and fealty without worrying too deeply about explaining any of the mechanics of what plays out. Even though the dreamlike style sometimes caused me to feel a little bit too unmoored from the characters and what was happening, I could never guess where the story would go next and remained hooked all the way through. Without giving too much away, the horror style touches on the eldritch, the fae, the gory, and the holy and somehow manages to find a very interesting balance among them.

Two 'read-alike' type titles that came to mind as I read were the Locked Tomb series and the horror podcast The Magnus Archives, so if you enjoyed either or both of those you will likely feel right at home with this novel!

There are only 15 days of food left. The refugees in the besieged Aymar castle have waited almost six months for rescue. Sorceress and former nun, Phosyne, performed a miracle and cleansed the fouled water; now, the king demands she also miraculously create food. Creating a purifying powder is not the same as conjuring matter from air, especially since Phosyne’s magic happens with no conscious or directed thought. However, the king is convinced she only needs motivation and a minder.

Once a savior on the battlefield, Ser Voyne is reduced to being the king’s treasured lapdog—neutered and kept to heel. She should be bathing in the blood of the enemy, not corralling an increasingly desperate and hostile people. Babysitting the heretical madwoman is another distasteful mouthful of disrespect, but obeying her king is paramount. If Ser Voyne has to strangle a miracle out of the rotting, bedraggled woman, she will do so with pleasure.

Treila knows how to survive hunger. Stripped of her noble status and left to starve in bitter winter woods, she’s learned cleverness, self-preservation, and the art of replacing a physical hunger with an emotional one. Hate provides sustenance like nothing else. She plies her trade as a rat catcher for coin as she searches for a way out—and a way to exact vengeance before she slips through the cracks to freedom.

When the Constant Lady and Her Saints suddenly appear within the barricaded walls, providing health and feasts, all but Treila and Phosyne fall to their knees in obeisance. Phosyne knows that something cannot come from nothing. Treila knows that nothing comes without a price. Soon, all three women join forces to find deliverance.

However, their methods often conflict, and trust is hard to find when even kindness can be cutting and mercenary. While they resist the temptation of forsaken food, they are not immune to the rising steam of cruelty and violence, nor their spiritual cravings. As the world breaks around them, will they have the strength to change or will they too be shattered and swallowed?

The Starving Saints is an engaging tale about the power of self-determination, faith, and resilience. The tension, uncertainty, and treacherous atmosphere are well established, and the characters’ struggles are vivid. Centered in religious themes, the rites and symbols are subverted to explore ideas regarding morality, blind devotion, etc. There is relatively little gore for a book featuring cannibalism. The horror is less in the flesh and more in the connotations—disquieting for its dreamlike exaltation. The story deals heavily in loss, particularly loss of self. Phosyne, Treila, and Ser Voyne are tangled in a complicated web of desires for themselves and one another, and their arcs are singular and complementary in nature.

Each woman’s spirit is on the knife’s-edge of famine, and the otherworldly invaders expose a need that will consume them if they fail to understand it and own their power. Phosyne lost herself in a limitless search for knowledge, and the Saints offer her the magical control and comprehension she craves. For years, Treila has shifted herself to blend in and survive, now surviving is all she does. Proximity to the woman who ended her world convinces Treila that revenge will reclaim her power and identity. Ser Voyne desires simple purpose in a complicated and duplicitous world. Her loyalty to higher powers and adherence to orders is absolute, even when she doubts. Without a guiding hand, she is impotent. With a guiding hand, she is an impotent puppet.

While more horrific nightmare than horror, The Starving Saints still relies on horror conventions that appear more in service to specific outcomes and not solely in terror-based reasoning, such as lack of communication and incongruous choices/realizations in critical moments. This leads to some repetitiveness, which is also present in conveyance of their struggles, especially with Phosyne. Her magic is where the story is mostly vibes and psychedelic mind expansion, so there is much reiterated ephemera.

The relationship dynamics are also skewed. They are all bound by blood and power, but Treila and Ser Voyne feel like equals. Their connection has depth, as it’s built on their history and its echoes of courtly love. Phosyne feels like a line segment attached to a circle. For much of the book, she is a tool that Ser Voyne is angry with (and wants to/does choke out) and a threat. She becomes the powerful chaos cat that needs caretaking.

Ser Voyne finds grace for Phosyne, but admittedly sees her as a duty she cannot abandon, and Treila could take or leave her. Treila and Ser Voyne also obtain power over themselves, while Phosyne only temporarily owns herself. It’s interesting if her desire for freedom and mastery of herself comes from being mastered, but in a way, she ends where she begins—apart, controlled, and only useful for the magic she wields.

However, all the journeys are compelling, and the imagery, folklore, and magic are interesting. If you pick up The Starving Saints, don’t be surprised if you’re put off honey for a while.

this was … not it 😭 i loved the thought of cannibalism, saints, lesbians, and horror but unfortunately it all felt flat and was so confusing. it took me 30% of the book to become interested and then i was immediately lost and confused for the rest of the book. i didn’t feel attached to any of the characters. the magic was weird? and not a good weird, a wtf is happening i don’t understand kinda weird. i liked the idea of the saints and what they served in the story, but again the magic of it didn’t make any sense. i would like to try this author again in the future, unfortunately this book was not for me.

The Starving Saints was good. It was a bit overlong for the story but it gets huge bonus points for a medieval fantasy focusing on three women!