**Thank you to NetGalley and DAW Books for the eARC of this beautiful title!!**

Just the cover alone would have sold me on this one, but I was also obsessed with The Forever Sea by this author and knew I needed to check this one out.

While being a bit long for my taste, it ended up flying by as I couldn’t put it down. Johnson has a way of building these big, beautiful worlds that feel vast but super connected at the same time.

I felt fully immersed in the world of The Bloodless Queen and would recommend it to fans of fantasy and magic! I will absolutely be on the edge of my seat to see what this author comes out with next!

Honestly, this was such an interesting book and I really liked the concept. My main complaint is the sheer amount of info dumping and what felt like side quests. While I don't necessarily mind it, the "telling versus showing" aspect of this dystopian fantasy really dragged it down.

I requested the Bloodless Queen in an attempt to find a new and unique story from a new author, on the chance I would enjoy it. I was becoming frustrated with novels following similar patterns and themes and by the end it would feel similar to every other book I had recently read.
The Bloodless Queen was fantastic. Joshua Phillip Johnson is an author I was familiar with and I found his writing very enjoyable.
The Bloodless Queen follows Cal and Evangeline, fencers (similar to warriors with extra abilities) trained to protect their sector once a year when faeries target them. It follows an alternative history during the Reagan administration where scientists and environmentalists discovered Vicious creatures that emerged when a human died on the Long Day. The government divided the country into harbours which were protected with large gates and fences.
Spouses Cal and Evangeline have a young daughter, Minnie. They attempt to balance normal family like and their important roles as fencers. Individuals become fencers when their Prime emerges. This develops with tattoos and abilities. The book follows the pair as they near the Long Day, the day they fight to protect their home. The author does a great job introducing the world and establishing the system. It can appear sometimes in an overwhelming way and the world building is too much. Johnson incorporates small excerpts from fictional books that explains key aspects within the book. These were great additions.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. The characters were interesting, the world and magic system was intriguing and the mysterious plot kept me engaged and wanting more throughout.
I will definitely be looking out for future releases by Joshua Phillip Johnson. Thank you for the eARC!

An enjoyable read where the fantastical meets the reality of what happens when magic creeps into the real world. With standalone novels it can be hard to deflty create a world woth depth and nuance and as a result, the setting can sometimes feel flat. That's not the case with The Bloodless Queen. Johnson uses the world we know to his advantage, building and shaping the differences to highlight what makes this world so unique and brings depth to both the outside world and the Harbors. Johnson brings this same touch to the characters, creating figures with whom its possible to both empathize and fear. The plot was solid and while it felt a little slow at times, it all came together to tell a story that pulls on the heartstrings. I very much enjoyed this read and look forward to reading more from this author.

I wish I liked this book. The idea of faeries being almost like a plague that harms humans and makes them monstrous was a fantastic idea but to me it just felt lackluster. Also the fixation on the Reagan administration was offputting for me. I feel like this book wanted to be like Men in Black so badly it lost what could have been special about it.

Part sci-fi thriller, part mystery, 100% heart destroyer.

I really enjoyed The Bloodless Queen. The author builds the tension so slowly and subtly that you don't even realise you are stressed until your jaw starts hurting from the tension. The characters weave their way around your heart.
The atmosphere, the characters, the conspiracies, the religious corruption, THE DOG!!!! I felt like I was watching a scary movie, trying to figure out where the jump scare was going to come from. I knew whichever way the book went it was going to hurt my feelings and Joshua Phillip Johnson absolutely delivered.
This story touches on many important themes. Environmental issues, religion, government corruption, grief, trauma and family. With everything going on within the book, with all the characters you meet, you never lose sight of the most important part of the story and that is Calidore, Evangeline, Winnie and Tennyson.

The Bloodless Queen takes its time, it refuses to rush and doesn't waste a single word. I really appreciated the way the story was told. It was an incredibly well put together story and absolutely worth a read.

I am bummed that I found this one not working for me, but much as other books I have decided to abandon, it isn’t because this is a bad story! In fact, I daresay it is the opposite- the writing seemed quite good, and the scope of the world building was absolutely impressive! No, I think it was just a bit much for me, a little more fantasy than I’d expected. As such, there was just a lot going on, and my mind simply could not wrap itself around all of the things. I felt like I had to keep re-reading to try to figure things out, and I was growing frustrated. This is not the book’s failing, it is mine. In fact, this would be one that I truly would give another chance to if I had a bit more time and brain power, but alas.

I featured The Bloodless Queen in my July 2025 new releases video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5JWYTfUVq4, and though I have not read it yet, I am so excited to and expect 5 stars! I will update here when I post a follow up review or vlog.

4.5 / 5 stars

On the autumnal equinox of 1987, over 100,000 people died – but instead of staying dead, they came back as fae-like zombies, spreading chaos before disappearing into huge, fenced-off nature preserves called Harbors. Every year since, on that same day, the dead rise again, fueling whispers of a mysterious bloodless faerie queen who rules the wilds beyond the fences.

Fast forward to today: Calidore and Evangeline are “fencers,” government agents marked by magical prime number tattoos, tasked with keeping the fragile boundary between humans and faerie intact. When they’re not battling supernatural threats, they’re devoted parents trying to give their nearly seven-year-old daughter, Winnie, as normal a life as possible – filled with scavenger hunts, chess games, and good old-fashioned Pizza Nights.

But as the next equinox approaches, Cal and Evangeline stumble into a conspiracy that could unravel everything they’ve fought to protect. With the fate of the world hanging in the balance, they must face the dark secrets lurking at the heart of the Harbors – and make impossible choices about what it means to survive.

You know that feeling when you finish a book and it lingers in your mind for days, pulling you back into its strange, unsettling world? The Bloodless Queen is that kind of book.

Imagine Annihilation’s eerie, encroaching wilderness, the mutant hero energy of X-Men, and the mythic pulse of The Faerie Queen, all stitched together with meticulous world-building that rewards patient, curious readers. This book is dense with lore (and I say that as a compliment), offering a world I would happily return to in future books. I get the sense there’s still so much more to explore.

The story is anchored by the beautiful family at its core: Cal, Evangeline, and Winnie. I loved how they try to carve out a sense of normalcy in a world that’s anything but, holding tight to scavenger hunts and pizza nights even as they wield terrifying powers and stand between humanity and the faerie unknown. Their devotion made the book’s quieter moments shine, and when the stakes rose, it was their love for each other that gave the ending its emotional punch (yes, I cried).

If you’re looking for a gothic thriller, as the blurb suggests, you might find this leans more toward lush sci-fi/fantasy with occasional moments of creeping dread. And if you’re hoping for an Orpheus retelling, know that thread doesn’t truly surface until deep into the story – though when it does, it may not take the form you are expecting. But it lands with power.

I listened to this on audio, narrated by Eric Altheide, who offers a steady, clear performance that lets the story shine without distraction – solid, if not a standout for me.

In all, The Bloodless Queen is a rewarding, layered read for those who love patient world-building, unique magic systems, and sci-fi that bumps up against the supernatural.

I wasn't sure how I felt about this book at first because it wasn't clear from the synopsis that it's really a superhero story, and I am not a fan of superheroes, typically. For being supposedly eco-futurism it had very little environmentalism in it. I like DC but I usually find the MCU tedious. It had a slow start, and I found the worldbuilding confusing at first. But I am glad I gave it a chance because the story and especially the characters grew on me. I also found the worldbuilding fresh and inventive.

Cal and Evangeline are married fencers in the future on an alternate Earth in which humans turn into fae every equinox. Fencers guard the safety of human habitations from the radiation and waste in the fae world, a scheme designed by Reagan in the 80s, who became a cultist after reading a book. But his so-called environmentalism was misguided.

I found it refreshing how finally we do not have sparkly faeries like usual, but rather they are monstrous, murderous beings without any morality or reason. It was interesting to see the ethical dilemmas in which this plays out, as fencers and the family of the transformed humans wonder if any part of the human is left in there. There is even a church that has formed, the Sylvans, to worship the Faerie Queen and the fae, even though they ruthlessly slaughter 80,000 humans a year.

The fencers are basically superheroes, who one day get a prime number mysteriously tattooed on their body that confers upon them supernatural abilities to protect humanity from the fae.

The story dripped with dystopian dread and conspiracy, which I usually see from zombie tales and rarely faeries.

Cal and Evangeline have a six-year-old child, Winnie, and a Newfoundland named Tennyson; Newfoundlands as well have been given supernatural powers to protect. I loved the Newfoundland, and no dog deaths in this story thankfully. I loved the scenes of these three (and four counting the cute dog) as a loving family because I so rarely see healthy married couples represented in fiction. I loved the relationship they had as a couple and as a family, and how they supported each other as a family through their dangerous work. The family bonding scenes were heartwarming and also foreshadowing.

The gripping story kept me riveted as a conspiracy involving the government and the church is revealed. Ever since the pandemic I have been wary of dystopian fiction because it led me to believe that humans would act differently than they did in the face of global catastrophe. But this really felt like how humans would act if fae creatures took over the world.

I almost wish this was a series because I would read more of this world.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book is a whisper in the trees, a rustle behind the fence, and a slow, creeping realization that the fae aren’t just folklore—they're watching.

Part myth, part eco-horror, part gothic love letter to grief and the unknowable, this novel plunges you into a near-future where the dead don’t stay dead—they become something else entirely. The Harbors are not just nature preserves; they’re thresholds—into the wild, the fae, and the kind of magic that doesn’t ask permission and never promises mercy.

Evangeline and Calidore—fencers, partners, parents—are exactly the kind of characters you follow into the dark. Their love is worn but real, their power is mysterious (tattoos of prime numbers?? yes please), and their desperation to protect their daughter from the coming equinox is both tender and terrifying. As the date approaches, the story tightens like a snare, luring you deeper into riddles, rituals, and an unearthly conspiracy that makes you question the boundary between myth and memory.

Imagine Annihilation meets Pan’s Labyrinth, filtered through a ghostly lens of lost lives and creeping dread. The writing is lush, strange, and quietly devastating. It hums with questions: What are we willing to fence off to survive? What do we lose when we close ourselves off from the wild? And what happens when the wild wants back in?

If you’re looking for a novel that’s equal parts speculative thriller, tragic love story, and eerie, moss-draped fairy tale—this one will haunt you beautifully.

I am become grief. Not since watching the documentary “Dear Zachary” years ago have I been this emotionally wrecked, nay, emotionally destroyed.

If I had to guess, the author has lost someone very, very close to him. I’ve never seen grief displayed so perfectly on pages. The characters are crafted so well that I grew to love them, and their losses became mine.

I wept throughout the last quarter of the book, and I outright sobbed for about ten minutes after finishing. The characters felt like my own family.

If you only read one book this month, or even year, read this one. It is utterly unique in a way that is difficult to explain, but essentially it mixes fantasy and science fiction in a manner that just WORKS. To be fair, the first part of the book is a slow burn, but it is giving you both backstory and important clues that you have to piece together to understand *why* the characters do what they do later on. The author even quotes from a book written by a minor character, and all of the footnotes can be found at the end. Everything is explained in even greater detail there.

You might be wondering how someone can craft a beautiful world where mathematicians, fae, religious sycophants and superheroes collide, and all I can say is:

READ THIS BOOK.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and DAW for the advance copy. I am writing this review entirely voluntarily.

This took me a minute to get into, but once I did, I couldn’t put it down. I am obsessed with the magic system based on prime numbers and how the fae in this world aren’t quite like your usual fantasy fae. This world is a semi-futuristic Earth that is this way because of the fact that on one autumnal equinox, everyone who died became a fae creature. It is easy to get sucked into the political intrigue between the fencers, the ones who have the prime number based powers and protect the world from fae, governments, and a weird religion that is built around worshipping the fae queen.

This story will take you to some unexpected places and leave you lost in your feelings.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

In 1987, I was seven years old, eating burritos and rocking out to the movie The Chipmunk Adventure. In Joshua Phillip Johnson’s alternate history, 1987 played out very differently. In this world, people who died on the autumn equinox didn’t stay dead. Instead, they became fae—inhuman and dangerous beings who maim and kill anyone standing between them and the protected areas of the world known as Harbors.

The story is set in the present day and follows Evangeline and Calidore, a married couple who serve as fencers in the Midwest Harbor. Fencers are essentially government-sanctioned superheroes, granted unique powers through prime number tattoos that mysteriously appear on their skin. The smaller the prime number, the greater the power. Evangeline and Calidore juggle the looming threat of the equinox with the recent death of Cal’s father, the challenges of raising their nearly seven-year-old daughter Winnie, the rise of a cult-like, Fae-worshiping religion called the Church of Always Giving, and the politics of defending a world that doesn’t fully understand the danger they face. Public opinion is shifting, with many believing fencer funding could be better spent elsewhere.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Bloodless Queen. The fencer powers were original and memorable—not your standard superhero fare. I also appreciated the alternate history elements, particularly the excerpts from in-world history books. Instead of skipping over them like I sometimes do in other books, I found myself looking forward to each excerpt.

The narrative is told in third person but focuses primarily on Evangeline and Calidore. I liked both characters, though I especially connected with Calidore—probably because I’m a book nerd too. Their love and devotion to each other and their daughter was touching, even if it occasionally felt a little over the top. The pacing started off slow for me, but once the story picked up, I was hooked. By the time the climax arrived, I found myself missing the earlier, quieter moments I initially thought were too slow.

I would recommend this book to fans of fantasy. While there are sci-fi elements, the story leans more into the fantasy genre. Be aware that grief and death are central themes. Calidore’s struggle with his father’s death is a key emotional thread, and the Church of Always Giving glorifies death and suicide. The fae are terrifying, and those who die on the equinox become one of them. This book doesn’t shy away from emotional weight, so go in prepared.

One last (mild) spoiler: the dog lives.

Many thanks to NetGalley and DAW Books for the ARC. This review reflects my honest opinion.

Thank you NetGalley and DAW for sending this ARC. This review is voluntary; all opinions are my own.

For a book not actually that long, The Bloodless Queen took me longer to read than I would have predicted. I have a few theories. It certainly wasn’t for lack of interest - the premise hooked me right from the beginning and I enjoyed every second of the read. It did boast an impressive vocabulary that occasionally I had to look up, and I also liked to Google the poems referenced to refresh my memory on their thematic offerings. But I think what really slowed me down was how intelligent this work was and, relatedly, my desire to savour it.

Now, that being said, there were several points where I had to stop reading and go do something else just to give myself a little breathing room. I am, admittedly, a bit of a wimp, and there was one scene in particular where the fae in the book - what I would compare to Lovecraftian or Eldritch-style horrors if I were slightly more knowledgeable in that realm - freaked me out so badly I had to distract myself with other things for a few hours. Once my heart rate calmed down again, however, I dove headfirst right back into the book because I couldn’t stand not knowing what happened next.

The blurb describes The Bloodless Queen as “part ecological Orpheus and Eurydice myth and part gothic thriller” and I have to admit, once I finally realized where the Orpheus and Eurydice comparison was coming from, I had a deep, visceral reaction (aka I started swearing up a storm). And still, the book had its hooks dug so firmly into me, I couldn’t stop reading by that point even if I’d wanted to.

I just can’t get over how beautiful and smart the writing in this book is. It intelligently blends the fantasy, sci-fi, and gothic genres; draws poignantly from folklore, mythology, and poetry for worldbuilding and thematic contexts; and assuredly uses the writer’s craft to evoke imagery and emotion, build tension, and get your heart pounding. My favourite writing choice was the run-on sentence that lasted several pages, masterfully heightening the anxiety, panic, and dread of the scene.

I think any fantasy, sci-fi, thriller, or gothic horror fan would greatly enjoy this book. I know it’s going to be stalking the back of my mind for a long while, that’s for sure. It’s a must-read!

Thank you to NetGalley and DAW for the digital ARC for “The Bloodless Queen” by Joshua Phillip Johnson.

Starting at the beginning intro chapter, I did appreciate that faeries were not being romanticised as I’ve been seeing with more recent fantasy novels.
I really loved getting a glimpse into the family dynamic in some of the chapters. The treasure hunt with clues for Winnie reminded me of the treasure hunts with clues my parents would arrange for me when I was little. Even the pizza and game nights were incredibly wholesome. These little moments give you a glimpse of life outside of working for the government organisation. The family bond did play a huge role.

This book had such a slow start. Over 50% of the book was a glimpse into the behind the scenes of the government program, and not what I was expecting. At around the 60% mark things finally started happening once the equinox occurred, and we got a little bit of action with the organisation against the fae. For a book that's tagged sci-fi/fantasy/horror I felt kind of let down. It was more of a fantasy that touched on loss and grief, nothing in here felt like horror to me.

Side note: I felt like the book contained a lot of filler, and was unnecessarily descriptive at times. Structurally I also noticed quite a few paragraphs (9+ lines) that were just one sentence connected by commas. This exhausted me as a reader.

I enjoyed the last 40% of the book, and any of the bits with Cal, Evangeline, Winnie, and Tennyson… but the majority of it just wasn’t for me.

3/5

The opening scene of The Bloodless Queen is electric, full of fun action in a world wondrously and horrifyingly strange. Frustratingly, it quickly becomes lost in details.

Led by Ronald Reagan in the 1980’s, the entire world set aside nature preserves, now known as Harbors. These became the domain of monstrous Fae, and each autumnal equinox everyone that dies transforms into a Fae, wreaking havoc before they join their brethren in the harbors. Fencers, people granted magical powers at the same time the Harbors came into existence, are the only people who can stop them.

It's an ideal premise for a thrilling, fast-paced plot. The Bloodless Queen contains this plot, but so much of it is told rather than shown. Every fantasy book needs to provide world-building and backstory to propel itself forward. The Bloodless Queen goes overboard, stopping so frequently mid-scene to recount lore or personal and important events that the scenes become vehicles for information rather than the backstory supporting the action. It’s understandable, the world is creative and carefully thought-out, but with so little time spent in the moment, the novel struggles to maintain momentum.

For me, the problem was driven home with the reveal of the conspiracy at the novel’s center. There is nothing wrong with the conspiracy itself, it’s clever. However, the protagonists haven’t actively uncovered much of it, simply lacking key connecting details to put it all together. Instead, many clues come in info-dumps or descriptions of scenes elsewhere, with a few only being mentioned with the reveal itself. While still satisfying, the reveal isn’t nearly as effective as it could be.

The Bloodless Queen is better as it goes along with less details to fill in, the writing expertly and evocatively capturing the horrible strangeness of the Fae (even if it can sometimes be repetitive). The ending, with the plot to the fore, is moving. However, I would hesitate to recommend the novel to anyone other than those readers who are big fans of world-building.

The Bloodless Queen did an amazing job blending fantasy elements into a world that feels familiar and real. I’ve never read from this author before, and I was very impressed with how well the world was set up early in the story. There is a bit of a slow point through the middle, however I feel this still ended up delivering on expectations as well as surprising me to warrant rounding up to 5 stars.

Note: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5 stars, rounded up because I love Joshua Philip Johnsons creative approach to the fantasy genre and the unique worlds he crafts.

"The truth, made obvious every equinox, was that the fae were neither sages nor children, neither holy mother nor holy father. They were nothing human and every poetic metaphor and comparison that attempted to slot them into some stratum of human experience misunderstood the fae at grave risk."

What I loved:
In a landscape saturated with generic fantasy, I love how this author manages to take familiar concepts and turn them into the truly fantastical. His concepts and worlds are truly some of the coolest I’ve read recently: I still randomly think about his world where magical ships sail an ocean made of prairie grass (with an entirely different ecosystem on the ground level, completely hostile to the humans!), and it’s been 4 years since I’ve read that book!
The Bloodless Queen lives up to that same level of creativity. The world is vivid, the magic-system unique and the lore in-depth. It strikes the perfect balance between familiar and fantastical to transport you into its world, without overwhelming the reader.
I’ve seen people critique Johnson’s take on “fae”, saying these have nothing to do with the fae from our worlds folklore, and he should’ve picked a different name for his creatures. I highly disagree and actually think this take is more lore-accurate than your average romantasy… Fae have always been a representation of “the strange”. They’ve always been a mix of ethereal, uncanny and alien. Johnsons interpretation of them as humans morphed into almost Lovecraftian, incomprehensible creatures feels far more true to that spirit than your average handsomely brooding love interest…
This uncanny, ungraspable quality to the fae and their influence translates into some very effective horror elements that’s always particularly effective on me.
While in parts this is a high-fantasy story of fae, people with superhero-like abilities and wild and untamable landscapes, at its core is a very human base. Our protagonists Cal and Evangeline carry the story, and their devotion to their family adds a deeper layer of emotional weight to the events that follow.
I didn’t just enjoy this book whilst I was reading it, but I feel like I will be chewing on its world and concepts for a while to come.

What I didn’t love:
Having read all three of this author’s published works, I’ve noticed a consistent pattern of feeling like his pacing could do with a bit more tweaking. Specifically, I think Johnson struggles with the infamous “second-act-sag” in his three-act structure. There’s a very noticeable drop in pacing between the 30% and 70%-mark, where the novel spends a lot of time developing backstories and lore without actually progressing the main plot. On the one hand, I understand why this was necessary, as the emotional ramifications of the later events just wouldn’t have had the same impact without it. On the other hand, I think this part simply was too long, and could’ve achieved the same effect with less repetition.
To give a spoiler free concrete example: the equinox functions as the story’s midpoint break. It signals the end of the “fun and games” and turns the story in a direction that’s more personal to the characters. Yet it doesn't happen at the “midpoint”, but at the 70% mark… For all that time, we’re waiting and treading water, and I fear that some readers will DNF before this point, which is an absolute shame.

Many thanks to DAW Publishing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

That ending was so despicable dude.

On a (?)lighter(?) note, I LOVED THIS!! The worldbuilding was amazing, and Johnson's writing was so descriptive and it felt really... fluid? Idk how to describe it correctly but it felt like I was just flowing along with the story.
The characters were very well developed, though I do feel the first half of the story lagged because of the amount of character-building that was happening. I promise I cared about Evangeline and Cal (and ofc Winnie!!) from like at most page 20. However, it wasn't entirely a deal-breaker because I liked living in their heads for a long while, I just also think maybe the while was a bit too long lol.
Now let's discuss the worldbuilding! I thought it was really well done! Everything had a reason and it was clear Johnson thought about all the implications and impacts that the fae and the Harbours would have on the real world (i.e. religions, surveillance, protests, etc.) and he definitely has a good grasp of how people/society would react to this sort of thing.
I loved the undercurrent of horror that was in this because I felt very unsettled throughout the novel, and after about the 60% mark (aka the start of the Equinox) I absolutely could not put it down despite my feelings. And I was obviously very attached because after a certain phone call my stomach actually dropped. Like I'm not joking. The dread that crept in was wild.
The ending.... we must discuss it unfortunately. I'd rather not think about it, but I do understand why the choice was made, it was just heartbreaking! I thought I knew what was going to happen but I was horribly wrong :(
Overall I absolutely loved this book, though I felt a bit too much time was spent on character-building when the author could have (and should have!) trusted that we already loved the characters, and I do think a couple parts of the lore could have been explained further.