I loved this book! I’m so glad it was in Amazon’s First Reads program because it has been on my radar for a while now. I have read all of Joanna Ruth Meyer’s books and this one might have been my favorite yet. It was darker and definitely felt like it leaned a smidge more toward adult than YA with the themes. I loved that about it.

There is a bit of a learning curve to understand the countries and the various gods and goddesses in the story but the author does a great job of weaving the information into the story organically instead of info dumping it.

The twist around 70% was phenomenal. I didn’t see it coming at all but then realized OMG it made perfect sense. Total face palm moment for me 😂 but it was so well executed.

I will definitely continue this series. I can’t wait to see what’s up next for these characters. I will also keep reading Joanna’s future books.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I am not someone who normally reads political fantasy, but I enjoyed this one. One of my favorite books is ECHO NORTH by Meyer, so I was excited to give her first adult fantasy a chance.

While this is a political fantasy, it also had a love story. The romance in it was slow burn, and it took a while for me to be convinced whether or not I liked the love interested at all. Part of me wanted her to end up by herself, but by the end I was a believer in the man she chose. Since this is a duology, I am interested to see where their love goes and if it does stand the test of time and distance.

The romance is such a small part of the story, and there were other things that had my attention. The beginning of the book is slow, but once you get into it, you realize why. I think the world building was fantastic, and she did a masterful job of creating something unique and exciting. I liked learning about the different worlds and cultures she created and how they interacted with one another. I think knowing what I know now, the second book will be even more exciting.

Meyer did a fantastic job on her adult fantasy debut. While the book does have its slow moments, it makes sense for the story that she presented us with, and I don't think it could have been told any other way. I would definitely recommend this to those who love good world building and in depth storytelling. It does not have the same whimsical, fairytale quality of ECHO NORTH, but it does show that Meyer can create many different types of stories for her audience.

I’m both torn and heartbroken after finishing this book. This book reminds me of everything I didn’t like about Strike the Zither while somehow making me okay with it? This book definitely creates a lot of complex characters in a way I think makes the more morally “just” and resolute characters almost unlikeable in my eyes. Brynja is very relatable in her struggle to feel like she’s making her own decisions and not just following a path. Joanna Ruth Meyer always makes me cry and this book was no different. I’d say for those who are familiar with her other work this book is closer to Beyond the Shadowed Earth than any of her other work. Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy of this book.

This was incredible. I found it to be very different from Joanna Ruth Meyer's other works, all of which I have enjoyed very much. It still had that intricate fairytale feel, but the tone here was much darker. Brynja is so cunning and resourceful, and then entire time, I was just wishing she could rest safely. I was intrigued from page one and devastated by the end. An excellent adult debut.

🍂 Review 🍂

I received this from the lovely Joanna Ruth Meyer who has published some fantastic novels over the past few years. This book was no exception, I loved it, it was raw and emotional, and I really felt like I had experienced Brynja's trauma alongside her. It had what I would call the triple threat: trauma, betrayal, and jealousy. I mean, what's not to love? It's a recipe for success!

I found the world building good. It wasn't too overwhelming where you're loaded with lots of information. It was simple but not too simple. I enjoyed the depth of the relationship that Brynja had. It had an edge but wasn't soppy or cringe and it made sense in the end.
I loved that it had a glossary in the back so I could flick to the back if I got confused while reading. (There are a lot of gods, but each one has their own importance)

While The Dark Remains -- Out August 1st 2025

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆/5

A political fantasy where one's heart and one’s loyalties aren’t always matched - and you have to decide which to follow until the end.

With fantastic worldbuilding, a fascinating magical and religious system, and a conflict bigger than every character in the book can solve - Where the Dark Remains is a deeply moving and fascinating world to engross yourself in. While the plot seems to be slow moving, at no point is nothing actually happening or plot threads left hanging in the balance. I really liked the conflict of the romances within this novel, as we can feel the tension between what Brynja knows she must do - and what her heart wants. The interwoven history of the magic and religion within this novel was also fantastic, and I loved how each country had their own understanding of it.

And just when you think you know what is going on, this novel takes you for a complete spin and changes the way you’ve read everything so far - and everything you thought you knew.

A huge thank you to the author, Netgalley, and 47North for providing me this e-ARC.

4.25 stars

I was so fortunate to receive an early copy of this book from the author! Joanna is by far one of my favorite YA fantasy authors, and this book only confirms that!

If you like classic fantasy with unpredictable twists and nuanced characters, this book is for you. We follow Brynja as she works with rival kingdoms to take down the king that held her captive for years. The political maneuvering in this fantasy was so engrossing, and her relationships with each character had me wondering what alliances would hold up in the end and which wouldn't. We jump back and forth in time to when Brynja was held captive, and I found myself eager for both perspectives. The author has a lyrical but direct writing style that worked so well with the story, and when I tell you my jaw DROPPED during the final third of the book, I mean it.

This is one of those books that sucks you in more and more as you read until you wind up obsessed. YA fantasy at its best, in my opinion! If you enjoyed The Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner and The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E Pearson, definitely check this book out. I believe it's the first in a series, and I will definitely be picking myself up the hardcover when it releases!

As with her other novels, it's clear that Meyer puts a lot of intentionality into her worldbuilding and making sure that it has bearing upon the plot. There really aren't any random details. Everything has a purpose.

To be perfectly honest, the book felt a little slow up until the 75% mark. The political fantasy tensions of the present plot line didn't hold my attention as well as the past plot line chapters did. However, Meyer springs a plot twist in the final fourth-ish of the novel that will leave you rethinking everything you thought you understood in the book. After that, the pace and tensions picked up.

I often find that the first book in duologies struggle with feeling incomplete due to the overarching series plot. However, Meyer masterfully avoids that problem. The plot of DARK resolves in a satisfying way. while leaving plenty of room for a sequel all without a dreadful cliffhanger.

Cautions: around fifty instances of swearing; four instances of blasphemy; six kisses; moderate romance; innuendo; unwanted advances; brief mention of periods; alcohol consumption; moderate/heavy violence; semi-frequent mentions of physical abuse

While the Dark Remains is a fantastic, beautifully written fantasy by Joanna Ruth Meyer. Her ability to craft spectacular worlds, unique magic systems, intriguing characters, and epic plot is evident in all of her works and Where the Dark Remains is no exception.

I love character driven stories, and Joanna writes characters that I genuinely care about. The characters were multidimensional and realistic. Their emotions and motivations were genuine. Brynja has so much depth and conflict. Her character arc was so well conceived and I loved every part of it. As each part of her past and present is revealed she becomes more and more interesting. She’s driven by her past traumas to find strength and power in herself. Her relationship with Ballast was perfect. Their shared traumas and experiences that only they could understand made their relationship emotional and complex. Every range of emotion they feel for each other throughout their complicated journey is so authentic.

The world itself is intricate and immersive. It is evident that there is no much care and attention given to the world building of this novel from the unique months and seasons, to societal conflicts between regions and peoples, to the belief systems. The history of the connection between the Skaandans and the Iljaria is fascinating. The gods are so creative and I love the way they are introduced through the characters telling stories. Their history and connections to the magic system and world are very well conceived. I think there could be a companion to the series just full of history, there’s so much there.

The setting is so vivid and magical. I was transported to each of the places because of how Joanna writes. Tenebris is insanely cool and the perfect setting for the kingdom of a dark king. The Sea of Bones was daunting even as a reader safe and cozy at home.

The plot was gripping and the twists and turns were spectacular. At a certain part I lost sleep reading, and then not being able to stop thinking about it. Phenomenal twist. The ending is tied up nicely for the first installment and leaves enough open that we need the next one as soon as possible!

And now Kallias. Oh. My. Gosh. This villain is atrocious, abhorrent, despicable, and detestable. All of that makes him an absolutely amazing villain. I HATED him, he was so icky, and his villainy just seeped out of the pages. He made me feel all the things a well written and developed villain should. He was perfect. No notes.

While the Dark Remains is my most anticipated book release of this year so I was honored and beyond thrilled to receive a digital arc. Thank you, Joanna and NetGalley for the opportunity to read it early! I can’t wait for my pre-ordered copy to get here so I can re-read and flag ALL my favorite parts!

Whether it's more of a lyrical prose like in Echo North, or a narrative immersive tale like Beneath the Haunting Sea, Joanna Ruth Meyer weaves so much emotion into her characters that readers cannot help but be pulled into a new world!

While the Dark Remains is full of complex emotions, and reflects the spirit of The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner (which is incredible!). Meyer gives proper homage to this type of mesmerizing fantasy in her writing! I do admit the first part was a little slow in pacing, but that is part of the rich worldbuilding and character development that is critical to essence of the story. And OMG THAT LAST THIRD of the book was so engaging and riveting with every turn unimaginable happening that I couldn’t put it down and slept much, much too late. 😅 That chunk demonstrates again how Meyer delivers full circles into her writing!

While it isn’t a flaw, I didn’t jive with Brynja’s personality for the first part: her constant tension for Ballast wasn’t something that I liked so much. At the same time, I do understand that her terrifying, abusive time as part of the Collection connected her deeply and intimately to him, and it is not something that can be disregarded. AFTER a big turn of events about two-thirds of the way in, everything makes much more sense to us as readers and to herself too; this truly reflects her own self growth throughout the journey. I also LOVE that Saga is such a multi-faceted person who has to reconcile with deep hurts that happen and see the strength she exhibits through her own experience and am so excited that Meyer is writing a sequel to this!

I love that Meyer can convey such deep feelings without spice - it shows the skills of a writer who can tap into the core of your emotions in such a masterful way. I think this is listed as an Adult Fantasy versus YA due to violence, physical and emotional abuse, and internal struggles that the characters go through. She doesn’t ignore true consequences of choices made in the novel, and I really do appreciate that. I love that no matter if it’s YA or Adult, I know that the storytelling by Meyer is always full of deep complexity in so many levels of being a human being, and she nails it in the heart.

I was given an eARC to read ahead of its publishing date and I’m so excited for this to be out into the world!

Note - I love maps and love referring to them. There is one in the front! As I was reading it, I was a bit confused about all the different gods. As it was an eARC, I couldn’t flip back and forth, but at the end, there is an index of the characters which I found super helpful. There aren’t any major spoilers in the quick descriptions there, so if the book is published with the index in the back, I recommend flipping to the first page of the index to see the 12 gods if you find that helpful. Everyone else, you can look at the end. 😉

4.5 stars, rounded up to 5!