Wow! Scarlett did it again! This book was everything you wanted. Amazing characters, tension, spice, and a great damn plot. Waiting for the next book will be a torture!

Shocking to absolutely no one, I devoured this book!! A mafia fantasy retelling the story of Lilith with tons of feminine rage is exactly what I needed.

This is a super quick read, and the story keeps a very consistent pace throughout. This is without a doubt a desk fantasy, and I mean dark, which added so much atmosphere and intensity to the story.

We have a bit of a mystery unraveling throughout that keeps the plot moving, which is really important because the plot in this one isn’t really plotting. It’s more character focused than plot focused, but a few of the characters don’t have much of a personality.

This is a fabulous slow burn romance, which was by far my favorite part of the book.

I’m ready for the next book!

Thank you very much to Sourcebooks Bloom Books and NstGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

SSC's Hades/Persephone series is partially to thank for getting me back into fantasy as an adult. Scarlett does such a fantastic job of bringing mythology to her stories and giving them a modern twist that feels natural, Terror at the Gates is no different! I saw the character art for this and knew I couldn't wait to read it. I loved getting a touch of Z's POV every chapter and getting the broody MMC but was never her enemy and always a good friend. It is a SLOW burn, but remember it's a series and of course it ends on the perfect cliffhanger that leaves you wanting more!

Thank you SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
💛Six Star Read💛

Could not put this down! I finished this book in one day and was hooked from the first chapter. Definitely one of my top reads of the year.

This was a unique story, with elements of urban fantasy, dark romance, thriller/suspense, with religious and feminist themes. It felt like the author invented a brand new genre and I was here for it.

Things I loved:
🗡️Slow burn/forbidden romance/tension (ughhhh the tension)
🗡️Unique version of dual POV
🗡️Strong relationships between MCs and side characters
🗡️Good pacing, never felt like there was a lull in the story without being overwhelmingly action-packed
🗡️Great world building
🗡️Care in handling difficult subject matter
🗡️The details and research that went into this story

I don't know who I am more obsessed with - the badass FMC, Lilith (Miss "Your girl's a fucking menace"); the MMC Zahariev, who is always there in the shadows watching over Lilith; or Cherub, my new favorite sidekick.

"They will call her a demon, but I watched her transform, and I will call her goddess."

I cannot believe the ending and need book 2 IMMEDIATELY. Going to go read ever Scarlett St. Clair book in the meantime to hold me over.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC - all thoughts are my own.

I ate this book up. Give me all the feminine rage, always. Because religion can be so subjective to people, I loved the dark religious undertones and I thought this was well done. This story, to me, was very character driven which sets up the whole story and inevitably book 2, which I can’t believe I have to wait for.after that ending. I definitely need more of the love connection because Z is yummy.

I love Scarlett St. Clair's books and Terror at the Gates was one of my most anticipated books of 2025. Needless to say, when the e-arc became available on NetGalley, I snatched it. And I devoured it the moment I could. The story was so addictive, and the world-building so unique and well-written. I loved every page of this book. But what I loved the most were the characters and relationships between them. The friendships with Coco, Esther, Gabriel were honestly lovely, I didn't expect to love them so much but I did. And of course, the romance. Lilith and Zahariev had such an intense chemistry, it left me breathless numerous times.
The ending was everything and now, I wonder how I will possibly wait for the next book. I'm so excited! Needless to say, I will definitely grab a physical copy July 8th.

My thanks to Netgalley, Bloom Books and Scarlett St. Clair for an eARC in exchange for a review of this book.

I just finished reading this. My eyes are burning from a lack of sleep, my stomach is growling and I think, wait, yes, I do actually have a headache twisting around in my left temple. But good grief, I am sitting here just impressed with this book. I have no other way to describe how I feel sitting here, having just finished the novel AND the Author's Note at the back. I would clap but that seems weird, right?

There are references in the back of the book. Yes, I am making notes on all of them and adding them to my list of things to read soon. This book reminded me of an article I studied in high school, about the various ways people lie and there was a section on lying by omission that mentioned Lilith. Back then I only had so many resources to read up on this idea of Lilith and how mentions of her had been excised from texts deliberately. The fact that St. Clair has research and placed it in the book for others to read for themselves makes that impressed statement I made in the last paragraph turn into RESPECT because St. Clair is giving readers the opportunity to form their own opinions using the sources she had at her disposal and that is just BRAVO. Now moving on to a review of the book itself.

I have quite the number of books by St. Clair and I have always felt that St. Clair books are written in such a concise yet accesible way. There's an attention to detail, a clear and well-developed world/setting, and rounded main characters that make it easy to get swept up in the writing of these books. Terror at the Gates is no different. I wanted to read faster but at the same time I knew I wanted to take my time to appreciate all the nuance that St. Clair has worked into this story. I have no idea where the story will go or how many books it will take to get there but I will be reading each book as they are released.

Terror at the Gates follows Lilith, a young woman living estranged from her family, who comes into the possession of a blade with strange origins. In an attempt to pawn it, Lilith learns there is more in play with what the dagger can do and who it belonged to, making Lilith and those she loves and trusts new players in a plot that will change all they know about their existence, both physically and spiritually. I remember reading in St. Clair's newsletter about this book last year and I was drawn in by the description of a "fantasy mafia" but was particularly intrigued by the name Lilith and all the connotations from there. The writing is vague on the specifics of what religion is in the book but uses enough ideas to make it both familiar and yet wholly unique, with how their church was developed and how the world uses the writings of the church to control the congregation. There are trigger warnings at the start of the book that definitely need to be taken into consideration and the Author's Note at the back deserves a read as well. Concerning the trauma in this book, I feel St. Clair gave it the respect it needed without going over the top.

I don't want to say I loved Lilith as a character but I rooted for her every step of the way. She was selfish, impulsive, and yet loyal to a fault for those that deserved it and I respected her for that. Zahariev was an interesting man, in the sense that he seemed the only one capable of going toe to toe with Lilith, but I'm hoping for more on his motivations in the next book. Readers know he is devoted to Lilith and commands his territory in a ruthless kind of way but outside of that I have no idea how else to describe him. I guess he's the classic brooding love interest? There are short asides from his point of view interspersed throughout the book but they only reinforce his thoughts and feelings for Lilith and not much else. It's not enough to make me like this book any less but it does bear some mentioning when talking about the character development. Some of the secondary characters could use some more fleshing out as well, like Coco and Gabriel, some of Lilith's closest friends. I know that Lilith would do anything for them because she said so but readers aren't shown much of the why behind it. Considering the scope given of the world and where it's headed, no doubt their specifics will be given at a later time. There's just so much to get into place to begin with, it'll take time to give the rest of the characters their time to stand apart from the crowd.

I don't know how to put into words the points made about authority figures in religious settings. Suffice to say, I think if anything at all, what is seen in this book will allow readers to have the grounds to openly discuss trauma and abuse seen in religion, as St. Clair made a point to discuss in the note at the back of the book. The point is that some institutes of religion, any or maybe every religion, have things they try to hide about their inner workings and some even knowingly hide the wrongdoings of their workers for the sake of keeping their image unblemished. This book shows a little of what could happen when someone decides to fight back.

Rating on my scale: 10 Stars. My head and my heart hurt for different reasons after reading this book. I hope the wait for the next installment isn't too far into the future.

OMG OMG OMG. this was outstanding!!!!! I absolutely loved the entire plot. I loved the dark religious undertones and the plot twist at the end. GOOD GOD. Zahariev was the perfect broody, man-obsessed morally grey man of my dreams. The slowest burn possible with the sweetest, most delicious tension that kept me turning the pages. I cannot wait to read more with this series because this has set the next book up to be totally action packed.

"They will call her a demon, but I watched her transform, and I will call her goddess." ugh THIS MAN.

ohhh this was a great read, i was hooked immediately with the main characters and the worldbuilding. The fmc Lilith is estranged from her family and is making ends meet in another poorer city. Her dad is a leader of their house but let her leave despite the church's approval so that she can come back on her own terms. This world is led by a church leadership that doesn't respect women and the worldbuilding is giving angels, archangels, demons etc. I liked that immediately the characters are trying to figure out what is this "blade" and why its killing people. The romance off the bat had great tension and the mmc who is the head of another family is this brooding, protective guy who would do anything to protect the fmc even though they dislike each other sometimes. I loved the slow burn and then the steam once it picked up. The last 20 percent of the book was chaotic but I'm so excited to see what happens next. Thanks to Bloom Books for this arc!

A retelling of Lilith. Lilith uses her magic to steal for a living and sells them. She turns to Zhariev, head of the Zareth family and ruler of Nineveh, when her stolen blade kills her usual buyer during inspection. Zhariev's currency is information and he does his best to protect her.

Love the magical and romantic vibes. Love how Zhariev protects her. So swoony... Terrific chemistry. As with all of this writer's books, the relationships shine. Love it. Enjoy reading this romantasy a lot.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for letting me read this book as an arc!!
It was so so good, I have been a huge fan of Scarlett's writing for awhile & absolutely loved this book.

I’ve read almost all of Scarlet St. Clair’s books and I first have to say that reading this book, I noticed how her writing has changed. There were some parts in the books that I was so entranced by that I honestly forgot who had written this, then I would remember and think wow this is so different from anything I’ve read from her before.

I knew this story was inspired by Lilith and it had religious themes. When I started reading Terror (about 24 hrs ago, yes I read this in a day), I was very interested in getting to know the character Lilith. Once her backstory hits, I could not stop reading. I enjoyed how she fights for her freedom and tries to rewrite her predestined future. It was bittersweet getting to know her new little found-family. In the beginning with all the action happening, I did think it was a bit much but mostly because Zahariev was there everytime. It made me understand why Lilith wanted to do things herself.

Now Zahariev and Lilith’s relationship was amazing. I loved the banter, the yearning, the tension and how they are technically forbidden. It made everything more entertaining. I think people are really going to enjoy this romance. Especially their scenes at the end. I enjoyed getting to know all the side characters even when their time was short. I did get in my feelings when reading about Gabriel and Liam.

As for the plot, the mystery was there for sure. As well as, how the families and archbishop manage everything giving the reader the sense of corruption and conspiracy. I definitely enjoyed having this archbishop as a villain but that little twist at the end with mom was a bit of a surprise for me. I recognize that I enjoyed this more than I expected, I definitely liked seeing this evolution in Scarlet’s writing. That ending will have me guessing what will be next for sure!

Come for the pretty prose, stay for the rage. Terror at the Gates by Scarlett St. Clair is beautiful, brutal, and unputdownable. Scarlett has an extraordinary talent for placing the reader squarely in the protagonist's shoes, creating an immersive narrative that reimagines Lilith from Mesopotamian mythology, highlighting her strength, defiance, and refusal to be subservient. The themes of feminine rage, familial conflict, and the longing to be truly seen resonated deeply with me. I felt like I was personally being called out. 10/10 would spiral again for this book.

Absolutely amazing! I loved if every second of it. It's going to be a pain to wait for the second book, but I can't wait. One of my top new books.