Very repetitive narratively and in the writing. The audiobook experience was hard to keep focusing, at some point all three characters blended together and the story felt very stagnant. Felt let down as it did not feel "horrific", but might be up to my personal taste

THE STARVING SAINTS had no idea what its own plot was, or what it wanted to be. It was so all over the place that listening to this felt like serious work, and not the escapist good time that listening to audio usually is for me.

The premise of this interested me so I tried the ebook but struggled to get into it so swapped to the audio and I think the narrator did a great job bringing this weird medieval horror to life!

It’s a gory book with cannibalism and morbid themes but overall a decent read.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and the author for this ALC and ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“A king is not so different from a madwoman.”

Caitlin Starling never disappoints! I just love all of her books. Each one so different but so good. As soon as I saw a review that said this was a medieval lesbian cannibalism horror, I was sold!

Starling is a fantastic atmospheric author and this book proved it again. I loved all of the gothic, medieval vibes that surrounded her complex and compelling characters. It did start a little slow but in the end, I joined that because I was completely sucked into the world by the time everything went crazy.

Highly recommend this and all of this authors other books!

What to expect:
- Medieval horror
- Touches of dark fantasy
- Very atmospheric
- Cannibalism
- Sapphic romance
- Bees. Honey. Bees

dnf at 12%. the narrator is WONDERFUL don’t get me wrong, this is simply a book i’m physically not in the right headspace for and would potentially enjoy at any other moment!

The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling
Genre: Gothic Horror
Subgenre(s): Secondary World Fantasy, LGBTQ+
Book Track: Will You Love Me When I'm Dead by Amira Elfeky

The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling is a sun-soaked horror masterwork dripping with blood, honey, and saliva. Conjured with prose that would undoubtedly impress the likes of Mervyn Peake or Nicola Griffith, Starling has constructed a story about three woman whose past and present lives are tangled together. Forced alliances must be made in order to survive the siege upon the castle they are sequestered within and it's not long before things get sticky. Food and clean water are in short supply and the inhabitants turn to their faith to extricate them from this nightmarish situation. Preternaturally beings arrive offering a salvation and the men, women, and children trapped within Aymar Castle quickly discover that it is eat or be eaten...

This book is sharp and sticky. It gets onto and under your skin and it's near impossible to put down once you've gotten a taste for it's sacramental offering. Caitlin Starling shapes this secondary fantasy world with a hazy, historically-adjacent, filter that feels like looking at a piece of art from the 15th Century but from the corner of ones eyes after having stared at the sun for too long. Familiar, near sacrosanct, yet something feels out of place, reskinned, and strangely askew like a mirage. It's this here that makes The Starving Saints special and unlike other tales of medieval horror. This novel feels so full and bright and loud, not just because of the bees or vore, but in the way that Starling describes her settings and atmosphere using all of the senses. In the way the fast paced narrative felt as oppressive as hunger pangs while each chapter somehow still would leave you feeling satiated. This all paired with her whip-smart and flavorful dialogue from characters you'll either hate to love or pray for their salvation. A new all-time favorite for this reader and perfect for fans of The Green Knight and Midsommar from A24. If you enjoyed Lapvona from Ottessa Moshfegh but wanted something more progressive and infinitely more queer, you'll feast on this book.

5/5 Stars
100/100 Score

Note on the audiobook: Barrie Kreinik did a wonderful job with this material. I heard her narration on Slewfoot by Brom and knew she'd do an excellent job bringing these characters and this world to life!

Thank you to both Harper Voyager for sending two of us on the podcast arcs, both physical and audio, and thank you to Net Galley for providing me with an eArc of this title.

I don’t even know what I read; did I provide a piece of myself for passage through this absurd tunnel of medieval horror??! A fever dream that I think I’m still in, a hallucination I’m still tripping out on.

Aymar Castle has been under siege for six months and food is scarce. Phosyne recently managed to create clean water magically, but how? She can’t remember and is tasked to magically create food. Ser Voyne is the king’s right hand knight who has been tasked to keep an eye on Phosyne, a major step down in her knightly duties. Treila is a servant girl who is seeking revenge on Ser Voyne, who was dear to her heart at one point in time. It’s tense. Everyone’s on edge. Food is running out. And then the Saints come. Food is miraculously restored and the occupants of Aymar Castle are merry, forgetting they were under attack. Treila, Phosyne, and Ser Voyne are able to see through the shimmery veil and into the meat of the miracle, so long as they resist their own temptations.

⚔️ medieval horror
⚔️ fever dream
⚔️ knights and nuns and “madwomen”
⚔️ gritty atmosphere
⚔️ cannibalism

I did have to pay extra attention when listening to the audiobook because I did not feel the narration was varied enough between the different POVs to truly know whose POV it was on sound alone. Honestly, it took me way longer than I care to admit to realize there were THREE POVs and not just two. I think part of that is that Ser Voyne and Phosyne have very similar sounds in their names that was tricking my brain into blending them into one character from time to time.

I really need to get my hands on a physical copy soon because a reread is a MUST. This is another one whose rating will only increase upon a reread, I’m sure of it. Even if I still have no idea what I read. But the way the book ended put so much into perspective, I think I loved it?

Thank you Harper Audio and NetGalley for an advance copy of the audiobook!

Happy release day!!!

The Starving Saints is out today & I just finished the ALC.

Eat or be eaten!
This book has so many wonderful layers to it laced with complete & total madness. This is chilling & haunting, oh & perfectly SAPPHIC. The pinky scene made my guts turn & I loved that.

The book has major …
"source?" divine intuition, gut instinct, and cryptic symbolism from my dreams, vibes !

Manic cannibal fever dream!

Also, Barrie is a delightful narrator.

Thank you Harper Audio & NetGalley for the ALC, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Far and away the best book I have read so far this year! If unhinged medieval fever dream sounds like it is for you, do not hesitate. Snatch this up, devour it, but be warned that you will only be left hungry for more.

Beyond that fact, I don't know where to go next with my review. There is too much bizarre, unhinged awesomeness to extoll. So, in no particular order, my thoughts:
- This book would be best enjoyed if you knew literally nothing about it and just experienced the unravelling of this world right alongside the characters.
- I am the only one who adored Ser Voyne? Can we start a fan club?
- Related to the above, I *cared* about the characters. Caitlin Starling is possessed of a cruel and rare talent if she managed to convince me to LIKE cannibals. But, but, but! It is unsafe to care about characters in a horror novel! She is wicked for making me do so.
- This was the antidote I needed to the deluge of romantasy that the publishing industry has been drowning us in. In fact, the interactions with the Loving Saint felt like perfect, pointed antithesis to romantasy.
- The world building was exactly enough. Not too much, not too little. I knew everything I needed to in order to suffocate inside the confines of Aymar castle.
- I loved the way the characters in the book were completely unhindered by anything resembling modern logic. In particular, Phosyne's mindset was unswervingly medieval. The author must have deeply steeped herself in writings from that period, presumably a bizarre combination of grimoires and religious texts by anchorites and female mystics, like Julian of Norwich or Marguerite Porete. If she did not, then props to her for being able to channel such antinomian/gnostic/alchemical ways of thinking. Trying to grow meat from meat using seeds? Yes, that follows undeniably medieval logic.

And yet, despite being a medieval fever dream, this book carries urgent modern relevance. It explores what holds a society together and what makes it unravel. It explores our willingness to obey, and how we may be tricked, or how we may choose to accept a lie in order to hide from reality. It shines light on the ways power is gained and held and wielded. I don't want to give away anything, but long story short, this is one that will be sticking with me for a long time.

For audiobook listeners: the audio of this one was deeply enjoyable! I did wish I had a print copy in hand at times just to see the names.

Thank you to HarperAudio and NetGalley for the advance copy!

I loved the plot with this book! however with 3 povs and 1 narrator it did get confusing at times so I think for me this book would have been better read instead of listened.
The narrator still did an amazing job!

Something about religion and horror just is my cup of tea.

Here we have a castle under siege and one lady performed a miracle to clean the water but they are desperate for her to come up with another miracle to provide food for everyone. As she is trying to conjure another miracle some visitors appear in the castle.. are they an answer to her prayers??

This has three pov and at times I just wanted to go back to the previous pov but overall I just ate this UP.
I listened to the audio so the slow burn nature of this creepy ass book worked very well.

I’m a fan.

Thanks to netgalley and Harper audio for an alc

2.5⭐️

I really enjoyed the first 27% and the gothic vibes. But otherwise this one really just missed the mark for me. I had a hard time keeping the different characters straight and figuring out what the point of the story was.

If medieval gothic horror if your vibe, give this a try, because maybe it’ll be one you enjoy!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

A creative and consuming horror story. When the zealous beliefs are turned against its loyal followers in a time of desperate need and starvation how far can false idols push those who grovel. A Castle has been under siege for so long and its people trapped inside that they have reached a very desperate level of starvation. Phosyne has been placed in a tower by the king and told to make food appear, after already using some mysterious skills to create clean water. Ser Voyne is the protector of the castle and now must be a watch guard to Phoysne instead of helping her people survive. Treila has been seeking revenge for a wrong done to her during the war and will only be happy when she can see Ser Voyne miserable. When False Idols arrive looking like saints and "solutions to all the castles problems" three women from vastly differently standings must find the truths of these "Saints" and how to not end up eaten like the others. This story was addicting and a very nice change up to the horror books you most commonly see.

I’ll admit it—I sometimes judge books by their covers, and The Starving Saints immediately grabbed my attention. (Seriously, that cover? I had to find out exactly what that was.) What I discovered was a sapphic, cannibalistic descent into unholy medieval madness. In short: nightmare fuel, and I devoured every moment of it.

The story centers on three women—Ser Voyne, Phosyne, and Treila—trapped within the walls of Aymar Castle, which has been under siege for months. Food is dwindling, and the prospect of consuming the last remaining source of meat—themselves—looms heavy… until a mysterious, divine group of visitors arrives. Suddenly, the sick are healed, food stores are replenished, and the castle’s residents fall under an intoxicating spell.

Ser Voyne becomes entangled with one of these strange visitors, the enigmatic Constant Lady. Phosyne, a fledgling sorceress and former nun, senses something deeply wrong and is determined to uncover the truth. And Treila, a sharp-witted servant, must choose between vengeance and escape as the castle descends further into chaos.

Starling crafts a true bacchanalian nightmare—haunting, atmospheric, and deeply unsettling. These women are not just witnesses to the horror, they are shaped and scarred by it. Their desires, traumas, and hunger—both literal and metaphorical—drive them in ways that are as heartbreaking as they are horrifying.

This book has scenes that will crawl under your skin and stay there. One creature in particular, lurking beneath the castle, is destined to haunt my dreams. And let’s just say… I’ll never look at honey the same way again.

The audiobook, narrated by the incredible Barrie Kreinik, is an absolute standout. Her narration adds a layer of immersion and dread to an already chilling tale. I’ve enjoyed her narration before, and once again, she delivers a captivating and unforgettable performance.

The Starving Saints is one of those books that keeps you listening long into the night—whether you want to or not.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling was a disconnect from me. I didn’t understand what was happening. I couldn’t understand which character was speaking. Unsure if it’s the prose or the narration or if the fault lies within myself but this medieval horror didn’t resonate with me. ALC was provided by HarperAudio Adult via NetGalley. I received an audiobook listening copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

3.5 stars. The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling is a gripping and atmospheric novel that masterfully blends horror with psychological depth. The setting was creepy and medieval. Starling crafts a haunting tale of faith, hunger, and obsession, driven by richly drawn characters and a creeping sense of dread. Her prose is sharp and evocative, pulling readers into a world where belief becomes both salvation and curse. It's a dark, compelling read that lingers long after the final page. Starling is one of the best horror writers working.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for this digital e-arc.*

This book was absolutely a fever dream! The people of Aymar Castle are under siege and food is running extremely low. Then, the Constant Lady and her Saints arrive offering the people of the castle food in exchange for their adoration. Three women, a war hero Ser Voyne, Phosyne, a nun-turned-sorceress, and a serving girl, Treila are the only ones who see what is actually happening. While the people are delirious with stupor and feeding on...well, food? The women try to save the castle from the Lady and her Saints. This was absolutely a wild ride, filled with magic, cannibalism, bees, and strange beings. It was a fun read and well-paced.

Look, six months trapped in a castle with no food sounds horrific… until salvation arrives in the form of mysterious divine figures who waltz in past the barricades and start handing out miracles like party favors. Sick? Healed. Starving? Here, have a feast. Skeptical? Well, don’t be rude—just drink the wine and enjoy the vibes.

Except maybe don’t, because something is deeply wrong.

This book is dark, twisted, and absolutely intoxicating—kind of like whatever’s in those banquet chalices. You’ve got a paranoid nun-turned-sorceress trying to science her way out of disaster, a war hero falling under the spell of some very suspect saints, and a serving girl with a vendetta, all trapped in a castle slipping into hedonistic, flesh-eating madness. It’s gothic horror at its finest—rich, unsettling, and impossible to look away from.

If you like your horror with a side of theological terror, unhinged feasts, and deeply questionable divine intervention, The Starving Saints is your next obsession. Just… maybe don’t read it on an empty stomach. Or right after a big meal. Trust me.

I think it was ok? It was definitely a slow pace when I really just wanted it to move along and get to the gross parts

Did I pick this book solely because of its creepy cover? Absolutely.

Did I try to enjoy a cozy lunch of tomato soup and grilled cheese while listening to the audiobook, only to immediately lose my appetite? Also yes.

Pro tip: do not eat while reading this one.

The Starving Saints is set in the besieged Aymar Castle and follows three women—Ser Voyne, a war hero; Phosyne, a paranoid nun-turned-sorceress; and Treila, a vengeful serving girl—as they face godlike visitors offering salvation at a terrible cost.

I wanted to love this. I was craving something dark, medieval, and haunting. By the end, I wasn’t totally sure what had happened—only that it felt like a fever dream.

This book is definitely a vibe and it’s getting glowing reviews, but I’m a little torn on it, to be honest.

Big thanks to #NetGalley and #HarperAudio for the ALC!