This was such a dark, brutal, and unexpectedly emotional fantasy read. Dreyan is the kind of character I love—broken, morally complicated, and carrying way more darkness than he wants anyone to see. The fact that he’s already dead but still clinging to what’s left of himself made his journey even more fascinating.

The undead warrior priests, the cult, the god-killing weapon, and the looming fortress gave this story such a grim, atmospheric feel. But what really pulled me in was Dreyan’s connection with Ana and the question of how far he’s willing to go to protect someone he cares about.

Dark fantasy with plenty of violence, mythology, and morally gray characters? Absolutely my kind of book. I’m definitely curious to see where this story goes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and A.B. League for the advanced copy.

the storygraph rating: 4.25

many thanks to victory editing for sending me this arc! my main thought while reading this was i'm surprised i've not seen anyone talking about this book. i discovered it by chance on netgalley and have yet to find any reviews for it on the platforms i use.

i think the author is incredibly talented. the worldbuilding, character work, creation of atmosphere and their style of prose is very impressive especially for a debut. the arc included pencil sketchings of various locations and objects important to the story which, honestly, i was beyond appreciative of in a world where so many turn to AI for art. it was obvious reading this that it was a labour of love.

at times, i did find myself confused about exactly what was going on. i think this was maybe due to the lore setup, including the religion and rune system that featured heavily. while this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment i didn't follow the story quite as smoothly as i'd have liked to, although this was possibly my own fault and not the authors! i did also feel that the last 15% or so felt a bit jumbled and rushed compared to the pacing of the rest of the novel.

while it wasn't perfect, i did really enjoy this and i'd love for it to reach other people. the world the author has created was unique and intriguing, and the characters were complex and enjoyable. i can see this is listed as the first in a potential series and would definitely come back to read more installments if it developed further, especially after the way the story ended!

Absolutely loved it, what a master piece!! The writing, the lore, the characters, the setting...everything about this book was just *chefs kiss*

This is like if The Witcher and GDT's Frankenstein (2025) had a book baby - and it's the best thing ever. I absolutely tore through this book. It's incredibly atmospheric, emotional, and delivers twists and turns right when you want them. I equal parts want to punch and hug every character. I love how this book pieces together it's world lore through the start of each chapter. The multiple timelines and final convergence was amazing. It's unlike anything I've read before but also so close to everything that is loved in both the fantasy and gothic genres. Basically - it's an absolutely stellar book! I would love to read more entries in the universe built here!