A compelling tale with well-drawn characters and beautifully executed LGBTQ+ romance.
In McPherson’s fantasy novel, a prince becomes the unwilling heir to his kingdom’s throne and discovers rampant corruption.
As the second son of King Fortin, 25-year-old Prince Beauregard Highput was never supposed to inherit the throne of Granvallée.But ever since his older brother, Charmant, died after falling from his horse four months ago, the spare has become the heir. Instead of living his own life in the isles, as he’d been doing for the last seven years, Beau is on an accelerated course of training and education to prepare for his impending ascent, as his father is in poor health. To make matters worse, Beau must quickly get married to an eligible woman who will be able to rule beside him and produce an heir. The best option is Lady Victoire Penamour, his late brother’s fiancée; however, she hates him, as she thinks he murdered his brother for the throne. Beau has no desire to rule, but if he abdicates, a civil war may break out among power-hungry nobles trying to seize the crown. He accepts the responsibility, but he must overcome other demons, including his grief over his brother, the trauma of a near-death experience, and a history of alcoholism and self-harm. Also, he’s in love with his best friend and personal guard, Elias Batesian, and harbors a growing attraction to Lady Penamour. Meanwhile, there’s corruption afoot and danger around every corner. In her debut fantasy novel, McPherson delivers a thrilling and emotional story with remarkable worldbuilding. Readers will instantly connect with the genuinely kind but snarky Beau, as he remains true to himself and his morals, and loyal to the people he cares about. Elias and Lady Penamour are also intriguing and well-developed characters. The romantic buildup between Beau and Elias, and between Beau and Lady Penamour, is engaging and ultimately satisfying. The novel also offers strikingly sensitive and authentic representations of queer and trans characters, as well as polyamory. Family strife, intense battle scenes, and magic add interest to the palace intrigue.
A compelling tale with well-drawn characters and beautifully executed LGBTQ+ romance.Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9798992254310
Page Count: 382
Publisher: Metaltail Press
Review Posted Online: March 6, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An engrossing, action-packed sequel with a compelling cast.
A woman must undergo fearsome trials to free the imprisoned Titans of Greek myth in Owen’s fantasy novel, the second in a series.
Advancing from minor office clerk in the Order of Thieves to Queen of the Underworld, Lyra Keres’ star should be rising. But thanks to Cronos, King of the Titans, she and her longtime friend and fellow thief Boone have been ensnared in a new challenge beneath the earth: Hot on the heels of winning the twisted Crucible Games, Lyra—who has recently been granted goddess powers—finds herself trapped in Tartarus. Separated from her beloved Hades, she must liberate the fearsome Titans from seven Locks to restore the cosmic balance. As Lyra progresses through the Locks engineered by the Gods—each as tricky and lethal as the last—the pressure mounts as the Titans repeatedly remind her, “You will be our savior.” Rhea, the wife of Cronos, reveals that Lyra began this quest “a hundred and fifty years ago,” adding further devastation to the task at hand; the knowledge is helpful, but also painful, as Lyra reflects, “Suddenly, I don’t want to know that it’s real. Because then I have to contemplate how many times I might have ended up in Tartarus already.” As she materializes in and out of time pockets, Lyra sees Hades’ troubled childhood unfold and struggles not to intervene to save the man she loves. In this second entry in the author’s Crucible series, following The Games Gods Play (2024), Lyra’s cynical quips continue to make her an engaging protagonist. Her inner monologues are balanced with hope, love, and longing for Hades as she meets various versions of him. While resilient, Owen’s heroine is also vulnerable (“Was I his pawn in more ways than I ever realized?”). Her introspection effectively contrasts with the simmering rage and restraint in Hades’ chapters. The supporting Titans are given more depth than the traditional myths allow, weaving a knotty family fabric for the reader to navigate alongside Lyra.
An engrossing, action-packed sequel with a compelling cast.Pub Date: Oct. 21, 2025
ISBN: 9781649378538
Page Count: 500
Publisher: Entangled: Red Tower Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.
Using mystery and romance elements in a nonlinear narrative, SenLinYu’s debut is a doorstopper of a fantasy that follows a woman with missing memories as she navigates through a war-torn realm in search of herself.
Helena Marino is a talented young healer living in Paladia—the “Shining City”—who has been thrust into a brutal war against an all-powerful necromancer and his army of Undying, loyal henchmen with immortal bodies, and necrothralls, reanimated automatons. When Helena is awakened from stasis, a prisoner of the necromancer’s forces, she has no idea how long she has been incarcerated—or the status of the war. She soon finds herself a personal prisoner of Kaine Ferron, the High Necromancer’s “monster” psychopath who has sadistically killed hundreds for his master. Ordered to recover Helena’s buried memories by any means necessary, the two polar opposites—Helena and Kaine, healer and killer—end up discovering much more as they begin to understand each other through shared trauma. While necromancy is an oft-trod subject in fantasy novels, the author gives it a fresh feel—in large part because of their superb worldbuilding coupled with unforgettable imagery throughout: “[The necromancer] lay reclined upon a throne of bodies. Necrothralls, contorted and twisted together, their limbs transmuted and fused into a chair, moving in synchrony, rising and falling as they breathed in tandem, squeezing and releasing around him…[He] extended his decrepit right hand, overlarge with fingers jointed like spider legs.” Another noteworthy element is the complex dynamic between Helena and Kaine. To say that these two characters shared the gamut of intense emotions would be a vast understatement. Readers will come for the fantasy and stay for the romance.
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9780593972700
Page Count: 1040
Publisher: Del Rey
Review Posted Online: July 17, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
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