A sometimes-confusing central mystery, but romantasy fans will delight in the dark, gothic worldbuilding.
In Northwick’s series starter, a woman with inherited magical powers knows that she is dangerous; she just hopes that she’s powerful enough to save the people she loves.
After leaving home at 16, after her mother disappeared to a magical place called the Dark Hall, Eleanora “Ellie” Blackwicket has lived in hiding for the past decade to avoid being identified as a Curse Eater who uses outlawed magic. When her attempt to save a woman from a Drudge—a monstrous curse—goes awry, she’s found by her father, Darren, who tells her that her older sister, Fiona, is dead. Ellie is soon back in her ancestral home—the austere Blackwicket House in Nightglass, where her peace is almost immediately interrupted by Inspector Victor Harrow, who invites himself to stay so he can investigate her for crimes related to Curse Eating. Ellie attempts to ignore him and attend to her late sister’s affairs, but she finds herself pursued almost everywhere she goes. She also attracts the interest of William Nightglass, Fiona’s former lover and the eldest son of the city’s abominable Principe, Grigori. He introduces her to Thea James, a friend of Fiona’s and a secret Curse Eater. They want Ellie to use her magic for their own ends, and Ellie wants them to answer questions about her sister. She comes to believe that Fiona had a son, and when she confides in Inspector Harrow, he asks whether she could have taken the child from the Dark Hall. Soon, other people die, and later, Ellie works to save someone riddled with curses and on the brink of death. A conspiracy is afoot, and as Ellie and Victor grow closer and learn each other’s darkest secrets, they can only hope to put a stop to the evil plans.
Northwick has a talent for suspenseful storytelling and skillfully conjures a sense of the gothic from the very first page. The magic system that she has created is a delightfully dark one, and this is seen at its best in Blackwicket House itself. The near-sentience of Ellie’s Drudge-filled childhood home is a compelling setting with great potential for mystery. However, the mystery that readers get loses some of its intrigue, due to a lack of clarity regarding the limits of magic in this world. The link between magic and curses is clear, and the Dark Hall is immediately established as a deadly place from which Drudges come—but although readers know Ellie is powerful, neither she nor the reader are made aware of what she can do until she’s required to do it. As she notes herself in narration: “Eleanora Blackwicket had never been asked to do anything harder than say goodbye and run.” A romantic plotline is similarly abrupt, and the male romantic lead behaves despicably towards Ellie; although it’s easy to foresee the development of their relationship, the story doesn’t do enough to establish him as a worthy partner. The result is an intriguing story that gets lost in the chaos of its own plot.
A sometimes-confusing central mystery, but romantasy fans will delight in the dark, gothic worldbuilding.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9798988473879
Page Count: 420
Publisher: Northwick Books LLC
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
An existential crisis that steps on its own final moments.
With only a month left until the world ends due to a swiftly approaching black hole, Don and Rodney, a retired gay couple, road-trip from Maine to Washington to spend their final days with their son.
After reports that a planet-swallowing black hole is making its way toward Earth, Rodney and Don—who have been together for 40 years and survived everything from homophobia to the HIV crisis—decide to pack their belongings into an RV, say goodbye to their neighbors, and travel from Camden, Maine, to Washington to uphold a promise to spend their final days with their son. They can’t wait any longer, since there’s already chaos around the country: “Military vehicles in the streets of most cities and towns. Looting, rioting, the burning of cars and buildings and people, all of it had already happened.” As they make their way west across the country, they encounter fellow travelers ranging from close-knit families to free-spirited hippies, some of whom have come to terms with the impending end of the world and others who haven’t. While the story seems to be asking readers what they would do if they had 30 days left to live, and reflects on what different kinds of acceptance might look like in the face of unavoidable tragedy, it loses some of its poignancy in a series of thinly padded monologues about the meaning of life. Clearly intended to pack an emotional punch, it’s failed by an abrupt ending, and the way the journey’s mystery—which will be obvious to many readers—is revealed by an info dump in the last chapter.
An existential crisis that steps on its own final moments.Pub Date: April 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781250881236
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Tor
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2026
A tender reminder that gratitude is a path we choose, one conversation at a time.
In Green’s inspirational novel, a journalist boarding the wrong train discovers the right moment to speak the words that matter.
Daniel arrives at the Beacon station carrying a leather notebook filled with an unfinished eulogy for his still-living grandfather, only to be swept onto the mysterious 5:07 Gratitude Express, a steam locomotive that appears “for those who want to express gratitude.” His uncanny journey sends him through vividly rendered moments from his own life, where he witnesses the ripple effects of kindnesses he has offered and reunites—sometimes for the first time—with people who were permanently shaped by those actions. Each stop brings a new encounter: A childhood classmate says, “That morning, you altered the course of my life”; an elderly woman confesses, “Your simple act of kindness saved me that day”; a mentor tells him, “You need to figure out what you’re good at and what you like to do. Because when you do that, your potential is limitless.” By the time Daniel reaches Cedarville, intent on seeing his grandfather—the person who most profoundly shaped him—his reflections echo the conductor’s warning that “Time is unpredictable, and unsaid words bring pain and regret.” What follows is a moving affirmation of connection that honors the story’s central message: Appreciation should be expressed to the living. Green structures the narrative as a fable, with emotional clarity and cinematic pacing. The train’s dissolving walls, the recurring whistle rising “high into the dark sky,” and the symbolic briefcase filled with long-kept letters lend the tale a gentle magical-realist texture. While the storyline remains linear and accessible for all ages, the themes—regret, legacy, and intergenerational love—invite adult reflection. The prose is simple, intentionally so, grounding the fantastical elements in an earnest emotional register. This is not a plot-twist-driven story; it’s a quiet parable urging readers to act before time steals their chances. Readers who appreciate heartfelt, uplifting narrative journeys will find resonance in Green’s message.
A tender reminder that gratitude is a path we choose, one conversation at a time.Pub Date: Jan. 27, 2026
ISBN: 9798891385252
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Jan. 13, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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