Dark thrills for fans of psychology, magick, and murder.
A girl uncovers her own secrets while chasing a serial killer in a fantasy city.
Catrin is the assistant to Magister Thomas, the head architect of the wondrous Holy Sanctum in the city of Collis. While inspecting scaffolds at night, Cat hears a scream and follows the sound only to find a gruesome murder scene. The Comte de Montcuir assigns Simon, a handsome, young distant relation of his, to investigate. As a witness, Cat hides some information because the murdered girl visited Magister Thomas earlier that evening, and she doesn’t want to give his political enemies leverage. In the course of investigating, Cat starts to uncover her own past and things that may make her uniquely qualified to hunt the killer. As more sex workers are brutally killed, Cat, Simon, and his Montcuir cousins develop a profile of the killer—a profile that fits multiple people close to Cat. Plenty of clues and red herrings keep her (and readers) guessing. The romantic storylines gain tension as Cat must decide whom to trust. The “madness” of the killer is clearly separated from mental illness, and diversity in the presentation of mental illness is emphasized. Racially, most characters read as White; there’s an in-universe diversity storyline related to an isolationist nocturnal sect some believe to have magick. The story ends with high-stakes action and long-reaching consequences.
Dark thrills for fans of psychology, magick, and murder. (author's note) (Fantasy thriller. 14-adult)Pub Date: June 28, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-75581-0
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2022
A spectacular return to a magical world.
Following the events of Impossible Creatures (2024), a devoted Guardian teams up with a brave princess to fight her power-hungry uncle and save the Archipelago’s dragons from a strange new threat.
Jacques the dragon summons Christopher Forrester back to the Archipelago from the human world: Dragons are dying, and no one knows why. Meanwhile, on the island of Dousha, Princess Anya’s grandfather, King Halam, has been murdered, and her father accused—though she knows he’s innocent. When Christopher and Anya take refuge on the islet of Glimt, the Berserker Nighthand helps them see how their twin missions to save the dragons and free Anya’s father are connected. They work together to create an antidote for the poison that’s killing the dragons and to keep Anya and her father safe from her murderous uncle. Meanwhile, Nighthand and Irian, the part-nereid ocean scholar, pursue their own important secret mission. Divided into three parts—“Castle,” “Dragons,” and “Revenge”—and containing elements of fairy tales, fantasy, and Shakespeare, this story continues the storyline established in the series opener, yet because it introduces new characters and obstacles, it could also stand alone. Dark-blond Anya (“five feet tall and all of it claws”) is a match for white-presenting Christopher, who, though he still misses Mal, finds that “it made a difference to have someone to move through the world with again. A friend changed the feel of the universe.” Mackenzie’s delicate, otherworldly art adorns the text.
A spectacular return to a magical world. (map, bestiary) (Fantasy. 10-15)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2025
ISBN: 9780593809907
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
PROFILES
A fresh, arresting entry in the vampire genre that revels in violent, bloody delights.
An orphaned teenager tries to connect her sister’s disappearance to their family’s decadeslong relationship with vampires.
Nineteen-year-old Kidan Adane wants nothing to do with her family’s horrifying rules and traditions, which stipulate that Kidan and her sister, June, who are Black girls of Ethiopian heritage, must honor soul-binding contracts with dranaics, or vampires. After their parents died, the sisters were placed in foster care with Mama Anoet. For years, Kidan had thought they were safe from evil—until Silia, their maternal aunt, unexpectedly died, and June and Kidan became the last two living members of House Adane. When June is abducted in the middle of the night by an unknown assailant, Kidan traces the clues to Uxlay University, where worthy leaders are taught how to protect a hierarchical society in which humans and vampires harmoniously coexist. Kidan believes that June was taken by Susenyos Sagad, the formidable vampire who’s bound to her family’s bloodline. As she dives deeper into this cruel new world, the line between her hatred of Susenyos and her growing fascination with him begins to blur. Debut author Girma’s trilogy opener offers a richly detailed, sweepingly imaginative narrative that artfully explores the dark heart of desire, rage, and loss through expansive worldbuilding. Kidan’s powerful characterization is layered, and her journey toward the truth has been crafted with a cinematic eye.
A fresh, arresting entry in the vampire genre that revels in violent, bloody delights. (map, content warning) (Fantasy. 15-adult)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780316581448
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
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