An absorbing novel with deftly drawn characters, heart-stopping action, and genuinely felt romance.
In McPherson’s fantasy sequel, a new king, his queen, and their guard confront the threat of mages who seek to make magic a “part of everyday life.”
This second book in the Heart-Mage Trilogy begins after King Beauregard’s elimination of the Watchers, an anti-magic organization of spies, fighters, and other operatives. Elias Batesian, the king’s guard and lover, survived the process of turning into a revenant to kill the group, but he lost part of his soul to a vicious god and his free will to Beauregard’s magical bonds. Beauregard is abducted by the Destiny Riders, who seek to return the Twelve gods to the world and make magic available to everyone. The narrative follows Queen Victoire and Elias’ search for the king, and King Beauregard’s unflagging attempts at escape. But Victoire is in danger, too; she’s pregnant with a mage-child who’s draining her lifeforce. Also, friends from Elias’ Watcher days destroy his enchantment, and his distinct personality, as a result; he reverts to his former identity as a spy named Aleixos Habiza and must forge a new life from the pieces of his old one. When the truth about the gods, the Watchers’ mission, and the Destiny Riders’ threat is uncovered, the king, queen, and guard must find a way to protect the kingdom—and come to terms with Elias’ erasure—before it’s too late. McPherson’s vivid and emotionally devastating tale addresses themes of self-sacrifice and true-believer righteousness. The well-developed characters, from the main trio to a minor page named Theo, provide the narrative with a strong backbone, and there’s engaging action throughout. What sets the novel apart from many of its contemporaries, though, is its representation of diverse sexualities and relationship types. The excellent pacing and delicious tension make the central polyamorous, LGBTQ+ relationship especially satisfying.
An absorbing novel with deftly drawn characters, heart-stopping action, and genuinely felt romance.Pub Date: March 31, 2026
ISBN: 9798992254341
Page Count: 398
Publisher: Metaltail Press
Review Posted Online: March 4, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
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
A delightful, genre-defying debut.
Historical horror? Dark fantasy? Queer romance? All of the above!
“I was hundreds of years old before I ever met him, but that day we were both young.” While visiting his Florence offices in 2013, attorney Sebastian Grave unearths a bloodstained lambskin glove that belonged to a past lover—a man he’d met in the 18th century. Nestled within this frame narrative is a tale of desire, werewolves, and the French Revolution. In telling his story, Sebastian introduces Sarmodel, the demon with whom he shares a body, and a succubus named Livia contributes chapters in which Joan of Arc, her notorious ally Gilles de Rais, and the archangel Michael all make appearances. First-time novelist Sullivan wields the tools of multiple genres deftly, but what really makes this book special is its central character. Sebastian has powerful magic at his disposal, but he’s also human enough to fall hard for a hot young nobleman. When Sebastian goes hunting for the Beast of Gévaudan, he’s not looking for adventure. The first time, it’s because he can’t resist Antoine Avenel d’Ocerne. The second time, it’s because he dreams of a reunion with his love—even though he knows this is a hopeless wish against the advice of Sarmodel. Using Sebastian as a narrator keeps things light, in part because he has a droll, contemporary voice and in part because it makes the worldbuilding feel natural. There are footnotes, but there are no infodumps. The fact that Sebastian doesn’t know exactly what he is sets the tone for storytelling that leaves a great deal unexplained while providing enough detail to keep the reader engaged. Deploying Sarmodel as a sort of alter ego and allowing Livia to offer her own perspective on Sebastian also adds both depth and charm.
A delightful, genre-defying debut.Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2026
ISBN: 9781250362766
Page Count: 544
Publisher: Tor
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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