whimsydearest

Karys Eska is a deathspeaker hired to investigate the death of smugglers in a mysterious tower. However, what killed them may still be inside, and, to make matters worse, she finds a dying man. She has few options, so, desperate, she puts him in a Time Lapse and binds him to her shadow. This type of magic has unintended consequences though. Now she must find a way to undo the binding before he either takes control over her body or their warring minds accidently split her body in two. Asunder by Kerstin Hall delivers a heart-pounding dark fantasy that'll keep you turning the pages and make you fall in love with the genre again. First off, I loved how the religion in this book wasn’t just quasi, watered down Catholicism. It’s intricate with in-depth lore and grief rituals and gods with distinct personalities. In this world, there exists two warring pantheons of gods. On one hand, there’s the grotesque, eldritch Usurpers who require a human tether to access the mortal realm. One of wh...

Second Spear  by Kerstin Hall returns to  The Border Keeper ’s wonderfully fantastical world where 999 different realms are governed by gods and demons who are all grappling for control. In this particular story, Tyn sets out to track down a remaining god instrument to protect Res Lfae and her realm. As much as I adore Tyn as a lead character, it’s the setting itself that is the highlight of the story for me. This is an richly imaginative world that you can truly get lost in (quite literally). There are bone flowers and a deadly forest that plays tricks on you, creating this almost darkly whimsical fairytale undercurrent that I absolutely loved. Honestly, there really are so many possibilities with where this series could go and so many different realms that I’m excited to explore more of it. Thank you, NetGalley and Tordotcom, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Book Details: Publication Date : August 16, 2022 Publisher : Tordotcom IBSN : ‎1250...

  Upon first hearing about Star Eater by Kerstin Hall, I was lured in by the promise of cannibalistic priestesses and a phantasmagorical indictment of hereditary power. Sadly, however, the execution falls flat. True, we do get glimmers of visceral hallucinations and deliciously grotesque monsters. However, there is an odd disconnect between the flowery descriptive writing and the dialogue itself. The dialogue (especially between Elfreda and her friends) is awkward and strangely juvenile and seems like it came out of a YA contemporary novel. They feel like they belong to two different books entirely.   Along these same lines, there isn’t much of a sense of time or setting for this story. There are a few mentions of lamps to hint that this is a gaslamp fantasy and only 2/3 of the way in do we find out that the city is floating—a fact that I would have thought at least one of the characters would have brought up earlier. Lastly, there are huge revelations at the end, but they are...