Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh

January 22, 2018     erinthebooknut     Book review

Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn MarshReign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh
Published by Razorbill on January 23rd 2018
Pages: 384
Goodreads

Odessa is one of Karthia's master necromancers, catering to the kingdom's ruling Dead. Whenever a noble dies, it's Odessa's job to raise them by retrieving their souls from a dreamy and dangerous shadow world called the Deadlands. But there is a cost to being raised--the Dead must remain shrouded, or risk transforming into zombie-like monsters known as Shades. If even a hint of flesh is exposed, the grotesque transformation will begin.

A dramatic uptick in Shade attacks raises suspicions and fears among Odessa's necromancer community. Soon a crushing loss of one of their own reveals a disturbing conspiracy: someone is intentionally creating Shades by tearing shrouds from the Dead--and training them to attack. Odessa is faced with a terrifying question: What if her necromancer's magic is the weapon that brings Karthia to its knees?

4 Nuts

Woooooooo! This book was so much fun. Creepy, but fun. Necromancers, zombies, princes, oh my! That’s what is in store for you if you decide to pick up this book. Oh, and LGBT relationships galore!

It’s so nice to read a world where not only is LGBT not frowned upon, but its so common that there are multiple characters in healthy relationships everywhere! It’s like the holy grail of LGBT rep and I was so stoked for every moment. It didn’t disappoint. Each relationship is given its own time, genuine love and care was clearly made in creating them. These are not just throw away excuses to label the book LGBT.

Not only that, but the main character being Bi doesn’t seem to bother her, which I love. She doesn’t spend pages and pages bemoaning her complicated feelings like it seems is so common in these stories. That’s part of this world being so accepting, and its a beautiful thing.

I had a great time reading this book, after all it only took me about 2 days to read it. It’s got excellent flow, the perfect rhythm to keep you reading the entire way through. Even if sometimes the characters have a few bland moments or some of the twists are a little predictable, it doesn’t sap out any of the enjoyment.

The best thing about this book though is its portrayal of grief. Grief and addiction play a major role in this story, and they are handled beautifully. These scenes are heart wrenching and take great care to give a respectful voice to what the character is going through. I couldn’t help but fall in love with this story on that alone.

The magic system are nice, but I definitely would love a more thorough explanation of both. In a sequel perhaps? While this book ends with a solidly tied up conclusion there’s plenty of room for more here and I don’t think anyone would say no to that.

I highly recommend this book to big high fantasy fans. If you like books that explore grief and addiction well this is also the book for you.

What did you think about this book? Share your thoughts in the comments.

From my shelf to yours,

Erin

 

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