Blessed Monsters A Novel

I had unfortunately pre-ordered the book months ago, before the author was not only outed as being a racist who bullies and harasses POC but also as having knowingly incorporated anti-Semitic imagery and references throughout the trilogy. I consequently won’t be reviewing the book.

Reading this book was an arduous process. It took me two months, and I was often tempted to give up, but I knew I’d want to finish the story at some point and I didn’t want to have to start the book from the beginning, so I stuck it out. The first book was interesting. (I didn’t catch the details that have since been deemed by many to be problematic, and posted a review based simply on my tastes and my interpretation of the elements with which I was familiar.) The second book was a bit boring and unfocused. This last book went way past that: tedious, overwritten, drawn out to a point where it’s often hard to follow the narrative threads. I like the characters, but they often get lost in the rambling, ranting, unfocused writing. It reads like an old man telling a tale and often losing his train of thought. When I first started this series, I had such high hopes for it and was mildly obsessed with the characters and world. So it’s more than a little surprising to me that, even if I try to judge the book purely on its own merits as a story, without making any cultural or religious links, I disliked this so much. I found it just incredibly hard to get through. But it truly is so terribly emo, sappy, and ranty. I’ll be unhauling these at the first opportunity, and I can’t settle on a rating but it’s somewhere between 2 and 2 1/2 STARS.

My two biggest problems with this book: 1. Deathly Hallows syndrome, AKA “why is this book 500 pages when it could have been 300 and had the same impact on me.” Simultaneously so many things and so much empty space here. 2. Not enough recap of the previous books - I barely remembered all the important things about the main characters, let alone side characters, and I never had an opportunity to catch up. Between the different kinds of magic, all the politics of the warring countries, and the gods, this world is very complex, and I was skating by with probably 50% of the knowledge I needed to fully appreciate this conclusion. I liked the first two books, but not enough to reread them as a refresher before picking up the last one. I trudged through because I was invested in the characters and their relationships and I wanted to see how their stories ended—and I will say, it did leave me relatively satisfied, so I can’t complain about that. I definitely think I would have enjoyed it more if I had binged the books back to back instead of having to wait for this finale.

I was absolutely enthralled in this book. It is the last of the series and I cried when I finished it. It's been such a long time since I was so excited to read a series and this series had everything anyone could want. Fantasy realms, slight religious ideals and the battling of them, romance, tension, and one of my favorites a found family trope. If you want to read this one start with wicked saints first. I loved all the characters and they developed beautifully. Going to miss the feeling I got when I first read the series.

OH. MY. GOD. Where do I begin?! If you follow me on Bookstagram (@skyeslibrary), then you know Something Dark and Holy is my favorite series. I’ve dedicated many posts to expressing how much I love it and why. So, it isn’t a surprise to anyone that Blessed Monsters was my most anticipated read of 2021. I’m not going to lie, though — I was nervous. I just didn’t know how Emily could give these beautiful characters the endings they deserve without completely ripping my heart out. HOW COULD I HAVE EVER DOUBTED HER?! This series ending is truly EVERYTHING I could have asked for! The Summary includes minor spoilers for Ruthless Gods We pick up a few weeks following the ending of Ruthless Gods. Our characters are split up all over the place. Serefin and Nadya are plagued by their regrets and grief. Malachiasz is a whirling ball of chaos trying to grasp onto the little bit of humanity he still has. And the others are somewhere in between all of it. One thing that’s absolutely certain is what they did on the mountaintop has had MASSIVE repercussions. The eldritch gods that were locked away for ages have been freed and are ready to strike — ready to consume the world and cover it in everlasting darkness. It’s only a matter of time (and not a lot of time) before they overtake the world. And who is the one that gets to remind our motley crew how badly they’ve screwed up and what they need to do in an attempt to save the world? Our resident salty witch, Pelageya, of course! The question is: can these monstrous characters who’ve so brutally betrayed each other at every opportunity come together to save the world and redeem themselves? · The Characters Ever character — main and secondary — experiences significant growth. We get to journey with each of them as they dig deep to recognize who they truly are and who they want to be. Each has to FIGHT to bring about the change they want to see in themselves and in their world. I’ve always loved the inclusion of a polytheistic religion in this series, and Nadya’s spiritual journey has been such a constant theme weaved throughout Something Dark and Holy. Even after everything they’ve put her through, she still wants to hope in her gods. But can she exist as she is — with her inner darkness breaking through the surface — and still keep her faith? Can she accept who she truly is and own her power, or will she continue to tamp it down and pretend to be less than she was born to be? Malachiasz has always been our lovable, anxiety-ridden, monster boy that just wants to create peace for his country and its people (he also wants to possess all the magic he can — that doesn’t change). But now that he’s in the grasp of a malevolent god after being so thoroughly betrayed by the only people he has ever loved, will he succumb to the darkness that is waiting with open arms? Or will he be strong enough to overcome it and sacrifice what he must in an attempt to save the world and make it better than it’s ever been? Serefin never thought he’d make it off the battlefields to claim his rightful throne. He has gladly accepted his reputation as drunkard, soldier prince. Now that he is a gods-touched boy that wears the Tranavian crown, can he grow up and bring about the peace his people so desperately need? I would never forget our amazing supporting cast! We get so much of Parj, Rashid, Katya, Anna, Kacper, Ostyia, and a Vulture or two. This is one of the best ensembles I’ve ever read, and I can’t get enough of them! · The Review As always, Emily does an incredible job getting us into the headspace of each of the characters. We feel their pains, their doubts, their hopes, their fears — everything they feel, we experience right along with them. Emily’s writing is so beautiful. This chaotic, mad, macabre, gothic world comes to life so easily thanks to her world-building. She stays true to it from start to finish. This world is fleshed out thoroughly, and she builds on the solid foundation she laid in the first two books. I am obsessed with the different magic systems within this series, and I love that we get to see even more of that in this one: blood magic (my personal fave), divine magic, healing magic…ALL the magic! And it doesn’t hurt that my love, Malachiasz, is a such curious magic monster! I love his desire to break down and analyze every piece of magic he encounters so he can understand how it works. He continuously wants to push the boundaries of what exists in order to move his country forward. The relationships just get better and better! I was all-in from the moment I read Wicked Saints because the relationship dynamics are SO GOOD. Ruthless Gods explored that theme even more. And Blessed Monsters takes it to another level by increasing the amount of relationship content we get. Emily is a master at exploring individual relationships as well as weaving them all together as a collective. Topics you can find in Blessed Monsters that make it AMAZING: - friendship in the midst of betrayal - love at the end of the world - hesitant brotherly bonding - forgiveness - self-acceptance - riddles - international relations - queer representation - magic - cults - transportation huts If you have a weak stomach, be warned this book includes massive amounts of: - blood - gore - mutilation - cannibalism - eyeballs - spiders - death · I highly recommend this series, and I can’t gush about it enough. It really is my favorite! If you are reading this before April 6, 2021, please preorder Blessed Monsters. If you are reading after April 6, 2021, please go buy it immediately! If you already own it, share it with everyone you know! Thank you so much to Emily A. Duncan for writing this beautiful, messy, bloody, series! We are undeserving, and I don’t think I’ll recover anytime soon, but I don’t really want to! · Thanks to Wednesday Books and D.J. DeSmyter for providing me with a digital ARC of this book to read and review prior to publication date! You made my dreams come true.

OH. MY. GOD. Where do I begin?! If you follow me on Bookstagram (@skyeslibrary), then you know Something Dark and Holy is my favorite series. I’ve dedicated many posts to expressing how much I love it and why. So, it isn’t a surprise to anyone that Blessed Monsters was my most anticipated read of 2021. I’m not going to lie, though — I was nervous. I just didn’t know how Emily could give these beautiful characters the endings they deserve without completely ripping my heart out. HOW COULD I HAVE EVER DOUBTED HER?! This series ending is truly EVERYTHING I could have asked for! The Summary includes minor spoilers for Ruthless Gods We pick up a few weeks following the ending of Ruthless Gods. Our characters are split up all over the place. Serefin and Nadya are plagued by their regrets and grief. Malachiasz is a whirling ball of chaos trying to grasp onto the little bit of humanity he still has. And the others are somewhere in between all of it. One thing that’s absolutely certain is what they did on the mountaintop has had MASSIVE repercussions. The eldritch gods that were locked away for ages have been freed and are ready to strike — ready to consume the world and cover it in everlasting darkness. It’s only a matter of time (and not a lot of time) before they overtake the world. And who is the one that gets to remind our motley crew how badly they’ve screwed up and what they need to do in an attempt to save the world? Our resident salty witch, Pelageya, of course! The question is: can these monstrous characters who’ve so brutally betrayed each other at every opportunity come together to save the world and redeem themselves? · The Characters Ever character — main and secondary — experiences significant growth. We get to journey with each of them as they dig deep to recognize who they truly are and who they want to be. Each has to FIGHT to bring about the change they want to see in themselves and in their world. I’ve always loved the inclusion of a polytheistic religion in this series, and Nadya’s spiritual journey has been such a constant theme weaved throughout Something Dark and Holy. Even after everything they’ve put her through, she still wants to hope in her gods. But can she exist as she is — with her inner darkness breaking through the surface — and still keep her faith? Can she accept who she truly is and own her power, or will she continue to tamp it down and pretend to be less than she was born to be? Malachiasz has always been our lovable, anxiety-ridden, monster boy that just wants to create peace for his country and its people (he also wants to possess all the magic he can — that doesn’t change). But now that he’s in the grasp of a malevolent god after being so thoroughly betrayed by the only people he has ever loved, will he succumb to the darkness that is waiting with open arms? Or will he be strong enough to overcome it and sacrifice what he must in an attempt to save the world and make it better than it’s ever been? Serefin never thought he’d make it off the battlefields to claim his rightful throne. He has gladly accepted his reputation as drunkard, soldier prince. Now that he is a gods-touched boy that wears the Tranavian crown, can he grow up and bring about the peace his people so desperately need? I would never forget our amazing supporting cast! We get so much of Parj, Rashid, Katya, Anna, Kacper, Ostyia, and a Vulture or two. This is one of the best ensembles I’ve ever read, and I can’t get enough of them! · The Review As always, Emily does an incredible job getting us into the headspace of each of the characters. We feel their pains, their doubts, their hopes, their fears — everything they feel, we experience right along with them. Emily’s writing is so beautiful. This chaotic, mad, macabre, gothic world comes to life so easily thanks to her world-building. She stays true to it from start to finish. This world is fleshed out thoroughly, and she builds on the solid foundation she laid in the first two books. I am obsessed with the different magic systems within this series, and I love that we get to see even more of that in this one: blood magic (my personal fave), divine magic, healing magic…ALL the magic! And it doesn’t hurt that my love, Malachiasz, is a such curious magic monster! I love his desire to break down and analyze every piece of magic he encounters so he can understand how it works. He continuously wants to push the boundaries of what exists in order to move his country forward. The relationships just get better and better! I was all-in from the moment I read Wicked Saints because the relationship dynamics are SO GOOD. Ruthless Gods explored that theme even more. And Blessed Monsters takes it to another level by increasing the amount of relationship content we get. Emily is a master at exploring individual relationships as well as weaving them all together as a collective. Topics you can find in Blessed Monsters that make it AMAZING: - friendship in the midst of betrayal - love at the end of the world - hesitant brotherly bonding - forgiveness - self-acceptance - riddles - international relations - queer representation - magic - cults - transportation huts If you have a weak stomach, be warned this book includes massive amounts of: - blood - gore - mutilation - cannibalism - eyeballs - spiders - death · I highly recommend this series, and I can’t gush about it enough. It really is my favorite! If you are reading this before April 6, 2021, please preorder Blessed Monsters. If you are reading after April 6, 2021, please go buy it immediately! If you already own it, share it with everyone you know! Thank you so much to Emily A. Duncan for writing this beautiful, messy, bloody, series! We are undeserving, and I don’t think I’ll recover anytime soon, but I don’t really want to! · Thanks to Wednesday Books and D.J. DeSmyter for providing me with a digital ARC of this book to read and review prior to publication date! You made my dreams come true.

This was really just everything I hoped the closing of this trilogy would be.