Jay Kristoff

From New York Times bestselling author, Jay Kristoff, comes a dangerous new fantasy world and a heroine edged in darkness.

Nevernight

"In a world where the suns almost never set, a woman gains entry to a school of infamous assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers that destroyed her family. Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father's failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she wanders a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and its thugs. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the hearth of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined. Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic-the Red Church. Deadly trials await her within the Church's halls: blades and poisons, treachery and death. If she survives to initiation, she'll be inducted among the chosen of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and be one step closer to the only thing she desires. Revenge. Nevernight will come on the heels of Kristoff's latest YA book, a collaboration with Amie Kaufman from Knopf Books for Young Readers, Illuminae. Knopf is planning a major publicity blitz and featuring Illuminae as its lead title for Fall, on sale October 20th. The marketing and publicity campaign include a multi-city USA tour in the fall, major outreach at consumer and industry events, a national paid advertising campaign, and extensive publicity outreach"--

Nevernight #1

I don't have a cat but if I did I'd be having a silent conversation with them rn😂

Souhaila

And last, the language of cats. O, yes, cats speak, gentlefriend, doubt it not—if you own more than one and can’t see them at this particular moment, chances are they’re off in a corner somewhere lamenting the fact that their owner seems to spend all their time reading silly books rather than paying them the attention they so richly deserve.

These are the shadows that I want in my books from now on😂

“… if only i had hands to applaud …”

Mia smacked her backside. “I’d settle for lips to kiss my sweet behind.” 

“… i would have to find it first …”

“Arses are like wine, Mister Kindly. Better too little than too much.” 

“… a beauty and a philosopher. be still, my beating heart …”

The not-cat looked down at its translucent chest. 

I want to frame this hang it somewhere I can see it everyday. 

“The books we love, they love us back. And just as we mark our places in the pages, those pages leave their marks on us. I can see it in you, sure as I see it in me. You’re a daughter of words. A girl with a story to tell.”

“Forget the girl who had everything. She died when her father did.” 

“Nothing is where you start. Own nothing. Know nothing. Be nothing.” 

“Why would I want to do that?” The old man crushed out his cigarillo on the boards between them. His smile made her smile in return. 

I know it's a long quote but I couldn't not share this gem🤌 

“You know, I’ve never understood that. How being named for a woman’s nethers is somehow more grievous than any other insult. Seems to me calling someone after a man’s privates is worse. I mean, what do you picture when you hear a fellow called a cock?”[...] 

“You imagine an oaf, don’t you?” Mia continued. “Someone so full of wank there’s no room for wits. A slow-minded bastard who struts about full of spunk and piss, completely ignorant of how he looks to others.”[...] 

“Cock is just another word for ‘fool.’ But you call someone a cunt, well …” The girl smiled. “You’re implying a sense of malice there. An intent. Malevolent and self-aware. Don’t think I name Consul Scaeva a cunt to gift him insult. Cunts have brains, Don Tric. Cunts have teeth. Someone calls you a cunt, you take it as a compliment. As a sign that folk believe you’re not to be lightly fucked with.” A shrug. “I think they call that irony.”

“If I were going to name my blade,” Mia said thoughtfully, “I’d call it ‘Fluffy.’” 

Tric snorted with laughter. “Fluffy?” 

“’Byss, yes,” the girl nodded. “Think of the terror you’d instill. Being bested by a foe wielding a sword called Souldrinker … 

 you could live with. Imagine the shame of having the piss smacked out of you by a blade called Fluffy.”

“Never flinch.” A cold whisper in her ear. “Never fear. And never, ever forget.”

“You’ll be a rumor. A whisper. The thought that wakes the bastards of this world sweating in the nevernight. The last thing you will ever be in this world, girl, is someone’s hero.” [...] 

Christine

Here is truth, gentlefriends: when in doubt, it’s best to be polite when dealing with lunatics.

The books we love, they love us back. And just as we mark our places in the pages, those pages leave their marks on us

Sophia 

"You've got the look of a girl who's no stranger to the page. I can tell. You've got words in your soul."

"The soft touch. The lingering stare. Whispered nothings that mean everything. These are the weapons I shall give you."

“You know, I never understood that. How being named after a woman’s nethers is somehow more grievous than any other insult. Seems to me calling someone after a man's privates is worse. I mean, what do you picture when you hear a fellow called a cock?" 

Tric shrugged, befuddled at the strange turn in conversation. 

“You imagine an oaf, don't you?" Mia continued. "Someone so full of wank there's no room for wits. A slow-minded bastard who struts about full of spunk and piss, completely ignorant of how he looks to others." 

An exhalation of clove-sweet gray into the air between them.

 "Cock is just another word for fool. But you call someone a cunt, well." The girl smiled. "You're implying a sense of malice there. An intent. Malevolent and self-aware.”

Really liked this book. The writing style that everyone complains of didn’t really bother me. I felt as if the book was better at the beginning and kept getting more boring and generic at the end. I loved the interactions that Mia and Tric had. Anyway, looking forward to the rest of the series.

Anna 

po dočtení tohodle fenoménu jsem v sobě měla opravdu hodně pocitů, z nichž většinou převládaly ty dobré, jen jsem nevěděla, jak to sepsat do recenze. když se na knihu podívám pár dní po dočtení, pořád nevím, jak tuhle recenzi napsat, jak vám předat svoje pocity a můj názor. protože já sama vůbec nevím, jaký ten názor je. no dobře, tak začněme takto:
pozitiva: su(p)rově vymyšlený fantasy svět inspirovaný starověkým Římem se mi opravdu hodně líbil a já si užívala, když jsem jím s hlavní hrdinkou putovala. největší důraz se tu klade na náboženství, o kterém se snad dozvím více v dalších knihách. hlavní hrdinka sama o sobě mi přišla vcelku snesitelná, tedy ne, že byste se do ní zamilovali, to asi vážně není účel, ale líbilo se mi to, že během knihy sledujeme její postup. že není od začátku dokonalá (i když nějaké takové stereotypy se tam bohužel vyskytují) a že knihou roste. líbila se mi hlavní romantická linka (zakázaná slowburn friends to lovers mi vyhovovala :D), ale ne všem sedne, protože zahrnuje explicitně popsané romantické scény. ostatně i násilí tam je opravdu detailně popsané a někomu to nemusí dělat dobře. takže TW.
jaká jsou tedy negativa? kniha mi přišla po celém bookstagramu hrozně praised, ale úplně nevím kvůli čemu. jo, bylo tam násilí a poznámky pod čarou a celé to bylo sarkastické a plné toho, co v seriózních fantasy nebývá. ale to bylo tak nějak... vše? nevím, proč kolem knihy byl takový hype, protože já jsem asi čekala i něco víc, nějaký strašně veliký boom, myslela jsem si, že kniha bude jedna z mých nejvíc oblíbených, ale vůbec nic takového se vlastně nestalo. 
rozhodně ale vyzvedávám hlavní zápletku, kterou jsem z nějakého důvodu neodhadla, i když byla vlastně tak strašně moc předvídatelná, že na ní museli přijít snad úplně všichni kromě mě. každopádně ale strhla proud událostí a já se ke konci knihy těšila na to, až se budu moct pustit do druhého dílu a dozvědět se víc.
teď jsem ale opět rozpolcená, protože kniha mi nakonec přinesla to, co jsem chtěla, ale na druhou stranu jsem i tak čekala něco víc, něco velkého.
.
shrnutí: pokud máte rádi fantasy se sarkasmem a realistickým násilím, kde si nikdo nehraje na to, že smrt je poetická a krásná věc, bude se vám to líbit. není to složité, čte se to rychle a hlavní hrdince je 16 let (i když nevím, jestli je její věková kategorie úplně cílovka na tuto knihu). pokud máte rádi ale složitější fantasy série, jako například hry o trůny, a čekáte od toho něco podobného, nedočkáte se.
.
knize dávám 4*/5*, protože přinesla, co měla, ale má očekávání byla i tak výše. hlavně asi kvůli hypeu z bookstagramu.

arwen

thank you jay kristoff no thank you maria

Riley Bell

At first I could not get into this book. I didn't understand what was going on or what exactly the book was about. The biggest action in the book was towards the end. Most of the plot was of the students training and going to class and Mia making friends and enemies. It was hard to remember Mia is only 16. I also didn't love her "relationship" with Tric because it didn't feel like it had any build to it. Suddenly she is just sneaking into his room and getting steamy, but I did really like Tric's character and background. I liked most of the characters, tbh. There is not one character that I felt did not have a worthwhile part to play. The footnotes are mostly really funny and worth interrupting the flow of the story since they explain a lot of events and stories of the world. It really helps root the idea that this world has existed for a immense amount of time and we are just peeking in to one person's tale. Although it took some time to get into, by page 100 (or so) I was really invested and falling in love with Mia and her story.

Annalissa Powner 

“The books we love, they love us back. And just as we mark our places in the pages, those pages leave their mark on us. I can see it in you, sure as I see it in me. You’re daughter of words. A girl with a story to tell”

I’m not sure there are enough words to deceive the depth of my amazement with this book. I know their aren’t enough words to describe all the emotions it threw at me. To put it simple, Jay Kristoff is like nothing and no one else and his ability to tell a story is something no words can describe.

“Never flinch” A cold whisper in her ear. “Never fear. And never, ever forget.”

---------------------------------

For a book that seems to divide readers into 5-star vs 1-star camps, here I am giving Nevernight a somewhat lukewarm 3 stars. But that’s exactly how I felt about the book, lukewarm.

I guess the most obvious (and often-stated) problem with the book was that it takes off with a slow and confusing start, only picking up the pace and the stakes after 100 pages or so. Until then, it is quite a labor to put the puzzle pieces of this world together, mapping out the power dynamics, the belief systems, and where magic stands in all of this. It is definitely a very interesting world, but for the sake of explaining the details, the book goes off on strange and very detailed tangents that unfortunately tears the reader away from the story.

Secondly, as much as I enjoyed the story (assassin school! yay!) and the characters, the narration felt too heavy-handed. It was overworked and exhausting at times. I am a huge fan of the Illuminae series, and I suppose my mistake was expecting a similar fluid, gripping story with this book also (which is unfair, considering that the Illuminae Files are co-written with Amie Kaufman, so of course it wouldn’t be too similar).

Overall, I quite enjoyed it but I am not sure yet whether I am enamored with the first book enough to continue with the series.

Even if I were in mood to write a review I wouldn't know where to start. 

Aside from struggling with the writing at the beginning, this book is 

Even if I were in mood to write a review I wouldn't know where to start. 

Aside from struggling with the writing at the beginning, this book is chefs kiss.

Tatiana

Nevernight is an absolutely fantastic and captivating story of a young girl training to be an assassin and find who she is. 

This story was absolutely captivating and I could not put down the book for even a second. Jay Kristoff’s writing is the gold standard, which makes it nearly impossible to put down the book from the first sentence to the last. 

I can’t believe it took me this long to pick it up, but I cannot wait to devour the next two in the trilogy!

Geoffrey Froggatt

In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family. Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father's failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father's former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined. Now, a sixteen year old Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic: the Red Church. Treachery and trials await her with the Church's halls, and to fail is to die. But if she survives to initiation, Mia will be inducted among the chosen of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the only thing she desires. Revenge. Content warning for torture, violence and graphic gore. The writing was incredibly hard to digest at first. The footnotes were distracting, and I recommend the audiobooks over the physical copies, as it does a good job at making the footnotes sound more natural as part of the story. Jay Kristoff does a great job at crafting an interesting world, but the tone and atmosphere of the story was reminiscent of what I would imagine an edgy hot-topic employee would dream of. Some of the characterization of female characters were suspect, very clearly written by a man. Once I accepted that the story was written by an edge-lord, the story became compelling. I loved Mia and her talking shadow cat, Mister Kindly. All of the secondary characters were easy to visualize and had distinct personalities that made them compelling. I loved the story structure and the dark adventure at the assassin school. I recommend this book for people who love stories about assassins and for those who enjoy grim dark storytelling.

Highly entertaining first entry to the series. I especially liked how the writing style and metaphors like "She slid into the building like a knife through ribs" (own translation) contribute to the dark eerie theme of the book. 

Lennart Tondeleir

“The brighter the light, the deeper the shadows”

Great book, can’t wait to see how this story develops! Great plot twists, the kind where the hints have been there throughout the book but you only realise it when it all ties together towards the end.

“The brighter the light, the deeper the shadows”

Great book, can’t wait to see how this story develops! Great plot twists, the kind where the hints have been there throughout the book but you only realise it when it all ties together towards the end.

Nevernight is the first in an epic new fantasy series from the New York Times bestselling author, Jay Kristoff. In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family. Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined. Now, a sixteen year old Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic — the Red Church. Treachery and trials await her with the Church’s halls, and to fail is to die. But if she survives to initiation, Mia will be inducted among the chosen of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the only thing she desires. Revenge.

momo-reads

The world building is good but the book was overall pretty uneven with a slow start and plodding sections before finally coming together for a pretty decent ending.  Good enough to start the next book and see where it goes.

Beatrix Haase

This book is coming out on my birthday!

Update: Eh... Pretty much just confused for like half the book and it's kind of brutal. I don't know, something didn't click right with me. 

Update: I heard the audiobook is good, so maybe I'll read it like that. 

xoxo,
Bea

Louise 

Wow!! 
This was fantastic from start to finish!
Excellent plot with twists and revels that I didn't see coming! Great world building and magic system and well thought out characters!
Excited to read book two!

Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle, Book 1)

This book was INSANE!!! Takes the classic vengeful-assassin-teenager things and flips it entirely on his head. The main character is funny, the writing structure is so engaging just from the first page, and there are many many twists and turns. World building is skillfully integrated and really creative, there's lots to be revealed still. I was gripped from first page to last and read the whole thing in like a day and a half!!! So excited to get the next book for Mia's continued journey.

Marika

menna

mia corvere if you're reading this i'm free on thursday night and would like to hang out. please respond to this and then hang out with me on thursday night when i’m free

I desperately want to give 5 stars. But the DETAILED SEX SCENES WITH MINORS hold me back from doing so! An ADULT fantasy book should not have sex scenes featuring a 16 year old girl. It’s so uncomfortable as to bring you out of the otherwise rich, vivid, and engaging world of Itreya. 

The story was phenomenal. Mia’s snark and cynicism reminds me of El from A Deadly Education. Mia’s entire story reminds me of Throne of Glass/Assassin’s Blade, but more graphic and gory. The fantasy world and protagonist spunk reminded me of Seven Blades in Black. And the dark temple to a violent deity reminded me of The Jasmine Throne. In essence, this book is a combination of everything I love. I want to read the other books so badly, and I probably will. 

But dear god why do we have MULTIPLE sex scenes involving MINORS! It was so unnecessary and I can’t believe that was allowed to be published. 

I desperately want to give 5 stars. But the DETAILED SEX SCENES WITH MINORS hold me back from doing so! An ADULT fantasy book should not have sex scenes featuring a 16 year old girl. It’s so uncomfortable as to bring you out of the otherwise rich, vivid, and engaging world of Itreya. 

The story was phenomenal. Mia’s snark and cynicism reminds me of El from A Deadly Education. Mia’s entire story reminds me of Throne of Glass/Assassin’s Blade, but more graphic and gory. The fantasy world and protagonist spunk reminded me of Seven Blades in Black. And the dark temple to a violent deity reminded me of The Jasmine Throne. In essence, this book is a combination of everything I love. I want to read the other books so badly, and I probably will. 

But dear god why do we have MULTIPLE sex scenes involving MINORS! It was so unnecessary and I can’t believe that was allowed to be published. 

From New York Times bestselling author, Jay Kristoff, comes a dangerous new fantasy world and a heroine edged in darkness. Destined to destroy empires, Mia Corvere is only ten years old when she is given her first lesson in death. Six years later, the child raised in shadows takes her first steps towards keeping the promise she made on the day she lost everything. But the chance to strike against such powerful enemies will be fleeting, so if she is to have her revenge, Mia must become a weapon without equal. She must prove herself against the deadliest of friends and enemies, and survive the tutelage of murderers, liars and daemons at the heart of a murder cult. The Red Church is no ordinary school, but Mia is no ordinary student. The shadows love her. And they drink her fear.

Holy shit...I'm speechless...I had chills as I was finishing the end of this book oh my god.

What a ride honestly omg. The writing, the world building, the unique way of telling the story...I'M IN LOVE!! I LOVE MIA SO MUCH AND JUST THIS WHOLE BOOK I JUST HAVE NO WORDS. I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY EXCEPT I NEED EVERYONE TO READ THIS BC ITS BLOODY BEAUTIFUL.

I was a little apprehensive at first because there was a lot to get used to, terms, the way it's told, the world...but once I was into it I knew it would be a 5* book for me!

I'm really glad I have the 2nd and 3rd books with me right now so I can finish the series hopefully by the end of 2020! ( not even gonna say soon bc my reading is very impulsive and a mess despite how much I wanna devour the next 2 books)

grace richards

3.5,, this book is good there’s no denying it but why oh why are we getting detailed sex scenes of a 16 year old

Olivia

I loved this so much, definitely made it onto the favourites shelf. I was honestly hooked from the beginning and I never wanted to put it down. 

Now to read Godsgrave...

Rachel Kanyid

Definitely enjoyed this story. Very compelling world and Jay is great at character development!!

Thibault

Premier coup de cœur livresque de toute ma vie ! Jay Kristoff nous propose là un univers super développé et incroyable avec un magnifique sens de l'humour (parfois noir). Cela se voit que son imagination débordait et qu'il voulait nous faire vivre son univers.
L'histoire est d'autant plus incroyable et devient addictive au bout d'un certain moment. J'ai hâte de lire le tome 2 qui m'a l'air beaucoup plus sombre que le premier.

Anna

** spoiler alert **
           Dire que j’avais tellement de mal à imaginer les personnages de ce livre, l’histoire et les personnages, que pendant les 115 premières pages du livre je savais vraiment pas ce que je faisais la. Je lisais mais j’avais l’impression que c’était pas réel. En plus vu que j’avais du mal à rentrer dedans, je suis aller voir des avis booktok et ça m’a refroidi : c’est pour la plupart négatif, qui dénigrait la façon d’écrire de l’auteur. Alors ça m’a encore plus bloqué ! J’ai même à un moment enlevé mon marque page et range le livre dans ma bibliothèque pour ne jamais le reprendre, mais je me suis dit que c’était bête…

Alors j’ai continué, et à partir du moment où Tric et Mia arrivent à l’Eglise, la enfin j’ai commencé à éprouver de l’intérêt. Tout d’abord minuscule, j’ai aimé de plus en plus. Les chapitres de 30 pages ou plus que je dévorais les un après les autres en témoignent !!
Du coup, l’histoire est vraiment intéressante, de même que l’univers. Je ne regrette pas d’avoir continué ça vaut le détour ! Je ne m’attendais vraiment pas à certains retournements de situations, exemple la trahison de Ash !!!

Par contre vraiment l’auteur n’aime pas les couples. Parce que la Tric meurt c’est horrible, mais en plus j’ai lu quelques jours plus tôt « La guerre du lotus », un autre de ces livres (je savais pas du tout quand je les ai acheté que c’était le même auteur) et c’est la même rengaine. Le mec meurt….
Donc bon il serait temps de nous apporter un peu de bonheur je pense.

Nevernight

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