Godsgrave

I have been searching for a book to topple Jay Kristoff's Nevernight from my favourite book of the year slot since I read it earlier in 2018, somehow nothing ever really came close...until I read the sequel.

And did it surprise me? Absolutely not. This is a series that seems destined to swallow me up whole and it has absolutely the most fierce, badass heroine of any book I've read and the breathtaking twists and turns we take on the journey of Mia Corvere is a ride I'm not quite willing to get off yet. In fact, I am now counting down the days till the release of Darkdawn later this month.

The opening of Godsgrave is definitely one that leaves us with plenty of questions as we find Mia captured by Slave Traders and on her way to be sold at market. How did we go from her being admitted into the Red Church of Assassins to being sold as a slave? The first section of this book allows us to flit between Mia's adventures in the months leading up to these events whilst also allowing us to follow her travels in the present. One thing is for sure Mia is back and she's as crazy as ever and she in turns had me laughing out loud and equally breaking my heart for her on this journey we take.

As with Nevernight there is the return of many of our favourite characters from the Red Church and Mia's past, some alliances we do not expect and a whole new cast of amazing characters to fall in love with. We learn more about Mia's family and their past and some shocking secrets that are revealed in the closing chapters that we really didn't anticipate. Set in a world that very much echoes Gladiator games in the Roman Empire we watch Mia fight for her life over and over throughout this book and the friends she makes along the way and the joy it brings me as a reader just haven't been matched by any other fantasy series this year, or ever.

Echoing the writing style of Nevernight we have lots of footnotes throughout expanding for us readers the world in which Kristoff's characters reside and a history of the world for those who long to immerse themselves in it. Often these are witty and sarcastic and full of parables and tales of warning to us readers. They add so much sass and attitude to the narrative and I personally love them. They are not as prevalent as they were in Nevernight but there is still more than enough for those who love them to get their fill.

So, 20 days till Darkdawn is released, I held off waiting to read Godsgrave until my library obtained a copy of the book, I don't know if I'm going to have the patience if they wait as long next time around. I have a feeling I may be delving into Darkdawn in August if only to answer all those questions in my head about just what is going to happen to all my favourite characters and whether justice will ever truly be served.