I received this book for free from the publisher.
This did not affect my opinion or the content of this review.
Summary
Karys Eska is a deathspeaker, locked into an irrevocable compact with Sabaster, a terrifying eldritch being—three-faced, hundred-winged, unforgiving—who has granted her the ability to communicate with the newly departed. She pays the rent by using her abilities to investigate suspicious deaths around the troubled city she calls home. When a job goes sideways and connects her to a dying stranger with some very dangerous secrets, her entire world is upended.
Ferain is willing to pay a ludicrous sum of money for her help. To save him, Karys inadvertently binds him to her shadow, an act that may doom them both. If they want to survive, they will need to learn to trust each other. Together, they must journey to the heart of a faded empire, all the while haunted by arcane horrors and the unquiet ghosts of their pasts.
And all too soon, Karys knows her debts will come due.
My thoughts
Asunder was my first book by Kerstin Hall (I’ve been meaning to read Star Eater ever since it was announced ahem) but it certainly won’t be my last. I’ll get to her other titles ASAP.
I’m usually not the biggest fan of high fantasy where characters mostly travel and come across one obstacle after another. But both the characters, their challenges, and especially the world-building made me enjoy this one a whole lot.
I liked the characters right from the start and loved seeing their relationship progress throughout the story while they learned more and more about each other. It was an interesting way of getting to know characters’ backstories both by way of the shared connection and by meeting people from their past. The slow-growing trust over shared struggles was lovely to follow, and I just loved their relationship.
I’m also a sucker for casual queerness which we got in this book as well.
The world-building did no small task in me liking this one so much. Being able to speak with the dead, eldritch beings, and more—there were so many fascinating aspects to this world, I could not stop listening because I always wanted more.
The audio narration was excellent. Alyssa Appleton did an excellent job, and I hope I’ll come across more books narrated by her in the future.
