Wicked Saints by Emily A Duncan

I’m always trying to expand my horizons when it comes to reading, and fantasy is one of those genres I’m really trying to dive more into.

Thank you Wednesday Books for gifting me an ebook copy in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis: When Nadya prays to the gods, they listen, and magic flows through her veins. For nearly a century the Kalyazi have been locked in a deadly holy war with Tranavian heretics, and her power is the only thing that is a match for the enemy’s blood magic. But when the Travanian High Prince, and his army invade the monastery she is hiding in, instead of saving her people, Nadya is forced to flee the only home she’s ever known, leaving it in flames behind her, and vengeance in her heart. As night falls, she chooses to defy her gods and forge a dangerous alliance with a pair of refugees and their Tranavian blood mage leader, a beautiful, broken boy who deserted his homeland after witnessing his blood cult commit unthinkable monstrosities. The plan? Assassinate the king and stop the war. But when they discover a nefarious conspiracy that goes beyond their two countries, everything Nadya believes is thrown into question, including her budding feelings for her new partner. Someone has been harvesting blood mages for a dark purpose, experimenting with combining Tranavian blood magic with the Kalyazi’s divine one. In order to save her people, Nadya must now decide whether to trust the High Prince – her country’s enemy – or the beautiful boy with powers that may ignite something far worse than the war they’re trying to end. 

First off, how cool is this cover? I absolutely love it! As someone who doesn’t read fantasy books often, this was powerful. It’s full of quarrelsome in every which manner: magic, politics, religion…it’s heavy, but in a good way. I feel like there are a lot of layers to the story, which intrigued me for some parts, but lost my interest in others. I am always fond of a strong female lead in a story and a nice love triangle, but the characters never really pulled me in. I didn’t feel like I was in a rush to get to the end to find out what happens. It is a dark book which captured my attention as something that pulls me from my ordinary reads. I did really enjoy the villain…any author that can successfully do that is a win in my book! Like I said, it’s dark, so enter at your own risk. Congrats to Emily as this book was chosen as one of the Young Adult Book of the Month Club picks for the month of April. I look forward to hearing what you all think of it!

3.5/5 Stars