This was a textbook gothic romance, but with added depth and horror. There is a sinister love triangle, involving a young woman who just wants to save her brother and have some power for herself and two Lords (one vaguely still human and one completely otherworldly). The book was also reminiscent of the Lord of the Underworld falling in love with the Goddess Persephone. As seen with the way that the Lord Under obsesses over Leta and her ability to grow beautiful plants with her once dormant magical powers (one such plant being the pomegranate, which is one of the main symbols of Hades and Persephone). The magic system of the novel was interesting, but I would have liked more an of explanation of how it worked, why some people received powers while others did not. The extent that powers could be corrupted. How the Lord Unders powers worked and why he could make bargains with people for their powers or their lives. I felt there was back story there that was missing and could have been added to create a more cohesive fantasy novel. The romance between Leta and Rowan could have also used more development. I felt it seemed a bit instalovey, which is a trope I do not enjoy. I would have liked more of a connection, and less of their drive for self sacrifice in order to save all of those around them. Both Leta and Rowan were so oblivious to the destruction they cause with their savior complexes. Their personalities were so similar it was hard to believe they could fall for one another when they were so focused on sacrificing themselves. I did enjoy the moments between Leta and the Lord Under. His dark beauty, their very strange encounters. His apparent desire for her, as a human, and her abundance of power even after having traded her power away. I found their connection was more fleshed out than Leta and Rowan. And while the Lord Under is scary and obviously has moments of evil, he also has a very sound reason for doing all that he is. His world is also in danger from the bargain made years before and he is trying to find a way to stop the spread of the magic. I would love for the second book to have more focus on the side characters as well, as I really enjoyed Arien and Clover and would love more depth to their narratives. I also loved that this was a queer normative world!!!! I am excited for book two and am anxious to see exactly how Leta might escape her fate. P. S. (SPOILER ALERT) one major fault I found with the novel is that even though Leta gave away all of her memories of her family, she still knows she has lost those memories. I would think that there would just be a void and she would not even know anything was missing...like how can she even remember she had a family if she has erased all memories of them?
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