Big thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Down Comes The Night introduces us to Wren, the queen's bastard niece who above all wants to prove she's worth something to her kingdom and aunt. As a skilled healer, she pours all of her magic into being a soldier, but when she messes up and prepares to get sent back to a life of nothingness she receives an interesting invitation. A lord from a magic free neighbouring country offers to help Wren regain her status of she comes to his estate to heal an ailing member of his staff. Who is this mystery servant? And is his Lord really healing him out of the goodness of his heart?

This was way better than I even expected it to be. Enemies to lovers...lovers? will adore this story and all the pieces it involves. Political drama, romance, science; you really can't go wrong with this one. My only grievance is that it took the story a bit before it really took off, and this could off-put impatient readers(and let's be honest, there are lot of those out there). I would actually love another story told from this world, even if it didn't include Wren or the other characters. A story from the long ago war would be amazing!

Overall, this has something for everyone, but the pacing might be a bit off-putting for some. I recommend this to anyone 12+ who is looking for a standalone mystery with some great romance. Order your copy today and enjoy all this novel has to offer.

"Down Comes The Night" by Allison Saft is a good solid Fantasy YA! There is great dialogue which is one of the things that pulled me into the plot from the very beginning. The characters are engaging... although I did find Wren's pining a little bit much in the first 1/4 of the book :)

Wren is a great character! Blessed with magical healing power, she gets herself into all kinds of trouble. She's supposed to be following orders but gets in trouble constantly because she's reckless. She's reckless because she's compassionate and cares about people - even when it ends up in her creating far more difficult issues for herself. Oh! and great to see a bisexual/pansexual main character!

Una is another great character. Her absolute devotion to duty made her intriguing...

The book picked up for me as Wren moved on to her mission to help Hal... A Lord who requires healing assistance for someone. The feel of the story is a bit mystery... a bit gothic fantasy. The world building was interesting but I would have loved illustrations or a map!

A good, solid story. Definitely going to be requesting this for this Library!

This book mesmerized me. It touched me quite deeply in a way that only a numbered book managed to. Down Comes the Night is a frosty gothic fantasy romance book that kept me hooked from beginning to end. After a series of reckless actions landed Wren to be dismissed from the Queen’s Guard, she is left grasping for a chance at redemption—which unconventionally was provided by a Lord of another country asking for her assistance in curing one of his servant’s disease.

Now for the characters, I love how the protagonist, Wren Southerland, is portrayed; she’s compassionate, expressive, and a risk-taker. She might have made a lot of bad decisions but it was all to prove herself worthy and for the greater good. Then we have mysterious, reserved, and brooding Hal Cavendish. He turned out to be the sick patient that Wren had to tend to. In the first few chapters, his character didn’t make an impact on me, I would even call him bland. But as the story progressed, I finally saw the appeal in him. Furthermore, the side characters—Una Dryden, Queen Isabel, and Alastair Lowry—were written thoroughly. I felt their intention, pain, and desire as I read their dialogues. Una, I have to say has become a favorite of mine. Her fierceness and the whole duty before anything else made her very admirable.

As for the writing style, it was to my liking, it was the main reason I was hooked to this story. The execution of the slow burn enemies to lovers was flawless. And the angst and yearning (!) made reading this all the more entertaining. In hindsight though, there were scenes that felt anticlimactic. The build-up for something big put me on edge with anticipation and when it is finally presented, it felt dull in comparison to what I had in mind.

Overall, an enjoyable read for anyone who’s looking for a standalone fantasy with enemies to lovers trope. Would definitely recommend it to everyone.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for sending me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Engaging, eerie, and enchanting all at the same time. Down Comes the Night is more fitting for an October read, but the romance and the unputdownable writing (seriously, I started this at 4 am and had to force myself to stop so I can get some sleep) made this book a perfect read (and re-read) for the cold of the winter.

4 stars--I really liked it.

This book is a rare genre combo of gothic and fantasy. Outside of Tanith Lee, few authors write this mix, and I'm always appreciative when I find it. This book also has a strong romance plot. Even though I'm not the biggest romance reader, I can appreciate a good ship, and I enjoyed this one.

The book isn't perfect--the plot wobbles a bit (the overall plot is solid, but some of the details and pacing get fuzzy), and the first chapter is weighed down by a small info dump. But once past this, I enjoyed Saft's writing greatly (one of the few people who can use a metaphor effectively!).

I especially liked the characters and, without going into spoilers, enjoyed the resolution of the book.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft sounded different from what I've read lately. I was drawn by the gorgeously eerie cover and further intrigued by the synopsis.

The first 30% or so was a bit of a drag for me. I was not interested in Wren and Una's relationship (which I wish would have just been friendship without all the pining on Wren's part). I also got tired of Wren in general during that part of the book. Her inner turmoil about her feelings and her worth became a bit tedious. While understandable, it got to be too much within that time frame.

When the story finally picked up at Colwick Hall, I found myself very interested again. The gothic feel was eerily enjoyable. The murder mystery and strange characters added to that enjoyment. I even liked the descriptive healing and surgical procedures that Wren performed.

The romance between Wren and Hal was not quite palpable to me. I always enjoy a good slow burn, as the insta-love/lust doesn't do it for me, so I appreciated the gradual buildup. However, I just didn't feel a true connection between the two, and I really wanted to.

At about the 75% mark, I started to worry this was going to end on a cliffhanger and turn into a series, but thankfully, Saft wrapped things up pretty well.

I do think a map of the world would be helpful for readers, and a more in-depth look into the world, the magical system, the war, etc. wouldn't go amiss. There was just something (or a few things) missing from the story to make it truly well-rounded. At least for me.

I am satisfied with the ending of the book although I could see another book picking up where Down Comes the Night left off.

***I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley.***

My review is already posted on GR with 5 stars but this is the content:

Down Comes the Night was a stressful read that had me rooting for Wren from the early pages, and realizing I never quite knew what came next.

It delivers a gothic fantasy with enemies to lovers romance, a taut plot that kept me guessing, and medical-based magic which was absolutely enthralling. The way the author managed to tie so many strings together was gorgeously done.

It started off a bit slow for me in the first act, but once things kicked off I was 100% along for the ride. The story is lush and atmospheric and truly one of the most stressful reads I've had in a while. The last act, in particular, had me screaming!

It was everything I wanted, and more. So much more.

This book surprised me. To be honest, when I started reading it, I wasn't sure I was going to like it too much. The more I read though, the more the story captivated me, and the more I fell in love with the characters. I loved the way this book unexpectedly pulled me in. The beginning felt a little slow for me, and the writing style is not my favorite (though this is more personal preference, I think Allison Saft executed it very well). But it’s a perfect reminder to give a book more than the first chapter to see if it’s for you. In the end, the heart of this story is really great.

I think what pulled me in was the relationships in this story. This story explores first love, the kind that’s a bit naive and maybe gives a little too much. It explores complicated family relationships, that desire to both push away and pull towards those we can call kin. And it explores new romance, love that comes unexpectedly and sometimes unwanted. I love the way that each of these is explored and played out, making a story about magic and mystery and battling queendoms so much more relatable. At the center of each of these relationships is our protagonist, Wren. It took a while for Wren to grow on me. In the beginning there were moments where she seemed a bit too naive to be believable, more than I felt the story called for. But I love her growth arc in this story and the way she learns to embrace qualities about herself that others have always told her are weaknesses. She has a fierceness and stubbornness that I like, and she ended up being a really enjoyable protagonist to follow. I also really liked Hal and the small ways in which his character defied expectations. Also, who doesn’t love a brooding, slightly grumpy but also kind of sweet guy as a love interest?

I think this book has a lot of great elements that will make it interesting to readers. There’s some mystery with trying to uncover the disappearance of several soldiers, as well as a general mysterious air about the house Wren finds herself stuck in. It reminded me a little bit of the book Mexican Gothic. There’s some action and suspense with this brewing war between enemy countries. There’s magic, used in a way that feels fresh and original. Overall I ended up being a fan of this book, so I’d definitely recommend picking up a copy!

Down Comes the Night is an eerie, atmospheric page-turner full of gothic vibes and a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers relationship. Allison Saft gives us a sympathetic bisexual protagonist who has been dealt a suboptimal hand in life; she has been berated her whole life for being compassionate, and she just yearns and yearns and yearns—for Una, Hal, her icy aunt’s love, acceptance. Wren and Hal are legitimate enemies rather than flimsy rivals, putting so much at stake in the story and making their slow burn that much sweeter. The theme of kindness and compassionate making a person strong rather than weak comes up throughout the story, and I love to see it. Though the first part lags, the remaining 70 percent is well worth it. The story also gives me major Silvia Moreno-Garcia Mexican Gothic and Frankenstein energy. Overall, Down Comes the Night is genuinely well-written with a vivid atmosphere, strong worldbuilding, and a thoroughly explained magic system. I’m definitely excited for Saft’s future releases!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I felt vaguely disappointed by this book. I was looking forward to it, but it just kind of fell flat for me. Instead of being gothic, it just kind of felt like a murder mystery where you know who did it. It was pretty entertaining, and there were scenes I liked, but there were parts that I felt were just unneeded and that those scenes were just there to make the book longer. I also saw a lot of characters that did things that just seemed out of character for them. I did like the character development for the side character's best friend, Una, though. It was pretty enjoyable at certain parts, but there were just a couple too many scenes that either felt unnecessary or out of character for me to enjoy it fully.

3.5 stars - I would say that "objectively," this is probably closer to a 3 star, because I do think there are some pacing and plotting issues with how the book unfolded, particularly in the first ~25%. That said, I had so much fun reading this one, because it was just very much my jam. It's a fantasy romance with a isolated murder mystery plot which... hello. SO me.

I can’t believe I’m doing this after all the anticipation and excitement...but I am. I can’t believe I even got an arc to begin with and I feel way more guilty than I should, but what can I do.

It’s the second time this year that a YA fantasy with these gothic vibes ends up on my most anticipated reads because of an intriguing dark synopsis, and then I end up really disliking it and being unable to read the entire thing.

I can’t say with certainty if the Guillermo del Toro vibes are there since I couldn’t get past the first few chapter, and I’m disappointed big time. Who knows, maybe the inspiration was there but it’s the rest of the writing that ruined everything for me. Let’s go into what I really disliked:

- The main character isn’t even introduced that she immediately does a dumb eye roll-worthy thing. I started with her and then I kept rolling my eyes every few sentences.
- The style is too juvenile for my tastes, I don’t think I would have liked it even when I was a teenager myself. It’s not only the actual writing of the dialogues, it’s also the way the drama is constructed.
- The magic-science wasn’t as great as it sounded, it was pretty basic for a YA of this caliber. To me it was nothing to get excited about.

So here it is. I hope people love this book when it comes out and that it simply wasn’t for me.

Rating: 2.5

I really liked all of the aspects of this book, but I didn't like the way it was written. The writing made it hard for me to connect to the characters, the relationship and the story. I would still recommend it if you're interested in a murder mystery fantasy with a bisexual main character and a enemies-to-lovers romance.

Wonderfully written and delightfully creepy, Down Comes the Night is a stunning gothic debut reminiscent of del Toro’s Crimson Peak. It tells the story of *disaster bisexual* Wren Southerland who has a heart of gold, a brilliant scientific mind, and very little common sense. Choking under the yoke of her imperious Queen-Aunt, Wren strikes out on her own, fleeing to Colwick House: the crumbling rural estate of an eccentric foreign Lord. Snowed-in and tasked with healing his ailing servant, Wren soon discovers things are not as they appear and it is not so easy to tell ally from enemy.

The magic system in this world was extremely interesting and unique. Magic users have a second network of veins called “fola” that carry magical energy throughout the body. Saft dedicated a lot of focus on the medical/scientific functions of magic since Wren is a healer, which was quite refreshing to find in a YA fantasy novel. Religion and politics are adequately explained (standalone) and easy to understand/ follow along with. Culture is a bit glossed over, but is not all that important since the important meat of the story takes place in Colwick House. These sinister surroundings are described perfectly, and evoke an ominous unknowable “other” that leaves a creeping feeling up the reader's spine. Like Wren, I too felt like I was being watched.

The main villain was entirely too cartoonish and very obvious from the jump. I was quite literally picturing them twirling their handlebar mustache and holding their cape up like Dracula. Queen Isabel was a rather lackluster, though critical, character. I would have loved to have gotten some more descriptions of her history and intent through flashes of personal experience. It felt like far too much of her was explained in the context of her sister, Wren’s mother. She truly felt like a “Paper Queen”- she was rather dimensionless and rang flat.

Wren’s endless compassion actually grew to be a bit much by the end of the novel. The lesson in Down Comes the Night seems to be that compassion is the greatest asset in this compassion-lite world, but there needs to be some balance here. Yes, the world as a greater whole needs to be more compassionate; but this also left Wren stagnant and without any real character growth. Wren from the first page and the last page is more-or-less the same person; only the people around her developed in any lasting meaningful way.

Down Comes the Night is a beautifully-written atmospheric love letter to gothic mansions and snowed in horror scenarios. I loved it and I am very interested in reading Saft’s future work.

This review is live on goodreads and will be posted upon publication to the following: amazon, ibooks, kobo, bookbub, and barnes & noble.

My first disappointment of the year is unfortunately one of the books I had most been looking forward to reading. Down Comes the Night sounded promising with a synopsis indicating a darkly gothic story and an atmospheric fantasy. However other than the romance, many of the elements I had been hoping for were sadly missing.

The first issue I encountered was from early on there was lack of connection between myself and the book. The story wasn’t as captivating as I had been hoping. This was attributed to both the writing, which I found lacking, and my dislike of the main character. Wren acted childish and rashly at times, and there was a lack of critical thinking with some of her decisions which failed to endear her to me.

The romance was the book’s saving grace. I’m always a sucker for hate-to-romance and I thought the author did a really good job with this one. I found the romance to be really sweet and beautifully written. Another aspect of the book that I thought worked well was the ending. The ending was the perfect conclusion for a standalone novel: it wrapped the plot points nicely, while also giving a slight open-ending feeling.

Down Comes the Night promised a story full of gothic vibes, dark fantasy, and magic. Unfortunately, it failed to deliver on those promises which left me feeling disconnected to the story and disappointed.

3.5/5⭐️

This is a YA fantasy romance featuring a healer (Wren) who, as an illegitimate niece to the queen, was raised in an abbey before serving in the military during a war with a neighboring country.

For me this had vibes of Beauty and the Beast/Cinderella as Wren changed her stance about the “monster” enemy soldier Hal, and her aunt was portrayed as evil and conniving. There’s a truly evil mad scientist and a creepy castle thrown in as well to add to the dark ambiance.

In the end, this story is about gaining self confidence and the courage to be one’s self rather than everyone’s ideal you. Pretty good overall.

My thanks to #NetGalley and #WednesdayBooks for providing me the early ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.

I really enjoyed this book! the characters were compelling, I especially loved Hal (I'm a sucker for morally grey characters). The magic system was very interesting and different, and the romance was amazing too. I'm a big fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope, so when I saw this book I was like, sign me in! and it did not disappoint!!
I would highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys ya fantasy romances.

This book is glorious! I loved every emotionally overwhelming moment.

Any bleeding heart out there will adore the MC, Wren. Oh, soft characters are not for you? That's fine. There is someone for every appetite. One character even gave me serious Dr. Frankenstein vibes.

Dark towers and isolated estates make fabulous settings for mystery, philosophy and political unrest. There's even an abbey with a stern matron!

Mostly, though, I loved the message. And the romance. And the betrayal. Ok, I loved it all! I want to gush about so many things, but spoilers are not my jam. You'll just have to read it for yourself.

Wren is one of the best healers amongst her people, but even being the Queens niece doesn’t get her very far. She feels small and at odds with herself all the time.

That is until she gets an invitation to care for a dying patient, she decides to take the opportunity to finally be of use.
Once she gets to Colwick Hall, things start to get tricky, the Lord who invited her seems to be lying to her, but the most important thing is she is supposed to save Hal Cavendish, a villain who has killed thousands of her people.

The plot was interesting, I really liked the “murder mystery” theme, but I couldn’t connect with any of the characters, Wren came off as very childish and Hal was just blank, he barely spoke. I really don’t get how they fell in love.

Overall this is an ok read if you are looking for some mystery, fantasy and a dash of romance.

I’m not really sure where to start.
Do I begin with the writing style? The characters? The atmosphere? The plot? There are countless elements that make up a great novel, and I’m happy to say that Down Comes The Night very nearly exceeded at each and every one of them.

This is a world where two magical kingdoms have been fighting over land for years and years, while a kingdom with only technological advancements sits untouched in the mountains. The magic is called fola, and it’s unique to every person that has it. Despite this being a fantasy world, magic isn’t the answer to every problem and it’s certainly not the focus of the story. Truly, I loved being immersed in place brimming with a fantastic balance of politics, history, and magic.

Wren as a main character was rather refreshing. Her magic is that of a healer’s, and you can see great empathy in how she treats others. It was really interesting seeing Wren grapple with a lot of confusion about herself: should she be more ruthless? Are empathy and trust weaknesses in a land rife with war and danger? I loved that the author didn’t rely on what is normally considered “strength” for a female protagonist. Wren is also bisexual I believe, but I don’t want to put a label if it’s not explicitly stated, you know?

Hal gave me hardcore Zuko vibes. He’s brooding, angsty, and above all, is seeking answers and redemption. His character is both careful and reckless, caring and ruthless. I loved getting to know him, and seeing him and Wren grow closer.

This has such a slow-burn romance!!! With enemies-to-lovers!!! Which actually fits the story and setting perfectly. This is a slow-burn, character focused novel that doesn’t rush things. In that regard, it might not be for everyone.

Although with that being said, I have to praise the writing! Allison Saft writes atmosphere with such practiced ease, I sometimes forgot that this was a debut. It’s the sort of writing style that will only grow more polished with time and experience. I can only recommend curling up with a hot drink and a blanket to read this. The dark corners of a nearly abandoned mansion, the icy blizzards of a snowstorm, everything comes to life.

On that note, the second half of this book didn’t strike quite the same chords with me as the first half. The second half of the plot started feeling a bit too predictable and generic for me, as well as several of the events towards the end feeling especially a little too contrived for my tastes. Also, a few of Wren’s decisions did frustrate me. But I really loved the ending itself, and since this is a debut, I’m perfectly satisfied to let my minor grievances go.

Finally, I wanted to touch on the fact that while it is a book rich with gothic atmosphere, a slow-burn romance, and a solid plot, Down Comes The Night offers a thoughtful commentary on the price of war. And not just the cost of lost lives, but of lost humanity. Not only did this flesh out the world and characters, but it left me with a somewhat deeper appreciation of the novel as a whole.

A huge thank you to Wednesday Books for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!