Sometimes Bec will pick up a book and know within the first page or two that she’s gonna be hooked, and absolutely love it. Some books this has happened with before are The City of Brass, Ninth House, and Mexican Gothic – all very different books, not necessarily her brand of book or her go-to style, but ones she instantly loved and devoured. In the Ravenous Dark is definitely a new addition to this list.

But for Lauren, In the Ravenous Dark is exactly the kind of book she’ll reach for and push others to read. When others had discussed it they spoke about blood magic, how could she not want to consume it. This was definitely a book that grabbed her attention and she knows that Rovan’s personality is a solid reason for this, she’s got those kinds of Gideon vibes which just made her very enjoyable to read about.

This is something that Bec agrees with wholeheartedly as she felt something that immediately drew her in was how our main character, Rovan, has a lot of traits that are often put in a bad light in fantasy, and yet here they appeared so casually and without question. When we meet Rovan in the present day, she’s been drinking (and regularly does), she’s just spent a night on top of a gazebo with a girl – she’s queer, and she unashamedly loves sex. We both think it was so refreshing to see a sex-positive fantasy, especially with a pansexual, polyamorous main character!

Anyway, the story’s pace is very fast in the best possible way (Lauren even sat and read it all in two sittings because she fell so in love with it), but even through the darkest moments, Rovan refuses to be anything other than herself. She won’t change for anyone – especially the death-obsessed regime that tore her family apart – and we love that about her. She never once gives up a piece of herself, but she does take the time to reflect on her actions and put effort into improving her selfish nature – a nature that is hardly surprising after living in fear for many, many years.

So at this point, you’re probably thinking this is a book full of sex and blood magic, and well yes, there is a lot of both of those – but at its heart, this is a story of found family. On that note, let’s talk about some more very important characters!

After being taken to the palace once her blood-mage skills are discovered, Rovan soon meets Japha (a member of the royal family who is non-binary and asexual), and Lydea, a lesbian princess and just generally someone you want on your side in a palace full of people who are against you. We also meet Ivrilos, the (very handsome but very undead) guardian who Rovan is bound to so that her blood-mage powers can be kept under control. Ivrilos is definitely more of a mysterious character, but his character arc was really interesting to read and such a great part of the overall plot.

As mentioned, this is a story of a found family; found through loss and through fighting, through betrayals to those closest to you, through understanding your own power. Although our main four make bad decisions at times, they all fight for each other, and some aspects of what they’ll do to protect their newfound family definitely get quite dark and emotional. But what do you expect in a book that features death and blood mages? There is also an f/f/m polyamorous relationship, which was not only great to see in itself, but also the fact that it was discussed and all consented to without hurting each other was done perfectly.

The world-building and magic system itself was unique, yet easy to keep up with despite the fast pace of the storytelling. We wouldn’t be surprised if we see some lovely art inspired by the sigils in the coming months. Thanopolis is a fantasy Ancient Greece/Rome inspired land, and these inspirations were interwoven so well with the magical aspects and traditions created.

Really, our only complaint is that this is a standalone book and we want more of this world and these characters – isn’t that always the case when you find a book you love so much? The story is wrapped up perfectly in just the one book, but we already love this powerful group of misfits so much and we have such a need to read more about them. Truly we’d love to just follow them on an adventure or two. If you pick up just one new fantasy release this month, make it In the Ravenous Dark!

Content warnings: death, blood (including drinking blood), violence, vomit, alcoholism, grief, threat/mention of rape and sexual assault, sacrifices, death of a parent, threat of forced marriage, and speak of previous forced marriage.

I started this as a read along but ended up reading it all at once. The world building is a little simple but the magic system is quite unique - blood mages are people born with powers that can create sigils to do whatever they want. They are quite rare so in Thanapolis, they are assigned guardians (undead spirits) to protect and watch over them. Rovan’s father died to protect her from being found out when she was 7, but she exposes herself inadvertently when she’s 18 and is taken to the palace and bonded with Ivrilos. She also meets Lydea and Japha who are bloodmages from the royal family and becomes friends with them. However there’s a lot of intrigue and terrible secrets regarding the truth of what is really happening in Thanopolis and the wider world in general.

The plot was really interesting and had me gripped from the beginning but it started to run out of steam a little bit towards the middle. Rovan is pansexual and is attracted to both Lydea and Ivril. Her character develops from drunken layabout to a lot more. The connection with the other 2 opens up different sides of her. However some of the other side characters are a little flat and don’t add much to the story. Some things were a little obvious and tied up too neatly. Plus some of the actions taken by the main characters are very rash and quite ill advised. The consequences are thus dire but then rectified or ignored due to another looming crisis 5 mins later so they don’t carry any real emotional weight. The reveals of the villain(s) was a surprise but in the end they didn’t feel like a real threat. I felt more threat coming from a néw party that showed for about 5 pages towards the end that could either be an ally or an enemy.

Overall - an interesting read that started off really well but unfortunately devolved into a slightly disappointing mush. 3.75/5 stars.

This arc was provided by Hodder & Stoughton, via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

TW: death, loss of a loved one (on-page and off), violence, blood, gore, body horror, fratricide,
mention of death by suicide, substance and alcohol addiction, enforced gender roles, forced marriage, and pregnancy (including rape, but the latter is off-page, in the past, and not involving main characters), and threats of rape and abuse.

I can confidently say that A.M. Strickland is a new auto-read and favourite author for me. As with Beyond the Black Door, In the Ravenous Dark is a dark and lush story that will mesmerize you, and you'll only be thankful for it.

In the Ravenous Dark follows Rovan, a bloodmage that has been keeping her abilities secret since she was born to escape the same fate that followed her father. Of course, nothing ever goes as planned.

I really appreciate how action-packed this was, there was always some event or decision happening and it keeps the readers on their toes. When I reached the dark page, the scream that left my soul at 2 AM why??

As everything progresses, you can't not love the characters, Rovan, Lydea, and Ivrilos, and so many others. It always surprises me how much I care when it's a standalone, or maybe that's why it hurts so much. You only meet these people once and that's it. And it's such a satisfying and worthy read of your time.

Lastly, the queer rep just filled my heart with warm mushy feelings. Our main character is pansexual, there's a polyamorous relationship, the world-building has queernormativity which makes me so happy to see in fantasy. Asexual and Nonbinary side characters, an amazing found family. I just love it.

Prepare yourselves for a dark, gruesome, and intriguing adventure. As the author says, "get ready for a blood-spattered, kiss-filled roller coaster ride." I couldn't have said it better.

I really enjoyed reading In the Ravenous Dark. A.M. Strickland's writing style was phenomenal. The plot was really interesting and the magic system was amazing too. It was dark, fast paced, and very well written. The queer rep was in this book was phenomenal too. I've never read with so many queer characters in a book. Also, I had to say that the cover design is gorgeous. Overall, I'll definitely pick up another book from A.M Strickland and I'll recommend this book who wants to read a very well-written dark ya fantasy book.

Tw(full list can be found in the author's review on Goodreads):
blood/gore (not overly explicit though.), death, semi-graphic sex scenes

Rep: pan MC, lesbian love interest, non-binary side character


“In the Ravenous Dark” is, first and foremost, an action-filled, immersive adventure. It grabs you from the very first page and takes you on a thrilling journey through a death-obsessed city, filled with mysteries, blood magic and unexpected bonds.

Much of that is thanks to the dynamic plot and the main character’s (and narrator ) cheeky personality. Rovan was truly a delight - sassy and bold, yet not caricatural in any way. She does provide some hilarious commentary and dialogue – I laughed out loud quite a few times.

One of this book’s biggest assets was the vivid imagery of the world – despite the first-person, fast-paced narrative, I quickly got immersed in the magical city of Thanapolis. Its aesthetic easily transferred from the page to my imagination- I could picture the scenery with little to no effort, which made reading much more pleasant. Despite my initial worry about the book taking an “edgy” turn – due to the heavy focus on blood/death – I'd say the matter was handled rather elegantly, without excessive describtions.

I have to say not much of the magic system was actually explored – Rovan ( understandably) knew few sigils, death magic wasn’t given enough spotlight. Part of that is a result of the quick-paced plot and first-person POV, but it still feels like a loss not to have these elements expanded. It left me a little underwhelmed, as I would have liked a wider perspective of the world, but maybe this was never the intention. It still worked well enough as a setting, and combined with the intense main storyline, wasn’t that noticeable.

The quick pacing did come at a (small) cost of some relationships (not all of them) - while built on a solid skeleton (pun intended), they felt a little too rushed - more on-page development would be appreciated. The potential was there – I could see those characters, I cared about them, but they lacked the spark to stay with me for longer – which is a shame, because considering how invested I was, it wouldn’t take much more to cement their place in my heart. Not that they didn't still make for a wonderful cast - but that's exactly why I kept wishing we could see more of them.

Still, the romance was truly swoon-worthy, and one of my favourite elements of the book – the build-up, the tension, the banter, the drama, all of it was well written, and beautiful, and I enjoyed it immensely. It was also great that the story explored importance of different kinds of love, and challenged popular ways of thinking about relationships, and was very sex-positive, so points for that!

Now, let’s be honest, I’ve read this some time ago and now that the “dust has settled” I can say it’s not exactly a book that stays with you. But it’s fun and gripping, and very pleasant to read – for numerous reasons listed above, such as the banter, the aesthetic world building, the romance. I think it’d make a splendid movie - it has the visual potential, is fast paced, and you wouldn’t be missing out on writing, as it’s rather simple.
I would still highly recommend it as an intense romantic adventure to lose yourself in for a few hours, but keep in mind not to expect too much complexity in terms of the technicalities of the world-building.

PS: I admit, I’m totally letting the “hundreds-year-old falling for a 19-year-old” slide this time. Guilty as charged. (Although he’s dead? So, we can pretend he doesn’t mentally age, like ghosts?) I loved the love interest and their relationship. But if that’s a “no” from you then keep that in mind

I didn't know what I got myself into starting this book. I thought something about blood magic and death and maybe some gothic vibes. I got so much more than I bargained for!

I love the story with its twists and turns. I loved where it went and how it got there. There were several twists I didn't see coming in a good way.

I also loved the number of friendships in here. There are some solid ones that last through thick and thin. I ship several of these friendships!

As this is a standalone I expected something heavy and a lot just to set the scene, but there wasn't. It was a pleasant level of world-building. It felt like a vivid place and a rather large place even though only a few other places are mentioned. There was just something about it that made me think it was a big area.

There were several things about this world/magic I didn't see coming but explains why the character on the cover cries red. I didn't see that feature coming at all and almost laughed out loud. And it fitted nicely into the story and the magic. It was very well done

Rovan is the main character and we get introduces to her as she wakes up with a hangover on top of a gazebo with a lady friend *wink wink*. Immediately I like her... I mean why wouldn't I? She also becomes determined to achieve her goal even if it becomes self-destructive. And she doesn't trust easily. All my favourite traits in a character.

Of the side characters, I think I prefeed Japha. They were just amazing and ace and so cool! Loved them.

The writing was smooth. considering this is a new author to me, I didn't know what to expect. But I enjoyed it. It drew me in and prevented me from putting the book down. It was uncomplicated and flowed easily from page to page.

I loved it! It blew me away. It was so much better than expected and had so many interesting features that I didn't see coming.

Yes, it wasn't perfect but I still loved it with some much of me that I think this author might become an auto-buy/request in the future. I'm excited to see what they do next.

I really, really enjoyed this book! It was gripping from the very start. Fantastically written. Would definitely recommend.

We follow our main character Rovan who, as a young girl, watches her father die protecting her secret that she is a bloodmage. However, when several years have passed, Rovan accidentally reveals herself and is taken by the Palace to be warded by an undead spirit. As Rovan uncovers a secret that could destroy everyone and everything in Thanopolis, both living and undead, she must decide who she can trust to bring on a rebellion and fight for the City she's been desperate to leave.

This book was phenomenal. I can't remember the last time I saw so much queer rep in a book to be perfectly honest. Not only is our main character, Rovan, pansexual, but one of my favourite side characters, Japha, is non-binary. There is also asexual and lesbian characters as well as a consensual F/F/M love triangle, which isn't something I've come across before.

A.M Strickland's writing style was fantastic and I'd be interesting in reading more from them in the future. In the Ravenous Dark was gritty, dark and fascinating and I'd highly recommend it.

“A pansexual bloodmage reluctantly teams up with an undead spirit to start a rebellion among the living and the dead.”
This pitch is so on point! In the Ravenous Dark is a phenomenal standalone YA fantasy packed with a diverse cast of characters, action, blood magic, political intrigue, and romance. It’s so dark, I love it!

In the Ravenous Dark is set in an Ancient Greek-inspired city with an intricate magic system and history. The world-building was complex and immersive without being infodump. We see two types of magic, blood magic, and death magic. And as Rovan, the protagonist, learns her capabilities as a bloodmage and further gets entangled in the politics, we also see how the magic works and the lore behind it. This made understanding the politics, magic system, and history easier to follow. One thing that surprised me (in a good way), was the vampire-like arc. Felt like 2013 again haha!
A.M. Strickland’s writing style was simple yet rich in lush and vivid descriptions which made for a dark and atmospheric read. She’s a talented storyteller who can deliver excellently. She weaves the lore behind the living world and the underworld effortlessly and naturally.

My favorite and the strongest element of the book is the characters. All are well-developed including the side characters and I really like the LGBTQ+ representation. It’s so well done and natural and it definitely did not feel like it was there for the sake of it. The protagonist, Rovan, is likable and relatable. She’s sarcastic, selfish, morally ambiguous, and a chaotic mess. Japha, Rovan’s new best friend is a nonbinary POC and I love how fashionable and witty they are. Japha made the whole book humorous and more enjoyable. They always have the best lines! Princess Lydea is a bloodmage and a lesbian. She’s headstrong and confident, and she wants to forge her own future. And Ivrilos, Rovan’s guardian, I enjoyed his backstory and dry humor. The found family trope and dynamics between the four characters were enjoyable and delightful.

I did have an issue with the romance and pacing. The pacing in the beginning until 2/3 of the book was great. It was fast-paced and it efficiently established the world, magic, and lore through Rovan's eyes and her backstory. But on the last part, there’s a lot of action happening at once that things felt rushed and crammed together, particularly the romance. It was insta-love. The characters professed they love each other too soon that it felt unrealistic and underdeveloped.
I actually think this could have been a duology but it does stand strongly on its own and everything was wrapped up nicely at the end.

Overall, In the Ravenous Dark is spectacular! It was an unputdownable read. I love the characters especially Japha, the mythology, the representation. It was great seeing a lot of queer reps that felt realistic. Highly recommended to dark fantasy readers!

Thank you, Hodder and Stoughton for the e-ARC of In the Ravenous Dark. All thoughts and opinions are mine.

This book is original in its ideas weaving a world in which bloodmages have become law enforcers for the King. However, unlike bloodmages from Skyllea they have had a guardian attached to them.
The main character, Rovan has hidden her blood magic for a long time after seeing what the bloodmages did to he father when she was 7. When her girlfriends almost dies she saves her using blood magic exposing her to the bloodmages of the king. She is taken to the palace where she is thrown onto a den of vipers making discoveries about friendships and her family. Not knowing who to trust and who is on her side or not she has to learn to navigate the rules of court.
The twists and turns of the story make it a compelling read with some surprises.
My only slight reservation is the development of the love interests for Rovan. I feel that she falls in love based on looks rather than personality. Her love interests lack depth and personality other than in how they interact with Rovan. This is a shame because Lydea in particular could be developed into a stronger character. Japha is probably my favourite in that they just want to be themselves. It is refreshing to also read about a character who has chosen the pronoun they without it being the main plot of the story.
Definitely worth reading if you like fantasy and magic.

This is just a placeholder review until I'm able to fully get my thought down. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and it drew me in from the moment I picked up the eARC. The representation was very well done and didn't feel like it was being thrown in for the sake of it, and I love Rovan's character!

In the Ravenous Dark was one of my anticipated reads of this year. Safe to say, I did enjoy it but I did not love it. The novel felt too bogged down by the plot and pacing, which resulted in a wobbly execution. However, a huge thumbs up for the casual representation and the sex-positivity. It’s refreshing to read about a fantasy world where members of the lgbtq+ community are embraced and not shunned.

The writing was vivid and I liked the world-building. Inspired by Greek/Roman mythology, it was really easy to picture the images Strickland conjured up. In terms of the magic system, it was well explained and fascinating. I liked the idea of a bloodmage and wards to oversee them. The one thing that took me by surprise was the vampire-esque arc. it was a welcome surprise but I did not know how I felt about this twist.

I liked Rovan as a character. She was a force to be reckoned with. However, I did find her to be too impulsive and sometimes I did not understand her motivations. However, I loved her friendship with Japha. Japha made the whole book for me and I would always look forward to when they appeared on-page.

I had a bit of an issue regarding the development of the romance. It was too rushed. Rovan would proclaim her love for Lydea and Ivrilos relatively quickly with no build-up or development in their relationships whatsoever. It was very insta-love, which I’m not a fan of.

Overall, this was a solid read. If you are looking for a dark, gritty novel with amazing queer rep, this one’s for you!

Mega points to the cover artist on this one, right?!

I really enjoyed IN THE RAVENOUS DARK. It’s fast-paced and has great character relationships. The world the story is set in and the magic systems in place are interesting, and I liked the wider-scale world politics involved.

I actually think IN THE RAVENOUS DARK could have been developed into something longer, because there’s definitely enough potential (between the magic, politics, royal intrigues and romance) for this to have been a duology.

I loved the strong found family trope here, and completely fell for all the characters in different ways. I liked the way they all played off each other and interested. There’s multiple queer characters and queer relationship aren’t stigmatised in this world (although producing heirs is expected).

There’s a lot of other great stuff going for IN THE RAVENOUS DARK — enemies-to-lovers, a polyamorous relationship and queer platonic relationships and morally grey, imperfect characters. It’s fast-paced and deliciously dark, but definitely check out the author’s content warnings (available on the GoodReads page) if darker subject matter is triggering, because it might be difficult for some readers.

Ok, let's be clear: this is a great fantasy book.
It's dark, gritty at times and highly entertaining.
A stand-alone story featuring great characters, a very interesting world building a plot that kept me hooked.
The author is a talented storyteller and delivers an excellent story.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
I would be happy to read other books featuring this world.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

“But this is the opposite of yesterday’s pageantry, where the living masqueraded as the dead. This is death dressed up as life, and it’s far more frightening.”

CW: Death of family, near death experience, blood

In the Ravenous Dark was set to be one of my most anticipated books of the year. I’m glad to report back that it totally lived up to expectations and I know it’ll be one of my top books of the year.

The characters in this were one of the strongest parts of the book, which is great because it was one of the driving forces behind me adding the book to my wishlist in the first place. The main character, Rovan, was prickly, sarcastic and not necessarily loveable at the start. She’s terribly selfish too, thinking entirely of herself. However, she really changes as the book goes on, growing as a character and starting to consider others and the effects her actions can have on them.

There was a whole host of incredible side characters, with genuinely interesting relationships. Rovan is pansexual and drawn to a princess and her spirit guard, so there’s kind of a FFM (enemies to lovers) relationship. But there is also a panromantic asexual non-binary best friend and they are fantastic (sassy, fabulous, beautiful) but also handled so well (no one bats an eyelash because it doesn’t matter how you identify if you still do what you have to).

Women are handled in a way which makes for good feminist discussions. Women can be warriors and can handle magic, but they are also forbidden from doing stuff. Everyone is forced into arranged marriages, but you’re cool to be with whoever you like outside that.

The relationships in this were definitely the strongest point. Rovan loves and she loves hard, but she maybe doesn’t always think of all the effects her love can have. She loves her family and her friends, but I loved her romantic relationships too. I definitely think the best side of it was with her spirit guard because it’s the most complicated one and it wasn’t as easy to predict.

It feels funny to say, but I liked that this plot started straight away. Often, books have a few chapters to set up the world, but there’s not that here. You are immediately thrown into it and you learn everything as Rovan – and the rest of the world – discovers it. This isn’t a story where everything, like the magic, is set at the start. It changes and develops and it’s fascinating.

The magic and the history of the world was interesting, and the plot was filled with a number of unexpected twists. I didn’t want to put it down.

I wanted to love this, and for the first 30-40% I was into it and intrigued to see where it was going, but then I felt lost. I couldn't make sense of the magic or the world and I lost interest really quickly.
Disappointed because I did like some of the characters and the magic/world seemed so interesting but I couldn't wrap my head around it.

This book started off quite slow and quite confusing but once I had gotten into it, I loved it. The pansexual representation in it was accurate which, as someone who is pansexual, absolutely appreciated. The book was fast paced and I could not put it down. I read it all in two sittings!

I loved Beyond the Black Door so it's not a surprise that I loved the author's new book, too. Honestly, it's a jackpot. Fast action, queer found family, poli relationship, enemies-to-lovers, morally grey characters, lots of magic.... basically all my favourite things in one book.

I loved the way the characters discussed attraction and relationships, I loved the way queerness was woven into the fantasy world, I loved how amatonormativity was challenged at every step and of course I loved secondary ace rep!

It's impossible to choose my favourite character and I'm so glad that instead if a love triangle we got an amazing poli relationship, because, as it was repeated, "love is not a finite resource."

The action was so fast, I was at the edge of my seat and things just kept happening. I love fast-paced fantasy so it's a huge yes from me.

Can't wait for everyone to read this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

I’d like to mention first off, that I was so happy to see such an extensive trigger warning list from the author, as well as her willing to discuss and help readers navigate them. Clearly, she genuinely cares about her readers.

I was totally entranced by this book. The action starts right from the prologue and doesn’t stop. I love the magic system, it reminded me a little of the Dame Rouges from Serpent & Dove, and I loved it!

The world was fascinating, Greco-Roman inspired but more of the feeling and style rather than a straight transplant, which was lovely!

I loved Rovan’s relationships. She has a beautiful found family, two fantastic one interests, and her relationships are fleshed out and interesting. Three cheers for friendships in YA novels! Rovan herself is also a great character. She recognizes her own faults, she fights, and she loves deeply. She’s a very self-aware protagonist, which I love.

There are some incredibly well crafted scenes in the novel. The ones that comes to my mind first are when Rovan doublespeaks with Kineas and Ivrilos. Very cool. Some of the world-building is very, very complex, though, and at times, you do need to reread to completely get it. I love it, but I wish it was a little clearer.

The rep in this book was just *chef’s kiss*. Japha is an asexual nonbinary joy; Lydea is a sexy lesbian; Rovan herself is a cool af pansexual, and there’s even more. All the queer identities are explicit as well. Although they don’t use our language (fantasy world), most of the characters outwardly state how they feel about their identities and attractions. Strickland has done an amazing job of proving how normal and authentic queer identities are in fantasies and novels; no more excuses, other authors!

The book is also 100% sex-positive which we love to see in a YA. Rovan has important relationships with both Lydea and Ivrilos, and it is fantastic. This was one of the only books where I have enjoyed both love interests and actually enjoyed the love triangle!

I’m definitely going to read Strickland’s other books! This one is 5 stars from me.

"A pansexual bloodmage reluctantly teams up with an undead spirit to start a rebellion among the living and the dead."

How could I not pick this one up?

SYNOPSIS:
In "In the Ravenous Dark" we meet Rovan; a 19 year old woman who has been forced to hide her powers since her father was killed by blood mages.

Within Thanopolis; those with magic are guarded (and manipulated) by the dead. Rovan finds herself having to live amongst the people she grew up hiding from and who sought to oppress and control her. And when she uncovers a secret that threatens her own life as well as those of Thanopolis she must question everything and everyone.

MY THOUGHTS:
This story was quite traditional in terms of broader YA plot line and I didn't love the way the story ended- nor the relationship Rovan had with her spirit/guardian. I did love some of the MC's other relationships in the story

I appreciated that Rovan being pansexual, a princess being a lesbian and a side character being asexual and non binary were not made to be a point of oppression or struggle. Sexuality and gender diversity were more casually built into the world and this was a nice difference to see from other YA/ fantasy I have read.

The world building itself did feel a little stunted and not fleshed out- I almost wished the book had been made a duology so we could have had a richer setting and potentially a different, more complex and less tropey ending.

I also appreciated the author had made her own "review" on the book and went into a lot of detail about content notes/ warnings and age appropriateness- I have rarely seen this and think it's important to acknowledge. Instead of listing them again please check them out here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3200534845?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own.