4-4.5****

Such a fun and intriguing fantasy read! This is a fantastic retelling where I don’t end up hating the plot/characters! I think this is because the author has stuck relatively well to the source material and used so many Greek myths to make this story work. This is also set in antiquity which is a massive bonus.

This book has intriguing concepts and an adventure/trial down into the underworld. I enjoyed the use of Orpheus as a villain and a total spin in the Orpheus and Eurydice myth. I really enjoyed how the author used Greek myth to suit her purposes-for example, a nod to Odysseus using wax when facing the sirens.

The atmosphere of the magic and underworld was very immersive. This book also featured a ‘band’ of people coming together to complete a task and was such a great, albeit dark, adventure through the underworld.

I just want to say that I can't wait to get my pre order of this book because I feel like the physical book is so much more fun to read than an ebook!

I love the authors - I love the way they write. It's so easy to read, so relatable even though it actually isn't!

I never read the synopsis of a plot, so I was surprised at how heavy the mythology was. However, I'm not complaining, I love anything with Hades in it and it was executed in a perfect way!!! I loved it.

The characters were so interesting. Lovely found family trope, enemies to lovers, friendship and betrayal.

The cover as well OH MY GOD IT IS STUNNING!!!!

I can't wait till book 2!!!!!Also, make sure to read the authors note at the end, was super interesting!

★★★★★ 4.5/5


Deina is a Soul Severer, someone who serves Hades on Earth in aiding the dying and the people deemed guilty from the mortal world. She prides herself on being the best, but she yearns to earn or steal enough to run away away and be free of her duties with her best friend, Chryse.

Seeing her chance to earn her freedom when the Tyrant Orpheus arrives, Deina immediately presents herself for the task of journeying to the Underworld with a team of other Soul Severers. Except what should be a near enough straightforward task is anything but. Stuck with a team mainly consisting of people she’d rather be without, Deina is determined to complete the task set out for them and claim the rewards for herself, but betrayal is rife, and the team she’s with are out for themselves too.

I loved this. Absolutely loved it. I’ve been a fan of both authors since their first book The Witch’s Kiss, and like that series and their other books, I’ve enjoyed them immensely. I’m honestly so excited for more people to read this when it comes out in August, it needs to be in as many hands as possible.

I’m a huge lover of Greek mythology and knew of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth already, which this book is loosely based off, and despite this I found it was easy to follow along even if you had no prior knowledge of the Greek myth. Due to this, I’d definitely recommend the book to anyone looking for a new fantasy read with world-building and lore that is easy to understand and not overly complicated. It’s a book you can dive straight into without having to flip back to the start and reacquaint yourself with how things work every so often as you read.

As for the characters, you get a real feel for them through Deina’s well written POV. Each character stands out and you get to learn about them as well as Deina as the story progresses. But be warned, none of the characters as as black and white as they first seem, and on multiple occasions I was surprised to discover something about them I hadn’t already guessed. It’s not a predictable book and I really liked that, anything where I can see some plot twist coming from the beginning of the book often leaves me bored unless it’s done well, I like to be surprised.

As this is the first in a duology, it’s safe to say I am also excited to read the next book as the ending left me well and truly shocked. As soon as I was finished I was eager for more, and I’ll be sure to pick up the next book as soon as it’s available.



Did I like the book? Yes

Did I love it? Yes! It’s easily one of my favourite reads of this year.

Would I recommend it? Definitely. For anyone who has a love or a like for Greek mythology, or anyone looking for a new fantasy read to get stuck into, this is definitely a worthy read.

Deina is trapped. As a Soul Severer serving the god Hades on earth, her life is destined for servitude. Until Orpheus, the tyrant ruler, offers Deina and some of her fellow Severer’s a chance of freedom by retrieving his wife, Eurydice, from the Underworld. As their quest gets underway the fellowship must work together and put aside their rivalry of they’ll never get out alive.

Firstly, I am a massive fan of @katharinecorrwrites and @lizcorrwrites – I’ve read all of their books so far and I have loved every single one and Daughter of Darkness did not break the cycle. I’ve never read a fantasy novel based on Greek mythology before, despite there being so many out there right now, so with this being my first experience I’ve got to say I’m definitely going to invest in more. The story of Deina is gripping from the beginning and I love her tenacity – her desperation to be free makes her a driving force in this book and keeps the reader gripped from start to finish.

The imagery used to describe the Underworld is flawless, I cannot get those images out of my head! And is it wrong to think I might actually want to go there? Ha!

My favourite characters were definitely Deina, Theron and Nat – I foresee a love triangle happening there and I cannot wait! I think the three of them were absolutely brilliant characters but the Corr ladies always know how to make me fall in love with their creations!

Easy 5 star read and I cannot wait for the next instalment!

3.5 ⭐

Sing, O muse, a song of Death ...

I think there are a lot of readers that will love this book. A group of Soul Severers journey to the Underworld on a quest to find and restore a spirit back to life. Along the way, they must navigate the many hidden dangers of the Underworld and determine who can be trusted. The world is inspired by the Mycenaean civilisation of Bronze Age Greece and there are characters loosely based on the Orpheus and Eurydice from the myths.

For me, there was something missing. My attention waned frequently and my feelings regarding both the book and its characters are conflicted. I found the characters easier to dislike than to like, but at times they surprised me. The prologue was without a doubt the best written part of the book. It was full of a dark atmosphere that had me really excited. Unfortunately, the rest of the book seemed mild in comparison. I wanted more edge... which I think is reasonable to expect from a trip to the Underworld. There were also things that I thought could have been better explained and this impacted my enjoyment of the story. The mysterious boy shrouded in shadows is what kept me reading. Sadly, his appearances were sporadic.

Regardless, I would still consider reading book two.

I felt like it either needed to be longer or shorter.
Set in an alternative Greek history and based on the Orpheus myth. Our heroine is one of the theodesmioi, those that are marked by and can use some power of the gods to carry out their will on earth, and she is doing everything she can to reduce the time of service she must complete, when King Orpheus comes to their island with a mission to get his wife back from death with the promise of freedom and gold, she takes the chance and finds things are not all they appear...
I really felt for the characters in this book, the story was vivid and sometimes frightening but really enjoyable. I feel that the pacing was off sometimes and that a little more explanation was needed in places but overall a really good read.

Deina is an indentured servant of Hades on Earth, and is desperately working towards freedom as fast as she can. When the opportunity to completely wipe her debt comes along, she jumps at the chance which sees her venturing intot he Underworld with a team she doesn't trust to find a soul and return it to the land of the living.

This fantasy is steeped in Greek mythology and was a gripping read! The characters were engaging and flawed, and the plot was fast past once the meat of the story got started. Can't wait for the sequel!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

A brilliantly crafted tale based on Greek Mythology. Not strictly a retelling but inspired by myths you may be aware of.

Lots of detail, characters and names to keep up with. Plenty of momentum and gripping moments that hook you in and keep you reading way into the early morning hours.

i adored this book! the writing style is so beautiful and poetic. i fell in love with deina and her story arc. she is an exceptionally strong main character. the incorporation of dystopian, fantsay and greek mythology is to die for and if you love anything to the likes of percy jackson to song of achilles you will love this book a whole hell of a lot.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of "Daughter of Darkness" by Katharine + Elizabeth Corr.

I wasn't impressed by this one. You could tell some of the Greek Mythology research was done but certain bits felt milked out or even false. This book isn't a retelling per se but it is "inspired" Which did disappoint. I feel like it would be perfect for those who weren't looking for a Greek Myth story. The writing felt dragged on in areas but the style was lovely - especially for a duo. I dont know whether I'd read the sequel but I know plenty of people who would love this so it is definitely a 5 star for others.

I am a big fan of Katherine and Elizabeth Corr so I was very much looking forward to reading Daughter of Darkness and it did not disappoint!

What a story!! This grasped my attention right from page one and once i got my head round all of the characters I was absolutely hooked.

I loved every one of these characters which made this just an absolute rollercoaster to read!

I honestly cannot wait to see what Book 2 will bring!

Highly recommend this!

I love anything to do with Greek mythology so as soon as I saw Daughter of Darkness I knew I had to read it, and I was not disappointed.
Despite there not being as much world-building as I would have liked, the story captivated me with its morally grey heroine, enemies-to-friends side characters and betrayal. This was an interesting take on the story of Orpheus and Eurydice which I thoroughly enjoyed.
I will most definitely be continuing with this duology.

I really enjoy Greek retellings, Myths and Legends. And this story had them all. There seemed to be numerous characters within the book and this was sometimes muddling. As was the constant different places withing the world building.
I like the premise of the MC and her control over death and do look forwardin reading the next instalment. The underworld does call to me.

What a whirlwind! Wow. How to begin reviewing this…! There’s just so much to cover. The story, the plot, the characters, the set up, the world it encompassed, the mythology, the writing, just everything. I loved it all.

From the beginning I could tell this was going to be a great one. I’ve read a few other books by these authors and they’ve never let me down. They’ve been so entertaining, with seriously outstanding storylines and a world to really throw yourself into and get invested in. And boy can I say I was invested in this one. I needed to know what was going to happen and how it was going to end. I had no idea what was coming and I was so not prepared for the twists and turns that blew my mind!

Deina was such a fab main character too. I really warmed to her as well as to the others in the motley crew tasked to bring Euradice back to the living. The idea of the soul severers was inspired and honestly, the whole book was just great. I can’t find fault. Especially towards the end, my eyeballs were nearly on fire at how quickly I was tearing through the pages as I was so on edge and eager to find out how it was going to conclude.

Ooof. And that ending. I need the next one and I can’t wait to read it. I don’t think I’ll rest until I do! Seriously amazing book !!

I love anything to do with myth from any country/culture so I was so excited to be accepted for this. This is the first book I have read by these authors and I will definitely be reading more by them. I couldn't put it down, I loved it and the cover is absolutely stunning

As not only a lover of Greek mythology, but also a lover of the works of Katherine & Elizabeth Core, I pounced on this opportunity to read this book via NetGalley.

Deina is a Soul Severer in the employe of Hades. Deina is determined to reduce her indentured, however during her last ceremony she was distracted by a face that she had seen during he recent ceremonies. The face she did not know. 

One day, the voice of His Majesty, Lord Orpheus, Aristaeus visits the home in search of volunteers. Should the volunteers be successful in their mission,  they are granted a life of freedom, no more indentured. This alone is enough to make Deina decide to offer her services.

She along with a mere handful of others, arch nemesis Theron and Aster are to be tested by scorpions in a box. The effectiveness of these scorpions is that their poison give the illusion of pain. Of the six that undertake the scorpion test only four survive,  Aster (the warrior), Drex (the thinker), Theron (the bard) and of course Deina herself (the thief).

It is only now that Lord Orpheus reveals the nature of their mission, for they are to work as a team. He wishes them to travel to the Underworld and return his beloved wife Eurydice to him.

The four Severersset sail,  accompanied by Deina's friend, Chryse who is bound for Thebes at the request of Lord Orpheus. However when Chryse refuses to join Lord Orpheus in his bed, he decides that she should join the other four Soul Severers on their mission to retrieve Eurydice's soul from the Underworld.

There are twists and turns during the journey through the Underworld.  The Soul Severers are tried and tested throughout their mission. 

Without giving too much away, thereis betrayal,  love, anger, despair and a whole gamut of deep emotions.

Deina makes a sacrifice believing that she has successfully saved her fellow Severers, but the Gods can be tricky,  and nothing is ever straightforward. 

I'm am eagerly awaiting the second book is this duology as I can't wait to see where the Corr sisters take us. This is definitely a book you need to read!

As always Katherine and Elizabeth smash it. Anything they write is sure to be a winner in my eyes . I could not stop reading this I was and still am obsessed with this and as usual their beautiful writing !!

I really enjoyed the concept of the book, and the mythology weaved throughout the story. The mythology was easy to keep up with, especially if like me, you aren't particularly a follower of it.

It was a fun fantasy story, full of betrayal, that had a lot of adventure and mystery, which made it easy to read. I liked the main character, and thought it was great to see a morally grey mc, who steals and has no issue protecting herself, Deina was a strong, well written character the entire way through the book.

I struggled occasionally with the amount of character's and names thrown around during the book, and the brief world building, but that didn't distract from my enjoyment, and am looking forward to the second book.