I'm so sad to say I didn't enjoy this book as much as their other books. The writing felt almost completely different in this one, especially compared to Dowry. I wanted a lot more of the magic system and their powers and I felt like they weren't touched on enough. Although I did love the relationship between Moira and Rhys, I think I wanted more of that in the story. I guess that's the common theme for this book is I just wanted more out of it. Maybe it was written that way because it's the first in the series and hopefully I'll get more out of the next book, which I'll definitely be reading. Moira was by far my favorite character of the three. Her style, her personality, I would have been more than happy if the entire story was written from her point of view. I am very excited with how the book left off at the end, it was alluding to something that I had been hoping for through the whole book and I can't wait.

Many thanks to Angry Robot for my review copy!

I was so excited to get to this one I have loved every book I have read by S T Gibson but I was disappointed with this one. I think this is a well written story but I wasn't invested in the story or characters 😞

Thank you to Netgalley, Angry Robot and S T Gibson for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Evocation is a really captivating and mysterious novel, with complex character dynamics. I really liked it and I will definitely read more in this world and from the author.
This is the first book in The Summoner's Circle and it is a queer fantasy romance book.

I really liked the writing style and the characters of the book. Rhys, Moira and David have really unique relationship dynamics.
I loved the atmosphere of the book. It has gothic and dark academia vibes.

I also want to mention that the book navigates complex themes around fidelity, addiction, and childhood abuse.

I am really looking forward to continue with the series.

David was an occult prodigy as a young adult, he was raised by his abusive father. His father has been dead for years and he has been living a very luxurious life of riches and power. By day he is an attorney, and in his off time he provides medium services. Just before his 3oth birthday he begins to feel weird, his powers are acting up and he is at a loss for the cause.

In comes his researcher ex-boyfriend, and occult rival Rhys, he seeks his help but in order for him to agree he has to charm and convince Moira, Rhys' wife. Feelings and attachments between the 3 of them develop and it will take all of them to figure out this deal with the devil David's ancestors left him with.

This book really took my by surprise, I have been meaning to read from this author and this happens to be my first. I LOVED the queer representation in this book, especially the exploration of polyamory and non-romantic/sexual love and connection. The plot kept me intrigued from the get go, and I could not put it down. Although things are not fully resolved due to this being part of the series it did end in a good place that did not feel like too much of a cliffhanger. I cannot wait for the next installment.

I enjoyed Evocation a lot more than the author's previous books; it's more like my kind of fantasy and I'm really happy about that. However, I found myself drawn out of the book several times around the 50% mark and I put it down for multiple days at a time; I can't say for sure whether that's the book's fault or mine (I believed it to be my fault until I learned that others felt the same way), but I know that, unfortunately, I can't give it 5 stars. The characters were amazing, especially David and Moira, which is not a surprise; I always love S.T. Gibson's characters. The plot, however, is not as strong as I hoped it would be. I didn't find inconsistencies, but there just wasn't enough of a mystery to it. Everything that happened was extremely predictable and I get that the focus here was on the characters and the relationships between them, but I needed more action, more occult, more... something, which unfortunately wasn't there.

3.5 stars

I enjoyed this one quite a lot! It was hard to put down, because it was an immersive read, and even if it is not perfect, and I wasn't particularly impressed by anything in here, I still had a good time with it, as strange as it may sound. I mean, the main point of the whole story is the relationship between our characters, and this is masterly done, all the rest work as a contour for this and so... it is not bad, but it is not great either. And still, I am happy with this one, and I think that it is well worth your time, too.

Things I liked:
1) David. He is not my usual kind of character, and yet I really enjoyed him and his development. I was invested in his story (and in his well-being). I think that he is a great MC.
2) Moira and Rhys' wedding. I love that they work for it, and I love that the author portrays a happy couple who is not scared of asking for their need to be met. (Well, I am oversimplifying things a bit here, but trust me, it is a happy marriage and they did their best to make it work. And I loved it!)
3) The writing. This is the second book I read by this author, and from what I read around this is quite atypical while the other one I have read (An Education in Malice) is more typical for the writing style and the trope. And the writing between these two books is different. A lot. But even if here it is not so evocative and lush, is still smooth and well-thought and it made for a really compelling reader. It flows really well, and it was hard to put down the book because it was just so easy to keep going!
4) Moira. It took me some time to warm up to her, but in the end, I really enjoyed her.She is a great character with a great personality and an amazing attitude.
5) The magic. If I have to say that the magical system is a tad disappointing because we don't get to see how it is properly inserted in the world at large, we see enough to understand without problems the story and to follow along. And what we see is pretty great, I like how seamlessly ingrained in the world it is and all the different branches are intriguing.
6) The relationship between David, Rhys and Moira. This is the focal point of the book and I really enjoyed that, this time around, we have a relationship that it is sane, even if the characters are not. I don't mean that the characters are insane, but they all are broken and they try their best to be better and to change things, but still, we get to see how "broken" people can still create a working relationship and this part I enjoyed a lot.

Things I didn't enjoy:
1) Rhys. I tried but I did not like him. At all. He has his moments, sure, but all in all, I didn't like him.
2) The plot and the worldbuilding are not central to this story and it shows. And even if I didn't dislike this as much as I disliked Rhys, I still think that the author could have done better on both fronts.

I had a good time with this book, all things considered, and I am happy to have read it! I hope you will enjoy it too!

The book follows the main character David as well as Rhys the ex boyfriend and Rhys’s wife Moria as they struggle to deal with an ancestral deal that has come due!
David reluctantly reaches out to his ex boyfriend Rhys who is one of the few people he ever truly trusted. Both are part of a Secret Society where they play rivals to each other But the only way to get Rhys to help David is through his wife Moria.

The characters are really well written and have a good depth to them and I loved that each character wasn’t perfect and had their own flaws and issues. I enjoyed the complex relationships, how the Polyamory was explored and how it came across in the book. I did find at points this was the sole focus. I really enjoyed the multiple POV in the book and definitely felt that helped add to the story. Whilst it was mainly David’s POV and story adding both Rhys and Moira gave it more depth and added more understanding of the other two characters who I really enjoyed.

I found the book to be well written and easy to follow along. I enjoyed the Gothic , Dark Academia vibe that the book gave off with all the different Occult elements. I love that the magic system is different in this book and that it’s completely different to what I’ve read before and completely focused on the Occult, I really loved the world building and descriptions, especially the practices.
I did find the book to have a slower pace plot wise.

Without giving too much away I really enjoyed the last part of the book and found myself rooting for our main characters.

3.75

this was fun to read!!! really loved the characters so much. the third act kinda fell off for me i felt like something was off because it was rushed a bit, i would have definitely enjoyed more supernatural elements and some drama to keep me entertained tho

a phenomenal debut!! thank you so incredibly much for an arc of this!! i now have a hardback on my shelf because it is STUNNING!!!

Evocation is a good urban fantasy with great characters and setting. I was at times drawn out of the book and put it down for days at a time, but don't take this point too seriously. I might have just read this at the wrong time, personally. I loved the author's previous works, so anyone who enjoyed those should jump right in.

Evocation is the first book in the romantasy series The Summoner's Circle, a proposal full of passion and mysticism with a character driven story, written by S.T. Gibson and published by Angry Robot Books. A story that puts the focus on David, Rhys, and Moira, and the relationships that evolve between them, while fighting with the demonic curse that afflicts David as a result of his family's deal with the devil.

We can't talk about Evocation without putting the focus on the characters and, most importantly, how they make us feel. David has been a bittersweet sensation for me. On one hand, he's a total jerk at the start, and it's difficult to empathize with him; but the more I read and he opens himself to Moira and Rhys, shows his vulnerabilities, the more I enjoyed how Gibson wrote him. David is a broken person, whose abusive familiar relationship drove him towards that loneliness and (this is a guess) depression, which only deeps himself into the self-destructive behaviours; touching the bottom moves him to ask for help, and opening himself to Moira and Rhys are the key pieces that can save him.
In comparison, Rhys is the opposite of David, a hard-worker that compensates his lack of natural affinity to the mystical things with study and effort; he totally reveres his wife, but a part of him will always belong to David.
And our third character, and for me, the real kick-ass of the series is Moira; she's brave and strong, empowered. Moira is an intense person, but in the good sense; without her, Evocation wouldn't be the same.

The polycle that appears between our three characters was, for me, a really enjoyable part of the story; while between each member the intensity is different, they complement themselves in incredible ways. Moira is the catalyst that allows this to happen, that spoils both of the male characters to show their best version; without her, the things wouldn't smooth between David and Rhys. It's not a spicy book, but the intimate moments between our characters are deep touching.

The setting is charming; I loved the gothic and mystical atmosphere that is part of the Boston described by Gibson. It is clear the passion of the author for the occult, and that gets captured in her words, creating an alive world with many forces and ways to interact with them.

Evocation is a great way to initiate the Summoner's Circle series; it's an intense character-driven story whose atmosphere will fascinate you. Despite my initial problems with David, Gibson managed to eventually get him an arc that made me love the book; and now I can only way for the next entry in this series.

This just was a DNF for me.
I found this book to just be really boring. I made it 43% through and felt like we were never getting to the point of anything. Maybe I needed to read further? But I feel like if I get to 43% and I don't feel invested, it's time to move on.
The characters seemed to lack any depth for me and I found myself not really caring about them or what happened to them.

Although I did not enjoy this book myself, my staff members who also got ARC copies did.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Advance Readers Copy

Every time I read something by S.T. Gibson, they raise the bar of what can be done with the intersectionality of queer found family and dark fantasy. The ease with which we are simultaneously drawn into the magical stakes of the story as well as the characters' relationship dynamics, and how inextricable they are from each other is simply masterful. A step away from the world of vampires and into the world of the occult, everything about this feels well-researched as well as lived in. Not to mention the very organic poly dynamics in this that grows along with the characters. Rhys and Moira as a couple are #goals and David's fraught journey towards (re)building an affirming and healing relationship with them is just so beautiful and vulnerable. I cannot wait to see what the author explores next. Some of the pacing towards the beginning could have been better, but I do love that every major character has their POV, which is absolutely essential in this sort of story.

I would give this book 3,5 stars if I could. I really enjoyed the polyamorous relationship, but the novel felt like it did not really have a plot.

I already knew these characters from the previously self-published prequel novella Odd Spirits and I feel like new readers may actually need that context, so I am glad it is getting published soon. I liked all three of them and their dynamics.

My problem with this book lies in the fact that the supernatural plot truly felt like it did not have any stakes at all. Which would be fine if the romance felt like it could pull the full weight of the story, but I found myself drifting off mentally at times. I would still recommend it for a light little supernatural read with poly rep though.

This had such an intriguing concept and opening, and I really wanted to love it, but it didn’t end up being my kind of book. The fantasy plot felt secondary to the romance between the three main characters, and a lot of the content was building towards their relationship rather than making me care about the magic. I love a character-driven fantasy, so this could’ve worked so well, but I didn’t really like any of them enough to be drawn in.

Also, the society was pretty vague. I wasn’t fully sure about what they did or why, or what bearing it had on the world. The stakes felt like they should’ve been higher, but most of the focus was on character relationships, which made me struggle to care about the magical side of the plot.

A unique and intriguing concept with lots of potential, but one that didn’t really work for me. However, if you want a more romance-focused fantasy, then you’ll probably love this. Definitely one for the tarot and astrology lovers too! I just wanted more world building and higher stakes.

★ ★ ★ ★ • 4

Another masterpiece by ST Gibson, who still has me reeling after finishing A Dowry of Blood. Though I have to admit, I somewhat doubt any other book will ever top that one.

Evocation focuses on three characters, who share a complicated relationship and various struggles. The story itself is a bit slow, but it did a good job of handling heavier topics so I didn’t mind so much… It also can’t go without saying to check and be aware of the trigger warnings before reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review!

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

S.T. Gibson has easily become an auto-buy author for me and Evocation might be in my new favorite by her.

I absolutely loved this book. The dynamics between the three main characters, Rhys, Moira, and David was charming and I loved how Gibson explored their relationship.

As soon as I started the audiobook, I couldn't stop listening to it. I ended up staying up way later than I should have to finish this book in one night.

What to expect in Evocation:
💀 Exes to rivals to lovers
💀 Generational curses
💀 Secret societies
💀 Poly "V" relationship
💀 Bisexual rep
💀 Demons
💀 Exorcism
💀 Occult Fantasy

Back in 2021, I posted a review for a new book by an unknown writer on my old (ie mostly-ponderings) blog. That was ‘A Dowry of Blood’, my first encounter with ST Gibson.

Now here we are with her latest title, ‘Evocation’. It seems that she’s come so far in just a couple of years, and I’m beyond happy to see a fandom blossoming, complete with character art and special editions, because her books are absolutely worth all of the attention. Especially this one.

The blurb is above. Yes, this is an adventure, with complex relationships, high stakes and magic. What that outline doesn’t indicate is the sheer atmosphere and depth contained in these pages.

While the action is set in a richly depicted world of cult politics, family history and deeply human foibles, I was immediately drawn in by lushness of it all. I’ve mentioned elsewhere that ST Gibson’s style reminds me of Anne Rice’s early work, and by that I mean her writing is a sensory experience. The heat of the city, the taste of good food and a lover’s kiss, the sizzle of magic - it’s all so very tangible. I was immediately engaged with these characters because I felt that I was feeling exactly what they were, from touch and taste to the otherworldly beyond-sixth sense.

I tried to read this book carefully, drawing it out to make it last, but there’s several places where it’s literally impossible to put down. A main character fell unconscious and I was genuinely on edge to see how (if!) they would recover. Because they might die, right? And then the Devil would be dealing with that attitude in Hell…! Anything seems possible in this world, and I am absolutely here for every single step of it. Also I’m Team Moira (just in case we get badges).

I was so sad to miss meeting the author in person on her recent UK tour due to my own poor health, but it’s a joy to see the readership grow, even as I fidget and watch the social media to see any sniff of the second book! I know, it’s coming, but I can honestly say that this series is more important to me than most of the other big names out there right now (sorry, Jay Kristoff).

I’ve been recommending this book for months, but here is my official statement in case anyone missed it: please, please read ST Gibson. You’re very welcome.

Evocation by ST Gibson is a dark and twisted glimpse into the world of academia and secret societies. In Boston, a historic society of men involved in the supernatural is about to have a new High Priest selected from its current members. David Aristakhov believes he is the best choice for the job. He’s from a long line of men who have always had the power and becoming the new High Priest is the next step for him. The only problem is Rhys McGowan, his ex-boyfriend and society rival who has worked hard to cement himself as the younger society members' favourite.

The rivalry between David and Rhys runs deep and since their very messy break up the two men have been unable to say a civil word to each other. When David realises there’s something very wrong going on following blackouts and memory loss, he begs Rhys for his help in researching potential causes. But Rhys is married now and anywhere Rhys goes his wife Moira goes to. Tensions between the trio are high at first but a truce is called for when they realise they can all help each other.

Moira is a witch and a medium, she sees the dead but has no way to control her power. David has the knowledge and skill to teach Moira how to control her power and the agreement is made that they’ll all work together.

I’m not sure this book was for me. The first 30% dragged and if this hadn’t been an arc I probably would have DNF’d it. The main characters were all horrid to each other and for me, likeable characters are a must.

David was by far my favourite of the three and had the most personality and back story. I know that this book is the first in a series but if it wasn’t for the ending I wouldn’t even be considering reading more from this world. There were a few moments in the book which added nothing to the story and I can only assume that they were there to set up something for future books.

Overall not my favourite read this year and after seeing so many rave reviews I’m left feeling a bit flat about the whole book.

Each of the three S. T. Gibson books I’ve read has been completely different. There was Dowry of Blood, which I didn’t get on with, An Education in Malice, which I loved and now Evocation which was somewhere in the middle. In a way, it’s good because it shows the depth and range that Gibson can do, but honestly? I just want to read more like An Education in Malice.

There were many things I enjoyed about this though. I liked the characters: David: such a dick but I really enjoyed reading his parts, Rhys, a sweetheart who was so much better than David and Moira, who is a queen and should be given the world. I also liked how in each of her books, Gibson has given us a different taste of Polyamorous relationships.

I did feel that David with his charm and his law degree was under utilised. I felt there was going to be some really clever ending with deals and loopholes and while there was a fairly clever ending, I wanted more. I’m really hoping the next book uses David’s skills a bit more.

While I was disappointed, I am really looking forward to the next book in the series.