This book is amazing, I love how the scenarios are described, the plot is refreshing that I have become obsessed with it. The characters are the best, there is so much inclusion about the sexuality of characters and their ethnicity that causes an incredible feeling that times are changing.

Although they release a lot of introductory theory to this new world of the wanderers, it is easy to understand and makes you feel that you are digesting it along with the protagonist (which is an androgynous boy whom you end up loving!).

Book highly recommended, you can't miss this incredible universe full of magic, a lot of amazing horror moments and heartbreaking scenes that leave you on the edge of the seat.

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

I honestly think that I would ave enjoyed and liked it if the writing wasn't bad. I honestly couldn't get into it let alone grasp the content because it was that bad and at the same time had me bored. So yeah, I didn't finish this book;

This statement - The abyss watches him. Nightmares hunt him. And now, a battle begins. - and the title drew me in. First time reading this author's work and I'm hooked.

I guess this title changed to the Lord of the Sabbath and that's why I couldn't find this in my goodreads for my review. I will say, this was an interesting read. At first I was very much pulled in by how complex and intricate the story was going to be. I thought Elisse was going to be a great character, but I'm just not sure anymore.

Nation of the Beasts is the first book in a new trilogy by Mariana Palova. Per the publisher, The Mage’s Lantern/International Book Publishers Association:

Originally published in Spanish, La Nación de las Bestias: El Señor del Sabbath enchanted Latin American readers, and now the first book of the Nation of the Beasts series makes its English language debut.

Although classified as sci-fi/fantasy Nation of the Beasts is, in my opinion, more horror with fantasy elements. Truthfully, I say this with a great amount of enthusiasm. I may be just missing out on a whole genre of YA Fiction, but I have rarely come across books I could classify as true horror. However, it became quite clear that the demons chasing Elisse, the main character, were nothing short of terrifying.

This book had so much potential for me but sadly it fell short for me I don't know if something was lost in translation or what, but I couldn't finish this book. What bothered me was the switching between first-person point and second-person point of view. This switch caused me a lot of confusion. Also, this book is under a different name Nation of the beast is the series name, not the book name which confused me. I had a lot of confusion with this book and could not finish I can't rate this book and maybe in the future I can finish this book only time will tell.

Unfortunately couldn't open the ARC and read only the sample.

This is probably the biggest disappointment of this year. I had raved non stop about this book for months. I twitted at least twice and posted at least four times about it: when I learned about it, when I requested the ARC, when I got the ARC when I was planning to read it, etc.

I REALLY wanted to like it because it is a Hispanic the author and I loved setting and how the premise sounded.

First, there was no way to read the PDF once downloaded. No matter how many different apps I tried and I didn't find Netgalley's tips helpful at all. Then I tried to get another ARC and I was told that since it was already published I should just buy the book. That was definitely not the answers I was hoping to get, especially given how much I had promoted the book.

So, I downloaded a sample and unfortunately I found the writing a little confusing. I wonder if it is the translation that's why I'm giving it 3 stars.

Elisse has always seen these horrifying creatures around him that nobody else seemed to notice. He lives sheltered in a monastery in India but is forced to flee to New Orleans where he’s hoping for a new start.
Firstly, I have to say that the cover is gorgeous! I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it. Sadly, the content did not wow me as much.
The book was promising in the beginning. Elisse was a captivating main character but quickly made me lose interest. The basis of the book is that Elisse travels to New Orleans to find his long last father but he seems to forget about him pretty quickly, which was odd. Also, the book gets pretty repetitive. Whenever something happened or somebody said anything, Elisse reminded the reader of his time of poverty in Tibet and India. The first few times this happened, it was interesting to understand the character and what he had to overcome but, after a few times, it just got predictable and repetitive.
Midway through the book, I got bored. The story was a mess and I had to skim the pages. Still, I was able to get an idea of what was going on but, sadly, after reading nearly 70% of the book, I had to drop it. I really wanted to like it but, unfortunately, this one was not for me.

I tried for many months to get into the book, to try and fall in love with a character so that the messy translation wouldn't ruin the story line for me, but I just couldn't no matter how many times I picked this book back up I couldn't get passed it and I absolutely hate leaving a book unfinished! 😞

I want to say thank you to net galley for providing me a copy of Nation Of The Beasts, Lord Of The Sabbath in exchange for an honest review. This is my personal opinion of the book.

Nation of the Beast pulled me in with it's dark and mystical atmosphere ! It makes a perfect autumn read and will keep the reader at the edge of it's seat !

Combining a creatively littered literary experience, with plot-lines drawn directly from symbolism and imagery, Palova has effectively written a novel of terrifying creatures, and overcoming ones demons, by utilising tools always around.

I received this via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

OH MY!!! I loved it guys. This book was just what I wanted It to be. The world building was fun and enticing. The characters were very well flushed out. I loved the plot of this. I can not wait to read more by this author. I highly recommend this book.

Elisse has been haunted by grotesque, horrible and scary creatures no ones else is able to see his whole life. He runs from India (where he was raised) to New Orleans, USA in hopes of finding his father and an answer to this. He finds out more than he hoped for, that's for sure. An ancestral secret, a place where he might finally belong to and that there is something worse than seeing monsters...fighting them.

This is a jewel among YA urban fantasy. The story gets more exciting with every page turn, the characters are very logical and their actions make sense to their ages (which means Elisse can get to be a dramatic teenage boy but he is just not stupid or irrational) and it's very well-written.
What out stands the most is Mariana's unique way of describing these creatures, I was both amazed and grossed out and genuinely excited and scared for when they might show up next.

I liked very much the fact that this book was so complex constructed and very explicit with solid details, filled with reality and magic, but I cannot get over the fact that at first, I was very confused with it and also, there were numerous parts where I felt bored with it. It was kind of slow-paced, which is not exactly what I love about books, but I really want to say that despite that it was very good constructed.
Thank you, NetGalley for the reading copy!

A lot of ideas and feels about this book and really need to process them a bit. First will start with something that annoys me. Many people that are into or knowledgeable will trash authors over depictions of Deities and belief systems,,same with screen series or movies. Get a grip guys, that is fantasy entertainment be it AHS [anything really] Coven or any witch show/movie versus practice and what you know. Actually, the same can be said with perception and experiences. Now that's out of the way, when I started this book with the exception of spirits, I felt it would be nice if you had a clue who was thinking/speaking/doing as there was no first tense qualifier which made things confusing/disorientating with some of the characters in situations. I can understand doing that with spirits, to leave them up in the vapors creates more real life and mystery and shouldn't be necessarily known until a point but people would work to note. It seemed to happen much less after the very beginning or I got use to it and could intuitively tell after a bit but that was a first impression drawback. I liked the nuances of play throughout the book which included an underlying forbidden kinda love affair that was tangible but not touched on. author did her homework and utilized her novel to present a thriller horror fantasy surrounding a immigrant orphans introduction into his new home in New Orleans. That area has so much magic you can take it like syrup and cut it with a knife. It is old old old and has seen much beyond in both peoples and activity. To me, all the spirits, entities and Deities there have always been warm to hot like good spicy food and hard liquor and wild revelry but can be sharp as razors if you cross over the boundaries set and some best left alone. I have always liked Baron Samedi but with a respect and knowledge of his dark aspects and realization of how much energy he received from trauma and desperation both in Haiti and in that area. I don't see him as evil so much as the evil done to people in Haiti in particular that's energy manifested and far lesser in New Orleans area. Definitely a good read and at the end realized it was base for future stories in the series with new or other people and a cliffhanger. I look forward to actually seeing where the bayou tales go.

This translation was beautifully done. I think the world was really cool and different. Too bad I was super confused in the beginning wondering if I picked up the second book. This is the first. Also I just got bored. I wanted to like this book but I didn't.
Three stars for NetGalley because maybe somebody else likes a slow build up.
Two stars for Goodreads because I thought it was ok because the world is cool and the initial world building was vivid, I just got bored.

I DNF'd this novel at 20%. It is obviously well-written but I am the wrong audience, this is a clear case of "it's not you, it's me". I'm very happy to have been given the chance to read this, and I'm very sorry that it wasn't for me. My rating is based on what I've read and what I think it's worth objectively, regardless of my own tastes.

(4.5) That cover! *heart eyes* The night terror aspect was the only bit that I wished for the author to delve deeper into, but maybe I just have a weird obsession with creepy stuff like that. I found this to be wonderfully atmospheric and fresh feeling.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but I enjoyed reading this. An interesting story with fun characters. Well written.