This debut YA book had me captivated from the beginning! I was hooked on the characters and the plot. It has a slow burn romance - enemies to lovers - which is something that I love in a book. It was gothic which was refreshing since I haven't read many gothic books for about three or four years. I never knew what was going to happen next and was so surprised at a lot of plot points and revelations.

Down Comes the Night
By Allison Saft
Actual Rating: 4.5/5 stars
I received an eARC via NetGalley from St. Martin’s Press: Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review.

In Down Comes the Night, we follow Wren Southerland – a young woman who possesses magical healing abilities. Wren is also the niece of the queen and a member of the military in a fictional country called Danu. While on a mission with her friend and commanding officer, Una, Wren makes a choice to show compassion and heal an injured boy who has been captured as a perceived enemy of Danu. As a result, the boy escapes from Wren and Una. Subsequently, Wren is disciplined by her aunt and relieved of her duties as a military healer. In an effort to achieve reinstatement, Wren accepts an offer from a nobleman from the neighboring country of Cernos to come and heal one of his servants who is suffering from an unknown disease. She soon discovers that this supposed servant is Hal Cavendish. Hal is a well-known, powerful, and deadly mage from Vesria – enemy country to Danu. Wren struggles with the fact that she is now under contract to heal Hal, but shortly after starting her work, she finds that she will have to work with him to survive and save both Danu and Vesria from a greater threat of evil.

Throughout the book, Wren suffers from feelings of inadequacy. She doesn’t believe her life is worth anything without her magical abilities as a healer. This is compounded by the fact that her aunt doesn’t show any affection and views Wren as a blight on the Southerland family line. Even her friend Una frequently tells Wren that her compassion is a weakness. By working to heal her mortal enemy, Hal Cavendish, Wren begins to understand that her compassion is what makes her strong. With Hal’s help, she comes to the realization that her value as a person doesn’t solely come from her job as a healer. Ultimately, self-love is a significant theme of this story.

Down Comes the Night is a deliciously creepy story with gothic ambience. This is enhanced by the medical terminology used to describe Wren’s abilities and actions as a healer. I also loved how the romantic relationship between Wren and Hal developed. The evolution of Wren’s friendship with Una is quite satisfying as well. However, I would have appreciated a bit more focus on the back-story and motivations of the main antagonist; in the end, the antagonist’s reasons for threatening Danu and Vesria felt somewhat shallow. Overall, this is an incredibly strong debut novel from Allison Saft; I look forward to reading her future works.

I recommend Down Comes the Night to readers who enjoy YA fantasy, historical fiction with fantastical elements, and gothic romance.

By the end of this story I was throughly in love with Hal. I did find the beginning of the story a bit on the slower side, but when Wren arrives at Lowrys castle and finds Hal Cavendish things really picked up and I was sucked into the story.
All Wren wants is to use her ability to heal, she doesn't distinguish between her own people and the enemy. She believes that no one deserves to suffer if they don't have to. This has gotten her into trouble again and again. This last time when she heals someone she was told not to, it costs her position in the Queens guard.
Wren is an emotional character, and she craves love from people that can't return the feeling so she feels like she is wrong in how feels and that it would be better if she were different. I really enjoyed watching her grow into her own feelings and learning to trust her own judgement.
Hal is a man with a fearsome past, Wren only knows him as the Reaper a guy that she has seen first hand kill one of her countrymen. When she finds him in Lowrys castle her first thought is that she can kill him... Then that she can use him to get back in the queens good graces.. So she decides to heal him..
When she discovers the cause of Hals ilness, and that things are definitely not what they seem in the castle, they decide that they need to work together if they are going to discover who is behind this plot, and what they can to do stop them.
I loved watching Wren loose her fear of Hal and realize that he is just a guy that did things for his governent during the war, and seeing Hal realize that people can look at him and not just see a monster..
This was a really good book, and I would definitely read more by Aliison Saft in the future..

Ooooh!! Bi rep. Slow burn romance. Enemies to lovers. Medical/healing based magic. I was here for all of it!
The gothic vibes were atmospheric and creepy, the political aspects had me intrigued, the isolated murder-mystery plot was mixed in beautifully with the lush fantasy, and the magic system was super interesting!! While I did have some issues with pacing and with the main character’s motivations, at times, overall I thought this was a great debut and will definitely check out what the author comes up with next!

lovely writing. sucked me right in from the beginning. I'm so excited for other people to read this and love it.

The premise of this book is intriguing and I was very much looking forward to it. Given that this is a debut novel and also targeted to a teen/YA audience, I tried to keep an open mind. However, there was just not much here that I could connect with. To me, Wren came across as a few different personalities in one body and it was hard to get a feel for her, which in turn made it difficult for me to care about her and her problems. Mostly, I was not enamored with the writing style. As so often happens in YA fantasy, there is a tendency here to over-explain everything, from the world to the characters and how they're feeling and reacting at all times to the smallest action. Someone could look at Wren and Wren would then narrate how that made her feel and what that look told her about them and so on and so on. Basically, what I'm getting at is this writing style lacks nuance. The story and characters are not shown so much as they're heavy-handedly related to us, which stifles the imagination and makes for a tedious read. I felt like an exceptionally inactive participant. I think the story idea was fine, but it was just conveyed in a manner that I don't find interesting.

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.

Down Comes the Night is a beautifully gothic novel about a world of magic at war with itself and ghosts who no longer belong here.

I read it one straight sitting, captivated by the inside of Wren Southerland’s mind. It was a breath of fresh air to read about a heroine whose growth and development is not necessarily a straight climbing line. As for the world building and magic system, they were perfectly explained, not once being over- or underwhelming. It can be difficult to fit an entire universe in one single book, but it didn’t seem like the case here.

My only criticism would be that the plot was fairly predictable. I was never once surprised or taken aback by the villain or their actions. The character driven-plot made up for it, but it still felt like something was unfortunately lacking.

Overall, I would gladly recommend this novel for all the lovers of haunted castles and finding an unexpected light in the dark.

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.