Sadly this book just didn’t grab as much as I hoped it would. I put it down and picked it up multiple times but I just couldn’t connect with it. Super bummed.

I received a free copy of this book thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group. All opinions expressed are my own!

It's your traditional love story: girl meets boy, boy is vampire, girl and boy try to kill each other, romance ensues. It's a well-written version of the tropes, though, with lots of dark lush descriptions, and will manages to provide a delightfully satisfying ending despite all signs to the contrary. I'd be ridiculous not to compare it to Bonesmith, which I read earlier this year, but in a way that diminishes neither: both tell a similar story with similar beats, but where Bonesmith sets up for a sequel, Unholy Terrors is complete in one volume. If you enjoy dark romance, vampires, enemies-to-lovers, and complex characters, definitely give this one a go! For sensitive readers, there is a good deal of blood, violence, emotional and physical abuse, body horror, and some on-page sexual content that is not especially graphic but is also more descriptive than fade-to-black.

Goth girls and a monster boy adventure through some creepy crypts and churches. I’m in love with the poetic descriptions of sinister settings, give me all the clouded moons and trailing shadows, although beyond the aesthetic I could’ve used a bit more context on the world as a whole (How big is the warden wall? Are the vespertines a threat to the region, or the world?).

**Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC**

Ok so first the good!
-Monster boyfriend and enemies to lovers slow burn
-Very atmospheric and creepy, perfect for spooky season
-Tension and longing and angst and yearning
-It’s like if you love Wuthering Heights, but add bloodthirsty monsters and magic

The not as amazing:
-Some repetitive description (“treacle-dark hair” for one)
-Sections of the plot seemed a bit disjointed and didn’t make as much sense as I thought they should
-World building and character development was more vibes and surface level than fully explored

But did I enjoy it? Yes! Was it as good as Forestfall? No.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a requested copy to review. All opinions are my own.

Vivid, dark, and atmospheric!

Real talk: I almost gave up on this book at 30%. I pushed through and am thankful to report that things finally started to get interesting shortly after! Teaming up with a monster? Okay! Our two characters and their bond of convenience had me hooked enough to keep going. Overall, I liked the plot, but there were several aspects of the book I took issue with:

There were a lot of things that the author repeatedly told us as well as descriptive phrases that they repeatedly used: how much of a monster Ravel was, what the thousandfold smelled like, her treacle-dark hair, endlessly tall, solemn as a vow to name a few. There was a lot of flowery prose describing the setting and sometimes it was distracting rather than atmospheric.

Now don’t get me wrong, I ate this up, but you’re meaning to tell me that our magic-less MC took our villain down with a handful of berries? Um what in the Hunger Games?! Some of the things in this book felt a little unrealistic. Yes, I know it's fantasy, but still! There's no way that Ravel couldn't have take out Evie if he had wanted to.

I have mixed feelings about blood based magic. On one hand there’s the practicality - are these people constantly walking around with a bunch of open sores from all the spells they are casting? And on the other hand - gross. And lastly, my red flag always alerts regarding blood magic because of the antisemitic trope of blood libel; which you can kind of draw a parallel with the vespertine (evil) trapping wardens (good) and using their blood for their magic (ritual sacrifice).

One thing in particular that I really enjoyed the juxtaposition of light and dark/good and evil while paralleling our main character and villain’s motivations - it definitely scratched a particular itch in my brain.

Definitely my book of the year. I loved the fall vibes. The characters are amazing, the story is spooky, has enemies to lovers to enemies. I could not put this book down!

What a ride! This is my first Lyndall Clipstone book and now I can’t wait to go back and read her other works. This was the perfect jump into spooky season 👌💀🐺🖤

Here’s what to expect:
- Fascinating fantasy world building with two opposing sides
- Witchy girl + wolfy boy
- Working through trauma
- Angst angst and more angst
- Beautiful + eerie prose
- Monsters
- Betrayal, forbidden love
- Blood and bone magic
- Kylo + Rey vibes
- Swoony enemies to lovers gothic romance that had me screaming for more. RAVEL SUPREMACY 🫠🖤

If you like gothic romance with tension and monsters, this book is for you. This definitely delivered for my fall mood reader brain.

Thank you Fierce Reads for the ARC!

Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone is a gothic romance about a girl who survives in a world of monsters.
 
I already loved the Lakesedge duology by this author and I was so excited for this new story from her. My favorite part about this author‘s writing is the eerie and lush atmosphere that is created and you can also find that in this book.
 
The protagonist Everline is a warden who guard the world of monsters. She always grew up hating the monsters, but during this book she discovers that the monsters are more than they seem. And one rogue vespertine named Razul even asks for her help.
 
The concept of this book is really cool, but I had a difficult time getting into the book. Especially the world building and everything surrounding the vespertines was a bit difficult to grasp. And I also felt that Everline and Razul were too opposite to work together.
 
Overall, Unholy Terrors is a gothic romance that left me not fully satisfied. 3 stars.
 
(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

3 ⭐️

I tried but I'm stopping, dnfing at 30%. I'm just really struggling keeping track of the story and what is happening. I am not sure if it's the plot or writing style but this one sadly is just not for me right now. I might pick this up later and try it again.

I think this author has potential and I am willing to try others books in the future.

Although this book is not for me I do believe it will find its audience. It's young adult, gothic horror/fantasy. I enjoyed seeing mention of Vespertines as I have seen this creature in other books.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Henry Holt for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

DNF - Unholy Terrors seemed so promising, and I really wanted to give this author a try, but it was incredibly confusing to read. I had to reread sentences multiple times, and even then, I still didn’t really understand the world or feel too connected with it. I am interested in giving this book another chance in the future, though. I hope I’ll like it more then.

3.5 stars -- Review will be published October 12th on my site and socials

WELL.

I tried really hard to give this one a chance. It had all of the hallmarks of things I love. New adult, dark fantasy, enemies to lovers/forbidden romance. Buuut, I was missing some things.

Namely, the world building. The first chapter you are THROWN IN and it was chaos. And as the pages stretched out I never felt like I had a full grasp on the vespertine vs. warden situation. The fold area and why the magic involved bones and blood. Oh and vampires, why was their one vampire?

I did like the main character, Everline. She cared for those in her circle and fought to mend broken fences while looking for answers about her past. This is a standalone and I did think it wrapped up well that I felt satisfied in closing the book (besides the previous paragraph issues). The romance was a bit up and down. It grew on me, and there is some good enemies dynamics, I think with a standalone it felt more surface level overall.

This one didn’t quite click for me but might for others?

Overall audience notes:
- NA Fantasy Romance
- Language: a little strong
- Romance: 3 brief/vague open door
- Violence: high
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of life, loss of a parent, near death experiences, murder, battle themes

This one was kind of a fail for me. The characters were undeveloped and the plot was just not there. Along with the fact that world building was non existent and you get a book that I gave up on around 30%.

3.5. Super mixed feelings about this one.

It started super slow. To be honest, I never could tell you 100% what was going on in terms of world building and magic. I was kinda just vibing. It picks up after 30% once Ravel is introduced, though I did really like the development of Everline’s relationship with Briar!

I’m here for the monster romance. Everline and Ravel kept me entertained for the middle portion of the book, but once we started getting back into more plot-heavy stuff at the end, I became bored and annoyed. The whole twist at the end felt overdone and frustrating, and the big bad plot-point wrapped up pretty quickly. I was left feeling a bit unsatisfied, though I’m glad this is a standalone.

Really wish the ending could’ve stuck the landing!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group

Unfortunately, nothin about this book spoke to me.

Firstly, there is absolutely no world building. And when I say none, I mean it. If you ask me anything about the world I won’t be able to say. There are absolutely no rules to the “magic” or explanation to the different species.
But It doesn’t end there. There’re five characters. And all of the are completely hollow.

There is just something about writing a story, especially a standalone that requires little details that make the world. Example, one thing that was driving me absolutely crazy is when the characters were out in the woods for days but not once was it mentioned that they had food or ate anything. Especially when a main guy just drank all your blood and you’re not even tired.

I couldn’t care about any of the relationship because I couldn’t care about any of the characters. It’s that easy.

Overall, this book need 100 more pages and lots more editing

I really liked this one and I had a feeling I would b/c of this amazing cover. It was giving me spooky vibes! I loved the protagonist and lyndalls writing style is so aesthetic! I definitely recommend this one

The writing was beautiful but with lyrical and descriptive writing comes a lack of plot and action. Dialogue was secondary to describing absolutely everything in a scene from the clothing to the walls to the plants. I was invested in the story at first, but with the never-ending descriptions, I became disinterested and relied on skimming through whimsical passages. I also did not care for Everline or Ravel and their relationship quickly turned from enemies to instant love. I hated that I did not like this, but I will give Clipstone's next book a shot. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC.

Very atmospheric. Good characters and story. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

A Monsterous boy and a fierce girl, Clipstone delivers another beautiful YA gothic fantasy. From the moment we first cross through the bone wall with Evie, to traveling through the moorland with Ravel, and facing down the Thousandfold. Clipstone takes us on a journey that feels like a Studio Ghibli film crossed with a horror movie. A gripping family legacy that makes you question everything that happens to Evie, is it fate that Evie and Ravel journey together or is it a curse? A curse that has Haunted Evie since before she was born.

Once again Lyndall has completely enchanted and enamored me. Her writing feels like walking throughout a dream like world, where anything is possible.

In Unholy Terrors Lyndall has created a world that is both eerie and beautiful. A world that is filled with dark magic, ancient gods, blood lust and forbidden love. Moorlands that drift into bloodied skies, girls with black-painted lips and walls made of bones and magic where the threads are slowly unraveling and unholy monsters known as vespertine begin to drift within. The wall is a wild and unruly place teeming with magic and surrounded by stones and weeds.

Everline has dedicated herself to being a warden, a warrior that fights against these vespertines and sets wards to reinforce the power of their walls. An interesting complexity arises though when she is forced to make an alliance to save those she cares about the most. Warden and monster then travel together on a dangerous quest.

Lyndall’s world building is always a highlight for me and Unholy Terrors was no exception. Lyndall captures the tiniest details from the dusky skies to the linen dresses with leather pouches trimmed with bone and laced with honey worn by Lux, Everline and Briar.

Everline’s story, her trauma and grief drew me in like a moth to a flame. I share some similarities with her which served in deepening the connection I felt. I loved Everline in all her complexities.

Unholy Terrors is a monster romance and as we all know Lyndall is the queen of monster romances!

Readers will be drawn in by Lyndall’s lyrical prose, luscious world building and characters that seem to easily find a way into your heart.

Thank you so much to Penguin and Netgalley for gifting me an arc of Unholy Terrors!

Lyndall Clipstone is a master at atmospheric tales, and this one is no different! I particularly loved her Lakesedge duology, and while I didn't enjoy this one as much as I did that, I found this to be a perfect fall read. It's gothic, mysterious, and has plenty of VIBES. if you want to read something that will give you a feeling, this is it.