This is a dark fantasy romance that was really fun. Everline is a warden who has vowed to protect the enclave fro mmonsters known as vespertines. When an unusual vespertine is killed, she sets off into the wilderness, breaking her vows, to uncover the truth behind the monsters and her own history.

Gideon the Ninth isn't a YA book but this reminded me so strongly of Gideon the Ninth. Magic using bones/sacrifice, tense family relationships, and overall just very similar vibes. It also just... wasn't as good as that book.

Though I expected this book to be a YA Gideon the Ninth, I would caution people with such expectations to not...Unholy Terrors was its own perfect thing. There was magic that included bones, but I wouldn't necessarily call it necromancy.
The highlight for me was definitely the prose, which was beautifully lyrical, and the enemies to lovers tension was also a highlight for me. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but I had to adjust my expectations and that's alright,
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me access to one of my new favorite books!

I received a copy through NetGalley for review.

I really enjoyed this one. It's a story of outcasts, living under heavy family legacies, and a monstrous girl, and a monstrous boy, who are just trying to become what their fathers want them to be, gain their love, respect and never being able to measure up.

Everline Blackthorn is a Warden, the first line of defense in a world beset by demons, of dangerous Vespertines, she's the youngest daughter of Commander Fenn of the Wardens, that work necromantic magic with consecrated bones, and honey to lay magical barriers to protect the people and destroy the Vespertines. They paint their faces like skulls, use silver, bones, blood and honey to activate their powers. To become a Warden, it is an ordained calling, they get a crescent shaped mark on their neck, usually in adolescence. Everline's appeared right after birth, and the events surrounding it have been hidden from her, her entire life. Although she has no Warden magic to speak of, she's a Warden in name only, but for the crescent moon at the back of her neck.
Born out of wedlock to a mother, who was also a Warden and abandoned per post and the order, her father Fenn seems to hold her mother's actions and legacy against her, and refuses to treat her as his own. Even while embracing her half sister Briar, Everline feels as though she isn't his true daughter or a true Warden.

Ravel is a monstrous, magical boy, raised by a incredibly powerful Vespertine, who always felt he was weaker and soft compared to his sister, who was the perfect vicious monster.

Two people trying to live up to the expectations laid on them, discover they have more in common than they would think, and through an unlikely partnership, a reckless vow they form an unholy bond. And they wonder who they could become when they lay aside the expectations set upon them, and seize destiny for themselves.

This is an enemies to lovers, dark magic, adventure of self discovery tale.

★★★ ✭
3.5/5 stars

Surprised (but not surprised) to see this book is another lovely ode to Reylo shippers! I’ve been in their feels lately so this was a welcome surprise. I adore Lyndall’s writing, and the gothic vibes in this book has my yearning for spooky season in full swing. I really enjoyed the dynamics between characters; especially the strained relationship between sisters Evaline and Briar.

My main gripe with this story is the pacing. Some parts felt super repetitive which made the second half drag on longer and the third half feel rushed. The sudden shift in Evaline and Ravel’s romance felt a little <i>too</i> sudden; they could have easily stayed a slowburn and I would’ve still been satisfied with the ending.

Overall, this book is an enjoyable read for autumn! I don’t know if the author has plans for a sequel but if so I’m thoroughly invested in the story to see what happens next.

I will read everything Lyndall Clipstone writes. However, not everything she writes is created equally. Her Lakesedge Duology left me with feelings of hot and cold. That being said, Unholy Terrors is the perfect lukewarm. But it is also that, just lukewarm. It is good, it is well-written, and brilliantly structured. But as I was reading, I just never felt truly hooked. I enjoyed our story and our characters, but I never truly loved any aspect of it. However, I will still forever applaud Clipstone and her novels for being brilliant works in the modern gothic genre. And, I do recommend that others read this novel, for it may just be the perfect novel for them, even though it was not for me.

So I definitely think I have mixed feelings about this book! Although there were things that I did not love about it, there were also things that I did love!

This story follows our heroine, Everline Blackthorne, as she embarks on a journey to uncover the truth about herself, her mother, and the terrifying beasts known as the vespertine. The vespertine have long since been regarded as brutal creatures, brought into existence by an evil god. Everline belongs to a group of folks known as wardens, and they live in an enclave surrounded by a wall of bones, fortified by magic, and are sworn to protect their territory by slaying these vespertine should they ever approach the wall. The only problem is, Everline doesn’t possess the magic that all of other wardens do. Add to that, the fact that she is the illegitimate daughter of the Warden Commander, and her deceased mother was a deserter who abandoned her duties as a warden during a vespertine attack. All of this adds up to Everline never really feeling like she belongs among the other wardens.

One night, Everline and her friend Lux come across a vespertine who looks startlingly human, and while they proceed to kill her as they are sworn, something doesn’t feel right. As the dead vespertine’s body burns, Everline watches from beyond the wall as another humanlike vespertine comes to mourn the burnt ashes. Deciding that she must somehow be connected to all of this, and that there are secrets about these vespertine that no one is aware of, she ventures beyond the wall with Lux in pursuit of this human-like vespertine, hoping to get some answers. But when Lux is captured, Everline is forced to team up with said human-like vespertine, Ravel, to rescue her. As Ravel and Everline grow closer and start to unravel the mysteries of each other, everything they both thought they knew starts to come undone.

The tension in this enemies to lovers story, was TENSION-ING!!! Truly, this was full of yearning, forbidden love, and the tense scenes of buildup between Ravel and Everline seriously had me blushing. I loved this part of the story, and honestly I think that’s what kept me reading!

I did find myself not so drawn to the prose, as it did feel quite repetitive at times. I really enjoy impactful, metaphorical, flourishing sentences, but I think that it was slightly overdone here, for my taste! I found myself really wanting more story, less drawn out descriptors. I did also finish this book wishing for just a bit more in terms of the plot! It was almost like there was so much build-up and mystery behind the story itself, but then all of the resolutions were so rushed and just fell a bit flat for me. I definitely will look forward to reading more from this author, because I think there was ALOT of potential and immaculate imagination here, but the execution just left me wanting a little bit more.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this novel!

I liked this book MUCH better than the author's other series! The story and world are unique, a true gothic fantasy. I love monster boys, and Ravel does not disappoint. It's a very atmospheric read. I would categorize it as YA.

Thank you to Netgalley & Henry Holt and Co. for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This novel probably has to have the most effectively written tension I have read to date! I was buzzing almost the entire time.

I will say this eldritch horror of a book started out a little slow for me. I was worried that it wouldn't pick up but as soon as the action started and Evie left the Enclave it was gloriously visceral in its prose. The atmosphere of the novel completely altered when she met the Vespertine. The prose was lush, atmospheric and horrifying. An eldritch horror of a romance - the intertwining of pain and passion was unworldly.

This book is going to linger - I know it. Just wow.

Content Warning: self harm, violence

I was wary going into this book because I just finished Forestfall, the conclusion to Lakesedge, and didn’t love it. But whereas Forestfall disappointed me, this new book, Unholy Terrors, is really amazing. I might love it even more than Lakesedge!

Here we are with another book about vespertines, and I’m always wondering what a “vespertine” is now that more books are including them. But in this book, they are monsters. And Everline is a warden, a holy warrior, but one and maybe the only one who doesn’t have magic – which her half-sister, Briar, likes to always remind her of at every chance she gets. Everline wants answers about her birth, the death of her mother, and why her father treats her differently. All she wants is his love and attention, but she feels like a burden instead.

This author does such a great job with dark fantasy. The setting, the lore, the magic, Everline’s search for truth, the boy who is a monster, and the fight against evil are some of the things I love about this book. I loved the romance too which is an enemies to lovers, forbidden romance. There are hard choices to be made between them because of who they are and how they were raised. But I love how in the end they choose one another.

Tropes: forbidden romance, enemies to lovers

Why you should read it:
*dark vibes, dark fantasy perfect for Fall
*romance between a girl and a monster

Why you might not want to read it:
*not into dark stories

My Thoughts:

This one will be perfect for Fall and releases just before Halloween. It’s a dark romance fantasy with monsters, warriors and a love that unites both sides.

Lyndall Clipstone has cemented herself as the queen of romantigoth YA and atmosphere with the haunting, swoony UNHOLY TERRORS. Full of incredible details that make it read as much like a cinematic experience as a book. The slow-burn romance is beautifully built up, and while so much recent YA romantasy feels aimed at thirty-somethings, Everline's deep feelings, trauma, and failings feel distinctly teen; the kind of character I would have immediately imprinted on at fifteen. A must-buy for anyone who wants to not only kiss the monsters, but love them.

Lyndall Clipstone has done it again.

A vastly atmospheric, lush, and romantic book, there's a specific niche of people that Clipstone caters to when writing her work, and I find that I am drawn to her "monstrous boys and girls" (but they aren't really, and that's fine.) As with LAKESEDGE, I found myself instantly drawn to her gorgeous writing, curious worlds, and plots that are both somehow romantic and unnerving at the same time, balancing that edge of comfort for a lot of people. I strongly suspected that this work might be too "slow" for some people (valid) but for me, it worked well with the themes, stories, and characters that drove the novel. I felt compelled to keep reading so the pacing didn't bother me. However, for some teen readers, it may.

Ultimately, I consider Clipstone's books a work of art--hauntingly lovely, chillingly atmospheric.

I am very much looking forward to seeing what's instore for us in the coming years.

Atmospheric, gothic, eerie! At times a bit too descriptive, this was still enjoyable to me. Though I highly recommend you read this in the fall (and not the summer) to fully immerse yourself in the experience! I did like the author's previous duology a bit more though.

This book is hauntingly beautiful. It's an eerily gothic read that immerses you from the very beginning. It's enemies to lovers - a monster boy romance, and how could you not love monster boy Ravel??

Lyndall writes with such beautiful, descriptive imagery. Its easy to get caught up in all the metaphors, personification, and poetic writing styles she uses, which can sometimes confuse the reader. Did that really happen or was it just a metaphor? Sometimes the chain of events felt confusing and I was left wondering how did we get here?? Especially the scene when Everline enters the Thousandfold for the first time.

I also found it to be VERY repetitive. A lot of the same points and internal thoughts of the FMC were constantly brought up - like we just bought that up two pages ago, does it need to be said again so soon? We get it. I felt like it would have better served the story to dive deeper into the world building or Ravel and Everline's banter and communication, instead of repeating the same things for the 50th time. It really would have solidified a stronger connection and believability of their love for one another.

All in all, I did enjoy Unholy Terrors and I cannot wait to read more from Lyndall

I was drawn to the premise of monsters and the enemies-to-lovers aspect. The writing style was the best part: lovely and easy to read. Unfortunately, it didn't redeem the rest of the story for me.

This book was slow to start and became repetitive. I didn't feel attached to any of the side characters, and the romance between Everline and Ravel just was not believable considering the circumstances. Ultimately, the journey to the end of this book was slower than I would have liked.

I love Clipstone's work and with each book you can tell she's developing as an author. I didn't enjoy this book as much as I did Lakesedge. We are still in a Gothic and romantic atmosphere, but the progression of Unholy Terrors threw me off a bit. We are thrown into a book that is flowery and overly descriptive to where it comes off as repetitive. I loved the characters and their dynamics, but I wish we could explore that more! Also wasn't a fan of the romance progression. A character kills someone and is like... Instantly forgiven and now they're into each other. It really threw me off and I wish there was more to justify their actions.

I loved so much about this book. Lyndall's writing is haunting and evocative. The enemies to lovers is fantastic--true enemies, and they waffle between the two all the while, and it was glorious. The world Lyndall has built was layered and dark, and the vibes were perfection. Everline's friendship with Lux was beautifully done.

Though as much as I hate to say anything negative, I had a harder time buying some of the plot points and initial motivations, and there was quite a bit of repetition with certain feelings, conflicts, and key words (holy/unholy, bone, blood, vows, etc), that it pulled the pacing back a bit.

Overall, I enjoyed the read, and lovers of books about dark fantasy religions might too. Very grateful to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

3.5 stars rounded up.

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. I loved the story, the characters, and the setting.
The author is too long winded for me. I can't handle a page of description for one thing, so I ended up skimming in some spots. There are also a bunch of words I hope I never see again: asphodel, eldritch, ribbon and others I can't remember right now. She's also redundant in other things like every single time Ravel says a spell, Everline HAS to remind us that it sounds unholy and wrong and blah blah blah. Cool bro, we got that from the last 12 times you told us.
There are parts that are confusing as well, in terms of the dialogue. How all of a sudden did we get from point A to point B? It's super random in places. Everline has random revelations/ epiphanies about things before they should happen. Usually it's talk, talk, talk, revelation/epiphany. But here, it's omg revelation talk, talk. I'm like, what?? Super confusing and annoying.

All that being said, the characters were good, I liked the way everyone grew and progressed throughout the story. The story caught my attention from the very beginning which is honestly hard to do. Having the Saint/holy/consecrated vs Evil/unholy/demon is right up my alley. All of the churches and catacombs and ruins were cool settings to imagine.
I know I had some criticisms, but all-in-all I really did enjoy this book, and would recommend it.

Thank you to Macmillan Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was by far my most highly-anticipated book of 2023! I couldn't wait for this book to come out! Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone is a YA gothic fantasy romance that fans of Lakesedge should absolutely pick up. The story revolves around Everline, a holy warrior that has devoted her life to fighting vespertines, and Ravel, a vespertine monster whose life Everline decides to spare. In exchange for feeding him her blood, Everline will get a guide across the dangerous moorland. But will Ravel turn out not to be such a monster after all?

Here is an absolutely beautiful excerpt from Chapter 1:

"In the month before the gathering, the wall weeps blood.
We stand in its shadow, Lux and I, as the day turns to windswept dusk. The wall is built of bones and magic, held together by a spell that wanes throughout the year. Moon by moon, it turns more fragile. And these nights, the bloodied nights where the magic of the wall is like an unraveling thread, are when the vespertine come.
It’s early storm season, and the days are still long enough that there’s light to see by as I check Lux’s armor, running my chipped-polish fingers from buckle to buckle. She’s dressed the same as all the wardens. The same as me. A white linen dress with collar and sleeves buttoned close, a leather belt with a pouch of bone shards clipped to one side, a sickle-curved knife sheathed on the other."

Overall, Unholy Terrors is a dark YA gothic fantasy that every fan of YA fantasy should pick up. This author has become my favorite new YA fantasy author. This book has dark magical girl vibes similar to the anime Madoka Magica. One highlight of this book is the magical prose, which you can see in the excerpt above. Another highlight of this book is how it starts off as a tale of sisterhood before morphing into a monster romance.

Next, I loved how there was plenty of romantic tension. I was constantly wondering if she will kiss him or kill him. One final highlight is how I had nonstop anticipation and could not wait for the climax of the book to find out how everything would be resolved. I could not put this book down! If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA fantasy in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in October!

*I received an e-arc via Netgalley for review. Thank you to the Author, Publisher and Netgalley. All thoughts are my own*

I absolutely adored the Lakesedge duology by Lyndall Clipstone, so I knew I NEEDED to read this book. She continues to impress and has become an auto buy author for me. I loved Unholy Terrors! Lyndall has such beautiful writing, that just pulls you into the story. The world and the characters are so vivid, they leap off the pages. If you enjoy gothic fantasy, dark romance, and monster boys then I think this one is for you!

Everline Blackthorn has devoted her whole life to the wardens. They are holy warriors who guard against monsters known as the vespertine. Everline isn’t quite like the other wardens and has always felt like she doesn’t quite fit in. She has her best friend and a strained relationship with her father and half-sister.

Some unusual things occur outside of their wards, and Everline disobeys her father’s orders to investigate. Beyond the wards she discovers Ravel Severin, a vespertine, that reveals that the monsters carry secrets of their own.

Ravel promises the help that Everline needs to answer some questions of her own about her past and the Thousandfold. The price Everline must pay is in blood, as vespertine magic requires it. If she wishes Ravel to take her across the dangerous moorlands, she will need to let Ravel feed from her. It’s a sin for a warden to feed a vespertine, let alone let one live. They are enemies, but there are lines that become crossed. As Everline and Ravel travel together, she begins to wonder not about whether or not she’ll survive, but if she will return to the wardens unchanged, and if that is what she truly wants.

This gorgeous story will be out in the world on October 17, 2023! It will be the perfect fall read, so please add it to your TBR! I can’t wait to get a physical copy of this beauty!

Blood, bonds, and unholy terrors... OH MY!!!!
Lots of thanks to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, NetGalley, and Lyndall Clipstone for the eARC copy!!!

Lets start off by saying that the gothic elements of this story are so spine tingling spot on that I blew through the first half of this story with ease. I love the unconditional friendship, the strained and half-sister bonds, the enemies to lovers (of a sort) bond between Everline and Raval, and the mix of werewolf-vampire creatures. This tale is so original while also using classic creature elements and the allure of blood as an essential element of magic craft. The writing was so well done and the characters both of light and dark are still underdogs you just can't help rooting for. Even if they are FULL-ON YA characters with all the annoying quirks and eye rolling.
I did feel that the plot moved way too slowly, but that just gave me more time to meander in the imagery of the dark world Clipstone has imagined.

I will say no more on the story because it must all unfold for other potential reader as it did for me. Just buy it!

NO REGRETS!!!!