I really wanted to love this - I saw it on many "most anticipated fantasy books of 2023" lists and was super excited to get my hands on an arc.

However - I felt this book was just ok. I certainly didnt hate it but also wasnt rearing to read it.

The setting is completely unique - I jave never explored a book set in Veneuzuela and was excitied to dive in. However the first half of the book is extremely slow paced and I found myself avoiding picking the book back up.

Too many wordy descriptions of characters and slow worldbuilding has stopped me from giving this higher.

Though I had high hopes for The Sun and the Void, I am sad to say this book wasn't quite a win for me.

Though the setting and the world building is intriguing and well thought out, the pacing seemed off and somewhat clunky while the characters looked on from the side lines.
It felt more like the world was happening to the characters while they looked on from the side lines.

I wanted further exploration of the magic and less internal angst. So though the premise was intriguing this is not a new favourite as hoped.

DNF
The premise of the book sounded very interesting but unfortunately the writing style and world building was disappointing.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me.

I wanted to like it, as I saw it all over social media at some point. Regardless, the plot did not hold my interest and the characters had no depth. The attempt of complex world- building failed miserably.

This was one of my more anticipated reads for the year, it sounded like something unique and interesting. Unfortunately, though there were elements I really liked, it fell a little flat for me. I did end up liking it overall but it wasn’t one of my favourites for the month.

First, the good. The setting was what first attracted me to this book, and I wasn’t disappointed in this regard. Many fantasy worlds are essentially clones of Medieval Europe, and while it’s a tried and true formula, I do find myself getting a bit sick of it. I really enjoy worlds with some more variety in history and culture, and The Sun and the Void’s South America-inspired setting hit the mark for me. The worldbuilding was intricate and detailed, and I felt very immersed.

However, this was the main highlight for me. Other aspects like the plot and characters seemed much less developed - the plot was entertaining enough but the characters didn’t have a lot of depth and made some odd choices. I also found the book very slow paced, especially at the beginning, and I really struggled to get engaged enough to continue. I think I would have much preferred a cut down version maybe 75% of the length.

I’d still recommend it to those who enjoy books more focused on worldbuilding and creating a unique and detailed setting. It was a good debut and I’d be interested to see what the rest of the series brings.

In a world brimming with life and lore reminiscent of South America's rich history and folklore, The Sun and the Void entranced me from the first page.

There's an inherent mastery in weaving characters as intricate and relatable as Reina and Eva Kesare. These young women, with their struggles, ambitions, and flaws, resonate deeply. Their journeys, driven by personal motivations and the intricate dance of societal pressures, are punctuated by choices that feel palpably real, even when they're fraught with mistakes.

But beyond the characters, it's the world itself that emerges as a vibrant tapestry of details. The echoes of colonialism, the raw depiction of a culture driven to extinction (in some cases quite literally), and the weight of historical oppressions felt hauntingly relevant and evocative. The way the narrative captures the invasive nature of settlers, erasing indigenous legacies, strikes a chord of familiarity and pain.

The magic and belief systems are crafted meticulously, seamlessly integrating into the narrative's fabric. It's not merely a backdrop but an active agent driving the story forward, adding layers of tension and allure.

While the book stands gloriously on its own, the hints at what's to come have me eagerly anticipating the sequel. The Sun and the Void isn't just a tale—it's an experience. One that resonates, challenges, and ultimately captivates.

"Young noblewoman and servant girl become vessels of ancient gods to save a nation" I was sold. Loved the folklore and the character growth- great start to the series

This book was not for me .
Didn’t manage to finish it
I was in a book slump…….

All my friends love it

Soo… After what feels like an eternity, here are my thoughts on this book.

The world (as much as we got to see of it) and its history, as well as the magic system, were fascinating. The characters were not bad, but their development and the relationships they built were underwhelming.

It took me over 2 months to finish this (totally on me, not the book), so I can't comment on the pacing, however, the writing was solid.

There were too many instances in which logic was nowhere to be found. Why was everybody so trusting of each other?

In many cases, the characters just did a lot of info-dumping mid-conversation for worldbuilding's sake, it felt very unnatural, and I think it could've been handled better considering this is not that short of a book.

Without getting into any spoilers, I will just mention there were some tropes towards the end that I generally hate and I wasn't happy to see them here.

All in all, this was an okay read, and I consider picking up the sequel whenever it comes out.

"The Sun and the Void" by Gabriela Romero-Lacruz is a fantasy novel set in a secondary world inspired by Venezuelan history and folklore. The book has two protagonists. Reina is desperate and will do anything to find a space by her grandmother's side and be acknowledged as her heir. Eva is lonely and feels trapped in the human family she was born into and will do anything to escape.

I have seen various criticisms about this book, and I think the reason so many people have struggled with it is because the world is very bleak. There is little happiness found in the story, and both of the main characters are capable of being cruel and, at times, are. It is a story that doesn't offer catharsis reading it. I also felt uncomfortable reading and, at times, had to stop and think through if I wanted to continue.

I am glad I kept going because this is a very thought provoking book and very nuanced and subtle in the way it depicts really dark and very real problems like colonialism, mutilation, abusive families and fanatical religiousness. Simultaneously, I understand that this is quite a dense in information and world building book (although for me the lush worldbuilding is one of its greatest strengths) and requires a lot from the reader emotionally and mentally. This heavy worldbuilding makes it at times slow as well.

I think it is definitely worth taking a look and trying it if, as a reader, you enjoy dark books with heavy adult themes.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a good debut novel for this author. It was an easy read to follow and good storyline.
I personally didn't get the "feels" and reaction out of it as I hoped. I prefer to feel sucked in amd entranced by most books and this one just didn't quite do that for me.

However, it is still good book. I do recommend it for fantasy lovers.

Redeeming qualities are that it had good plot, good characters with plenty of growth and some romance.

Thanks to Daphne Press for allowing me to review. Well, this was a ride! After quite a slow start this gripped me after the reveal of *spoiler* Reina's mechanical heart, and I began to find the characters more compelling. Some of the side characters were clearly earmarked as nefarious from the off but other twists were harder to spot, which I appreciated. An interesting world that I'd like to explore more, particularly the extinction of the yares. 3.5-4*

DNF at 12%

Firstly, thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an arc of this book.

Unfortunately, the writing style really didn’t work for me. I know that 12% doesn’t seem like I got very far (and that’s true), the book is quite long. 12% is somewhere around 60 pages.

In particular, I found the descriptions of characters to be over-the-top and caricaturish, and descriptions of places and scenery to be overdone. At least for me, these descriptions didn’t succeed in creating an atmosphere in the way that was intended, although I can see that it might work better for others.

I also struggled with understanding character motivations and interactions. For example, when two characters interact, I found it difficult to work out whether they had an amicable relationship, if there was supposed to be some tension, or really what the dynamic was supposed to be. This kind of thing might have become evident later in the story but I don’t see a reason for it to be so confusing off the bat - it didn’t feel natural.

If my issues with this book had been anything other than the writing style, I would have pushed through a bit more, but I don’t expect the writing to suddenly change to a style that is more compatible with my brain.

First of all, I'd like to thank you NetGalley, Daphne Press and Gabriela Romero Lacruz for providing me with a free advanced reader copy.

Unfortunately I couldn't finish this book and I rarely do that.
Normally it takes me 2 days to read really good fantasy book with complex world-building, because I just can't put down book like that. It definitely wasn't the case with The Sun and the Void.

I was able to read 50% of the book but I was really struggling. The characters didn't catch my attention. I don't even know if I like them, or not. I just don't care what's going to happen with Reina or Eva and that's really disturbing, because getting attached to fictional characters is my hobby.

I didn't get too far into The Sun and The Void before realising it's just not for me right now. The world building is deep and the character relationships complex. To me it felt quite wordy and I couldn't get into a good rhythm with it. However, this will really work for some so I'm not completely DNFing, I'm just pausing for now until I can really take my time with it.

I'm not sure how I feel about this book, since it definitely wasn't terrible, but I don't find it very charming either. I found the world-building quite confusing and I only started understanding what was happening around 30% into the book. I also felt like it dragged quite a bit, which made my reading experience not as enjoyable as I wish it would have been as most of the time I had to force myself to read it in hopes that it will get easier. It did a bit, but that wasn't enough for me to look forward to the next chapter. It's a shame, because I thought that the premise was quite good, but it didn't live up to my expectations.

"The Sun and The Void" was one of my most anticipated books this year and I'm really glad that I was able to read an ARC of it!
The blurb was really promising but after reading the book I have to say that even with really good plot ideas the execution wasn't as satisfying.
Let's start with the things I enjoyed:
• The woldbuilding happened through the eyes of the protagonist, we learn about the world through other characters telling and explaining it to them.
• The arc of suspense at the end was quite good and I enjoyed reading the last chapters.

But the biggest issue I had with the book was the timeline. The story expanded over a view years and because of that it feld like the author wanted to put too many plot points in this book. There was too little focus on different events and they fell a bit flat.  Also, the characters seemed kinda inconsistent and some of their actions didn't made sense.

Another thing I didn't like were the love interests. They were either racist (at least in the beginning) or abusive and still, the protagonists fall for them. I really didn't like that the abusive behaviour was explained with "a curse" for that seemed to take the responsibility for their actions.

All in all I would say that the ideas for the plot could be good but it needs a little more balance between booklength and events in the story as well as more comprehensible character building.

Edit: the more I thought about this book, the more problematic aspects I've found. Especially the ableism!! That's why I changed my review to 2 stars.

Not a great review- describing indigenous natives as MONSTER is a major racial problem. As a person of colour, i found it difficult to continue reading this book, i have to give one star because i cannot give 0 stars. Hopefully the publishing team takes a deeper look at this book and see where the problems lie.

Honest, this books reminds me why you shouldn’t jump into social media hype.

It was good, it just wasn’t great.

1/5 stars or well technically a DNF

Unfortunately this book is just not for me. I already struggled with the first chapter, which should've been a sign for me. The premise of the book sounded so good, so promising. It's a shame that for me it just couldn't grab my attention, making it rather difficult to make my way through. I took 30 days to even get past the first chapter.

I ended up DNF'ing because I realised I should not have to force myself to continue reading a book. Maybe the book does get better but it unfortunately didn't get me to care enough to keep going. Can I fully describe why this book didn't grab me? No, in the end that's mostly a personal opinion. What makes me not like it might make others adore it. But for those book I highly recommend reading an excerpt to see if you mesh well with the writing style and descriptions. For me, they didn't work. Considering the high reviews on Goodreads others clearly do love it.

It's unfortunate but alas, not a book for me.

I received an e-arc from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.