I've been reading a lot of fantasy novels rooted in Slavic folklore and I am LOVING the gothic vibes. This is a fast-paced, richly imagined story that delves into themes of abandonment, grief, poverty, and toxic relationships. And it is amazing.

Long ago, when monsters emerged, mages erected a wall between the richer and poorer aspects of a city. Kosara, a fire witch, is an expert in dealing with various supernatural creatures in her city of Chernograd. Her skills are formidable, but she is always wary of the Tsar of Monsters, who feeds on the love of young women. He is well aware of her power and is furious that she managed to escape his clutches in the past. Fearful and desperate, she sacrifices her shadow—the source of her powers—for illegal passage to Belograd, the city free of monsters on the other side of the wall.

Kosara soon realizes that she is showing signs of the deadly wasting sickness that afflicts shadowless witches, and her only hope for survival lies in reclaiming her lost magic. Her quest forces her to team up with a detective - and she's not a huge fan of coppers. The dynamics between Kosara and the detective are fraught with tension and suspicion and their bond grows into such a beautiful one over the course of the story. Kosara is a deeply flawed yet relatable character. Her struggles with abandonment, trust, guilt, and grief resonated so strongly with me, making her journey all the more engaging.

There is excellent world-building, seamlessly integrating Slavic folklore into the fabric of the story. The depiction of mythical creatures like rusalkas and kikimoras adds a unique flavor. The exploration of poverty and wealth in a fantastical setting is a welcome one - though it could have been stronger. I suspect this will return in the next book. The biggest highlight of the story was the relationship between Kosara and the toxic Tasr of Monsters compared to her relationship with the detective. Her former toxic relationship is the driving force of the plot and echoes similar predatory relationships in our own world. It's chilling how the effects echo in her own head and drive so many of her actions.

The plot is richly layered, with each twist and turn revealing more about the characters and the world they inhabit. The book’s exploration of complex themes is handled with nuance and respect.
This is a phenomenal story that combines incredible world-building, rich folklore, and finely drawn characters with a big dose of humor and heart. I cannot wait to see what is coming next.

Thank you to the TBR and Beyond Booktours, the author, and the publisher for the copy. This review is based on a complimentary pre-released copy and it is voluntary.

Top 5 reasons to read

Foul Days by Genoveva Dimova

1. Incredible Bulgarian Folklore
2. Vivid world building
3. Fast paced and keeps you engaged
4. Modern Fantasy full of twists and turns
5. Relatable, witty characters


#FoulDays #TBRBeyondTours #GenovevaDimova

I read this book as part of the blog tour hosted by TBR & Beyond Tours. Special thanks to Tor Books for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 4.25 stars!

TL;DR: I'm not sure what I expected going into this but it wasn't what I got and I absolutely mean that in the best way! Foul Days is dark and full of monsters but the "horror" aspect is light enough that those who are scared of dark and scary things (it's me) can read it in bed alone at night. It's heavy in Slavic lore and it's action-packed from start to finish. I loved Kosara and her acerbic nature. She's crabby and witty but vulnerable enough for us to see past that exterior to the damaged young woman she still carries inside. Her banter with Asen was A+ and their "copper vs. charlatan" dynamic was one of my favourite parts of this story. I was so pleasantly surprised by this fantasy debut and I'm already itching to get my hands on the second book (*please bless me, Tor gods*)!

I think this is one of those books that you shouldn't take too seriously in that yes, there are some aspects in the world-building, character development and plot logic that could've been strengthened, but if you can just enjoy the vibes and interesting characters, you'll be able to have more fun. It was a wild and adventurous romp through a monster-ravaged world where everyone's simply doing their best to survive the Foul Days that each new year brings. When we were thrown seemingly into the middle of the story right from the start, I was admittedly confused and had a bit of trouble finding my bearings in this world. Since I knew we'd be getting a story based on Slavic folklore, I think I immediately assumed that this would have a more historical setting and that's my bad. Instead, what we get is a mix of modern urban fantasy and I don't know why the modern elements threw me off each time they came up but it also wasn't a deal breaker. I still found the world-building interesting and I appreciated how the author contrasted Chernograd and Belograd, the two cities separated by the wall. Chernograd is the monster-ravaged part of this world and the citizens have grown used to living with death as their neighbour. In contrast to Belograd, a bustling city full of colour, merriment and cheer, Chernogradeans exist in a somewhat bleak reality drained of colour and happiness. Having to live in tough conditions exacerbated by both monsters and the wall, they're hardy folk who (mostly) go about minding their own business to survive. The Slavic folklore elements were strong in this one and I loved learning about the different monsters and what they were capable of. Dimove wrote these creatures in such a way that was fascinating and simply natural and made me want to keep reading about them! They were scary but not overwhelmingly so but their existence fueled the dark energy of the city.

The plot was intense and full of action and there's a lot that goes on from Kosara fleeing the Zmey and getting sucked into a murder mystery to a more complex magical mission to save both cities from an even more threatening monster whose presence is more myth than reality, until now. I will say that the ending felt a little rushed only because of how easily certain things came to our characters—I thought there'd be a bit more of a struggle or challenge but this could also be the author misleading us into thinking that things have ended better than when they started and we're in for a heck of a surprise. 😂

Kosara was a great MC and I loved following her POV. She's prickly and snarky and her sarcastic nature added a lot of humour to the story that had me laughing more than I expected to while reading something so dark! She's had a trauma-filled past that she has tried burying deep but she also carries a heavy burden from a tragic incident in her youth. Despite the walls she's built up high, you can't help but feel for her and her loneliness. She's very much a "what plans?" kind of character and sometimes I did want to give her a good shake so she'd take a moment to think first and then act and it gave her this naivete that I sometimes found at odds with her tough nature. Still, she was very much an easy character to root for and the author's direction for her character by the end has my curiosity piqued to see what happens next.

There are many side characters in the story and their roles range from the main "sidekick" to various monsters that he and Kosara interact with along their journey. I liked Asen a lot! I loved the 'good cop' vs 'charlatan witch' dynamic he had with Kosara and was so curious about his upbringing and how exactly he came to be a Belograd cop. He challenges and supports Kosara in surprising ways and despite the shaky trust and secrets they kept, they made a great team! There is a romantic subplot that goes back and forth a bit and isn't explored too much but it's made me even more excited to see how that relationship evolves and how their team dynamic changes in the next book. Other characters such as Roksana and Malamir were interesting but I couldn't figure them out as they weren't very well-developed and their interactions with Kosara felt surface-level despite the roles they played. As a villain, the Zmey was also interesting but also rather flat and unfortunately, didn't feel like the most terrifying of monsters to me. But I did hate what he would do to the young women he got in his grasp and the insidious charm and beauty he represented.

Overall, this was a great debut. I have a feeling things are about to get a lot more angsty, devastating, magical and action-packed and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book!

A dark, Slavic fantasy with unique and intricate world building and a cast of questionable characters!
A “good cop” and a witch team up to solve a murder and save themselves from their traumatic pasts all while fighting off numerous monsters and humans.
Fast paced and encompassing, this story drew me in on page one and kept me guessing the whole time. Looking forward to book 2.

This was a fantastic fantasy world of monsters, magic, and mayhem. Wonderfully Rick of Slavik lore, and reminiscent of fairy tale folklore, Foul Days was a fast-paced novel.

Kosara is preparing for the Foul Days like every three year - warding against the Zmey, as he has chased her every year since she escaped his palace. The Foul Days happen every year on this side of the wall, for twelve days, monsters roam free in the city. The wall keeps them from going across to the other side, keeping the humans safe.

When Kosara is faced with the Zmey early, a bargain with a stranger sets a series of events in motion that leads to her not only losing her shadow but being stuck on the other side of the wall. Murderer and mayhem follow, and she's found herself working with a policeman named Asen.

As Kasara and Asen work to find a killer, they get to know one another and become partners. Through danger and deceit, this team investigates what they can about the murder, as well as why the wall doesn't work as it was intended to. But can they fix it?

This was good but it was definitely a bit on the nose. I enjoyed the world and the world-building--the Eastern European monsters and myth combined with the turn of the century technology gave this a cool sort-of steampunky gaslamp feel. This was fast-paced, though I wish the discussions about class and policing was more integrated into the meat of the story. Overall, a relatively short, fast-paced read with interesting characters in a compelling world! I really enjoyed this!

Good world building. Less than subtle messaging about social class and policing. It felt original with the Eastern European monsters and magic combines with early/mid 1900s tech. All in all it was a fast paced lighter read you don’t need to take too seriously if you’re looking for light entertainment. I’ll be reading book two and following the author on Goodreads. I think she has a lot of potential since the debut is of high quality.

I feel like this will be an unpopular opinion and that’s fine!

The book is told from one point-of-view and it comes from Kosara. She is a witch who ends up losing her shadow to stay away from a monster and then goes on a journey to get it back. I thought that it was an interesting plot from the beginning, but it does end up slowing down and it made it to where I had to push through this book. I don’t think that it was really due to the plot but more or less the writing. It is meant to be humorous and lighthearted for the most part, but there are dark tones to the book as well. It just didn’t work for me, but I can see others really enjoying the writing.

The plotline does deal with domestic violence/grooming. It was an interesting topic to include but I think that it needs to be said at the beginning of the book because it could trigger some.

The world is very cool with learning about the different monsters and why the towns are split and what happens on the other side of the wall. I do wish that the characters had been more flushed out though.

Overall, this was okay but I was just hoping for more from it

📚Fouls Days
🖋️Author: Genoveva Dimova
🗂️Genre: Adult Fantasy
📆Publication date: June 25
📝Pages: 362

•ARC REVIEW•

5/⭐️

📌Summary:
As a witch in the walled city of Chernograd, Kosara has plenty of practice taming rusalkas, fighting kikimoras, and brewing lycanthrope repellent. There’s only one monster Kosara can’t defeat: her ex the Zmey, known as the Tsar of Monsters. She’s defied him one too many times, and now he’s hunting her. Betrayed to him by someone close to her, Kosara’s only hope is to trade her shadow―the source of her powers―for illegal passage across the Wall to Belograd, where monsters can’t follow.

Life in Belograd should be sweet, but Kosara soon develops a fast-acting version of the deadly wasting sickness that stalks shadowless witches―and only reclaiming her magic can cure her. To trace her shadow, she’ll have to team up with the suspiciously honorable detective investigating the death of the smuggler who brought her across the Wall.

Even worse than working with the cops is that all the clues point in a single direction: one of the Zmey’s monsters has found a crack in the Wall, and Kosara’s magic is now in the Zmey’s hands.

The clock is ticking, the hunt is on, and Kosara’s priorities should be clear―but is she the hunter or the hunted? And in a city where everyone is out for themselves, who can Kosara trust to assist her in outwitting the man―the Monster―she’s never been able to escape alone?

Content Warning: Physical and psychological abuse by a partner, violence, murder, arrest and imprisonment, drugging

📌Review:
I loved the world-building, especially Slavic Folklore with the fantasy elements. Kosara is a truly amazing book hero that i need to see more of her. The writing and the pacing of the story was very good as well. Can’t wait to read the next one.

Book Links:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195791008-foul-days
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Foul-Days-Witchs-Compendium-Monsters-ebook/dp/B0CGS17MTB

Tour Schedule: https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/2024/05/24/tour-schedule-foul-days-by-genovena-dimova/

#FoulDays #TBRBeyondTours #GenovevaDimova

Oooh this was wonderfully dark and magical and strange. So much fun! An incredibly enjoyable read full of monsters, mayhem, pirates (well one pirate), magical compasses, and evil kings. Just such a great use of folklore and imagery to create a unique and memorable world. The villain was truely repugnant, and I loved that Dimova's story was as much about recovering from/taking your life back from an abusive situation as it was about fighting physical monsters.

As a fan of folklore and myth, this book was an instant homerun for my personal taste. Not only do we get a dark, witchy, atmosphere; we also encounter monsters lurking in shadows, brooding cop side-kicks, and questionable friends. This story is rich in Bulgarian lore as the author shares in her own words, and she truly seems to love the narrative which comes through in her writing.

I was enthralled by the story, the struggle of our main character Kosara, who is likeable and still flawed enough to not be overly perfect or "the chosen one", and the restless spirits of the walled city. I enjoyed the mix of urban fantasy meets Naomi Novik fairy tale-esque writing. I found moments of humor, emotion, contemplation, and frustration (all in well crafted amounts).

I feel as thought Ms. Dimova has set us up well and established a firm foundation for an almost "buddy cop" monster hunting team and I am here for it. I can not wait to see where the characters go and what sort of mischief they get into next.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to receive an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book and could not put it down. I thought it was well crafted, entertaining, and absolutely worth the read.

Foul Days has a great atmosphere. From page one, you can feel the cold of Eastern Europe in the dead of winter. You can feel the closeness of all the characters inside the bar on New Year's Eve. I loved the beginning of the book—how the author described so much—but then it became sketchy. I never fully got a good idea about what Kosara looked like—nothing. I know the Zmey had blue eyes. It was almost like looking through a glass at a movie; you can sort of see the people, but you really can't make out their faces or features. I did, however, enjoy the story and I will continue with the series. I really want to know what happens next.

Thank you, NetGalley and Tor Books, for the eArc. These opinions are my own.

I really like Slavic folklore books, especially when they involve monsters or creatures, so this was a hit with me! I enjoyed following Kosara's journey to reclaim her shadow and exploring the world with her. I'm kinda sad it's a duology so I have to wait to see what happens next!

I honestly really wanted to enjoy this book, but I do not feel like I connected to it in the way I was hoping to. Kosara’s character is really underdeveloped when the story first starts and then the character building that tries to happen to get the reader caught up I don’t quite feel works. Kosara continuously deems herself a weak witch throughout this book, mediocre at best. Yet her mentor and others view her as being way beyond the average witch. I also felt that the story dragged on in places and that it kept going once it had reached a good place to wrap up. Overall, there was nothing massively wrong with this book, it just didn’t quite resonate with me like I hoped it would.
Thank you to Tor Publishing Group and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

The first in a duology, Foul Days is about the people in our lives who bring shadows to our days and nights. Who seek to cloud our days in the big and small ways. Foul Days begins with a bang and doesn't let up. While it's certainly easy to fall into this magical world. Dimova's debut is about shadow magic and full of magical creatures. I ended up enjoying the themes the most. The ideas of power, exploitation, and labor.

Witches, monsters and a murder mystery really sounds good to me when I read the premise.
Suffice to say, this was an enjoyable debut novel!

The world building is fascinating, an island was separated by an enormous wall that divided two cities.
It’s interesting to see how contrast one city compare to the other, Chernograd city was over-run by various types of monsters every new year – known as Foul Days, while the people in Belograd city can celebrate new year with great fanfare.

The plot started right at the beginning and I really enjoy following Kosara trying to get back her shadow along with her new friend – Asen, the detective who is following a murder investigation which brings them to work together to defeat the same monster.

The author did a great job in portraying just how difficult it is to get out of a toxic relationship and even if you do, some of the memories still linger just like Kosara and the main antagonist, the Tsar of Monsters.

I thought this was a standalone but imagine my surprise to find that things are far from over since they still have another ‘monster’ to hunt!

Overall, for a debut novel this was a great start. Great storyline and world building manage to captivate me from the beginning until the end.
I’m looking forward to read the next book in this series!

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: toxic relationship, violence

4.5 Stars

In Chernograd, New Year's Eve isn't a time of merriment and celebration. It's the beginning of Foul Days - the most dangerous time of year, when monsters descend upon the city and its residents hold up behind warded walls clutching their talismans and spells ready on their lips. It would be awfully terrible timing to gamble away the source of your power, especially if the Tsar of Monsters just came knocking...  

*Note - The "Monster Pamphlet" that is distributed by the Chernograd Witch and Warlock Association is located at the back of the book, a perfect reference for each monster as you read!

I'll admit I'm not familiar with Slavik folklore, but this was an utter witchy delight. This world was so dark and fun, and I appreciated that there wasn't an overwhelming wold dump to get bogged down in - right to the action without "filler" chunks! My interest was piqued instantly, and it held my attention the entire time - I didn't want to put it down!

We've got quirky flawed characters that have been burned (quite literally) by their past mistakes and are haunted (again, literally) by them throughout the story. I was completely charmed by both Kosara & Asen, Genoveva does a phenomenal job of tossing in a dash of humor and mystery around these characters that has you anxious to find out more. 

We were given a teensy glimpse of Kosara's teacher - Vila, who is wise beyond her witchy years. When battling monsters in Chernograd, or obstacles in your own life - I felt Vila's words of wisdom should be echoed for all to hear: "The only way to defeat him is to face that little, horrible voice in your head telling you that you're not good enough and force it to shut the f*ck up." 

This is not romance-heavy, but I fully support this as I think that would have been more of an unnecessary distraction. This magical, mysterious, monster-filled adventure somehow gave me cozy vibes at the end. I'm honestly shocked this is a debut novel, I'm already looking forward to the second book - and hopefully many more from Genoveva Dimova. 

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Books for the e-ARC!

I loved this original fantasy novel. The characters were well written, realistic and relatable. The world building was handled masterfully as well as the different types of monsters and other creatures. The plot was fast paced and original. I could not put it down and cannot wait for the sequel.

I thoroughly enjoyed this folklore-inspired fantasy! Kosara is from Chernograd, a place where monsters roam. Kosara is a witch, one with a bit of a past with the king of the monsters the Zmey. and during this year's Foul Days she has made him angry, so angry that she trades her shadow, the source of her power to get her over the wall where the Zmey can't find her. She immediately regrets her decision for many reasons, one is that she actually misses her home, but second and most importantly she catches the disease that witches with no shadow catch, and she needs it back ASAP.
Thankfully she is stubborn and resourceful and won't stop until she finds the guy she sold her shadow to, only that doesn't go as planned, and she ends up with a hunky policeman that wants to catch a killer and is going to stick to Kosara like glue until he catches them. There are twists and turns, betrayals, humor, and a smidge of romantic feelings, which I can't wait to see play out. And I didn't want to put it down.
This book was so much fun! it was dark and dealt with trauma, but I had such a good time reading it. Not only was I glued to the pages waiting to see how Kosara and Asen were going to pull of their plans, but the monsters were so fascinating! I loved learning all about them, and their weaknesses, and even getting to chat with a couple of them.

When I was turning the last page, I was left wanting more. Not that it didn't give me everything I wanted from it, but I wasn't ready to leave this world and Kosara behind. I'm so excited that the next book will be released this year, and I won't have to wait long to see what's in store for Kosara and Chernograd next.

I went into *Foul Days* a bit blind, and what a wonderful surprise this dark fantasy was! Full of Slavic lore and monstrous creatures—*Foul Days* provides an excellent and captivating adventure that I couldn’t put down.

Kosara is Chernogradian witch—and like others in Chernograd, she is trapped in a dangerous life behind a wall intended to keep monsters from the rest of the world. When Kosara is tricked into losing her witch’s shadow, the source of her magic, she finds herself across the wall for the first time. Desperate to get it back before the shadow sickness—the disease that befalls all witches who lose their shadow—comes for her life, she hunts down the man who took her shadow only to find him brutally murdered. After a mysterious policeman brings her in for questioning in the thief’s death, the unlikely pair embark together on a journey back to Chernograd, both looking for answers. Kosara will have to decide who to trust—herself included—if she’s going to get her shadow back, let alone survive.

>> ❤️What I loved: Kosara’s character development is thoughtful and complex, particularly the exploration of grief and self-doubt. The side-characters, monstrous and human alike, are entertaining and equally captivating. Excellent writing with surprisingly amusing dialogue gave this a bit of dark humor to go along with the dark fantasy. Additionally, the super slow burn romance (that I am very invested in!!) paired with a fast-moving plot gives *Foul Days* a great balance and rounds out the storytelling.
>> 💔What I didn’t love: At times I felt the pacing was a little all over the map—with some big things happening rather quickly—but this ultimately didn’t detract much from the story for me personally.

Fans of more monstrous fantasy stories like *The Cruel Prince, Shadow and Bone*, or *Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries* should definitely pick up *Foul Days.* Book #2 is scheduled for later this year, and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

**Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 (4.5-5)**

**Acknowledgments & Disclaimers**
✨ Thank you to NetGalley, Genoveva Dimova, and Tor Publishing, for providing an ARC and the opportunity to share an honest review of this book.
✨ All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.
✨ My reviews and ratings strive to evaluate books within their own age-demographic and genre.