I would rate this book a 2.5 rounded up to a 3 star. I found this book extremely hard to get into and didn't find myself getting into the story until about 55% - 60% through the book. I think this story is such a unique concept and story, yet it just wasn't my cup of tea. The biggest concept holding me back from this book was the multiple point of views. This is something that for me is really hard to be done well enough in order to not be confusing and to stay engaging. The three POV's wasn't engaging enough, and in my opinion was too confusing from the beginning, even though at the end it made sense. I appreciate being able to read this book as it opened my eyes to a new genre and style of books that might interest me.

thank you for the advanced copy netgalley and bindery books.
3.5⭐ dnf at 36%
while i did love the concept (and the fact it's a stand alone fantasy), i simply could not get into the story. i thought the pov shifted too much too soon to introduce the characters and the setting effectively.

Thank you NetGalley and Bindery Books for giving me early access to this book! All opinions are my own.

What a poetic and emotional book! The way a single action 10 years ago (in the book) affected the 3 main characters, and how they grew afterwards was so moving. For the character growth and writing alone I would recommend this book! There were times that the book was confusing, especially regarding calor? But, honestly I don’t think the main story is about the scarce resource, more about the resilience of mankind, especially when you have a community to support you. 4⭐️

3.75 stars
Spoiler free review.

First, a huge thanks to NetGalley and Bindery for an e-Arc of And The Sky Bled by S. Hati.

This story grabbed my attention immediately and I kept wanting to read and read. The world itself was extremely intriguing (I mean the sky literally bleeds) and ambitious, but I found at times, that certain things were not fully explain and left me wondering at how they work. However, the story was still engrossing and I can see what the author was trying to achieve.

This story follows three POV’s; Zain, Iravan & Anastasia who are looking for a reserve of calor, which is a very rare and dangerous energy source responsible for driving everything in this world (though I do feel like this took a backseat at times with everything else going on). All 3 characters are connected by a past event that affected them all. I will say the “secret” of this event got old at times as it was brought up over and over again but it is slowly to be revealed which caused me to be frustrated with the whole thing.

There’s mystery, vengeance, romance, many betrayals and lots of twists that I did not see coming.

Solid debut novel and I definitely recommend to those who are looking for a climate fantasy.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. As such, all quotes are taken from an advanced reader's copy and aren’t final. Please refer to a finished copy.

3.75/5

<I>"I have ruined this city. I drowned a decade ago, and it never stopped. I'm still drowning."</i>

And the Sky Bled is, I suppose, a standalone dystopian fiction. The world here runs on "calor," which falls from the sky like bloody rain. The resource is mostly non-renewable in that most of it has been used, and it comes in such short supply that the characters, including our 3 POV characters and several others, are all in a race to find a "hidden" source of it that has been rumored but never found. Tejomaya is our continent here, and it is effectively separated between the slums, the upperclass, and the bloodstrippers (who are guards, soldiers, and oppressors). Ultimately, there are hints of revolution and colonialism, but we barely scrape the surface of both.

<I>People spoke of rebellion like they did about good habits-- insistently and with no intent.</i>

Our main POVs are Zain, a somewhat privileged orphan (as much as you can be, I guess) slash leech, Iravan, one of the primary mob bosses of the leeches, and Anastasia, a councilwoman. I will admit that Zain and Iravan greatly overshadowed Anastasia's chapters for me. I found that the politics were extremely lacking when it came to the ruling class and instead preferred the political nuances of the slums. Other important characters include Leander and Theron, who are bloodsplitter brothers, and Iravan's partner in crime, Dev.

Ultimately, this was a fantastic read with a few flaws that I think were personal preferences. I found myself annoyed by an incessant hinting at our characters' pasts without showing anything for it. Even when they talk to other characters about the events of the past, it's almost like a big black line has been stricken through it and we're not allowed to know until the climax of the book. I also loved how the romance in the book was important but not overshadowing. There is no smut, which is refreshing for an adult fantasy. Though I will say, all of the characters seemed a little younger than they were (Zain read like a teenager, and Iravan a young man) which gave it a YA with swear words feel to it.

<I>They would never understand why Zain refused to put her gun down. It didn't matter that it was never loaded.</i>

Everything else was really great. The writing is poetic and beautiful, and the despair and hopelessness each character faces in the bleak reality they live in hit hard. I found myself on the brink of tears a few times just because of some of the mental roadblocks the characters experienced that were relatable. There is so much to learn from these characters about letting yourself be loved when you think your past is a reason to keep your distance.

While this climate fantasy boasted an intriguing premise and three nuanced characters, the narrative fell flat and was often confusing, repetitive, and impenetrable.

Right from the start, And the Sky Bled leans toward overwhelming readers with info-dumped descriptions and a too-wide range of undeveloped characters. The world in which the three main characters live is not fully fleshed out, so as the reader it is impossible to fully understand what is going on. As the narrative continues, each of the three perspectives begins to sound overwhelmingly similar, and most of the dialogue and setting revolves around a shared, "hinted" traumatic event that is used to heighten the tension. This event, unfortunately, only serves as throwaway character-building, which, by the end of the novel, doesn't seem to matter to anyone at all.

I think if this book was a little shorter and only featured Zain and Anastasia's viewpoints, it would've been more compelling, as Iravan's perspective didn't serve to heighten tension or really add to the narrative as a whole.

2 stars. Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read this e-arc. This book will be published October 15, 2024.

And the Sky Bled is an expansive take on climate change fantasy. With multiple perspectives, and motivations, it's a twisty debut which demands care. Seemingly all of our main characters are working for themselves, at odds with each other. However, And the Sky Bled ties their fates together in a journey that began a decade ago. What I enjoyed the most about And the Sky Bled is that no character is singularly one thing. Each has these decisions which honestly feel very questionable and are motivated by their own choices and quests. No one is cut and dry. Everyone has these shades and layers not allowing them to be put on one side.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

And the Sky Bled by S. Hati is a third person multi-POV climate fiction fantasy. When there is a drought of calor, a magical fossil fuel, the city of Tejomaya is flooded with rumors of a secret stash. Three different factions want the stash for themselves and their desires will have devastating consequences.

I'm very torn between Zain and Anastasia for my favorite POV character. On the one hand, Zain shows us more of the daily life of this world and has some very strong emotional beats, including her slowburn romance arc, while Anastasia provides a lot of worldbuilding in terms of the history of the world and her emotional beats lie more in how she's always felt abandoned. They both hit on different things for me that usually point to a favorite and if Zain wasn't there, Anastasia would be my clear favorite and vice versa.

Calor as a fossil fuel but also a blood rain was fascinating. I've read about acid rain before and know about the black rains that fell after the atomic bombs, so the blood rain felt like a culmination of all these things, both powerful and a product of something horrific. The fossil fuel aspect definitely shines through, but I found myself gravitating more to how calor impacts individuals and creates more and more problems.

The pacing is more on the slowside, letting the reader see into the daily lives of the people of a colonized city from a variety of POVs. A political fantasy that moves on the slower side should definitely focus more on character over plot and the day-to-day of the political system that is failing, and the novel certainly succeeds on that end. Anastasia at times feels both oblivious and aware of the impact her family has had on the world around her, but her childhood friend Charvi adds an extra layer to it that makes me think she ultimately thought she was doing the right thing.

I would recommend this to fans of political fantasy who want cli-fi elements, readers of mutli-POV fantasies that prefer different classes being highlighted, and those looking for a cli-fi fantasy that explores fossil fuels

And the Sky Bled is a unique tale of 4 people trying to survive the slums of Tejomaya under the pressure of a declining world. Full of action, secrets, and betrayal there's a lot to keep the reader interested and entertained despite the slow pace of the book. Characters are well developed with many that are lovable and a few with morally grey thoughts and actions that keeps the reader on their toes. Some characters you can trust while others are have lots of hidden agendas. And the Sky Bled is a must read if you like action packed dystopian thrillers.

And the Sky Bled is an ambitious debut cli-fi fantasy novel set in a dystopian world where a mysterious substance called calor is crucial for survival. The story follows three main characters—Zain, a determined thief; Iravan, a slumlord with a haunted past; and Anastasia, a powerful heiress—each with their own motives as they race to find a hidden cache of calor that could change their fates.

The book offers rich world-building with imaginative concepts, especially regarding the depletion of calor and the city’s reliance on it. The political intrigue and environmental themes are well-developed, and there are moments of tension that will appeal to fans of the dystopian genre. However, despite the strong setup, the novel suffers from pacing issues, with a slow start, and overly descriptive prose that stretches the story too long. Additionally, while some readers may enjoy the complex narrative, others might find the multiple POVs and lack of clear character development frustrating. The protagonists, especially Zain, often felt flat and difficult to connect with.

While And the Sky Bled has its share of flaws, particularly in character depth and pacing, the world Hati has built is intriguing. Fans of slow-burn fantasy and climate dystopias will find something to appreciate here, but others might struggle with the book’s dense structure. The author shows a lot of promise, and readers will be interested in their future work.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley and Bindery Books!

Overall I can see many people enjoying and loving this story but it wasn't for me. Multiple POV over a diverse set of characters dealing complex emotions and tragic pasts. The writing style and skill was very good. I am interested to see this authors next novel.

The prose and writing were so well done. If this author writes another novel U would happily pick that up. This being climate fantasy just wasn't personally my flavor. The concept behind how the world went south was really clever and new and not something I've read before. However tge characters fell flat for me. The only way I can describe them in my head is like cardboard. So flat and I couldn’t connect to any of them. The politics and world building were strong but I felt like this book was 2 times too long thanks to the prose. I felt myself wondering when it was going to end. Not for me personally but I know some other readers will really like this one more than me.

I feel like I would have enjoyed this much more in audiobook format because it's very descriptive and immediately throws the reader in with little explanation, which works better for me in audio format than in text.

I'm pretty positive this is an issue of me being in the wrong kind of mood for it, but I just couldn't connect with what was going on or any of the characters. And reading other reviews made me think I wouldn't get the answers as quickly as I wanted to be able to understand more.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. The premise was promising, but I didn't care about the characters. A lot happened very early on, to the point that it felt like info-dumping. Paragraphs of explaining how things are made me bored and disconnected. I grew bored with the events of the book to the point that the narrative voices of the three POVs sounded the same to me. This book also feels a little more like a middle book in a larger world than a standalone story. I feel like I'm missing information, even with all the info-dumping.

It boils down to this not being a book for me over much else.

The sky did indeed bleed in this gripping, utterly fascinating debut!

We follow three main characters trying to survive in a dying world that is not actually dying, just stupidly desperate to cling to this calor substance they abused throughout the years.

The concept of calor was actually interesting, maybe at times confusing as once it came from the soil and now there a city where it rains with calor, the sky seemingly bursting with it. Imagining that was enchanting and it would've fit a TV adaptation beautifully. That said and done, the base of this novel, the drought, makes my eyes roll.

What do you mean you've used all the reserves and you know there's barely any more to last you a few years and yet, instead of trying to find and alternative, you lie to yourself and let people starve. YOU are the government, so I would assume you would know these things.

Putting that aside, I liked the action. It was balanced nicely and it was tbe aspect that kept me going honestly. Everything unraveled slowly, picking the reader's interesting gradually until you could only keep reading to find out more. The characters competing for a rumoured cache of calor, each with their own gains in mind was compelling, giving the story some urgency and the genuin feeling that things will soon go wrong.

Of course none of these would be possible without Zain, Iravan and Anastasia, who couldn't be much different from each other. Zain was the split image of your typical fantasy protagonist, providing the bridge between Iravan and Anastasia, two very intense and complex characters. Those two were my favourite. There was something about Anastasia's wit and recklessness that had me waiting impatiently for her chapters.

However, despite the many aspects I loved, there were some taking away my excitement. I think we went in quiet blindly, the characters too vague to make the reader want to keep going. By the time the real, fascinating story kicks in, you might get a bit annoyed at all the confusion in terms of world building and character backgrounds. Their past being presented gradually was a bit of a drawback and the ending felt a bit flat.

All in all, this is a debut novel and it should be read like it. The author has a ton of potential, as their writing was grotesque, immersing and captivating! 'And the Sky Bled' is a novel of desperate survival in a world unwilling to survive and fans of the dystopia genre will be head over heels for this, I promise!

''And the Sky Bled” through S. Hati is a gripping climate fable set within the dystopian metropolis of Tejomaya, wherein a paranormal fossil fuel called calor is discovered simplest within the blood rains that fall from the sky. The tale follows 3 most important characters: Zain Jatav, a tenacious thief; Iravan Khotar, an formidable slumlord; and Anastasia Drakos, a powerful heiress. Each man or woman is pushed by way of their personal motives to discover a hidden cache of magic that would change the fate of their city.

Pros:

Rich World-Building: The writer creates a shiny and immersive world, mixing elements of magic and dystopia seamlessly.
Complex Characters: The protagonists are well-developed, each with wonderful motivations and backstories that add intensity to the narrative.
Engaging Plot: The intertwining testimonies of Zain, Iravan, and Anastasia keep the reader hooked, with masses of twists and turns.
Themes of Power and Survival: The ebook explores the devastating mechanisms of power and the lengths people will go to continue to exist, making it idea-frightening and relevant.
Cons:

Pacing Issues: Some readers would possibly locate the pacing uneven, with sure sections feeling slower than others.
Complexity: The intricate plot and multiple views can be tough to comply with at instances.
Graphic Content: The ebook includes scenes of violence and bloodshed, which might not be appropriate for all readers.
Overall, “And the Sky Bled” is a dazzlingly original and epic fantasy that breathes existence right into a crumbling world getting ready to destruction. S. Hati’s debut novel is wealthy, complex, and breathtaking, deftly handling themes of environmental devastation and colonialism. While the pacing and complexity would possibly pose challenges, the compelling characters and engaging plot make it a profitable examine for lovers of the style.

The new-adult, cli-fi novel And The Sky Bled, from author S. Hati, is not a bad debut. Unfortunately, it’s one I didn’t feel inclined to finish.

The book’s opening chapters are rushed, full of heavy-handed exposition that is devoid of emotive detail. Emotionally sparse world-building could be used throughout to convey the characters’ desensitisation - but, at this point, we don’t know Hati’s characters well enough for that to work. Instead, an onslaught of geopolitics and side-characters’ names ironically make the world feel too large all at once, disengaging the reader early on.

This sort of pacing feels like it should fit a YA audience but imagery like that of the fleshy gash in the sky is too gory for that. Similarly, that central image wasn’t executed as well as it could have been: Hati seems to treat it as another part of the world she needs to explain rather than use. It is mentioned, then left in the story, in the same way that the politics of Tejomaya’s colonialism are: quickly, obviously, shallowly.

Of the three main characters, despite being saddled with confusing political jargon, Anastasia’s chapters were by far the most entertaining to read. She was the most unpredictable, where Zain fell flat and Iravan acted too immaturely. Still, Hati’s tendency to ‘tell’ the audience about her characters rather than show them makes them less sympathetic: too often it took me out of the story to read such redundant and unrealistic conversations.

In general, the lack of impactful world-building felt like smog from the fire which blankets the plot. I kept reading, looking for more - more intricate characterisation, more ideas about the world’s layout, or how its bleeding sky came to be.

But the smog remains, choking the world and the characters alike.

-

I am grateful, whatever my personal views expressed, for the opportunity provided to me by NetGalley and Bindery Books to read this ARC.

And the Sky Bled is a multi point of view dystopian fantasy that follows three primary characters as they experience the world as they know it falling apart from three very different positions, yet as things progress we learn how their stories are intertwined and their fates are connected. Zain is a young woman who just wants to break free from the slums, but finds herself pulled right back in and back under the thumb of one of the slumlords. Iravan is one of the other slumlords for whom events 1o years prior reshaped his worldview and caused a divergence in goals between him and his partner. The same event that defined Iravan's identity 10 years ago also sent Anastasia back to her family on the affluent island across the sea where the council runs Tejomaya from their city on a hill. Their civilization is completely dependent on calor, and calor is running out. Zain, Iravan, and Anastasia all find themselves pulled into the hunt for a rumored cache of calor, but their past traumas mean they each have different goals and plans for the calor when they find it. However, as the world and people around them begin to be torn apart, finding the calor stash may be the only way to save those they love, and they may end up having to work together to do so.

At a high level I really did like the story. I think the situation and environment was really interesting and unique if a little confusing, how the characters' stories ultimately intertwined was clearly intentional and well thought-out, and the over-arching plot was interesting. However, I think the multi-POV story composition ultimately was distracting more than it was helpful. I think if it had just been Anastasia and Zain, or Anastasia and Iravan I think it could have been tightened up and simultaneously better fleshed out. Nothing felt like it had enough for me. Zain felt more like a plot device than a believable character. Her story contained one of my least favorite plot devices, which is just repeating lines throughout that suggest important historical trauma that are necessary to understanding the character but, even though you're reading from that character's point of view, won't be explained for a long time. I don't think I had enough information to understand why she joined forces with the bloodstripper brothers, or why they were really interested in working with her either. Anastasia was the most well fleshed-out character in my opinion. She still didn't quite make sense to me, but I think how her story was revealed and how it intertwined with the overarching story made the most sense. Iravan was the most compelling character to me, but I also don't really feel like his point of view contributed anything particularly novel, besides maybe some reason to why Zain's story mattered?

So in conclusion, the bones are there and I'll be interested in reading more from this author in the future, but while I found the premise and setup really interesting, the execution fell flat for me and I never felt like I had the right information to understand the character motivation and reasoning.

This was my first climate fantasy and boy did it raise the bar. This was a fantastically written book, perfectly balance between characters and plot. It was so driven and I was so intrigued the whole time. I found the book a little slow in the beginning during the world building but as we moved closer to half way, I truly fell in love with these characters and it was so beautiful and heartbreaking. I loved the South East Asian representation and it really created a unique atmosphere and storyline. S Hati's debut novel was truly fantastic and I recommend everyone read it.

I don't quite know how I would describe this book, other than as an intense novel about an unexpectedly interconnected group of characters trying to survive a catastrophy that has been building for generations.

The reader is thrown in to the story and while there were some things that I wish were developed a bit more (some of the relationships for example), I can appreciate the way the story was told. Tension was carried consistently throughout and I was emotionally invested at the end.

We are left guessing much of the time as to the characters motives, but I appreciated the mystery and felt that the pace kept me reading once I got to the 30-40% mark.

Overall a good read and I look forward to more by S. Hati.