The actual second I saw “meets Naomi Novik” and “rooted in Slavic folklore”, I immediately requested the ARC. Let me just tell you, this book did NOT disappoint! I was sucked in almost instantly and was beyond frustrated that I wasn’t able to pick it up for a few days after I started it on Thursday. ‘Foul Days’ introduces us to a world where monsters are real and, when the clock strikes midnight on New Year’s, they come a-knocking. Kosara is a witch who is forced to flee when one very specific monster targets her. In order to do so, she gives up her shadow – the source of her magic. Almost immediately, she regrets it. What follows is a journey to retrieve her shadow and return to her home in Chernograd.

This was so good! I was fully invested within just the first chapter. Kosara is easy to root for, and the story itself was incredibly atmospheric. The pacing is excellent, and there wasn’t even a moment that felt too long or excessive. I also really enjoyed the romance. Asen was mostly a great male lead, and I was fully behind them.

If you like folkloric stories full of monsters, mystery, and mayhem…check this one out!

While I found Foul Days enjoyable overall, there were a few aspects that prevented me from fully embracing it. Set against a backdrop rich with Slavic folklore, monsters, and adventure, the novel follows the evolving relationship between its two main characters, Kosara and Asen, with a satisfyingly gradual pace. The atmospheric quality is commendable, maintaining a sense of tension and adventure throughout.

However, my enjoyment was tempered by a few shortcomings. One notable issue was the lack of detailed character descriptions, leaving me halfway through the book without a clear mental image of the protagonists. Additionally, despite the presence of bone-chilling monsters from Slavic mythology, the sense of danger during the monster attack scenes fell short for me, with only one instance truly gripping me.

Foul Days seamlessly blends elements of a small quest and criminal investigation with fast-paced action, dry humor, and eerie creatures. The dynamic between Kosara and Asen adds depth, while encounters with creatures like the Zmey offer genuine chills. Despite these strengths, something about the book failed to fully captivate me. Perhaps it was the bleak setting or my personal disinterest in witchcraft and detective narratives.

Foul Days is a solid read with much to offer fans of Slavic mythology and adventurous tales. While it didn’t entirely resonate with me, I would recommend it to readers intrigued by its unique blend of folklore and adventure.

So this was an absolute sneaky surprise! I'm so grateful I was kind of forced to read this book and I DEVOURED it!! Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ALC. I will say that if you listen to the audiobook, make sure to listen to the glossary guide before reading so some words/creatures can at least be familiar before listening (might be a good tip for book readers too!) -- this may be at the end of the book/audio.

The main character:
In the case of the FMC, I truly enjoyed her plight. She had detachment to others because of everything that has happened to her, but yet loves her city fiercely. The dichotomy was interesting. The quest to gain her magic back had so many twists and it was enjoyable. I liked how long she takes to finally admit she needs a friend - her character arc took time and that's important for her growth.

Setting:
The city on the other side of the wall was so rich and lively; the author's descriptions of the difference between them truly made them come alive. I liked the wall concept -- it reminded me a bit of The Fold from Shadow & Bone. The separation created a sense of mystery and I wanted to understand more. There could have been more information about the governors that put it in place, but hopefully in book 2 there will be more of this.

Tropes:
Betrayal was a constant and I loved how the reader never knew what would happen next. People would die or be on the wrong side. It was great! A few instances of humour/banter throughout. Some was cheesy but it worked.

I do wish there was more emotion involved, especially from the reader's perspective. I wasn't moved to tears in any way, but I think it came from the detachment concept. Also, more females in positions of power could have helped this (i.e. not all 'evil' entities / leaders have to be male; like why does KK have to be male?). However, still giving it five stars because I just vibed with this book!! You're going to want to add this to your TBR now!

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook! Loved the slow burn, magic and monstrous themes!

I really enjoyed listening to it

This book started off with letting you know there were monsters and things were going down! I have not read a lot of Slavic Folklore but this book has peaked my interest.
I found the main plot to be interesting and enjoyed all the other side quests. I think the author did a good job keeping me turning pages and wanting more. I am glad this book was not overly complicated to understand as there was not a heavy world building setup nor were the characters too deep.
This is a fun read that has a great adventure feel with lots and lots of magic and monsters.

I was gifted a physical copy by Tor as well as an audiobook copy by NetGalley in order to read and possibly leave a review for this book. I would like to thank NetGalley and Tor for their free copies of this novel.

I Devoured this debut novel. Based on Slavic, folklore and bursting at the scenes with adventure and mystery. This novel captured my attention almost immediately. It started off with a real bang and captured interest early on, and then the exquisite pacing kept my interest and held it.

I have never read a novel that pertain to Slavic folklore before ever, and this was extremely assessable and interesting. The monsters were easy to understand, and the overall narration in the audiobook just cemented my love for the culture and mythology associated with this novel, I highly recommend the audio book. The narrator did a fantastic job.

The premise of the story was extremely interesting. We have a fire witch who is tricked into giving up her power in the form of her shadow and has to go on several quests and adventures to get her shadow back. She sees in early on friendship with an unlikely alliance, a cop from across the wall, which she never ventures to, and I found their union to be very refreshing at times hilarious and endearing. I even enjoyed the slight amount of miscommunication between the two unlikely allies as it just added to their overall feel for each other in the novel. And I felt the trope of miscommunication was actually very well utilized in this case.

There were no potholes and it ended on a note that definitely made me excited for the following book. I love when I book can easily and fully resolve the conflict within the first book, but still leaving breadcrumbs of conflict to start off another novel in the future. I never want to finish the first book feeling like I didn't finish Some sort of storyline.

I quite enjoyed the storytelling in this book, it had a fantastic setting and interesting lore with a great character to follow. Kosara is a witch in Chernograd when the Foul Days begin where the monsters roam free for 12 days, and the Zmey is back to claim his bride. Caught in a corner, Kosara makes a hasty decision to accept help from a stranger in exchange for her shadow, leaving her vulnerable without her magic. This starts an adventure with monsters, mobsters, hunters, and curses.

I love the recent emergence of Slavic based stories and I had a lot of fun with Foul Days, it was atmospheric but also very cozy? Mysterious, dark, magical, yet very easy to follow. Audiobook narration by Zura Johnson was so effortless, I loved her accents and character voices, it was a wonderful performance! The monster compendium at the end of the book was a nice addition in the world building, I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the listening copy to review.

It should be said that while this is being compared to The Witcher and Naomi Novik, it's really only similar in the fact that it is a fantasy drawing on Eastern European folklore. Foul Days has neither the thematic depth and sharp characterization of the Witcher, nor the lyrical writing and whimsy of Novik. This novel is more urban fantasy with a mystery element and as many folktales and figures of myth as can be crammed into 350 pages.

That's not to say it wasn't entertaining, because it kept my interest reasonably well. But I don't know that the lofty comparisons are doing this book any favors in terms of expectations. There are some fuzzy plot things but it hangs together reasonably well. The characters are decent for a debut author even if I didn't find them particularly memorable. And the folklore is cool, although the sheer number of things pushed into a single book makes it feel like the author doesn't think she'll have another chance to write about them. (which hopefully isn't the case!) So nothing is fully fleshed out and everything is kind of glossed over.

The one monster we do spend more time on ends up reading as a rather on the nose stand in for talking about grooming and domestic violence. I appreciate the topic and the concept of addressing it with this monstrous figure, but the way it's executed is a lot of telling, almost lecturing. And I just think that's less impactful and also disrupts from the flow of the story. It feels like a - "now let's stop and talk about the red flags of grooming and abusive relationships and why they're bad!" sort of after school special moment. Again, I appreciate the intent and I do think these are topics that can be effectively explored through fiction, I just don't know that this is how you go about doing that.

All that to say, it's not a bad book. In fact I look forward to seeing more from this author as she progresses in her writing. But I think there could have been better comp titles that would set up expectations more appropriately. It's closer to a Slavic Dresden Files than it is to the Witcher. The audio narration is well done. I received an audio copy of this book for review via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I received a gifted ARC of FOUL DAYS by Genoveva Dimova from Tor and a gifted ALC from Macmillan Audio.

FOUL DAYS follows Kosara, a witch in the walled city of Chernograd. Kosara lives in a world of spirits and various monsters, but she has bigger dangers to face. After a betrayal, Kosara is pushed into giving up her shadow which is the source of her magic, escaping across the wall to relative safety in Belograd.

The peace is short lived when Kosara begins to feel the symptoms of the sickness that befalls shadowless witches. She must set out to track down her shadow, teaming up with a detective who is looking into the death of the smuggler Kosara used to get past the wall.

This book is a dark fantasy with a lot of dips into horror with a bit of mystery. This book hit on a lot of buzz words for me and I had a fantastic time with it. The story is based in Slavic folklore which I tend to find very interesting as well!

I really enjoyed Kosara as the main character and how feisty she was, especially in her inner monologue. I really enjoyed her relationship with the detected as well and their interactions as he really sees her world and the spirits who inhabit it for the first time going across the wall. I appreciated the author's humor as well, even down to the glossary which is written in a really creative way as a guide to the world's monsters.

FOUL DAYS is book one in a new The Witch's Compendium of Monsters series and I definitely will be looking forward to book two!

I made the mistake of starting the audio ARC thinking I was just going to get a flavor for the story. I have a copy of Foul Days on preorder, and I wanted to know if I vibed with the writing. Well, once I'd started the book, I couldn't put it down until its grim, gory end.

The story starts with the main character Kosara sitting in a pub, waiting as the clock ticks closer to midnight on the eve of a new year. We're not sure what she's waiting for, only that she is anticipating the new day. Then, midnight strikes, and monsters begin scratching at the door of the pub, seeking a way in.

The Foul Days have begun.

Seriously, the plot was so good. Kosara ends up needing to flee Chernograd for reasons I won't share, and then decides she needs to go back, right into the lion's den. Every character is deliciously complex and morally gray, Kosara and Asen included. There are themes of trauma, grief, of what it means to escape abusive relationships. There is a truly terrifying villain, one who plays the part of a narcissistic abuser with exquisite accuracy. I loved every second of it.

The magic, too, is fantastic. Kosara is a witch and can accomplish small magics, but my interest was really piqued when the magic of embedding was first introduced. In Chernograd, embedding allows a witch to magically seal a person into the walls of a building to protect it from monsters. I mean, come on. That is so creepy!

That said, I do have two small quibbles. The first is the copaganda of it all. Our love interest, Asen, is a detective from Belograd, and there is a lot of emphasis placed on him being a "copper." If I had an e-ARC, I'd search the text to see just how many times that word is used, because it's a lot. And while I can see why this would make sense for the story (Kosara is a criminal, and her obsession with Asen as an enforcer of lawful behavior makes sense), at times it felt like the the message was "See, Asen is a *good* cop." This didn't bother me, particularly as this is a second-world fantasy and as such, not our world, but I could see it bothering a lot of readers.

My second issue is that the final conflict between Kosara and Asen felt needlessly melodramatic. I'll need to delve into spoilers to explain. When it is finally revealed that Asen was previously married, Kosara loses her mind. She yells at him, acting as though she, personally, has been betrayed, when I thought this was all but confirmed earlier in the text? If not, it was heavily foreshadowed, and because of this, Kosara's reaction seems blown completely out of proportion. But not only was her reaction to the marriage reveal a lot, I found myself particularly frustrated after Asen tells Kosara that his late wife didn't know he was an undercover cop. Kosara tears into Asen, telling him that he's untrustworthy and that he betrayed his DEAD wife (who was blown to smithereens, by the way). It all just felt unnecessary, especially since there was plenty of external conflict to focus on at the time.

Lastly, I have to say that the narrator is outstanding. I'm so picky with audiobook narration, because I find that the wrong narrator can give me the ick so thoroughly that I refuse to pick the book up in any format. That was very much not the case here. The narration only enhanced the fantastic prose and compelling plot, and I'm fairly certain it's a big part of the reason I couldn't put this book down.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Macmillan Audio for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an audio-arc from Net Galley to review.

When I initially read the synopsis for Foul Days, I pictured an urban fantasy with some grit like Six of Crows or Immortal Longings. This book is not that. This book is more like a quest with different legs of the journey with trials and tribulations.

The FMC has plenty of character growth. She spends a lot of the book struggling with self-doubt and guilt. She almost blames herself for everything terrible that has ever happened to anyone she’s interacted with. By the end of the book, she is shifting into someone different but it looks like we will be waiting until the next book to figure out if that is a good or bad thing.

The MMC is the sturdy anchor to the FMC but shrouded in secrets. His adherence to the rules can be frustrating but he comes through time and time again.

My main draw back is the ending. I know the ending is left open for the next book . . . But it just fizzles out. One moment you’re entangled in the main drama of the stories. A few paragraphs later, it just ends. Rated 4 stars.

I know I’m only rating this three stars but I did enjoy it! The book is full of Slavic folklore, monsters, and adventure. The relationship between the two main characters develops slowly and makes sense. The atmosphere is great and there was a good sense of adventure throughout.

I’m not entirely sure what wasn’t working for me, it may have been a few small things that came together to bug me. Off the top of my head, there were very few character descriptions - I realized halfway through that I have no idea what the main characters look like. I didn’t really feel the danger during any of the monster attack scenes besides one.

All that being said, I am excited to read the next book in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley, Tor Trade, and Macmillan Audio for providing me with an audio review copy of this book to read and give my honest opinion. All opinions expressed here are my own.
Kosera lives in a walled city full of monsters. As a Witch, she's spent her days fighting them. But there's one monster she has not defeated, her ex The Zmey. Betrayed by a close friend, she loses her shadow, the source of her witch powers. To get her shadow back, she'll have to pair with a cop from the other side of the wall who is investigating the mysterious death of the smuggler who helped Kosera get to the other side of the wall. With time running out, can Kosera find her shadow and defeat her ultimate nemesis while ensuring those closest to her aren't the ones betraying her?
I love the idea of this book. Witches, monsters, and a walled city. It reminds me of so many fantasies I've read. But the twists are totally different from anything I've ever read before. I really enjoyed the world building and history behind it. I don't know much about Slavic folklore at all, so this was a great introduction. And the two cities the author builds out are perfect for showing the differences between poverty and privilege, a perfect commentary on so much of what we see in modern day society.
I enjoyed the characters in the book. Particularly Kosera and Asen. They are both developed well. I found it easy to connect with Kosera. Much more so than Asen. Their relationship is quite interesting. But if you're looking for romance, you're not really going to find it in this installment. There is attraction there and something brewing but it does not go anywhere further than Kosera admitting to it and a few chaste kisses. Each of them is packing a lot of trauma from the past which ultimately gets in the way of anything blooming between them during their time together. But this is not a romantasy, though I don't know what will happen in the future.
As for the narrator, I did enjoy her voice. I think she did a great job with the voices of the characters for the most part. Though I do feel like she could have had a bit more of a difference between a few of the characters to be able to tell them apart. Overall, I would listen to other books by her.
I will say, I've not really read anything like this book before. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The author gives a fast paced story full of rich plot and interesting characters. The details are vivid and paint an amazing picture. I'm excited to see where the story goes in the next book!

Read it, just read it.
A witch and strong female lead character, with mystery and a bit of chaos, make for an amazing start to this series.
Writing was fluid, I was sucked in and stayed there until the very end.
Thank you to MacMillan Audio and Netgallery for the advanced audiobbok in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved this book! I definitely recommend the audiobook, the narrator really captures the story and is able to make the story come to life. I couldn't stop listening, I found it to be fast paced and full of action. I really hope they use the same narrator for the next book, she fantastic!

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to hear this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was so very good. I completely enjoyed it. Apologies if I spell anything wrong; I listened to the audiobook, narrated by the pleasant Zura Johnson utilizing a variety of excellent Slavic accents.
Foul Days is an original fantasy novel with a Slavic mythological background. It includes a well-layered mystery, complex and likeable characters, interesting monsters, and excellent world-building. I love that while things go according to plan, their plans are terribly flawed so things don't work out as expected anyway.
This book is filled with fun tropes such as accidental truth serum and one-bed, but do not go into this looking for a romance. If this develops into a love story, it will have to be deep into the second book in this duology as both our main characters have heavy baggage to deal with even by the end of this book.
Foul Days reminds me of Divine Rivals, but with more magic and monsters, less romance. I loved every minute.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advanced copy to review!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.75/5

Foul Days is a dark, entrancing, and wonderfully beautiful fantasy with monsters and magic that hooked me from the beginning.

I loved this one. It felt a bit like a dark Howl’s Moving Castle with some Lockwood & Co. thrown in. The writing was beautiful and witty, with fantastic and fascinating characters. I loved the different settings and adventures in the story, and the incorporation of monsters, mystery, and romance was terrific. I adored the incorporation of Bulgarian folklore and the haunting story and scenes. The pacing was also lovely.

The audiobook narrator for Foul Days fits the story, world, and characters like a glove. I loved the fantastic accents and soothing but captivating voice. The narrator took me on a wildly immersive ride, and I cannot wait to listen to the sequel!

Thank you to the publisher for the free ALC!

An Eastern European folklore-inspired murder mystery adventure, this takes place in a tough city kept within a monstrous wall during a time when monsters roam at night. We follow a witch and a police detective, both likeable characters - particularly the flawed female protagonist - as they try to solve the mystery and restore peace to the city. And yes, there is a touch of romance hidden in there. There’s also a trigger warning for intimate partner violence (the author lists more warnings on the book's goodreads page).

The author has created inventive twists to familiar magic and descriptive world building that is both fast paced in terms of action and plot, and cozy in terms of relationships and humour. Taking inspiration from Bulgarian/Slavic folklore, the monsters might be familiar, and if not the author provides enough details to the reader to fully involve them in the action (and includes a guide at the end).

I was looking forward to this one, and am so glad I liked it! While not epic or deep, the characters and storyline work together within the atmospheric setting to provide a fun folkloric read. The climax is a bit muted, and leftover threads set up future plot points. Overall, I thought it was an interesting and well balanced story, and I’m looking forward to reading the sequel!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In Genoveva Dimova's Foul Days we follow Kosara, a witch in the walled city of Chernograd. Kosara is well practiced in taming rusalkas and fighting kikimoras, but there is one monster she fears, her ex, Zmey, the tsar of monsters. He preys on young women. The story is based on Bulgarian folklore. The source of a witch's power is her shadow. Witches, therefore, do not give up their shadows easily. Kosara is tricked into giving up her shadow for safe passage from her city to the neighboring city of Belograd. The two cities could not be more different. Chernograd is dark, grey and gothic. Belograd is light and brightly colored. Once in Belograd, Kosara attempts to track down the man who tricked her out of her shadow and time is of the essence. Witches who lose their shadow eventually suffer from shadow sickness and die. Kosara's shadow sickness has already begun. Kosara is forced to team up with a Belograd cop to help solve a murder and to try to find her shadow. The trail eventually leads back to Chernograd and the monster, Zmey.

Kosara is not a bad ass witch. She is selfish and insecure and afraid and strong and courageous when she needs to be. She has known loss and betrayal. We root for Kosara to succeed. Her barely there love interest, if you can even call it that, the Belograd cop is a one-note character. He is a rule follower. He is in desperate need of character development in book 2. The world building is great, I love the folklore elements. Overall good story, good plot and pacing, but needs more character development for the secondary characters. I really enjoyed this read. 4.25 stars. Thank you to Net Galley #netgalley and Macmillan Audio for my advanced copy.

Genoveva Dimova’s Foul Days is a much-needed exploration of a culture that deserves far more representation than it currently receives.

As a huge fan of Slavic folklore, I am always eager to learn more about the rich mythology and tales connected to this fascinating culture. So, you can imagine my excitement when I was lucky enough to get an early copy of Genoveva Dimova’s debut. Being a massive fan of the Witcher series, a comparison was inevitable, and Foul Days definitely rose to the challenge.

The world-building in Foul Days was incredible. I was captivated from the first page, impressed not only by how immersive the world was but also by how accessible Dimova made it for newcomers. If you are considering reading Foul Days because it is inspired by Slavic folklore and you expect it to be filled with monsters, I assure you that you will not be disappointed. The book is teeming with monsters and then some. However, it is also a story filled with magic and heart, written with great intelligence.

Kosara was a fantastic protagonist and carried the story with ease. She was witty, smart, and you bet she would look you straight in the eyes before demonstrating why she doesn’t need your help.

Foul Days is an incredible debut by Genoveva Dimova, and I cannot wait for the next installment in what I am sure will be a fantastic trilogy.