I was pleasantly surprised by this book! I hadn't read any of Matt King's books before, but I devoured this one in two sittings because I was very invested in the story. I liked the magic/powers the most because I thought it very original. The descriptions of how the main character experienced their power was also very interesting! The only thing that threw me off a bit was the amount of times the setting of some scenes changed. The characters jumped from one place to another very fast, and sometimes it was disorienting, but other than that, this book was neat. I will definitely pick up his other books, especially seeing how there's some mentioning to other characters and their importance in this universe the author has created. I wonder what their special abilities might be. Very cool and short book!

4.5 stars!!

read for work (shoutout BDA) and I absolutely loved. 10/10 I'm so excited to be a part of publishing this in the new year hehe.

Wow wow wow, Matt King knows how to write a book. Had me hooked from the start on Zoe and her adventures in Valhalla. I mean, I too would totally fall for the free coffee in a new job. Can’t wait to read more!!

This is my introduction to Matt King and wow, just wow! I am an instant fan.

Zoe is running from an abusive past when she is hired by an enigmatic woman to work at a leading institute of science. Here Zoe is tasked with deciphering the secrets of an unknown material, but not everything is as it seems. After being "infected" by the material, dubbed Chaos, Zoe develops special abilities. Having spent so long running from danger, Zoe must now muster the courage to run towards it, to save not only herself but all of humanity.

This is labeled as book 3 in the series. There are parts, organizations and I suspect people as well, that are a part of the bigger universe that are probably explained more in depth in the other books, but there is plenty in this book to be satisfy.

Science-Fiction can be notoriously hard to get into because of the science part. I've found that too much scientific lingo detracts and is discouraging to people who are not well versed in all the sciences. This one, although has some science speak, there is enough context and description to get the point across without over explanation.

I was particularly fond of the pacing. It's fast paced for sure, but its evenly placed. This would be a great story for fans of superheroes. I am not mythologically knowledgeable, but Matt King is and does write from a mythology standpoint and brings those stories into more modern settings, but honestly the only thing I could think of while reading this was the X-Men. Which I'm sure are based off some sort of mythology themselves.

I really enjoyed the fantasy elements in this story as well. Such a short time to build a world and yet, it felt complete. A world steeped in science fiction and parallel universes there was always some new surprise around the corner that pulled me in further and left me wanting more, but in a good way.

Wraith is a standalone in a larger universe (which I am looking forward to reading now I’ve dipped my toe in!) but can definitely be enjoyed in its own.

Zoe arrives in Seattle hopeful she has successfully escaped her abusive ex-girlfriend, and excited to start a new job in a cutting-edge lab at Valhalla. Zoe is swept away by a welcoming boss and the opportunity to work with a mysterious, potentially world-changing substance coined Chaos. The facade built by Valhalla quickly starts to deteriorate and Zoe realises she may be in more danger than ever, and she’s on her own if she wants to save the world.

I really enjoyed Wraith! Zoe as a main character was intelligent and her motivations were very clear throughout the story. I also found the villain very compelling and I think the author did a great job of making me empathise with her regardless of her actions. The science fiction elements were a little patchy at the start and I definitely had a lot of questions about Chaos that I don’t think were answered by the end of the book, but I knew what I absolutely needed to know to follow along. This book explores super human abilities and parallel universes in a very entertaining high-stakes way. I also think the portrayal of domestic violence was a good representation and you definitely could feel Zoe fearing for her life, without the depiction being gratuitous.

There will almost always be questions remaining at the end of short novels, some of which in this case may be due to the book being related to an unread series. There were several relationships between characters that I didn’t understand/think they were explored enough. For example, there was no explanation beyond a passing comment as to why certain characters did not/would not stand up to the villain. This just takes away their humanity a little bit because they don’t exhibit any real independent thought.

Overall this is a very ambitious novel for the length and genre, and it is well executed and entertaining. Matt King is a new author for me and I enjoy his writing. I’m definitely keen to explore the original book series.

Wraith by Matt King is the third in a series in which this is my first, I enjoyed Kings's writing style very mcuh and am now very interested in reading the books in this series.

Thanks to NetGalley and BDA Publishing for the ARC.

This concept is really fascinating and felt like an action movie plot at times. Zoe is our main character, and she is escaping some demons of her own when she accepts a job to study Chaos, an element that has severe consequences if people are exposed.

I really enjoyed the action throughout and felt engaged through the story. One thing that was challenging was that there was so much action packed plot, that the pacing almost felt so fast I didn’t get the time to really care about our characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

A young scientist, Zoe, uproots her life and moves across the country in hopes of a fresh start. She is given an incredible (too good to be true?) job opportunity at a cutting-edge scientific institute to research a brand new element. However, Zoe gets the sense her boss isn’t being totally transparent.

‘Wraith’ is a book for the Marvel Cinematic Universe fans. It is one of three interconnecting standalones with more on the way. It is action-packed and superhero-esque. However, as someone who is not a big fan of superhero stories, it just wasn’t quite for me.

I found the main character to be quite naive and the writing itself felt cliche. While I generally liked some of the characters, I found them hard to connect with because they are quite shallow. ‘Wraith’ is a very short book, and it doesn’t have a spare second where action isn’t happening - as such, you don’t get to know anyone on a deep or meaningful level.

Despite this, it was a fun read. Although it ultimately wasn’t for me, if you are interested in superhero stories you should consider picking it up when it releases early next year.

This was a strong third entry in the New Mythology series, it had that element that I was looking for from the previous books. The characters were everything that I wanted and enjoyed the overall story and enjoyed that each book was a standalone. I hope there is more in this series and from Matt King.

This book is action packed to the brim!!
I love me some action books who are also paced accordingly to the genre and that's definitely what this book delivered, Although maybe a tad too much. Don't get me wrong I really like the writing style and characterization of the complex characters, the characters' their personalities are constant and realistic given their history and the current development within the story. But the story happened almost too fast to get really attached to some characters or dynamics within the characters, that's why the plot twist fell flat for me although I did not see it coming. If more time was spent in building up the characters in the first part and cementing their relationships with each other I would've felt more compelled and intrigued by the story. Especially because it was referred to multiple times that Zoe was not fast enough to try to figure 'X' out while if I have interpreted the timeline correctly she only had at the most 2 days!

Also, I noted that the book is not listed on Goodreads yet. This would be a good thing to do because that way the pre-publish reviews from here can already be shown under the book on Goodreads and could give the book a little push!

For me, this book felt almost too fast paced! The writing does a great job of creating a sense of urgency and eeriness but I found it hard to connect with the characters. That being said this is part of a series but can be read as a stand alone. Perhaps reading the previous books will make me more engaged.

𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙜𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝑫𝑩𝑨 𝑷𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙞𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙣 𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬!

For a shorter novel, the story was full. Nothing was missing and it was captivating throughout the whole story!

Matt's writing within this novel creates a steadfast environment of a real world/fantasy feel amongst a broad range of characters. I literally couldn't put it down!
Our FMC, Zoe, starts as someone who is running away but still trying to find her place in the world. Her character development truly reflects the events she goes through.

The plotline was sound containing awesome ideas coming to fruition making it an interesting and unpredictable read. The world is similar to a real-world setting, so myself as a reader was put into a familiar environment, however this was challenged when Zoe starts to see the world in a different way. Really cool stuff!

4 stars from me. Will recommend!

Wraith is a haunting and atmospheric novel that skillfully blends supernatural elements with psychological suspense. The story follows a protagonist grappling with grief and guilt while being drawn into eerie, otherworldly events that blur the line between reality and nightmare. King’s writing is immersive, with vivid descriptions that build tension and unease throughout.

The characters are complex, and the slow-burn plot keeps readers hooked as secrets unfold. While the pacing might feel deliberate at times, it adds to the creeping dread that lingers until the final pages. For fans of eerie, thought-provoking horror, Wraith offers a chilling and memorable experience.

Rating: 4.5/5

Thank you NetGalley.

Wraith - a new mythology is the first book I’ve read by Matt King, I’m thrilled to have found his writing!

Futuristic sci-fi/urban fantasy with a liberal serving of horror.

From the first pages of Wraith I really felt like Zoe was a fully formed (if damaged and therefore somewhat ‘stuck behind glass’ of her own trauma and anxiety) character. Reading about her struggling to feel safe, secure, like a full person, post abusive relationship was really relatable and carefully written.

From the outside, knowing that things were screaming alarm bells and wanting to grab and shake this person missing all the self assurance and confidence and practice of acknowledging and listening to her own instincts, was painful.

It felt like watching a psychological thriller does, I could imagine if I had spare hands I’d have been clutching a pillow, as if it could shield me from the newly emerging terrors, as I turned the pages.

The fantasy element/moments were so well described, and really threw me back into a weird nostalgia for the kind of serialised sci-fi late night mini dramas/shock tales I loved to watch as a teen.

I really enjoyed this. The cover is phenomenal. It's different and you can really see where the author tried to differentiate this story from other writings,

Without having read the other books in the series, I can tell you that I instantly rushed to add the rest of the New Mythology series to my library. I love the way mythology, fantasy, and science fiction blend so seamlessly within this genre bending tale. Despite not necessarily reading a lot of sci-fi normally, this one had me hooked within the first few pages, as I desperately wanted to know what Zoe was going to be doing, and why it was so important.

King has a fluid writing style that is easy to read and extremely enjoyable. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys a good mythology/superhero/sci-fi story! 5 stars.