The premise of this book was really interesting. I loved the demons versus the demon hunters based in Rome. The book was very atmospheric.

The writing was easy to read and the character development was done well so I was invested in each main character. However, I wish there was more development in the relationships.

It was a fun read but it was missing that addictive quality.

3.5 stars!

This was very fun! My favorite parts were definitely the religious aspects and investigation. I also liked the reinterpretation of Ancient Rome and Medieval Europe. I do think the pacing was a bit odd at parts, and I didn't really buy into the romance, but I think the plot and the setting really made up for that. I'm still very interested and would be open to reading the sequel!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book felt overly ambitious. The writing style, pacing, and genre all clash, resulting in a work that has potential and missed the mark. It feels like there's so much meat missing, but the book is still 450 pages. While the premise is interesting, the novel just feels so surface level and shallow that it wasn't particularly engaging.

Rating: ⭑ ⭑ ⭑ .5

Cruel Is the Light is the first in an epic fantasy novel duology about a demon hunter and a foot soldier during a war amongst demons. Selene Alleva is a high-ranking exorcist who crosses paths with Jules Lacroix, an orphan who is incredibly skilled in fighting and was recruited to the Vatican.

I want to talk about a few things I really enjoyed about this book. The way Jules kept fawning over Selene at any moment he could (Especially when he had a knife to his throat? Okay, period). Seeing the side of Selene that apparently no one knew about, except for Jules. And of course, the enemies to lovers trope.

I love a dual POV, but at times I was confused as to what was happening and how it all tied together. There were times where I had to reread a page because some things just jumped out of left field.

It may have been better to separate this into a three book series… It seemed as if there was a lot of information dumping here. I can’t believe I’m saying this but, I wish I knew a little less? I love finding out about new magic and plot twists, but it’s almost like the information was just handed to me on a silver platter. I want to be shown and not always told.

In all, I feel that it had a really great concept. The vibe and the world building is what pulled me in the most. I liked the magic system and that it fed into how the main characters felt and acted. This could have been better if there was just a bit more editing.

Thank you Random House Children’s | KnopfBooks for Young Readers for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

While I am sure "Cruel is the Light" has its fans, I couldn't quite get over the "God created demons" part. I just found myself scoffing at that so much. It was literally the beginning of the book. When we read the apocrypha and the bible, we learn that Elohim created man and woman. Woman slept with messengers aka the Watchers or Angels. Thus, the creation of giants happened and when those giants died, they became evil spirits who torment beings on earth. After I read that initial statement, I just could not take this book seriously.

Thank you NetGalley, the author, and publisher for this arc!

dnf @ 20%

i will put myself into a reading slump if i force myself to keep reading. there might be some interesting world building here, but it’s buried under so much pretentious drivel that i just don’t care. we’re told the MCs are elite soldiers and i guess we’re just supposed to take the author’s word for that because these two do a whole lot of meandering for two people in the middle of a war. where was the urgency?

anyway, very much not for me ✌️

Cruel is the Light by Sophie Clark.
*sighs* I think the one star is more of a statement then zero stars, so…here we are.

No one is more disappointed than I was in my rating of this book. I got the ARC sometime in January, and then a Fairyloot edition of it a few weeks later as well. Both the trade cover and the Fairyloot edition are stunning. I would have bought both for the cover alone. The Fairyloot edges are beautiful, the endpapers breathtaking, the naked hardcover magical; everything about this book should have been perfect, if not borderline divine. I feel so…disheartened right now. I haven’t wanted to read another anticipated release or blind buy another book since finishing this disaster. Demon hunting roman exorcists? Not to mention badass nun exorcists? Cruel is the Light rekindled my Cassandra Clare and Da’ Vinci Code days real fast! To be so wrong— My five-star anticipation meter was through the roof, and now I feel betrayed and distrusting of my own gut.

Thinking about this book even now makes me so freaking mad. The further I got, the more I seethed. At one point, I threw this farce across the room and then glared at my copy when I didn’t see any real, visible damage. The only reason I am keeping it on my shelf is to do some hate reels in the future.

I am so upset and incensed with rage because this book is, as Alexandria Kinsey put it, is “borderline (if not completely) sacrilegious.” I am a Christian, and this book was distasteful and blasphemous no matter which way you look at it. I am not typically very picky when it comes to what I read. Fantasy, sci fi, gothic, historical fiction, new adult, adult, gods, monster, demon books even, I have tried almost everything (even if it goes against my beliefs) more than once and avidly, so if I am saying this book is bad, ITS BAD. I think the difference here was that no matter what I read, it is always evidently fiction. The “deathless god” felt like a mockery of those of us in faith. Quoting Kinsey again, “the ‘deathless god’ was too rooted in the Christian God for comfort. The parallels got worse and worse as the book progressed and I have 0 ability to DNF or I would have several times.” Me too, girl. Me too.

To be honest, this book got bad once it was announced Julian was full blooded demon. I thought he was half and half, which would have opened up for a good vs evil trope where he would’ve had to grapple with which side of himself would win, the good or the bad? Instead, he started heavily flirting with a gay man (where did that even come from OR fit in?), found out the “deathless god” was the highest-ranking demon, and to top it all off, EVEN WHEN SERENE FINDS OUT THE DEATHLESS GOD IS A DEMON, SHE STILL REFERS TO IT AS GOD. I cannot morally pick up the conclusion to this duology and face my God, the rightful God, the following day.

I guess it's true when they say the devil can be beautiful, as he was once God's favorite and a fallen angel. Cruel is the Light has his demonic claws embedded so deep within I am not sure the two could be separated if you tried. It was not a pleasure being inside your head, Ms. Clark. I hate this book with every fiber of my being. It makes my blood boil. But, I also feel sad for you and that this is what you believe. If you have even a tiny mustard seed of faith in your veins, dear readers, I implore you to stay away. Between The Immortal Instruments incest trope and now Cruel is the Light mockery, I am going to just write my own book that intertwines magic and Christianity tastefully.

this book has anime in its dna through and through -- from the vibrant cast of quirky individuals to the illustrious action scenes. unfortunately, the central relationship ruined the rest of the book for me. selene and jules lose their shine whenever they are together, and i absolutely cannot stand the insta-love/lust behaviour from them both. i recognize that they're teenagers, but they're also described as these badass heroes so... i was expecting a little bit more maturity. in addition, the plot was rapidly losing me as soon after the central relationship was established, it was meandering with no real tension nor direction to keep me invested.

Cruel Is The Light still has all the potentials of being an amazing read, i have no doubt that i will find its readers.

2.75 stars?

Thank you Knopf Books for Young Readers, NetGalley, and Dahlia (ofpagesandprint)/Musing of the Nine Book Club for this eARC!

Cruel is the Light caught my attention and had me excited with the interesting introduction to the world building and characters: Vatican power hold, death of God, demons and exorcists. Unfortunately, once the two main characters, Jules and Selene, met, the story went downhill for me. I felt like they both had a 180° switch in personality going from intriguing battle-harden characters to flirtatious puppy-eyed characters. I wanted to know more about the world. I know romance is the main viewpoint of romantasy, and I’m finding this genre probably isn’t for me? I felt there were too many introductions to intriguing world building, plot stories, and dynamics that were left dangling and weren’t seen again once they left the page. War front? What war after the characters leave the country side. It felt disjointed.

Furthermore, this is the first time I’ve had the sense while reading that the tropes in this book were here only for favorability and not because it’s what the plot called for.
- fake dating: how do you expect Jules to easy impersonate an officer that he just met only a few minutes ago (also why were Selene and Eliot “engaged” when it seemed like a joke until everyone suddenly believed it?
- One bed: felt unnecessary when first introduced
- Knife to throat practice scene: they fought for like a page and it wasn’t really practicing or showing off skills?

There were a couple scenes, including the knife to throat practice scene, that weren’t written clearly and I had to reread several times to make sure I understood what was going on. One being when they see God for the first time, and they are crying blood from their tear ducts and such. Also some of the writing for the older characters was more juvenile.

Overall, the romance took over the plot, and weakened the foundations of the this story for me.

This did NOT live up to the hype!! When I heard about this book I was so intrigued and the cover is stunningggg. The pacing of the story felt so off as if the characters were disconnected to what was happening around them??? Like aren’t yall suppose to be at war?? Didn’t connect with any of the characters either. Honestly just a flop

Beautiful! The world building was so rich however I wanted just a bit more from the plot. It felt a bit short in some areas and there was more time spent on describing things (sometimes I think it went a bit too far but it's fantasy so I like a lot of detail).

Im so sorry 😭 i just can‘t do it.
I tried this so many times but I just don‘t care for a single thing thats happening. The storytelling is confusing to me and I didn‘t connect with a single character.
Killing people of is brave but it happened so quick in the beginning that I didn’t have a chance to feel for the characters because I know no one and how they work and feel.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc! I‘m really sad this didn‘t work out. The premise of this book sounds so good and I absolutely adore the cover!!

Girl what are you saying please straight get to the point😭 the narrative felt like the characters mind kept wandering elsewhere and it was tiring to follow. Very long-winded. I can’t continue anymore…

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the e-book copy!

The premise of this seemed like I would love it but sadly this did not work for me. I felt it was a bit too fast paced and I was getting confused quickly with everything going on. I think I could come back to this at a later date but for now this was a DNF. I would still recommend giving this a chance as it could work for some.

This is one that I would definitely recommend for an older-teen who has an interest in fantasy-romance where it's more focused on the world building and less on romance.

Overall enjoyed however felt like it was missing something. It felt like it was written for a mature audience as a few pages in hit with a f bomb and much more cussing but then was directed to market YA and removed scenes or happenings to be able to do so.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I was excited to read this after falling in love with the synopsis. The concept is intriguing. I haven’t read a book containing a glossary this detailed in a while so that was unexpected. Parts of it were confusing and there were elements that went unmentioned for so long I ended up forgetting them.

I enjoyed the aesthetics of everything, the Deathless god, the runes, but beyond that I wanted more out of the main relationship. It’s such a significant part of the whole thing. The bond felt more sexual than truly romantic and it needed more tension. My favourite dynamic ended up being Jules and Farah.

It was also difficult to keep track of what was revealed, what was supposed be obvious and what was surprising. There were some jarring transitions and I was having a difficult time getting a sense of place. Metaphors could have also been placed better so they came across as less heavy-handed.

I really wish I connected more with the characters. I wanted more from the Butcher of Rome who reads like a trope. She’s the typical strong female character where half her dialogue consists of threats but she’s hiding a vulnerable side and a traumatic past. I enjoy this trope but I would’ve liked a little more life breathed into it. Also the threats do get old. I think if we had gotten to see Selene interact with more people towards the middle of the book I would’ve appreciated her more. Similar criticisms could be made for Jules but I enjoy his character design, specifically the tally marks, it’s odd that I don’t think she knows his nickname and there was no, oh what a pair they make the Butcher of Rome and the Scarred Killer. I could be misremembering though! I know there was some measure of understanding between them and I wish it had been further developed.

I do appreciate that the conclusion went against the grain.

3.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley, Knopf Books for Young Readers, and Random House Children's for this advanced copy. You can pick up Cruel Is the Light now.

This book was a highly anticipated release for me, as several friends recommended it and I thought the cover was beautiful. Ultimately, I had a decent time reading this book, but I wish I felt more invested in the story.

I think the character development was strong. Selene is a hardened warrior, used to taking charge and keeping others at a distance, but she slowly opens up to Jules. He's used to keeping others away because he's watched so many die in war, but Selene sneaks through his defenses. I enjoyed their dynamic from reluctant allies to lovers (especially the fake engagement), but at times, it felt like the story focused too much on vibes and not enough on the stakes.

The worldbuilding was both the strongest and weakest part of this book. I tried listening on audio, so maybe that was my mistake, but I found the number of characters, their names, and their titles difficult to keep track of. I spent so much brain power trying to keep everyone straight that I feel like I couldn't get invested in the war and how it was affecting the world. The fight scenes were cool, but again, they almost felt surface-level at times and were more there for vibes or aesthetic. Maybe if the pacing were a bit better and we didn't spend so much downtime doing meh stuff, I might have felt more invested.

All in all, this book will definitely appeal to some romantasy readers, but you have to be ready for lots of world-building and some weird pacing at times.

Good book but I feel like a little more refining was needed. We are told OVER and OVER that a major war is happening, and yet it feels like there's very little urgency with the characters.

Also the big reveals seemed a little off, the pacing wasn't really doing it for me. There was a lot of random little bursts of Italian or French, and while the reader can parse it, it felt off putting when the direct translation was given a sentence later. Like why have it then?

I am excited to see how the next book goes but I feel like too much of this was explained away with some hand waving and vague reflections to god.

This is a fantasy book about a demon hunter and a solider, a forbidden love found while fighting in an ancient war. fantasy. Enemies To Lovers. The Choice between love and duty.......