great suspense story. Main character has an operation to remove her memory and protect those she loves. But now, who are teh bad guys and who do you trust. A dangerous journey to find what you forgot and make sure to protect the innocent. Many are being killed for these secrets.

The Christian Da Vinci's Code?

First things first - as a Slovak I am happy to see my country portrayed here! And yes, the Bathory legend is not invented by the author, it is real. People are still unsure if she was a sinner or a saint, a sadistic killer or just a female victim of a powerplay. I tend to go with the killer, but your guess is as good as mine.
And hunky hero Luka is Slovak! :)

But also being Slovak/European, I often lack the in-depth analysis and understanding of the multi-layered history that forms our present. Here, too. I understand that this YA and fantasy novel, so one should not expect the precised non-fiction. But I always hope for a leveled work.

So what we have here? This is swift, thrilling YA full of actions, symbols, fantasy and selfless love. I would love for the authoress to go deeper than action. When one gets off the thrill trains, the questions start to emerge - like the whys of all that and why the Scions really hunt the Progenies, if Bathory was innocent (a.k.a no victims of her killings). But I think the authoress will tackle the questions in the fillowing novel.
Also all the religious wars and mysticism might have been played with the lesser power.

What I like is the selfless community described (people willing to lay their lives for the other ones). And sometimes there are deep god-related thoughts present, which really makes you think.
I also like the colourful images and the fantasy touch (the court scenes are very vivid!). And I should really visit Croatia!
The book also ends with a cliffhanger, which is always good in my books

Some small mistakes in names and places are understandable (like Luka would be "Lukáš" in proper Slovak version of the name).

And now I a off to read the next novel in the series!

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review of this book, which in no way altered my opinion. Since the synopsis is descriptive, I will only be providing my opinion on the book itself.

If you like history, crime, puzzles, romance, intrigue, twists, and UGGGGGHHHH inducing cliffhangers (in the very best way), this is the book for you! While at times the book felt a little drawn out in places, overall it was well worth the read. I am looking forward to the next novel in the series, and will likely have to reread this one to refresh my memory. There were a lot of details and purposeful frustration in the plot of this story. Who can you trust, what happened before her memory was erased, is she really safe with anyone, anywhere? These questions and so many more! It leaves you with an itch that you can't quite reach, and hopefully, there will be some answers in the next novel!

I wasn't sure what I was expecting going into this book, but it ended up really impressing me. I read this over a period of two days because I had a lot of train time and I couldn't put it down I was very riveted the entire way through. There was only a short section where when reading it I thought it dragged, but it was needed for the plot so after getting through to the end I understood better why that section had to be slower. Would recommend for fans of thrillers and urban fantasies because this book has a good blend of both. Now to go check out the second book!

The progeny of the bloody Countess, Elizabeth Bathory, are on the run, being hunted down by a secret sect dedicated to erasing all her known descendants.

Modern-day Emily Jacobs, one of those descendants, has her memory wiped clean to protect her but how can it really protect her when she doesn't know who to trust. Honestly, it begs the question: why have your memory wiped in the first place if you spend all your time trying to remember.

Not really my thing and definitely giving Book 2 (yes another book) a miss.

I put down this book over a dozen times before I could finish it. While the first 25% of the book is suspenseful and interesting. The plot twists and confusion made this book tedious to get through. Additionally, it is quite a pet peeve that this book is not labeled as a series; especially, because it ends on such a cliff hanger.