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A review by thereyloreader
House of the Beast by Michelle Wong
dark
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
This was an absolutely stellar debut! House of the Beast definitely delivered on the dark, atmospheric fantasy novel that was promised!
The book was dark and broody and had definite Full Metal Alchemist vibes. Alma, a bastard taken in my her father and his family, is roughly initiated into the family when her arm is sacrificed to the Dread Beast. She is shunned and kept cloistered away from everyone except her imaginary friend, Aster. He’s been there her whole life. So imagine her surprise when she discovers that HE is the Dread Beast and he pushes her to seek revenge on her family! She spends the next 8 years training for the day when she can venture to the Umbral Gate and take revenge on her father.
I loved the journey Alma took from shunned bastard could to bad-ass in her own right. While having Aster at her side probably helped in some capacity it was satisfying to read that she knew how to fight on her own without him. Her character was so interesting - an orphan who wanted to make her late mum proud but also a vessel who wanted to please their elder god. Alma grappled between appeasing her his and her conscience and it made for a delightfully well rounded character.
I kinda appreciated that there was basically no romance to this book. Alma and Aster’s relationship, while super codependent, was good how it was and I think not adding a romance subplot was definitely the move.
I listened to the audiobook and it was fantastic. The narrator does such a great job of reading the various scenes and characters. I’d definitely listen to her narration again!
If you want an FMA fantasy where the main character is bent on revenge then pick up this book!
Thanks so much to NetGalley, HarperAudio and HarperVoyager for providing me with an eARC and advanced audiobook in exchange for my honest review!
The book was dark and broody and had definite Full Metal Alchemist vibes. Alma, a bastard taken in my her father and his family, is roughly initiated into the family when her arm is sacrificed to the Dread Beast. She is shunned and kept cloistered away from everyone except her imaginary friend, Aster. He’s been there her whole life. So imagine her surprise when she discovers that HE is the Dread Beast and he pushes her to seek revenge on her family! She spends the next 8 years training for the day when she can venture to the Umbral Gate and take revenge on her father.
I loved the journey Alma took from shunned bastard could to bad-ass in her own right. While having Aster at her side probably helped in some capacity it was satisfying to read that she knew how to fight on her own without him. Her character was so interesting - an orphan who wanted to make her late mum proud but also a vessel who wanted to please their elder god. Alma grappled between appeasing her his and her conscience and it made for a delightfully well rounded character.
I kinda appreciated that there was basically no romance to this book. Alma and Aster’s relationship, while super codependent, was good how it was and I think not adding a romance subplot was definitely the move.
I listened to the audiobook and it was fantastic. The narrator does such a great job of reading the various scenes and characters. I’d definitely listen to her narration again!
If you want an FMA fantasy where the main character is bent on revenge then pick up this book!
Thanks so much to NetGalley, HarperAudio and HarperVoyager for providing me with an eARC and advanced audiobook in exchange for my honest review!