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A review by trr51591
The Unbeating Heart by Cyran Faringray
5.0
This is one of those rare books that just checks all my boxes:
Horror elements?
Cults?
Hidden political agendas?
Angst and pining?
Polyamory?
Dry sarcastic humor?
Mental health representation?
🔥 smut?
✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
Cyran's writing is gorgeous and evocative while still letting the story shine through as the strongest element of this book. Each character feels fully fleshed out and painfully real--flaws included. And boy, are there flaws. You've heard "sometimes good people do bad things", this book is more like "sometimes bad people do good things. And sometimes they ... don't."
Selene is our main character and narrator, and she's a spymaster going undercover in a cult led by an upsettingly hot demon (Zalthorn) and necromancer (Nyxis) duo. Selene has been tasked with taking the cult down from the inside, but ends up in a position of power, and she's not mad about being revered for once. Her issues of self-worth and anxiety make it a real suckerpunch that she has to choose between her moral obligations to the crown and the feeling of belonging she finds within the cult.
One of my favorite parts of this book is that despite being DARK, the relationship between Zal and Nyx is incredibly loving and healthy. I mean, maybe not some of the things they're into in the bedroom (and the cathedral ... and the haunted house ... and ... pls read trigger warnings), but the respect they have for one another is refreshing and provides a great contrast to their cult activities. Their senses of humor bring great levity to an otherwise tension-ridden book, and they're just plain fun to read.
This was one of my top reads of 2022, and now that it's on KU you have NO excuse not to pick it up. A prequel is coming out this year, and I NEED more people to freak out with over this universe and these characters.
Horror elements?
Cults?
Hidden political agendas?
Angst and pining?
Polyamory?
Dry sarcastic humor?
Mental health representation?
🔥 smut?
✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
Cyran's writing is gorgeous and evocative while still letting the story shine through as the strongest element of this book. Each character feels fully fleshed out and painfully real--flaws included. And boy, are there flaws. You've heard "sometimes good people do bad things", this book is more like "sometimes bad people do good things. And sometimes they ... don't."
Selene is our main character and narrator, and she's a spymaster going undercover in a cult led by an upsettingly hot demon (Zalthorn) and necromancer (Nyxis) duo. Selene has been tasked with taking the cult down from the inside, but ends up in a position of power, and she's not mad about being revered for once. Her issues of self-worth and anxiety make it a real suckerpunch that she has to choose between her moral obligations to the crown and the feeling of belonging she finds within the cult.
One of my favorite parts of this book is that despite being DARK, the relationship between Zal and Nyx is incredibly loving and healthy. I mean, maybe not some of the things they're into in the bedroom (and the cathedral ... and the haunted house ... and ... pls read trigger warnings), but the respect they have for one another is refreshing and provides a great contrast to their cult activities. Their senses of humor bring great levity to an otherwise tension-ridden book, and they're just plain fun to read.
This was one of my top reads of 2022, and now that it's on KU you have NO excuse not to pick it up. A prequel is coming out this year, and I NEED more people to freak out with over this universe and these characters.