eARC Book Review: There Will Come A Darkness by Katy Rose Pool [Spoiler Free]

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Disclaimer: I received a free eARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Oh my goodness. THIS. BOOK. WAS. AMAZING. EXCEPTIONAL. EXTRAORDINARY. I don’t say that about a lot of books. I also don’t give a lot of books five stars. But this one most definitely deserves it. It might be the best YA Fantasy I’ve ever read. I flew through it more rapidly than any other book I’ve read this year, and that’s saying A LOT because I haven’t been in a fantasy mood for a long time (I definitely am now, though). It was so beautifully crafted, and it managed to bring something new to the table of fantasy books based on prophecies, which I was not expecting. It had so many twists and turns, and although the five POVs were quite intimidating at first, they were spectacularly interwoven to simultaneously pave way for the exhilaration of the building suspense and the shocking plot twists. I would honestly recommend this book to anyone reading this, because I, who would not say fantasy is one of my favorite YA genres, absolutely LOVED it and wouldn’t hesitate to call it the best book of 2019 so far. Without further ado, let’s get into the synopsis and a more detailed (but spoiler-free!) review:

Synopsis

” The Age of Darkness approaches.
Five lives stand in its way.
Who will stop it . . . or unleash it?
For generations, the Seven Prophets guided humanity. Using their visions of the future, they ended wars and united nations—until the day, one hundred years ago, when the Prophets disappeared.
All they left behind is one final, secret prophecy, foretelling an Age of Darkness and the birth of a new Prophet who could be the world’s salvation . . . or the cause of its destruction. As chaos takes hold, five souls are set on a collision course:
A prince exiled from his kingdom.
A ruthless killer known as the Pale Hand.
A once-faithful leader torn between his duty and his heart.
A reckless gambler with the power to find anything or anyone.
And a dying girl on the verge of giving up.
One of them—or all of them—could break the world. Will they be savior or destroyer? “

Katy Rose Pool’s Website

What I liked:

Um…everything? Sorry, here it goes:

• The world building – I kind of didn’t notice it was happening but at the same time I wasn’t confused about what was going on…I have no idea how Katy managed to pull that one off, but she did. Little bits and pieces were interwoven throughout the book, and I never felt like there was a whole section of facts and descriptions about the fantasy universe being thrown at me, which is something I really appreciate in a fantasy novel.
• The multiple POV storytelling style: To be honest, I didn’t think this was something I was going to appreciate at the beginning because five different characters and their own story lines seemed a lot to keep track of alongside learning about a different universe, but like I said earlier, it was beautifully done and now I can’t imagine the story being told in a similar level of intricacy any other way.
• The characters – even though I got quite annoyed at a few of them throughout the course of the novel, I loved that all of their back-stories were explored and each of their hopes, dreams, and insecurities revealed. They all had flaws, and I’m not even sure all of them are going to end up being on Team Good, but Katy gave me enough to feel for each of them and understand their motives.
• The plot twists – this book definitely kept me on the edge of my seat. It lulled me into a false sense of security, and then BAM, hit me with a huge plot twist (even though I should’ve seen that false sense of victory coming!!!). There were quite a few of them too, and each of the revelations was just perfect.

What I didn’t like:

I actually have nothing. That’s the only way you get a five star rating out of me. 😀

Overall:

You will NOT regret reading this book. Just do it. Even if you don’t like fantasy. This book might convince you otherwise. I would say it kind of gave me An Ember in the Ashes vibes (the last fantasy I really enjoyed), but it was also completely unique and exciting, and simply wonderful. I help teach a class on Young Adult literature at the university I attend, and Katy’s come in to talk to us a couple times–she’s honestly so inspiring and sweet, and deserves all the success that I’m sure is going to come her way after this book drops. Once again, There Will Come A Darkness comes out on September 3rd of this year (2019), and it’s a book you won’t want to miss!

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Thank you so much for reading! Are you excited to read There Will Come A Darkness?