Courting Darkness

December 1, 2018
History, intrigue, and peril in 15th-century Brittany and France.It's 1489. Sybella, a trained assassin, escorts Brittany's duchess to France to marry King Charles. The duchess promises, when queen, to protect Sybella's young sisters from their brother's house, where the men molested Sybella (Dark Triumph, 2013). Having changed the nature of death (incomprehensibly) in Mortal Heart (2014), LaFevers ignores that and focuses on Sybella's doubt about how to serve her father, Mortain--the god of Death--without the black marques that previously showed her whom to kill. Meanwhile, Genevieve, another assassin/daughter of Mortain, languishes in an undercover placement in France, instruction-less--so she builds herself a plan. Sybella and Genevieve have brilliant skills--killing, scheming, spying, protecting, and sometimes finding Mortain's grace--but everyone who holds power abuses it terribly. Danger's everywhere--rape, murder--and love is a risk. Will Sybella and Genevieve find each other, or even learn each other's information, before things come crashing down? They alternate narrating in first-person present, with great immediacy. This rich tapestry of intrigue, betrayal, trauma, protection, old religion, and historically based politics resurrects the urgency and depth of the His Fair Assassin series--but must be read after the others ("new duology" label notwithstanding). Contrary to the reality of early modern Europe, all characters default to white.Sharp and breathless, full of anger and strength. May the sequel hurry. (character list, map, author's note) (Historical thriller. 14-adult)

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December 1, 2018

Gr 8 Up{amp}mdash;Fans of the author's "His Fair Assassins" trilogy will welcome the first installment of this duology that continues the story of Sybella (daughter of Mortain, god of Death) and introduces the new assassin Genevieve. While Sybella, with the help of her beloved Beast, is trying to protect her younger sisters from becoming victims of their incestuous brother Pierre, Genevieve uses her skills to protect the newlywed Duchess of Brittany from the wiles of the French court. The alternating narratives converge in the final chapter, preparing readers for the sequel. As with the original series, LaFevers leads the audience on a lightning-paced chase through a story of adventure, romance, and ever-deepening medieval intrigue. As stated in the author's preface, both thoroughly developed female protagonists are models for young women{amp}ndash;individuals of strength and power who may struggle with their choices but manage to maintain a sense of self. Both must sort their way through false and genuine relationships, navigating the alliances and betrayals of the deadly royal politics that threaten to destroy them. Using a compressed time line, but with historical details and personages true to the era of the final conflict of the French-Breton War, the author creates a believable backdrop for her invented tale. VERDICT A first-purchase gem of historical fantasy for high school and public libraries that will delight fans and engage newcomers.{amp}mdash;Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, formerly at LaSalle Academy, Providence

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from January 1, 2019
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* The many fans of the His Fair Assassins series will be delighted with this book that continues the story of the brave, broken Sybella, who alternates her story with another assassin from the convent of St. Mortain, Genevieve. Although this is the first of a new duology, it does pick up where Mortal Heart? (2014) ended, with the Duchess of Brittany on the path to becoming Queen of France. Those new to the series (or who haven't read it in a while) may find all the names and events confusing at first. But LaFevers' sharply drawn characters, pointed storytelling, and intricate takes on political intrigue will once again have readers turning pages?and there are a lot of pages to turn. One of the original series' delights was the young women's ties to the convent that worships the saint of death. But now that the saint is gone, some of those pages shift to battles, which don't hold the same intrigue as the more nuanced convent stories. That said, there are few writers as fine at their craft as LaFevers. The scenes between Genevieve and the prisoner she helps escape are both brittle and romantic, and Sybella's continuing efforts to save her little sisters from their degenerate family and aid the new queen raises the stakes for both the story and its multilayered heroines. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Readers flocked to Grave Mercy? (2012) and its sequels; this return to that world will have them lining up around the block.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)