Having absolutely loved Tara Sim’s YA books, like Timekeeper, you know I had to read The City of Dusk. At the same time, I was also promised necromancy and GOSH did Sim deliver. The world building was fantastic and while it took a bit of time to develop, once it did it was amazing. Keep reading this book review for my full thoughts.
Summary
The Four Realms—Life, Death, Light, and Darkness—all converge on the city of dusk. For each realm there is a god, and for each god there is an heir.
But the gods have withdrawn their favor from the once vibrant and thriving city. And without it, all the realms are dying.
Unwilling to stand by and watch the destruction, the four heirs—Risha, a necromancer struggling to keep the peace; Angelica, an elementalist with her eyes set on the throne; Taesia, a shadow-wielding rogue with rebellion in her heart; and Nik, a soldier who struggles to see the light— will sacrifice everything to save the city.
But their defiance will cost them dearly.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Taesia definitely comes out as the main character – even though it’s multiple POV – but I am NOT made about that. She is 100% my favorite character and her character development – including her family relationship – was one of my favorite while reading. The City of Dusk has a wonderful and detailed world full of gods and magic. There was so much to love and uncover. While The City of Dusk might have a very typical “Book One” elements like a longer exposition to set up the world, an explosive last quarter to get ready for book two, I am so in love.
The City of Dusk balances a story about unlikely alliances with a plan to save the city. But nothing is ever as simple as it seems. This plan will test them in ways they never could have imagined and reveal things they never knew. It’s a story that asks about rebellion and power. Once the action pieces really start to stack up, it becomes a race to the finish. Because it’s multiple POV we are able to see all the pieces begin to come together which inspires intrigue and suspense.
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Full of some seriously epic battle scenes, The City of Dusk is an incredibly promising first book. We can think we can choose who we are, but the judgements of others sometimes paint our portrait first. This is another win from Sim in my opinion and a fantasy adult fantasy debut. There are complex family dynamics and tension with tons of twists that had me stunned. Find The City of Dusk on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.