I wanted to love This Ravenous Fate so much, but it just didn’t come together for me. The premise and the elements all separately were so intriguing, but for me the pacing really lets the momentum down. Keep reading this book review of This Ravenous Fate for my full thoughts.
Summary
It’s 1926 and reapers, the once-human vampires with a terrifying affliction, are on the rise in New York. But the Saint family’s thriving reaper-hunting enterprise holds reign over the city, giving them more power than even the organized criminals who run the nightclubs. Eighteen year-old Elise Saint, home after five years in Paris, is the reluctant heir to the empire. Only one thing weighs heavier on Elise’s mind than her family obligations: the knowledge that the Harlem reapers want her dead.
Layla Quinn is a young reaper haunted by her past. Though reapers have existed in America for three centuries, created by New World atrocities and cruel experiments, Layla became one just five years ago. The night she was turned, she lost her parents, the protection of the Saints, and her humanity, and she’ll never forget how Elise Saint betrayed her.
But some reapers are inexplicably turning part human again, leaving a wake of mysterious and brutal killings. When Layla is framed for one of these attacks, the Saint patriarch offers her a deal she can’t refuse: to work with Elise to investigate how these murders might be linked to shocking rumors of a reaper cure. Once close friends, now bitter enemies, Elise and Layla explore the city’s underworld, confronting their intense feelings for one another and uncovering the sinister truths about a growing threat to reapers and humans alike.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I love the premise of this historical fantasy set in Jazz Age Harlem with vampires! The setting is extremely promising and I loved how atmospheric it felt. You could feel the grittiness and it had this nostalgic vibe immediately. In fact, the setting is my second favorite element just under the exploration of race and class in This Ravenous Fate. I love witnessing marginalized voices in historical fiction and the ways in which they were largely overlooked. So together with the setting, attention to historical details, and the conversations about wealthy and race, these were my favorites.
But unfortunately the murder mystery element and the romance let me down. For the murder mystery, the pacing made it feel like the whole middle part was sagging. I wasn’t sure where things were going, people were running around a lot and not doing much. The only thing that saved this portion for me was the audiobook narration of Tamika Katon-Donegal who does a phenomenal job with the tone of This Ravenous Fate. But I think the middle struggles to keep interest in the main mystery element. I found it intriguing to have Elise have to question her family and the way her world works, but it was a theme that only really gains steam in the end.
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For the romance, I was not feeling their chemistry. In order for me to buy not only the betrayal, but also their initial spark, I needed to feel their connection before the betrayal. Whether I didn’t have enough memories or what, but I was having trouble believing in the depth of their feelings beforehand. And that’s sort of crucial to this betrayal and almost ex childhood crush vibes. The ending of This Ravenous Fate tries to tie everything up, and does a somewhat decent job, but the middle really was lacking. There were some elements that felt really unfinished and not in the intriguing wait for the sequel way, just a bit raw.
Overall,
If you like the idea of the setting and the exploration of privilege, This Ravenous Fate delivers, but unfortunately it let me down in the middle. Maybe I’d till considering the sequel, but as it stands now, I need a bit more time. Find This Ravenous Fate on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.