HOBBIES OVER COFFEE

Rebecca Roanhorse is at it again.

By which I mean, giving me worlds that I want to know everything about.

Title : Tread Of Angels
Author : Rebecca Roanhorse
Genre :  Sci Fi &  Fantasy
Pages :  208
Own/Borrowed/ARC :  eARC provided through  Netgalley
Publication Date :  November 15, 2022'
Synopsis : Celeste, a card sharp with a need for justice, takes on the role of advocatus diaboli, to defend her sister Mariel, accused of murdering a Virtue, a member of the ruling class of this mining town, in a new world of dark fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of Black Sun, Rebecca Roanhorse.

The year is 1883 and the mining town of Goetia is booming as prospectors from near and far come to mine the powerful new element Divinity from the high mountains of Colorado with the help of the pariahs of society known as the Fallen. The Fallen are the descendants of demonkind living amongst the Virtues, the winners in an ancient war, with the descendants of both sides choosing to live alongside Abaddon’s mountain in this tale of the mythological West from the bestselling mastermind Rebecca Roanhorse.

In Rebecca Roanhorse’s latest story, you are plunged into a world where demons and angels coexist. Social classes exist among them all and the lines become blurred when pleasure and the law become involved.

This was more than just a fantasy, it was a murder mystery placed in a fantasy world. No time is wasted as the book begins you are placed right in the middle of a bustling establishment right before the Order of Michael shows up to arrest Mariel for the murder of a Virtue. What follows is a journey that Celeste must take in her efforts to prove her sisters innocence.

“Can’t leave justice up to God,” Zeke added morosely. He and Hypatia exchanged a look. They knew as well as Celeste did.

God’s justice always ended in blood.

While I enjoyed being in this new world I found it a little hard to get into at first just because I was plunged into the middle of a holiday in this new world right before the murder occurred. It was a little jarring to try to get into the depth of this world so quickly. I wasn’t shocked by the ending in any way as we didn’t have enough background in the beginning and it wasn’t a stretch to see where it was going. What I liked about this story was that it was about what lengths we go to for the people we love. The pieces of ourselves that we lose along the way when we find out how capable we are of certain things.

I might be in the minority when I say that I enjoyed how Celeste’s story ended. I feel like it was well deserved and to have it end in any other way would have made me dislike it.

The story was slow and then the ending felt rushed and over so quickly that I believe if it had an extra couple of pages to expand on the ending it would have made it perfect. Overall I liked this fantasy western mystery and would definitely read more in this world if it ever turned into a series. I would like to spend more time focusing on the world in the next one though just to make more sense of where I am.

I give it:

4 out of 5

Tread of Angels is out at your local bookstores on November 15, 2022! Pick up a copy if you ever wanted to read a Law and Order-like story with a fantasy twist.

Special thanks to NetGalley and SagaPress for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.