Review by Booklist Review
The Ankou is a legendary mercenary, cursed with youth and invincibility, who quests to destroy demons that make deals with living witches. Having lost countless friends and loves, he's following a prophecy that may one day set him free. Flora, a handmaiden to the princess of Kaer-Ise, has lost Princess Betheara, her charge and longtime crush, during a massacre of their quiet island home. The Ankou, called Lazarus, saves Flora from near death after she's assaulted and asks her to help save him from his everlasting not-death. In return, he will teach her how to fight, so she can better protect herself and the princess, if they are ever reunited again. While they travel and train together, neither can ignore a growing camaraderie that might become an attraction, though both are, at first, more dedicated to their personal quests. Pentecost, author of the thrilling Elysium Girls (2020), shows her prowess in her sophomore novel, adeptly telling a tale of unusual circumstances. A must-have for fantasy collections.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
For 300 years, "deathless death" the Ankou, known as Lazarus, has traveled the Five Lands as a mercenary, killing monsters. A lover's curse makes his immortality a prison wherein each day he becomes a skeleton that haunts the space between life and death. When Lazarus, eternally 19, rescues brutalized 19-year-old Florelle Tannett, handmaiden to the royal princess of Kaer-Ise, she becomes his apprentice--and the potential key to a foretelling that could break his curse. Together, the two travel in search of the Kaer-Iseroyal family and a prophesied temple, meeting with extraordinary beasts, automatons, and a lightning mage, and outrunning an ominous disease that threatens to consume Lazarus. Pentecost (Elysium Girls) crafts a robust world with mythological and Oz-evoking influences. Switching points of view between meticulously drawn characterizations of Florelle, assumed white, and olive-skinned Lazarus, Pentecost's absorbing plot moves swiftly as the two meet a series of otherworldly challenges. Instances of sexual violence and mental illness are found in the novel alongside prominent themes of healing and friendship. Ages 14--up. Agent: Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties. (Oct.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 6--10--Ankou can't be killed. He suffers a kind of death each day when he decays to skeletal remains before awakening again to his 300-year-old teen body, ready to fight monsters. During his waking hours, Lazarus, as he calls himself, easily heals from mortal wounds caused by the various horrors he vanquishes as he travels the five kingdoms. It is a witch's curse that makes death impossible. Flora is a handmaiden to a princess, brutally raped and left for dead when the kingdom she serves is invaded and annihilated. Ankou finds her and teaches her to survive with a sword and hunting skills. They pick up a third outcast, Dr. Atonais, master of lightning, as Lazarus tries to fulfill the elements of a riddle that could save him from the immortality he suffers. This is an adventure with trials and riddles, battles and tests, as well as a love story. Pentecost has a fine rhythm with descriptions and worldbuilding that make this a satisfying and engaging read with characters worthy of the empathy they evoke. VERDICT Purchase where the author's previous works circulate well and dark fantasy has a following.--Janet S. Thompson, Chicago P.L.
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Saved following the destruction of her home, Flora meets the mysterious Ankou. Florelle Tanett is handmaiden to Princess Betheara Ilurosa and lives peacefully on their island nation of Kaer-Ise. When Skaardmen raiders destroy Kaer-Ise, Flora is sexually assaulted, barely escapes with her life, and is saved by the young man who is the Ankou, or legendary monster killer. While recuperating and dealing with her trauma by training with him, Flora learns that he has been cursed with immortality. Exhausted after having been a mercenary for 300 years, the Ankou has forgotten his original name and tells her to call him Lazarus. Fighting alongside him and pledging to help break his curse, Flora hopes to find not only the princess, rumored to have escaped, but also the Temple of Fates, which could restore Kaer-Ise. While the magic lacks a detailed system, the story is original and intriguing, as it contrasts unstable witchcraft with elemental magic, inner darkness with belief in various deities, and grotesque monsters with demons and also shows the tumultuous relationship between magic and fledgling scientific discoveries. Discussions of trauma, self-worth, and found family add realistic elements to Flora's fantastical journey. While the slow-burn romance is predictable, it focuses on character development and Flora and Lazarus' growing relationship. Main characters read as White; there is diversity in skin tone and sexuality in this fantasy world (Flora is bisexual). This dark romp filled with gruesome imagery is a gripping adventure. (Fantasy. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
