Rox and Damian must face their destiny as the world crumbles around them.
Disciples of Chaos is the sequel to the 2023 novel Seven Faceless Saints. (Which if you have followed this blog long enough, you know I am obsessed with.)
Damian and Roz helped with a rebellion attack that has left the power structure of Ombrazia cracked. While trying to help figure out what happens next, Damian starts to feel less and less like himself, and Roz takes notice.
Even with her success with the rebellion, Roz can't help but feel like something is wrong. Even with the unfairness of the Palazzo now more apparent, there is still a war raging on, and unfavored suffering at the front lines. Now Damian seems to have no control over his temper and Roz is concerned to see the person she loves crumbling.
When a general from the front lines returns to help with the power struggle, she arrests the rebels and Damian, sending some of their friends north to the front lines. After escaping capture, Roz, Damian and a few others work to save their friends, and find answers to what is happening with Damian. They end up in Brechaat, the country Ombrazia is at war with, and suddenly find themselves deeper into things they don't understand.
When it starts to feel like the old tales of the saints are coming true, Roz and Damian have to test their love and trust for each other, while trying to save the others they care about.
This book is the end of the duology, which makes me sad but also, its just so perfect. We all know I was obsessed with Seven Faceless Saints and now this is the perfect ending (even if it destroyed me emotionally at 3am).
The magic structure in these books is one of my favorite parts, with the powers being connected to saints, but also the amount of power being different for each disciple. I also like the Italian/Gothic influence to a lot of what is happening as well. Roz and Damian are complicated characters, who find themselves fighting their duty and feelings. I enjoyed the connections to the lore of the saints within the stories, and overall the book is just beautifully written.
Roz is a very feisty, bisexual female main character, who has powers but wants to help those who don't. She has deep connections to other characters in the story and to her mother who she works really hard to protect. Damian suffers and struggles a lot in this book, but his love is really powerful and I like how committed he is. There is also a wide variety of side characters, with LGBT rep within the text.
There is a lot of this book I'm excited to talk about, but I don't want to spoil anything so I will keep it inside for now.
I know it is early in the year, but this is definitely one of my top reads of this year, much like the first one was last year.
If you like darker fantasy books that play a lot with magic and religion this is definitely the duology for you.
5 out of 5 stars from me!
Disciples of Chaos comes out Feb 20, 2024
So make sure to preorder it from your favorite indie bookstore!
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