We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark
Empire of Blood #1
Fantasy Romance
December 30, 2025- Avon
ARC

I will admit to being hooked by the thought of a roman inspired world ran by vampires. What can I say? I’m a sucker for a good blurb. I was also kind of taken in by the marketing, which was pretty much that this would be the next big thing in the romantasy world.

I have mixed feelings about this book. While I did enjoy the main plot, and magic system–which if I’m being honest took me a minute to figure out since readers are literally dropped into the story with no explanation of anything– I also did not really like any of the characters. And I hated that this was a love triangle of sorts, mainly because I detest love triangles. So, this might just be a me thing.

The FMC, Arvelle, makes a deal with a vampire to kill the emperor in exchange for healing her brother. So, she enters into a gladiator competition, with the help of her deceased best friend’s father, hoping to find a way to do the impossible. I liked the imagery of the gladiator competitions, and the action scenes, but the story progression felt a little slower and I lost interest at times. I will say that the ending was full of twists and turns and had me glued to the page until the conclusion.

While I do think this will be a hit in 2026, what with the magic and vampires and competitions, it was just an okay read for me.

Through the Gates of Garnet and Gold by Seanan McGuire
Wayward Children #11
Young Adult Fantasy
January 6, 2025 – Tor
ARC

Nancy is back, asking for help from old friends and sending our wayward children on yet another quest, this time to the Halls of the Dead. Enlisting the help of Kade, Christopher, and Sumi, and bringing along a new child, Talia, they return with Nancy back to the Halls and seek the aid of the Lord and Lady in getting rid of the ghosts of the dead are killing the living statues.

I’ve made reading the new Wayward Children novella a New Year’s tradition. I look forward to getting back to this world and these characters every January. I was delighted this series has pretty much come full circle as Nancy was the main character in the first book in the series, Every Heart a Doorway. Readers will also see a couple of familiar faces when the children get to the Halls of the Dead.

All in all, another enjoyable read from one of my favorite series and authors.