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This medieval fever dream is seasoned with sapphic romance but thoroughly marinated in cannibalistic body horror. Under siege for months and with supplies dwindling, those in Aymar Castle begin to consider more gruesome methods to sustain themselves and deal with the surplus of corpses and potential corpses. Then four mysterious, supernatural figures descend upon the castle, driving most everyone into full-blown bacchanalian butchery. Only three women (a duty-bound knight, a nun turned sorceress, and a serving girl seeking revenge) have a hope of stopping the castle’s inhabitants from completely devouring themselves. Like in The Luminous Dead (2019), Starling demonstrates a flair for world building against type, creating a fantasy world where dragons and unicorns are replaced with death and disease. Even the mysterious saints seem to be influenced more by Clive Barker’s imagination than Christian iconography. Eventually, the book becomes less like The Canterbury Tales and more like Dante’s descent into hell. However, Starling cleverly balances the carnage-filled surrealism with three women who show their love in ways both passionate and deep. Fans of Christopher Buehlman’s take on medieval storytelling should eat up this story, but Barker fans will also savor the blood-soaked imagery.

Publishers Weekly
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Fans of sapphic romance and gory cannibalistic horror will find unexpected common ground in this masterful medievalesque fantasy from Starling (Last to Leave the Room). Aymar Castle is under siege, leaving the people trapped inside mad with hunger and desperate for any source of salvation. Loyal knight Ser Voyne attempts to maintain order while the king’s alchemist Phosyne urgently searches for a way to create food and serving girl Treila tries to keep her head down while secretly simmering with rage at Ser Voyne. When the castle is unexpectedly visited by the Constant Lady and her attending saints, the feast they bring appears to be exactly the miracle the starving people prayed for. But the truth is much darker, and Ser Voyne and Phosyne soon find themselves fighting to prevent a bloodthirsty bacchanalia that would consume them all, while Treila contemplates fleeing. Starling expertly balances the plot’s contrasting aims, offering gruesome horror and sweeping fantasy worldbuilding in equal measure. The dextrously delineated human hierarchy in the castle and the creepy saints’ bee-based faith system undergird the increasingly shocking events of the plot. The pace is fast, the twists are unexpected, and the complex queer characters—each of whom narrate in wonderfully distinct voices—are easy to root for. This is a feast. (May)

Library Journal
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Aymar Castle has been under siege for six months. With mere days to go until the food stores are depleted, four saints appear out of nowhere to save the castle's inhabitants from starvation. Readers enter this world, closely modeled after medieval times, through the perspectives of three women: Phosyne, an excommunicated nun who can perform miracles; Ser Voyne, a trusted knight; and Treila, a serving girl with a thirst for revenge. While many in the castle immediately bow to the strangers, the three protagonists are unwilling to trust what is clearly too good to be true. With an engrossing pace and pervasively menacing tone, this novel from Starling (Last To Leave the Room) quickly transports readers inside the castle walls as they watch the horrors unfold. From cannibalism, increasingly dangerous magic, and betrayals to monsters, hidden tunnels, and swarms of bees, this fantastical story is transfixing on its own, but it also serves to underscore that humanity's obsession with power may be the biggest horror of all. VERDICT A brilliantly constructed and thoroughly unnerving fever dream that Starling's fans will gulp down. It will also appeal to readers nestled in the space where Brom's Slewfoot, Agustina Bazterrica's The Unworthy, and Nick Cutter's The Queen overlap.