Magic, secrets, adventure, and a few plot twists are what you have in store with this amazing book of fantasy! The story follows the quest of Larrisa Westwynn a failed Knight of the Fair Lady as she becomes a Darkkin - a member of the sisterhood whose job it is to track and confront the possessed individuals, known as Evercrys. Seven years previous, Larrisa's mother, the Matriarch of Swords, had left to hunt such a person, driven or lured, by the haunting cry only a knight can hear. She was never heard from again until a message arrived from her mother calling for Larrisa to deliver a cursed object necessary to kill the Evercry. The resulting journey and its revelations form the basis for the book. As Larissa navigates the treacherous landscapes of betrayal and deceit, she grapples with the stark realities of her heritage and the tangled web of allegiances that shape her world. Dawson's captivating storytelling weaves a compelling narrative that invites readers to delve into a world where the very fabric of truth appears to be shrouded in mystery. The only drawback for me was the inclusion of the attempted sexual assault, which I found unnecessary. This one is dark at times for sure. ( )

Larissa struggles to follow her mother's path as she cannot kill and she is strongly drawn towards magic. Three-quarters of the book consists of action and Larissa improving her skills with magic, reading at a steady pace. Then the pace picks up with twists and turns. This is an extremely descriptive story.


I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review. ( )

The ending was great, the romance was fairly non-existent, but it took a while to get started.
The story focuses on Larissa Westwyn, who, in a world that shuns magic as a manifestation of evil, feels drawn to magic and not to being a knight like her absent mother wants. When she fails her last test and is accepted into the group who research magic and use it to aid the fight against the Evercry. Now Larissa receives a message from her mother and she has to bring an orb to her, only there are complex politics interfering with it all.

It's not a bad read but it took a while to begin and there was a lot of "poor me" for a while. Larissa did show herself to be resourceful at the end. ( )

I intended to read this over the course of a few days. What I actually did is stay up all night, so I could read this in 24 hours. I was just that hooked from the start. Larissa is such an amazing MC. I swear my heart was absolutely breaking for her after she failed her trial. You know it's coming, but Dawson does such an amazing job of conveying her emotions that you can't help but feel them flow off the page and wrap around you. The imagery is vivid, and you can see, hear, feel, smell, and even taste the story unfold around you as if you were living it right alongside Larissa. This has its dark moments, but it has some truly hopeful ones too. If you enjoy dark fantasy with an amazing character arc running through them, then you'll want to drop this at the top of your TBR pile. ( )

Ok read! Kinda slow to get into at first! Not a bad story line but not super thrilling either ( )