Due By Death

by D.F. Nightshade

In Tess’s village women are filled with rocks and thrown into the sea from the top of the mountain when they die for fear of them bursting from their graves and exacting murderous revenge on the men. From a hunched position in her village, Tess, a restless young woman with a desire for adventure, watches the men around her do as they please. She has perfected the art of surviving as a woman in her small coastal village. As long as she doesn’t look the men in their eyes, obey their commands, and give up all her aspirations and dreams then she’ll get through another day. Since birth she has bent to the will of men, but after her father falls ill from a powerful magic, all that has to change if she’s going to save his life. Tess must unravel the mystery surrounding her father’s sickness before it’s too late and fight against the oppression, sexism, and other dangers plaguing the society she grew up in to save her father and change her village forever.

182 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 19, 2023

Reviews

[Amanda Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seaside Mystery and Suspense

Tess lived a rough life, being a woman in a place where women were hated. But there was so much happening in this story. So many twists and turns came about as she learned of her father's wrong doings and the spurn of her fiancé. It was a little hard to keep up. But it was definitely an intriguing story with much to share on equality and redemption.

[John Stoddard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novella really explores the feeling of being marginalized and how its main character, Tess, navigates through it when strange things begin to happen. The village is grim and the writing really shows the helplessness she feels, but her need to discover the answers to the strangeness.