The Death Bringer

by A.M. Eno

Enter the perilous world of Thaumoria, a realm where power is the ultimate currency and the line between friend and foe is blurred. ‘The Death Bringer,’ the first installment of a gripping dark fantasy series, is a must-read for those who relish the intrigue of Sarah J. Maas’s ‘Throne of Glass’ and the captivating mythology of ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender.’

In Thaumoria, magic users are represented by five seats of power in five major cities. In the City of Elementals, power rules, and Lord Kevah is the living embodiment of power. Malaina, the Elemental City’s most notorious assassin, harbors a world-changing secret. For nine years, she has been posing as the Death Bringer, a class of magic that can kill with a single touch, to protect her younger sister Lybbi. But when the city’s streets become more dangerous by the night, Malaina’s job becomes deadlier than ever.

Suddenly, Malaina finds herself at the center of a manhunt as her clients start hunting her instead of the other way around. Dodging capture and hiding amongst shadows to avoid detection, she must watch as Lybbi’s power grows to the brink of uncontrollable.

As the life she has painstakingly built begins to crumble, Malaina is faced with an impossible decision. Lord Kevah demands a task that goes against everything she believes in. She is torn between serving a malevolent agenda and protecting her family, a choice that could cost her everything she holds dear.

Genres: Fantasy

392 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 21, 2024

About the author

Originally from Howell, Michigan, A.M. Eno travels full-time with her husband and two cats. In 2017, she earned her Bachelor of Science from Black Hills State University, majoring in Psychology and a minor in Sociology. As a lifelong avid reader, she hopes to create worlds and characters that invite readers to fall in love and feel at home. She strives to write high fantasy series that are a safe space for people of all backgrounds.

Reviews

[t✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Final Rating: 4.5/5

This one took me a little bit to get into - the world building is done slowly and consistently throughout the entire book which took a little bit of getting used to, but I really enjoyed it! It was actually a nice turn of pace from knowing absolutely everything at the beginning bc you're finding out more about the world and the characters as the FMC does. This is a dark fantasy story with intense sibling bonds and found family vibes (which i am def a sucker for). The magic system was also unlike anything i've ever read with elemental magic, dark magic, shifter magic, and other classes prevalent throughout the novel. I think having so many types of magic intermingle in one city really kept me guessing throughout bc you just never know what a character is gonna pull out of their sleeve! I read this super fast bc once you get into it it's SO hard to put down!! anxiously awaiting the next novel & highly encourage everyone to read! A.M. Eno's brain is gorgeous and you will not regret taking a trip to Thaumoria!

[Callie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like Avatar the Last Airbender or Throne of Glass I think you will definitely enjoy this one.
Assassins, thieves guild, magical abilities, political intrigue, lgbt representation, grim dark situations?! All of these things and more had me hooked! I stayed up way too late finishing this up. (That is big because I Love my sleep) All of the characters have a special place in my heart, it’s definitely a found family type of vibe which is one of my favorites. I have laughed and cried several times while reading and I can’t wait to get more.

This is an ACTION packed story that feels like watching a movie and a cliffhanger that will have you craving more! Thank you for sending this ARC!

[KMart Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a fan of darker fantasy with sibling bonds and found families, I had a fantastic time with this book. It includes so many interesting aspects: thieves' guilds, assassins, political intrigue, and an examination of societal division based on magic types.

Malaina is not just another ruthless assassin—she's a deeply complex character driven by her desire to protect her younger sister Lybbi. I’m always drawn to stories where the stakes are personal, and Malaina’s struggle to keep her sister safe while posing as the feared Death Bringer kept me invested. Her journey feels like it’s constantly teetering on the edge, which really brings that sense of tension and urgency. As the power dynamics in the City of Elementals start to shift, the danger feels increasingly palpable.

The world-building is rich and textured, with a wide array of magical abilities ranging from shifters to elementals and shadow wielders. There’s a lot to love in how the world of Thaumoria is constructed, especially how it delves into societal prejudices and the political aspects of the world. The idea of purifying society from certain magical abilities adds a layer of political tension that feels disturbingly relevant. It paints a grim picture of those in power manipulating divisions to further control.

This story is dark, so be prepared for some grim moments and tough choices. The losses hit hard, and Eno doesn’t shy away from killing off characters you grow attached to. That said, the emotional stakes make the journey more intense, and I found myself caring deeply about Malaina’s small circle of allies, which felt like her found family. Despite the body count, the connections Malaina forms provide much-needed warmth amid the bleakness.

There are still plenty of unanswered questions and threats on the horizon, and I’m eager to see where the series goes next. If you’re a fan of other darker fantasies where power, betrayal, and survival are constant themes, The Death Bringer is definitely worth picking up. I can't wait to dive deeper into this world and see what more Thaumoria has to offer!

Thanks so much to the author for the complimentary copy and opportunity to read and review. This review is honest and all opinions are my own.

[Ovium_Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to thank the author so much for sending me a paperback ARC for this. Much appreciated! Also, this cover art is so good. Hands down one of my favorites!

I read all of the Thaumorian Legends Novellas prior to this and loved them. Now, it's not required to enjoy this at all, but it definitely helps you have a better understanding of the magic and background of some of the characters.

This book was insanely good. The first day, I sat down to read a few chapters, and the next thing I knew, I was halfway through it. It's so well written, very easy to read, and obviously easy to get sucked into this world.

Pitched as Throne of Glass meets Avatar: The Last Airbender, two things I absolutely love, was spot on for me. Elemental magic, a guild for hire, and an FMC that is a notoriously feared assassin... yeah, sign me up!

From the start of the book and until the end, I was completely hooked. The world building of Thaumoria is so rich. I loved all the characters, except you, Lord Kevah! The magic system was fun and enjoyed the aspect of different magical cities dedicated to their affinity. The action scenes were thrilling. The emotional ride that was the last bit of the book had me all over the place. Highly, highly recommend you jump into the world of Thaumoria and enjoy The Death Bringer when it releases!!!

[danni kaneshiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 (rounded to 5)

I am so honored to have received an eARC of this book! Congratulations to AM Eno for her first book of the Thaumorian Legends series! This book was so brilliantly written! AM Eno brings the fast paced adventure & immersive fantasy of SJMaas’ Throne of Glass series and the epic legends & elemental powers of Avatar: The Last Airbender, in this masterful storyline that is The Death Bringer.

I will be honest, the beginning was rather slow and I was a bit disappointed but I pushed on. After the first 100 pages, it picks up so incredibly fast and it was so worth it. The world building is chef’s kiss, the writing is beautiful, & it was so action packed, & so heart-wrenching all at the same time.

Chapter 19 had me at the edge of my seat. Chapter 23 had my heart broken in so many pieces. I am in awe with this story and sooooo hungry for more.

Highly highly recommend! Cannot wait for the next book, extremely anticipating it!

Shoutout to Ra.

That is all.

Tropes:
🗡️ Assassin’s Guild
💀 Dark Magic
🗡️ Elemental Magic
💀 Witches, Shifters, & more!
🗡️ Power Struggles
💀 Found Family
🗡️ Female Rage

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg

While not neccessary to read the novellas to be attached to the characters, doing so gave me such a strong attachment to all the characters I've come to know. Seeing what they became. Some amazed, some so sad. I want to see how they became what we met to the events going on now.

My heart hurt to lose and pote tially have lost characters. .. there's no way they are all gone. I refuse to believe it. I look forward to the story continuing.

The things a sister won't do to protect her little sister ....











****I received an advance copy of this book for review purposes. While I was provided with a copy, a review was never required, and all opinions are my own.

[Tay (Read With Tay) · Rating 5 out of 5]

*I was provided a BETA copy of this book by the author in exchange for honest feedback*

This book was absolutely, hands-down, ridiculously fantastic. I cannot believe that this is the author’s debut work. It was written so well, I literally cannot find any flaws in this novel, nor the novellas that preceded it. I loved the characters and I was deeply invested in the story’s outcome.

[Gabrielle Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

ARC REVIEW - Quick Summary: “Ultimately, pretty disappointing.”


THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

Before I begin this review, I’d first like to say that I enjoyed this book more than the first few chapters had me believing I would.

I didn’t enjoy the book for the characters or the world, but for the plot. The plot genuinely intrigued me and although at times it got a little predictable, I was still pleasantly surprised by most of it.

I liked the cliffhanger and it got me even more interested in where the story would go from there, and I now find myself eagerly awaiting the next installment.

However, while the plot kept me engrossed and the ending left me wanting more, actually getting through this book was more difficult than I would have expected.

The story started very slowly and while I appreciate a good slow start where we can observe the characters in their domestic lives, this particular choice hurt the story more than helped it.

Every time I thought the book was finally picking up momentum, the very next chapter would have the characters lounging around and sleeping again, and while I understand that having in-betweens like this is important, the author does not use them appropriately.

They all last too long and don’t do much for the plot, or the characters in the end.

Really, at some point, I realized that the characters were doing more lounging, sleeping, and having meaningless conversations more than much else.

Even though this book is the first in the series, the pacing was almost painful and it took me longer than it normally would to get through this book simply because nothing was happening.

Along that note, I thought that the plot was all over the place. It all came together in the end, but it was almost unreasonable just how much jumping around it was doing before the end.

Maybe the author was trying to throw the audience off and always keep us guessing, but that only resulted in the author looking like they had too many ideas they were trying to shove into this book.

‘Suddenly, Malaina finds herself at the center of a manhunt as her clients start hunting her instead of the other way around. Dodging capture and hiding amongst shadows to avoid detection, she must watch as Lybbi’s power grows to the brink of uncontrollable.’

This is a paragraph taken straight from the synopsis, and I realized towards the middle of the book just how misleading it is.

The “manhunt” in question was a few unnamed and unimportant rich guys searching for the Death Bringer for, like, three chapters. Dodging capture and hiding amongst shadows to avoid detection,’ is something that never happened, all Malaina had to do was stay home for a few weeks.

‘She must watch as Lybbi’s power grows to the brink of uncontrollable.’ This was perhaps the biggest promise and biggest disappointment in the book. When it was revealed that Lybbi is the true Death Bringer, I was excited to see how the author would handle her power “growing to the brink of uncontrollable,” but that never happened.

Lybbi used her power accidentally once and after that, began training to master it. This is the last we see of Lybbi’s powers.

‘As the life she has painstakingly built begins to crumble, Malaina is faced with an impossible decision. Lord Kevah demands a task that goes against everything she believes in. She is torn between serving a malevolent agenda and protecting her family, a choice that could cost her everything she holds dear.’

Another paragraph straight from the synopsis that I took issue with.

This book has 29 chapters, and in the 19th chapter Lord Kevah announces that he’d like for the Death Bringer to be brought to him, and as mentioned earlier, Malaina’s life does not begin to crumble, for all she has to do is stay home to go undetected and relatively unbothered by the rest of the world.

It is in chapter 27 that Lord Kevah finally ‘demands a task that goes against everything she believes in.’ Let me remind you, this book has 29 chapters.

‘She is torn between serving a malevolent agenda and protecting her family, a choice that could cost her everything she holds dear.’ This is a bold exaggeration of the true events. As soon as Lord Kevah makes his request of Malaina, she’s already refusing before the chapter even ends.

The next two chapters detail Malaina and her family running from their home and Lord Kevah’s troops, so even in that, she’s firm in her decision. There was no struggle, she wasn’t “torn,” and the book ends practically as soon as their conversation does.

This synopsis is misleading, and that’s why I’m addressing it.

Perhaps in the next book Lybbi’s power grows to the brink of uncontrollable, or Malaina is really put in a position where she must choose between her morals and her family, but these things aren’t in the second book’s synopsis, it’s in this one, and it’s a lie.

This book promises a lot that it doesn’t deliver on, and that’s the main reason why it’s such a disappointment.

Let’s move on to the characters.

This book was more character-focused than plot-driven, and I’ve always loved character-focused tales over the latter. However, every single character left more to be desired.

From a purely subjective standpoint, Lybbi, Ra, and Layshan were my favorite characters, and Lady Atana intrigued me as well, but even they were begging for more characterization.

Malaina is the main character, yes, but there was so much emphasis and attention put on her that she overwhelmingly outshined everyone else and left them in desperate need of screen time.

This book didn't have a large cast, and still, the majority of them were left in the dark. So many characters in the book had the same mannerisms and speaking patterns or were completely forgettable, there was little to distinguish between them.

Because there was so much lounging around in the book, you’d think it’d be the perfect recipe to have us become more familiar with, basically, anyone aside from Malaina and Sterling, but that’s sadly not the case.

I believe that Malaina was a strong lead and carried the story well, and Sterling was a fine supporting character, but I just didn’t like either of them. Honestly, more often than not I wished they weren’t the main characters.

I was bored with them. Bored with their conversation, bored with their lounging around, bored by reading about them, and if the author was really trying to write morally gray characters, the mark was missed by a long shot.

The two felt morally confused and confusing if anything.

Sterling was one-dimensional and barely characterized beyond his “big brother protector” archetype. He didn’t bring anything compelling to the story either, his dynamic with Malaina was his one and only purpose, but even in that it didn’t feel “purposeful.”

In the story, Sterling’s job as Malaina’s partner is to be her bodyguard, and it was specifically mentioned in the book that Sterling was NOT an assassin.

‘He would kill to protect her, to protect Lybbi, but he would never, under any circumstances, be the one to push that plunger and kill for money.’

This is said about Sterling in chapter 12, and while I understand and appreciate his boundaries, explain to me why this guy has no issues in sawing a man’s head off seconds after he died. He’s uncomfortable with killing for money, but not mutilation for proof?

Malaina was worse, she was messy and all over the place, and not in a good way.

Malaina’s confusion about who she is was a thought-provoking concept, but it wasn’t handled properly and felt like a desperate attempt to make Malaina appear complex.

More often than not we’re forced to learn about Malaina through her thoughts rather than her actions and INTERactions with other characters. She carried the story but to the detriment of herself and every other character in the book.

That being said, neither of these two is the worst character.

I absolutely despised Malachi throughout the entire book.

Malachi is a product of “telling, not showing.”

Every time Malachi is in a scene the author is telling us what kind of person he is; of how much he cares about the guild members, how caring and almost fatherly he is, but his actions are an exact contradiction.

If Malachi is supposed to be written as a mentor who uses tough love, there’s only “tough” and no love.

Malachi doesn’t care about his guild members.

He doesn’t bat an eye when giving them disturbing tasks and missions, he doesn’t care about Sterling’s desire to protect other Shifters. If someone is being “disobedient” he’d tell them to “go train.”

If a character was having trouble with the morality of the job he’d given them, it’d be the same thing, “go to the training room and let off some steam.”

Malachi had no love for them, not through anything but the author telling us that he did.

When Ra was captured, Malachi told Malaina and the others to do “nothing,” even after they argued with him he stood firm by his decision. And when they brought Ra back to the guild, dead, Malachi had already moved on in the next chapter.

The next chapter was the very next day.

Malaina had obsessed over that “nothing” for a few paragraphs, but it didn’t really matter because not one relationship with Malachi was altered because of his decision. Layshan, who knew exactly what fate they’d be leaving Ra — his best friend — to, did not think negatively about Malachi at all after this.

Layshan didn’t see him any differently, Malaina didn’t see him any differently.

Malachi was not only cruel, I’d go as far as to call him heartless, because no matter what the author tries to convince us of, actions speak louder than words.

Moving on, the dialogue left a lot to be desired.

It wasn’t compelling, conversations between characters were flat, and a startling amount of them were fairly pointless.

It was also awkward or literally? Not? Correct???

There was a moment in chapter 25 after Malaina and Sterling received their new contract, and they got into an argument in Malachi’s office. While Sterling is pointing out that it’s a bad idea to take the contract, and that Malaina wouldn’t be able to prove that she’s the Death Bringer if asked, Malaina responds with this:

“For nine years, I’ve pretended to be something I’m not. For one reason and one reason alone. For Lybbi. To give her a shot at a semi-normal life, where she doesn’t have to apologize for the way she was born. To keep her safe. I’m not going to throw that away because you’re scared.”

What kind of argument is that? Sterling is right, Malaina can’t prove that she’s the Death Bringer, and her calling him scared because he’s pointing out the obvious is not going to make it any less true.

This wasn’t just her assumptions of the situation either, Sterling didn’t address that she was wrong, Malachi didn’t address that she was wrong, instead, they have a staring contest and the reader is supposed to sit back and pretend like that was a good comeback.

There is another instance of awkward dialogue where in the 26th chapter, while traveling to Lord Kevah’s estate, Malaina and Sterling notice that Malachi looks nervous, and Malachi reveals that this would not be his first time at Lord Kevah’s estate.

Naturally, Malaina and Sterling ask him what happened his first time, and instead of answering the question, Malachi tells them a piece of his backstory. Unprompted, without trying to sway their attention elsewhere, he just randomly starts talking about his backstory.

Once he’s done, Malaina and Sterling don’t ask about his previous trip to the Lord’s estate again, and by the end of the chapter Malachi freaking dies.

???

Another moment that I found really odd was in chapter 14 when Malaina and Sterling returned from their failed Alman contract and went to Jade. There was a big moment when we found out that the Almans had been using a “Death Bringer antidote,” and it was a shocking revelation because that opened up the possibility of someone or someones knowing that Malaina was not the true Death Bringer.

However, right after that, Jade reveals a special ability of hers, something that is definitely not as important to the moment as the antidote, and yet all of the characters begin to focus on that instead. They asked her questions and the attention was on her ability for a solid few paragraphs until the very end of the chapter where the conversation was finally steered back to the antidote.

Instances like the ones mentioned above happen frequently throughout the story, and it makes reading not only confusing but also frustrating.

The awkward writing in this book unfortunately affects more than the dialogue.

More often than not we had to read through paragraph after paragraph of info-dumps.

There were too many flashbacks, thoughts, and exposition between present action and dialogue that it effectively disconnected the reader from the scene every single time.

The world-building was also choppy, although I must give the author props for smoothly writing it in whenever the world was mentioned.

That can’t be said for every other type of exposition though, especially when it comes to character backstories.

WARNING: This section mentions SA! If you would like to skip this section please scroll to the double line-break below.

I was very pleasantly surprised to see the content warning at the beginning of the book and felt I could go into the story knowing exactly what to expect. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

The alluded to SA in the first chapter that the characters then continued to talk about in near detail for the next two chapters did not make the list.

I was disappointed and disgusted by this obvious lack of awareness.

Perhaps it was an honest mistake, but how could you miss that? It’s mentioned in the first chapter, and if so much time is going to be spent talking about it there needs to be more attention paid to it.

Maybe in seeing this review a change will be made, but I know that I certainly did not appreciate going into the book and having to read about this for the first three chapters.

Along this note, I wanted to talk about Malaina and Sterling during these first three chapters.

In the first chapter, Malaina is watching the man they have a contract to kill, who has been abusing girls for whoever knows how long before a rich Fire Wielder’s daughter becomes one of his victims, and the contract is set.

Malaina and Sterling watch this man abuse countless girls for three weeks before stepping in to take his life.

Three weeks they watched. A new girl every time, and they watched.

Now, this would not bother me if it was in their character, if they were just there to do their job and it didn’t bother them.

But it did bother them. It bothers Malaina specifically, who forces herself to remember each night and each face so the victims don’t have to suffer alone. She forces herself to take on their pain because she thinks she deserves it, and someone who doesn’t care just wouldn’t do that.

Both Malaina and Sterling expressed that they should have stepped in sooner, so why didn’t they?

'Her job forced her to watch and observe.'

This line is written in the second chapter as Malaina is almost consumed by her sorrow for all the victims she’d witnessed, and it’s also not entirely true.

We’ve seen in other contracts throughout the book that the guild members only need enough time to assess the situation and plan a course of action, and in some cases, observe their targets, before moving to complete their contract.

Two thieves, Grif and Capel, spent three days observing and planning for their contract, and Ra and Layshan spent a day and a night watching an empty home for theirs. When they rescued Ra, they only waited until nightfall the same day they learned of his capture.

While all of these jobs are different, they give us clear evidence that the wait time to complete a contract is tailored to the job and the target.

This man was a nobody.

Since he owned a townhouse we can easily assume that he was rich, but that’s it. We don’t know his name, his influence, or if he even had any throughout the city.

Nyda Alman, on the other hand, is the second daughter of one of the wealthiest men in the City of Elementals, and they spent two weeks watching her before her assassination.

How can some unnamed nobody warrant more observation than the daughter of a man with close ties to the Lord himself?

He doesn’t, which makes Malaina and Sterling's decision to sit and watch him abuse girls for three weeks downright sickening.

_______________________________

_______________________________

Finally, let’s wrap up this review.

Aside from what was mentioned above I only had a few other, minor grievances with this book:

- The magic system wasn’t all that exciting or unique, although I like the idea that only a single person with a dark magic ability could exist at a time.

- We had to wait too long into the book to understand the purpose of the guild, and the guild member’s dynamics. Throughout the book, Malaina constantly feels the tension and animosity towards her from the rest of the guild members and even reflects on how she was once attacked by them in her early years. In the 28th chapter, while Malaina is escaping the chaos with Lybbi, she hears the rest of the guild members screaming and refers to them as her “friends and family.” That’s a complete contradiction to what she’s been feeling throughout the entire book.

- The descriptions of locations were lacking to the point where it was difficult to picture anything.

- Malaina and Serena’s relationship felt forced, and the two didn’t really have any chemistry. It felt extremely one-sided with Malaina practically falling over herself whenever Serena was present, and Serena just sorta passively being affectionate.

I would have given this book three stars because, despite everything, I mostly enjoyed reading it. As I mentioned before, I liked the cliffhanger and I’m eager to read on and find out what happens next, but a three-star rating would be a purely SUBJECTIVE rating.

In my objective opinion, I can’t justify rating this book any higher because of all the key elements of a well-crafted story it simply doesn’t have.

I’m sorry if this review sounds harsh, but it is my honest opinion. I hope this review will help the author improve on some much-needed key elements in the second book.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

This book took me way longer to read than it should have, mainly because it is very slow moving in the beginning. I won't say that I am completely enamored with the characters, the plot, or the world, but I think, for the most part, they are solid. There are, for sure, some discrepancies and a LOT of downtime for these characters who are professional criminals (who knew the seedy underbelly of cities got so much time off?), but I think the idea of magic for all is interesting. I know that I started this at a much different time, but there are some seriously eerie similarities to what is going on right now, and honestly, I think that is what got me truly going through the last half of the book. I wanted to see if there was a happy ending. Honestly, the characters are nothing spectacular and a little one-note, but I'm curious to see what happens with the main trio in the future. The world building was a bit uneven, and now we are outside of the City of Elementals, so I'm curious how the expansion of the world will be approached. I also wonder how we will loop back to everything that went down at the Guild (I'm desperately trying not to spoil things). Was this new and original? No. Was it enjoyable? Once you got moving, yes. But it did take a little while to find its footing.

*I received an eARC in exchange for my honest opinions. Curious to see where this series is headed.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I appreciate your concern, but I’m not worried. I’m the scariest thing down here.”

Gripping, unique, unsettling, and well written, The Death Bringer proved to be a thought provoking and emotional read.

I was so grateful to be gifted a physical copy of this beauty. Since novella #1, I was hooked. A.M Eno’s writing and storytelling are gripping and compelling.

This debut dark fantasy novel introduces us to the world of Thaumoria, where everyone has some type of magic. I loved how the novel involved characters from her 5 novellas; however, you do not need to read them beforehand to read this book. It was just nice seeing familiar names and knowing a little bit of their history/background.

The prologue starts with a gripping scene from when the FMC, Malania, is just 10 years old. The event described is what leads her on the path that is the journey of this book.

The plot flowed seamlessly, and her writing style is very vivid and descriptive, so you feel like you are there in Thauormia. The pace is neither too slow nor too fast, it gives you time to connect to the story and the characters, both main and side ones. And that is what makes it such a beautiful read – you love and care for everyone involved. Characters are not just sidekicks but integral to the story and I truly liked all the characters.

I wasn’t expecting the emotional ride that the last 80 pages or so. It takes a lot to get me to full out cry during a book and I was gone for pages 365-371… but she doesn’t stop there. She literally tore my heart out. Yep. I am not okay. Hopefully book 2 will put me back together. That ending!
Rating: 4.25/5

[A Court of Stars and Sapphire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from the author and am honored to share this completely honest review!

While this book started off a bit slow for me, it really started to take off towards the middle! This book is full of action, magic, and fantastic world-building.

My favorite aspect of this book was the found family. The love these characters have for each other is palpable and so endearing.

Overall, this is a well-thought out and well-written debut fantasy! If you loved The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J Maas, you will love The Death Bringer!

𝕋𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖𝕤

⚰️ Found Family
💀 Elemental Magic
⚰️ Dark Magic
💀 Assassin's Guild
⚰️ Protective FMC

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me laugh, get mad, and literally made me cry. I have no words to describe, I literally sob. The second book this year has made me cry with all the feelings.

This book is absolutely amazing, and I need you to go read the novellas, and then on Oct 21, go grab this one. I will definitely be rereading all of them soon. Absolutely in love with this one, the story, the characters that I loved in the novellas. I mean, it was everything I was expecting and more. Thank you, thank you for the opportunity, top book of the year for sure.

[Nellie (Nellie Reads A Lot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Death Bringer takes place in a world where there is a team of, more or less, criminals who are assigned to take care of different things for clients. They have various magic that help facilitate this. People assume that Malaina has a rare sort of magic that makes her the death bringer, but is that really the case? Circumstances arise that put them in danger, and they must decide how to react to protect their own. Baddies abound. Who is the death bringer, and what is their role in the bigger picture? TDB focused far more on the fantasy aspect than the romance side of things; I would not consider this a romantasy for those who that matters for. What you do get is major found family vibes and an interesting magic system (think Avatar: the Last Airbender, but EXTRA). Things are set up to be exciting in the next installment!

Thanks to A.M. Eno for an eARC of this book for an honest review!

[Jocelyn Morales · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was reeaaally excited going into this as I loved each of the novellas and was itching for more. The Death Bringer delivered! I won’t give any spoilers but I will tell you that there were tears. I love the magic system in Thaumaria and the characters were all so different and unique and so well brought to life. Thank you to the author for the ARC!!

[✨Chloe✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so happy to dive back into this amazing and magical world and to see all the novellas characters join together into one beautifully written book. I love the characters so so much! I truly cannot wait for the next book, and to see where their story leads even if it is filled with tragedy <3

[Magaidh Dunbroch · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cover instantly sucked me in!! I binged this book in 2 days and immediately had to download the novellas. There is such depth and emotion to the characters, A.M. Eno has done an amazing job! I’m not going to spoil anything but I LOVE my shifter boyo he’s def what makes this story amazing🖤🫶🏻

[Kiki ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m in TEARS… ahem.. sorry! I’m not going to spoil anything! I’m not the type!!

Soooo many emotions! I have so many things that I want to say! I absolutely loved the read!! So many characters that I LOVED!! (RA 😭) he kept me laughing!

I LOVE the combination of Avatar the Last airbender vibes.. but I feel like it mixed more with a Skyrim feel! Mainly because the guild. The thieving ! Backstories! It absolutely combined in such a beautiful and twisted way!!

Alll I gotta say.. is.. F YOU Lord K… I won’t spoil! But I knew from the START I didn’t like him.. his energy is STANK! Sorry.. back to the program!

I highly recommend!! The friendship! The love!! The world!! I need more!!

[Literary X Dragon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Death Bringer is a YA story that follows a shadow wielding assassin in a world filled with elementals and shifters amongst unfolding political chaos.

The pacing to this book was a bit slow at first, giving the reader background on the characters and the politics at play in Thaumoria, about halfway through it really picked up and I could not put this story down!

Malaina, our FMC, is a fierce protector to her sister Libby and I loved the focus on the family dynamics between the two. Sterling, honorary sidekick and best friend was my favorite character in this story and such a great addition. It was nice reading about an MMC in a story that was not a love interest, but still had the FMC’s back every step of the way.

For my Romantasy lovers, this story has an already established romance that is not a focus in the story. The found family aspect, world building, and magic system drives much of the plot.

Read this if you enjoyed Throne of Glass, or more specifically, Assassin’s Blade and would have liked to see a deeper focus on the elemental magic. There are 5 prequel novellas from the author which can be read either before or after this book. This will be an ongoing series with book 2 currently as WIP by the author.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️
This book follows Malaina an assassin in the elemental city who has taken on the title of Death Bringer, although she doesn’t possess magic of true death bringers. Her and her partner and best friend Sterling, are set on protecting Malaina’s little sister Lybbi both physically and emotionally as they struggle to let her hold on to her childhood and not face the horrors of living in the elemental city.

Malania and sterling’s relationship was what kept me going in this book. Although, it did feel like it would have made more sense for them to be together romantically than just best friends. Malaina’s personality was very similar to Celaena in throne of glass, while Sterling was her protector and confidant the entire novel.

My biggest issue with this book was that I really didn’t feel attached to any of the characters. There were so many and I didn’t quite feel the relationship between them all, other than Sterling, malaina and Lybbi. I also feel like there wasn’t enough of a backstory with the Lord of the city for him to be behaving in the way he was to make the city “pure.”

I did enjoy the book, and I definitely think the rest of the series definitely has potential.

[The Tunita · Rating 4 out of 5]

3. 5 Stars

Thank you very much to the author and the book sirens team for sending me an advanced copy.

I must admit that during the first few chapters I felt lost because I was struggling to find a plot amongst the convoluted descriptions, repetitions and expositions. Not until way later into the story, I realized some of it was done on purpose and, for the most part, it worked. There's a clear before and after narratively speaking that I think was done successfully for some portions of the book.

However, this book, had many issues with both its pacing and timing. An important plot-point tended to be establishes in one chapter and then almost forgotten for many more others. This halted the flow of the story and felt quite disruptive.

I didn't really have a favorite character, to be honest, they read too one-dimensional for some reason. I did feel some kind of bond with Sterling but I think it had to do more with the situation him and his people were in than him as a person. I liked their dynamic, though. I think they worked better as a unit than as individuals.

In regards to romance, Malaina had a close relationship with someone from the guild named Serena. Serena is able to manipulate emotions and so she was able to bring peace to Malaina's chaotic mind a couple of times and while I think this is kind of sweet of her, I honestly didn't feel any kind of romantic connection between them. If anything, some scenes made me question their relationship and how much Serena's power "plays" into all of it. Does Malaina love her or does she love her powers and the effect they have on her? Some people get addicted to medicaments and it's not due to romantic reasons.

There were many plot twists throughout the story and I must say some of them were pretty effective. I found myself shocked several times after some revelations. Nevertheless, I also think there were too many of these moments throughout the story to the point of them becoming mundane.

All in all, this was a promising first book with interesting world-building and fascinating politics. Those two things definitely carried the story for me. I love where this story is going but the pace and timing need to be considered thoroughly because it dragged several times.

[Carriebooksandart · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “The heavy weight of silence bore down on them all as they experienced a glimpse into what a true Death Bringer could do.” @author.ameno you have done it again! You have created a world where a reader can close their eyes after each sentence and breath in the same air as each character. Almost as though one is sitting in Thaumoria, and not in their normal reading spot turning the pages so vigorously to find out what happens next. Malaina is at the center of a manhunt. The search is on for The Death Bringer. Malaina has the power to wield shadows, to take the lives she is hired to. Will her powers help save the guild of thieves that have slowly become her family? Lord Kevah will do whatever it takes to bring the Death Bringer to his door. To offer her a job not like any other. Will Malaina accept Kevah’s offer, going against everything she believes in? Is she the person he really wants? Ever since she and Lybbi have been children, it has been Malaina’s job to protect her sister. But from what? From the truth of what Malaina’s job truly entails? Or could it be the truth of what the sisters really are? There are things that go bump in the night in Thaumoria, and I’m excited for other readers to experience the darkness. Every character in this story was carefully thought out, and they each had their home in this book. Some tugged more at my heart strings than others… of course I’m talking about Ra. Sterling is that big brother character you remember growing up with.. the one that always had your back. Though Sterling might be a little more fluffy. Malaina, though she can be tough, just wants to be that caring sister that needs to protect her loved one. Lybbi is young, energetic, and powerful… she just doesn’t realize how powerful. If you are looking for a read that has magic, found family, assassins, and a strong female lead look no further! #book #bookstagram #booklover #booknerd #bookaddict #bookworm #reading #read #bookreview #thedeathbringer #authorameno #magic #assassin #foundfamily #strongfmc

[Mana · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I loved every aspect of this book: the plot, setting, characters, their relationships. The story started off a little slow, but it became so much more engaging about halfway through. The second half was so intense and action-packed.

The setting and world-building were amazing. I loved how we got a great big picture in the beginning, and the rest of the story provided small, yet important details. I think this also helped with foreshadowing and leading up to twists, because it was these details that gave me clues about what was to come. It was all really engaging. On a side note, I absolutely LOVE Avatar: The Last Airbender, so I really, REALLY enjoyed the elemental powers in this book. I also loved how there were other powers, too, which added to the depth and complexity of the world and its people.

Right from the stars, we see the beautiful relationships amongst the characters. Malaina is an amazing MC, who’s strong but also has fears and flaws. Her relationship with her sister, Lybbi, and the way she’s worked so hard to give her sister a good life, is precious and admirable. Malaina and Sterling are great partners, and they, along with Lybbi, are the cutest little family. It’s obvious that a lot of the people in Malaina’s guild have close relationships, and they were all so wholesome. My favorite character was definitely Malachi, the leader of the guild. I loved how he was like a FOIL to Malaina, providing a different viewpoint to every situation.

The plot was intriguing from the start. It wasn;t predictable at all, and the second half was filled with so many twists 😵‍💫. And what an ending! The story built up to it so well, and it was REALLY enjoyable. And suspenseful. And stressful. And scary. I somehow managed to make it to the end in one piece, but I need to know what happens next 😣.

Thank you to the author for the ARC copy! All opinions are my own.

[Meredith Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I saw this book being advertised as “Throne of Glass meets Avatar: The Last Airbender,” I knew I was going to love it. The prologue hooked me from the very first page and I couldn’t wait to see where Malaina’s story would go!

In the realm of Thaumoria, the majority of magic is represented in 5 different ways. You have the Elementals, the Shifters, the Kinetics, the Anima, and the Witches. Each branch of magic is represented by a seat of power ruling over their own city. And then you have the dark magics: the Mind Bender, the Shadow Spinner, and the Death Bringer. Only one of each kind exists at any given time, and fear of their power leads to execution if discovered.

Malaina is a Shadow Spinner, but for nine years she’s posed as the Death Bringer to protect her sister and become the monster everyone fears. I absolutely loved the training guild and reading about the life of the assassin, which took me back to my first love of Celaena Sardothien from Throne of Glass.

Malaina’s love for her sister and the sacrifices she made to protect her also reminded me of Katniss and Prim’s relationships from The Hunger Games. The bonds created between the friends in the guild made for a perfect found family. I couldn’t get enough of the love and loyalty between these characters.

The only thing preventing me from giving this 5 stars was sometimes feeling like I was missing important information. I wish I could have understood Lord Kevah’s motivations a little better, or what happened to the guild master for him to fear going to the palace. I hope more information will be revealed throughout the rest of the series to answer my lingering questions!

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️

Reading this was intense! This book is amazing, and I'll soon dive into the prequel novellas to discover more about its characters (and to ease the anticipation while waiting for the next novel in the series).

Like any first novel in a high fantasy series, The Death Bringer has the tough task of introducing its world to readers while hooking them with an intriguing story. Given that both the world-building and magic system are pretty complex and original, the book includes a lot of description and flashbacks. These aspects slightly slow the pace, making the novel feel a bit dense. However, if you enjoy this type of fantasy, you’ll find a compelling, action-packed story with well-developed and distinctive characters.

These characters have flaws and make mistakes. The main character, Malaina, isn’t the most powerful, the strongest, or the fairest. She’s a criminal, but also a friend and a sister. I appreciated how she and the other characters are shown in their everyday lives, with their relationships and bonds. I loved the friendship between Malaina and Sterling, and with Ra. I didn’t particularly like Lybbi, but there’s a lot more to uncover, and I’m sure her character will be further developed in the next novel.

The novel ends on a major cliffhanger, full of emotion. The author does a wonderful job of making you connect with the characters and their struggles while effectively delivering the novel’s darker vibes. I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, hoping it doesn’t take too long to come out.

I received an advanced reader copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntary.

[Sydney Victorson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Death Bringer is the start of what I think will be a truly fantastic series. I was completely enthralled by this book. The world is incredibly rich, and I enjoyed the characters immensely. In particular, I absolutely adored the dynamic between Malaina and Sterling. Their friendship is so beautiful. The way they care for one another is very touching, and I love that they remained platonic throughout. Really, the entire found family aspect was really well done, which of course caused some plot lines to hurt way more than I anticipated. This book had me laughing at some parts and crying at others, and I mean real tears. I’m seriously on the edge of my seat after the ending, wondering how long I’ll have to wait to see what happens next and where these characters end up.

I plan on reading the novellas as well (already bought the paperbacks and everything). I’m excited to get some more backstory for some of the characters we met in The Death Bringer but didn’t get to see a ton of. The world of Thaumoria is so interesting, and I’m eager to learn more about it! I highly recommend The Death Bringer to any fantasy lover, but especially to those with a soft spot for assassins, found families, and interesting magic systems.

I also want to take a moment to mention the cover of this book. It. Is. GORGEOUS. This is definitely an instance for me where the book itself lives up to the hype of the cover. Just an absolutely beautiful book, inside and out.

Thank you so much A.M. Eno for the paperback ARC. All opinions are of course my own.

[Kristen’s Literary Lair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before I start this review—full disclosure that I did not read any of the prequel novellas and this is my first exposure to the author’s work. For all of you interested in reading, you do not have to read any of the prequel novellas to read this book according to the author.

Onwards!

This story is about Melaina, who has been posing a Death Bringer. She lives in Thaumoria with her sister, Lybbi, and their friend Sterling, who is a shifter. For several years, Melaina has kept up this persona in order to protect her little sister.

Thaumoria becomes dangerous as citizens begin to hunt Malaina for what she is. She makes quick work of avoiding them by hiding in shadows, all the while trying to keep Lybbi’s own power in check as it grows stronger.

Lord Kevah—one of the most powerful figures in the city, seeks Malaina out for a favor. She becomes torn between serving him and protecting her family.

Overall, this wasn’t a bad book by any means, but it wasn’t one that I would choose to read again. Perhaps some of the magic was lost because I did not read the prequel novellas, however, I felt that I could have used more background information about Thaumoria. I think a lot more plot elements would have hit harder having that information.

The other thing that I wasn’t particularly fond of was the very abrupt ending. When I finished the last chapter, I went to turn the page on my eReader and was shocked to find the Author’s Note instead of more to the story.


Thanks to the author and the publisher for an eARC and for the opportunity to read and review.

[Bri M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 2.5 (can't select half stars here)

First, I would like to thank the author for this e-ARC opportunity in exchange for my honest review.

I would like to begin by saying this author is talented and great at creating a world you can see through her writing.There was suspense, found family, and a vast love between sisters.

When I read that this would be a series with Avatar the Last Airbender vibes, I was so excited. It's not my typical genre of reading, but overall I enjoyed reading about Thaumoria and the people who make up the cities. 

That cliff hanger ending!? Okay, I wanna know what happens next for our MCs Malaina, Lybbi, and Sterling. While I'm not sure if I would reread this, I'm intrigued by what the next book holds.

One thing to keep in mind is that the main character is lgbtq so if your like me and not into reading about a female character's relationship with a female, you probably won't want to read this one. I wasn't able to fully get into this story as I was not able to personally connect with the characters.

*This is in no way meant to speak negatively to any person or group of people.

 Tropes:

🖤Found family 
🩶Shifter magic
🖤Elemental magic
🩶Assassin 
🖤Fantasy

⚠️Content/Trigger Warning ⚠️
Graphic, on page violence, torture, decapitation, death, loss of a parent(s), allusion to genocide.


#arc #arcreader #arcreadersofonstagram #arcteam #honestreview #bookish #bookishaccount #bookishcontent #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookdragon #booksbooksbook #readmore #foundfamily #shiftermagic #elementalmagic #assassin 

[Miriah · Rating 4 out of 5]

**I was fortunate enough to be chosen as an eARC reader. The following are my honest thoughts**

I believe this book series has a lot of potential. If you took Celaena from the Throne of Glass series and gave her shadow powers like Azrael from the ACOTAR series, you'd get Malaena the FMC of this book. Now, place her in a city that'll take you back to Avatar the Last Airbender, containing citizens with all sorts of abilities and political intrigue. The Death Bringer features danger and action throughout, LGBT rep, and a found family of criminals for hire.

I personally enjoyed the relationship between our FMC and her little sister. If you want to know what a protective older sister's love feels like, experience it here.

You'll find yourself asking, "To what end will Malaena go to keep Lybbi safe?"

I also enjoyed the found family aspect of this book, especially the solid best friendship between our FMC (Malaena) and MMC (Sterling).

It started out kind of slow for me, but the tempo picked up closer toward the middle of the book and then went hard in the last couple of chapters. In the beginning, I wasn't sure that this book was for me, and that's okay. Not every book is for everybody, and I stand by that. However, having finished the book and reflecting on the story as the beginning of a series, I believe it has great potential, and I look forward to seeing how the author continues the story. The cliffhanger ending felt illegal, and I really want resolution.

[Kylee Doyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for the eARC!

There are five major cities in Thaumoria, represented by five of the six classes of magic users. In the City of Elementals, Malaina is a member of a criminal guild and has become the most notorious assassin in the city, posing as the Deather Bringer, a unique one-of-a-kind dark magic user who can kill with a single touch, in order to protect her younger sister.

There are 5 related novellas that aren't a required read prior to this book, but definitely give a little extra background to some of the introduced characters.

I loved being back in Thaumoria, and I appreciated that the world-building in this was a little slower, giving the reader time to learn about the different magic classes and the City of Elementals alongside the characters.

The book did start off a little slow, but once things picked up, I found myself not wanting to put it down. I loved how invested I was in Malaina and Sterling's partnership by the end, and in the lives of all of their friends within the guild.

I do feel like there could have been another pass of editing as there were a noticeable amount of typos but I also know this is an area that can be challenging for self-published books.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story and the characters, and I can't wait for the next book in the series!

Read if you like:
Elemental magic
Dark magic
Witches
Shapeshifters
Found family
Sapphic romance

[Shona_reads_in_Devon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy this. I went in totally blind as it was a 12 recs 12 friends read. I had no idea what it was about.

There were quite a few editing mistakes in this copy I had, hopefully these will be ironed out for any subsequent novels as some were sentence structure issues that had me pausing to figure them out.

The magic was really fun - I love elemental based magic systems and mixed in with the other magic systems shook it all up a bit and I especially liked the kind of class/hierarchy exploration within that. The world building was interesting and I'd have liked more of it, the history and the forming of the world is glimpsed at here and it whetted my appetite for bigger plots and maybe books that visit some of these other cities etc.

I found Malaina a trifle annoying at points but not off puttingly so. I loved Sterling, and I am hoping to see Lybbi develop in a next book... The side characters were great and I can see that there are some little novellas centred around some of them and I'll check them out.

The plot was great. I guessed most of the little twists, they weren't subtly hinted at I didn't think, but the overall direction of the plot wasn't obvious to me and it's left me wanting more!

3.75★