I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
Fallen: Sons of God is definitely an interesting book to start 2026 with.
The plot was intriguing, and the world-building felt unique. I will admit I'm not the hugest fan of urban fantasy, but something about this book attracted me.
The story follows Neveah James, a therapist and divorced mom of two, who gets mingled into a supernatural world. Neveah felt like a breath of fresh air in comparison to the more popular FMCs we meet in Fantasy, she's in her thirties, is responsible, and willing to actually fight to make a change. She's an advocate for women's rights and someone who wants a relationship that is not about pleasure but rather companionship and understanding.
And this is one of the things she and Nasir have in common. Nasir is an interesting character, a fallen god who lives among mortals. Like Neveah, he believes that a conditioned love isn't love. He's rather intriguing (and has daddy-issues, no one can convince me otherwise), and I was a little disappointed that we didn't spent more time with his pov.
And don't get me started on their banter. I loved it so much!
Porscha Sterling's prose is beautiful. She blends vivid descriptions with modern speach easily. As someone who prefers medieval fantasy, I'll admit I'm afraid urban fantasy sometimes becomes a bit cringe to me. This wasn't the case with Fallen: Sons of God. I think it might be one of the few urban fantasy books I've read that didn't feel cringe.
Now, a question might arise. If I liked it so much, why did I rate it four stars?
Well, there was something that bothered me. Am I being unfair by rating it four stars instead of five simply because a paragraph bothered me? I'm not sure.
The thing is, Neveah is a therapist, she feels very passionately about her clients, about fighting for women's right, and I adore that. I love powerful women, who doesn't?
But, there is this scene where Neveah is with one of her clients, a woman who was assaulted. She's very empathetic and very passionate about helping this woman, but then she starts thinking about how white women don't suffer as much as black women, about how we (white women) have generational wealth, trust funds, the "grace of society" to fall apart privately. Which, in my personal experience, is not true. Many women, no matter the colour of their skin, their religion, their place of birth, do not have trust funds or generational wealth, and a lot of us don't have the "grace of society" to fall apart privately. It honestly feels to me that Neveah (I don't want to speak on behalf of the author’s beliefs, although this paragraph did raise some questions for me) is trying to help women heal from their traumas, fight for their rights, and at the same time, she is dismissing the suffering of other women. It felt a bit like selective empathy to me. Now, I don't know if this is a flaw the author gives Neveah so that we can see her character development later, or if this is just a belief she has that will never change. You know what? Maybe it's not even that serious. To me, it felt like that, but I'm willing to accept that I can be wrong.
Despite that, I read the book rather quickly. It was an interesting story with intriguing characters and beautiful and vivid descriptions. I enjoyed seeing the FMC be a single mom who fight for women's rights, and I am curious about the plot and what will follow.