As Many Souls as Stars: A Novel

by Natasha Siegel

For fans of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, an inventive and romantic speculative novel about two women—a witch and an immortal demon—who make a Faustian bargain and are drawn into a cat-and-mouse chase across multiple lifetimes.

1592. Cybil Harding is a First Daughter. Cursed to bring disaster to those around her, she is trapped in a house with a mother paralyzed by grief and a father willing to sacrifice everything in pursuit of magic.

Miriam Richter is a creature of shadow. Forged by the dark arts many years ago, she is doomed to exist for eternity and destined to be alone—killing mortals and consuming their souls for sustenance. Everything changes when she meets Cybil, whose soul shines with a light so bright, she must claim it for herself. She offers a bargain: she will grant Cybil reincarnation in exchange for her soul.

Thus begins a dance across centuries as Miriam seeks Cybil in every lifetime to claim her prize. Cybil isn’t inclined to play by the rules, but when it becomes clear that Miriam holds the key to breaking her family curse, Cybil finds that—for the first time in her many lives—she might have the upper hand. As they circle each other, drawn together inescapably as light and dark, the bond forged between them grows stronger. In their battle for dominance, only one of them can win—but perhaps they can’t survive without each other.

Natasha Siegel has written an unexpected love story that feels both epic and deeply personal. Ambitious, gothic, and magical, As Many Souls as Stars is about the lengths we go to protect ourselves, our legacy, and those we love.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Lesbian, LGBT, Queer, Romantasy, Witches

1 pages, Audio CD

First published November 25, 2025

About the author

Natasha Siegel is a writer of historical fiction, fantasy, and romance. She was born and raised in London, where she grew up in a Danish-Jewish family surrounded by stories.

Her UK and fantasy debut, As Many Souls As Stars, received starred reviews from Kirkus and Publishers Weekly and was an Indie Next pick. Her next book, romantic fantasy Chateau Reverie, is out this October with Bloomsbury UK/William Morrow US.

Reviews

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

me viciously denying the hot lesbian demon the soul i bargained for centuries just so we can engage in a toxic romance tinged with obsession and the hate that can only come with knowing someone so deeply

Drawing together Faustian bargains, gothic splendor, and reincarnation across three distinct periods of English history, As Many Souls as Stars is a historical novel for the ages and Natasha Siegel’s masterpiece. A witch desperate for survival bargains away her soul, a demon endlessly hungering for souls discovers the brightest, and both will be ruined in their association by journeys end. The Faustian bargain is not a new concept, not in the slightest, so to stake claim on such a tale is to promise something inventive and unique in the telling. In As Many Souls as Stars, Natasha Siegel ingeniously twists the Faustian bargain into a lesbian game of cat and mouse spanning multiple centuries and incarnations as an immortal and a witch engage in a toxic romance tinged with obsession. Cybil Harding and Miriam Richter, witch and demoness, hunger both—for love, for souls, and for the continuance of their survival. Drawn into a demonic bargain to suit their purposes, neither intends to lose the parts of themselves they believed intrinsic, nor ill-fated love taking flight. Questioning fate and personhood, Natasha Siegel’s As Many Souls as Stars is a tangled dance of violence, hunger, and destructive romance, in everlasting opposition as misguided bargains can ever be.

Read my review

thank you to netgalley for providing me with an advance review copy.

Bookstagram | Blog

[jenny reads a lot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historical fantasy with witches, demons, curses, and toxic lesbians completely obsessed with each other. What more could you want?

This one is high on vibes, atmosphere, and longing, but a bit low on the plot (affectionate).

If you love a slower story with gorgeous imagery and prose, characters with depth, and yearning, this is an absolute must read.

For maximum impact consume this via audio. Kristen Atherton does an insane job creating the perfect voices for each character, her pacing is perfection, sped up in all the right places and slowed down at the perfect moments. I listened to most of this book at 1.0x speed bc the performance was THAT perfect.

One caveat - You're going to want a print version of this too. There are so many utterly quotable lines! This is a perfect book for annotating!

Audio Narration: 5/5 Kristin Atherton can do no wrong! Seriously good performance. Each character has a distinct voice, and her ability to drop her voice for male characters is awe inspiring! This is a book I will insist people read via audio because Kristin’s performance is so spectacular!

🌶️- open door but pretty ambiguous. 2ish scenes (sorry read via audio and I forgot to mark them!)

4.25⭐️| IG | TikTok |

Thank you Harper Audio for the gifted ALC. All opinions are my own.

[Natasha Siegel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I wrote this book!

AS MANY SOULS AS STARS is a story I laboured over for years, and it's one I'm not ashamed to say I'm truly proud of--but it is definitely darker than my previous work and I want everyone to be aware of that before reading, with horror and gothic elements throughout as well as magic and romance! If you'd like to see content warnings before reading, there's a comprehensive list on the book's page on my website, natashasiegel.com . Thanks so much to everyone who reads and reviews!

[Léa · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
I ADORED THIS!

Following a shadow soul-eater and an immortal girl with a curse indebted to her as the first born daughter, their story is one of longing, loss and a chasing of humanity. There is something about stories written about souls yearning for one another in different lifetimes that I dote on... and this was exactly that. A perfect blend of V.E. Schwab's writing and a witchy atmosphere!!! would highly recommend

[DianaRose · Rating 4 out of 5]

firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc!

“the first daughter is always cursed.”

as many souls as stars is the perfect hauntingly gothic toxic lesbian novel, full of wiccan magic and sentient shadows.

i feel as if this novel filled the hole i was left with after reading v e schwab’s toxic lesbian novel — we follow miriam ritcher who is doomed to walk in the shadows of the earth for all eternity and consume the souls of mortals. something within her shifts when she meets cybil, whose soul is so bright miriam cannot help but obsess over having it, and thus orchestrates a scenario in which cybil has no choice but to strike a bargain with her that spans across lifetimes and centuries.

i also listened to the audio on libby and the narrator did a fantastic job!

——

very excited to dive into my next (2025) arc after waiting for my libby audio to come in lol😌✨ i’ve heard many good things so i hope i enjoy my read

[lexie · Rating 3 out of 5]

this had so much potential as it was marketed as toxic sapphics x faustian bargain but its execution was so. SO bad.

the first half is reallll boring. i get setting up the story but with the three different timelines, it felt like addie larue/bury our bones fanfic but in a telling not showing way…an authors worst mistake…🤦🏻‍♀️

it had the bones and structure to BE good, and that’s the most disappointing part! these two who are forced together in every lifetime and what immortality will do has been explored aplenty and this brought nothing new to the table and im just like- what actually was the point of this book? it has so many 5 stars from mutuals and i’m incredibly let down 🫠

[Sav ~catching up on reviews~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

​Harding and Richter's story is absolutely breathtaking.

The author's devastatingly gorgeous prose envelops you in a haunting, gothic world of magic, feminine rage, social politics and power, and a truly epic, dark love story that tears its way across three lifetimes. Harding is the blinding light to Richter's endless darkness—a witch taught to curse her power and commit herself to a life of social ostracism in a world that demands women make themselves small and weak, and swiftly crushes those who do not. Miriam Richter is a morally grey, enigmatic shadow demon resigned to wander the world forever alone until she develops an insatiable hunger to unravel the conundrum that is Cybil Harding and witness the entirety of her being, hidden deep beneath a lifetime of fear and cold indifference.

In addition to the unique setting and characters, the emotional complexity of this book does their relationship justice, as we get to witness these two become enemies, friends, and lovers—often simultaneously—many times throughout their journey. They are one another's destruction and salvation. Their love, hate, desire, anger, and fear are as inextricably linked as their existence is to each other. Miriam's moments of raw, sometimes violent, yearning while she tries to decide whether she wants to consume, worship, or ruin Harding were among my favorite parts of this book.

This was everything I needed, and more, in a dark, fantasy romance. The plot was unique, the emotions were complex and beautifully written, the banter was amazing, and Miriam Richter's mouth had me absolutely sat. The expected publication date is 11/25/25. It should definitely be on your TBR this year!

Thank you to the author, William Morrow Publishing, and Net Galley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Rachel L · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

A story that spans across centuries following demon Miriam and the soul of the woman she wishes to claim.

I'm not normally one for reincarnation storylines, but Natasha Siegel did this one really well. In it we have everything you could want: demons, toxic lesbians, different timelines and a battle for ones soul. It did drag a little bit in the middle, I didn't quite care for the second lifetime of Cybil, but the first and third one made up for that. Very interesting story and premise and Siegel is a writer to watch.

2026 Ripped Bodice Summer Romance Bingo categories: I Hate Everyone But You

[patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75 stars

“Your light, it is like nothing I have ever seen. And that is a blessing, Cybil. The more beautiful something is, the more beautiful its ruin.”

I freaking love a book that delivers on its premise of a toxic-sapphics, dangerous and addicting cat and mouse story that not only lived up to it, but exceeded my expectations. Thrilling and unpredictable, this was true cat and mouse at its finest, and insanely clever. How can a 300 page book make me feel like I’ve lived three lives? How does someone find out they are able to write this way? Natasha Siegel, are you even human?

When I hear toxic sapphics, you better expect I want it toxic, and As Many Souls as Stars excels in that with flying colors. There is literally nothing I would change because it did it soooo well. It has the same intensity as the cat and mouse from Addie Larue and honestly? It might have been even better than Addie Larue. Like, far better.

Miriam is the definition of, “if evil, why hot?”, an evil, manipulative, possessive shadow mummy and everything you’d expect from an immortal, ancient Eldritch God. Miriam is somebody I’ve been craving for in these types of books and absolutely exceeded expectations. And the fact that she kills men? 11/10. The way she wants to ruin Cybil but also worship her? Absolute cinema.

Cybil is incredibly big-brained and just gets even more smarter as the book goes. This was a genuine cat and mouse where both were equally as cunning. There came a point where you no longer knew who the cat and the mouse were.

Cybil’s rage towards the world was absolutely justifiable. The world has wronged her and I felt her anger and vitriol pour off those pages. It was intense and raw. Everyone is just so misogynistic. It felt sad seeing the way Cybil becomes more cunning and morally gray, but also loses a part of herself in the process and becomes a shell of her formal self. I felt hollow as well.

It is incredibly difficult to describe Cybil and Miriam’s relationship in words. What they have is so complicated, but addicting. I can only compare it to Killing Eve. I’ve been trying to find a toxic sapphic novel that matches the energy of Eve x Villanelle and I found it in As Many Souls as Stars. There’s danger, there’s desire, there’s addiction, obsession, love and hatred happening all at the same time. You never really know if Miriam wants to kill her or kiss her or both.

This book is also incredibly unpredictable – I genuinely had no idea how the book was going to conclude. Cybil and Miriam are so cunning, so intelligent I could not guess for the life of me how they were going to outsmart each other. At the same time, the book makes you ponder where do we draw the boundary between love and hate? Cybil and Miriam’s relationship is so complex and messy and toxic, but also really beautiful. I will always love the tortured, broken woman who is worshipped by an immortal trope.

My issues with this novel were very small. I think the prose can be wordy at times and the timeline resets can be tedious at times, having to establish everything again which can be heavy on exposition, but nonetheless, this is a book I’d easily recommend to literature students.

[Juniper L.H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

To put it plainly, I loved this novel. I thought it was well structured, excellently written, and incredibly creative. I was hooked right from the beginning and there was not a moment during my read where I considered stopping; definitely a 1-day read and that wasn’t just because I forgot my book club deadline.

I loved both of the main characters, though particularly Miriam. Her character arc and development were wonderful to behold. Getting to follow along on her journey was very satisfying. It was intriguing to follow the other protagonist through their multiple lifetimes and see the similarities and differences that arose as their circumstances changed.

I don’t know that I would call this a romance (though GoodReads tags it as such). It is certainly a type of love story, and I loved this story, but I think it is somewhat of a stretch to fit this in the Romance Box. If you are seeking Hallmark or rom-com, tread no further.

There were some elements where I wish things had been done a bit differently, but ultimately I trust the authors decisions and am happy with the final result. I wish that there had been more time spent developing each of Cybil’s lifetimes so that we could have gotten to know each iteration a bit better, as well as the side characters that we met along the way. Similarly, I think we could have spent more time with Miriam in between as I think her yearning for Cybil during these periods was an essential part of the story. All that said however, it makes sense to focus primarily on the times where our two main characters are together and taking unnecessary side quests risks getting lost from the main path.

[JoJo_theDodo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Witches, dark magic, and a very lusty toxic relationship. What could go wrong? I noticed that this book was compared to The Invisible Life of Addie Larue and I'm not really sure that is fitting. This story has no likable characters in my opinion. Normally I'm not a big fan of stories with not even one likable character, but this story was the exception. This adventure that spanned many years was exciting and intriguing it had me hooked wanting to know how it would end.

**Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to listen to this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Books_the_Magical_Fruit]

Alas, this story wasn’t for me. I don’t really subscribe to the toxic love/hate relationship trope, and I *really* didn’t like Miriam. I liked Cybil just fine, and I wish the story had just been about her adventures because she was SO smart. I loved reading about her figuring things out, and I admired her strength of character despite so much adversity.

I saw my friend Denise’s review just now, and she perfectly described why I didn’t like it: It’s very heavy on the romance, and, while the plots seem similar, “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue” by V.E. Schwab has a lot less romance. I requested an advance copy of this because I loved the latter book so much, and I’m honestly disappointed to not like the former. ☹️ DNF.

FYI: It’s an extremely slow burn, and that’s also a major part of the reason I couldn’t get into the story.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

[Sam’s Sapphic Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy. Shit.

The novel follows a young witch named Harding, a woman born with a curse. The first daughter that will only know destruction during her life. A demon, Richter, in eternal life makes deals with mortals and eats their soul.

A deal made with the devil. A fight across centuries has started between the two, both destined for terrible things. It’s a game of cat and mouse with no winner. Light and dark. Love and hate. Both living the life of loneliness. The same but different.

An absolute round of applause for the author, Natasha Siegel, for this masterpiece. Harding was a force to be reckoned with from the beginning, and Richter thought she could control her, take her for her own. But you can’t hold light in your hands and expect it not to burn you.

As Many Souls as Stars may have jumped to my number one book of the year so far, it’s the kind of book you wish you could read again for the first time.

Please note: I received an arc copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Kaitlynn L · Rating 5 out of 5]

“She pictured her biting her lip hard enough to make it bleed pulling her hair until Cybil was gasping, pushing her against the trunk of the tree. Cybil felt as if her blood had gone molten, and her hand drifted between her legs. She pressed her fingers against herself, trembling, imagining Richter’s hand instead of her own. The fantasy was so clear in her mind she could hear that dark voice saying, My dear, if this was what you wanted, you need only have asked-“ - HELLOOO WLW

Miriam Richter is a powerful shadow entity that was created by humans for their own personal gain. Cybil Harding is a first daughter, which is a curse in their family that the first daughter has powers but also destruction surrounding them constantly.

This story takes place in three different settings, each with the same person, different names, different time line, all in England. Miriam yearns to take Cybil’s soul after finding out who she was and the power that leaks from her. Cybil has always been alone, family and friend wise, and would always notice the shadows that cling to her. Then, Miriam made herself appear to Cybil and Cybil eventually made a deal out of desperation and hatred. This deal sparked a hunt and chase throughout centuries.

WOW, this story is just wow. The emotions were there and you can genuinely feel each emotion throughout the book. The character development is phenomenal and you become to love/hate and also understand both Cybil and Miriam. Their love is truly toxic, beautiful, and a cat and mouse dynamic. I did love the wlw representation and how the characters never shy away from it. The ending was truly something that I never expected and was shocked to say the least. I will be looking forward to reading more books from this author!

This book will be great for anyone that enjoys gothic romance, LGBTQIAP+ representation , and a strong fmc. This book also reminded me of One Dark Window and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue with the shadow entities, so if you loved reading those two books, you would love reading this one as well.

Thank you to NetGalley, Natasha Siegel and William Morrow for the opportunity to read an Advanced Reader’s Copy (ARC) in exchange for my honest opinion.

[rose ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

“when you die in my arms, darling, it will be on my terms, not yours.”

the opposite of “no grave can hold my body down.” no grave can hold YOUR body down because you aren’t allowed to die until i say so.

in 16th century england, a demon offers a cursed witch a bargain: reincarnation in exchange for her soul. the witch, unwilling to part with her soul so easily, counters: if she can break her family curse before her time is up, her soul remains her own. and so a deal is struck, and a cat-and-mouse chase across lives and centuries begins.

as miriam pursues cybil, the pair find themselves drawn together again and again in an obsessive romance and battle of wills and wits. only one can triumph in the end, and yet in each other they find a strange solace and bond across lonely lifetimes.

perfect for fans of killing eve and faustian bargains, as many souls as stars is truly everything i wanted it to be and more. it’s dark, haunting, and ruinously romantic as it asks how much of our identity—and our fate—is determined by who others believe we are, and how far we will go to sate our hunger. i just adored siegel’s take on the faustian bargain (particularly that ending!) and her lovely, haunting prose.

if you like your yearning toxic yet devastating and appreciate a gothic historical fantasy setting, don’t miss out on this one. it’s one of my top books of 2025 and i will be yapping about it for the foreseeable future.

i received an ARC from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

rating: 5.0/5.0 stars

[Amy Marsden · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first book of 2026 and it's 5 stars!

This is split into 3 acts, following Cybil/Esther/Rosamund Harding's 3 lives. I really enjoyed how each act was its own complete story, yet also fit into the overarching narrative. The writing was also incredible.

I really liked Miriam and Harding, and their love/hate relationship. I don't really subscribe to the message of you can't have love without hate, but it worked for them and this book. A little unsure of the ending, but again, it fit the book.

[⋆｡°·☁︎ sydney ⋆｡°·☁︎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!!!
The first fifty percent of this book had me in a CHOKEHOLD, I was obsessed. The characters were fascinating, the setting was fascinating, the plot was fascinating.
By eighty percent, I was slightly bored, things felt like they were happening over and over again. Internal and external dialogue felt so similar.
Ex.
Mariam: “you’re mine forever and ever, be my pookie please, I love you, you belong to me, I’m going to kill you etc.”
Cybil/Esther/rose whatever her name is: “not today satan. Actually, love you too. Actually, not today satan. Actually I want to get married under the stars. Lokey hate you though. Actually let’s go make out. Actually jkjk, wish you were dead. Actually— etc.” like bruh 💀
By ninety percent?
I was skipping paragraphs.
It was honestly just frustrating. Like the plot is DONE. It’s over. Please for the love OF GOD end the book. IM BEGGING YOU.
I loved the vision and the idea and TBH I was SAT for most of this book, until the writer began to get separation anxiety from her keyboard, and kept WRITING a book that should have ended 70 pages ago.
Three stars for all the great stuff in this book that I barely mentioned.

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was very impressed with the execution of the premise. A shadow soul-eater and an immortal girl with a first-daughter curse make a bargain and encounter each other across three different life times. The curse of the first daughter is brutal and provides the motivation to make a deal with a shadow.

I loved the world building and lore of the witch hunters and occultist family. The shadow demon wants to collect souls. It just may have messed with the wrong witches this time. "She enjoys it when you are afraid"

"Love had given her just as many souls as greed had"

The description said this is for fans of Addie LaRue, I also got City of Brass vibes. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced release copy of As Many Souls As Stars, expected release date November 25, 2025

[romane · Rating 2 out of 5]

how do you make toxic shadow demon lesbians so fucking boring

[Sapphic Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected. It’s a love story, although not in the traditional sense, that stretches across centuries. The two main characters are incredibly mature and self-aware, and they really steal the show.

Miriam was written so well, and the way her love for Cybil/Ester/Rossamund unfolds is very clever and satisfying. It’s complex, emotional, and feels earned over time.

I’d recommend this to anyone who likes character-driven stories, enemies-to-lovers dynamics, and fantasy.

[Toribetweenpages · Rating 5 out of 5]

For fans of Addie Larue, but make it sapphic and enemies that are lovers (NOT enemies to lovers***)

Siegel is a word smith. Her writing so beautiful wrapping around your soul and pulling tight with the pain of this story.

Can love make even a demon feel humanity?

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book somehow felt like both The Invisible Life of Addie Larie and Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil while being more enjoyable than both of those to me. I loved this story so much. It actually does rebirth well unlike some novels (cough cough Our Infinite Fates).

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Calling all lovers of toxic evil gay people being messy 🚨

Realistically, this book is a strong 4, maybe 4.5. It’s not a perfect book. But I’m rounding so generously because it made me INSANE in a way I haven’t felt in a long time. It’s pure, decadent gothic fun: self indulgent and meandering and angsty in the best way. I’m probably biased because reincarnation is my all-time favorite trope, but Cybil and Miriam’s cat and mouse game across lifetimes absolutely delighted me. I ate up the way their dynamic shifted each time, and the way clues and elements from previous lifetimes came back into play to make the eventual resolution possible.

I also LOVED the romance, and Cybil and Miriam as characters. This is one of the only sapphic romantasies I’ve read that hits like a proper romantasy: fully indulgent in the romance, with so much tension and yearning and banter. They’re peak toxic obsession. The “only I get to kill you” trope hits every time.

My only real critique is that this book did not have me won over for probably the entire first lifetime - so about a third of the book. It takes a loooong time to ramp up to the actual bargain, which seemed odd at the time, but in retrospect I don’t think I would change it.

I also found that there was something… unconvincing?… about all three settings. The witch hunts, the London high society, and the 1930s ocean liner all feel somehow shallow, like paper cutout backgrounds. But by the end of the book, I decided that was deliberate and I actually liked it. Every setting is almost arbitrary, because what’s going on between Cybil and Miriam transcends each time period and location. They don’t really belong to any of them; they only belong to each other.

“When humans wanted each other, they were all mouths and teeth, desire and satisfaction. Miriam wanted Esther in that way, also. She didn’t feel the need to distinguish between lust and love, consumption and devotion. Miriam loved her. She wanted her life and her death and each bloody beat of her heart in between.”

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is everything bury our bones in the midnight soil thought she was

[Denise Ruttan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this sweeping, toxic sapphic past lives fantasy romance but it certainly won't be for everyone. I'm not sure the comp title of Addie LaRue is entirely appropriate; this book was very dark and full of a dance of betrayal, hate, and love. Whereas Addie was quite whimsical, with romance only a subplot. Sometimes I wonder if anybody actually reads their comp titles. The only thing it had in common with this book was women who live unnaturally long lives, so if you're expecting the whimsy of that book, you're going to be disappointed.

Cybil is born to a magical family at a time when witches are being persecuted, but as a First Daughter she supposedly carries the family curse of death and destruction wherever she goes. She meets a demon, Miriam, who sees the light of her soul and becomes desperate to make a deal to consume her. But through manipulation and trickery, Cybil manages to evade her for three lifetimes. The story is told in three time periods as Cybil becomes Esther, then Rosamund, as she tries to figure out how to outwit the curse and Miriam, and becomes undone by her through the years.

The two have a love story for the ages that blurs the boundaries of romance and made your standard predictable romance storyline interesting to me. But the lines of hate and love are thin with these two. I liked how Miriam wasn't a sparkly demon, and this is exactly how I would picture a monster falling in love over the centuries and being confused about if she wanted to consume her prey's soul or longed to have her in bed. I liked seeing Miriam's transformation even as she stayed toxic the whole time. It was sexy how possessive she was and how she thought Cybil's death would be hers alone and beautiful to her.

It was a little annoying how she kept calling her "my dear," but I'm not crazy about pet names.

I frequently wondered if this was really a romance as it often just seemed like a toxic love story, but these two played off each other deliciously and I loved the concept of a past lives romance. This was a sweeping, epic love story across time. An "I'd kill for you, and I'd kill you just to hear your lovely scream, darling" sort of love story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[chasc.taylor_reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 Stars ✨

I found the writing to be atmospheric and well done, and I really enjoyed the historical setting. Overall, the story was okay, but there were noticeable lulls and repetitive elements that made it feel like the book was spinning its wheels. So much so that I struggled to pick it up at times (taking a week to read a 300-page book is wild for me)!That said, I was genuinely curious about how everything would end, which kept me reading.

I think comparing this to The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is a stretch and ultimately does the book a disservice (if you go in expecting that level of brilliance, you’ll likely be disappointed 🥴). Still, the Faustian deal, reincarnation, and multiple souls aspects were intriguing. I expected to be fully on board with the romance—sapphic, demon/witch, love spanning three timelines, but unfortunately, that element fell flat for me as well.

Interesting premise, okay execution. I think I just expected more overall. If you enjoy slower-paced, gothic reads, As Many Souls As Stars might be for you.

[Alison · Rating 5 out of 5]

A strong contender for favourite book of the year.

While this book is actually a faustian sapphic gothic historical fantasy, I think this is a novel the Dark Romance girlies would love
An obsessive and possessive demon stalks her prey across multiple lifetimes? Demon falls first? I ate this up. The book delivers. Add it to your tbr immediately.

[Melanie Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

English below:

As Many Souls as Stars von Natasha Siegel

​As Many Souls as Stars ist eine atmosphärische, düstere Reise durch die englische Geschichte, die den klassischen faustischen Pakt in eine komplexe, toxische sapphische Romanze verwandelt.

​Worum geht es?
Die verfluchte Erbin Cybil Harding trifft auf Miriam, ein uraltes Wesen, das von Seelen zehrt. Um ihr verfluchtes Schicksal zu ändern, geht Cybil einen Pakt mit Miriam ein: Reinkarnation gegen ihre Seele. Was folgt, ist ein jahrhundertelanges Katz-und-Maus-Spiel, in dem sich die Grenzen zwischen Jägerin und Beute stetig verschieben.

​Das macht das Buch besonders:
• ​Intensität: Eine mitreißende Dynamik zwischen zwei hochintelligenten Frauen, deren toxische Beziehung voller Obsession und Machtkämpfe steckt.

• ​Atmosphäre: Eine dichte, gothic-geprägte Kulisse, die durch verschiedene Epochen führt und einen sofort in ihren Bann zieht.

• ​Charaktere: Die Protagonistinnen sind moralisch grau und faszinierend intelligent – ein echtes Duell auf Augenhöhe.

​Fazit:
Ein „Burn-the-world-down“-Meisterwerk für alle, die komplexe, düstere Fantasy lieben. Wer Geschichten wie The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue mag, wird diesen intensiven Tanz zwischen Licht und Schatten nicht aus der Hand legen können.
​Ein absolutes Highlight für Fans von Gothic-Fantasy mit Tiefgang



English:
Review: As Many Souls as Stars by Natasha Siegel

​As Many Souls as Stars is an atmospheric, gothic-inspired journey through English history that transforms the classic Faustian bargain into a complex, toxic sapphic romance.

​The Plot
Cybil Harding, an alchemist’s daughter born under a curse, enters a deadly pact with Miriam Richter, an ancient, soul-consuming creature. In exchange for the chance to reincarnate and change her fate, Cybil pledges her soul to Miriam. This sets off a centuries-spanning game of cat-and-mouse where the roles of hunter and prey are constantly in flux.

​Why It Stands Out
• ​High-Stakes Intensity: The power struggle between the two leads is electrifying. Both are incredibly intelligent and cunning, making their toxic dance of obsession and survival feel fresh and dangerous.

• ​Immersive Setting: Siegel’s prose brings various eras of English history to life with rich, dark, and transportive detail.

• ​Moral Ambiguity: This isn’t a story of heroes and villains; it’s a character-driven look at the lengths we go to for love, legacy, and self-preservation.

​Closing thoughts
A "burn-the-world-down" masterpiece for readers who crave dark, atmospheric fantasy. If you enjoy character-driven narratives like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue but want a sharper, more intense edge, this is an absolute must-read

[rêverie]

invisible life of addie larue, faustian bargain, & toxic yuri holy trinity 🙂‍↔️

[monika · Rating 2 out of 5]

i really REALLY liked the premise, but it just didn’t live up to my expectations.

maybe that’s on me, because i went into this expecting to really like it — or maybe it’s the comparison to addie larue that made me expect a relationship that would be a dance across centuries, but i just feel like this book didn’t deliver what it promised. it was also quite boring. i didn’t like either of the characters, really, and this felt more like three separate stories more than one. and the relationship just wasn’t it — everything they did to each other felt so inconsequential, and the ending didn’t feel like revenge and more like a deal that worked out best for everyone. i think i wanted this to be darker and have higher stakes, or maybe to just see their relationship being impacted by their actions in any way.

i was also going to give this 3 stars, but then miriam killed the one companion rosamund found in the entire 3 lifetimes that she’s had and… nothing. no consequences, not even truly a comment and that made me feel like everything i’m reading is just pointless.