The Knave and the Moon

The Stonewater Kingdom #2

by Rachel Gillig, Rupert Channing (Narrator), Samantha Hydeson (Narrator)

Rachel Gillig, the queen of gothic romantasy, returns with higher stakes, darker mysteries and deeper longings in this gorgeous sequel to the No. 1 international bestselling sensation The Knight and the Moth.

Aisling Cathedral is in ruins. Rodrick Myndacious, Bartholomew and Maude Bauer are rumored to be dead - and the king has taken Sybil Delling as his bride. To show off their union and solidify his power over Traum, Benji proposes a series of tournaments throughout the hamlets. Captive and drugged, Sybil remains determined to vanquish him as she once did the Omens, even if she destroys the kingdom's faith - and herself - in the process.

But then a mysterious knave rises to the top of the lists, a man with no name and no memory who may just be Sybil's ticket to undoing Benji's power. For in a land where stories repeat themselves, where a king can prove as cruel as a god, the only way to truly destroy the Stonewater Kingdom's faith is to save it.

Praise for The Knight and the

'Dreamy prose, characters so vibrant they breathe on the page, a romance that smoulders, and a spellbinding world to get lost in. Prepare to meet your next obsession' Rebecca Ross, author of Divine Rivals

'The Knight and the Moth delivers pure gargoyles! gods! girls in armour! alongside a serious examination of faith, fealty, and the powers they serve. It's a fairy tale with bruised knuckles, perfectly balanced between the mythic and the desperately human. Simply stunning' Alix E. Harrow, author of Starling House

'Haunting, elegant and lovely, The Knight and the Moth is that rare fantasy both a thrilling quest and an exquisite love story' Tasha Suri, award-winning author of The Burning Kingdoms trilogy

'With the headiness of dreams and the darkness of haunted abbeys, The Knight and the Moth is dazzlingly transportive tale of love, salvation, and freedom that cements Gillig as one of the finest fantasy writers of our age. You will never want to surface from these enchanting, depthless waters' Ava Reid, author of A Study in Drowning

'I'm obsessed with Rachel Gillig. The Knight and the Moth is achingly romantic, richly imagined, and told with a gossamer delicacy that keeps the pages flying' Hannah Whitten, author of The Foxglove King

'A gothic, romantic fairy tale that feels like falling into a dark, strange dream - one you won't want to wake from. Gillig has done it again - I'm obsessed' Amélie Wen Zhao, author of Song of Silver, Flame Like Night

'Brimming with beguiling prose, and a dangerous magical world, The Knight and the Moth sparkles with wit and a slow burn romance that left me breathless and impatient for the next instalment' Isabel Ibañez, author of What the River Knows

'The Knight and the Moth is a lavender-drenched dream. Readers won't be able to put down this adventurous, dark gem of a book' Kalie Cassidy, author of In the Veins of the Drowning

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Romance, Gothic, Fantasy Romance, Adult, Fiction

Audible Audio

First published September 1, 2026

About the author

Rachel Gillig was born and raised on the California coast. She is a writer, with a B.A. in Literary Theory and Criticism from UC Davis. If she is not ensconced in blankets dreaming up her next novel, Rachel is in her garden or walking with her husband, son, and their poodle, Wally.

Reviews

[molly lou (I’m back!!)]

ITS HEREEEEEE EVERYBODY PANIC

———

Me cutely and adorably staring at Rachel Gillig through her window until she releases this book 🧍🏼‍♀️



ONE MORE DAY LEFT. I REPEAT. ONE MORE DAY!!!! 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️ (Waterstones if you don’t deliver my preorder in time I will make you rue the day you were born)

EDIT: ITS HEREEEE (MY BOOK ISN’T BUT THE RELEASE DATE IS WHOOP WHOOP. If you witness a Waterstones actively being burned to the ground, mind your business..)

[èvieane]

ㅤ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ᯓ ✿ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ‍‍‍‍‍‍pre-reading ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ⪼
ㅤ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ○ started ┆02-September-2026┆

ㅤ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ㅤ ‍‍‍‍‍‍ ⤿ Bartholomeeeeeew the time has finally come!! I am so damn excited, so please let this be as good as the first book

[SK]

SO EXCITEDDDDDD 😍😍

[maria]

pre-read
IS IN MY HANDS!!! IM A BUSY WOMAN UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE!!!!!! no but actually I can’t believe I’m finally going to read this😭

_________

ONLY A FEW HOURS UNTIL THIS IS IN MY HANDS!!!!!!!!

_______

big lover of the gold in the cover😌

________

NO ONE NEEDS THIS BOOK MORE THAN ME!!!!!! and I mean that😩 everyone knows how obsessed I am with tkatm. How am I supposed to wait a whole year for this?🧍🏻‍♀️

What kind of sorcery I need to do to get an arc of this?😭🤚🏻

[Clace]

Lets see how this goes 😗 The covers so damn pretty tho-

Buddy reading with Hoda.

[jasmine ☆₊⁺🦢🪽₊⁺★]

ᝰ.ᐟ🌑 ⌗ pre read┆started august 31 | finished ˎˊ˗
MAMAS GOT HER COPY A DAY EARLY!!! I’M SO SO SO EXCITED!! i seriously don’t want this end guys 🤧 and i’m actually so pissed my classes started today because i just want to binge this 😩 but this is getting read within the week no matter what!

—
pre-release
rachel the knight and the moth is feeling lonely without this book on my shelf 😕 release it now? PLEAK 🙏🧎‍♀️‍➡️ the cover is so beautiful 🥲

[Liana Gold]

Bartholomew, oh how undignified. Did anyone see me fall?

Priorities. Reading this just for YOU, BARTHOLOMEW.

(Yes, yes The Knight and the Moth was my 2 star read. Don't come for me! In the words of Bartholomew.. I'm simply saying what's in my heart!)


This is SO MUCH better than book 1.

[Robin]

rachel gillig said hot lady knight fall is over it’s time for knave autumn 2026

also love yelling “knave!” we should bring it back

(shoutout to sarah for coining the knave autumn bit💕)

Bookstagram | Blog

[angelinabvby ۶ৎ]

࣪ ִֶָ☾. 𝓻𝓮𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓮 𝓮𝓿𝓮 🌼💛✨🌙🪞⚡
BUDDY READ WITH GABRIELA ONCE IT RELEASES BC IM ON THE WEST COAST 🥹🥹🥹

⋆˙⟡ 𝓹𝓻𝓮𝓻𝓮𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓮 :･ﾟ✧:･.☽˚｡･ﾟ✧:･.:
book one had me cackling, sobbing, and kicking my feet. you better believe im gonna eat this up on release day 😇

[Alya ( 20 comments restriction ) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughts
Oh I do hate binge reading ☹️ not ready for this world to come to an end -- It was a mixed emotions kind of ending to say the least 💔 I can't explain how much I love this duolgy -- the characters; the world building -- this book was genuinely everything I wanted and more! Rory!!!💘 oh lord where does one begin??? This man 🫠 the way he's so ALL or nothing for Sybil 😭 or should I say ALL for Sybil and nothing for everyone else attitude 😂 he's just so dedicated, so supportive it melts my heart 🥹
Sybil's character development was just so beautifully done, watching her gain confidence in herself, her strength as well as seeing the other side of the strong personality.
One of my favourite things about this author's writing is how much she focuses on the details whether it's the characters or the world itself she'll always have you feeling as though you're experiencing the journey or the world, at least that's how immersed I get into her books and one of the things that make me love this genre thanks to the way she delivers!

Plot Summary
With Aisling Cathedral destroyed and several key figures presumed dead, Sybil finds herself imprisoned and forced into marriage with King Benji. Determined to bring him down, she looks for a way to break his hold over Traum. Her hopes rise when a mysterious, nameless man with no memory emerges as a powerful contender in the king’s tournaments. Together, they may have a chance to challenge Benji, but saving the kingdom could be the only way to destroy the faith that gives him power.

My Bookstagram

[Shaz ♡]

Pre-read:
Time to be reunited with my yearning Knight and his slutty earrings 🥰 Let’s goooo Rory!! ⚔️

[luna ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

words cannot describe how truly sad i am that the duology has come to an end and gosh do i hate myself for binge reading it, should've savored it truly. who am i kidding though? the book was very fast paced and it made me want to turn to the next chapter. rachel, you are an absolute genius.

i love you, batholomew.


⋆˚𖤓˖° pre-read

after doing my endoscopy this morning, my mom treated me with buying the physical copy of this book. i'm a lucky girl. 🤭❤️

[Catie]

~pre-read~
I am so excited for this

[Grace Harper]

pre-read 🥹

Starting in the morning!! Yayyyyyy

[Booksblabbering || Cait❣️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bartholomew remained my favourite part. 
Warning: you may cry, you might laugh, you’ll probably want to dress a statue in a pink dress. 

NON-SPOILER review for the SERIES:
Rachel pulls off the pacing well. Despite the trepidation I had at the suddenness of book one’s ending, the sequel picks up straight after and despite the slightly shaky and rushed (end and) start, the characters pull you along. 

"A hare?" 
"Not one hair, a great many, and all upon an adorable little creature." His fingers trilled excitedly. "I want to catch it and put it in my mouth and let it build a nest there."

Whilst not as atmospheric as One Dark Window, Rachel leaned into the current romantasy obsession with knights. Book one was about the rake, the sequel was about the knave. 

This was less descriptive and jumped from scene to scene. This kept it fast-paced even if the action scenes left something to be desired. 

"a story is like the moon. Every night, she is a little different, but ever beautiful, and ever to remain." Another sprite soared above me, dropping its shadow upon the tor. "I think," I said, grinning, "that a story is a kind of gargoyle. A multifaceted body, hewn facts and falsehoods—and made stronger for it."

It is hard to write a review for the sequel with the ending of book one being what it was. However, it had a satisfying ending. My favourite part was actually the last few pages because Rachel closed it off beautifully. 
3.5-3.75 stars.🌟 

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[Mya ♜]

WE BETTER GET THE ENDING WE DESERVE!!!!!🦅🦅🦅🦅

[Taskin⋆彡⭒]

pre-read
:･ﾟ✧:･.☽˚｡･ﾟ✧:･.:
MUEHEHEHEHEH, I have the book. I need to find outtttt

[hailee · Rating 5 out of 5]

“There was light to touch, yet. Things to dream of, yet.”

oh i am SOBBING

[liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was one of the most beautiful, agonizing, inspiring, torturous, all-encompassing things. I have so much I want to say about the magnitude that this was for me but I will never have the words.

The allegory to the current state of the world and what we do to the planet and to people and the dehumanization of groups. The themes of hopelessness and depression and feeling out of control. I can’t.

“To those who look upon the world and feel despair. Things will be better than they are. I promise there is hope to find, yet. Love to spend, yet. There just has to be.”

240 highlights.
I’ll never get over this.

[Gabriela]

Pre: ”To those who look upon the world and feel despair. I promise there is hope to find, yet. Love to spend, yet. There just has to be.”

Buddy read with my mom and the lovely Angelina 🖤

[DianaRose]

this cover is stunning 🤩 going to be stalking netgalley/edelweiss for bartholomew's conclusion🩵

[dak · Rating 5 out of 5]

“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺, 𝘉𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘸, 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵. 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐𝘧 𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘈 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘭𝘦, 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬. 𝘈 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦, 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨—𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘧 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵.”

i have no words but 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙬 🖤🖤🖤 ohh and i would crawl on broken glass for Rory. that is all 🙂‍↕️✨

˖⁺‧ ཐི༏ཋྀ 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒦𝓃𝒶𝓋𝑒 & 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒟𝒾𝓋𝒾𝓃𝑒𝓇 ☾ ₊‧

but really what a beautiful and emotional adventure. my heart is so full. all the emotions were FELT lemme tell you!! give me some time to soak this in and gather my thoughts but wow just wow!! thank you Rachel 🥹🫶🏻

“𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘰𝘯. 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘶𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯.”

[ClaudiaTalksFilm]

Love u rory men should take notes and wear messy eyeliner irl

[hater ★]

aaaaaaaa pretty cover

[Samantha (ladybug.books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it Bartholomew.

[°❀⋆.monica ೃ࿔*:･]

IT'S HAPPENING EVERYONE STAY CALM 🤩 (I'm not calm)

[aqsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

did I skip my very important Calculus I lecture to read this? yes, yes I did.
was it worth it? obviously.

★★★★ | 4 stars

“I wanted her so badly, I'd let her hurt me. I'd let her do anything to me.”

oh my GOD. I genuinely don’t even know where to start because this book had me completely hooked. I flew through it. like, “I have responsibilities and places to be” flew through it.

First of all, Rory. I need everyone to understand that I am deeply unwell about this man. his devotion to Sybil!! the way he has so much faith in her even when she struggles to have faith in herself. and I just love his careless attitude towards everyone and everything else. 😛😛 I’m sorry, but that is MY kind of fictional man. he’s so loyal while still having his own personality, and every time he showed up for Sybil I was just sitting there likeee 🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️

And Sybil. I loved watching her throughout this book because she is such a strong character, but her strength never felt effortless. she has fear, doubt, anger, and moments where she has to figure things out, yet she keeps moving forward. watching her grow and seeing her become more confident in herself was one of my favorite parts.

AND THE GANG GETTING BACK TOGETHER??? maude. the gargoyle. sybil. rory. MY PEOPLE. I missed them so much. seeing them all together again gave me that exact feeling of being reunited with characters you’ve gotten attached to over the course of a series. I was so happy to have them all in the same place again.

the ending. so beautiful and bittersweet. I don't even have the words to describe it tbh

this plot and duology were so unique. the worldbuilding, the characters, the weirdness, the dark humor, the romance… it read like nothing else I’ve read. i love when a series actually feels like it has its own identity instead of feeling like a slightly different version of ten other fantasy books. this one was creative, strange, romantic, dark, and somehow hilarious all at once.

my favorite quotes: (SPOILERS)

“I couldn't escape from thinking how perfect she might look if she plunged her hand into my chest, removed my heart, and gnawed through its toughened tissue between her teeth until her clothes were stained red”

“Stone eyes, then.” My voice hummed against his armor. “If only you were pretty enough to be a Diviner.”
Rory spun me, then pulled me back against his chest. “You’re pretty enough for the both of us.”

“Oh, Bartholomew, I was forlorn without you. What a marvelous capability for love I have.”

“Still got decent balance, or are we out of practice?”
“Does walking all over you count as practice?”

[Ayeley 𐙚 ·˚(editing reviews) · Rating 3 out of 5]

ᯓ★ 3.25-3.5 stars ✮⋆˙


·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳ This is a big, huge meh for me.

╰┈➤ Look, maybe I’m just being overdramatic but I genuinely feel really let down by this book. And when I say let down, I mean really fucking let down. That doesn’t mean the book is bad in any way.

For what it’s worth, I was able to get into it way quicker than I did The knight and the Moth, and I don’t think I ever actually put this book down. It was also easier to read in a way.

╰┈➤ But when I read this book, I did not get the feeling The knight and the Moth gave me. I didn’t get that immense swelling in my heart that made me want to immediately close the book and start all over again just so I could find myself back in this world.

Instead, I was disappointed by so much of what happened.

And once again, disclaimer: that does not mean this is a bad book. Because it was good, I just didn’t love it the way I wanted to.


sᴘᴏɪʟᴇʀs ᴀʜᴇᴀᴅ


·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳ My main problem with this book, from my perspective, is Benji and everything surrounding him.

╰┈➤ Characters are allowed to piss me off. But the thing is, Benji feels like such a weak character to me. Not even just in terms of how he was written, but everything about him feels weak. He is such a weak antagonist that I genuinely, wholeheartedly believe he could have been killed at the very beginning of this mf book.

ᝰ.ᐟ I am not joking when I say a random passerby could have killed this boy. He is probably the easiest person to kill in the entire fucking kingdom.
And yet, somehow, I was at 92% and he was still fucking alive.


╰┈➤ Sybil had a chance to kill him at the beginning, and she didn’t. Then situation after situation kept happening where I was just sitting there thinking, surely this is when somebody finally kills him.

ᝰ.ᐟ Even when Rory got on him to beat him, he could have literally slipped a dagger into that boy’s stomach and called it a day.

ᝰ.ᐟ And I tried to understand the nuance. Like, okay, they’re family. There are complicated emotions there. Whatever, whatever, whatever.

But this boy was, excuse me for saying this, a cunt.
There was literally no reason to keep him alive.


╰┈➤ And then there was that fucking room scene.

ᝰ.ᐟ Everyone was just talking without giving a fuck. They’re in the room making guesses about the ox-eye concoction Sybil has been drinking, Bartholomew starts talking about the sprites and everything surrounding them, and they’re doing ALL of this while Benji is literally in the room.

Why the fuck are you in the room with this evil boy spilling elite knowledge?! They were practically explaining everything to benji.


ᝰ.ᐟ I genuinely thought I was losing my mind. That entire conversation blew my shit so badly that I actually went back and started reading from the very fucking beginning because I thought, Did I miss something? Did I miss a line where benji threatened them to speak

So I went back.
And there was no threat.
Just free will


ᝰ.ᐟ And then the moment Benji goes, “Well, I’m going to kill all the sprites then,” everyone is suddenly like

“HOW DARE YOU?!😱😱😱😱”

And I’m sitting there like, WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN, BABY?!
What did you think was going to happen when you stood there and told this pos everything?!


╰┈➤ Anyways. We get to the duel between Benji and Sybil

ᝰ.ᐟ Talking about Sybil……WHERE IS MY QUEEN?!

Maybe I don’t remember the events of The Knight and the Moth that well, but I distinctly remember Sybil throwing hands down. Like, my girl used to throw the fuck down.

But in this book it just…left???

Where was the action?!

There was barely any action in this book in the way I expected there to be, and even the action toward the ending was so fucking underwhelming.


╰┈➤ Which brings me back to the duel.

ᝰ.ᐟ Sybil and Benji are fighting. She hurts him. His skull literally crashes against the floor. And then she’s supposed to hit him in the head with a hammer, and this girl goes:

Well, he’s already going to die.

GIRL.

GUESS WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENS NEXT?

Bauer and Rory come to hug Sybil, and while everyone is distracted, this motherfucker (who is supposedly already dying) snatches the coin and disappears.

WHY
WHY
WHY
WHY

ᝰ.ᐟ I hate when it’s time for the villain to die and all off a sudden we have “empathy🤓”
Why won’t you SMOKE THIS BITCH?! And let him die ONCE AND FOR FUCKING ALL.

It’s like nobody wanted to kill him, and he was genuinely the easiest motherfucker to kill in the entire book.

I am so upset.



·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳ And then he goes off talking about second chances , and a whole series of things happen after that which, no shade, but I low-key lost track of.

I understood parts of it. I understood what was happening at certain points. But by the end, I was just sitting there like, Okay… so… what the fuck just happened?

The ending just felt really underwhelming to me.


·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳ Anyways, the main positive of this book will forever be Sybil and Rory’s connection.

It’s still chemistry after chemistry after chemistry.

ᝰ.ᐟ Their witty banter is still there. Their dynamic is still there. Even though it felt like we barely saw them together (though they were mostly together) they still had their moments. The bathing scene. The first divination after Rory got his memories. Those little moments where you can still feel the chemistry between them.


But

BROOOOO


·˚ ༘₊· ͟͟͞͞꒰➳ I don’t even want to talk shit about this book because I genuinely enjoyed the first one so much.

This book is actually making me want to go back and reread the first book just to figure out whether I was doing too much with my praise for it, or whether that book genuinely deserves all the hype I gave it.

And honestly, I probably will reread it because there’s no fucking way.


╰┈➤ But I want everyone to understand that this book is by all means not a bad book. I’m deadass serious. It’s really not.

ᝰ.ᐟ Some part of me recognizes that. I know it’s not badly written. I still liked it. I was still smiling during some moments, even though I was talking to the fucking wall in anger for most of it.

It was still a good experience, and I was genuinely happy to be back in this world.

I was just… tapped out by the end.

And because of that, I can’t rate it lower or higher
(I’m lowk a hypocrite because if Aster wrote this I’d be on her neck for days😭✌🏾)

Would that things were different
I still enjoyed myself. I still liked being in this world.




➼ ➼ Pre- review ➼ ➼

Should’ve just breathed bruh🫩


╭──────────.★..─╮
         Pre-read
╰─..★.──────────╯

The bookstores are confused because I’m already camping for this book😭😭.

I’m not breathing till I get this in my hands

[Shanique · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5☆

Even death bears its flowers.

Rachel Gillig’s writing style is so effortless that it instantly makes her books a must read for me. Her atmospheric gothic vibes and lyrical prose creates a captivating reading experience. Am I surprised that The Knave and the Moon did not disappoint? No, not in the slightest. This book has met my expectations and kept me hooked until the very end.

I thoroughly enjoyed how the sequel seamlessly transitioned from the first book, without any time jump. It provided character and plot development, particularly regarding the tournaments. I genuinely appreciate Gillig’s ability to evoke a range of emotions, from tears to laughter, and even annoyance with certain characters, while simultaneously restoring hope. The theme of second chances sprinkled throughout made the book all the more fulfilling. Let’s not forget about the introduction of a new POV that had me squealing!

”Death is the only thing we all truly have in common.”

I can’t emphasize enough how much I connected with Sybil’s character. The emotional and physical turmoil she endured, the overwhelming sense of responsibility, and the desperate need to rectify mistakes that span over years…I understood her thought process behind a certain lingering solution she devised. I held my breath, praying that this wasn’t the direction the story would take. Thankfully, Rory quickly dismissed that idea!

“Death is not my surrender.”

Roderick ‘Rory’ Myndacious! The intense yearning and devotion to Sybil kept me hooked on this book. Chef’s kiss! Maude’s character unexpectedly provided much needed comedic relief during moments when I was on the verge of tears.

“Every day is a new flower, a second chance—a rebirth— when you are Bartholomew.”

Bartholomew’s character was the glue and he shined so bright in this installment. He will forever have a special place in my heart. I truly believe that everyone needs a Bartholomew in their life. Put aside the comedic relief he provides and his knack for getting common human idioms and figure of speeches mixed up, he actually has so much wisdom to offer Sybil and company. There’s one moment between him and Sybil that absolutely ripped my heart out of my chest and crushed it. I did not expect to shed turns but I did 🥹.

Rachel Gillig, in my opinion, is the queen of duologies. Although I was saddened to say goodbye to this world and its characters, I felt content with how she concluded the series. I eagerly anticipate her next creation.

—————————————————————————————————
Even death bears its flowers.

Rachel Gillig… The Queen you are…I have no words. I can’t believe it’s over. I devoured this book in just a day. It stirred a range of emotions within me. What a beautiful conclusion to a well-crafted duology. I didn’t want the story to end at all. These characters are everything to me.

I adore most of the characters, but Bartholomew holds a special place in my heart. Without a doubt, my favorite companion character!

In depth RTC

[⋆˚୨ৎ˚⋆ Kim ⋆˚୨ৎ˚⋆]

⋆˙⟡ 𝒫𝓇𝑒-𝓇𝑒𝒶𝒹 (9/28/2025): the fact we need to wait a little less than a year for this book to come out is diabolical work. I needed this book like, 5 months ago.