Our Immortal Bind

by Christopher Hartland

To enter the afterlife, one must first pass through a door unlocked by the angel of death, but when the keys to those doors are stolen, the entire human race is rendered immortal.

With the world heading into global crisis and the very fabric of the universe at risk, Death tasks her son, the half-angel/half-human Orpheus, with the retrieval of the keys.

Orpheus soon encounters Evan, a warlock who lives in fear thanks to laws punishing the use of magic.

The Witchfinders are already pointing the blame for the immortality at the witches and warlocks of the world, so Evan agrees to help Orpheus in the hopes of fixing things before anti-magic rhetoric reaches an all-time high.

In a quest that pushes them both to their limits, what neither boy expects is to find there may be more to life, each other, and themselves than they ever thought possible.

Genres: Young Adult, LGBT, Fantasy

278 pages, Paperback

Expected publication March 31, 2026

About the author

Based in West Yorkshire, England, Christopher Hartland is a queer, autistic writer with a particular love for sci-fi, fantasy, and romance. Despite going on to complete a physics degree, "author" was always his answer to the childhood question of "what do you want to be when you grow up?" When not writing, you can find him nerding out over musical theatre, playing Dungeons and Dragons, or endlessly rewatching Doctor Who.

Reviews

[Starr ❇✌❇]

"a queer romantasy in which the half-angel/half-human son of Death must team up with a reluctant human warlock to avert a global crisis when the kets to the afterlife are stolen, preventing the human race from crossing over"

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know how much I needed crochet based magic until now

Pros:
- crochet magic. Yeah. That's the whole bullet point
- I think the whole witch/witchfinder set up is really cool and interesting; I don't know if the author intended it as such, but I was kind of reading it as an allegory for queerness? Especially because it was legal to practice witchcraft "in one's own home" but certain types of magic were "too much" and if that doesn't sound like how queer folks are asked to not be too queer in public idk what does
- Bronte sisters mention
- I think we deserve some irl witch influencers, as a treat (I know they exist but SHOW THEM TO ME ALGORITHM)
- the wall the River Styx has become the Hall of Styx and the descriptions of it... yeah I'm happy with that
- casual queerness! This is very much a queernorm novel
- it's fairly rare I feel like that we get lower YA queer books where the queerness isn't the focus and I'm pleased that we're starting to see that market expand

Cons:
- the writing is very simple because this IS younger YA. I wouldn't say this is necessarily a con, it just caught me a little off guard because of the other books I've read from this publisher so if prose is something you really look for in your books this may not be for you
- again this is lower YA so I'm not going to ding it as much for the plot being a little convenient, but it's not so much a build as more of a quest style where things Continue to Happen
- since this is almost certainly an allegory for queerness I do want to mention that there is a form of magical conversion therapy (that is explicitly called that) as a warning to queer folks sensitive to the topic.

Overall:
This is a short and sweet book that explores prejudice and bigotry in a nuance manner via the lens of witchcraft with a nice bit of light romance as well.
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC!

3.5/5

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you so much to Tiny Ghost Press for this ARC - and maybe thanks to the author too if I get over being mad about the ending!

I don't know which bit to talk about first. The worldbuilding for the Halls of Styx is amazing - I love stuff about the afterlife. The magic system for the human realm is so creative: it sort of works through ethereal crochet, and I've never seen anything like it before. The physicality of spellcasting is so beautifully captured in this novel. The queer rep - from elder gays to total normalisation - is perfect. I will never get tired of books with nonbinary characters whose assigned genders at birth are not revealed! It's a simple thing but it means such a lot to me for enby characters to be nonbinary in their own right. And bi rep where the character is happily, unproblematically, openly bi? It felt like my lucky day reading this. Last but not at all least, the autistic rep was kind, realistic, and not the secret weapon that saved the day; it was just the way the character was.

The story itself was gorgeous - really well-written and incredibly compelling. I love urban fantasy, and I really enjoyed the blend of established mythology with the author's novel ideas. The characters were charming; perfect for the cosy vibes of the book, and they didn't get irrationally mad at each other, which is such a plus!

My frustration comes from the fact that I was crying at 94%, sobbing at 95%, and not stopping by the end. Dear Christopher Hartland, how could you do this to my heart?!

[This1strash · Rating 4 out of 5]

i love that i found someone who the look on funerals as a transition between a world with the deceased go one without them.

oh it would've been so fun if orpheus had been caught in the greenhouse eating tomatoes

okay 59 pages in and i think this might be good, i love me an oblivious character

hey! i eat tomatoes bare (is that a good way to put it) and it's very nice

you would be right evan, now is not the time to think about kissing the half-angel you met less than 24 hours ago

ahhh the people who think immortality means no injury, i knew that would happen

obviously if you stop and think about it the romance is rushed as it happens in a matter of days but it didn't feel rushed as i was reading which is great. it's a similar case as with cemetery boys, where even if the timeline is short the pacing makes it work

i cried, but what did y'all expect from me

i would give this book 5 stars but that ending does knock it down to 4

[Niki.reads.rainbow · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a world where witches have to be careful with using magic, or they will lost it, the keys to entering the afterlife are stolen.

Orpheus, who’s a son of Death, has to find them back to save the world. He’s supposed work with a witchfinder on this task, instead he first meets his son Evan, who’s keeping a secret from his parents - he’s a witch.

Together they have to figure out, where the keys are, and navigate through many obstacles on their quest.

This is a quick story that was enjoyable to read. I’ve read the author’s previous book Against the Stars, which was in my opinion better and had more depth. Our Immortal Bind spans across a very short time, so I had a hard time getting on the romantic plotline between Orpheus and Evan.

Overall it was an enjoyable read, just not a memorable one for me, especially since the plot formula felt a bit similar to Against the Stars.

Rep: bi MC, autistic characters, non-binary minor character

[Jaxxie Kingsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

advanced copy reader

I was sent this book as an advanced reader. I must say it was my first and I really did enjoy it. It definitely reads younger than I usually go for being that. the characters are 16 but as someone who reads queer YA/ MM fantasy/fiction books to heal their inner child. This really did help me on my journey. I think as frustrating as the ending was for me. It’s a really important lesson for queer young adults to learn and see. It’s a very original story a really cool magic system that I hadn’t seen before and I hope that we get another one to enjoy and delve back into. All in all a very easy going entertaining read for
Me