Mortal Things

by Marie Lu

Rose Lin Fairchild didn’t believe in gods, but one chose her anyway.

Rose despises Raven, the god of Death. His mysterious commands. His mercurial moods. His closed heart. But most of all, she loathes that she was forced to become his Harbinger, a human mercenary tasked to fulfil their god’s every want and whim. Still, she would do it again, because being a Harbinger is the only thing keeping her best friend alive.

When a murder rocks the world of the gods, Rose is suddenly thrust into the immortal realm's spotlight as Raven's heir. This is her chance to free her friend once and for all. But in order for her to ascend, she must first prove herself to the other gods—and the one person standing in her way is a fellow Harbinger.

Étienne Beauchard is notorious for his sly wit and charming good looks. Rose can’t stand that he is the one assigned to test her abilities, but as their initial hostility evolves into an intense attraction, they find that the gods’ secrets go deeper than they ever expected. Something is wrong in the immortal world, something that threatens to break their bond and engulf them all in war.

As Rose and Étienne fight to uncover the truth and trust each other with their hearts, they realize that everything hinges on the same How far would you go to save the person you love?

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, Romantasy, Mythology, Fiction, Young Adult Fantasy

342 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication October 27, 2026

About the author

Hi there! I'm an author of mostly sci-fi/fantasy YA novels, like Legend, Warcross, The Young Elites, Skyhunter, and Stars & Smoke. My adult fantasy debut, Red City, releases this October 14, 2025.

I graduated from the University of Southern California and currently live in LA with my family. Before becoming a full-time writer, I was an Art Director at a video game company. Now I spend most of my time writing, trying to keep my plants alive, and getting stuck in traffic. I feel very honored that I get to tell you stories, and my deepest wish is always that my books can offer you some joy, solace, entertainment, and/or escape. With all my heart, thank you for reading.

Reviews

[❋Rushna❋]

I could read this woman’s grocery list and it would still be a 5/5 masterpiece

[Rayne]

If Marie Lu writes it, I will read it

[Sophie]

✎ᝰ. pre-read: doing a tandem read again!! my first book by this author and so far i’m loving it 🙂‍↕️ i hope this gets me out of my romantasy slump 😬

💌 Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Macmillan Audio for the arc&alc!

[millena]

3.75 ⭐️ soooo this was my most anticipated book of the year (jk that was red city 2 but i had to settle for this one instead). i have to admit that for the first 50% i genuinely thought it was going to meet (maybe even exceed) my expectations but the second half kinda fell apart for me

the setting and the magic system were, as always, my favorite part, but i really missed having more memorable main characters, especially the male ones. i absolutely loved raven and étienne at first but i wasn’t a fan of how either of them developed as the story went on. rose and a few of the side characters i liked a lot tho!!!! (also omg there are SO many side characters, it took me forever to remember who everyone was)

i liked that there was a mystery running through the story but i felt like everything was a little too obvious. i think some of the clues could’ve been handled more subtly to make the reveal more shocking. on top of that, maybe it’s just my love (aka obsession) for red city but i felt like some of the character dynamics and even a few plotlines followed a very similar path so i kept thinking hmmm… i’ve read this before, just done better

anywayyyy, overall i did enjoy it but i definitely went in with too high expectations. even so, i’m excited for the next book bc i still think it has a lot of potential

[annotated by Noi (in & out)]

What's this?

[Marissa C]

I thought this was a wonderfully imaginative fantasy that made one contemplate, as well as fall in love with the world and characters.
I thought both the settings of New York City and London were very well described (two of my favorite cities-even a shoutout to the bookstores on Cecil Court)!
Our heroine Rose was a very likable character who went through a multitude of emotions. We meet her on one of her quests for the Harbinger of Death, Raven. Shortly after, she is promoted to Regent, of which she has to go through a series of trials, alongside master of illusion Etienne. As the story goes along, we learn more about Rose, including her devotion to friendship with Laine, which I enjoyed.
I overall really enjoyed the world building. I thought the Eternal Tree was pretty cool (got flashes of Hercules and Animal Kingdom!).
My only complaint was that the ending was a hair confusing and wrapped up a little too quickly in my opinion.
Overall, a really great fun read. Would recommend to both YA and adult fantasy readers.
Was so honored to get to read this ARC! A big thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Children’s Publishing Group, Farrar, Straus and Gironde (BYR).

[Katie (katieeatsbooks)]

08/03/2026-08/05/2026

Thank you so much Macmillian YA/Fierce Reads for the gifted widget of “Mortal Things” by Marie Lu (aka my camp NetGalley pick! ⛺️)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
(Coming October 27th!)

Marie Lu could do NO wrong in the eyes of my teenhood self 😂💛

With that being said she definitely did me wrong here.
As in I cried, and cried, and cried. Then when I noticed it was a cliffhanger I cried again 😭

I mean everything was insane start to finish first off? It was giving after death dystopian meets mystery thriller in the oddest way?? 🐦‍⬛

The gods were gorgeous, except one 🙄

But also like the cliffhanger? Not gorgeous.

Anyways thanks Marie for all the tears can I have book two now?? 😘🖤

Oh don’t let me forget, them enemies to lovers were working for me 😩👏🏻 overtime!

[☕︎︎𝐋𝐞𝐱𝐢✞]

Pre-release ! ✨


Marie Lu…this better have a happy ending👹

I was not okay after Champion😰

[Jenn]

DNF. I'm out. I got over halfway through, but to me this is boring and confusing. There are too many characters. Each god has a head...minion? (I forget already what they're called) and they have more people under them. And there's not a lot, personality-wise to distinguish them, so I keep forgetting who's who. Plus, I'm just bored.

[Helen ⊹₊⟡⋆]

3.5/5
Imma just preface this by saying there are many newer reader of marie lu I am noticing in the reviews. Of “oh I loved red city and wanted to read mortal things” blah blah blah. I grew up reading legend series, I read stars and smokes, I read war cross, I read red city last year (no I didn’t read young elite) and for the most part all of marie lu writing is very addicting to read with its twists and turns (sureeee you can maybe figure that out if you really sat with it but I sure wasn’t gonna while reading) and for the most part the same can be said about Mortal Things. I finished the book in 2 days, the world is intriguing, the gods, the harbingers, how they’re all pawns in the bigger picture that Rose doesn’t even know yet.

That being said the whole time something felt missing (and maybe it was just me). I wasn’t full grasped into the world. It felt a lot of dropped in and told not show but not even enough for me to fully grasp this world that we are in. Same with the characters, I really liked Rose but it feels her sole thought and motivation for everything is Laine and nothing else. Entinne was also such an interesting and yet even the romantic ties with Rose is not convincing me at all. They felt enemies at one point and then suddenly in love 2 chapters later. There were so many side characters that didn’t feel like served a purpose and because of that I found myself having to flip back to recall who their ties are with because they simply weren’t that memorable.

I’m also not sure if it was a mistake (but now seeing a few other reviews of the same issue) why there was 2 Laines. I believe one was a last name Laine but it was still trippy when I saw it come up and I thought it was a reveal moment or something just to realize it’s a complete different character.

[A. Diella]

Mortal Things by Marie Lu
Release date:October 27th
Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Age rating:14+
Spice:none

Thank you Netgelley for this arc! Oh my gosh. This book is to die for. Going into a Marie Lu book is always scary, because you know she loves to make you cry, and boy did this make me cry. Her writing never fails to pull at my heart, and make me sob so much that my friends are concerned for my well being. Rose is so important to me. The way she feels like something is so wrong with her, and just how alone she felt wrecked me completely. Her arc in this was so well done, and I cannot wait to see how it continues in the sequel. Étienne is so precious and if anyone hurts him I fear I will combust. The romance was idk guys. It was so amazing that I wanted to scream into my pillow. They’re just the perfect match and I actually cannot. The world building was very well done, and the plot had me hooked. I lost track of how many times I cried and I’m crying as I right this. I’m probably just being dramatic but whatever I had the time of my life. Okay im done ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR.

[_literati_]

My birthday is October 15th, this will be my present

[Simran K]

I thought the overall premise of the story was intriguing with the Harbingers and Regents working for each individual Gods. Predictable in the sense that it’s easy to figure out who the "bag guy" is here but still entertaining nonetheless. However, my biggest flaw with this book was the two characters with the same name. Laine and ... also Laine? Not sure if this is an issue with the advance bound manuscript that will be edited prior to official publication but its evident on several pages, especially towards the end of the book, that these are two separate characters. Throughout the story, we have the main character, Rose, interact with her best friend Laine, and be visibly upset and shaken every time. However, when she interacts with Regent Laine, there is absolutely zero emotion involved. Particularly on pages 267-268, 281, and 315, we see clear evidence that these are meant to be two separate characters. For example, Laine would be walking in with the group in one sentence and the next sentence would say she rushed towards the group to greet them. So which one is it? It was difficult to enjoy an otherwise fun story when I would constantly be having to backtrack and re-read things to make sure I was picturing the story in my head correctly. If they can fix the Laine issue, I think it would make the story flow smoothly and be a decent fantasy recommendation.

I received this book through a galley drop at BookCon. All views are my own.

[zara]

4.5/5 stars

yes i read 75% of this in one sitting because if there's one thing marie lu will always deliver is a fast-paced, action-packed, and addicting story that you can't help but keep turning the pages to see what's going to happen next. i'm happy to announce that she has been on a ROLL with red city and now this book, because i enjoy this book so much. is it perfect? no. is it fully fleshed out in terms of world-building? also no. but the shock factor is just right, the romance is just right, and i'm loving the atmosphere and imagery that is being delivered here. the kind of book that i would recommend to people for getting out of their reading slumps

[Jaime Arkin]

Marie Lu has crafted something really special - the magic system is one of the most inventive I've encountered in a while, and setting it against the backdrop of London gave the whole book a rich, atmospheric texture that pulled me in from the start. The city feels like its own character, and the way Lu weaves the mythology into that setting is seamless.

I also have to give credit to the mystery threaded through the plot. It kept me guessing and gave the story real momentum, layering intrigue on top of the world-building in a way that made this hard to put down.

My one hesitation: the sheer number of side characters got a little overwhelming at times. Between each immortal god having a regent, and each regent having their own harbingers, I found myself flipping back to remind myself who aligned with whom. It's ambitious world-building, but it does ask a lot of the reader to keep track of.

That said, this is exactly why I keep coming back to Lu's books - she is so good at relationships. Rose & Raven, Rose & Laine, Rose & Etienne -each dynamic felt distinct and purposeful, not just variations on a theme. That's what gives the story its emotional depth, and honestly what elevated this from a good book to one I really enjoyed.

Recommend if: you love intricate magic systems, atmospheric settings, and character-driven relationships woven into a mystery.

[Allison (Allyace)]

*Review of an advanced copy from Netgalley*

DNF 35%

In the world of Mortal Things, gods exist and they can save mortals from death by offering them a life of servitude. Our main character Rose is chosen by Raven, the god of death, in exchange for her best friend’s life. As a servant of death, she is tasked with reaping souls. When something happens to Death’s heir, Rose gains a chance to become his heir. But first she has to get through Étienne, a rival harbinger.

First the things I enjoyed about this book. The magic system is really unique in a few ways I don’t want to spoil, but I can share the love that mortals have a chance to be come divine. There are trials but it didn’t feel like they were going to overwhelm the story like happens frequently in similar books. I also liked the banter between Rose and Étinene. He is clearly obsessed with her from very early on.

Now for the bad. Unfortunately I had a hard time connecting with this world. So much of the world building was done in a tell don’t show fashion, which meant huge chunks of exposition. The world of the novel is vast and there are many gods. It felt like every other page there was a new person given a name, tied to a god, and then a power given. It wasn’t clear who was important to the main story. There is also an odd storytelling device for pieces of Rose’s life before becoming a harbinger. It felt a little like when movies break the fourth wall and talk to you. But using that method of storytelling when trying to show us how important Rose’s best friend was to her made me feel disconnected from the emotions of the moment.

[Morgan]

Overall Thoughts:

Thank you Macmillan for the ALC in exchange for my honest thoughts. And yeah, fair warning... this one gets REALLY honest.

A generous 2 stars.

Some books should never see the light of day, and I fear this is one of them.

This felt like an attempt to capitalize on the success of Red City by getting another Marie Lu book out as quickly as possible, because everything about it felt rushed. Maybe there was potential here after several more rounds of edits, but as it currently stands, this might go down as the worst book I read in 2026.

And yes, I probably should’ve DNFed because I clocked within the first 4% that this writing style was NOT going to work for me.

Almost immediately, there was so. much. infodumping. Instead of being immersed in this world and slowly discovering how it works, we’re just constantly being told. And if you know anything about my reading preferences, you know that is one of my biggest red flags.

But what’s even crazier is that despite being spoon-fed SO much information, I still didn’t understand some of the basic mechanics of the world. Why do gods receive new names? How are they considered “immortal” when they can die? And if they die and their regents simply become the new gods... what exactly does immortal mean here?

The story follows Rose, a Harbinger for a god known as the Raven, aka Death. Gods give their Harbingers a portion of their power so they can carry out tasks on their behalf. Rose doesn’t have a family, so she became a Harbinger to protect her friend, except we get so little backstory on their friendship that I never really understood the emotional attachment there. They had virtually no chemistry to me.

When the Raven’s regent dies, Rose is nominated to replace her. The regent oversees the other Harbingers and, importantly, is also the person who will eventually step into the god’s role when that god dies.

Make it make sense #342. If the gods can die and need successors, HOW ARE THEY IMMORTAL?

Anyway.

One of the other gods challenges Rose’s appointment, meaning she has to undergo three tasks overseen by that god’s regent, Etienne. Initially, Etienne is basically just an annoyance to her. He can create illusions, which should be interesting, but VERY quickly she’s dreaming about him, they’re sharing a kiss, blah blah blah.

At this point, I was so bored. I cared about none of these characters, the romance did absolutely nothing for me, and the world felt increasingly clunky.

Then throw in some shenanigans with wraiths, a Chosen One storyline, characters coming back from the dead, and what felt like a million other ideas fighting for space in the same book.

Yeah, no thanks.

There was simply TOO MUCH trying to happen at once without enough depth given to any one element. Including, and this STILL doesn’t track for me, a random switch into second-person narration.

By the end, we’re setting up a war between the gods that somehow felt both like the culmination of everything happening and completely unnecessary. I honestly wish I hadn’t picked this book up.

Yes, I could’ve stopped reading at any point. But unfortunately, I wanted to be an informed hater.

I’m still a massive Red City fan, so I’ll be giving Marie Lu the benefit of the doubt when I read Silver Dawn. It may just be that Marie Lu’s YA books are not for me.

Audiobook Thoughts:

The narrator did an okay job. Her natural pacing was pretty close to my normal listening speed, so at 1.8x the audiobook took me approximately six hours to finish.

Her French accent could’ve used some work, and I’m pretty sure she mispronounced “synapse” at one point, but other than that, I thought her performance was perfectly fine. Unfortunately, no narrator was going to save this one for me.

[The Royal Reader]

I worship at Marie Lu’s altar, but today, her altar has faltered 😭

The beginning is abrupt. We’re thrust into the world with a 5 page info dump that’s supposed to let us know exactly where we are in the world, but it doesn’t. Throughout the book, we’re left feeling this way—as if we’re missing something. Perhaps the final version will feel a lot more finished, but reading the ARC was unfortunately unfulfilling.

The concept of gods and their harbingers is sufficiently intriguing, but it’s not expanded on in a manner that continues to hold that intrigue. In fact, it delved into quite typical and bland storytelling. I would’ve loved to see more of the gods and their abilities, but instead the main focus is on death(basically the carbon copy love interest for every fast fashion romantasy book these days).

I’ve actually seen this recent trend in publishing where gods are used as regular characters who are just like everyone else. You can call someone a god and have them be normal. But if someone is a god, they must be extraordinary. Otherwise, what is the point of having these powerful, all-knowing, legendary beings if they’re going to be grumps with high-school drama issues. Js make them royals or smth at that point. Like a god is supposed to be somewhere on the extreme scale. I want a megalomaniac or a prophesier or a mother supreme. Being a god has to mean something almost otherworldly bc they’re supposed to be from the world above(or down below). There needs to be this firm line that separates them from mortals, that wasn’t drawn in this book I fear.

I think Mortal Things is a victim of the fantasy trope “is it good or is it just the last 100 pages?” One thing I did enjoy though was the banter between Rose and Etienne. It was funny and lighthearted and just done very well overall.

3⭐️

Thank you to Netgalley and Farrar, Straus, & Giroux for providing me with an advanced reader copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

[snazzy pen ✰]

Current rating: 3 stars

When I first started this, I predicted that this would be a 4.25 star read, but as I continued, my rating kept dropping. Right when I finished reading, I was thinking of giving this 3.5 stars, but the more I thought about it, the more issues I had with this book.

While Mortal Things had a very intriguing premise, there was just so much crammed in that I was honestly confused whether this was supposed to be a standalone or a series. In the second half, it sometimes felt like the book was racing to wrap itself up. Maybe this could have benefitted from being longer? I just feel like there was no time spent to allow the reader to be immersed in the world and connect with the characters. There were also a lot of side characters, so I had to pause at times to recall who someone was. The plot felt like it was going downhill as it progressed, and I almost laughed at one reveal because of how abrupt and cliché it was.

There was definitely more focus on the romance than I would have liked, especially since I didn't really care for Rose and Étienne as a couple or as individuals. I remember seeing that one of the tropes for this book was slow burn, but I'm not sure if that was supposed to refer to Rose and Étienne getting together or the culmination of the story, because I would consider neither to be a slow burn. Some of their banter was fun, but Rose's denial over her feelings got a bit grating and repetitive. There were multiple instances of her blushing over Étienne's words/proximity, and then in a later scene, she would say she would never react to him like that. But then she just kept thinking about kissing him, how hot he was, etc. At that point, surely she can just admit that she has complicated feelings regarding Étienne instead of constantly harping over how much she doesn't like him at all.

I read this in one sitting + I'm still interested enough to read the sequel, so that's why my rating isn't lower than 3 stars. I do want to read more of Marie Lu's works (I finished the Legend series only a few months ago), so I think I might go with Warcross next, which I've heard a lot of good things about!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Olivia💜🗡️]

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for gifting me this ARC!!

I honestly don’t know how she does this but Marie Lu has once again absolutely DESTROYED me with another one of her books. And I have read my fair share of Marie Lu books. So honestly it shouldn’t have surprised me that this book wrecked me to the point where I am now just depressed. *cue me laying on my floor staring up at the ceiling*

In all seriousness, I genuinely LOVED this book! The world was so immersive and I loved Marie Lus take on incorporating gods into the mortal world. I found it so interesting how all the pieces in this world moved together and influenced each other in ways I almost couldn’t keep track of.

I also just ADORED our main character. Rose is amazing and the whole time I just wanted to put her into a box and protect her from everything and everyone. I felt that way with every character actually. I JUST LOVE THEM ALL OKAY😭😭

Can we also talk about the plot twists?!? Because they just kept on coming! There was a point in the book where my mouth was hanging open for a full minute. Safe to say that I was SHOCKED. This book was just impossible to put down(I mean I read it in like 24 hours lol) and trust that I will be FIRST in line to buy this book when it comes out🙂‍↕️(and you should be too)

[Tricia]

Wow! Loved this book! This is only my second book from Marie Lu. Loved Red City. But This Book!! Beautiful writing, very touching at times, yes I shed a few tears. Inspiring and thought provoking. I’m not a big highlighter or note taker but I have several notes of things that really meant something to me.
The different relationships are well done and completely understood. The different povs and timelines make this book interesting and I seriously didn’t want to put it down. And with the book being under 400 pages it’s a quick read and the story moves along at the perfect pace!
My absolute favorite author is Rebecca Ross and this gave me similar vibes. It’s labeled as a YA but I believe any aged lover of fantasy, with a touch of mystery and romance will love this. I will be reading anything Marie Lu puts out in the future!

[Tayler]

I think this might be my favorite book I’ve read this year.

Thank you to the Publisher for my arc!

I have never met a Marie Lu Book that I did not immediately love and this was no different. i found myself wishing for a physical copy because there were so many quotes about grief and humanity and love. I loved every single character in this book, Even if you weren't supposed to like them. there's some beauty in understanding their motivations even they are doing something bad to Rose. ( will not be giving context because its a MASSIVE spoiler) anything I want to scream about this book is a massive spoiler so I will say this, I have never found a book where I have felt seen and understood before and wanting to root for a romance that you have a sick feeling may end in a tragedy but you need the sequel asap because that ending was stressful.

If you love found family, a slow burn romance ( I feel like it was a slow burn, but most people would disagree) and a main character that you really want for her to have a genuine happy ending. This is for you.

I hope my review was coherent enough. I cried a ton and anything i want to scream about this book is a spoiler. BUT I HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

[Selene]

Thanks to the author and publisher for my arcs the opinions are my own.


While I feel like death / reaping as a profession is really popular right now this has a unique magic system and soon on it. Still not entirely sure how I feel about gods dying , but it’s important to the plot. I really enjoyed the pacing and writing, Rose is a really enjoyable character and I enjoyed reading about her.

[Caroline]

Uh yes I will be reading a forbidden academic rivals to lovers mythology fantasy especially since it’s written by the iconic Marie Lou who does not disappoint ever

[Pete Reviews Books Good]

Click the link below to see our full interview with Marie Lu! Be sure to subscribe!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKdFO...

So, full disclosure. I finished Red City in like 12 hours and FRANTICALLY rushed to request this on Netgalley, and got approved! Immediately opened it, and started reading and realized...this is NOT the sequel to Red City. Which was a let down.

And then, magically, I was lifted back up! I kept reading cause Red City absolutely ruled, and I loved the writing style and prose, not just the plot. So off I went, reading this book and before I knew it, I was so fully engrossed in the story and in love with the prose (again) and here I am, another Marie Lu book in the "read" section, and now I'm not just fiending for book 2 of the other series, but this one as well.

It's recently come to my attention that Marie Lu happens to be a fantastic author. I'm furious I waited this long to start her works, cause damn, she's 2/2 so far. This book isn't out yet, so I'm not going to go deep into spoilers or plot territory or anything, but just know that a 36 year old, die-hard fan of grimdark and all things brutal, just obsessed over a YA story by an author I'm new to reading, while I went into it expecting a different thing.

And it STILL got 5 stars. That's how fucking good Mortal Things and Marie Lu are.

Add it to the TBR, buy it when it comes out!

[Gemma R.]

Jan 16, 2026

2026 is looking when brighter!!

[Grace]

cawpile - 9.00 (4.5 stars)

What would you do if the god of death bargained for your life in your last moments? If you or the person you loved more than anything were on the brink, what would you be willing to sacrifice? For Rose Lin Fairchild, it was everything. And after a mugging gone wrong left her best friend bleeding out and nearly lifeless, she agreed to do death’s bidding in exchange for her friend’s life. Little did Rose know that she would soon be thrust into a game between the gods, and that game would turn deadly. Can Rose unravel the secrets the gods are so intent to keep? Or will death finally come for her too?

For years, Marie Lu has been one of my favorite authors, and this book is yet another masterpiece. The premise is so unique, I was immediately intrigued by the synopsis. After actually reading the book, I can safely say it is worth recommending.

One of my favorite aspects of Lu’s work is her writing. The plot of this book was quite easy to follow, even as it developed over the course of the story. While the motivations for the main characters changed as the plot developed, it never became aimless or overly complicated. I really enjoyed seeing how Rose adapted to everything thrown at her, and how her past experiences informed her decision making. The pacing never felt too fast or too slow, which I appreciated. I find that some fantasy novels tend to move things along too quickly in a manner that doesn’t make sense for the story, or the chapters just drag on with filler. With Lu’s writing, I was pulled in pretty much from the first chapter, and it felt like everything flowed so smoothly for the rest of the book. Lu writes with such maturity for a YA audience, which I felt matched the tone of the story. Some YA novels can have rather juvenile writing (which is well within their rights as they are targeting a younger audience), but I find that Lu always writes in a manner that blends the simplicity of YA with the grit and realness of New Adult. Truthfully, I could see this book being marketed to the New Adult age group, and I’m a bit surprised it wasn’t. Regardless, I felt the writing perfectly complemented the tones and themes of the story, which is not always an easy feat.

Something rather unique about this book is its use of the second person perspective. Sprinkled throughout the narrative are these sidebar chapters in which Lu utilizes the second person perspective to place the reader into the story. This is something I have never come across beyond a “choose your own adventure” type book, and I found it rather fascinating. In the midst of getting pulled into the characters and their struggles and motivations, Lu places us directly into the narrative, often as a bystander, to witness the events from our own point of view. Not as a fly on the wall of Rose’s inner monologue, but as our very own character. It was so interesting to be taken *out* of the story by placing me directly *in* the narrative. I really hope Lu continues this perspective swapping in the sequel because it was incredibly refreshing.

The last aspect of the story I’d like to commend is Lu’s ability to leave subtle foreshadowing without making any of the twists too predictable. I’ve found with stories where there’s some sort of mystery to be solved, the author makes the twist a little too obvious. It’s no fun reading a book and predicting the surprise ending. What I enjoyed about this story is that Lu leaves clues along the way that an attentive reader will pick up on and save for later. When the twist inevitably comes, they’ll say “oh yes, I thought this might happen.” But then she subverts it by giving it a completely different meaning. It’s as if Lu is distracting us by placing one piece in the puzzle while the rest falls into place just out of view. It’s really exciting as a reader to feel the accomplishment of figuring something out on my own and then having that revelation completely spun on its head. I truly hope Lu continues to leave these little bits of foreshadowing while spinning a broader web in the background.

To be utterly frank, I cannot think of much to critique about this novel. I try not to be biased given Lu is one of my favorite authors, but I have dwelled on this story for two weeks now and have not come up with anything that could be greatly improved. My only complaint is that the world-building in the first few chapters felt a tad like an information dump, but it wasn’t severe enough to pull me out of the story or find serious fault with it.

Ultimately, this is an incredibly riveting novel that introduces such rich and multidimensional characters. With a plot that twists and turns in both expected and unexpected ways, I was thoroughly engrossed through the entirety of the story. I greatly anticipate its sequel, and I look forward to securing a physical copy to add to my collection!

~~~

*A special thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for providing me with an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review!*

[Niki | nikiashreads]

Marie Lu novels have always been hit-or-miss for me. While I’ve loved Warcross, Stars and Smoke, and Red City, I was surprised to struggle with Mortal Things. The novel’s concept was neat—and matched the God/Goddess trend in publishing—but I struggled to connect with the characters and the story unfolding on the page. Much of the missing connection came down to characterization and lack of emotionality.

The driving force behind this story is its themes. I made numerous notes about the ideas Lu was playing with—those of mortality, morality, and existentialism in general. The thematic work wasn’t subtle, either. All these topics were brought up amongst Rose and the other minor characters multiple times, and usually when our main character was speaking with one of the many gods influencing the balance of the world. Despite the themes feeling in-your-face, the plot hinged on the themes’ ideas, which made it a little more forgivable to see the themes repeat within dialogue.

Another strength was the dual-timeline narration. The third person perspective backstory moments served as a fantastic tool to work dramatic irony into the story. The reader got to lean into the knowledge that Rose was missing, and it didn’t deter the strength of the reveals later in the plot.

And reveals there were! The novel’s plot hinged on those moments, and the cliffhanger maintained the plot’s momentum. However, I did find many of the reveals—specifically, around the gods and their intentions—to be predictable. Halfway through the novel, I immediately clocked Raven as being the true antagonist of the novel (although, he was suspicious from page one). Of course, the death god would manipulate wraiths into attacking the living as he attempted to remove players from the board. Of course he would do whatever it took to obtain his goal. The reveal around Raven fell the flattest for me, which was disappointing.

I wasn’t sure if this novel was supposed to be standalone or not. While the book isn’t listed as being in a duology, trilogy, or series, the ending made it clear there will be more story yet to come. Since there was so much world-building and plot in this novel, it could have easily been wrapped up within one volume, but I am curious to see how Marie Lu plays with her themes further in the future.

One last note for the romance lovers out there—I wouldn’t label this story as a slow-burn romance. For this reader, the romance did fall a bit short and felt one-sided. I can’t deny the chemistry between Rose and Étienne; however, their relationship development was overshadowed by the other plots. I was really missing the feeling of being emotionally connected to Rose and her connection with Étienne.

Overall, this story is a standard young adult novel, even as it wrestled with themes even adults may shy away from. I am curious to see how much farther Marie Lu pushes these themes and the Godly set up with a future book—or books? I suppose only time will tell.

TW: death, murder, violence

Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Kelsey | KLS Reviews]

If you're looking for a book that has Inception-like vibes, then Mortal Things is a book I'd recommend adding to your TBR. I did an immersive read with the ALC and eARC and both were great. The narrator did an amazing job bringing to life Rose, Etienne, the gods, and other characters. It was very easy to follow along with the text at 2.5x and due to this, it was a very quick read. I really hope there is a sequel, because I felt like there were so many unanswered questions with what comes next.

Mortal Things is the first book of Marie's I have read completely and I absolutely loved being immersed in this world where gods and their harbingers keep order throughout the world. However, not all is as it seems. Rose is a fascinating character and I really enjoyed seeing her become something more than just the harbinger the God of Death (aka Raven) made her to be. Rose's backstory really hit hard for me because of how personal it was. I also loved how confident she was in questioning Raven's requests. Etienne's story was also compelling and I loved seeing his character become what he was meant to be, even if he was deceptive in his actions. The ending was not what I was expecting at all but I loved it nonetheless. (I did tear up reading the final paragraphs.)

Understanding Raven's back story and how he became so lost in himself as God of Death did make me tear up a bit. I felt that he was attached to preventing horrible things from happening, but in doing so he became a monster. The God of Lies was deceptive for obvious reasons, but I did think that he pushed Rose towards understanding the truth of who she really was. Laine's character arc was quite interesting, because it was something I was not expecting at all.

The ending did tie up some loose ends, but at the same time, I need to know what happens to the Raven, Etienne, and Rose. These two know what Rose is capable of and knowing the state that the world is in, a war is definitely brewing.

Overall, highly recommend this books to readers who enjoy movies like Inception and The Illusionist, and books like Souls in Ruin, Divine Rivals, and Ruthless Vows. I also recommend it to readers who enjoy books with alternate universes where gods roam freely amongst mortals and power struggles are rampant.

A few of my favorite quotes:

"Age does not necessarily impart wisdom."

"Obsession is not always love, but love is always an obsession."

Do the gods love mortals, or do they simply love mortal things?

In order for death to exist, there must be life. In order for life to exist, there must be death.

Thank you Macmillan Children's Publishing Group | Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) for the eARC and Macmillan Audio | Macmillan Young Listeners for the ALC. All opinions are my own.

Format: ALC & eARC

[Ash ♡]

Marie Lu could write the instructions for assembling a bookshelf and I would probably call them cinematic, but Mortal Things earned my bias.

I absolutely loved Rose. Her compassion is not treated as naïveté, but as one of the greatest sources of power in the story. She has every reason to become hardened by what has been taken from her, yet she continues to care deeply about human life in a world where mortals are treated like tools. Her defiance, loyalty, and refusal to surrender her ability to choose made her such a strong fmc and watching her finally question the story she has been forced to live was so incredibly satisfying.

And Étienne? *bows down.* He has that effortless charisma that makes every interaction feel like it contains at least three secrets. He is clever, dangerous, morally questionable, and far more emotionally complicated than his allegiance to the god of Lies initially suggests. The irony of Étienne being the person who repeatedly offers Rose truths, even when they could cost him everything, was not lost on me. Their chemistry is immediate, but the mistrust and competing loyalties make every softer moment between them feel stolen.

What made their relationship even more compelling was its contrast with Rose’s bond to Raven.

Raven is fascinating because I can understand the grief that shaped him while also recognizing that he is probably too far gone to be saved. He still believes he understands humanity, but immortality has distorted his emotions into something almost unrecognizable. His connection with Rose can feel tender, intimate, and even romantic, yet every gentle moment carries the reminder that he has controlled her life from the shadows. He cares for her, but his version of care leaves no room for her autonomy. That blurred line between love and possession made him equally tragic and horrifying.

Étienne lies for Rose while Raven constructs lies around her. Étienne is willing to risk everything to preserve her choices, while Raven would take those choices away because he believes he knows what is best. That difference is everything.

Between Rose’s evolution, her complicated friendship with Laine, the layered mythology, and betrayals that completely rearranged what I thought I understood, this felt unmistakably Marie Lu. Cinematic, emotionally sharp, and full of characters who cannot be reduced to heroes or villains.

Also, Étienne saying, “If Raven comes for you, he will find me instead.”

Yes. Yes to all of that.