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When evil finds you, do you fight or flee?Serena is a world class necromancer, a self-proclaimed master of the undead. But when someone starts killing the remaining witches, she must fight for her life against an enemy that is immune to the dark arts.

With only her undead companion by her side, she must discover the unstoppable evil that is killing her kind and find a way to avoid the fate shared by her spellcasting companions.

There is a new player in town. Stronger than anyone she’s ever seen, and even with her command of the undead, she may not last the night.

Experience this fun and thrilling ride in the life of Serena as she communes with dark forces, screws over evil, and raises Hell. Buy it now, before the darkness comes. Seriously, it may already be too late...

63 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 19, 2019

4 people are currently reading
22 people want to read

About the author

David J. Phifer

16 books11 followers

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5 stars
13 (56%)
4 stars
7 (30%)
3 stars
2 (8%)
2 stars
1 (4%)
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0 (0%)
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Profile Image for Montzalee Wittmann.
5,150 reviews2,335 followers
June 18, 2021
The Binding: The Dark Forever Prelude
By David Phifer

This is such an awesome book! It hooked me from the first sentence! A witch/necromancer brings back a guy she killed to help her get back an item he stole from her. Things get real crazy when other more powerful magic users show up before them. The sociopath magical users are called Forevers and are killing off witches that can't perform the spells they want. Now they want out witch.
The witch of the story is crazy too! But somehow likeably! Great prequel! Loved it!
Profile Image for rebecca | velvet opus.
154 reviews59 followers
September 17, 2020
Oh boy, this book was not for me. The novella follows Serena Acoster, necromancer and all-round badass. She cusses a lot, has no empathy and says things like “Don’t get me wrong, I like sex. I am a very dirty girl” and is turned on by men despising her. It feels more like a man’s fantasy because her character was one-note. And that’s not my cup of tea at all. I can see the potential, but it’s not for me.

Thanks to the author for a review copy via StoryOrigin
Profile Image for Cath.
950 reviews17 followers
March 19, 2020
This is the prequel to the Forever People Paradox Saga and has a main character called Serena, who is a talented necromancer and witch. She lives in a world where she can control the undead and make use of them as she wants. Her latest dead body is a man called Ben, who she killed and is now using to help her get back something he took from her, that she wants back badly! A gem with strong magical powers, which she should be able to use to create some really powerful spells. Only problem is that she isn’t the only one that wants it!

Someone is hunting down all the witches in town and she needs to get out before they find her. She needs to find out who is responsible for the deaths of her fellow witches, but her guess that they may be a Forever person, makes even her afraid. They can’t be killed and magic has no effect on them. All she can do is run, but if they are coming for her, they will find her wherever she goes. Someone is looking for a strong witch to do a very specific spell, to summon immense power for themselves, but there hasn’t anyone in decades that could do this spell. Unfortunately, Serena thinks she may be the only witch she knows with a chance to perform this spell and her latest acquisition may be just what is needed.

This is just a short story to start off the series and stops just as the action gets interesting! Having a female necromancer as the main character is an unusual choice and leaves you somewhat blindsided by her violent nature in parts of the story. She may be a light or dark witch, but seems to know magic from both sides. An interesting start and I shall definitely look out for the rest of the series and hopefully a bit longer read to come. I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.
Profile Image for Chris Johnson.
Author 14 books58 followers
June 19, 2020
I loved reading this. Serena’s sarcasm is splendid and she’s ready for almost anything. Fantastic antiheroine!
Profile Image for Katy Lohman.
484 reviews18 followers
June 22, 2020
I was intrigued by the cover blurb. Seeing that chapter one's title was Bring Out Your Dead took this from a to-read book to a to-read-right-now book.

Am I glad I did. This book is like a roller coaster of blood and fear. We meet our heroine (heroine? antiheroine? main character posed as a heroine but really a villain? I'm so confused) Serena as she's raising the dead man who stole something very important, and magical, from her. She wasn't about a trifling thing like death stop her; she's a necromancer. After she gets him to confess, he leads her to the gem's hiding-place, and that's where things start going at top speed.

Serena is an excellent (terrifying) main character. If her blistering tongue doesn't get you, she's got some spells you really, really don't want cast on you. Little things like morals don't get in her way. She can tear down a goon so hard, he pouts and whines.

Unfortunately, for her, she's going to face someone even more powerful than her. What will she do when they meet?

*I received an ARC for an honest review. I am being honest. There wasn't anything to critique. It's a great story, and I want to learn more. Like, who, or what, are The Forever People, and why are they scarier than demons? Who is Serena's father? How did Serena become the person she is?*
435 reviews6 followers
May 12, 2020
Dead isn’t what it used to be.

Serena Acosta is a necromancer witch who wants the Eye of Gideon back. Benjamine White took it and hid it. When Serena commands him to get it, he leads her to where he left it. The Eye is gone.

Follow Serena and Benny as they race to find the mob boss, Jerico, and Benny’s kidnapped daughter, Melanie, before Quentin erases them.

This wise-cracking witch has a foul mouth, but what else would you expect in her line of work. Watch out for the undead, zombies, and the Forever People.

I am reviewing a free ARC copy.
Profile Image for Brian Mcclain.
351 reviews10 followers
June 11, 2020
This was a solid introduction with a darker more noir take on urban fantasy. Serena is a necromancer with a bad attitude, she's out take care of herself which means knowing when something she can't kill comes calling. We get a good glimpse of the powers she has, and the knowledge she carries, and most importantly in a story like this the wit and character she has. There's two threads of story in this, which give the reader a solid understanding of where Serena fits in the hierarchy of things. Entertaining and snarky!
Profile Image for Ulla Bisgaard.
180 reviews
August 23, 2020
An antihero you will come to love

The Binding is a short story and a great prequel to the forever people series. It will give you an introduction, so you can see if this is the series for you. Here you won’t find romance or heroes, but an antihero you will come to love. She is a rough, cursing, nasty woman, but has principles that she sticks too before she goes all bad. I will recommend this series to people who like darker stories and antiheroes.
The narrators did a good job, with a flawless interpretation that brought the book alive.
171 reviews1 follower
June 21, 2020
Serena is a necromancer who re-animates a man that she sent in search if an item. While searching for the item they find that there are forevers in town that are killing witches. It seems that Serena may have trouble soon. You have to read the story to find out the particulars. This is a funny, witch book. I was given a free copy of this book at my request and this is my honest review.
Profile Image for Jeanne.
930 reviews
July 22, 2020
The Binding, a prelude to The Dark Forever series, is an interesting fiction fantasy novella. A necromancer by trade, the protagonist Serena Acosta is far from lovable in this tale, however, you still want to find out what happens. A fun, short read. I received a copy of this book for an honest review.
Profile Image for Cheryl .
2,358 reviews80 followers
January 19, 2025
This is a 4.25 🌟 read rounded ⬇️ to 4 🌟.

Another snarky, entertaining read from David J. Phifer (because let's face it , he's the king of snark) although I'm undecided about the main character in this series. I just didn't gel with her even though she is obviously kickarse - maybe because she's such a bitch and so full of herself? 🤷‍♀️
Profile Image for Rowan Creech.
295 reviews2 followers
October 1, 2020
This was an interesting book. You have Serena, the main character as a strong lead full of snark and strong will. I think she is a good representation of the modern-day woman as a necromancer in a tough world. The book is full of action and is entertaining.
Profile Image for John McDonnell.
501 reviews9 followers
November 22, 2021
Purchased without realising how short it was. Not sure what to think but may give the main storyline a go in time.
32 reviews
September 27, 2019
Looking forward to more of the series

Engaging writing lots of suspense and surprises around every corner! Not generally a fiction fantasy reader but I’m interested in more as a result of reading David’s work! Nice job!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews

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