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Reapers of Veltuur #0.5
Assassin Reaper
Kill. Collect. Obey.
Such is the life of a Reaper...
For years, Aulow has served the underrealm as a Reaper.
The Councilspirits tell her who to kill and—although she sometimes feels guilty about it—she obeys her orders dutifully. No questions asked. Well, maybe one question: why doesn't she remember anything from before she became a Reaper?
Today, she just might find out.
When a stranger from Aulow's mortal past shows up during one of her kill assignments, she's finally able to ask the questions that have always plagued her: who was she, how did she get caught up with the dark business of the underrealm, and who is this beautiful stranger that's just arrived in her life?
But perhaps there was a reason the underrealm kept her memories suppressed...
Assassin Reaper is the prequel to the Reapers of Veltuur series, a dark high fantasy adventure with reapers/assassins, bandits, prophets, and enough death magic to keep the entire mortal realm quaking with fear. Oh, and a sprinkling of an LGBT romance that'll melt your heart! If you loved The Nevernight Chronicles, The Shadows Between Us, Reign of the Fallen, or books by Jenna Moreci and Laura Thalassa, you will devour this ethereal saga.
Such is the life of a Reaper...
For years, Aulow has served the underrealm as a Reaper.
The Councilspirits tell her who to kill and—although she sometimes feels guilty about it—she obeys her orders dutifully. No questions asked. Well, maybe one question: why doesn't she remember anything from before she became a Reaper?
Today, she just might find out.
When a stranger from Aulow's mortal past shows up during one of her kill assignments, she's finally able to ask the questions that have always plagued her: who was she, how did she get caught up with the dark business of the underrealm, and who is this beautiful stranger that's just arrived in her life?
But perhaps there was a reason the underrealm kept her memories suppressed...
Assassin Reaper is the prequel to the Reapers of Veltuur series, a dark high fantasy adventure with reapers/assassins, bandits, prophets, and enough death magic to keep the entire mortal realm quaking with fear. Oh, and a sprinkling of an LGBT romance that'll melt your heart! If you loved The Nevernight Chronicles, The Shadows Between Us, Reign of the Fallen, or books by Jenna Moreci and Laura Thalassa, you will devour this ethereal saga.
Unknown Binding
Published June 21, 2020
9 people are currently reading
182 people want to read
About the author
Jessaca Willis
31 books258 followersJESSACA is a fantasy writer with an inclination toward the dark, epic, and romance sub-genres. She draws inspiration from books like the Nevernight Chronicles & ACOTAR, videogames like Dark Souls III, and television shows like Game of Thrones and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
She is a self-proclaimed nerd who loves cosplay, video games, and comics, and if you live in the PNW, you just might see her at one of the local comic conventions in one of her favorite RWBY cosplays!
She is a self-proclaimed nerd who loves cosplay, video games, and comics, and if you live in the PNW, you just might see her at one of the local comic conventions in one of her favorite RWBY cosplays!
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
March 23, 2021
Sometimes writers say that a story, or its characters, take on a life of their own. I've never quite experienced that to the fullest extent, mostly because I'm obsessed with plotting everything out—because when I don't, and I hit a wall, it feels impossible to overcome—but I experienced that with Assassin Reaper.
The main character, Aulow, is a supporting character in the rest of the series. She's the leader of a community of really kind-hearted people. She has pumpkin-red hair, and a gentleness to her that puts even bears at ease.
And that's about as much as I knew about her or her backstory when I started writing Assassin Reaper.
But this book—or I suppose short story—surprised me! The moment I began writing, I started uncovering who Aulow really was: a girl trapped in the underrealm, dreaming of bigger (and brighter) things. She dreams of joining humanity in the mortal realm. She longs for being able to see the clear, blue skies whenever she wants, to dance, to sing, to have fun.
She's kind of like Ariel from The Little Mermaid, now that I think about it.
But none of that is possible.
No Reaper has ever left their servitude to the underrealm once they've arrived.
At least, none that she's ever heard of...
I really hope you guys enjoy this one! I think the story is really interesting, sweet, kind of dark—but with Aulow as the character from which we see the world, she's always able to bring out the light—and a quick, addicting read.
You can read Assassin Reaper for free by joining my newsletter, or you can buy it for a buck here.
And, if you finish it and find yourself craving more—which you most certainly will because Aulow's story is so wonderful—don't forget that the story continues in Soul of the Crow!
The main character, Aulow, is a supporting character in the rest of the series. She's the leader of a community of really kind-hearted people. She has pumpkin-red hair, and a gentleness to her that puts even bears at ease.
And that's about as much as I knew about her or her backstory when I started writing Assassin Reaper.
But this book—or I suppose short story—surprised me! The moment I began writing, I started uncovering who Aulow really was: a girl trapped in the underrealm, dreaming of bigger (and brighter) things. She dreams of joining humanity in the mortal realm. She longs for being able to see the clear, blue skies whenever she wants, to dance, to sing, to have fun.
She's kind of like Ariel from The Little Mermaid, now that I think about it.
But none of that is possible.
No Reaper has ever left their servitude to the underrealm once they've arrived.
At least, none that she's ever heard of...
I really hope you guys enjoy this one! I think the story is really interesting, sweet, kind of dark—but with Aulow as the character from which we see the world, she's always able to bring out the light—and a quick, addicting read.
You can read Assassin Reaper for free by joining my newsletter, or you can buy it for a buck here.
And, if you finish it and find yourself craving more—which you most certainly will because Aulow's story is so wonderful—don't forget that the story continues in Soul of the Crow!
October 30, 2021
♠️ A quick, short and fun read
♠️Aulow turned into a reaper with no memories of her human life
♠️ Encounters someone who brings back her memories and now she wants to have a normal life
♠️ Good world building
♠️ I would have liked to know more about the councilspirits and how they hold so much power but maybe that is something covered in the next book
♠️Aulow turned into a reaper with no memories of her human life
♠️ Encounters someone who brings back her memories and now she wants to have a normal life
♠️ Good world building
♠️ I would have liked to know more about the councilspirits and how they hold so much power but maybe that is something covered in the next book
August 14, 2020
Great New Fantasy Story
Intriguing prequel to the Reapers of Veltuur series. In this story, the reader is introduced to Aulow a Reaper with a backstory she cannot remember. This is an exciting start to a new series I am definitely going to continue!
Intriguing prequel to the Reapers of Veltuur series. In this story, the reader is introduced to Aulow a Reaper with a backstory she cannot remember. This is an exciting start to a new series I am definitely going to continue!
June 24, 2020
„Assassin Reaper. Reapers of Veltuur: A prequel” introduces the reader to the rich and dark world of Veltuur and the Kingdoms of Tayaraan.
Reaper Aulow is a former young woman turned to a reaper years ago, who has no memories whatsoever of her previous human life. In the Kingdoms of Tayaraan all kinds of killings are forbidden, all deaths are sanctioned by the Councilspirits and carry out by the Reapers, who aided by their crows cross the veil from the Realm of Veltuur to the Kingdoms of Tayaraan to implement each sanctioned death.
As Aulow does every week in Newhaven to see to the kill of the fish in the fishermen nets, some assignments are routine (not easy, never easy to take a life, no matter how lawful it seems to be), some other are the stuff of nightmare and sadness, an infinite circle to collect the souls of the death and bring them to Veltuur. It is indeed in one of this routine assignments where Aulow is confronted with an unexpected discovery about her former life, a discovery with unseen consequences.
Jessaca Willis has created a full new fantasy world, rich, dark, with perfectly carry out gothic elements, with reminiscences of Viking and old Greek lore, strange and appealing at the very same time. The story does exactly what a good prequel should do, offer a good tale, introduce a new set of actors and settings and awake interest on the upcoming series.
Reaper Aulow is a former young woman turned to a reaper years ago, who has no memories whatsoever of her previous human life. In the Kingdoms of Tayaraan all kinds of killings are forbidden, all deaths are sanctioned by the Councilspirits and carry out by the Reapers, who aided by their crows cross the veil from the Realm of Veltuur to the Kingdoms of Tayaraan to implement each sanctioned death.
As Aulow does every week in Newhaven to see to the kill of the fish in the fishermen nets, some assignments are routine (not easy, never easy to take a life, no matter how lawful it seems to be), some other are the stuff of nightmare and sadness, an infinite circle to collect the souls of the death and bring them to Veltuur. It is indeed in one of this routine assignments where Aulow is confronted with an unexpected discovery about her former life, a discovery with unseen consequences.
Jessaca Willis has created a full new fantasy world, rich, dark, with perfectly carry out gothic elements, with reminiscences of Viking and old Greek lore, strange and appealing at the very same time. The story does exactly what a good prequel should do, offer a good tale, introduce a new set of actors and settings and awake interest on the upcoming series.
October 10, 2020
This is a short prequel to the Reapers of Veltuur series, although it does not have to be read first to understand what is going on in the series. This is the story of Aulow's escape from being a Reaper, and while I enjoyed it, I would have loved even more to the story! I wanted to see how she found out more about her powers, how she found others like her, and how she founded the Guardian camp.
June 24, 2020
This is my first read by this particular author and I immediately found myself drawn to the main character. I am moving forward with the series eager to see where the author will take us!
December 27, 2020
An intriguing start which leaves many questions to be answered as the series progresses. Good world building and nice use of diversity. Looking forward to more.
July 27, 2025
4.75 ⭐
I was shocked at how invested I was in this prequel but from the beginning sentence, I was hooked.
Aulow is a Reaper, a conduit for the underrealm who kills and transports souls. She increasingly grows disenfranchised with her role and knows that she is meant for more but is stifled by the Council and her assignments. One fateful mission leads to her bumping into a friend from her previous life.
Assassin Reaper was quick but good, making me want to dive into the full series. The characters are well written and the world-building was descriptive and alluring. A definite read for fantasy lovers.
I was shocked at how invested I was in this prequel but from the beginning sentence, I was hooked.
Aulow is a Reaper, a conduit for the underrealm who kills and transports souls. She increasingly grows disenfranchised with her role and knows that she is meant for more but is stifled by the Council and her assignments. One fateful mission leads to her bumping into a friend from her previous life.
Assassin Reaper was quick but good, making me want to dive into the full series. The characters are well written and the world-building was descriptive and alluring. A definite read for fantasy lovers.
November 8, 2021
I read this book after the second one. It's narrated through Aulow’s perspective; she's a secondary character in the series and in this prequel, there’s an explanation about how she ended up where we met her in book one.
It’s a short book but there’s a lot of information about the reapers, guardians and Councilspirits. I really like the characters, can’t wait to read more about what happens to them in the third book of the trilogy.
It’s a short book but there’s a lot of information about the reapers, guardians and Councilspirits. I really like the characters, can’t wait to read more about what happens to them in the third book of the trilogy.
October 21, 2022
Is a Reaper REALLY an assassin?
This is quite an original take on how one becomes a Reaper as well as what the duties are.
I LOVE ‘literation – the author weaves her word play throughout the tale.
‘She’s hazelnut, and honey, and home.
Sugarcane, strawberries, and safety.’
A solid ending and Aulow asks TONS of questions – the answers to which we’ll find in ‘Soul of the Crow’, ‘Heart of the Sungem’, and ‘Fate of the Vulture’.
This is quite an original take on how one becomes a Reaper as well as what the duties are.
I LOVE ‘literation – the author weaves her word play throughout the tale.
‘She’s hazelnut, and honey, and home.
Sugarcane, strawberries, and safety.’
A solid ending and Aulow asks TONS of questions – the answers to which we’ll find in ‘Soul of the Crow’, ‘Heart of the Sungem’, and ‘Fate of the Vulture’.
January 17, 2023
Received as a review copy from Story Origin, this is an honest review. This fast read is a visual painted masterpiece as you feel as if you could step into Reaper's Aulow haunting dark underworld controlled by the councilspirits. There's this beautiful mystery surrounding Aulow and her past that she wishes she could remember; and when mysterious woman enters her life and begins to affect the Reaper's job, Aulow will have make a sacrifice for the truth. Highly recommended.
February 1, 2023
A prequel that will have readers intrigued and ready to jump into a series that will no doubt be filled with action, lively characters and plots that will keep the reader entertained.
This is a short read that packs a great story. The reader will not be disappointed by the world building, characters and plot.
This is a short read that packs a great story. The reader will not be disappointed by the world building, characters and plot.
Read
August 14, 2020Intriguing prequel to the Reapers of Veltuur series. In this story, the reader is introduced to Aulow a Reaper with a backstory she cannot remember. This is an exciting start to a new series I am definitely going to continue!
July 28, 2024
I received this prequel short story through a BookFunnel offer. I hadn't read anything with this type of premise before, and I think it would be a pretty good series. This one needed some polishing, though, so that might continue into the rest of the series, too.
August 3, 2022
Good story
This short story is a good introduction into the Reaper world with Aurlow's story. Left me with so many questions about this world and definitely wanting more.
This short story is a good introduction into the Reaper world with Aurlow's story. Left me with so many questions about this world and definitely wanting more.
April 21, 2024
Great short story really sets up the story for the series.
Can't wait to continue the series.
Can't wait to continue the series.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews