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Star Eater
All martyrdoms are difficult.
Elfreda Raughn will avoid pregnancy if it kills her, and one way or another, it will kill her. Though she’s able to stomach her gruesome day-to-day duties, the reality of preserving the Sisterhood of Aytrium’s magical bloodline horrifies her. She wants out, whatever the cost.
So when a shadowy cabal approaches Elfreda with an offer of escape, she leaps at the opportunity. As their spy, she gains access to the highest reaches of the Sisterhood, and enters a glittering world of opulent parties, subtle deceptions, and unexpected bloodshed.
A phantasmagorical indictment of hereditary power, Star Eater takes readers deep into a perilous and uncanny world where even the most powerful women are forced to choose what sacrifices they will make, so that they might have any choice at all.
Elfreda Raughn will avoid pregnancy if it kills her, and one way or another, it will kill her. Though she’s able to stomach her gruesome day-to-day duties, the reality of preserving the Sisterhood of Aytrium’s magical bloodline horrifies her. She wants out, whatever the cost.
So when a shadowy cabal approaches Elfreda with an offer of escape, she leaps at the opportunity. As their spy, she gains access to the highest reaches of the Sisterhood, and enters a glittering world of opulent parties, subtle deceptions, and unexpected bloodshed.
A phantasmagorical indictment of hereditary power, Star Eater takes readers deep into a perilous and uncanny world where even the most powerful women are forced to choose what sacrifices they will make, so that they might have any choice at all.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published June 22, 2021
128 people are currently reading
16153 people want to read
About the author
Kerstin Hall
11 books368 followersKERSTIN HALL is the author of Asunder, The Border Keeper, Second Spear, and Star Eater. She lives in Cape Town, South Africa.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 604 reviews
February 7, 2023
Star Eater’s premise stalled me in my tracks. It sounded, simultaneously, like nothing I’ve ever read and everything I never knew I needed: a story about an order of bureaucratic priestesses who practice cannibalistic magic in service of sisterhood. Also…zombies (with a deliciously hideous twist!). I was viciously intrigued.
Star Eater lives up to its billing, in the most fucked up and delicious of ways. It astonishes and harrows to the bone, all at once. We are plunged, from the outset, into a world where cannibalism is a hereditary ritual, borne out of rueful necessity more than anything else, an ostensibly sufficient sacrifice in exchange for the powerful lace-magic that preserves Aytrium. But that isn’t the only price. This is the trinity of a priestess’ fears: pregnancy, Haunts (i.e. zombies), and rot. The first (pregnancy) is carefully wrapped up in towering words of honor and duty and sacrifice, but is in truth “the beginning of the end”. The second (Haunts) is the vicious product of a renegade Sister. The third (rot) is more awful than death.
Star Eater has murder, martyrdom, and macabre political games: a necessary recipe for any vibrant and memorable tale. Throughout it all, the novel ponders very weighty questions: about lineage and power—power as a superlative performance, like a story well-told, power as corruption and gore, its cost and the question of who must pay it—and about the atavistic horror and silence of women’s inheritances and the virtuoso illusion of choice which can be, like any successful illusion, carefully unraveled.
Elfreda’s journey is the novel’s deep, bloody heart, and the unsettling specificities of her struggle against a system that ties her to it by chains that supersede both her will and her heart amount to a haunting illustration of how society’s memory—the stories we enshrine as something gleaming and shining and those we shake off as lies and rumors—can contribute to dangerous systematic misunderstandings. In that sense, Star Eater works as a brutal, sobering jolt of self-awareness, and an invitation to take a long hard look at the narratives we mechanically, unconsciously, and recklessly allow ourselves to follow and at the poisonous constructs within which we allow ourselves to live and fester. The slow unravelling of Elfreda’s certainties throughout the novel—like a hand shoving away cobwebs—is the novel’s most rewarding experience, and it empties Elfreda out of everything but an ineradicable desire to finally consider what she wants, what kind of person she might be when she isn’t bending like the stem of a flower for someone else’s will.
That said, I do have a real quibble with Star Eater which, despite my overall enjoyment, put a noticeable dent in my memory of it. For a novel set in a queer-normative world and in engagement with gender politics, the stark absence of trans and gender non-conforming people in both the world-building and plot is one that I stepped out of the story itching over, feeling bereft of answers to questions that weren’t even asked in the first place. I feel personally more and more out of charity for—and suspicious of—stories that treat queerness as the norm but markedly exclude trans and NB identities in their world-building. This inclusion is a missed opportunity to add sorely-needed depth to the novel’s gender politics, and would have filled many of the gaps pockmarked through the world-building.
All in all, this was an enjoyable read, with an origina premise and a (mostly) great execution.
Star Eater lives up to its billing, in the most fucked up and delicious of ways. It astonishes and harrows to the bone, all at once. We are plunged, from the outset, into a world where cannibalism is a hereditary ritual, borne out of rueful necessity more than anything else, an ostensibly sufficient sacrifice in exchange for the powerful lace-magic that preserves Aytrium. But that isn’t the only price. This is the trinity of a priestess’ fears: pregnancy, Haunts (i.e. zombies), and rot. The first (pregnancy) is carefully wrapped up in towering words of honor and duty and sacrifice, but is in truth “the beginning of the end”. The second (Haunts) is the vicious product of a renegade Sister. The third (rot) is more awful than death.
Star Eater has murder, martyrdom, and macabre political games: a necessary recipe for any vibrant and memorable tale. Throughout it all, the novel ponders very weighty questions: about lineage and power—power as a superlative performance, like a story well-told, power as corruption and gore, its cost and the question of who must pay it—and about the atavistic horror and silence of women’s inheritances and the virtuoso illusion of choice which can be, like any successful illusion, carefully unraveled.
Elfreda’s journey is the novel’s deep, bloody heart, and the unsettling specificities of her struggle against a system that ties her to it by chains that supersede both her will and her heart amount to a haunting illustration of how society’s memory—the stories we enshrine as something gleaming and shining and those we shake off as lies and rumors—can contribute to dangerous systematic misunderstandings. In that sense, Star Eater works as a brutal, sobering jolt of self-awareness, and an invitation to take a long hard look at the narratives we mechanically, unconsciously, and recklessly allow ourselves to follow and at the poisonous constructs within which we allow ourselves to live and fester. The slow unravelling of Elfreda’s certainties throughout the novel—like a hand shoving away cobwebs—is the novel’s most rewarding experience, and it empties Elfreda out of everything but an ineradicable desire to finally consider what she wants, what kind of person she might be when she isn’t bending like the stem of a flower for someone else’s will.
That said, I do have a real quibble with Star Eater which, despite my overall enjoyment, put a noticeable dent in my memory of it. For a novel set in a queer-normative world and in engagement with gender politics, the stark absence of trans and gender non-conforming people in both the world-building and plot is one that I stepped out of the story itching over, feeling bereft of answers to questions that weren’t even asked in the first place. I feel personally more and more out of charity for—and suspicious of—stories that treat queerness as the norm but markedly exclude trans and NB identities in their world-building. This inclusion is a missed opportunity to add sorely-needed depth to the novel’s gender politics, and would have filled many of the gaps pockmarked through the world-building.
All in all, this was an enjoyable read, with an origina premise and a (mostly) great execution.
August 21, 2021
3.5 stars
Well, Hall proved you can still be innovative in fantasy. I doubt you've read anything like this book.
- A sisterhood running the government
- They eat their mothers' flesh to get "lace"
- A piece of land the Eater basically cut off the ground and sent it way up
- Bi women run things.
- If they have sex with men, the latter will become zombie-like. They only grow stronger, gradually losing their humanity. Since they're immortals, they are pushed over the edge of their world.. literally.
- Did I mention the lace is their magic? Like spiderman?
Well, Hall proved you can still be innovative in fantasy. I doubt you've read anything like this book.
- A sisterhood running the government
- They eat their mothers' flesh to get "lace"
- A piece of land the Eater basically cut off the ground and sent it way up
- Bi women run things.
- If they have sex with men, the latter will become zombie-like. They only grow stronger, gradually losing their humanity. Since they're immortals, they are pushed over the edge of their world.. literally.
- Did I mention the lace is their magic? Like spiderman?
The book tells the story of Elfreda who is still relatively new to this world, her mother died last year -early for people her age- and her life changed since then. Now she’s older than many of the acolytes. Hall sets up the “atmosphere” of the book at first. The story actually starts when another nun convinces Elfreda to spy for her, in return, she’ll ensure she avoids the next Renewal. And El would do anything to avoid having a convict having sex with her (they do need kids after all). But soon it becomes obvious that stakes are much higher than she imagined and there are dangerous secrets and conspiracies at work.
The Star Eater is an adult fantasy book told from Elfreda’s pov but using the third person. It was captivating from the start. I honestly had no idea what’s going on at first but one needs to be patient because while everything will make sense eventually, it was a slow process. I didn’t mind though.
As for the characters, El is devoted to her friends and always questioning her reality. The secondary characters were interesting and I liked many of them. They played an important part in this book. While the characters were developed, I still couldn’t connect with them. I honestly didn’t care much about them beyond the usual “you want the heroes to succeed”. I also didn’t feel the romance between the heroine and the love interest. I only saw them as friends. Didn’t see the sparks.
Another issue I had with this book was that creating just a crazy world-building requires more than the normal amount of explanations. And while there was no info dump here, I still have many questions. I know for certain that they won’t be answered in the next book (if there was one). It also took me a long time to finish, some parts were boring.
Mostly. I don't know if it'll have a sequel, but there is no cliffhanger and the ending was wrapped up in a way it would be okay if you read it on its own. I think though that it needs a sequel since there's much-left unexplored in this world especially, after that ending.
In sum, this was an interesting read, the characters were well-written, and the ending was satisfying, kind of. The world-building needed a bit more development or at least some questions needed to be answered. I mostly enjoyed reading The Star Eater nonetheless, its quality surpassed most arcs I read lately.
Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the arc in exchange for an honest review.
June 22, 2021
I never thought I would say this but I wanted more cannibalism and religion from this cannibal nun zombie story. Yup, that’s a sentence I just typed.
This is a story about a world that follows a matriarchal society with a sisterhood that has a bizarre magic system with bizarre repercussions. In order to maintain their power, known as lace, they need to consume the flesh of other sisters (ie their moms, etc.) There’s also this whole thing where they have to continue the bloodline but infect any men they have sex with with a zombie creating STI. So there’s that. And then some political upheaval and revolution from the ranks, ya know, the works. Yeah, I have no clue how to describe this book.
So all that being said, most of the things that were intriguing to me as a reader (the horrific stuff) wasn’t on page very much and most of the story is just political drama amongst the sisters and from the rest of society. I had a hard time keeping track of who was who a majority of the time and I realized partway through the book that this was largely because there are almost zero physical descriptions of anyone. I believe this was done on purpose to dehumanize a lot of the characters but it made me hard to picture everyone and keep all the characters straight.
I like the concept of this world and how it plays on heredity power in all ways symbolically and literally; physical, magical, emotional, societal. The act of having to eat your mother to continue your line of power has a lot of impact and I would have liked to explore that whole system a bit more. I didn’t care much for the main character though, she felt very naive in a spoiled way. Which is true and accurate but it didn’t seem like she learned or grew much without things directly affecting her. As in, if something wouldn’t impact her personally, I don’t think she would have come to the realizations she did. And that feels very YA to me. In fact most of the characters felt very YA to me just set in an adult fantasy/dystopian/sci-fi world. I would be interested to see what I think about this retreading it in the future to see if I take more away now that I understand it. 3/5 stars.
This is a story about a world that follows a matriarchal society with a sisterhood that has a bizarre magic system with bizarre repercussions. In order to maintain their power, known as lace, they need to consume the flesh of other sisters (ie their moms, etc.) There’s also this whole thing where they have to continue the bloodline but infect any men they have sex with with a zombie creating STI. So there’s that. And then some political upheaval and revolution from the ranks, ya know, the works. Yeah, I have no clue how to describe this book.
So all that being said, most of the things that were intriguing to me as a reader (the horrific stuff) wasn’t on page very much and most of the story is just political drama amongst the sisters and from the rest of society. I had a hard time keeping track of who was who a majority of the time and I realized partway through the book that this was largely because there are almost zero physical descriptions of anyone. I believe this was done on purpose to dehumanize a lot of the characters but it made me hard to picture everyone and keep all the characters straight.
I like the concept of this world and how it plays on heredity power in all ways symbolically and literally; physical, magical, emotional, societal. The act of having to eat your mother to continue your line of power has a lot of impact and I would have liked to explore that whole system a bit more. I didn’t care much for the main character though, she felt very naive in a spoiled way. Which is true and accurate but it didn’t seem like she learned or grew much without things directly affecting her. As in, if something wouldn’t impact her personally, I don’t think she would have come to the realizations she did. And that feels very YA to me. In fact most of the characters felt very YA to me just set in an adult fantasy/dystopian/sci-fi world. I would be interested to see what I think about this retreading it in the future to see if I take more away now that I understand it. 3/5 stars.
December 10, 2022
In a Nutshell: Weird but imaginative. Not my kind of book at all! Hence, don’t judge the book by this review.
Story Synopsis:
Where the book worked for me:
😍 Loved the concept of the ‘Haunts’, though they spooked me out!
😍 I’m a bit fed up of seeing ‘Woman-good; Man-bad’ trope in fiction. This book turns this on its head. I ended up feeling sorry for the men in this story. It was an interesting take on gender reversal.
😍 There are some nice characters in the book. Finn’s character is the most interesting, but there are a few other secondary characters that make an impact as well.
😍 I liked the power struggles depicted in the book. The plot nicely highlights how things aren’t easy even for those at the top, and that sacrifices are a natural part of success.
Where the book left me with mixed feelings:
😐 The sisterhood’s magic seems to be somewhat like that of Spiderman, with ’lace’ instead of webs. Though I wish this had been described better in the book, it was still a good idea. The author certainly has imagination.
😐 The represented gender and sexual identities follow contrary paths. While homosexuality and bisexuality seem to be okay and acceptable, the gender normativity when it comes to men and women is almost traditional, with men being the villains in almost all cases. The book could have been pathbreaking in terms of gender rep, but sticks to the tried-and-tested.
😐 The first quarter or so is slow-paced but things pick up after that. So you do need to keep your patience at the start or else you will keep wondering where the heck the plot is going. The writing is quite smooth otherwise.
😐 The world building is minimal when it comes to the location and the intrinsic details of the functioning of the Sisterhood and the society in general. The fantastical elements are highlighted without any detailing. Basically, I enjoyed the magical bits (except for what’s coming up in the next point) but I wanted to know a lot more about them.
Where the book DID NOT WORK for me:
😬 A book about cannibalistic nuns will never ever work for me. What makes it worse is knowing what exactly they consume to increase the strength of their magic. I am NOT the kind of reader who will willingly pick up a book with cannibal characters. Goes without saying that this ended up in my kitty by mistake.
(At the same time, here’s the odd part: I could read most of those scenes without feeling grossed out. I hope you understand why this is a flaw. If someone such as I could go through those episodes without freaking out, the writing missed its mark somewhere.)
😬 It was a bit too weird for my liking, especially when Elfreda suffered from hallucinations. I’m not a fan of surreal writing.
As a debut work, the book certainly has promise. It shows ‘womanpower’ in a dark and dangerous way, highlighting that a reversal isn’t the solution. This is distinctly YA in its approach, so maybe it will click with YA SFF lovers better. The author has potential, and perhaps with experience, the author will convert her vivid imagination in even better works. But I’ll never know if she brings it to greater fruition because I am not the right reader for this content. One book about cannibals is more than enough in a lifetime.
2 stars from me. But remember it wasn’t my kind of book. Take a call based on your tolerance for cannibalism and gore.
I received a complimentary copy of this book at my request and these are my honest thoughts about it.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
Story Synopsis:
Elfreda Raughn is the youngest acolyte in a sisterhood of magical priestesses who have a dark secret to their magic. She wants to get out of this almost dictatorial group but there’s no choice. Until now, when a shadowy rebel group has approached her with an offer of escape. But in order to do so, she needs to become a spy and connect with the head honchos of the Sisterhood. What lies in Elfreda’s fate is what you will discover by reading the book.
The story comes to us in the first person narration of Elfreda.
Where the book worked for me:
😍 Loved the concept of the ‘Haunts’, though they spooked me out!
😍 I’m a bit fed up of seeing ‘Woman-good; Man-bad’ trope in fiction. This book turns this on its head. I ended up feeling sorry for the men in this story. It was an interesting take on gender reversal.
😍 There are some nice characters in the book. Finn’s character is the most interesting, but there are a few other secondary characters that make an impact as well.
😍 I liked the power struggles depicted in the book. The plot nicely highlights how things aren’t easy even for those at the top, and that sacrifices are a natural part of success.
Where the book left me with mixed feelings:
😐 The sisterhood’s magic seems to be somewhat like that of Spiderman, with ’lace’ instead of webs. Though I wish this had been described better in the book, it was still a good idea. The author certainly has imagination.
😐 The represented gender and sexual identities follow contrary paths. While homosexuality and bisexuality seem to be okay and acceptable, the gender normativity when it comes to men and women is almost traditional, with men being the villains in almost all cases. The book could have been pathbreaking in terms of gender rep, but sticks to the tried-and-tested.
😐 The first quarter or so is slow-paced but things pick up after that. So you do need to keep your patience at the start or else you will keep wondering where the heck the plot is going. The writing is quite smooth otherwise.
😐 The world building is minimal when it comes to the location and the intrinsic details of the functioning of the Sisterhood and the society in general. The fantastical elements are highlighted without any detailing. Basically, I enjoyed the magical bits (except for what’s coming up in the next point) but I wanted to know a lot more about them.
Where the book DID NOT WORK for me:
😬 A book about cannibalistic nuns will never ever work for me. What makes it worse is knowing what exactly they consume to increase the strength of their magic. I am NOT the kind of reader who will willingly pick up a book with cannibal characters. Goes without saying that this ended up in my kitty by mistake.
(At the same time, here’s the odd part: I could read most of those scenes without feeling grossed out. I hope you understand why this is a flaw. If someone such as I could go through those episodes without freaking out, the writing missed its mark somewhere.)
😬 It was a bit too weird for my liking, especially when Elfreda suffered from hallucinations. I’m not a fan of surreal writing.
As a debut work, the book certainly has promise. It shows ‘womanpower’ in a dark and dangerous way, highlighting that a reversal isn’t the solution. This is distinctly YA in its approach, so maybe it will click with YA SFF lovers better. The author has potential, and perhaps with experience, the author will convert her vivid imagination in even better works. But I’ll never know if she brings it to greater fruition because I am not the right reader for this content. One book about cannibals is more than enough in a lifetime.
2 stars from me. But remember it wasn’t my kind of book. Take a call based on your tolerance for cannibalism and gore.
I received a complimentary copy of this book at my request and these are my honest thoughts about it.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
June 16, 2021
[ARC received from Tor, real review coming elsewhere]
In theory: an incredible premise (cannibal witch nuns keep a floating city alive over a pit of zombie monster men created by STIs from the cannibal witch nuns) with the promise of a deep examination of fantasy's reliance on bloodlines and hereditary power(s).
In practice: YA characters in YA relationships with YA affects feeling betrayed by the adult world, about which I can tell you very little even after these 400+ pages because not much was spelled out with any depth to speak of. The nuns run the government and there's a rebellion against them, but they mostly seem to be petty bureaucrats, and I'm not even sure if the general population follows or cares about their religion or not. Life seems pretty staid overall for a bunch of people living in a floating city run by cannibal witch nuns and menaced by zombie monster men. I went into this looking forward to a Weird City, but you never really get a sense of place or history or even context for much that's going on. There's a big twist that falls pretty flat because the accepted truth of the world was never actually explained to the reader before being ripped away from the characters, although that does set off a quest that's the highlight of the novel, before the whole thing ends pretty anticlimactically.
That said, the main character's inner turmoil is conveyed quite well, as are her eerie and vivid hallucinations, almost like brief visions of the much weirder and more interesting book this could have been.
PS Who would have expected a 2021 Tordotcom pub to be so old-fashioned in its gender-essentialist magic and utter lack of acknowledgement of the possibility of trans and NB characters? Not me!
In theory: an incredible premise (cannibal witch nuns keep a floating city alive over a pit of zombie monster men created by STIs from the cannibal witch nuns) with the promise of a deep examination of fantasy's reliance on bloodlines and hereditary power(s).
In practice: YA characters in YA relationships with YA affects feeling betrayed by the adult world, about which I can tell you very little even after these 400+ pages because not much was spelled out with any depth to speak of. The nuns run the government and there's a rebellion against them, but they mostly seem to be petty bureaucrats, and I'm not even sure if the general population follows or cares about their religion or not. Life seems pretty staid overall for a bunch of people living in a floating city run by cannibal witch nuns and menaced by zombie monster men. I went into this looking forward to a Weird City, but you never really get a sense of place or history or even context for much that's going on. There's a big twist that falls pretty flat because the accepted truth of the world was never actually explained to the reader before being ripped away from the characters, although that does set off a quest that's the highlight of the novel, before the whole thing ends pretty anticlimactically.
That said, the main character's inner turmoil is conveyed quite well, as are her eerie and vivid hallucinations, almost like brief visions of the much weirder and more interesting book this could have been.
PS Who would have expected a 2021 Tordotcom pub to be so old-fashioned in its gender-essentialist magic and utter lack of acknowledgement of the possibility of trans and NB characters? Not me!
September 17, 2020
Note: I received an ABM of STAR EATER from a contact at TorDotCom in exchange for an honest review. Special thanks to Ruoxi and the Tor team.
Secondary note: afaik this is the first public review of STAR EATER, so there's a lot I'm purposely leaving out because I don't want to spoil too much too early. So head's up. Anyway this book is amazing so let's dive in.
Aytrium is a world that floats above a hellish landscape because The Star Eater literally ate a star and used the power from it to lift the entire country up into the sky on giant pillars. She did this because all these men were turning into haunts, which are basically zombie mutants. Haunts are created by men interacting in close contact with the nuns who worship the original Star Eater. So to recap: nuns accidentally created zombies everywhere and lifted their entire country into the heavens so they could push all the zombies past and present off the edge and not deal with them ever again. This is just background context.
The nuns, by the way, get their power from eating each other. Yes like ritual cannibalism. Specifically, they keep their dead mothers on like, life support, basically, and then they go in and cut off lil bits of skin and eat them and then they have magic.
Oh, and the magic is lace. They wield lace weapons. Think Spideman’s webs but if he was throwing Excalibur around. And also if Spiderman was a nun.
So once again, to recap: nuns are eating each other so they can use lace weapons to fight off zombies that they created. If you’re not sold yet I don’t want to be friends with you, no offense.
But to quote Billy Mays, but wait, there’s more! STAR EATER is a book all about political intrigue, secret factions inside secret factions, plots to overthrow people, there’s a lot of delightfully gory murder, there’s also a major drought going on and the civilians kinda sorta want the entire Sisterhood to go die forever but like, in a nice way, but is “please just go die in a hole” ever a nice thing? That question is answered in STAR EATER.
And moving on from the subjective into the objective...
This is the sort of book that pops the H back into the SFFH acronym and checks the boxes on all three. The first chapter blew me away, as all good first chapters do. I expected that. The second chapter, though, had me hooked. I was a goner, y’all.
STAR EATER is a wild ride of speculative fantasy that is gripping, compelling, delightfully scary, a little bit vengeful, and 100% quality. It’s wonderfully complex without being overwhelming. Hall weaves such intricate story lines of dwindling power structures and dominance with personal ones of friendship, forbidden love, and self-sacrifice in the best of ways. You will hold your breath turning the pages of this book.
And beyond that, OH MY GOD IT WAS SO GOOD???? If you like the weirder side of SFFH this is a deadass must-read. People eat their enemies. They ride around on giant cats and have sex with ghosty zombies and eat bug paste for funsies.
Obviously this book is not for all readers but if you're into the wonky part of SFF or you like horror, you need this book on your radar. It is metal, and I highly recommend it.
Secondary note: afaik this is the first public review of STAR EATER, so there's a lot I'm purposely leaving out because I don't want to spoil too much too early. So head's up. Anyway this book is amazing so let's dive in.
Aytrium is a world that floats above a hellish landscape because The Star Eater literally ate a star and used the power from it to lift the entire country up into the sky on giant pillars. She did this because all these men were turning into haunts, which are basically zombie mutants. Haunts are created by men interacting in close contact with the nuns who worship the original Star Eater. So to recap: nuns accidentally created zombies everywhere and lifted their entire country into the heavens so they could push all the zombies past and present off the edge and not deal with them ever again. This is just background context.
The nuns, by the way, get their power from eating each other. Yes like ritual cannibalism. Specifically, they keep their dead mothers on like, life support, basically, and then they go in and cut off lil bits of skin and eat them and then they have magic.
Oh, and the magic is lace. They wield lace weapons. Think Spideman’s webs but if he was throwing Excalibur around. And also if Spiderman was a nun.
So once again, to recap: nuns are eating each other so they can use lace weapons to fight off zombies that they created. If you’re not sold yet I don’t want to be friends with you, no offense.
But to quote Billy Mays, but wait, there’s more! STAR EATER is a book all about political intrigue, secret factions inside secret factions, plots to overthrow people, there’s a lot of delightfully gory murder, there’s also a major drought going on and the civilians kinda sorta want the entire Sisterhood to go die forever but like, in a nice way, but is “please just go die in a hole” ever a nice thing? That question is answered in STAR EATER.
And moving on from the subjective into the objective...
This is the sort of book that pops the H back into the SFFH acronym and checks the boxes on all three. The first chapter blew me away, as all good first chapters do. I expected that. The second chapter, though, had me hooked. I was a goner, y’all.
STAR EATER is a wild ride of speculative fantasy that is gripping, compelling, delightfully scary, a little bit vengeful, and 100% quality. It’s wonderfully complex without being overwhelming. Hall weaves such intricate story lines of dwindling power structures and dominance with personal ones of friendship, forbidden love, and self-sacrifice in the best of ways. You will hold your breath turning the pages of this book.
And beyond that, OH MY GOD IT WAS SO GOOD???? If you like the weirder side of SFFH this is a deadass must-read. People eat their enemies. They ride around on giant cats and have sex with ghosty zombies and eat bug paste for funsies.
Obviously this book is not for all readers but if you're into the wonky part of SFF or you like horror, you need this book on your radar. It is metal, and I highly recommend it.
April 28, 2021
I have very conflicting thoughts on this one.
July 5, 2021
Video Review: https://youtu.be/5bOvSKq6F-w
Star Eater was a wild ride and I think I mostly enjoyed it, but I have questions. Yes, this is indeed a book about witchy cannibal nuns and even though I knew that going in, the author still managed to do it in a way that was very unsettling. This book is largely an exploration of power.
Elfreda has magic and is in some ways powerful, but she was also born into a life that constrains her choices about love, reproduction, death, and the use of her body. It's disturbing and it's supposed to be. This is a world where many people are bisexual (including most of the main characters), and Sisters might find love and marriage with women, but reproduction involves what amounts to the required ceremonial r*pe of a man, usually a criminal. Because sex with a Sister infects men and turns them into creatures that are like a mashup of zombie, vampire, and werewolf. The Sister is left without a choice and the man is magically compelled.
It's messed up. A lot of things are messed up. And that's the point. It's a dystopian view of a matriarchial society with backstabbing and aims for personal gain. I was certainly captivated, but the ending felt a little too neat and I was left with questions. Some about the world and magic, but also about the choice to have a book published in 2021 that is entirely founded on a system of gender essentialist magic where trans and non-binary people don't exist. I think this could have been done in a more nuanced way that explored the constructs of gender as they relate to power and magic. But instead we get a very traditional, binary approach. Which feels especially odd in a book with so many bisexual characters, which is another identity that is often erased or ignored. I appreciate the bi representation, but I'm not sure why the choice here was to instead ignore the existence of genderqueer individuals. We can and should do better. Note: This review briefly touched on this issue and once I saw it, I couldn't unsee it: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The audiobook is well-done and the nonchalance of the narrator in some of these horrific scenes adds something. The horror of things becoming normalized. I'm left with very mixed feelings on this one. It's definitely something new, and there were a lot of things I liked about the story, but it also wasn't a perfect book. I received an audio copy of this book for review from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Star Eater was a wild ride and I think I mostly enjoyed it, but I have questions. Yes, this is indeed a book about witchy cannibal nuns and even though I knew that going in, the author still managed to do it in a way that was very unsettling. This book is largely an exploration of power.
Elfreda has magic and is in some ways powerful, but she was also born into a life that constrains her choices about love, reproduction, death, and the use of her body. It's disturbing and it's supposed to be. This is a world where many people are bisexual (including most of the main characters), and Sisters might find love and marriage with women, but reproduction involves what amounts to the required ceremonial r*pe of a man, usually a criminal. Because sex with a Sister infects men and turns them into creatures that are like a mashup of zombie, vampire, and werewolf. The Sister is left without a choice and the man is magically compelled.
It's messed up. A lot of things are messed up. And that's the point. It's a dystopian view of a matriarchial society with backstabbing and aims for personal gain. I was certainly captivated, but the ending felt a little too neat and I was left with questions. Some about the world and magic, but also about the choice to have a book published in 2021 that is entirely founded on a system of gender essentialist magic where trans and non-binary people don't exist. I think this could have been done in a more nuanced way that explored the constructs of gender as they relate to power and magic. But instead we get a very traditional, binary approach. Which feels especially odd in a book with so many bisexual characters, which is another identity that is often erased or ignored. I appreciate the bi representation, but I'm not sure why the choice here was to instead ignore the existence of genderqueer individuals. We can and should do better. Note: This review briefly touched on this issue and once I saw it, I couldn't unsee it: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The audiobook is well-done and the nonchalance of the narrator in some of these horrific scenes adds something. The horror of things becoming normalized. I'm left with very mixed feelings on this one. It's definitely something new, and there were a lot of things I liked about the story, but it also wasn't a perfect book. I received an audio copy of this book for review from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
July 30, 2021
The cover: amazing.
the synopsis: amazing.
I mean come on. A magical cannibal nun cult?
The execution however: not amazing. This was painfully boring for most of the book and I lost interest real quick but pushed myself through. I'm deeply disappointed. The character's don't have much distinction or personality and nothing interesting happens either.
the synopsis: amazing.
I mean come on. A magical cannibal nun cult?
The execution however: not amazing. This was painfully boring for most of the book and I lost interest real quick but pushed myself through. I'm deeply disappointed. The character's don't have much distinction or personality and nothing interesting happens either.
March 22, 2022
3.5/star stars. More specifically, this is a 3.5 star book with 5 star moments.
On the floating island of Aytrium, the Sisterhood rules all. Wielding their magical lace, they are able to keep the Haunts--men who have become corrupted monsters after being physically intimate with one of the Sisters--at bay and maintain control over their society. They renew their lace by consuming the flesh of their mothers, who lay in a death-like statue in the mausoleum. One of the Sisters, Elfreda "El" Raughn, has been troubled by nightmarish visions. She is soon roped into a resistance movement that involves her childhood friend Millie and her love interest Finn. Elfreda's visions become worse, the resistance grows more violent, and several of the Sisters become suspicious. It will all climax in a confrontation that will degrade Elfreda's mind and threaten Aytrium.
First, let's start with the good. The prose is really good. It manages to be atmospheric and beautiful without being overly florid. It is still readable, yet never manages to lose it beauty. The magic system is one of the weirdest and scariest I have ever seen. Like, it's literally based on cannibalism. And you eventually learn that that cannibalism goes beyond the magic system. The world-building does a decent job filling you in on how things work in Aytrium and how the Sisterhood runs things. There was only one info dump moment that I can recall that explains part of the history of the Sisterhood, but it wasn't too lengthy and it was informative.
The blood and flesh eating, especially for a majority of the work, are treated quite plainly. Some readers were a bit disappointed with this. Kerstin Hall never does anything shocking with it, though it is nevertheless described in vivid detail when done so. I feel like this both a missed opportunity, but also simply about the world-building. Aytrium and the Sisterhood have done this magic system for centuries (I think) now. It would be all fairly plain to them. Your mileage may vary with this.
The characters are all fairly interesting. It takes some time for Elfreda's emotional development to get going, but once it did she became a very interesting character. At times, however, she felt a little bit restrained; and I will go into this later with another point. Millie and Finn were interesting characters to me as well. Millie was fun and caring from the beginning; though her mercy towards her traitorous ex-lover grated me a little. Finn took some time to get going too, but he was a great character. His love and devotion to Elfreda often conflicted with his desire to protect from both the resistance's enemies and what he was becoming. I really felt for Elfreda and Finn's love. Their inability to be together and their near loss of each other tugged at my heartstrings. Osan was probably the best character. The way he acted, both chipper but wise, was a welcome addition to the cast that I think balanced things out. I loved his interactions with Elfreda. I almost wanted them to end up together, but Elfreda and Finn were still cute.
The story's progression was a bit slow in some places, especially in the middle. However, after Elfreda and company left Aytrium, things got really interesting. The rest of the book wasn't bad, again maybe just restrained--will get to that soon!--but the last part of the book and the ending were very high octane and very good. I'm personally fine with the ending of a book being good even if the rest of its parts aren't quite at the same level.
Now, it's time for me to get into the biggest criticism I have of this book, which is actually difficult to both discuss and ascertain. There many interesting things going on in this book; different plot twists, certain moments, revelations, and Elfreda's internal thoughts about certain things. But as I said before something felt restrained about the whole book which I believed affected its pacing and progression in some parts and even certain character developments. I don't want to say that Hall didn't care or didn't put her best effort in, because that's disingenuous. The sense of urgency is sporadic and sometimes some scenes just drag. I don't know. Maybe it was just the headspace I was in? Anyway, this isn't a bad book, but not a perfect one either. I'm not mad about it though; it wasn't a painful experience.
I would like to read Hall's other books, just to see what else she can do.
On the floating island of Aytrium, the Sisterhood rules all. Wielding their magical lace, they are able to keep the Haunts--men who have become corrupted monsters after being physically intimate with one of the Sisters--at bay and maintain control over their society. They renew their lace by consuming the flesh of their mothers, who lay in a death-like statue in the mausoleum. One of the Sisters, Elfreda "El" Raughn, has been troubled by nightmarish visions. She is soon roped into a resistance movement that involves her childhood friend Millie and her love interest Finn. Elfreda's visions become worse, the resistance grows more violent, and several of the Sisters become suspicious. It will all climax in a confrontation that will degrade Elfreda's mind and threaten Aytrium.
First, let's start with the good. The prose is really good. It manages to be atmospheric and beautiful without being overly florid. It is still readable, yet never manages to lose it beauty. The magic system is one of the weirdest and scariest I have ever seen. Like, it's literally based on cannibalism. And you eventually learn that that cannibalism goes beyond the magic system. The world-building does a decent job filling you in on how things work in Aytrium and how the Sisterhood runs things. There was only one info dump moment that I can recall that explains part of the history of the Sisterhood, but it wasn't too lengthy and it was informative.
The blood and flesh eating, especially for a majority of the work, are treated quite plainly. Some readers were a bit disappointed with this. Kerstin Hall never does anything shocking with it, though it is nevertheless described in vivid detail when done so. I feel like this both a missed opportunity, but also simply about the world-building. Aytrium and the Sisterhood have done this magic system for centuries (I think) now. It would be all fairly plain to them. Your mileage may vary with this.
The characters are all fairly interesting. It takes some time for Elfreda's emotional development to get going, but once it did she became a very interesting character. At times, however, she felt a little bit restrained; and I will go into this later with another point. Millie and Finn were interesting characters to me as well. Millie was fun and caring from the beginning; though her mercy towards her traitorous ex-lover grated me a little. Finn took some time to get going too, but he was a great character. His love and devotion to Elfreda often conflicted with his desire to protect from both the resistance's enemies and what he was becoming. I really felt for Elfreda and Finn's love. Their inability to be together and their near loss of each other tugged at my heartstrings. Osan was probably the best character. The way he acted, both chipper but wise, was a welcome addition to the cast that I think balanced things out. I loved his interactions with Elfreda. I almost wanted them to end up together, but Elfreda and Finn were still cute.
The story's progression was a bit slow in some places, especially in the middle. However, after Elfreda and company left Aytrium, things got really interesting. The rest of the book wasn't bad, again maybe just restrained--will get to that soon!--but the last part of the book and the ending were very high octane and very good. I'm personally fine with the ending of a book being good even if the rest of its parts aren't quite at the same level.
Now, it's time for me to get into the biggest criticism I have of this book, which is actually difficult to both discuss and ascertain. There many interesting things going on in this book; different plot twists, certain moments, revelations, and Elfreda's internal thoughts about certain things. But as I said before something felt restrained about the whole book which I believed affected its pacing and progression in some parts and even certain character developments. I don't want to say that Hall didn't care or didn't put her best effort in, because that's disingenuous. The sense of urgency is sporadic and sometimes some scenes just drag. I don't know. Maybe it was just the headspace I was in? Anyway, this isn't a bad book, but not a perfect one either. I'm not mad about it though; it wasn't a painful experience.
I would like to read Hall's other books, just to see what else she can do.
May 29, 2021
On my blog.
Actual rating 2.5
Rep: bi mc, bi side character, sapphic side characters, gay side character
CWs: gore, cannibalism, violence, implied rape
Galley provided by publisher
There are some books where you start to find yourself a little bored and that boredom comes to colour every further page you read. You can’t escape the boredom, you can only hope that the ending is such that the boredom is wiped out.
Which was, sadly, the case with me and Star Eater (and, to be clear, the ending was not such that the boredom disappeared).
The book follows Elfreda, a member of the Sisterhood, a group of cannibalistic nuns who worship the Star Eater. Unassuming, or so she thinks, she finds herself caught up in a power struggle. I would say a bit more, but there really isn’t that much more to it. Perhaps that contributed to my boredom, but who knows? Perhaps not.
I think my major problems with the book stemmed from the worldbuilding. In all honesty, I was expecting more. On the whole, it just felt like your generic fantasy setting, albeit on a floating city (a fact which I could swear wasn’t brought up until the end), and with a religion centering on cannibal nuns. Which wouldn’t have been so much of a problem if I’d felt like the religion was developed in any way. I couldn’t for the life of me tell you exactly what they worshipped, what they believed in. And I don’t think that’s me forgetting things! (At least, I hope not.) There was a gap between “oh this is a cool concept” and “yes I know how this religion functions”. Not to mention, it didn’t seem to be a religion that many people followed, but the Sisterhood had the power in the city. So what’s the truth? Are those calling them corpse eaters and hating them a minority, or did the Resistance really have enough power itself to oust the Sisterhood? Who knows!
But it wasn’t just the religion where I felt the worldbuilding fell down. It was the politics too, and the way some things were introduced as if they were important — food shortages, the Resistance — and then nothing came of them. I know they weren’t relevant to the main plotline, but if you’re going to introduce those aspects as if they are (and they were introduced in that way), then they might get more than an abrupt disappearance of the problems later on. And then there was the opposite — important information regarding the world appearing at just the right time, never having been mentioned or foreshadowed before.
(I will take a brief moment to note though, that I was reading an ARC I downloaded in November(?), so it’s entirely possible that all of this no longer applies.)
(That being said, it’s the book I read so. Gotta review that.)
The book might have been redeemed if I had cared about the characters at all, but, in all honesty, I struggled to. I couldn’t really tell you why, but nothing about them stood out for me, or really interested me. So I was stuck, slogging my way through a book where the worldbuilding bored me and the characters fared barely any better.
But! I am perfectly happy to accept this was all down to me. I don’t think this was a bad book — far from it — but it wasn’t a me book. So, if you read this wondering if you should still read it, I would say yes. Do.
Actual rating 2.5
Rep: bi mc, bi side character, sapphic side characters, gay side character
CWs: gore, cannibalism, violence, implied rape
Galley provided by publisher
There are some books where you start to find yourself a little bored and that boredom comes to colour every further page you read. You can’t escape the boredom, you can only hope that the ending is such that the boredom is wiped out.
Which was, sadly, the case with me and Star Eater (and, to be clear, the ending was not such that the boredom disappeared).
The book follows Elfreda, a member of the Sisterhood, a group of cannibalistic nuns who worship the Star Eater. Unassuming, or so she thinks, she finds herself caught up in a power struggle. I would say a bit more, but there really isn’t that much more to it. Perhaps that contributed to my boredom, but who knows? Perhaps not.
I think my major problems with the book stemmed from the worldbuilding. In all honesty, I was expecting more. On the whole, it just felt like your generic fantasy setting, albeit on a floating city (a fact which I could swear wasn’t brought up until the end), and with a religion centering on cannibal nuns. Which wouldn’t have been so much of a problem if I’d felt like the religion was developed in any way. I couldn’t for the life of me tell you exactly what they worshipped, what they believed in. And I don’t think that’s me forgetting things! (At least, I hope not.) There was a gap between “oh this is a cool concept” and “yes I know how this religion functions”. Not to mention, it didn’t seem to be a religion that many people followed, but the Sisterhood had the power in the city. So what’s the truth? Are those calling them corpse eaters and hating them a minority, or did the Resistance really have enough power itself to oust the Sisterhood? Who knows!
But it wasn’t just the religion where I felt the worldbuilding fell down. It was the politics too, and the way some things were introduced as if they were important — food shortages, the Resistance — and then nothing came of them. I know they weren’t relevant to the main plotline, but if you’re going to introduce those aspects as if they are (and they were introduced in that way), then they might get more than an abrupt disappearance of the problems later on. And then there was the opposite — important information regarding the world appearing at just the right time, never having been mentioned or foreshadowed before.
(I will take a brief moment to note though, that I was reading an ARC I downloaded in November(?), so it’s entirely possible that all of this no longer applies.)
(That being said, it’s the book I read so. Gotta review that.)
The book might have been redeemed if I had cared about the characters at all, but, in all honesty, I struggled to. I couldn’t really tell you why, but nothing about them stood out for me, or really interested me. So I was stuck, slogging my way through a book where the worldbuilding bored me and the characters fared barely any better.
But! I am perfectly happy to accept this was all down to me. I don’t think this was a bad book — far from it — but it wasn’t a me book. So, if you read this wondering if you should still read it, I would say yes. Do.
November 15, 2021
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.
A book about cannibal priestesses and body horror? Say no more. From the marketing, this book should have been a perfect match for me. Unfortunately, I came out more than let down.
Frankly, I think the majority of my complaints stem from what felt like very weak worldbuilding. Star Eater takes place on a floating island in the sky, in a society governed by bureaucratic cannibal priestesses who worship ‘the Eater’. The priestesses are all women due to how their power, called Lace, is passed down matriarchally and also turns men into zombies post-coitus. Which sounds interesting, right? But beyond that one paragraph, we really don’t get much more. Hell, for the most part, these women may as well be running your standard republic , not a theocracy. For a group of characters centered around worshipping a cannibal, the religious aspect is basically nonexistant.
Through the religious bureaucracy and a vaguely explained food shortage, Hall makes an attempt to tackle systemic power. This society, living on the island in the sky, is held purely through these priestesses’ Lace, and thus, the priestesses maintain de facto power of government. Obviously, certain groups of people are unhappy. Perhaps it’s that I read CL Clark’s The Unbroken too recently, which beautifully tackles colonialism and the different mindset towards that system, but this attempt felt so extremely halfhearted to me. Our main character, Elfreda, occasionally makes reference to the fact that yeah, maybe she and her Sisters shouldn’t have all this power given the rampant corruption within their religion, but then almost immediately passes it off that the people need their power and thus the Sisters must stay in power.
And then we get to Elfreda herself. There’s a lot of reviews on Goodreads that compare this book to a YA novel in terms of shallow worldbuilding and character depth and frankly, they’re not wrong. Elfreda is your typical naïve YA protagonist with the personality of a wet rag, suddenly thrust into a world she’s unprepared for, with an added layer of Chosen One nonsense stacked on top. Really, the only difference is that she’s in her early 20s instead of her late teens. I can’t say I hated her character, but there was just so little to draw in the first place.
With all that being said, I can’t say this book was bad. The story is well paced and the cannibalism aspect, which only gets fully explore in the latter half, was well done. Hall does an excellent job with the body horror, both in the gruesome depictions of the zombies and the feelings of certain disgust as the characters we follow are forced to consume raw human flesh.
Overall, I rate this book a 3/5. While the story itself wasn’t bad, I found the worldbuilding aspect extremely lacking, both in the religious aspect and the over societal structure. Our MC is fairly on par with the typical bland female YA protagonist, and I really wish the book had learned further into the horror aspect of the cannibalism.
A book about cannibal priestesses and body horror? Say no more. From the marketing, this book should have been a perfect match for me. Unfortunately, I came out more than let down.
Frankly, I think the majority of my complaints stem from what felt like very weak worldbuilding. Star Eater takes place on a floating island in the sky, in a society governed by bureaucratic cannibal priestesses who worship ‘the Eater’. The priestesses are all women due to how their power, called Lace, is passed down matriarchally and also turns men into zombies post-coitus. Which sounds interesting, right? But beyond that one paragraph, we really don’t get much more. Hell, for the most part, these women may as well be running your standard republic , not a theocracy. For a group of characters centered around worshipping a cannibal, the religious aspect is basically nonexistant.
Through the religious bureaucracy and a vaguely explained food shortage, Hall makes an attempt to tackle systemic power. This society, living on the island in the sky, is held purely through these priestesses’ Lace, and thus, the priestesses maintain de facto power of government. Obviously, certain groups of people are unhappy. Perhaps it’s that I read CL Clark’s The Unbroken too recently, which beautifully tackles colonialism and the different mindset towards that system, but this attempt felt so extremely halfhearted to me. Our main character, Elfreda, occasionally makes reference to the fact that yeah, maybe she and her Sisters shouldn’t have all this power given the rampant corruption within their religion, but then almost immediately passes it off that the people need their power and thus the Sisters must stay in power.
And then we get to Elfreda herself. There’s a lot of reviews on Goodreads that compare this book to a YA novel in terms of shallow worldbuilding and character depth and frankly, they’re not wrong. Elfreda is your typical naïve YA protagonist with the personality of a wet rag, suddenly thrust into a world she’s unprepared for, with an added layer of Chosen One nonsense stacked on top. Really, the only difference is that she’s in her early 20s instead of her late teens. I can’t say I hated her character, but there was just so little to draw in the first place.
With all that being said, I can’t say this book was bad. The story is well paced and the cannibalism aspect, which only gets fully explore in the latter half, was well done. Hall does an excellent job with the body horror, both in the gruesome depictions of the zombies and the feelings of certain disgust as the characters we follow are forced to consume raw human flesh.
Overall, I rate this book a 3/5. While the story itself wasn’t bad, I found the worldbuilding aspect extremely lacking, both in the religious aspect and the over societal structure. Our MC is fairly on par with the typical bland female YA protagonist, and I really wish the book had learned further into the horror aspect of the cannibalism.
June 26, 2021
2/5
Amazing cover, title, and premise. Everything else was just bad: poor worldbuilding, boring plot, uninteresting characters, and annoying romance
This was such a letdown. I was immediately drawn to this when I saw the cover and heard something about cannibal nuns (for some reason I thought this was sci-fi, but it was much closer to fantasy), and I was hyped for this. I'm sad to say that very little of this worked for me. I didn't care about the characters, the plot bored me, and I hated how everything was wrapped up in a neat little bow at the end. With a premise like this I was expecting something much darker, and something that wasn't afraid to take risks, but this read like every generic ya written in like 2014.
I don't have much to say about the plot. So much is set up, but none of it pays off. Like, what was the point of the resistance? What was the point of having a murder mystery? Who are all of these characters you keep namedropping, but who don't have any impact on the plot at all? I also found the last 20% very strange, the motivation for certain choices didn't make sense to me, and why are we having a road trip at the end of a book? The ending info dump also didn't work, and everything was very predictable. You're telling me that the order of flesh-eating nuns who kill children were the bad guys all along? Wow, never saw that coming. Also, I disliked everything about the renewers, and how El's decisions were never her own. This is such boring chosen one stuff, and I hated how this book was too afraid to commit to its premise. .
I wanted and expected this to be darker. With a premise surrounding cannibalism, I was gearing myself up for a wild ride. And sure, there is plenty of violence and gore, but apart from that, this read like YA, which just wasn't what I was looking for with this. I liked the reasoning for the cannibalism and how their magic is replenished by eating parts of other sisters, which is fun and fucked up, and I liked how the sisters, especially Elfreda, struggled with this, and that there were negative consequences for replenishing your lace by eating too much made you physically ill. So, I liked the idea behind the magic. However, I'm not going to call it a magic system, because the sisters just use the lace for whatever the fuck they feel like. Apart from the replenishing of the lace (magic), there were no rules to how the magic actually works, and there's no consistency here. This aspect reeked of poor YA world-building, but this is supposed to be adult? I honestly don't know what this book set out to do.
I've already complained about this world, and I've seen people complain about how binary this world is in regards to gender. I totally agree, and I think this is the main reason why this feels so outdated. So okay, the order consists only of women, and if any of the sisters have sex with a man, they turn into a zombie-thing (the haunts were decently spooky, and made for some good body horror). Are we just assuming that other genders don't exist in this world? I think it would have been interesting to discuss how these 'rules' apply to those who don't identify within this rigid system. There are gay characters, but gender is just totally forgotten. This is just an example of how poorly thought out the world is.
I didn't have too many issues with the characters, but that's because they're so forgettable. Elfreda is such a generic protagonist, and I didn't care about her at all. This tries to create both likable characters and threatening antagonists, but it just failed. The only relationship that had any development and that I actually liked was Elfreda and Osan's relationship. They're sweet, and I enjoyed how their relationship grew from animosity to familial love, and Osan is charming.
I really didn't like Elfreda's romantic relationships. I didn't like either Millie or Finn, and I was annoyed by Elfreda's constant switching back and forth between who she wants. I wouldn't have minded a poly relationship, and I think that could have worked except for the fact that Millie and Finn are siblings, so Elfreda has to choose one of them. Just make them not related? They never act like siblings, so why not just make them friends and open the door for a poly relationship since Elfreda can't seem to make up her mind? Again, this refuses to acknowledge other queer people than cis gay/bi/lesbian people. I think she had a bit more chemistry with Millie, and everything with Finn was so forced and messy and just straight-up annoying.
I don't have any issues with the prose. This has some decent body horror, and I think this is one of its redeeming features. This is shelved as horror, but that's a stretch (why is this book shelved so incorrectly? This is the first time I've encountered this on Goodreads). This is never scary, but it sometimes has a decent ominous atmosphere, but I wouldn't call that scary in any way. The narrator was also fine. Don't have a lot to say here. I think the narrator only contributed to this feeling like YA.
Overall, this was a mess. It was too scared to commit to its amazing premise, and the characters, world-building, and plot were plucked straight out of the worst kind of generic YA fantasy. This could have been good, but wow did it miss the mark for me. The only reason this isn't getting a lower rating is that I didn't hate it, but that's because this almost didn't evoke any emotion in me besides complete boredom and indifference.
(I've been shitting on YA a lot in this review, and I'd like to state that I enjoy YA when it's done well, but that happens so rarely for me. Of course YA fantasy isn't a bad genre, I just wanted a more adult story with this one in particular)
Amazing cover, title, and premise. Everything else was just bad: poor worldbuilding, boring plot, uninteresting characters, and annoying romance
This was such a letdown. I was immediately drawn to this when I saw the cover and heard something about cannibal nuns (for some reason I thought this was sci-fi, but it was much closer to fantasy), and I was hyped for this. I'm sad to say that very little of this worked for me. I didn't care about the characters, the plot bored me, and I hated how everything was wrapped up in a neat little bow at the end. With a premise like this I was expecting something much darker, and something that wasn't afraid to take risks, but this read like every generic ya written in like 2014.
I don't have much to say about the plot. So much is set up, but none of it pays off. Like, what was the point of the resistance? What was the point of having a murder mystery? Who are all of these characters you keep namedropping, but who don't have any impact on the plot at all? I also found the last 20% very strange, the motivation for certain choices didn't make sense to me, and why are we having a road trip at the end of a book? The ending info dump also didn't work, and everything was very predictable. You're telling me that the order of flesh-eating nuns who kill children were the bad guys all along? Wow, never saw that coming. Also, I disliked everything about the renewers, and how El's decisions were never her own. This is such boring chosen one stuff, and I hated how this book was too afraid to commit to its premise. .
I wanted and expected this to be darker. With a premise surrounding cannibalism, I was gearing myself up for a wild ride. And sure, there is plenty of violence and gore, but apart from that, this read like YA, which just wasn't what I was looking for with this. I liked the reasoning for the cannibalism and how their magic is replenished by eating parts of other sisters, which is fun and fucked up, and I liked how the sisters, especially Elfreda, struggled with this, and that there were negative consequences for replenishing your lace by eating too much made you physically ill. So, I liked the idea behind the magic. However, I'm not going to call it a magic system, because the sisters just use the lace for whatever the fuck they feel like. Apart from the replenishing of the lace (magic), there were no rules to how the magic actually works, and there's no consistency here. This aspect reeked of poor YA world-building, but this is supposed to be adult? I honestly don't know what this book set out to do.
I've already complained about this world, and I've seen people complain about how binary this world is in regards to gender. I totally agree, and I think this is the main reason why this feels so outdated. So okay, the order consists only of women, and if any of the sisters have sex with a man, they turn into a zombie-thing (the haunts were decently spooky, and made for some good body horror). Are we just assuming that other genders don't exist in this world? I think it would have been interesting to discuss how these 'rules' apply to those who don't identify within this rigid system. There are gay characters, but gender is just totally forgotten. This is just an example of how poorly thought out the world is.
I didn't have too many issues with the characters, but that's because they're so forgettable. Elfreda is such a generic protagonist, and I didn't care about her at all. This tries to create both likable characters and threatening antagonists, but it just failed. The only relationship that had any development and that I actually liked was Elfreda and Osan's relationship. They're sweet, and I enjoyed how their relationship grew from animosity to familial love, and Osan is charming.
I really didn't like Elfreda's romantic relationships. I didn't like either Millie or Finn, and I was annoyed by Elfreda's constant switching back and forth between who she wants. I wouldn't have minded a poly relationship, and I think that could have worked except for the fact that Millie and Finn are siblings, so Elfreda has to choose one of them. Just make them not related? They never act like siblings, so why not just make them friends and open the door for a poly relationship since Elfreda can't seem to make up her mind? Again, this refuses to acknowledge other queer people than cis gay/bi/lesbian people. I think she had a bit more chemistry with Millie, and everything with Finn was so forced and messy and just straight-up annoying.
I don't have any issues with the prose. This has some decent body horror, and I think this is one of its redeeming features. This is shelved as horror, but that's a stretch (why is this book shelved so incorrectly? This is the first time I've encountered this on Goodreads). This is never scary, but it sometimes has a decent ominous atmosphere, but I wouldn't call that scary in any way. The narrator was also fine. Don't have a lot to say here. I think the narrator only contributed to this feeling like YA.
Overall, this was a mess. It was too scared to commit to its amazing premise, and the characters, world-building, and plot were plucked straight out of the worst kind of generic YA fantasy. This could have been good, but wow did it miss the mark for me. The only reason this isn't getting a lower rating is that I didn't hate it, but that's because this almost didn't evoke any emotion in me besides complete boredom and indifference.
(I've been shitting on YA a lot in this review, and I'd like to state that I enjoy YA when it's done well, but that happens so rarely for me. Of course YA fantasy isn't a bad genre, I just wanted a more adult story with this one in particular)
June 17, 2021
The Short Version: A competently written fantasy that is half palace intrigue, half magical journey. It stumbled out of the blocks but got better as it went, but was a let down because of the tangled mess that comprised the magic system.
The Long Version: I got to listen to the audiobook of this title thanks to NetGalley and Recorded Books.
This is a really tough one for me, as I almost feel bad for not giving it a higher rating. I didn’t find this book overly enjoyable, but at the same time, I know in my bones that it’s well written and mostly well executed. I’m confident there will be large groups of people who absolutely fall in love with this book.
Before I get too deep into the book itself, let me take a moment to recognize the tremendous work of the narrator in this audiobook. There is a single narrator to this audiobook, but I would’ve sworn that it was a cast performance. The voice work was the absolute best but I have heard in any audiobook I’ve listened to.
A lot of the problems I have with this book actually stem from the description given about it. The language in the blurb creates a dense gothic atmosphere. I had a weighty expectation of gore, viscera, and the macabre, and while there were moments of it, this wasn’t a bloodbath. This read much more like Pride and Prejudice, than Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Going in with an unrealistic impression of what the book would be, definitely hurt my listening experience.
The opening chapter has some tension to it, so there was promise right off the bat, but very quickly devolved into a meandering palace intrigue story. In the earlier chapters, the author tries to tease at the magic system providing vague glimpses instead of a fuller picture. I’m sure this is meant to draw the reader in, but for me it created more distance between myself and the story, considering the macabre wasn’t there, and I was expecting a different type of story than it turned out to be.
I also struggled to get on board with the protagonist. The book is described as an “Indictment of hereditary power”, yet the protagonist comes from the privileged class and we’re made to feel that she’s the victim. Her words and thoughts for about 80% of the book also portray her as mostly unsympathetic to the blight of the lower less privileged class. She mostly seems to dislike the most elite because they do things to her that she doesn’t like, not because their actions are necessarily immoral in her eyes. Basically I feel that if she wasn’t personally targeted, she would have quietly gone along with even the most egregious acts that her sisters perpetrated.
There’s a romance thrown in that I’m sure is supposed to endear you to the protagonist as well, so that you were rooting for their love. Problem is, the love interest is too pure, too white night, and reads as an archetype with too little gradation.
Even while there were a lot of things that put distance between me and this book, I can recognize that it’s well written and mostly well constructed. The plot follows a logical plot line, there’s twists, there’s betrayals, there’s life or death stakes. All of this is written in seamless prose that never draws your attention in a negative way. In that respect, it was easy to feel like I was experiencing a story, not being read a story.
The action picks up about 40% through the book, but that point there was so much distance between me and the story that I struggled to become fully invested. From that 40% mark however it’s a much crisper narrative and more tightly paced.
Unfortunately, where it picks up a lot of steam as it propels to the finish, I was not a fan of the ending either. Based on the tensions between factions clearly illustrated throughout the book, the description of the “After” seems far too “and they all lived happily ever after” where I would expect political warring if not outright war.
But i’ve saved the biggest dealbreaker for last. This magic system was messy. The idea of cannibalistic magic drew me to this story, I thought it would be dark and vicious, but instead it was really mostly staid and Victorian. Putting that aside, there was a ton that didn’t make sense to me in the magic system. The biggest issue was the sisters (magic users) would run out of magical power, then recharge by eating the bodies of martyred sisters. So, why don’t these martyrs run out of power? How are they these endless batteries? Also the limits of the magic were very vague considering it was a central component to the story. Lastly, the uses of the magic seemed really small compared to the costs of it, like there seemed to be little point to maintaining the system considering how it all worked. This is explained a little toward the end, but by then I was fully over the system.
Overall 3 stars. There are plenty of people who will really like this story, but it failed to grab me off the bat, and I was left with so many questions on the magic system which is what drew me in to begin with.
Component Ratings
Concept/Idea: 3.5 out of 5
Protagonist: 2.5 out of 5
Antagonists: 4 out of 5
Supporting Characters: 3 out of 5
Character Development: 2.5 out of 5
Magic System: 1.5 out of 5
Plot: 4.5 out of 5
Pacing: 2.5 out of 5
Narrators Performance: 4.5 out of 5
Prose: 4 out of 5
Dialogue: 4 out 5
Ending: 2 out of 5
The Long Version: I got to listen to the audiobook of this title thanks to NetGalley and Recorded Books.
This is a really tough one for me, as I almost feel bad for not giving it a higher rating. I didn’t find this book overly enjoyable, but at the same time, I know in my bones that it’s well written and mostly well executed. I’m confident there will be large groups of people who absolutely fall in love with this book.
Before I get too deep into the book itself, let me take a moment to recognize the tremendous work of the narrator in this audiobook. There is a single narrator to this audiobook, but I would’ve sworn that it was a cast performance. The voice work was the absolute best but I have heard in any audiobook I’ve listened to.
A lot of the problems I have with this book actually stem from the description given about it. The language in the blurb creates a dense gothic atmosphere. I had a weighty expectation of gore, viscera, and the macabre, and while there were moments of it, this wasn’t a bloodbath. This read much more like Pride and Prejudice, than Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Going in with an unrealistic impression of what the book would be, definitely hurt my listening experience.
The opening chapter has some tension to it, so there was promise right off the bat, but very quickly devolved into a meandering palace intrigue story. In the earlier chapters, the author tries to tease at the magic system providing vague glimpses instead of a fuller picture. I’m sure this is meant to draw the reader in, but for me it created more distance between myself and the story, considering the macabre wasn’t there, and I was expecting a different type of story than it turned out to be.
I also struggled to get on board with the protagonist. The book is described as an “Indictment of hereditary power”, yet the protagonist comes from the privileged class and we’re made to feel that she’s the victim. Her words and thoughts for about 80% of the book also portray her as mostly unsympathetic to the blight of the lower less privileged class. She mostly seems to dislike the most elite because they do things to her that she doesn’t like, not because their actions are necessarily immoral in her eyes. Basically I feel that if she wasn’t personally targeted, she would have quietly gone along with even the most egregious acts that her sisters perpetrated.
There’s a romance thrown in that I’m sure is supposed to endear you to the protagonist as well, so that you were rooting for their love. Problem is, the love interest is too pure, too white night, and reads as an archetype with too little gradation.
Even while there were a lot of things that put distance between me and this book, I can recognize that it’s well written and mostly well constructed. The plot follows a logical plot line, there’s twists, there’s betrayals, there’s life or death stakes. All of this is written in seamless prose that never draws your attention in a negative way. In that respect, it was easy to feel like I was experiencing a story, not being read a story.
The action picks up about 40% through the book, but that point there was so much distance between me and the story that I struggled to become fully invested. From that 40% mark however it’s a much crisper narrative and more tightly paced.
Unfortunately, where it picks up a lot of steam as it propels to the finish, I was not a fan of the ending either. Based on the tensions between factions clearly illustrated throughout the book, the description of the “After” seems far too “and they all lived happily ever after” where I would expect political warring if not outright war.
But i’ve saved the biggest dealbreaker for last. This magic system was messy. The idea of cannibalistic magic drew me to this story, I thought it would be dark and vicious, but instead it was really mostly staid and Victorian. Putting that aside, there was a ton that didn’t make sense to me in the magic system. The biggest issue was the sisters (magic users) would run out of magical power, then recharge by eating the bodies of martyred sisters. So, why don’t these martyrs run out of power? How are they these endless batteries? Also the limits of the magic were very vague considering it was a central component to the story. Lastly, the uses of the magic seemed really small compared to the costs of it, like there seemed to be little point to maintaining the system considering how it all worked. This is explained a little toward the end, but by then I was fully over the system.
Overall 3 stars. There are plenty of people who will really like this story, but it failed to grab me off the bat, and I was left with so many questions on the magic system which is what drew me in to begin with.
Component Ratings
Concept/Idea: 3.5 out of 5
Protagonist: 2.5 out of 5
Antagonists: 4 out of 5
Supporting Characters: 3 out of 5
Character Development: 2.5 out of 5
Magic System: 1.5 out of 5
Plot: 4.5 out of 5
Pacing: 2.5 out of 5
Narrators Performance: 4.5 out of 5
Prose: 4 out of 5
Dialogue: 4 out 5
Ending: 2 out of 5
June 2, 2022
It has been MONTHS since I last had a book I enjoyed so much it made me stay up late, needing to read on. This is such a dark horror fantasy: every single detail you find out about this world just makes it more and more fucked up and I loved it. And whilst we’re on it, I thought the worldbuilding was excellent. I loved the slow build of detail and information about the world, like slowly creating a more and more fucked up impression of the world as the plot got more and more intense.
Star Eater is a pacy, gruesome and gory horror fantasy about a murder mystery with cannibalistic government nuns and cats the size of horses and sexually transmitted zombieism. There are definitely problems! The ending is very rushed, the epilogue comes out of nowhere and it could of have had an extra 20-30 pages to end the book properly. And as other reviewers have pointed out, it’s weird how there’s no mention of trans/nonbinary people in such a queer-norm world?
But the vibes were so perfect for me and I can’t remember the last time I flew through a book like I did this.
Content warnings: Graphic blood and gore, graphic cannibalism, rape, forced impregnation, hallucinations, eating disorder, violence, murder, attempted murder, abortion, child death, child abuse, death
Star Eater is a pacy, gruesome and gory horror fantasy about a murder mystery with cannibalistic government nuns and cats the size of horses and sexually transmitted zombieism. There are definitely problems! The ending is very rushed, the epilogue comes out of nowhere and it could of have had an extra 20-30 pages to end the book properly. And as other reviewers have pointed out, it’s weird how there’s no mention of trans/nonbinary people in such a queer-norm world?
But the vibes were so perfect for me and I can’t remember the last time I flew through a book like I did this.
Content warnings: Graphic blood and gore, graphic cannibalism, rape, forced impregnation, hallucinations, eating disorder, violence, murder, attempted murder, abortion, child death, child abuse, death
August 18, 2021
ARC sent by Tor.com in exchange for my honest review.
"Elfreda Raughn will avoid pregnancy if it kills her, and one way or another, it will kill her. Though she’s able to stomach her gruesome day-to-day duties, the reality of preserving the Sisterhood of Aytrium’s magical bloodline horrifies her. She wants out, whatever the cost."
I was so excited for this book. It sounded like a unique and dark sci-fi story. Unfortunately, I found this very lacking. The world building left a lot to be desired, I never felt like I got a full picture of the world. None of the characters stood out to me. There were some cool parts like the magic and the way the sisters "fed" their magic (the cannibalism ) but there wasn't enough. I wanted to dark and this wasn't dark enough. The main character, Elfreda felt very flat to me. I didn't love the "love interests". I thought the pacing was too slow and important information we needed, we didn't get until towards the end. I definitely was disappointed in this story.
"Elfreda Raughn will avoid pregnancy if it kills her, and one way or another, it will kill her. Though she’s able to stomach her gruesome day-to-day duties, the reality of preserving the Sisterhood of Aytrium’s magical bloodline horrifies her. She wants out, whatever the cost."
I was so excited for this book. It sounded like a unique and dark sci-fi story. Unfortunately, I found this very lacking. The world building left a lot to be desired, I never felt like I got a full picture of the world. None of the characters stood out to me. There were some cool parts like the magic and the way the sisters "fed" their magic (the cannibalism ) but there wasn't enough. I wanted to dark and this wasn't dark enough. The main character, Elfreda felt very flat to me. I didn't love the "love interests". I thought the pacing was too slow and important information we needed, we didn't get until towards the end. I definitely was disappointed in this story.
mehhhh-maybe
January 11, 2021nuns, bisexuals and CANNIBALS
where have you been all my life?
where have you been all my life?
January 29, 2021
This was a WHAMMY of a book. A governing society of nuns on a floating sky island that engage in ritualistic cannibalism? STIs that turn men into Zombie's? Rideable cats the size of horses? Kerstin's Hall's debut novella The Border Keeper sent me into this expecting phenomenal world-building, and Hall did not disappoint. This is not a light book, and in addition to the aforementioned cannibalism it covers issues of bodily autonomy, fraught mother-daughter relationships, grief, trauma, and body horror, among other things. Still, nothing feels extraneous: the events in the novel; while sometimes deeply dark, all serve a purpose, whether it is making a powerful statement or driving the plot and characters where they need to go. Star Eater moves at a breakneck pace, a fact which serves it well for approximately 4/5ths of the novel before getting a little out of control near the end.
This is also a deeply sensory book. Not only do Elfreda's unreliable visions create a tenuous, dream-like reality for us as the reader, but Hall's visuals are gorgeous, horrifying, and stomach-turning in equal measure. I felt transfixed by this, sometimes in a good way, sometimes in an "I found this video of an internet guy eating a bug and now I can't tear my eyes away" way.
My quibbles with this book have to do with 1) character and 2) the aforementioned last 1/5 of the book. While I enjoyed the characters for the most part, particularly Elfreda's devoted driver Osan and childhood friend Millie, I was annoyed by the love interest, who didn't posses much of a spark of personality beyond loving the MC and being....nice? I'm not sure. Even at the conclusion of this book I feel like I can count his compelling personality traits on one hand. My other issue was, of course, the end of the book. Without going into any spoilers, it was incredibly abrupt, fairly rushed, and left me feeling confused and unsatisfied. Still, the sheer gravity and inventiveness of the world-buidling is enough to cement this at 4 stars for me. Kerstin Hall's mind is a weird, wonderful marvel, and I can't wait to read what she writes next!
This is also a deeply sensory book. Not only do Elfreda's unreliable visions create a tenuous, dream-like reality for us as the reader, but Hall's visuals are gorgeous, horrifying, and stomach-turning in equal measure. I felt transfixed by this, sometimes in a good way, sometimes in an "I found this video of an internet guy eating a bug and now I can't tear my eyes away" way.
My quibbles with this book have to do with 1) character and 2) the aforementioned last 1/5 of the book. While I enjoyed the characters for the most part, particularly Elfreda's devoted driver Osan and childhood friend Millie, I was annoyed by the love interest, who didn't posses much of a spark of personality beyond loving the MC and being....nice? I'm not sure. Even at the conclusion of this book I feel like I can count his compelling personality traits on one hand. My other issue was, of course, the end of the book. Without going into any spoilers, it was incredibly abrupt, fairly rushed, and left me feeling confused and unsatisfied. Still, the sheer gravity and inventiveness of the world-buidling is enough to cement this at 4 stars for me. Kerstin Hall's mind is a weird, wonderful marvel, and I can't wait to read what she writes next!
June 28, 2021
This was a wild, at times horrifying, ride from start to finish. I’m super impressed because the author managed to viscerally horrify me with aspects I was definitely expecting from the synopsis (the cannibalism, for example), because they were done in a totally unique, unexpected way. All in all a fantastic, gripping, fast paced read!
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Let's be friends! Bookstagram | Booktube | Booktok | Book Blog | Twitter
January 21, 2022
DNF 10%
Никогда не думала, что монашки-каннибалы могут быть такими скучными.
Три звезды за попытку.
Никогда не думала, что монашки-каннибалы могут быть такими скучными.
Три звезды за попытку.
March 18, 2021
Okay, I’ll admit it. This book confused my brain a little.
You see, it’s not YA…but it reads like YA.
Our MC is that YA everygirl. She’s THE ONE who will save everyone. She’s the strongest, the savviest, everyone’s crush. I mean…the only little difference is that some people want to eat her. There’s even a love triangle, though a bit modernized.
Our main plot line – the thing that must be accomplished – also feels very YA.
There’s a wee rape plot line that isn’t YA, but even that’s sort of adult-lite in the way it’s handled. It’s sad and hopeless, but never very edgy or adult.
The world building itself isn’t badly done. The author slowly introduces us into a world that’s unique (what with all the people eating) and full of despair.
The book was interesting enough to keep my attention. However, I think it’s a standalone and…I hope it stays that way.
*ARC via Net Galley
You see, it’s not YA…but it reads like YA.
Our MC is that YA everygirl. She’s THE ONE who will save everyone. She’s the strongest, the savviest, everyone’s crush. I mean…the only little difference is that some people want to eat her. There’s even a love triangle, though a bit modernized.
Our main plot line – the thing that must be accomplished – also feels very YA.
There’s a wee rape plot line that isn’t YA, but even that’s sort of adult-lite in the way it’s handled. It’s sad and hopeless, but never very edgy or adult.
The world building itself isn’t badly done. The author slowly introduces us into a world that’s unique (what with all the people eating) and full of despair.
The book was interesting enough to keep my attention. However, I think it’s a standalone and…I hope it stays that way.
*ARC via Net Galley
dnf
January 15, 2025First DNF of the year. Too weird for me, or maybe I’m just not in the mood to wade through a bunch of confusing mush before I get the gist of the story.
July 9, 2021
Star Eater by Kerstin Hall (Solid 4.5 Stars)
Here is my "from-the-hip" review. SPOILER WARNING!
I’m so sad it’s done! I wanted so much more! But in a good way. This is going to be tough to rate. I really enjoyed it. So glad that I stuck with my gut on this one. Even though by the end I really wanted more and the ending, or at least the last five chapters felt a bit rushed, I still loved every minute I was reading this book. I love that the ending conflict was super surreal and chaotic and nightmarish but also peaceful and serene at the same time. The juxtaposition of nature and death and spirituality and mental health and inner strength and heritage of power and femininity, throughout the entire book, was wonderful and intriguing. Just a whole lot of great themes, no doubt, but also characters that actually gave a sh*t about each other and a sacrifice by the main character that didn’t feel like a traditional “loss” for others gain or too tropey or discounting. That moment in the temple... was super unsettling that the spikes went through her wrists. YUCK. I hate it. I love it. It all sent shivers down my spine.
The dialogue, for me, was the weaker aspect of the book but truthfully and for the sake of not giving shallow reasoning, it really helped make the absurdness of the horror elements and the complexities of the matriarchal politics easier to comprehend and digest. I do hate it when it feels like the author rushed the ending, possibly out of fear of staying too long in the slow peaceful aftermath. Like let me see Elfreda hug Millie one more time! Let me hear about where they are going and why and what they hope to find out there during their expedition! But also here I am already SEEING those things and creating my own hopeful narrative. I love when books make you hope like that.
The characters were a little above average but I think the dialogue may have hurt their individuality. I did like the way the bad guys all received cool and satisfying crunchy deaths. Still, I really cared about Millie and El. I loved the seamless inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters and the way the people of this world used body/hand language with their gestures almost like signing while they spoke. Really cool and have never seen it done like that in this genre. Aside from El and a few of the conspiracist nuns on El's side like Saskia, I really was surprised by how much I loved Osan and Millie. Two supporting characters that could have easily been redundant or typical but were completely the opposite.
The world building was so subtle and nuanced and understated but in a way that made me hunger for more without feeling let down by not getting sated with what Hall trickled through the world building. The way information was slowly fed to us through environmental storytelling, subtle details in the worldbuilding, and through El’s “visions” especially when she learned what they really were, which was also a really cool and pleasant surprise and not what I was expecting. I also love that the cannibalism element wasn’t like… for shock value or overstated. It served a really cool and symbolic and weirdly beautiful purpose, albeit gross. After the first time, which I’ll admit shook me a bit, I was like ok, this makes sense. No weirder than Christians when they take communion.
Okay, one gripe that I had about the ending... I hate that we didn’t get to see her be rescued… did she wake up alone in the temple? Weren’t there other bad guys pursuing them? or maybe the others were picked off and that left only Selene? What if she’s pregnant!?!?!?!? If she is pregnant with a half haunt baby that gives her powers while she’s carrying !?!? (Ah, fun speculation. To me, a sign of a great book!)
I will say the pacing towards the end was rushed but that’s what every author I feel like is told to do these days in the final act (and if it's true I hate it! Let me stay a little longer, please!) but at the same time the book never felt like it was over staying it’s welcome. I just really want to know more, to explore more of this world. I hope Hall returns to it sooner than later. I love when a book is compulsively readable. I couldn’t put it down. Despite the seemingly simplistic dialogue and the fact that I really wanted MORE. I really enjoyed this book. The world itself is a new favorite and I want to use this as new compass when navigating the kind of fantasy I consume moving forward!
Here is my "from-the-hip" review. SPOILER WARNING!
I’m so sad it’s done! I wanted so much more! But in a good way. This is going to be tough to rate. I really enjoyed it. So glad that I stuck with my gut on this one. Even though by the end I really wanted more and the ending, or at least the last five chapters felt a bit rushed, I still loved every minute I was reading this book. I love that the ending conflict was super surreal and chaotic and nightmarish but also peaceful and serene at the same time. The juxtaposition of nature and death and spirituality and mental health and inner strength and heritage of power and femininity, throughout the entire book, was wonderful and intriguing. Just a whole lot of great themes, no doubt, but also characters that actually gave a sh*t about each other and a sacrifice by the main character that didn’t feel like a traditional “loss” for others gain or too tropey or discounting. That moment in the temple... was super unsettling that the spikes went through her wrists. YUCK. I hate it. I love it. It all sent shivers down my spine.
The dialogue, for me, was the weaker aspect of the book but truthfully and for the sake of not giving shallow reasoning, it really helped make the absurdness of the horror elements and the complexities of the matriarchal politics easier to comprehend and digest. I do hate it when it feels like the author rushed the ending, possibly out of fear of staying too long in the slow peaceful aftermath. Like let me see Elfreda hug Millie one more time! Let me hear about where they are going and why and what they hope to find out there during their expedition! But also here I am already SEEING those things and creating my own hopeful narrative. I love when books make you hope like that.
The characters were a little above average but I think the dialogue may have hurt their individuality. I did like the way the bad guys all received cool and satisfying crunchy deaths. Still, I really cared about Millie and El. I loved the seamless inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters and the way the people of this world used body/hand language with their gestures almost like signing while they spoke. Really cool and have never seen it done like that in this genre. Aside from El and a few of the conspiracist nuns on El's side like Saskia, I really was surprised by how much I loved Osan and Millie. Two supporting characters that could have easily been redundant or typical but were completely the opposite.
The world building was so subtle and nuanced and understated but in a way that made me hunger for more without feeling let down by not getting sated with what Hall trickled through the world building. The way information was slowly fed to us through environmental storytelling, subtle details in the worldbuilding, and through El’s “visions” especially when she learned what they really were, which was also a really cool and pleasant surprise and not what I was expecting. I also love that the cannibalism element wasn’t like… for shock value or overstated. It served a really cool and symbolic and weirdly beautiful purpose, albeit gross. After the first time, which I’ll admit shook me a bit, I was like ok, this makes sense. No weirder than Christians when they take communion.
Okay, one gripe that I had about the ending... I hate that we didn’t get to see her be rescued… did she wake up alone in the temple? Weren’t there other bad guys pursuing them? or maybe the others were picked off and that left only Selene? What if she’s pregnant!?!?!?!? If she is pregnant with a half haunt baby that gives her powers while she’s carrying !?!? (Ah, fun speculation. To me, a sign of a great book!)
I will say the pacing towards the end was rushed but that’s what every author I feel like is told to do these days in the final act (and if it's true I hate it! Let me stay a little longer, please!) but at the same time the book never felt like it was over staying it’s welcome. I just really want to know more, to explore more of this world. I hope Hall returns to it sooner than later. I love when a book is compulsively readable. I couldn’t put it down. Despite the seemingly simplistic dialogue and the fact that I really wanted MORE. I really enjoyed this book. The world itself is a new favorite and I want to use this as new compass when navigating the kind of fantasy I consume moving forward!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 29, 2021
Thank you to the publishers and Edelweiss for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Star Eater is an adult fantasy about a religious order of women who rule a floating city/island in the sky. They worship the Star Eater, a woman who ate a Star and swallowed her power and used it to raise the city into the sky. The women are duty bound to carry on the bloodlines and have children, but the men they have sex with become infected and turn into monsters, and the sooner they die. Once they “die”, they fall into a coma and their daughters are forced to slowly consume tiny pieces of their flesh to restore their powers, stored in the body and called “lace.”
The book specifically follows Elfreda Raughn, one of the nuns in the Sisterhood of Aytrium, who wants anything but the fate of pregnancy/death. While wading through the pain of losing her mother and finding her place amidst the unsettling visions that plague her, she becomes involved in a plot that promises a way out of her looming fate of motherhood and martyrdom, and as she gets more involved, reveals a way to fix her society.
I thoroughly enjoyed Star Eater and its unsettling, mystical tone. With the cannibalism, the religion, and the visions, Star Eater set itself apart as a unique adult fantasy novel. It was a delightfully creepy read with fantastic and masterful world (and religion!) building.
Once getting the hang of the book after I started reading, I was enthralled.
The queer representation and casual acceptance was well done, as was the F x M romance.
Really I have nothing to complain about other than I wish the ending had been explained slightly more, with the time skip and the epilogue, as I felt like some things were too unclear.
Highly recommend for those looking for a unique adult fantasy!
Star Eater is an adult fantasy about a religious order of women who rule a floating city/island in the sky. They worship the Star Eater, a woman who ate a Star and swallowed her power and used it to raise the city into the sky. The women are duty bound to carry on the bloodlines and have children, but the men they have sex with become infected and turn into monsters, and the sooner they die. Once they “die”, they fall into a coma and their daughters are forced to slowly consume tiny pieces of their flesh to restore their powers, stored in the body and called “lace.”
The book specifically follows Elfreda Raughn, one of the nuns in the Sisterhood of Aytrium, who wants anything but the fate of pregnancy/death. While wading through the pain of losing her mother and finding her place amidst the unsettling visions that plague her, she becomes involved in a plot that promises a way out of her looming fate of motherhood and martyrdom, and as she gets more involved, reveals a way to fix her society.
I thoroughly enjoyed Star Eater and its unsettling, mystical tone. With the cannibalism, the religion, and the visions, Star Eater set itself apart as a unique adult fantasy novel. It was a delightfully creepy read with fantastic and masterful world (and religion!) building.
Once getting the hang of the book after I started reading, I was enthralled.
The queer representation and casual acceptance was well done, as was the F x M romance.
Really I have nothing to complain about other than I wish the ending had been explained slightly more, with the time skip and the epilogue, as I felt like some things were too unclear.
Highly recommend for those looking for a unique adult fantasy!
July 14, 2021
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Okay, so I'll admit right here and right now that I had no idea what I was walking into. Heck, once I saw that the audio was available I was freaking out with excitement. Mostly because I just really wanted to dive into Star Eater after reading the synopsis. Unfortunately, that was the best part out of the entire freaking book. Well, at least for me it was.
I'm definitely blaming myself for all the hyping up I did because this book was just one huge disappointment to me. Some thing were just really too gross and I'm so happy that I wasn't eating or drinking anything when I got to those scenes. Then there are parts that confused me so much that I just didn't know what was going on. I honestly had no idea who was good or bad for most of this book and I secretly wished I had the ebook or physical to read instead of listening to the audiobook.
If I did, I don't think my opinion on the book would have changed drastically but I think some of my confusion would never appear. Maybe. Again, not completely sure right now. Other than that, I thought the whole nuns who were kind of like black widows was a pretty interesting idea. It definitely had potential to be a great book. Unfortunately, it just had parts where absolutely nothing was happening and I felt like I was missing a lot of information. Whether it was the lack of world building or even the characters. I honestly had no idea who was who and just sat back and watched the chaos unfold.
Before I forget, there was also some romance but I didn't really care for it. I think it would have been fine with zero romance and a lot more action to keep me from zoning in and out of the book. I'm also pretty happy that this isn't a series because I just don't think I could handle another book. It would definitely confuse me even more.
Okay, so I'll admit right here and right now that I had no idea what I was walking into. Heck, once I saw that the audio was available I was freaking out with excitement. Mostly because I just really wanted to dive into Star Eater after reading the synopsis. Unfortunately, that was the best part out of the entire freaking book. Well, at least for me it was.
I'm definitely blaming myself for all the hyping up I did because this book was just one huge disappointment to me. Some thing were just really too gross and I'm so happy that I wasn't eating or drinking anything when I got to those scenes. Then there are parts that confused me so much that I just didn't know what was going on. I honestly had no idea who was good or bad for most of this book and I secretly wished I had the ebook or physical to read instead of listening to the audiobook.
If I did, I don't think my opinion on the book would have changed drastically but I think some of my confusion would never appear. Maybe. Again, not completely sure right now. Other than that, I thought the whole nuns who were kind of like black widows was a pretty interesting idea. It definitely had potential to be a great book. Unfortunately, it just had parts where absolutely nothing was happening and I felt like I was missing a lot of information. Whether it was the lack of world building or even the characters. I honestly had no idea who was who and just sat back and watched the chaos unfold.
Before I forget, there was also some romance but I didn't really care for it. I think it would have been fine with zero romance and a lot more action to keep me from zoning in and out of the book. I'm also pretty happy that this isn't a series because I just don't think I could handle another book. It would definitely confuse me even more.
August 26, 2021
Originally published on The Nerd Daily | Review by Jena Brown
Star Eater is not going to be every reader’s cup of flesh. It’s violent and gory, filled with dark and heavy themes, and readers should familiarise themselves with the content warnings before proceeding. It falls firmly in the horror and dark fantasy spectrum and will appeal to those readers. There is a lot of body horror and graphic imagery used to delve into grief, regret, fear, and loss. It’s horrifying and tender, exposing the complicated nuance of life in wildly imaginative ways.
But this layered approach means that Hall doesn’t hold the reader’s hand through the story. There are some clues to how the world operates along with the unfolding mystery that are incredibly subtle. They can be easy to miss or misunderstand. However, the lush descriptions and intense imagery encourage a closer read. This is a book to fall into completely and entirely, and fans will find new perspectives and details to revel in with every read through.
Star Eater is described as “a phantasmagorical indictment of hereditary power” and it absolutely lives up to every word. It explores power and how power corrupts, but at its core, this is a book about how to choose your own life in a world that wants to rip choice away entirely. It’s a powerful debut bringing a strange, twisted lucidity to the dark fantasy genre.
Read the FULL REVIEW on The Nerd Daily
Star Eater is not going to be every reader’s cup of flesh. It’s violent and gory, filled with dark and heavy themes, and readers should familiarise themselves with the content warnings before proceeding. It falls firmly in the horror and dark fantasy spectrum and will appeal to those readers. There is a lot of body horror and graphic imagery used to delve into grief, regret, fear, and loss. It’s horrifying and tender, exposing the complicated nuance of life in wildly imaginative ways.
But this layered approach means that Hall doesn’t hold the reader’s hand through the story. There are some clues to how the world operates along with the unfolding mystery that are incredibly subtle. They can be easy to miss or misunderstand. However, the lush descriptions and intense imagery encourage a closer read. This is a book to fall into completely and entirely, and fans will find new perspectives and details to revel in with every read through.
Star Eater is described as “a phantasmagorical indictment of hereditary power” and it absolutely lives up to every word. It explores power and how power corrupts, but at its core, this is a book about how to choose your own life in a world that wants to rip choice away entirely. It’s a powerful debut bringing a strange, twisted lucidity to the dark fantasy genre.
Read the FULL REVIEW on The Nerd Daily
January 17, 2023
This book was absolutely disgusting, but, like, in an enjoyable way? I loved the infighting, trickery, and different factions in this book. I loved the premise with cannibal bisexual nuns, giant cats, and zombies. What a delightful combination of ideas! I wanted more from the worldbuilding, I didn't realise a few key parts about the city or religion until towards the end of the book, so it didn't have as much of an emotional impact as I'd hoped. Still an amazing read though. Yuck.
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Follow me on my Blog, Twitter, and Instagram.
July 14, 2021
The nicest thing I can say about Star Eater is that the narrator was fantastic.
The world building was absolutely a mess. I had no idea the city was floating in the sky until towards the end of the book. I never understood the magic system.
And the without spoiling anything I will just say the built up drama had absolutely no pay off.
The world building was absolutely a mess. I had no idea the city was floating in the sky until towards the end of the book. I never understood the magic system.
And the without spoiling anything I will just say the built up drama had absolutely no pay off.
August 23, 2023
Although I enjoyed Star Eater, it suffers from the same problem as The Unspoken Name: sufficient similarity to the Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir that I compared them unfavourably. Thus I liked many of the concepts, but did not find their execution as visceral as the unparalleled Locked Tomb experience. Some of the body horror was pretty creepy, although I think the cannibalistic elements could have felt more intense. Similarly, the first person narration was fine but not terribly distinctive. Elfreda the protagonist is nonetheless interesting and I like the way she solves problems by befriending and trusting others.
Comparisons aside, the worldbuilding in Star Eater is original and appealing; I would gladly read a whole series exploring this world. From the first page I was eager to discover more details of the magic system, social stratification, geography, and gender politics. The writing is compelling and, once I was familiar with the world, I found events exciting. While I think the plot resolved itself a little too easily at the end, overall I had a very good time reading Star Eater. There a lot of ingenious ideas and the protagonist is pleasingly down to earth. Also giant cats are the main means of transport, who could resist that?
Comparisons aside, the worldbuilding in Star Eater is original and appealing; I would gladly read a whole series exploring this world. From the first page I was eager to discover more details of the magic system, social stratification, geography, and gender politics. The writing is compelling and, once I was familiar with the world, I found events exciting. While I think the plot resolved itself a little too easily at the end, overall I had a very good time reading Star Eater. There a lot of ingenious ideas and the protagonist is pleasingly down to earth. Also giant cats are the main means of transport, who could resist that?
October 4, 2021
I am shocked. Shocked that the intriguing concept of "nuns who fuel their magic through cannibalism" managed to be so wildly boring.
Star Eater follows Elfreda, a young Sister and acolyte of a god called The Eater. When her grandmother died under suspicious circumstances, her mother was martyred. Being martyred is the death sentence most Sisters will succumb to: being put into a coma of some kind so that your body can be slowly flayed for sacraments, eaten by your daughter or other Sisters to refresh their lace (magic).
On top of that, though this society's structure centers around this magic and the passing down of it through the maternal line, men who have sex with a Sister are doomed to become a Haunt, turning into STI-powered zombie-like husks of monsters who hunt Sisters.
The society is pretty divided: Those with magic, those without. Men who commit heinous crimes? Will be "compulsed" to participate in the ceremonial rape of Sisters, damning themselves to become Haunts while helping keep the matrilineal line alive.
Messed up, right? I was all in on the cool concept, and gave the book some slack. Turns out, those concepts are where the world-building ends. Yeah, okay, there's a resistance/rebellion that is evidently supposed to be significant(?) To the plot... But it comes across as a toothless source of conflict and empty intrigue.
Being the main character, Elfreda is different than her fellow Sisters. She has visions, which are definitely the creepiest and most interesting part of the book. The meaning behind these visions eventually starts driving the plot around 3/4 through, when the novel picks up the pace, but unfortunately... there's a lot more time spent on what I guess was supposed to be some kind of love triangle?
Suitor #1. Finn is a man, so obviously already a dangerous prospect given the whole zombie STI thing. It's clear in the text Elfreda loves him, but she responsibly sets boundaries around it until she doesn't. He's generally uninteresting and their affection for each other isn't palpable through the text. Which means that while a good chunk of the book uses their relationship as a catalyst, it falls completely flat.
Suitor #2. Millie, Finn's sister. She has a bit more screen time where she just comes across as a decent friend and partner in crime, which makes it weird when the text tries to sell us on Elfreda and Millie having romantic feelings for one another. Like, yes, the text is there. We keep being told they have feelings for each other. But, shockingly, there's even less chemistry or subtext present to ground the relationship than there is for Finn. Usually I celebrate anytime there's a chance for WLW romance. Seriously, give me a furtive glance and I'll write you an essay. But this? Was a flimsy paper cut out.
How does Star Eater come together? Well, slowly. Very vague, minor spoilers ahead.
• Political sniping (I think the author was going for intrigue) comes in, but the world, society, religion, and characters aren't well-formed enough for it to matter.
• Elfreda has an open mystery about who killed her grandmother and forced her mother into martyship which is answered like... 1/4 way in, in a most unsatisfying and nonchalant way.
• I actually forgot until rereading my notes, but there was a brief pregnancy and abortion storyline that came up with no warning and then resolved itself in a couple chapters.
• Too many characters and so many of them throwaway. A murder mystery ends to reveal... a character we've never met before! A full chapter is spent negotiating with a character we've seen mentioned, and though they don't make a decision in that scene, we never see them again! A potential alternate chosen one is established as a friend and ally and... Disappears from the book without rhyme or reason! Truly, the author should have considered paring down the "dramatis personae" to develop these characters more strongly. Give each of them more to do, make them matter. Make what happens to them matter.
• Finally, in the last stretch of the book, there's a quest in an interesting location with well-defined stakes and the tension of failure. Alas, it's a very short portion of the book, resolves far too quickly, and brings us a conclusion that was paaaaainfully YA and unsatisfying, invalidating said established stakes. I haven't read an epilogue that unsatisfying since The Deathly Hallows.
This book doesn't feel like adult fantasy. It has all the bells and whistles of a YA (though not a great YA), yet doesn't seem to want to call itself that. Was that the publishers? The author? It has done the book a disservice.
In short, Star Eater seemed to want to be a lot of things. It wanted to be sprawling, epic. Political intrigue, murder mystery, chosen one quest, horror story, etc. It had high hopes for itself, it set big goals. Unfortunately in stretching itself so thin, it ran out of lace, and didn't meet them. 2/5
Star Eater follows Elfreda, a young Sister and acolyte of a god called The Eater. When her grandmother died under suspicious circumstances, her mother was martyred. Being martyred is the death sentence most Sisters will succumb to: being put into a coma of some kind so that your body can be slowly flayed for sacraments, eaten by your daughter or other Sisters to refresh their lace (magic).
On top of that, though this society's structure centers around this magic and the passing down of it through the maternal line, men who have sex with a Sister are doomed to become a Haunt, turning into STI-powered zombie-like husks of monsters who hunt Sisters.
The society is pretty divided: Those with magic, those without. Men who commit heinous crimes? Will be "compulsed" to participate in the ceremonial rape of Sisters, damning themselves to become Haunts while helping keep the matrilineal line alive.
Messed up, right? I was all in on the cool concept, and gave the book some slack. Turns out, those concepts are where the world-building ends. Yeah, okay, there's a resistance/rebellion that is evidently supposed to be significant(?) To the plot... But it comes across as a toothless source of conflict and empty intrigue.
Being the main character, Elfreda is different than her fellow Sisters. She has visions, which are definitely the creepiest and most interesting part of the book. The meaning behind these visions eventually starts driving the plot around 3/4 through, when the novel picks up the pace, but unfortunately... there's a lot more time spent on what I guess was supposed to be some kind of love triangle?
Suitor #1. Finn is a man, so obviously already a dangerous prospect given the whole zombie STI thing. It's clear in the text Elfreda loves him, but she responsibly sets boundaries around it until she doesn't. He's generally uninteresting and their affection for each other isn't palpable through the text. Which means that while a good chunk of the book uses their relationship as a catalyst, it falls completely flat.
Suitor #2. Millie, Finn's sister. She has a bit more screen time where she just comes across as a decent friend and partner in crime, which makes it weird when the text tries to sell us on Elfreda and Millie having romantic feelings for one another. Like, yes, the text is there. We keep being told they have feelings for each other. But, shockingly, there's even less chemistry or subtext present to ground the relationship than there is for Finn. Usually I celebrate anytime there's a chance for WLW romance. Seriously, give me a furtive glance and I'll write you an essay. But this? Was a flimsy paper cut out.
How does Star Eater come together? Well, slowly. Very vague, minor spoilers ahead.
• Political sniping (I think the author was going for intrigue) comes in, but the world, society, religion, and characters aren't well-formed enough for it to matter.
• Elfreda has an open mystery about who killed her grandmother and forced her mother into martyship which is answered like... 1/4 way in, in a most unsatisfying and nonchalant way.
• I actually forgot until rereading my notes, but there was a brief pregnancy and abortion storyline that came up with no warning and then resolved itself in a couple chapters.
• Too many characters and so many of them throwaway. A murder mystery ends to reveal... a character we've never met before! A full chapter is spent negotiating with a character we've seen mentioned, and though they don't make a decision in that scene, we never see them again! A potential alternate chosen one is established as a friend and ally and... Disappears from the book without rhyme or reason! Truly, the author should have considered paring down the "dramatis personae" to develop these characters more strongly. Give each of them more to do, make them matter. Make what happens to them matter.
• Finally, in the last stretch of the book, there's a quest in an interesting location with well-defined stakes and the tension of failure. Alas, it's a very short portion of the book, resolves far too quickly, and brings us a conclusion that was paaaaainfully YA and unsatisfying, invalidating said established stakes. I haven't read an epilogue that unsatisfying since The Deathly Hallows.
This book doesn't feel like adult fantasy. It has all the bells and whistles of a YA (though not a great YA), yet doesn't seem to want to call itself that. Was that the publishers? The author? It has done the book a disservice.
In short, Star Eater seemed to want to be a lot of things. It wanted to be sprawling, epic. Political intrigue, murder mystery, chosen one quest, horror story, etc. It had high hopes for itself, it set big goals. Unfortunately in stretching itself so thin, it ran out of lace, and didn't meet them. 2/5
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