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Beneath the Rising #3
The Void Ascendant
The mindblowing, cosmic conclusion to the breakout
Beneath the Rising
trilogy.
SURVIVAL HAS CONSEQUENCES
Seven years ago, the last survivor of Earth crashed through uncountable dimensions to a strange new world. Nick Prasad found shelter, and a living, as a prophet for the ruling family—servants of the Ancient Ones who destroyed his home.
Now, he’s been offered a chance to rid the multiverse of the Ancient Ones, past and present and forever, although he’ll have to betray his new masters to do it.
The first step is jailbreaking a god—and that’s the easy part...
SURVIVAL HAS CONSEQUENCES
Seven years ago, the last survivor of Earth crashed through uncountable dimensions to a strange new world. Nick Prasad found shelter, and a living, as a prophet for the ruling family—servants of the Ancient Ones who destroyed his home.
Now, he’s been offered a chance to rid the multiverse of the Ancient Ones, past and present and forever, although he’ll have to betray his new masters to do it.
The first step is jailbreaking a god—and that’s the easy part...
560 pages, Paperback
First published April 26, 2022
21 people are currently reading
506 people want to read
About the author
Premee Mohamed
81 books754 followersPremee Mohamed is a Nebula award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, Alberta. She is an Assistant Editor at the short fiction audio venue Escape Pod and the author of the 'Beneath the Rising' series of novels as well as several novellas. Her short fiction has appeared in many venues and she can be found on Twitter at @premeesaurus and on her website at www.premeemohamed.com.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
May 31, 2022
3.0 Stars
While I don't normally love cosmic horror, the first book in this series, Beneath the Rising, captured my heart. For me, the pull of this story is the characters or specifically the relationship between the two protagonists. While the first book started out quite intimate, this third and final book ended in a completely different place with an epic finale of a truly cosmic scale. So often series endings are underwhelming so I appreciated that this ending went big. However this series took a turn that I did not personally love and the last book was not enough to redeem it.
I would recommend this series to fans of cosmic horror but you'll want to start back at the beginning with Beneath the Rising.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
While I don't normally love cosmic horror, the first book in this series, Beneath the Rising, captured my heart. For me, the pull of this story is the characters or specifically the relationship between the two protagonists. While the first book started out quite intimate, this third and final book ended in a completely different place with an epic finale of a truly cosmic scale. So often series endings are underwhelming so I appreciated that this ending went big. However this series took a turn that I did not personally love and the last book was not enough to redeem it.
I would recommend this series to fans of cosmic horror but you'll want to start back at the beginning with Beneath the Rising.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
May 28, 2022
We meet up with Nick Prasad seven years after the events of book two. He's had years to grieve the loss of his family, Earth, and nurse then put away his anger, living in a world parallel to his, but very different. He is venerated as a prophet, with the monarchy harvesting meanings from his dreams, and though it's a relatively comfortable life, Nick knows that at any time, the king and queen could have him killed gruesomely.
War is coming, and if that isn't bad enough, a stranger called Yenu is captured trying to steal some ancient text from the royal library. When Nick confronts the stranger, though appearing very different from Johnny Chambers, Yenu has the same focus, brilliance, and lack of concern for others if they're in the way of her goals. Nick is thrown back into the toxic mix of feelings he has had for Johnny since her secret control over him was exposed in book one. Nick has to decide whether or not to aid or stop what the stranger wants to do, which, like all of Johnny's big plans, is huge, dangerous, requires many pieces of arcane and hard to find knowledge, with the possibility of destroying this world and others.
This wrap-up has huge scope and stakes, but is also again an intimate portrait of a fractured and deeply damaged person and the relationship he has with someone who both needs and relies on him to always support her, despite her gross mishandling of many, many things. The consequences of failure of the story are massive, but the banter and sniping between Nick and Yenu keep it grounded, reminding one of the small but no less important stakes of the story, of family, friendship and responsibility to others.
The story drags a little (I think this book, and the previous installments) could have been a little shorter, with perhaps one or two fewer searches for arcana, but I never stopped caring during this story about whether Nick would be reunited with his deeply missed family (I loved his younger siblings in book one). Premee Mohamed is one of my "She wrote it, I'll read it" authors, and I'm glad I went with her on this trip to protect Earth from Lovecraftian horrors.
3.5 stars.
Thank you to Netgalley and to Rebellion Solaris for this ARC in exchange for my review.
War is coming, and if that isn't bad enough, a stranger called Yenu is captured trying to steal some ancient text from the royal library. When Nick confronts the stranger, though appearing very different from Johnny Chambers, Yenu has the same focus, brilliance, and lack of concern for others if they're in the way of her goals. Nick is thrown back into the toxic mix of feelings he has had for Johnny since her secret control over him was exposed in book one. Nick has to decide whether or not to aid or stop what the stranger wants to do, which, like all of Johnny's big plans, is huge, dangerous, requires many pieces of arcane and hard to find knowledge, with the possibility of destroying this world and others.
This wrap-up has huge scope and stakes, but is also again an intimate portrait of a fractured and deeply damaged person and the relationship he has with someone who both needs and relies on him to always support her, despite her gross mishandling of many, many things. The consequences of failure of the story are massive, but the banter and sniping between Nick and Yenu keep it grounded, reminding one of the small but no less important stakes of the story, of family, friendship and responsibility to others.
The story drags a little (I think this book, and the previous installments) could have been a little shorter, with perhaps one or two fewer searches for arcana, but I never stopped caring during this story about whether Nick would be reunited with his deeply missed family (I loved his younger siblings in book one). Premee Mohamed is one of my "She wrote it, I'll read it" authors, and I'm glad I went with her on this trip to protect Earth from Lovecraftian horrors.
3.5 stars.
Thank you to Netgalley and to Rebellion Solaris for this ARC in exchange for my review.
December 9, 2022
I had a lot of fun reading this book - the third part of a trilogy, but massively different compared with the first two books. While the first books could be seen as a combination of adventure novels with cosmic horror, starring two snarky friends, of whom one was a bonafide genius - here there's a big dose of weird fantasy/planetary romance thrown in (fitting with the pulpy tone of the first two books) as seven years after the total destruction of Earth, Nick is stranded on an alien planet where he serves as the Prophet to the king and queen, aided by a tall, black sphinx, his Advisor. Even though he sometimes has to do gruesome things in the service of the eldritch powers ruling the place, at least he has a comfortable life. That is until a spy is captured and turns out to look a lot like Johnny Chambers - his former friend and the one who turned out to be responsible for destroying the earth. Now this Yenu has a plan to defeat the evil powers and he is taken along ... unwillingly.
Together with Yenu's crew they visit other worlds, strange environments, meeting monsters as huge as worlds and sailing a river of space ... Every new world is vividly described, the action is frenetic, and the cosmic horrors are visually impressive - even though I didn't really feel that much horror at all while reading this. There is still a lot of sarcasm here and a bit of humor too. I think Mohamed was daring to try to write a relationship as tormented as this - best friends turning into worst enemies and then having to work together again. I really felt for both Nick (rightfully promising never to trust Johnny again) and Yenu (trying to undo some of the damage Johnny did to the universe knowing she does not deserve Nicks trust). The development of this relationship is the best thing in the book.
Several other parts (a possible spy in the ranks, the plot to defeat the cosmic horrors) were a bit less involving - being reduced to the background often.
Seen as a weird fantasy book filled with action this worked pretty well even though it could have been streamlined a bit more (one less magical quest and narrow escape maybe?, a bit more space for interaction between the characters?). It's not really deep, doesn't have lots to say, but I read this with a huge grin on my face most of the time and the final two hundred pages I could hardly put the book down. So recommended for those who want to visit strange worlds, read about magic escapades and eldritch horrors, and friends turning into enemies, turning into ... well, that would be spoilers ...
Together with Yenu's crew they visit other worlds, strange environments, meeting monsters as huge as worlds and sailing a river of space ... Every new world is vividly described, the action is frenetic, and the cosmic horrors are visually impressive - even though I didn't really feel that much horror at all while reading this. There is still a lot of sarcasm here and a bit of humor too. I think Mohamed was daring to try to write a relationship as tormented as this - best friends turning into worst enemies and then having to work together again. I really felt for both Nick (rightfully promising never to trust Johnny again) and Yenu (trying to undo some of the damage Johnny did to the universe knowing she does not deserve Nicks trust). The development of this relationship is the best thing in the book.
Several other parts (a possible spy in the ranks, the plot to defeat the cosmic horrors) were a bit less involving - being reduced to the background often.
Seen as a weird fantasy book filled with action this worked pretty well even though it could have been streamlined a bit more (one less magical quest and narrow escape maybe?, a bit more space for interaction between the characters?). It's not really deep, doesn't have lots to say, but I read this with a huge grin on my face most of the time and the final two hundred pages I could hardly put the book down. So recommended for those who want to visit strange worlds, read about magic escapades and eldritch horrors, and friends turning into enemies, turning into ... well, that would be spoilers ...
January 4, 2026
I always enjoy this author’s writing, and not just because her speculative fiction is based in and around Edmonton. This series was a very interesting one and definitely held my attention. I’d like to do another read through with both the audio and the text. I do like the narrator but I had trouble with figuring out who was saying what at times. Also when there was a scene change, there wasn’t enough time left between to make that transition more apparent. That may have been more of a production style thing than anything else.
October 24, 2022
Read this review and other Science Fiction/Fantasy book reviews at The Quill to Live
*Checks watch* yep, it’s still October, so I can’t help myself, it’s still spooky time, and there is nothing spookier than finishing a long anticipated trilogy. Well, there definitely are spookier things, but we’re talking books here. It’s hard to leave characters you’ve grown to love behind and see where their journeys end up. And for Nick and Johnny, what a journey it has been. The third and final novel in Premee Mohamed’s horror duology, The Void Ascendant is bittersweet and the kind of ending the series deserves. As this is mostly a review for those who have read the first two books, there is a spoiler ahead for the end of A Broken Darkness.
Seven years ago, Johnny Chambers, brilliant scientist and tech entrepreneur, destroyed the world. Her ingenuity and fierce determination to rid the earth of the Ancient Ones once and for all pulled the Earth, and herself, into a black hole. As far as Nick is concerned, good riddance. After all, Johnny is to blame for the Ancient One’s interest in the world anyway, and her consistent skirting of their pact was bound to bring it all down. Seven years ago Nick woke up on an alien planet, at the foot of a tower, and bestowed with the title, Royal Prophet. His dreams became the subject of scrutiny, his words interpreted to be the fate of the kingdom he was now a part of. A kingdom subjugated by the Ancient Ones. Now war has come, and the Ancient Ones demand soldiers to spread their tentacles through the universe. But Nick knows the score, play along and you live, well, most of the time anyway. However, when a rebel by the name of Yenu, who strikingly resembles Johnny, is found within the impenetrable royal vault, his world is turned upside down again. The worst part, she has the exact same kind of plans Johnny used to come up with. Will Yenu convince Nick that rebellion is the only way to save the universe from Them? Or will Nick play along to reduce the suffering around him?
I have a confession to make, I read this book way back when it came out in April. When I finished it, I didn’t know how to feel about it. I thought about it a lot, but I wasn’t sure I was ready to really dig into it. I didn’t dislike the book, but I didn’t love it in the same way I adored the first two. But I couldn’t explain why. So I sat on it, and when I felt ready, I re-read the entire trilogy just a few weeks ago to give it another shot, and boy am I glad I did.
While books one and two were about Johnny Chambers, and her toxic relationship with Nick Prasad, The Void Ascendant placed it’s focus squarely on Nick himself. It asked, what becomes of a man who has been so beaten down and betrayed by the one person he felt he could rely on? Well, he becomes the royal prophet! He sees no escape from the grasps of the Ancient Ones. He won’t actively please them, but he won’t actively disagree with them either. They are too powerful, too omnipresent to offer a challenge to. They will always win. Mohamed’s writing here is impeccable as she displays the inertia within Nick’s mind. His way of fighting back involves not sharing his real dreams, but he gives them something to work with. When Yenu crashes into his life, the defense mechanisms kick in hard, and he immediately tries to apply the breaks. His incessant internal bargaining delivered an oppressive atmosphere of doubt to everything. Yes, he hated the Ancient Ones, but what can he do? The smartest person in the world couldn’t beat them, what was one guy to do?
On top of that, all Yenu did was re-entrench Nick to his new line of thinking. He doubted every idea, internally and openly amongst her ragtag crew of rebels. He felt They were always watching, and he took every chance he could to dig his heels in. He wanted Them to know he harbored no ill will towards them. He wanted to be kept in the fold so that he could throw whatever smaller wrenches in their gears he could. Mohamed upped the ante on Nick and Yenu’s relationship with a constant low grade building tension. Gone is most of the fun playful banter, replaced by suspicion and open hostility on Nick’s part. Occasionally the old rhythm leaks through, before Nick realizes he’s slipping and puts the wall back between them. Given her past actions, it feels truthful to his character, but it’s still heart wrenching. She may not even be Johnny, but he certainly treats her as such, making the rebels that captured him miserable with his opposition to their liberation. Whereas Nick was inside the fight before, he stands alone in The Void Ascendant. Even his trusted Advisor, a thirteen foot tall onyx Sphinx known only as The Advisor, debates openly with him, questioning his motivations, though in a more brotherly capacity than a contemptuous one.
Speaking of keeping things fresh, Mohamed really opens up her universe within The Void Ascendant. The Ancient Ones are nearly masters of the universe, conquering worlds as they see fit. Aradec, the world Nick now calls home, is just one of those worlds, and now they must give lives to the Ancient One’s forever war. Yenu’s rebels are assorted peoples, from both Aradec and other worlds. While it’s not overly detailed, I enjoyed Mohamed’s chaotic approach to worldbuilding. Sometimes it can feel like “oh, here’s this other thing,” but it often plays to the unknowable and alien nature of the Ancient Ones desires for conquest, and their ebb and flow of power in the various worlds they have tied into their dominion. It feels like a conjured together mass of peoples that They don’t really care about beyond their conquest of. It can get a little confusing, especially if you're one to search for details, but Mohamed avoids bogging herself down, and thus universalizing the fight against Them. That’s even before you find out about the Elder Gods, a separate group of very powerful beings who lost a war to the Ancient Ones. So just strap in for that.
Mohamed maintains her frantic prose with an incredibly rollicking story involving the revival of the Elder Gods to fight the Ancient Ones. It pulls from ideas that were set up both in books one and two, and definitely benefits from a quick re-read of the others. It isn’t absolutely necessary, but there were a few details that I was thankful for refreshing myself on before giving the final book its due attention. At times it feels like Mohamed just throws something at the reader to force an obstacle in the character’s paths, but it didn’t really bother me here. The previous books always focused on Nick and Johnny, and the final book doesn’t stray from that. It builds up an epic fight for the end, but doesn’t rely on it to drive the story.
Lastly, Mohamed still plays with the class and racial aspects to Yenu and Nick’s relationship. She muddies the water a little bit this time, inverting their power dynamics a little bit. Yenu still has Johnny’s flair for the impossible schemes, the need to assert power over Them, but it has a different nature this time. She’s still unpredictable and untrustworthy based on her history, but it feels less distinct. Nick, however, is calling from inside the house. His passivity towards the Ancient Ones, and active hostility towards the rebels’ desires of freedom make him an enemy to his older self. Not to mention, he can’t decide whether Yenu should be stopped because she’s a tool of the Ancient Ones or because she’s going to get everyone killed. It’s not as clear cut this time around and it adds to the tension quite a bit.
I’m sure some folks will be frustrated by Mohamed’s intensely chaotic nature in these books, but it’s what I’ve come to expect of her, and she always delivers in spades. I can count on her for incredible internal thoughts, fun pop-culture references (subjective I know, and I generally dislike them), and painful but truthful relationship dynamics. I’m so glad I picked up Beneath the Rising when it came out, and even more glad I gave the last book another shot after some time away from my spring slump. If you haven’t given this series a shot yet, and you want a fun yet critical portrayal of Lovecraftian lore that respects the ideas it can strive for, definitely pick up Premee Mohamed’s Beneath the Rising Trilogy. And if you have finished book two, and haven’t finished the series, it’s worth your time. It definitely was worth mine.
Rating: The Void Ascendant: 8.5/10
-Alex
*Checks watch* yep, it’s still October, so I can’t help myself, it’s still spooky time, and there is nothing spookier than finishing a long anticipated trilogy. Well, there definitely are spookier things, but we’re talking books here. It’s hard to leave characters you’ve grown to love behind and see where their journeys end up. And for Nick and Johnny, what a journey it has been. The third and final novel in Premee Mohamed’s horror duology, The Void Ascendant is bittersweet and the kind of ending the series deserves. As this is mostly a review for those who have read the first two books, there is a spoiler ahead for the end of A Broken Darkness.
Seven years ago, Johnny Chambers, brilliant scientist and tech entrepreneur, destroyed the world. Her ingenuity and fierce determination to rid the earth of the Ancient Ones once and for all pulled the Earth, and herself, into a black hole. As far as Nick is concerned, good riddance. After all, Johnny is to blame for the Ancient One’s interest in the world anyway, and her consistent skirting of their pact was bound to bring it all down. Seven years ago Nick woke up on an alien planet, at the foot of a tower, and bestowed with the title, Royal Prophet. His dreams became the subject of scrutiny, his words interpreted to be the fate of the kingdom he was now a part of. A kingdom subjugated by the Ancient Ones. Now war has come, and the Ancient Ones demand soldiers to spread their tentacles through the universe. But Nick knows the score, play along and you live, well, most of the time anyway. However, when a rebel by the name of Yenu, who strikingly resembles Johnny, is found within the impenetrable royal vault, his world is turned upside down again. The worst part, she has the exact same kind of plans Johnny used to come up with. Will Yenu convince Nick that rebellion is the only way to save the universe from Them? Or will Nick play along to reduce the suffering around him?
I have a confession to make, I read this book way back when it came out in April. When I finished it, I didn’t know how to feel about it. I thought about it a lot, but I wasn’t sure I was ready to really dig into it. I didn’t dislike the book, but I didn’t love it in the same way I adored the first two. But I couldn’t explain why. So I sat on it, and when I felt ready, I re-read the entire trilogy just a few weeks ago to give it another shot, and boy am I glad I did.
While books one and two were about Johnny Chambers, and her toxic relationship with Nick Prasad, The Void Ascendant placed it’s focus squarely on Nick himself. It asked, what becomes of a man who has been so beaten down and betrayed by the one person he felt he could rely on? Well, he becomes the royal prophet! He sees no escape from the grasps of the Ancient Ones. He won’t actively please them, but he won’t actively disagree with them either. They are too powerful, too omnipresent to offer a challenge to. They will always win. Mohamed’s writing here is impeccable as she displays the inertia within Nick’s mind. His way of fighting back involves not sharing his real dreams, but he gives them something to work with. When Yenu crashes into his life, the defense mechanisms kick in hard, and he immediately tries to apply the breaks. His incessant internal bargaining delivered an oppressive atmosphere of doubt to everything. Yes, he hated the Ancient Ones, but what can he do? The smartest person in the world couldn’t beat them, what was one guy to do?
On top of that, all Yenu did was re-entrench Nick to his new line of thinking. He doubted every idea, internally and openly amongst her ragtag crew of rebels. He felt They were always watching, and he took every chance he could to dig his heels in. He wanted Them to know he harbored no ill will towards them. He wanted to be kept in the fold so that he could throw whatever smaller wrenches in their gears he could. Mohamed upped the ante on Nick and Yenu’s relationship with a constant low grade building tension. Gone is most of the fun playful banter, replaced by suspicion and open hostility on Nick’s part. Occasionally the old rhythm leaks through, before Nick realizes he’s slipping and puts the wall back between them. Given her past actions, it feels truthful to his character, but it’s still heart wrenching. She may not even be Johnny, but he certainly treats her as such, making the rebels that captured him miserable with his opposition to their liberation. Whereas Nick was inside the fight before, he stands alone in The Void Ascendant. Even his trusted Advisor, a thirteen foot tall onyx Sphinx known only as The Advisor, debates openly with him, questioning his motivations, though in a more brotherly capacity than a contemptuous one.
Speaking of keeping things fresh, Mohamed really opens up her universe within The Void Ascendant. The Ancient Ones are nearly masters of the universe, conquering worlds as they see fit. Aradec, the world Nick now calls home, is just one of those worlds, and now they must give lives to the Ancient One’s forever war. Yenu’s rebels are assorted peoples, from both Aradec and other worlds. While it’s not overly detailed, I enjoyed Mohamed’s chaotic approach to worldbuilding. Sometimes it can feel like “oh, here’s this other thing,” but it often plays to the unknowable and alien nature of the Ancient Ones desires for conquest, and their ebb and flow of power in the various worlds they have tied into their dominion. It feels like a conjured together mass of peoples that They don’t really care about beyond their conquest of. It can get a little confusing, especially if you're one to search for details, but Mohamed avoids bogging herself down, and thus universalizing the fight against Them. That’s even before you find out about the Elder Gods, a separate group of very powerful beings who lost a war to the Ancient Ones. So just strap in for that.
Mohamed maintains her frantic prose with an incredibly rollicking story involving the revival of the Elder Gods to fight the Ancient Ones. It pulls from ideas that were set up both in books one and two, and definitely benefits from a quick re-read of the others. It isn’t absolutely necessary, but there were a few details that I was thankful for refreshing myself on before giving the final book its due attention. At times it feels like Mohamed just throws something at the reader to force an obstacle in the character’s paths, but it didn’t really bother me here. The previous books always focused on Nick and Johnny, and the final book doesn’t stray from that. It builds up an epic fight for the end, but doesn’t rely on it to drive the story.
Lastly, Mohamed still plays with the class and racial aspects to Yenu and Nick’s relationship. She muddies the water a little bit this time, inverting their power dynamics a little bit. Yenu still has Johnny’s flair for the impossible schemes, the need to assert power over Them, but it has a different nature this time. She’s still unpredictable and untrustworthy based on her history, but it feels less distinct. Nick, however, is calling from inside the house. His passivity towards the Ancient Ones, and active hostility towards the rebels’ desires of freedom make him an enemy to his older self. Not to mention, he can’t decide whether Yenu should be stopped because she’s a tool of the Ancient Ones or because she’s going to get everyone killed. It’s not as clear cut this time around and it adds to the tension quite a bit.
I’m sure some folks will be frustrated by Mohamed’s intensely chaotic nature in these books, but it’s what I’ve come to expect of her, and she always delivers in spades. I can count on her for incredible internal thoughts, fun pop-culture references (subjective I know, and I generally dislike them), and painful but truthful relationship dynamics. I’m so glad I picked up Beneath the Rising when it came out, and even more glad I gave the last book another shot after some time away from my spring slump. If you haven’t given this series a shot yet, and you want a fun yet critical portrayal of Lovecraftian lore that respects the ideas it can strive for, definitely pick up Premee Mohamed’s Beneath the Rising Trilogy. And if you have finished book two, and haven’t finished the series, it’s worth your time. It definitely was worth mine.
Rating: The Void Ascendant: 8.5/10
-Alex
December 24, 2024
What a glorious, beautiful mess this whole trilogy is. The books don't stand well alone, and the first two feel... underproofed, but read as a trilogy, everything really comes together.
I am absolutely in love with the way Mohamed writes. It is energetic, raw, emotional. I can feel Nick bleeding (profusely) off of every page in this trilogy. His confusion, his hurt, his hopes, it's all viscerally felt and described.
The emotional payoff in every book feels like a gut punch, in the best ways.
Tonally, wow. The theme of power and resistance is used so well. She weaves modern-day racial oppression with the tyranny of Eldritch gods in a way that feels seamless. Who are you if you get power? What will you sacrifice for it? What does it do to someone to be without? Nick is a beautiful case study as someone who has very different power positions throughout the books.
My main problem is this: Every book is loaded with hints and unresolved questions. Too many, in my opinion, to warrant the separation into different books. Mohamed's information design is also a bit off. Frequently, she will present a twist to the characters and show their reactions, without telling the reader what the twist is until later (like revealing the identity of a prisoner in book two). It's decidedly odd. I appreciate that in a cosmic horror story, everything should feel off-kilter and confusing, but it's weird to be more out of the loop than the character whose perspective I'm following.
Mohamed also loves to switch tone abruptly (like jumping from a fight scene to a long landscape description), and it's not always clear whether the shift is because the scene has changed or not. I found myself going back to reread quite a few times because I wasn't sure what was going on.
The story focuses hardcore on the Johnny/Nick relationship. It is beautifully described in its raw, painful intensity. But it comes at a cost - most other characters are severely underdeveloped, and they rarely react appropriately. Even minor characters seem to revolve their lives around the main characters, in ways that threatens my suspension of disbelief.
That said, I ended up adoring this series. Quibbles aside, I'm not sure I've ever read anything like it. And despite the messy plot and the messy information design, it all came together beautifully in the end (not in terms of plot holes and unanswered questions, but emotionally and tonally). I'm so glad I read to the end.
I am absolutely in love with the way Mohamed writes. It is energetic, raw, emotional. I can feel Nick bleeding (profusely) off of every page in this trilogy. His confusion, his hurt, his hopes, it's all viscerally felt and described.
The emotional payoff in every book feels like a gut punch, in the best ways.
Tonally, wow. The theme of power and resistance is used so well. She weaves modern-day racial oppression with the tyranny of Eldritch gods in a way that feels seamless. Who are you if you get power? What will you sacrifice for it? What does it do to someone to be without? Nick is a beautiful case study as someone who has very different power positions throughout the books.
My main problem is this: Every book is loaded with hints and unresolved questions. Too many, in my opinion, to warrant the separation into different books. Mohamed's information design is also a bit off. Frequently, she will present a twist to the characters and show their reactions, without telling the reader what the twist is until later (like revealing the identity of a prisoner in book two). It's decidedly odd. I appreciate that in a cosmic horror story, everything should feel off-kilter and confusing, but it's weird to be more out of the loop than the character whose perspective I'm following.
Mohamed also loves to switch tone abruptly (like jumping from a fight scene to a long landscape description), and it's not always clear whether the shift is because the scene has changed or not. I found myself going back to reread quite a few times because I wasn't sure what was going on.
The story focuses hardcore on the Johnny/Nick relationship. It is beautifully described in its raw, painful intensity. But it comes at a cost - most other characters are severely underdeveloped, and they rarely react appropriately. Even minor characters seem to revolve their lives around the main characters, in ways that threatens my suspension of disbelief.
That said, I ended up adoring this series. Quibbles aside, I'm not sure I've ever read anything like it. And despite the messy plot and the messy information design, it all came together beautifully in the end (not in terms of plot holes and unanswered questions, but emotionally and tonally). I'm so glad I read to the end.
March 2, 2024
The Prophet works for the extradimensional gods that rule many worlds, giving their servants reports on his dreams. He's also, as far as he knows, the last refugee from the planet Earth, destroyed several years ago... by the same beings who employ him. He's not happy about his life, but it's better than execution. However, he's given a new task that involves investigating a prisoner caught breaking into a library... and it's someone who seems a lot like somebody who knows, somebody he holds just as responsible for the death of his planet as the powerful extradimensional beings.
Third part of a trilogy, so it's the kind of thing you're probably not going to be reading solo, but, presumably, you've already read the other two. The problem is that it's a bit of a strange book. The analogy that keeps occuring to me (as an old school AD&D gamer) is, except for the fact that it took place on modern day Earth with a few other changes, you could imagine the first two as a D&D game where they fight demonic incursions (well, incursions of Cthulhu-type beings) on their home world. They might dip into a demonic realm for parts of it, but it's very much playing on a standard campaign world. In the third book, it's suddenly become a Planescape campaign, they're travelling around strange other universes. Not only is the setting pretty different, though, but the lead character is as well, and his best friend/most hated person is different enough that there's significant question over whether they're the same person. The main character is the biggest potentially stumbling block because, I decidedly didn't like him in much of this? Or at least I could understand some of his decisions but wanted somebody to scream something at him and it was irritating that nobody had. That said, it was still interesting to follow his adventures and... well, I always DID love Planescape, so maybe that predisposed me to being particularly into all the travelling to different universes with different physical laws. And, in the end, the ending satisfied me. I'll give it four stars.
Third part of a trilogy, so it's the kind of thing you're probably not going to be reading solo, but, presumably, you've already read the other two. The problem is that it's a bit of a strange book. The analogy that keeps occuring to me (as an old school AD&D gamer) is, except for the fact that it took place on modern day Earth with a few other changes, you could imagine the first two as a D&D game where they fight demonic incursions (well, incursions of Cthulhu-type beings) on their home world. They might dip into a demonic realm for parts of it, but it's very much playing on a standard campaign world. In the third book, it's suddenly become a Planescape campaign, they're travelling around strange other universes. Not only is the setting pretty different, though, but the lead character is as well, and his best friend/most hated person is different enough that there's significant question over whether they're the same person. The main character is the biggest potentially stumbling block because, I decidedly didn't like him in much of this? Or at least I could understand some of his decisions but wanted somebody to scream something at him and it was irritating that nobody had. That said, it was still interesting to follow his adventures and... well, I always DID love Planescape, so maybe that predisposed me to being particularly into all the travelling to different universes with different physical laws. And, in the end, the ending satisfied me. I'll give it four stars.
May 6, 2022
Premee Mohamed concludes her trilogy with an eldritch horror show that has her best writing of the trilogy. This final book jumps a number of years into the future from the end of the second book, an ending that didn’t seem to have any future to move toward. However, Mohamed manages to continue and expand the story in ways that feel logical and genuine (within the worlds of the story). Lovecraftian and eldritch horror has often been marked by entities so horrific that we fail to have language or even brain power enough to process them, and while still leaning into that enormity Mohamed doesn’t shy away from graphic imagery, with a cavalcade of beings that are part of this journey. The story is creative and engaging, and feels like it more or less resolves the central emotional conflict in the best way possible given the confines of the narrative. The story moves forward compulsively, is well-paced and always pushes the reader to turn one more page, or look around one more corner. The writing itself is, as I mentioned, the best of the trilogy, and it was fun and easy to read.
This is a great conclusion to a wonderful story that combines sci-fi and eldritch horror in exciting and terrifying ways.
I want to thank NetGalley and Rebellion, Solaris Publishing who provided a complimentary eARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is a great conclusion to a wonderful story that combines sci-fi and eldritch horror in exciting and terrifying ways.
I want to thank NetGalley and Rebellion, Solaris Publishing who provided a complimentary eARC in exchange for an honest review.
March 24, 2022
The Void Ascendant follows Nick and his, once thought to be dead, friendly foe on their quest to try to rid the universe of it’s greatest evil, prevent an inevitable war, and hopefully retroactively save Earth from destruction.
I struggled with rating this book. I went back and forth between 2 and 3 stars as I was reading, so I’m going to say it’s a 2 1/2 star book for me. The plot was very creative and compelling, but I found a lot to be lacking when it came to world building.
The plot was your basic quest story, but it had some great twists and turns and I loved that it took place throughout the entire universe/muti-verse!
The creativity and specificity of all of the creatures and different peoples was wonderful! Even though most of these were completely crazy and fanciful they seemed so real and really jumped right off the page!
Also, I loved Nick’s character. He was so down to earth and real. He was funny and confused and betrayed and just such a well rounded character. I loved that the story was told through his voice.
During the course of the book we travel to many different worlds and I was struggling to imagine most of them, which is not something I normally have trouble doing. There also was a lot of points in the book I had to go back and reread because I didn’t understand how they got from point A to point B, which again, I rarely need to do. It sometimes felt as if big chunks of exposition were missing from the story and that caused a lot of confusion for me.
One other thing that I had a hard time with throughout the book was the relationships. Specifically the relationship between Nick and Yenu. There were so many times when Nick seemed to be flip flopping his view on her, so I was never able to really get a grasp on their relationship fully. Which may have been the author’s intention, but it made the story harder to follow throughout the book.
There also, wasn’t that much character development for a majority of the characters, which left me not really caring about them or how they played into the story.
All in all it was an enjoyable story, but it left a lot to be desired.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and statements are my own.
I struggled with rating this book. I went back and forth between 2 and 3 stars as I was reading, so I’m going to say it’s a 2 1/2 star book for me. The plot was very creative and compelling, but I found a lot to be lacking when it came to world building.
The plot was your basic quest story, but it had some great twists and turns and I loved that it took place throughout the entire universe/muti-verse!
The creativity and specificity of all of the creatures and different peoples was wonderful! Even though most of these were completely crazy and fanciful they seemed so real and really jumped right off the page!
Also, I loved Nick’s character. He was so down to earth and real. He was funny and confused and betrayed and just such a well rounded character. I loved that the story was told through his voice.
During the course of the book we travel to many different worlds and I was struggling to imagine most of them, which is not something I normally have trouble doing. There also was a lot of points in the book I had to go back and reread because I didn’t understand how they got from point A to point B, which again, I rarely need to do. It sometimes felt as if big chunks of exposition were missing from the story and that caused a lot of confusion for me.
One other thing that I had a hard time with throughout the book was the relationships. Specifically the relationship between Nick and Yenu. There were so many times when Nick seemed to be flip flopping his view on her, so I was never able to really get a grasp on their relationship fully. Which may have been the author’s intention, but it made the story harder to follow throughout the book.
There also, wasn’t that much character development for a majority of the characters, which left me not really caring about them or how they played into the story.
All in all it was an enjoyable story, but it left a lot to be desired.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and statements are my own.
July 4, 2022
SORRY FOR THIS REALLY SHORT REVIEW – I got this after bothering Solaris Publishing for weeks to read it early because the end of A Broken Darkness simply Murdered Me, and they approved me on the day that it archives (today). Obviously I read the entire thing in one sitting between work and class. Yes I have had it preordered since literally last September. Honestly, this is the best end of a trilogy of books that I may have ever read? I feel like I’ve always been disappointed by third books in trilogies, but this was incredible. I would die for Johnny And She Would Let Me. Yeah I can’t wait to reread the whole series this summer. Incredible work by the incredible Premee Mohamed, once again. Who knew a little bug could write so many words?? (Five stars.) Thanks Solaris Publishing for providing this free eARC in exchange for a review, etc etc and also so I would stop bothering them.
December 13, 2022
I feel like it’s a pretty common criticism from me these days, but it was 25% too long. There was just quite a bit of fluff that didn’t necessarily add to the plot or to the feel of the story. On the other side, the characters attitudes shifted all over the place, but understandably so, given events. You could see strong parallels between epics like the Lord of the Rings, but the story was still engaging.
April 30, 2024
A beautiful ending to a wonderful and inventive series
A wonderful book series that explores new ideas in magic, establishes a rich lore and world, and leaves you feeling fulfilled with a full belly. A true groundbreaking series and author that paves new territory into sci-fi, horror, fantasy and somehow ... Romance.
After a breather I will explore the author's other books... I just need to process it all and digest the wonderful meal she prepared for me.
Amazing.
A wonderful book series that explores new ideas in magic, establishes a rich lore and world, and leaves you feeling fulfilled with a full belly. A true groundbreaking series and author that paves new territory into sci-fi, horror, fantasy and somehow ... Romance.
After a breather I will explore the author's other books... I just need to process it all and digest the wonderful meal she prepared for me.
Amazing.
October 1, 2025
Having the book's protagonist staunchly refuse to make a decision on how to act, and so just get swept up in the tide of the story, is not particularly interesting.
Also, when a major event occurs and is subsequently undone through timey-wimey shenanigans or an unseen last-second save that you find out about later, that is cheap writing. Why should we care about the stakes if the results are just going to be undone later?
Also, when a major event occurs and is subsequently undone through timey-wimey shenanigans or an unseen last-second save that you find out about later, that is cheap writing. Why should we care about the stakes if the results are just going to be undone later?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 16, 2023
*Way* more science fiction than the prior two books in this series, and honestly that’s a good thing here. I love the almost entire remove from our world and the creativity and world building is the highlight. Much less cosmic horror is a bit of a negative (I love cosmic horror) but this was by far the best in this series for me.
February 13, 2023
This one took me a bit longer to get into than the first two -- the setting is extremely different, almost feels like it could be a Jim Henson production directed by Guillermo del Toro. After a few chapters and some crazy events it sucked me in and came to a satisfying conclusion that I never thought it would get to.
November 10, 2023
Honestly, after last book, I had no idea where this was going to go. Ms. Mohamed manages to wrap the trilogy as happily (???) as it can be, even though I do wonder how long the "paradise" at the end of the book will last. Half of the difficulty of writing eldritch horrors is describing the undescribable horrors and being haunted by them, and she pulls it off like no other. Pick up this trilogy and read one of the more interesting new voices fucking around with Lovecraftian shit.
June 19, 2024
Wonderful! Horrifying and petty. Nick and Johnny are wonderful and grief stricken and monstrous; through love and hate and countless betrayals, they still cannot stop orbiting each other. Faced with a last shot to save universes (and Earth) from Them, they each have to work through their baggage and figure out who they are, what they value, and what they trust.
April 23, 2022
Great final part in this excellent trilogy. It was a fascinating and well written story that kept me reading.
Great world building and storytelling.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
Great world building and storytelling.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
April 28, 2022
A worthy successor to the rest of the series. Magical world building and memorable characters made this an unforgettable read. I'll definitely be on the lookout for more from this author in the future.
August 23, 2022
Chapter one really grabbed me. Fabulous world-building and description. I loved the evolution of Nick and Johnny's friendship-to-distrust-to-hate-to-reluctant allies over the course of the series. Well done.
June 4, 2022
Sci-fi with Lovecraft sounded interesting, but it really wasn't. So I didn't finish it.
May 1, 2023
I liked how wild things got, but I wasn't really engaged and didn't love the emotional tone of the ending.
October 7, 2023
Recommended for fans of cosmic horror.
November 30, 2024
I liked the first few chapters then I felt like I got lost and never quite comfortably followed anything else.
March 6, 2025
I was certain right up to the end that it was going to end in one of several ways that I was NOT going to be happy with. I was wrong. A satisfying conclusion to the story.
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