Heretic: Hellmage Chronicles Book 1

by Jennifer deBie

The Hellmages, outcasts who feed on the deaths of friends, enemies, and each other, are shaking the earth, killing powerful mages, causing the kind of destruction the Mages’ Council was created to stop.

Siraj, a Lightkeeper who wields sunlight as a weapon and carries purification in his hands, is the only one who can meet with a Hellmage, find out who is upsetting the balance, and walk away unscathed, but there’s a problem.

The Hellmage he meets doesn’t know the earthshaker and magekiller either, but now she’s curious and if there’s anything worse than a curious Hellmage, it’s one who doesn’t fear being burned to death by a Lightkeeper’s touch.

315 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 29, 2022

About the author

Jennifer deBie is a native Texan living in Ireland where she earned an MA in Creative Writing from University College Cork in 2017 and just finished a PhD in Mary Shelley. She has been widely published in the US and abroad, with works appearing in anthologies by Raven Chronicles Press, PactPress, Kallisto Gaia Press, and Manawaker Studios, and in journals like For Women Who Roar and True Chili. When not reading, writing, or teaching, Jennifer enjoys typical millennial pastimes like eating brunch and neglecting her blog, where infrequent updates on her life and writing can be found.

Reviews

[Heather Barksdale · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Heretic” is the first of a series called the “Hellmage Chronicles” and features hellmages: outcasts who feed on death. They don’t especially seem to mind who they are feeding on: which might be the precise problem.

Overall, I enjoyed this dark fantasy. The story leans more toward the high fantasy side in the character races, environment, and much of the language. The pacing is also a little on the slower side and very high-fantasy-ish. However, it is also filled with dark and adult scenes and themes throughout which draw it into the “dark fantasy” genre. The author does a good job at explaining the characters, roles, and gifts early on in the tale, leaving their motivations and goals a little more open-ended. This facilitates the mystery and tension between the two main characters and pushes the intrigue of the story forward. Find the full blog post at heatherlbarksdale.com

I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.

[Beth Billings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Independent Reviewer for Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!


Somebody has killed an earth mage it's up to light keeper Sira, with the help of a Hellmage Jana to find who has committed the dreadful crime. Will they be able to work together or will their differences stop them from finding the abomination who's committed the act?


For saying that this book has a lot of fighting, lust and sex, it's quite gentle - who knew that could happen? It is a nice easy read with lots of action but made me eager to find out who was doing what. I couldn't read it fast enough. A couple of times I did find myself getting a bit confused over which character was talking but after re-reading the start I soon got my head straight and was able to continue without too much disruption.


A fantastic read.

[Cheryl_cajun · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was just amazed at the interweaving of this story with so much in the details of each mage and their elements, and the creatures of so much myth that Sira and Jana story, a good fantasy/horror tale, and this one was no disappointment as mage warfare was under way. The council of different magi is one of great power, It seems to be Sira's job as the lightkeeper heretic to sort out the newest uprisings in the magical world. Jana is about to walk on dangerously delirious path, after all Sira is a tempting little light bearer. when a new forbidden mage surfacebring death and destruction to those in power, it up to enemy of my enemy to align to fight to right a balance all over the world.

[Heather Hallman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This suspenseful, luscious book immerses the reader in a world of light and dark that is, as all good fantasy is, familiar, strange, abominable, curious, and pulsing just beyond our senses. It’s a hearty mix of fish, chips, prosecco, monsters, mages, and hounds.

deBie plays with multiple dualities, like body and soul, self and other, authenticity and fabrication, pain and healing, sex and love. But she doesn’t present any of these dualities as such, as two separate, pure wholes with an internal tension. Rather, she gives us a world that defies dualism, one that comprises mosaics made from the fragments that we’d have left over, were these wholes smashed to bits. Body, soul, sex, and love don’t exist in her world; they are pieces of what we know reimagined in twisted, surprising, engrossing ways.

It’s a good read for thinking and a good read for a delightfully dark escape.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rollicking read. deBie draws on international fantasy and folklore to bring the audience on a journey which spans most corners of the globe. Her anatomical descriptions are particularly vivid - a plus for the more macabre amongst us.

[Shelagh Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. A great read with feisty characters in a wonderfully imagined setting. A straight through read! Looking forward to the next book in the series.

[Maitiú Caomhánach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable. Interesting to see a high-concept fantasy novel that takes place on Earth. Quite funny in parts, very raunchy in others! The two main characters are a fantastic pairing too