Lightfall

October 28, 2024
Crocker’s intricate debut explores the politics and power struggles in a stratified vampire city. Sam Ingle is a Worn, one of the lowest caste of vampires who are afforded only the worst blood. In her job as a palace maid, she learns that the youngest son of First Lord Azzuri has been found dead outside the city walls, killed by the sinister Grays, who all vampires have been taught to fear. Sam hopes to rise in station by investigating the murder, a search which leads her to the Leeches, a group of women spies who use their menial jobs within the halls of power to gather blackmail material for the betterment of all Worns. Working with the Queen Leech; her guard, an infamous wolf-shifter and assassin; and two mages who arrived in the city also hoping to investigate the murder, Sam discovers that there was more to the young Azzuri’s death than meets the eye. But the more they uncover of what turns out to be a vast conspiracy, the more their own lives are in danger. The worldbuilding is classic paranormal fantasy, but the many players and complex politics lend this an epic fantasy feel. Crocker shows plenty of promise.

November 1, 2024

DEBUT One thousand years ago, the three immortal species of the Everlands island--mages, vampires, and werewolves--became self-aware and organized into societies. One hundred years ago, the mysterious Grays conquered the center of the island. Now, crammed into their one remaining city, vampire survivors are rocked with the murder of the ruler's youngest son. Brilliant servant Sam is determined to earn her freedom through exploiting this power vacuum--until she and her allies discover that it's part of a much larger mystery that might involve the whole continent. Crocker's debut is a fantasy mystery that balances both of these genres. Small mysteries of character are revealed just as deliberately as the political plotting within cities and across species. Class stratification is represented through access to better animal blood, and the differences in lifespans this creates lets Crocker explore generational power in naturalistic ways. Mythical positioning of humans as extinct immortal-killers and romantic hints towards a Sherlock-inspired mage cultist add further interest. VERDICT A promising layered series starter that offers plenty for fantasy fans and mystery lovers alike.--Katherine Sleyko

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2024
In the Everlands, there once was a city called Lightfall. Here, vampires, werewolves, and sorcerers all lived together--if not quite in harmony, then at least coexisting. However, after the tragedy known as Grayfall, where a mysterious enemy known as the Grays decimated the population, all of these disparate beings were forced to flee, with each group retreating to their ancestral homeland. The vampires, having retreated to the north, erected a city that they called First Light. Centuries later, First Lord Azzuri is the ruler of a city segregated into a caste system, where the Worns are the low and the Lords are the elite. When Azzuri's youngest son is found murdered outside of the city's protective wall, it is a Worn maid who finds a clue not only to his murder, but also to a more diabolical plot at hand. Debut author Crocker creates a world full of mysterious lore in this paranormal fantasy series starter. Witty and surprisingly philosophical, Lightfall will have readers eagerly anticipating the second installment.

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January 1, 2025
A plucky vampire working as a maid in the palace conducts espionage to unravel the mystery of the heir's murder. Sam has spent the last decade working in the First Lord's palace. She is immortal, like everyone else--or at least she has the potential to be. As a Worn, a member of the lowest vampire caste, she subsists on cowblood, which doesn't stop the aging process. Sam has big dreams of moving out of her city, First Light, and passing herself off as a middle-class vampire somewhere else. Of course, the Grays--mortal enemies of the vampires--stalk the city walls and kill anyone who dares to leave. Still, Sam hoards information from the forbidden section of the First Lord's library to barter and blackmail her way to freedom someday. That curiosity and hunger earn the attention of Daphn�e, a lower-ranking vampire Lord who happens to be Queen Leech: commander of an army of Worn spies spread across the city. Lucky for Daphn�e, Sam just found a clue that may solve the recent murder of the First Lord's son, which the maid willingly adds to the Leeches' amassed knowledge of First Light's goings-on. Now, aided by a pair of magickless mages and a werewolf who hunts down rogue werewolves, Sam must piece together the mystery of Azzuri the Younger's death...if she can survive long enough to gather her evidence. Crocker has developed a well-thought-out world here, complete with a vampire stock market for blood strains and centuries of lore. The novel often seems more concerned with showing off its worldbuilding than getting the reader invested in Sam's mission, however, and the leaps to other characters' points of view make it difficult to connect with her. A sweeping paranormal fantasy in which the worldbuilding often crowds out the plot.

COPYRIGHT(2025) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 31, 2025

In a world where vampires, werewolves, and sorcerers are divided into cities, all are preyed upon by the mysterious Grays. Trapped within the city of First Light, vampire classes are divided by the blood they drink. While lower classes are only allotted cow's blood, barely keeping them alive, nobility drink magically enhanced blood, giving them eternal youth and even wings. Lower class vampire Sam works in First Light as a maid, stealing blood from the nobles to give her the enhancements she needs while plotting her escape. However, her quest for forbidden knowledge leads her right to the recently murdered son of the First Lord. Joined by a vampire rebel, a werewolf assassin, and a sorcerer seeking to prove the existence of mortals, Sam has to work her way through the crime and political machinations of the nobles for any hope of escape. This page turner will keep fans of Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows on the edge of their seats as the characters slowly come together and plot against the ruling class. Although the extensive array of perspectives may make it hard to follow, there is no shortage of humor and nail-biting tension. The narrative is let down by convoluted writing, but the story eventually finds its footing and promises plenty of action to come in future installments. VERDICT Fans of dark fantasy will delight in this adult trilogy opener.-Elisha Sheffer

Copyright 2025 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.