the false goddess – GoodeyReads

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 432 pages
Author: Amy Leow
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: September 10th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A dark, heart-thumping political epic fantasy by debut author Amy Leow—full of scheming demons, morally grey heroines, talking cats, and cut-throat priests, this delicious tale of power and corruption will captivate from beginning to end.

Binsa is a “living goddess,” chosen by the gods to dispense both mercy and punishment from her place on the Scarlet Throne. But her reign hides a deadly secret. Rather than channeling the wisdom of an immortal deity, she harbors a demon.

But now her priests are growing suspicious. When a new girl, Medha, is selected to take over her position, Binsa and her demon strike a deal: To magnify his power and help her wrest control from the priests, she will sacrifice human lives. She’ll do anything not to end up back on the streets, forgotten and alone. But how much of her humanity is she willing to trade in her quest for power? Deals with demons are rarely so simple.

Thank you Orbit for the gifted ARC.

WELL. I AM INTRIGUED.

If you’re looking for a book where the FMC truly is a villain and you don’t mind if there isn’t any romance, I definitely say give this a go. Not exactly my usual but I genuinely enjoyed this book. The writing style had this ease of reading quality that kept my attention and made this book move well.

My one little niggling thought is that I wish the FMC, Binsa, had at least one good relationship. Whether that was platonic, familial, or romantic. I felt like I was missing a strong side character. There were plenty of smaller characters but nobody that STOOD OUT.

The plot had a lot of political maneuvering and devious betrayals. This does lean towards a darker side of fantasy with some of the themes and content. I liked all of the machinations and that it didn’t feel long winded.

I am 100% curious how this will flow out through a trilogy and based off the wonderful cliffhanger ending, I am absolutely going to need some answers.

Overall audience notes: