My Rating ~ Five Stars

RELEASE DATE: 31 October 2019

Publisher: Macmillan Australia

Format: Paperback

Pages: 416

RRP: AU$24.99

Blurb

For centuries the gods of the Undersea ruled the islands of the Myriad through awe and terror: they were very real, and very dangerous. Sacrifices were hurled into the waters to appease them, and every boat was painted with pleading eyes to entreat their mercy. They were served, feared and adored. Then, thirty years ago, the gods rose up in madness and tore each other apart.

Now, none remain. The islands have recovered and the people have patched their battered ships and moved on.

On one of these islands live Hark and his best friend Jelt. To them, the gods are nothing but a collection of valuable scraps to be scavenged from the ocean and sold.

But now something is pulsing beneath the waves, calling to someone brave enough to retrieve it.

Review

Thank you so much to Macmillan Australia for providing me with a copy of Deeplight, in exchange for an honest review.

Deeplight was one of those books that enticed me with a stunning cover, then delivered more in the story than I could have ever hoped for. A book about fallen gods, the life of a con and navigating toxic friendships, this book will make it into my top favourites this year.

When Hark reluctantly agrees to help his friend, Jelt, with another con job, he finds himself caught and sold off to serve his sentence – caring for the old priests, who’s lives changed 30 years ago, when the Gods destroyed each other. Stuck between the job he has to do, if he wants to avoid the gallows, and Jelt’s insistence that they try for one last big score, he has no idea his problems are really only just beginning.

Set on a background of myth and magic, entwined with the terror of the deep sea, Deeplight expertly melds old folklore with a more modern day setting. The world building, and especially the characters, had me completely captivated for the entire book.

I haven’t yet read any other books by Francis Hardinge, but I’ll definitely be adding more to my TBR now!