[Blog Tour] ARC Review: Seven Faceless Saints by M. K. Lobb

Title: Seven Faceless Saints

Author: M. K. Lobb

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: February 7th, 2023

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

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In the city of Ombrazia, saints and their disciples rule with terrifying and unjust power, playing favorites while the unfavored struggle to survive.

After her father’s murder at the hands of the Ombrazian military, Rossana Lacertosa is willing to do whatever it takes to dismantle the corrupt system—tapping into her powers as a disciple of Patience, joining the rebellion, and facing the boy who broke her heart. As the youngest captain in the history of Palazzo security, Damian Venturi is expected to be ruthless and strong, and to serve the saints with unquestioning devotion. But three years spent fighting in a never-ending war have left him with deeper scars than he wants to admit… and a fear of confronting the girl he left behind.

Now a murderer stalks Ombrazia’s citizens. As the body count climbs, the Palazzo is all too happy to look the other way—that is, until a disciple becomes the newest victim. With every lead turning into a dead end, Damian and Roz must team up to find the killer, even if it means digging up buried emotions. As they dive into the underbelly of Ombrazia, the pair will discover something more sinister—and far less holy. With darkness closing in and time running out, will they be able to save the city from an evil so powerful that it threatens to destroy everything in its path?

Discover what’s lurking in the shadows in this dark fantasy debut with a murder-mystery twist, perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Kerri Maniscalco.

Content Warning:various types of violence (shooting, poisoning, beheading), graphic descriptions ofblood/bodies, death of parents/ friends/ siblings, a parent depicted with memory loss/confusion,PTSD and flashbacks, descriptions of war, prejudice, religious intolerance, hallucinations, paranoia,alcoholism, and mentions of self-harm.

Ofcourse I’m vain and get enamored with gorgeous things, so when I first saw this stunning cover, I knew I had to read it. I was quite excited when I got the opportunity to participate in this blog tour. And it turned out to be quite a complicated read.

Firstly, I have been having a tough time reading for months now, so I had to take it slow with reading this one and maybe my health issues have affected the joy I otherwise might have felt while reading this book. But I still hope I’m able to do justice to it. This book had some great plot, interwoven with the world, horrific murder mystery elements seamlessly written into this fantasy. I can’t say it totally surprised me but I do enjoy some predictability sometimes, so this was a cool read.

The world building is a bit complicated though and it took me a while to get into the groove and understand what was going on. I still don’t think I remember all the saints and their respective powers, or who signifies what in their disciples minds – but it was an interesting secondary world religion, exploring ideas like the perils of extremism especially towards the end, which felt very relevant to our current world scenario and the issues we seem to be facing everyday with religious extremism.

But ultimately it’s what the author tells through the characters is I feel the beating heart of the story. Roz is powerful and angry at the world and hates what power has done to the society, how oppression is ingrained and no one questions that faith. Damian on the other hand is a soft boy with immense faith in his saints and believes in his duty as a guard(or cop) but is disillusioned by his experiences in war, and has to grapple with the actual ground reality of his faith and duty. Their past relationship in the story leads to a lot of yearning but I still think I appreciated them more as individuals than feeling invested in their relationship. I also think they both sometimes felt like archetypes present to further explore the themes in this story than individuals with more personal motivations.

However, in the end, this was a fun YA fantasy with a bit of a rough start but a pretty cool ending. Roz’s unbending anger, Damian’s internal struggles and the world full of forgotten saints whose disciples don’t necessarily engage in any saintly endeavors – this is an enjoyable book you can try, especially if you are looking for a YA fantasy which you can read quickly. And it’ll look gorgeous on your bookshelf too.

PS: Thank you so much to TBR and Beyond Tours for providing me with the opportunity to participate in this book tour. Also thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for providing me with this advance copy. All opinions expressed here are unbiased and solely mine.

Author Information

M. K. Lobb is a fantasy writer with a love of all things dark—be it literature, humour, orgeneralaesthetic. She grew up in small-town Ontario and studied political science at both the University ofWestern Ontario and the University of Ottawa. She now lives by the lake with her partner and theircats. When not reading or writing, she can be found at the gym or contemplating the harsh realitiesof existence.

Her debut novel SEVEN FACELESS SAINTS will be published February 7, 2023 by Little, Brown(Hachette). The sequel, DISCIPLES OF CHAOS, will follow in early 2024. M. K. is represented by ClaireFriedman at InkWell Management.

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