Title: The Bride of Death
Author: F.M.Aden
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Age Classification: Adult
Publisher: Northern Light Press
Release: March 1, 2024
Available Format(s): Ebook
The Bride of Death was a tale of twisted emotions and had multiple possible endings fighting it out to the final pages. If you’re looking for an especially dark morally grey character, plus a sunshine character tainted by the dark, this book is for you.
Honestly, the cover and title drew me in and I went into this hoping for the best.
Zerryn has grown up in a small village learning the tales of Erlik Khan, the Lord of Death. She has lived a rather quiet life, keeping mostly to herself or in the company of her best friend Celik. Zerryn believes herself to be weak until Celik is possessed and the villagers grow too fearful of the demon growing stronger within him, and then she sets out to rescue him.
I found her character to be average, the typical doesn’t know her strength stereotype in fantasy novels type of character. Zerryn was complex in terms of her thoughts and feelings with noble intentions, but I personally didn’t click with her until she started being more open with herself. She struggles with the reality of the Underworld, the war between it and the above, and all that she must sacrifice regardless of what she chooses.
Celik played a small role in the story. He was the one who needed saving after being possessed, and he is posed as a potential suitor for Zerryn but otherwise, his character is rather dull. This may have been a creative choice to keep his nature out of the storyline in order to tease out the many possible endings until the end.
The Lord of Death, Erlik Khan, is the embodiment of cruelty. He is selfish, tortures others for his own amusement, and only cares about being able to expand his power and torture beyond the Underworld. While he doesn’t take the top spot for my favourite character, it is refreshing to see his authenticity and being unashamed of who he is.
By far my favourite character is Beyza, a ubir/vampire, who would make this story worth reading on her own.
The storyline overall is interesting, but I felt like we switched between fast and slow pace a few times. I had to go back and re-read parts to make sure I understood what was going on, though this felt intentional like the reader is supposed to be asking “What’s going on here?”. I personally struggled to get through some of the slow points, and I found it difficult to connect to the story, but those final few chapters were my favourite and worth the wait. It wasn’t exactly the ending I wanted, but it certainly checked a few boxes of what I was hoping for.
I also want to note the spiciness of scenes, as that can be a deciding factor for some readers, and while there is a lot of flirtation and a couple of lightly detailed moments of intimacy, there wasn’t a lot and not overly explicit.
Star Rating:
I feel like it had potential to be a 4-star read for me, but it just didn’t quite hit the mark I hoped it would. I would actually love to see this made into a movie, I think it would be hauntingly beautiful to watch some of these characters come to life.
Until next time bibliophiles!
Amy x
Zany Bibliophile 
Leave a comment