I acquired a assessment copy from the writer. This doesn’t have an effect on the contents of my assessment and all opinions are my very own.

The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

Mogsy’s Score: 4.5 of 5 stars

Style: Fantasy

Collection: E book 1 of The Stonewater Kingdom

Writer: Orbit (Could 20, 2025)

Size: 400 pages

Writer Data: Web site | Twitter

I confess I had my doubts after I began this one. In any case, my first expertise with Rachel Gillig’s work, One Darkish Window, was not probably the most optimistic. That guide left me chilly with its confused themes and scattered path, but the creator’s robust writing and the premise of her newest novel intrigued me sufficient to provide her one other shot—and I’m glad I did. The Knight and the Moth delivered an exquisite story that incorporates a clearer narrative, compelling characters, and a gothic romantic tone that merely clicked with me in a manner her earlier collection hadn’t.

The novel opens by transporting readers to the haunting, remoted grounds of Aisling Cathedral, the place six anonymous women have served as Diviners ever since being rescued as foundlings by the abbess. Revered as soothsayers, Diviners endure a harmful water ritual to interpret the longer term from visions acquired via goals induced whereas they’re practically drowned. Amongst them is Quantity Six, as soon as often known as Sybil Delling, a younger lady who has spent practically the previous decade enduring this course of for the advantage of these touring to Aisling in search of knowledge. Now nearing the top of her service, she and her 5 sister Diviners are trying ahead to their lives of freedom as soon as they depart the cathedral, till an sudden go to from the “Boy King” Benedict Castor III throws all the things into chaos.

Benedict, newly topped and nonetheless in his late teenagers, has come for a studying to see what lies forward for his reign. Amongst his retinue is his loyal knight, Rodrick “Rory” Myndacious, whose open contempt for the Diviners’ rituals instantly grates on Six. Her suspicion proves justified when she catches the king and Rory stealing water from the cathedral’s sacred spring, however as a substitute of turning them in, she strikes a deal: in alternate for her silence, they have to take the Diviners out in town for one ultimate night time of revelry earlier than their time at Aisling ends. But quickly after this outing, issues take a darker flip when the Diviners begin disappearing, one after the other. Fearing that one thing way more sinister is at work, Six flees the cathedral with Rory’s assist, hoping to purchase a while whereas she works to find her lacking buddies.

Though romantasy is arguably its important promoting level, the place The Knight and the Moth actually stood out was in its immersive ambiance and world-building which felt each eerie and legendary. The setting of Aisling Cathedral, the place the Diviners are cloistered, is one which casts a gothic shadow over the early chapters, with its abbess and cryptic rituals shrouded in secrecy. The younger ladies, who go by their numbers One to Six, have had their identities erased and their eyes lined, the higher to coach them to a lifetime of obedience and studying the Omens. Moreover one another, they solely have the cathedral’s sentient gargoyles for companionship. However as if all this weren’t intriguing sufficient, it’s the hints of a good deeper magical ecosystem that intrigued me, notably the supernatural creatures referred to as sprites that populate the world. Although their appearances had been temporary, they added a wild, nearly elemental power to the setting, and I hope their lore can be additional explored within the subsequent installment.

With reference to the romance, the connection between Six—AKA Sybil—and Rory is one which simmers quietly within the background whereas the story’s important occasions play out, and that’s simply the way in which I prefer it. Not too sluggish and but not so robust that it overwhelms the central plotline, it unfolds with pure chemistry between the 2 characters. Not fairly a “hate to like” romance, theirs is a dynamic which begins with mutual disdain however steadily shifts into one thing extra intimate and susceptible, and whereas the sparks don’t fly immediately, by the point they do, the emotional payoff is well worth the wait.

I additionally need to notice how uncommon it’s to discover a guide the place the aspect characters shine simply as brightly because the protagonists. Positive, Sybil and Rory are those who carry the story, however in The Knight and the Moth, we now have a supporting solid that’s each bit as unforgettable. Maude, an older knight who serves as each mentor and near-maternal determine to Benedict and Rory, steals each scene she’s in together with her quiet competence and unwavering composure—grace that she even extends to Sybil. On his half, Benedict, or Benji to his buddies, reveals he’s a lot greater than his youth, displaying stunning depth whereas he struggles to stay as much as a crown he barely understands. After which there’s the gargoyle, Sybil’s childlike guardian who follows her from the cathedral and turns into equal elements comedian aid and emotional anchor. Collectively, this group of characters create a wealthy community of relationships that elevate this novel far past a easy romantasy.

In sum, what an enormous distinction from my first run with Rachel Gillig! The place One Darkish Window gave me the impression of stumbling round in the dead of night, The Knight and the Moth felt extra like a assured step ahead. That includes themes that had been extra targeted, characters who had been extra grounded, and a extra memorable story total, the guide managed to stability ambiance, thriller, and coronary heart with out shedding its manner.  For readers who get pleasure from slow-burn character arcs and layered world-building with only a contact of gothic romance, that is a straightforward suggestion. I’m genuinely excited to see the place this collection goes subsequent.