I received a copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I picked this up unsure of how I would feel about it but it seemed like a good stepping stone into something new for me. AND I AM SO GLAD I DID!! The slow burn left me craving more each time I had to put this book down (gotta sleep at some point). If you enjoy enemies to lovers, touch her and die, mystery and gold skeletons then this is the book for you.

I was unsure of how I would feel about Sorcha (whole temple girl unsure of the world) BUT HER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT??? LOVE IT! As for the Wolf who doesn't love a mysterious figure who comes to change the FMCs whole life? I know I'm a sucker for it. The Dead Saint is a 10/10 read! The ending has left me counting the days until the release of The Living Saint.

Reading this book is an epic experience that hooks you from start to finish.
Sorcha was raised to be a sacrifice to bring back the Saint, a God of Death. She's kidnapped by the Wolf and forced to go on a dangerous relic hunting mission, all for a ruthless enemy Prince.
The Wolf, a notorious soldier has only known loyalty and death, but when he's tasked to find and guard Sorcha until the task is complete his feelings change as he becomes enchanted by her.
Their journey is intense, passionate, adventurous and tragic.
This does end on a tragic cliffhanger, and I'd recommend reading the prequel novella Sacrament and Smoke first for character background.
Looking forward to book 2 - The Living Saint.

What a book! What an experience! I am still collecting pieces of my broken heart from the floor, but it was so worth it. The Dead Saint, Book 1 in Kathryn Trattner's 'Blood and Rubies' series, is worth it; it's worth the angst, the pain, the heartache, and the fleeting moments of happiness and love. This is the first book in the series, and it sets the stage for a thrilling and emotionally charged journey that will leave you wanting more.

The Dead Saint is a true dark fantasy; if you enjoy the genre, you will love this book. I couldn't leave it; I had to go, knowing it would be dark, heavy, and deep because the story was utter perfection. I found myself crying on the bus, reading the final pages, and wanting nothing more than to continue the story of Sorcha and Adrian, or should I say, the Vessel and the Wolf. This book has left an indelible mark on me, and I'm sure it will do the same for you.

The book starts with a bang; we see a city burning, trampled by the Horde, an army of the Empire striving to conquer them all. The Golden Citadel, a once majestic and vibrant city, now lies in ruins, its streets filled with the echoes of despair. It has Sorcha, a Vessel for the Saint, a slain God of the Crimson cult. Sorcha's whole existence is tied to the Saint and the possibility of his resurrection. Still, even with her destiny already decided, we follow Sorcha on the road to resurrection, starting to question some of those preinstalled truths. Are they all true after all?

And at the front of the Horde stands the Wolf, the feared and brutal general loyal to the Prince, doing his bidding. Yet, as the story progresses, we learn more about the Wolf and Adrian behind the monster's mask.

"There is no shame in loving a monster," the voice said. "We all love monsters."

Adrian is not your typical hero. He's a morally grey character, a man with a past that haunts him. As we delve into his and Sorcha's history, we begin to see that not all monsters are born, some are made. It's a fascinating exploration of the human psyche, a reminder that we all have the capacity for good and evil. And it takes someone truly special, like Sorcha, to see beyond the monster and into the man.

"He could be the villain in everyone else's eyes but not hers."

The relationship between Sorcha and Adrian, initially a captor and a captive, is a complex and evolving one. It's a relationship that seems impossible to begin with, but as the story progresses, we see how it evolves, how the walls on both of them keep crumbling down, how they both fight it until they can fight it no more... It was special and beautiful in its own dark way. My heart was made and unmade so many times during The Dead Saint, but Sorcha and Adrian deserve all the love.

"She wanted everything he could give her – pain as well as pleasure, heartache, and bottomless black joy."

And I truly feel this is what we as readers get from Dead Saint—bottomless black joy, pain, heartache, and beautifully crafted emotions. The book delves into themes of love, sacrifice, redemption, and the blurred lines between good and evil, offering a rich and thought-provoking reading experience.

If I could try to sum it up, The Dead Saint will gift you
- dark fantasy romance,
- slow burn,
- touch her and perish,
- antiheroes,
- chosen one,
- epic adventure quest,
- monsters,
- truly morally grey MMC,
- forbidden love,
and so so so much more!

Wow! This story was great!

I enjoyed the pace of this adventure story with the slow burn, enemies to lovers romance.

The world building was great, and the concept of a mobile wooden city enabling the violent expansion of an empire was interesting.

The common goal of the religious fanatics and the crazed/obsessed prince came to a head in dramatic fashion, and I’m looking forward to reading book 2.

I highly recommend reading the prequel novella, Sacrament and Smoke, although it’s not necessary.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

You can find this review of The Dead Saint on my blog, Heart's Content!

When I saw the blurb for The Dead Saint, I expected it to be a typical fantasy with an anti-hero, a feisty heroine and a typical storyline that I’d likely seen before and loved and would most probably love again.

But. BUT. Oh. My. God. But The Dead Saint is truly like no other book I’ve ever read before. Possibly like no other book you’d read after this. I will say, that there’s been a general fantasy story template that’s been flying around that once in awhile some stories break. But as a reader we’ve come to generally expect and love these templates. *shrug* It’s a well-known formula that for the most part works (with some modifications) and it will, of course, with time lose its steam. The reason I mention this is because The Dead Saint follows none of these templates, creating a groove of its own in the world and in your brain.

TDS hits the floor running in the most brutal and heartbreaking way. The world-building in this book is consistent and extends ’til the very last page; and the world that Trattner has created is so very different from anything I’d ever read before. I will admit that understanding the world of TDS is a slow process that builds with each page, but the foundation it builds is strong and stays that way ‘til the end. It also helps that a lot of the stuff that happens the FMC and MMC are also learning with us.

The writing in TDS is seven hundred and fifty percent the strongest, most powerful aspect of the book. In a book that’s so different, so new in what it brings to the reader, it would have been so easy for the reader’s mind to wander. But Trattner’s strength, I believe, lies in the way she’s able to wrap her fingers around the mind of the reader and drag us right down the deep end with her. The book played out in my head like a movie; like the sound I heard in my head of the fire crackling when there’s a bonfire, or the lash of the winds on a particularly bad weather day or just all the emotions that spill from the pages into our hearts. The lyrical and poignant notes of the writing is one of the biggest reason that this review is now a favourite quotes review. You can see Trattner knows her craft and she wields that ability with extreme finesse.

The plot of TDS is really clear from page one. However, with every chapter that unravels, you see more and more. The author has incorporated many aspects into this book that are entangled with the plot. The deeply emotional aspects, the physically gruelling aspects, the mentally strenuous elements and all this braided neatly into the fabric of the larger plot.

I’ve said this about five billion times and of course, I’m going to say it again: dual person POVs have never been my favourite. Even if I’ve read many many books with it being done well, I’m still big on single person POVs. That being said TDS follows dual person POV that shifts between the FMC Sorcha and the MMC Adrian. There are some moments where it gets a little confusing because the chapters don’t have titles indicating whose perspective we’re diving into. However, there was a definite distinction in their personalities and thus their perspectives that offered a lot of aid in differentiating whose mind we were in as we start the chapter.

The characters in this book are the other pillar that hold the strong structure of this book up. Delving into the minds of the main characters and seeing their completely different worlds and back-stories added so much to the experience of the book and ensured that we saw the two different situations that define the characters’ reactions and choices. So, two times the heartbreak and pain. Yay.

The book was a sucker-punch to every one of my senses. Four stars! Check trigger warnings as always! TDS is on such a wonderful deal right now on Amazon (India), so definitely check it out right now if you’re interested.

I stumbled upon this author because of BookSirens and BookSprout and I have been hooked ever since. I do not think this author has written anything yet that I do not fully love and enjoy.

This book is no different. The first in a series that will hook you from the beginning. True to this author's style the plot is point on, the character's are well developed and the plot is good.

And the ending - well prepare to be shattered in a way that leaves you thinking about it for days after the last page is read and the book is closed. Good thing there is another book, eh?

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Saying first and foremost to definitely read the prequel, Sacrament and Smoke, as it gives you the background information and basis of the story.

This takes place some number of years after Sacrament and Smoke and Sorcha, the vessel for the Saint, is captured. She has a tattoo of the Saint's body piece locations on her body. The Wolf works for the Prince, who wants to bring the Saint back to life to revive his soon to be dead mother.

If you're familiar with Kathryn's fantasy writing it is fantastical, imaginative, and detailed. There were a few parts that dragged through for me, but overall I love following Sorcha and The Wolf as they collect pieces and slowly fall in love.

The combination of romance, fantasy, and a bit of horror and gore is a wonderful combination!

This book has it all, I swear. Our enemy, The Wolf, seems like the *worst* kind of monster at first, at least, compared to the priests and priestesses of Sorcha's religion. He kills, he maims, he murders, he conquers, all to be the monster the prince wants him to be. Sorcha sees him as villainous, yet handsome, from the very start. The problem? He very very quickly becomes tender toward her, and his men notice it as soon as it happens.
This puts our captive, Sorcha, in even more danger. After all, she's seen as a witch, a temptress, a heretic, and is in a blood cult! The Wolf's men don't want to stand for it, because their bloodthirsty leader has never shown tenderness, has never hesitated to kill, and has never protected someone above them.
Sorcha is constantly reminding herself that The Wolf is the bad guy. That he's a monster. But more and more she realizes that he's a monster due to his situation, just as she is just a vessel from her own.
They find unspoken camaraderie in being who people expect them to be, and, in turn, quietly fall in love with one another.

"Because I can't go on without you."

Their unspoken dreams of being with each other are perilous and most unlikely, so speaking them is useless. But, as readers, we know that the more words that are spoken, the more spice we get.

"There is no shame in loving a monster," the voice said. "We all love monsters."

And boy oh boy do we get some hot and heated physical encounters. They go along with soft and sensual, caring and tender encounters, as well. It's a great balance between hot and heavy v. tender and loving.

"he wanted her to scream his name and swear no one else would ever touch her like this again."

"He would have given her everything. Anything she asked. Burn the world. Kill the prince. Race across the continent until they reached the ocean and then keep going."

Although our MMC, Sorcha's perceived enemy, is, by all accounts, not a great guy, it's obvious that the story has much much much *worse* guys. The antagonists are different men, with different motives and personalities. Their differences make for a nice duo of evil who despise both Sorcha and Adrian. The dangers in this world are heavy, unpredictable, and volatile.

"He wanted everything she was, all she would be, in his bed and inside his soul."

I would say this is an epic fantasy, with multiple storyline facets, potential for huge character development (more than was already displayed in this book!), and it is a definite page-turner. The slow-burn is top-notch, the spice may need a glass of milk to go with it, the action is never lacking, and the characters each have more depth to them than meets the eye.

"I loved you in the ruins of a city. I loved you beneath a burning sky filled with stars. I love you now when the world is ending."

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.