School Library Journal Starred Review

Gr 7 Up-In the land of Karthia, the dead rarely stay dead, thanks to the highly respected and talented necromancers who are responsible for bringing them back to life. But there are drawbacks. Though the reanimated dead are completely lucid and capable of interacting with the living, they must remain totally shrouded. If any part of their skin is exposed, they immediately turn into mindless shades who will attack anyone in their way. After many years of successful reanimations, the necromancers are dismayed to discover that the incidences of attacks by shades is on the rise and it appears to be intentional. Someone may be deliberately destabilizing Karthia's government by forcibly exposing the reanimated aristocracy. Odessa, a master necromancer, becomes the focal point of the shades' attacks after the murder of her beloved partner, Evander. Accompanied by his sister Meredy, Odessa ventures into the deadlands in an attempt to uncover the truth behind the shades and save the kingdom. This is a well-done fantasy that will appeal to adults as well as its intended teen audience. The relationship that slowly develops between Odessa and Meredy is completely realistic. Inspired by her grandmother's hospitalization and the myth of Orpheus, Marsh has created a compelling novel of death, life, and letting go. VERDICT A strong choice for all YA fantasy shelves. Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK

ALA Booklist

Marsh delivers an outstanding fantasy with a bisexual necromancer, zombies, and magic. Odessa possesses the coveted power of being able to raise souls from the dead. As a master necromancer, she serves Karthia's nobility by reanimating its ruling class after death. However, raised souls must remain covered in shrouds, as they will turn into Shades (monsters "notoriously difficult to kill") if their flesh is exposed. When attacks spike due to insidiously created Shades, Odessa must grapple with the threat of her necromancy being weaponized to destroy Karthia. From page one, the story drops readers into a lush, intricate world where its inhabitants have learned to cheat death. It props up the traditional zombie trope while digging deeper and exploring themes of love, grief, and the consequences of circumventing death. Equally refreshing is Marsh's decision to create a main character in Odessa, who possesses flaws and makes mistakes. Hand this captivating novel to fans of Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series or Frances Hardinge's A Skinful of Shadows (2017).

Kirkus Reviews

A necromancer must overcome grief and protect the kingdom of Karthia from monstrous Shades.Brown-skinned Odessa of Grenwyr travels to the Deadlands to retrieve spirits of the recently deceased and raise them. These spirits become Dead—ordinary members of society but for the protective shrouds they wear. Any Dead glimpsed even in part by the living become predatory creatures called Shades. When a Shade kills a master necromancer, Odessa and four others—including her boyfriend, ivory-skinned Evander—enter the Deadlands to avenge him. Instead, the Shade kills Evander. The previously rollicking pace of the first-person, present-tense narration stagnates as Odessa turns to mind-numbing potions to cope with her grief, picking up steam again only many chapters later. Odessa and her fellow necromancers must discover who is behind the sudden disappearance of Dead royalty and an influx of new Shades. She is bolstered by Evander's sister, Meredy, for whom she develops romantic feelings. Beyond the uneven pacing, other details interrupt the otherwise smooth flow of the story. For a trained necromancer, Odessa has little strategy when it comes to fighting Shades—many of her successes feel lucky or inevitable—and most of the action scenes are disappointingly brief and undetailed.Readers who can overlook the hiccups will be rewarded by an intriguing world, a dynamic cast of characters, and a well-handled exploration of grief in a fantasy setting. (Fantasy. 13-adult)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Marsh (Fear the Drowning Deep) takes readers on a journey through a grim world where magic is commonplace, the dead are regularly resurrected, and change