Everyone in the walled city of Chernograd knows to stay indoors after dark during the Foul Days when the new year has been born but is not yet baptizeEveryone in the walled city of Chernograd knows to stay indoors after dark during the Foul Days when the new year has been born but is not yet baptized. That is when monsters can freely roam the streets making the it the most dangerous time in the city.
Kosara Popova is a witch in Chernograd. A mediocre one, but she still does her part updating and distributing Chernograd Witch and Warlock Association's Monster Pamphlets which detail what to do should you encounter anything from a rusalka to a kikimora. They don't offer much help when it comes to the Zmey, the Tsar of Monsters, but there's usually no escaping once you've caught his eye.
That's why the Zmey is so furious that Kosara, of all people, did manage to get away--a mistake he is intent on correcting no matter how long it takes.
Kosara would rather die than let herself get caught by the Zmey again. Driven by that fear and desperation Kosara does the most foolish thing a witch can do: she trades her shadow to a smuggler for safe passage to Belograd, the city beyond the wall far from the monsters. No one can steal a witch's shadow. It has to be given freely. But once gone, so is the witch's power and the witch is one step closer to turning into a shadow herself.
It seems like a risk worth taking to the until the shadow sickness starts spreading much faster than anyone could have expected.
Kosara's search for her shadow is stymied when she finds the smuggler dead and gets caught in the police investigation alongside Belogradian police detective Asen Bakharov. Kosara has no desire to work with the authorities. She's never been concerned with being morally right before and sees no reason to start now. After all, a witch's job is being right period, morals be damned. But even Kosara has to admit Asen might be helpful in tracking down her shadow before it's too late.
Together this unlikely pair will have to travel the lengths of Chernograd and beyond to reclaim Kosara's shadow, bust open a smuggling ring, and stop the Zmey before his machinations destroy the cities on either side of the wall in Foul Days (2024) by Genoveva Dimova.
Foul Days is Dimova's debut novel and the first book in the delightfully named The Witch's Compendium of Monsters duology which continues in Monstrous Nights. The series is inspired by the author's own Bulgarian heritage and Slavic mythology. You'll find a copy of the Witch and Warlock Association's Monster Pamphlet at the back of the book.
Modern conveniences including telephones and a sardonic narrative voice set this story apart among the ever popular field of mythology-infused fantasy. Kosara is an industrious if mercenary protagonist with a unique lens as she navigates the threats she faces both in Chernograd and Belograd. Utilitarian descriptions and thorough world building create a fully realized backdrop for the small mystery of Kosara's shadow as well as the larger questions surrounding the fate of the sister cities.
Methodical and by-the-book Asen is a perfect foil to Kosara's chaotic energy. The urgency of Kosara's search for her shadow belies the slow unspooling of their reluctant partnership into a deeper relationship. Come for the scary monsters, come for the even scarier learning to be vulnerable with other people.
Foul Days offers readers a self-contained story blending mystery and fantasy into a satisfying adventure. Fans will be eager to see what comes next for Kosara, Asen, and the ghosts (both literal and figurative) that haunt them both.
Possible Pairings: Chasing Embers by James Bennett, One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig, Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong, The Gilded Crown by Marianna Gordon, The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller, Sabriel by Garth Nix, Little Thieves by Margaret Owen, Vassa in the Night by Sarah Porter, A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid, When Among Crows by Veronica Roth, The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers, Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne, Malice by Heather Walter
*An advance copy of this title was provided by the publisher for review consideration*...more
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