A young woman trapped in darkness faces a choice–a chance for love or the freedom of light?Stella lives in Noctum, land of eternal night. In Noctum, the stars shine so bright it feels like you can pluck them from the sky, festivals are held for each special moon, and the Northern Lights are worshipped every wintertide. But the darkness hides many sins. Draven, Noctum’s ruthless immortal king, … immortal king, rules behind the protective walls of Caligo. While, outside in Darkwood, Stella and the other forest dwellers live in terror of foul creatures called the Shade.
Life in Darkwood is brutal and brief. When her brother, a soldier in the Shadow Guard, is killed, Stella’s hope wanes as the dangers that surround her close in. But stars shine brightest in the deepest dark, and when she witnesses one falling into the black heart of Darkwood, hope arrives in the unlikeliest manner. A stranger named Luc appears speaking of strange, impossible things—of a golden disc called the sun, of lands drenched in light with vivid blue skies, and perhaps most startling of all, he claims that Noctum is under a curse that he has come to lift. To banish the darkness that covers the land, all he has to do is kill Draven.
But curses are never easily broken and complications soon arise. Stella finds herself faced with an impossible choice—Luc’s life or the light she so desperately longs for. Because to gain one, she will have to lose the other.
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Lovers of the fantasy of Court of Thorn & Roses will reveal in Sydney Mann’s Darkwood. I enjoyed this read more than COTR! To be honest, I didn’t really love the COTR series. I jumped on those books only because everyone was posting about them on IG. Darkwood (and the author) caught my eye on IG as it peaked my interest as Mann does a wonderful job with teasers.
Darkwood is the story of a town cursed by darkness. Stella, our heroine has been born into this never had seen sun or light in the sky. Under the drudgery and drear of a ruthless king who claims women to “feast” on, Stella is a strong protagonist who isn’t your typical YA lead who doesn’t realize her value. She’s snappy, skeptical, and smart. She’s had her fair share of tragedy but pleasantly rises to the occasion when faced with numerous challenges including your standard YA love triangle. Mann had me guessing who would be the victor of her affections until the very last page. I loved that!
It isn’t clear what time period the story takes place in but Mann does a wonderful job painting the picture of a town in the woods, people wear cloaks, carry swords, and attend public executions. She is pretty consistent with her world building but there are just a couple times I felt strayed away from this world (Stella refers to something she did being “lame” and wants to sleep on the “couch”). There are also times characters just simply had the solution or knowledge of key pieces of information which was a bit convenient at times. But hey, it’s fantasy, so I can roll with it.
The characters are distinct and unique and like all curses, there is a way to break this one at an ultimate sacrifice that really tied the entire book together for me. Have a tissue ready. You’ve been warned.
The Dark Wood by Sydney Mann.
This is the first book that I have read written by Ms. Mann and I absolutely loved it! It was easy to read because it drew me into this amazing world, transporting me into Noctum.
What if there was no sunlight? What if you never knew if you were safe, what if you lived your whole life looking over your shoulder? What if you lived your whole life in darkness?
The Dark Wood is a fantasy novel written about a world living without the sun, without light. This book follows the life of Stella Varden a normal girl living in Darkwood, Noctum. Noctum is not your normal world as most fantasy worlds tend to be. Noctum is without a sun; every day is dark and it is always night. Noctum is ruled by a man, who made himself a god, an evil man bent on getting all he desires.
Stella Varden has lived her whole life in fear, wondering how long she will have to live. After her brother was killed, she doesn’t know how she could keep on living; when suddenly, something comes and interrupts her life. A shining star comes in the form of a man, a man named Luc. Stella has never met a man like Luc before. A man who seems to emit light, opening her eyes to a world she has never seen. Luc shows her that there is more to the world than just the darkness and that there is a way to defeat the darkness once and for all.
Stella must make a choice. She must choose to continue living in fear; always fearing for her life and for those around her, or help Luc, a man she has just met defeat the evil ruling her world. What will she do? If she chooses to help Luc, she may die, but if she does nothing she is forfeiting her life to the evil that rules her world.
Along the way, you meet some of Stella’s friends, old and new. My favorite character in this book has to be Damien. He is a psuedo friend of Stella’s. Damien’s character was strong and stubborn. When you first meet Damien, he comes off as arrogant and mean. However, as the story moves along, you see him change. He remains arrogant, but he is also kind and considerate. He won me over by the end of the book. All of the characters were well written, making me feel as if I knew them, personally.
This book made my heart feel so many emotions. It was a great book and was so well written. I will definitely be reading more of Ms. Mann’s books soon!
The Dark Wood is so beautifully written; I was constantly impressed with Sydney Mann’s writing style.
The main character, Stella, lives in a forest called Darkwood, where it’s always night. Here, people have to fight off creatures called the Shade, as well as evade the notice of the malicious king, Draven. Stella’s internal battle between rationality and her emotions is relatable, and her point-of-view fit the story so well. This story involves a love triangle (which I LOVED), and it didn’t feel cliched at all. Stella’s relationships with Damian and Luc are both different but well developed, so I enjoyed both equally. If you like fantasy and romance, you’ll love this book!
I loved this story! It was way different from anything I normally read. It had me hooked from the start. I found myself reading every chance that I got. I had no idea what was going to happen in this story. It is full of surprise after surprise. Stella is an independent woman in a world where it isn’t too safe for her to be unmarried and living alone. She has friends who care for her. And now Damien, who worked with her brother, is convinced she needs him. He just wants to protect her but she doesn’t want anything to do with him. The attraction she feels towards him scares her and she treats him like she can’t stand him so she doesn’t have to think about it. Then a stranger enter her life and turns it upside down. Pretty soon she is hiding secrets and making risky choices. Then one of those choices causes her life to be in danger. Now her usually uneventful life is full of adventure and she has to depend on people she doesn’t want to, accepts truths she doesn’t want to accept and her decisions affect all those in her life. I just can’t express enough how much I loved this story. I felt like I was along for the adventure with Stella. This story had me feeling it completely. I suggest this to all action and fantasy fans. This will quickly become one of your favorite stories, I guarantee it.
I really enjoyed this book by indie author – Sydney Mann. She is a wonderful writer who developed wonderful characters and an intriguing premise. I am looking forward to reading future work by this new author!
The Dark Wood is a fun, interesting fantasy book. From the first chapter, the story and developed world pulls you in. Even the cover is beautiful and mysterious, both drawing you in and giving an idea of the amazing story within. Stella, the main character and narrator, is sincere and compelling. Her struggle with loss and survival begin the story, allowing the reader to quickly empathize. However, the introduction of two strangers, she begins to learn secrets about her home and its eternal darkness.
This was such an exciting book! One of my favorite things were the characters. Characters are really important for me in books and all the characters in The Dark Wood were amazing. Stella was strong and stubborn, but cared deeply for her family and friends. She was really trying to consider those around her. Luc and Damian were the two other main characters. They were also both Stella’s love interests, and are essentially strangers to her in the beginning. They are very different from one another. Luc is sweet and more light and cheerful. He came to for a reason, and he truly believes in what he is doing. Damian is more closed off, slightly harsher, and very determined. Stella finds both of them intriguing and has feelings of attraction for both. There were many twists in the story that I was not expecting. The secrets and surprises that Stella learns are also very surprise to the reader, which makes it even more exciting.
The only thing that I didn’t like about this book was that there wasn’t a sequel! Though there was a lovely ending, I still wanted to see more. More of the characters, maybe a spinoff of other lands or other side characters. The world was so large that a single book didn’t feel like enough.
I would recommend this book for those who like fantasy, adventure, and a little romance. It is a book for an older audience, teens and up. It is clean, but a bit darker in themes. It is super exciting and fun!