The Halls of the Dead by S.M. Hallow Review
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Halls of the Dead is a story that does not go quietly into that good night. In a world where necromancy is considered an illegal magic, the book follows necromancer Irene Haley and her undead husband, St. John, after they resurrect Agnes, Irene’s lover and fellow necromancer, and she comes back with a righteous neverending hunger for flesh.
I enjoyed this story for the most part. The three pov characters: Irene, Agnes, and St. John all had distinct voices that really allowed for all of them to shine, which can be difficult for multiple pov stories. The relationships between the characters were also really nice. They all had fairly good chemistry with each other. I will say to that end that I have seen this book be advertised as a sapphic read, and while Irene and Agnes do have a romantic relationship with each other, it does end up being more of a throuple situation with St. John by the end. I personally have no issue with this. I like bisexual (all the main pov characters are explicitly bisexual) and polyamorous stories. However, I could see someone reading this specifically wanting a sapphic read and not enjoying St. John also being there.
The magic system in this book was also quite well done. There was a looseness to the necromancy that really allowed it to go in some unique directions without it ever not feeling like necromancy. Additionally, I really enjoyed the chants/spells that accompanied the magic. There was a really solid cadence to them.
I did find the pace of the story a bit slow in places. It was not enough to ruin the book for me, but it did make it a slightly imperfect read.
I found this book to be particularly cathartic. There is something to be said about a book where the heroes are able to enact revenge in a bloody and satisfying way. This is especially potent when it is considered how Irene’s soul wound is presented in a way that mirrors sexual assault, so much so that I would personally consider that a trigger warning even if nothing ever explicitly happens in the story.
Overall, this book is a romantic gothic horror about those who chose to say “no, I no, I won't let you go; no, I won't let you be destroyed”.
Thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for an advanced copy.