Bea Reviews The Demons We See by Krista D. Ball

Series: The Dark Abyss of Our Sins #1
Publisher: Krista D. Ball
Source: the author in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: June 10, 2016 
Buying Links: Amazon* | Kobo | iTunes* | Barnes & Noble
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Blurb from goodreads:

Society was rocked when the Cathedral appointed Allegra, Contessa of Marsina, to negotiate the delicate peace talks between the rebelling mage slaves and the various states. Not only was she a highborn mage, she was a nonbeliever and a vocal objector against the supposed demonic origins of witchcraft. Demons weren’t real, she’d argued, and therefore the subjection of mages was unlawful.

That was all before the first assassination attempt. That was before Allegra heard the demonic shrieks. All before everything changed. Now Allegra and her personal guards race to stabilize the peace before the entire known world explodes into war with not just itself, but with the abyss from beyond.

So much for demons not being real.

Bea's Thoughts:

A new Krista book! That's always a cause for celebration. Krista writes both fiction, an assortment of speculative fiction genres, and non-fiction. At this point, there are only a few of her books that I haven't read or that I don't own, including her non-fiction. Yes, she's just that good. She's a must-read and an auto-buy. In fact, not only do I have the ARC the author sent, which this review is based on, but I also bought a finished copy.  :)

"The Demons We See" didn't disappoint. The story was well done, and kept me reading. I didn't want it to end and I'm impatient for the next book in the series (Okay, so I'm generally impatient but darn it, I need to know who survives!). The characters are interesting, even the secondary ones. Ball brings them to life and makes them real, even when they are oh, so different from the reader. Allegra is snarky, rude, compassionate, stubborn, feisty, a little bit innocent, and sometimes desperate. She means well and she learns from her mistakes; she's definitely not perfect. 

There's humor, action and romance. Ball tackles some weighty subjects - bigotry, sexism, sin and redemption, among others - wrapped up in an engrossing story. A few times, the story took second place to the messages Ball has woven into the story but for the most part, it flowed right along. And whether yu agree or disagree with what she says, she makes you think. You can enjoy the story as a straight-up action fantasy story or dig deeper; the story works either way. The story is set in an Earth-type, Middle Ages inspired world. There's sword play, politics, intrigue, religion, betrayal, love, torture, and death. It's not a happy book but there are happy moments and there's hope. I'm not sure where Ball is going with her story arc or how events will play out but I'm along for the journey.