Wicked Saints (2019) by Emily A. Duncan is the first book in the Something Dark and Holy trilogy, a gothic fantasy steeped in blood magic, forbidden romance, and divine warfare. The story follows:
- Nadya, a cleric who can channel the powers of multiple gods—a rare gift in a war-torn kingdom where the Kalyazi resist the atheistic Tranavian heretics.
- Serefin, the melancholic Tranavian prince and blood mage, who hunts Nadya while grappling with his own crumbling sanity.
- Malachiasz, a mysterious, morally ambiguous heretic with secrets that entangle Nadya in a web of betrayal.
Duncan’s debut is unapologetically dark, blending Slavic folklore with a Grisha-esque magic system. Themes of faith, corruption, and the cost of power crescendo in a brutal cliffhanger.
For fans of: Shadow and Bone (Bardugo), The Cruel Prince (Black), or And I Darken (White).
