The maiden and her monster

Debut author Martinez draws from Jewish folklore about the Golem of Prague to create a solid sapphic enemies-to-lovers romantasy marred by distractingly off-kilter prose. The forest by Malka's monster-plagued village is notorious for eating "the girls who wandered out after dark," but Malka's mother, the village healer, relies on the black perphona that grows there to make her medicines. When she's found in the forest gathering this plant, Malka's mother is blamed for the death of the forest's latest victim, and it's up to Malka to prove her innocence. She goes into the forest expecting to find a monster. Instead, she meets Nimrah, a golem magically bound to the forest, who may be the source of all the monsters terrorizing the village. Nimrah agrees to give herself up and free Malka's mother, if Malka will rescue Nimrah's creator from prison, a mission that requires Malka to use forbidden magic and become "rooted," or magically bound, to the golem. While the Ava Reid--esque mix of Jewish folklore, dark romance, and bloody horror will have its fans, many readers won't be able to get past Martinez's awkward prose style, which is littered with odd phraseology, malapropisms, and metaphors that range from belabored to nonsensical. This is a struggle. (Sept.)

DEBUT In this dark-fantasy retelling of Jewish folklore, Malka's village is caught between the grinding rock of the Ozmini Church and the hard place of the evil forest that surrounds her home. The Church has scapegoated Malka's people, and her mother has been falsely accused of murder. Malka's only choice is to brave the dangerous woods that are killing her people, slay the monster at its heart, and bring its corpse to the tithe collectors. In a place where Malka only expected to find death, she instead meets a creature whose entire purpose is to save her people and who may also be the love of her life. Death might yet find her, unless she can call upon the magic she fears. This sapphic romantasy narrates Malka's coming of age and into power while also telling a tale about corrupt men and desperate empires determined to fight the rising tide of change, enfolding it in the monstrous arms of a creature that everyone has been taught to fear. VERDICT In Martinez's debut, the writing is beautiful, and the story is fantastic. Highly recommended for readers who love the work of Naomi Novik, Katherine Arden, Natasha Siegel, and Allison Saft.--Marlene Harris