Review of Beneath the Citadel by Destiny Soria (digital arc)

 

 

Beneath the Citadel by Destiny Soria

 

In the city of Eldra, people are ruled by ancient prophecies. For centuries, the high council has stayed in power by virtue of the prophecies of the elder seers. After the last infallible prophecy came to pass, growing unrest led to murders and an eventual rebellion that raged for more than a decade.

In the present day, Cassa, the orphaned daughter of rebels, is determined to fight back against the high council, which governs Eldra from behind the walls of the citadel. Her only allies are no-nonsense Alys, easygoing Evander, and perpetually underestimated Newt, and Cassa struggles to come to terms with the legacy of rebellion her dead parents have left her — and the fear that she may be inadequate to shoulder the burden. But by the time Cassa and her friends uncover the mystery of the final infallible prophecy, it may be too late to save the city — or themselves.

 

My Thoughts:

 

Beneath the Citadel was so good!  This book is fast paced and hard to put down.  I read it slowly, but only because there was so much to take in and pay attention to.  I apologize now for my mess of a review.  It’s kind of hard to talk about much without giving things away.

 

The book is narrated by multiple characters.  We mostly hear from Cassa, Evander, Alys, and Newt.  But also from Vesper at times.  The world building happens throughout the book.  We find out some things early on, but other things come out later in the book.

 

Cassa is sort of the leader.  She and Evander dated for awhile, but they’re no longer together.  Cassa’s parents were killed during the rebellion and she wants revenge on the people that killed them.

 

Evander has a blood bond with silver.  He can control silver without even touching it.  While he was with Cassa before, he has feelings for Newt.

 

Alys is Evander’s sister.  She’s super smart, but insecure.  Especially with her ability to see and predict things in the future.

 

Newt might have been my favorite.  He’s small and uses contortion and dislocation to get into and out of small spaces.  He is very sweet and obviously in love with Evander.

 

Vesper was Cassa’s best friend, but she betrays the group on their mission.  She decided to stay behind and when things go wrong, Cassa realizes it’s Vesper who betrayed them.

 

Cassa, Evander, Alys, and Newt break into the Citadel.  They want to know why people are dying for no reason.  They are just dropping dead.  They know there is an executioner, but they don’t know much about him.  This all changes when they come face to face with him.  The executioner tells the council prophecies.  They use they prophecies to control their people.

 

There are diviners, sentients, and rooks that are all part of the political system.  We find out more about all of these types of people throughout the book.  The executioner ends up being the one who is taking the memories of people.  They just drop where they are.  Solan, the executioner, tells the group about a plan he has.  He has been kept prisoner and he wants out.  They decide to try to help him because the plan fits in a bit with Cassa’s revenge.   Vesper is helping her uncle in a different way and tries to get Cassa on her side.

 

There is so much more that happens, but I don’t want to give anything away.  I really loved everything about this book and gave it 5 stars.

 

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for my copy for review.

 

 

Have you read Beneath the Citadel yet?  What did you think of it?