The
Unblessed Dead
The
Hidden Necromancer Series Book 1
by
Rhiannon Frater
Genre:
YA Post-Apocalyptic Fantasy
When
I was younger, my mother saved my settlement from the Unblessed Dead
that would have killed us all. It cost her everything to reveal her
necromancy and sent shockwaves through our stringent religious
settlement. Convicted of heresy against our sacred Lost Texts, she
died soon after.
Since
then, I have worked hard to maintain my Pious Standing so that when I
turn eighteen I will be selected by a suitable husband at the Bridal
Auction.
As
the large clock in town square ticks down to my eighteenth birthday,
the dead have been appearing in my garden. If I’m discovered, I’ll
face the Necromancer Trial just as my mother, oldest sister, and I
did all those years ago. This time I fear I will not survive it.
To
add to my worries, an enigmatic handsome young man has arrived in the
settlement. Around him swirls a green aura only I can see. Is he here
to help me? Or does he have more nefarious plans?
My
name is Ilyse Nott, and I fear I am a necromancer.
If
I am, my life is over.
The Hidden Necromancer
“Wardens, are the accused secure?” Elder Johan asks while he and
the other Elders begin to move toward the stairs to exit. Watching them depart
makes me want to scream. They’re condemning us to hell, but aren’t even brave
enough to watch from their lofty perch.
“The accused are secure,” comes the reply.
“Open the doors and let the Unblessed inside.” With those final
words, Elder Johan disappears from view as he descends the stairs to the exit.
The sound of protesting metal is accompanied by the creak of the
large gears churning. The thick metal doors at the far end of the room begin to
lift. The stink of death flows into the warm room and my stomach lurches. The
wardens on the catwalk secure masks over their mouths and nose to blot out the
stench. One tries to hand a mask to Quade, but he brushes it away.
“If the women have to endure it, so will I,” he says.
The noise of many feet shuffling reverberates through the large
enclosure. An unearthly keening starts with one voice and blooms into a loud
disharmony. The Unblessed scrabble against rising doors with their decayed
hands, and the increasing noise shatters what’s left of my resolve. With a
hiccupping cry, I cover my mouth with my hands in an attempt to stave off the
need to scream.
“I can’t do this!” Carrie’s loud cry of despair draws my attention
to her. “I was wrong. I’m not this strong!”
“Carrie, you can. Don’t look at them. Don’t let fear take over,”
Aunt Leticia answers. “Ilyse, do the same.”
At the tower to my right, Carrie sinks to the floor and wraps her
arms around her legs before hiding her face against her knees. Threading her
fingers through her blond hair, she rocks back and forth.
I want to close my eyes and pretend this isn’t happening again,
but I can’t. My gaze is pinned to the doors inching upward. Gas lamps along the
walls shed pale illumination over the vast area, but the floor of the enclosure
remains shrouded in shadows.
I miss when the first of the Unblessed slip into the gloom, so I
scream when sharp bangs ring out and the tower vibrates beneath my feet.
They’re small. Kids. Don’t panic.
I peer over the edge of the platform and can barely discern the
small faces turned upward to growl at me.
The doors clang to a stop. The crowd of Unblessed surges forward
in a wave of gray skin and tattered clothes. My aunt lets out a gasp of fright.
Her tower is the closest to the doors, but she’s not immediately visible to the
Unblessed. The towers that Carrie and I are perched on are directly in their
line of sight. The air trembles with the reverberation of so many feet
shuffling over the wooden floor. My fingers ache from the fierce grip I have on
the railing and I force myself to loosen it. The Unblessed swarm around my
tower and Carrie’s, their hands slapping against the metal sheeting that
protects the base.
“Close the doors!” a warden orders.
I look toward the gaping entrance to catch a glimpse of the corral
on the outside of the wall where the Unblessed are herded for the test. It’s
nearly empty, but something odd catches my eye. One figure stands just outside
the door shrouded in a dark cape and hood.
A few years ago the Unblessed Dead got inside the walls and
would have killed everyone if it had not been for Ilyse’s mother who saved them
all. Afterwards she was accused of being a necromancer ever since Ilyse has
tried to be the best that she can be by following all the rules and not going
against the teachings of the Lost Texts. She is afraid that one day she will be
accused of being a necromancer like her mother.
Only women can be a necromancer as they are weaker than men.
Men are the head of the family and takes care of all the business where as
women either get married or become one of the unclaimed and must go to work.
When Ilyse turns eighteen she will attend the Bridal Action.
A Bridal Action is just like it sounds. Women are married off to the highest
bidder. Ilyse has worked hard her whole life to hopefully she will picked at
the Bridal Action.
I love this new twist on zombies. I love that the author has
mixed zombies and necromancers together in one story. When I picked up The
Unblessed Dead and started reading I was hooked from the first word and I
couldn't put it down until I read the last word. While I do love all the blood
and gore that usually goes with zombies I loved the change with the Unblessed
Dead. The necromancy was a wonderful addition to the zombie apocalypse world. I
got so lost in Ilyse’s world and I can’t wait to see what she has in store for
us in the next book The Accused Dead. This is one book that is going to stay
with me for a long time to come.
The Unblessed Dead is a cross between The Walking Dead and
that movie Salem Witch Trials staring Kristie Alley in 2002. If you like the
undead and witches then you are going to love The Unblessed Dead. I highly
recommend The Unblessed Dead to everyone who likes witches or zombies.
The
Accused Dead
The
Hidden Necromancer Series Book 2
According
to the Lost Texts, the sins of the mother are laid on the shoulders
of her female children
My
mother was a necromancer and the shadow of her conviction and death
blots out my hard work to be considered Pious Standing in the very
religious settlement where I live.
Though
I’ve been exonerated through the Necromancer Trial, there are those
who are convinced that I am a heretic, a devil-woman, someone who
should be exiled, or worse, killed. I have to escape and my only hope
is for Quade to win my hand at the Bridal Auction.
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Wow! I don’t know what to say except that I do love this
world that the author created in The Hidden Necromancer series. I love the
mixture of zombies and necromancers roaming the earth. The zombies have been
roaming the earth for a very long time and there are a few who can control said
zombies but there is a price to pay if they are caught using their powers.
So it goes without saying that no one is ever told that they
may have powers where they could control the dead. It anyone is ever discovered
to be a necromancer it could be fatal for them. They could be killed or sent
over the wall to live or try to live with the unblessed dead.
This is the position our protagonist Ilyse finds herself in.
She has pasted all of their tests to prove her to be a necromancer but no one
believes her and someone is still out to get her and prove her to be a necromancer.
The only option she has now is for someone to bid for her
hand in marriage at the Bridal Action. She just has to hope that the new guy in
town Quade comes through for her at the Bridal Action and hopes his bid is enough
for her father to accept and then she can leave town with him.
Of course she could just go over the wall like her older
sister Angelina but she is afraid of the unblessed dead that are waiting on the
other side of the wall.
The Accused Dead gives us more insight to all the corruption
and betrayal that is going on behind the scene of this new world of the undead.
Come join Ilyse in her world with a new twist on zombies and fighting for her
life and to prove that she is not a bad person. A world that strives to make
everyone seem perfect; to live a life of pious standing on the surface but
underneath there is something dark and sinister lurking.
The Accused Dead is filled with twist and turns around every
corner that kept me on the edge of my seat not able to put it down with wanting
to know what was going to happen next. I couldn’t flip the pages fast enough to
find out what Ilyse and some of the more sinister characters had in store for
us. I will have to say the ending really surprised me I honestly never thought
it would happen quite the way it did but I have to say I loved it. I can’t wait
to read what Ilyse has planned for us in the next book.
I would recommend The Accused Dead to all fans of zombies, a
little magic and a whole lot of suspense. But I would like to suggest that you
start with the first book in the series The Unblessed Dead to get the full
story and to know how Ilyse’s journey began.
Rhiannon
Frater is the award-winning author of the As
the World Dies zombie
trilogy (Tor) as well as independent works such as The
Last Bastion of the Living (declared
the #1 Zombie Release of 2012 by Explorations Fantasy Blog and the #1
Zombie Novel of the Decade by B&N Book Blog). She was born
and raised in Texas where she currently resides with her husband and
furry children (a.k.a pets). She loves scary movies, sci-fi and
horror shows, playing video games, cooking, dyeing her hair weird
colors, and shopping for Betsey Johnson purses and shoes. She’s
the co-host of the ZCast, a Z Nation Fan Podcast.
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1 comments:
Book sounds great and love the font!
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