Alexis:
Happy Pub Day!
One of my ARCs that I just finished releases today! The Sacred Space Between is described as: “An enchanting enemies-to-lovers fantasy about an exiled saint and the devout iconographer sent to paint him, for fans of Divine Rivals and A Study in Drowning.”
Well, I love both of those comps, so you know I had to read it!
What I Liked:
- Reid’s writing style: It can definitely be compared to Rebecca Ross and Ava Reid’s writing style. It’s lyrical, and just from a prose level, I really enjoyed it! I loved reading all of the details Reid included in the story.
- The atmosphere: Her writing is perfectly atmospheric. You can feel the damp heaviness of the moors. As someone who studied abroad in England, you can definitely feel the UK influence in the setting, and it worked really well for the dark themes Reid presents. Each page drips with atmosphere, whether we’re in the Abbey or in the moors.
- The memory magic: What an interesting concept for a magic system! Reid really captured the haziness of not being able to trust your own memory.
- The first half of the book: I was sucked into the first half of the story. The Sacred Space Between follows 2 main characters: Maeve, an iconographer for the Abbey, and Jude, a saint who was exiled to live in the moors. When Maeve is sent to paint Jude’s new icon, Maeve is forced to confront her beliefs and realize that the Abbey, the saints, her religion—all of it may not be what it seems. And I think Reid did a fantastic job of detailing Maeve’s descent into questioning and reckoning with her beliefs, religious trauma, and the only life she’s ever known.
What I Didn’t Like As Much:
- The second half: Unfortunately, I didn’t resonate with the second half of the story as much as the first. I found myself wondering when it was going to finally wrap up and end—something that is never a good sign. The pacing began to feel a little inconsistent. To me, some of the decisions Maeve and Jude made didn’t seem to fit with their characters.
- The ending: After the climax, there are two more chapters where there is an abrupt tone shift, and without giving anything away, it just didn’t work for me. Plus, all of the reveals happen at once, which felt a little too convenient, and nearly every transition scene seems to begin with one of the characters fainting.
Conclusion:
Overall, I still enjoyed reading The Sacred Space Between. I think Reid is a promising writer, and I loved her prose. If you’re interested in learning more about the book, check out the synopsis below! Thanks so much to Netgalley and Little, Brown and Company for my ARC for review.
VERDICT: 🕯️🕯️🕯️/5
Synopsis:
The Abbey has controlled the minds of its patrons for a millennium through memory magic, stolen from exiled saints. At fifteen, Jude was exiled from the Abbey to the bleak moors in the countryside, to maintain their control over his burgeoning magic. Almost a decade later, he wants to live a normal life free from the Abbey’s oppressive gaze. When they send Maeve, a stubbornly devout iconographer, to paint an updated icon of him, Jude makes it his mission to get rid of her as soon as possible. That is until he discovers she holds the same tainted magic of the saints as he does, and that the icons she paints may be the key to destroying the Abbey’s power.
As Jude and Maeve draw closer, the two of them face a choice—they can take on the full power of the Abbey and risk their lives for freedom or escape back to exile and make the most of their fading memories. But this institution has eyes everywhere, and the only thing the Abbey loves more than a saint is a martyr.
takes two to book review 