Blood and Moonlight by Erin Beaty Pages: 448
Published by Farrar on June 28, 2022
Rising above the city of Collis is the holy Sanctum. And watching over its spires is Catrin, an orphan girl with unique skills—for she alone can spot the building’s flaws in construction before they turn deadly.
But when Catrin witnesses a murderer escaping the scene of his crime, she’s pulled into the web of a dangerous man who will definitely strike again. Assigned to capture the culprit is the mysterious, brilliant, and enigmatic Simon, whose insights into the mind of a killer are frighteningly accurate.
As the grisly crimes continue, Catrin finds herself caught between murderer and detective while hiding her own secret—a supernatural sight granted by the moon, destined to make her an outcast, and the only thing that might save her and those she loves from becoming the next victims...
In this medieval YA fantasy thriller, an orphan with a secret, magical sight gets caught between a mysterious genius and the serial killer he’s hunting.
Blood and Moonlight is a young adult fantasy thriller by author Erin Beaty. Not only is the idea of a fantasy thriller super interesting to me, I can confidently say now that I am a huge fan of Erin Beaty’s writing. I loved her last series, the Traitor’s Circle and I loved this book so SO much! Blood and Moonlight gripped me from the very first page and did not let go until long after I finished it. This book consumed me for hours. I could not put it down.
In Blood and Moonlight we meet our main character Catrin, who is an orphaned apprentice to the town’s master architect. There are so many layers to this story, but one night when Cat is inspecting the scaffolding in a building, she witnesses a couple of odd occurrences that set the stage for the rest of the story. Here we learn about Selenae, a secretive race of people who can wield magic, and she also witnesses the tail end of a murder, and she notices some strange traits that she never knew she possessed. Being one of the only witnesses she somehow gets roped into the investigation, and one murder becomes a string of them. I was so fascinated by trying to figure out not only who the serial killer was but also learning more about what was going on with Cat.
I am really hoping that we get another story with Cat (and Simon) because I need to know more about this magic, and learn about just what exactly she can do. This story very nicely wrapped up, and like all good murder mysteries, it kept me guessing until the end and there are no cliffhangers. But I loved the book, the characters and the writing so much that I want more! Erin Beaty writes unputdown-able books. All of them have swept me up and transported me to a different place, which is exactly what I want in a book. If you have not yet discovered the magic of an Erin Beaty book, you are really missing out. Pick one up now! And starting with Blood and Moonlight is a great pick! I loved this book. It is easily one of the best books I have read all year and it pulled me right out of a reading slump! Blood and Moonlight is fantastic!
About Erin Beaty
Erin Beaty was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, which means she can’t drive a tractor, but she won’t eat veggies that come from a can. She graduated from the US Naval Academy with a degree in rocket science and somehow always ended up writing her study group’s lab reports. After serving in the fleet as a weapons officer and a leadership instructor, she resigned to pursue her side hobby of populating the Church of Rome. It still amazes her when other people want to hear the stories that come out of her head.
She and her husband have five children, two cats, and a vegetable garden and live wherever the navy tells them to go.
OOoh nice! I remember seeing this one earlier but didn’t think much of it. Then it started showing up in book related emails and I got interested this time around! Lol. Like you, the “fantasy thriller” caught my attention and I think this is one I will need to read at some point! Glad to hear it was an enjoyable read from start to finish! Great review!