Review: The Hiding by Alethea Lyons
Blurb:
Arcane archivist Harper has always been plagued by dreams of grotesque creatures and bloody deaths. When she bumps into a ghostwalker in the Shambles and has a visceral experience of his execution, she knows it’s a foretelling. Yet fear of the Queen’s Guard stops her speaking out. When her vision indeed comes true, the unusual markings on the ghostwalker’s corpse, combined with his neatly excised vocal cords, send a ripple of terror through York.
The witch hunt is on. As the body count rises, Harper knows her magic is the only way to find the killer – if she can avoid being hanged as a witch. To protect both human and supernatural, Harper walks the thin line between their worlds. She and her demonhunter foster-sister form a multi-faith team with a forensic scientist, a spirit Harper accidentally summoned, and a techno-witch, to catch the killer before more people die.
Review:
‘The Hiding’ caught my attention while I was browsing through ‘BookSirens’ for a potential next read. First off, I must say, the cover is really amazing and stands out in quite some manner. That in itself was reason enough for my piqued interest. The description was very intriguing as well, and sounded something right down my alley. And so, I was more than eager to get my hands on the digital ARC on offer, which I eventually did without any hesitation. Hence, I would like to extend my deepest of thanks to the author, the publishers, and BookSirens for giving readers like me the opportunity to review this dark fantasy debut.
What is hidden from sense,
Will be hidden from mind,
Forgotten, unknowing,
Forever entwined.
York, famous for its ghosts, was the most haunted city in England… and was proud of it too. But that’s not the only thing it was famous for. ‘The Shambles’ was the last place anyone with sense would expect to find real magic. The twisting ginnels and alleyways branching from the street promised portals to dark adventures in other realms. Magic seemed to fizz like static in the air. Shoppers disappeared around corners, or possibly were whisked off to faraway queendoms. Each shop dazzled, selling everything from jewellery to paper, from antiques to modern art. And yet, it still gave the illusion that “fae” might be hiding in the gloaming mists… How’s that for setting-up a setting, eh?
Welcome to a world which is “infected” by “supes” (aka the ‘supernaturals’), and York, alongside England, is no exception. Humans, spirits, and the fae (the ‘Faerie’) roamed the streets here in what was like just another day. But the line separating them all was pretty thin, especially when darkness took over…
‘The Veil’ acted as the barrier between the human world and Faerie, kept strong all over England through generations. But that wasn’t the only defense mechanism protecting the people from the otherworldly. The ‘Queen’s Guard’ and the ‘Council of Faiths’ were two such institutions. The former’s official position was that no supernatural had survived something collectively referred to as ‘the Purge’, an event which ultimately had also led to the foundation of the latter. Together, by employing draconian enforcement measures throughout in the present times, they ensured that the “mortal realm” was kept separated from the ethereal one. Even now, hundreds of years later, humans patrolled the great wall surrounding York, always vigilant against incursion from those they called ‘supernatural.’ They came armed with fire and iron, dill and mint, silver crucifixes and blood red hamsa. The core materials changed little over the centuries, honed by each generation to destroy.
But the balance of everything in York was about to be shattered in the most chilling of ways…
“Never scream…”
A tangled medley of disembodied whispers, all saying the same two words, over and over.
“Never scream…”
Meet Harper Ashbury, a junior archivist and collector at the Saint Peter’s Cathedral in York. A specialist in the field of supernatural history, she helped to keep dangerous books out of the public eye, and researched ways to protect people from the supernatural. Working for the church under the guidance of the Archbishop of York himself was one thing, but Harper harbored a secret… one that was not at all welcome by anyone in York, both human or otherwise.
Apart from the horrific nightmares, the eerie visions, and the constant amnesia, Harper could “See” things… thanks to her “Sight”. Her past and her family were a complete blur to her, and she was desperate to find the answers to the seemingly dark and bleak events long gone by. Taking her in after an “accident”, the De Santos had become the family she never had. But they were not just any other ordinary family. The De Santos were demonhunters. The ones who fought against the supernaturals to protect the world from demons and the forces of evil. Curfews were for ordinary people. A De Santos was not scared of the dark. A De Santos was one with the dark.
Grace De Santos, Harper’s foster sister, was a vet by profession, and the only De Santos who wasn’t into demonhunting for the sole reason so that she could stay with Harper and make sure her archivist sister was safe. But the duo was about to be thrust into something far more dangerous than anything they had previously encountered, and their relations were about to be tested to the limits as York, the “night-safe” city, was not at all safe anymore…
The shocking and quite unusual death of a “ghostwalker” sends ripples across the city. Was it just a “death” in the first place, or was it a possible murder? Someone, or something, was carefully targeting people in the night and brutally killing them. With the police out of their depth having no cause of death and no suspects, and the Guard not willing to share anything with the Council, the Archbishop decides to take matters into his own hands. There was nothing a man as important as the archbishop could want with a junior archivist. There was only one reason he would summon her. To hunt something and kill it. And in his own words – “… In this matter, my faith in people is greater than my faith in science. You and Grace are uniquely placed to see the truth.”
The race against time begins as the bodies start to pile up in the most chilling of circumstances. With a helping hand from Dr. Saqib Siddique, a forensic supernaturalist, and a “not evil; just mischievous” spirit/demon, the sister duo embarks upon a path that is both dangerous and equally deadly if one is not careful enough. And one just can’t be careful enough in a place such as York… Can the group set aside their beliefs and differences to act as one and stop the killer in time?
All choice in the matter had been taken from her: use her abilities and risk death or bury them and remain forever lost. Magic was the only recourse left to find her home.
Most people might say they didn’t believe ghosts or supernaturals still walked the streets of England, but deep down, they were never sure.
Harper didn’t believe in ghosts, but she did believe in human evil.
To find the truth, she would need to face the darkness.
The good:
To go alongside the amazing cover and the intriguing description, the whole setting of York, and the world around it in general, was superbly written and depicted throughout. It was as if I was a part of it myself! (real-life black & white pictures of York were present, which helped the cause!).
The writing was just top notch by all means. It was vivid, highly atmospheric, and genuinely immersive all the way. The multi third-person POV was great, and a fun read.
The story was excellent, engaging, and very exciting till the last page.
The characters were very well written, and were memorable in more ways than one (a certain “individual” more so than the others!).
The themes of religion and beliefs were pretty strong in general, and well depicted.
The ending was great in my opinion, and sets up the next instalment pretty nicely.
The “not so” good:
In all honesty, I don’t have a single thing to complain about, believe it or not!
Some quotes/dialogues and text to set your adrenaline rolling (as it did mine!):
‘Never show fear, no matter how dark it is, no matter how strong your enemy. Never show fear.’
‘But feel fear. Feel fear. It’s God’s warning. It keeps you alive.’
“Hurt them. Disable them. Live to fight another day. This is no honourable fight between gentlefolk. This is a fight for survival. Your survival and the survival of the innocents who depend on you. Fight dirty. Fight to win.”
The ghostwalker removed his hat and bowed low. “Do not linger,” he cautioned his audience. “The night draws close and the mists rise. Death still walks the streets of York. Ghosts, witches, and demons watch from the shadows. No matter how many lies those in power tell, nowhere is truly night-safe. Be careful it is not your tale I tell on future nights. The bridge here is the fastest way back to your cars. Do not stray from the path, for where the ghosts do not walk, the Queen’s Guard surely will, and innocence is harder to prove than guilt.”
Mist swirled around the car and danced in the fog lamps. The light scraped across black tarmac. Cat’s eyes gleamed, waiting to pounce, razor claws swiping at tires. The moon hovered behind naked silhouettes of trees and stars twinkled through their branches like an adornment of fairy lights. Frolicking stars, fallen from the sky, flickered around the trunk of an old oak, illuminating a skirt of long grasses. Then the tree was gone, consumed by the unending darkness. Harper clutched her shawl closer around her shoulders and settled back in her seat.
No one comes out when it’s like this, she reminded herself, but it was a hollow comfort. No one human would be out. Everyone knew someone who had a friend whose cousin, or sibling, or child had been lost in the mist. Logic said they fell in the river and drowned, or met some unsavoury human, a quick knife between the ribs. Whispers said something inhuman lurked in the mists and stole souls away to another land. Then there were the people who came back changed, their eyes hollow, jerky movements like marionettes, a dark edge to their looks, hard and uncaring.
The cemetery was pitch-black but for the wavering light of the guard’s torch. Even that thin beam of brightness didn’t reassure Harper, rather it created more darkness, throwing long shadows behind each blade of grass. Darkness piled upon darkness, pressing in, consuming, suffocating. Clouds overpowered the moonlight as the stars twinkled out, handful by handful.
Final thoughts:
A dark fantasy debut which is vivid, highly atmospheric, and sure to set your adrenaline rolling in excitement and intrigue alike. Simply put, ‘The Hiding’ by Alethea Lyons is right up there with one of my favorite reads of the year. York as a setting was so immersive and well depicted that you might end up feeling you’re a part of it yourself! The characters were great, the plot was superb, and the world was excellently put forth. Oh, and if you could not tell already, the writing was top notch by all means. An engaging read throughout with an ending so good that I can’t wait for the next installment! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you check it out!
