An epic new fantasy about a demon hunter and a foot soldier thrown together in a centuries-old war… and the forbidden love that could change the course of history.
A bloody war between demons and the Vatican has waged for more than a century, with two elite soldiers now at its center: Selene Alleva, a high-ranking exorcist running from a dark family legacy, and orphan Jules Lacroix, recruited by the Vatican and unrivalled on the battlefield.
When their paths cross over a series of unprecedented demon attacks, the distrust–and unwelcome attraction–they have for each other is immediate. But to get to the bottom of the breaches they strike an uneasy alliance to avoid suspicion. With Jules posing as Selene’s estranged fiance, they head to the Vatican in search of answers. But even as Selene questions who her most dangerous enemy is, Jules has begun to suspect that it’s him.
Now Jules’ very existence challenges every truth Selene thought she knew, and suggests a terrible conspiracy at the heart of the Vatican. Unable to ignore their growing feelings, the two must make an impossible choice between love and duty.
They say love conquers all – but can it win in a war between demons and exorcists? Or will it tear them apart…
**Cruel is the Light comes out May 20, 2025**
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for this copy in exchange for an honest review.
This book had such an intriguing premise, and perhaps at just the most perfect time in the current news as well with the Catholic church. Regardless though, this book just did not deliver in any way. I thought maybe it was just me, but I think after scouring a couple of other reviews, I don’t think I’m the only one who was left confused in this story.
Cruel is the Light is about a war between demons and humanity, “exorcists” who use magic to fight off demons. If you’re thinking some sort of video game premise, you’re basically on the nose. This story revolves around our two main characters, Jules and Selene. Selene is an exorcist who is very powerful due to a mysterious reason. Jules is an orphan soldier, who is also powerful . . . due to a mysterious reason. They serendipitously meet in a demon war-ravaged Vatican, and so their relationship and journey begins. Both are intrigued by the other’s power, and how it could be beneficial to them.
Where to start. Characters. Spoiler alert (but not really), a lot of characters die, and like, immediately as well. With the whiplash of characters that come in and out right at the beginning, you would think that would be confusing enough. But there’s also a huge prologue(?) preface(?) at the very beginning that lays out the characters, their classes and hierarchies, and even important family trees. But none of that actually mattered. When the story finally got to the part about the relationship between the MC’s, I thought it was kind of redeeming, and interesting-ish, which at least kept me reading.
The plot was so so so confusing. I’m not sure if it was just me or if it was the writing style, but I almost couldn’t follow the actual plot line at all. I was able to follow the different thoughts of the characters and how they were perceiving the world, but in terms of what was actually happening in the story, I was completely lost—the entire time. It’s a shock that I was able to make it through the story, because I honestly just had to suspend my disbelief the entire time and try to just take in the world-building.
I enjoyed the world and the set-up, and the magic was interesting too, albeit a bit gory. Still, I like the way power and magic were set up, and found it to be an interesting story in that sense. However, this ends up being a very small fraction of the actual story, and the plot actually revolves more around the “mysteries” I mentioned earlier about our main characters. That being said, I did enjoy that kind of thriller element of trying to figure out what the big secret was with the characters. Overall, I wasn’t too surprised with the “big reveal,” but then again this isn’t a thriller. It was kind of predictable, but I think the execution and pacing of the reveal was pretty good. If only the rest of the plot was easier to follow.
The story really gives off that kind of horror video game vibe, which isn’t bad. However, something about the writing style just did not speak to me. I’m sure someone out there enjoys this book but unfortunately it wasn’t me. But also the gore was not appealing to me, so watch out if you’re not too into the war aspect of it.
The political set up of the hierarchy and civilization was interesting . . . as a premise. In reality it was basically a non-factor, and not heavily explored at all. I think this book will be a series though, and it might be explored later? But for how much it was mentioned and central to the book, honestly nothing felt important except the slow burn relationship of the two MC’s. Unfortunately for me this was not redeeming enough. Still, I managed to finish it which should count for something.
Down the Rabbit Hole 