Today I’m reviewing this beautiful little book by Hope Ann.

*pauses for you to admire the cover*

Can one girl heal the suffering of humanity?

Kynet was going to die. At least, she was supposed to. That’s what happened when one was touched by the Poisoner.

But somehow, she was still alive—with glowing fingertips and a voice in her head, no less.

Whoever had healed her gave her the power to heal. With her new gift, Kynet tries to save everyone she can, which is not an easy task with the rebellion going on. But soon she runs face to face into her own weakness.

She can’t save everyone.

Overall, I enjoyed this book.

It’s a novella, so it’s much shorter than your average novel. A fast reader probably could read it in one sitting. (I could have if I had a big chunk of time.)

I found the setting very interesting. Hope categorizes it as a “Gaslight fantasy.” I’d describe it as medieval fantasy mixed with steampunk, blasters, and hovering commuters (think Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder from Star Wars: A New Hope). It was very different from anything I had read before in that regard and it took me a little bit to get into the story world, but once I got used to the fact that people used both knives and blasters, I had a wonderful time hanging out in a new world.

The story itself was full of plot twists and one of the last ones actually made me gasp out loud. That’s pretty rare for me to react audibly to a book.

Though Healer’s Bane overall tone is serious, Hope infuses it with just the right amount of sarcasm and humor. Enough to lighten the mood, but not enough to make the rebellion and deaths seem pointless.

Unlike some of her other books, I didn’t catch any allegorical notes.

Content Warnings

The whole story is based around Kynet’s magical healing ability. I wouldn’t necessarily categorize any of the magic as “dark,” but there is a clear villain who uses his abilities to kill. It’s a bit like Narnia magic—one side obviously good, the other side obviously evil. But it’s definitely not witchcraft.

It does get rather violent. There is a lot of blood and death. Also, when Kynet heals, she takes the pain herself, so there is description of how she feels afterwards.

Healer’s Bane is free from romance. The relationships are either between siblings (biological and “adopted”) or mentor-apprentice. It was nice to read a book without a romantic subplot. (Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a good romantic subplot, but they can be overused.)

It is also free from language. There are a few made up curses, but no profanity.

And Now It’s Giveaway Time!

You read that right! I’m doing a giveaway!

And you’ll never guess what book I’m giving away…

Now that you are excited to read Healer’s Bane (at least, I hope you are), you have a chance to win an autographed copy! Plus a bonus bookmark, which is really nice. It’s shiny and double-sided!

How to Enter

In order to enter this giveaway, you must be subscribed to my email newsletter. You can find the sign up here.

I will be drawing the winner on May 4^th, so you can enter until Friday, May 3rd at 11:59 PM.

Only one entry per person.

Why am I doing this giveaway?

I’m glad you asked!

I’m graduating on May 10, 2019 and I set the goal to reach at least 50 email subscribers before that date. As I’m writing this post, I have 43 subscribers.

Don’t forget to enter the giveaway! 

Tune in next week for an exclusive interview with Hope Ann herself!

Where’s Glendale?