Quick Synopsis –Just beyond the waking edges of Lucerìa, an 18th-century town in the kingdom of Naples, lies the Night: an enigmatic fiefdom governed by seven immortals and fueled by Moira, the power to reshape one’s destiny.

On this porous border separating Day from Night, Oriana spends her time fantasizing about becoming a smith in her father’s forge and eavesdropping on whispered tales of beasts and men who roam the nocturnal realm. Oriana challenges her sibling to a series of trials to determine the forge’s true heir. But as the twins’ fierce competition escalates, with the town and her own family set firmly against her, Oriana realizes that to break free from the stifling confines of Day, she must embrace the Night—and, as always, everything comes with a cost.

Song This Reminds Me Of – Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better – Annie Get Your Gun

Publication Date – July 8, 2025

Bookshop Link – The Secret Market of The Dead Order Link (if you use my link I make a small commission)

Content Notes – This book contains some blood and gore. It is set in the 18th century and as such there is a fair amount of misogyny and sexism. There is also violence against animals, particularly cats.

Rating – ⭐⭐⭐out of 5

Review – If you are a big cat lover, this book might not be for you because there are several scenes with violence against cats. Just a slight warning.

This book reminds me so much of Pan’s Labyrinth. You have a young girl trying to escape the confines of her life by escaping into fantasy. There are authoritative regimes in place that prevent the young girl from living the life she wants. And you have a fantasy realm that allows our main character to not only escape the harsh reality she lives in but provides her with tools to survive/overcome obstacles. I will say the ending of this book is far more optimistic, then the ending of Pan’s Labyrinth and the authoritative regime is really just the patriarchy and strict gender roles. Also, both this book and Pan’s Labyrinth has some terrifying fantastical creatures.

Oriana is 8 when we start the novel and ends at about the age 15. We really follow her journey as she copes with the harsh difference between the expectations for her and those for her twin brother. Oriana starts a naive character and for a while she never questions that she will be able to inherit her family’s smithy with her twin. As we watch her grow, we realize as she realizes that she is expected to fulfill a more feminine role. Her struggle with not wanting that role and her defiance is what made me like this book. She truly wants to be her own person and be allowed to create while also receiving credit for her creations.

My biggest issue is that I felt like Oriana looked down on what is considered to be feminine pursuits. There’s a point where she is arguing that she just wants to create with her hands, but she is rather pointed about not knowing how to embroider or other feminine pursuits common to that time. She often makes no point to engage in any topic or pursuit other than smithing or scholarly pursuits. It just kind of felt like she was “not like other girls”. I also thought the inclusion of a younger sibling was pointless. Tato served no purpose to the plot and was in military school for almost the whole novel. I felt like if there were to be a younger sibling then some sort of relationship should have been established.

If you’re a fan of fantasy escapism, I think you’d like this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Saga Press for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.