The Nevernight Series by Jay Kristoff – starting with the eponymously titled first book of the series, Nevernight – is a breath-taking trilogy published between 2016 and 2019.
The series follows Mia Corvere (and her companion Mister Kindly, the cat-shaped daemon) as she cleaves her way through a blood-and-gore filled journey of love, vengeance, sarcasm, and a little bit of heroism.
All three novels introduce a varied range of colourful characters, each one a unique and 3-dimensional person in their own right, that you can’t help but fascinate over. Similarly, the clear Italian (specifically ancient Rome) influences bring an extra layer of intrigue and depth to the novels and the fictional world they are set in.
If you love stories full of:
- dark magic
- creatures of the night (such as cats, wolves, snakes)
- stories that keep you excited
- shadows
- assassins
- gods and goddesses
- pirates
- tyrants
- the exploration of many types of love
- complex characters
- horrific creatures
- buckets of dry humour
then you will adore the Nevernight Series.
(For those readers who like to have warning beforehand, this series contains a few sex scenes and plenty of swearing).
What I liked about the Nevernight series
Every character introduced in this series has their own evolution and arc that makes sense for them. No one in this series is forgotten about with their fate left to imagination. I also loved how each character is unapologetically themselves. Their actions and their words define them.
The writing, especially the descriptions, throughout this series remains clear and rich throughout all three novels. I was always able to picture everything that was happening or being described without having to stop and think or re-read sentences to make sense of things. From the extravagant balls and dingy back alleys of Godsgrave, to the desert and monsters of the Ashkahi Whisperwastes. And from the eerie, ever-changing halls of The Red Church to the blood, sweat, and vomit of the Venatus Magni. This was really refreshing and made the whole experience much more enjoyable.
Footnotes – a simple yet effective way to relay extra information about the world you are being immersed in. The footnotes in this series are full of dry humour, sarcasm, and imagination that goes the distance.
No loose ends! Nothing is forgotten in this series.
The Italian and Ancient Roman influence in these novels was new to me. This kept the intrigue and fascination with the world the novels are set in on a deeper level as well as heightening my experience throughout the story.
There is never an easy choice for Mia and we are pulled into these struggles with her. We ultimately understand her choices even though they are hard because her character is so developed and real. I was able to easily empathise with Mia in those moments, despite never having been in those situations myself.
What I didn’t like about the Nevernight series
The ending for me felt a bit too neatly wrapped, but at the same time I was happy with how it ended and every choice/outcome made sense. It was still a satisfactory ending and one that I enjoyed reading.
Some of the character endings emotionally destroyed me - a testament to the author’s abilities as a writer, rather than a dislike of the series.
Would I recommend this series? My final thoughts on the Nevernight series
Yes, I definitely recommend this series. It was a wonderful experience to read and return to with each book. Sometimes sequels don’t always end up as great as the first book in the series for one reason or another, but this was not the case with this series. Each book was as consistently brilliant as the one before it. Although Mia Corvere does not appear in Jay Kristoff’s other books (at least not yet *keeping my fingers crossed*), I am definitely interested in checking out his newer series, Empire of the Vampire.
Have read this series before? Or plan to do so following this review? Please comment below. I would love to hear what you thought of the book!
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