Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions in my review in any way.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Lorena Adler has a secret—she holds the power of the banished gods, the Noble and the Vile, inside her. She has spent her entire life hiding from the world and her past. She’s content to spend her days as an undertaker in a small town, marry her best friend, Julian, and live an unfulfilling life so long as no one uncovers her true nature.

But when the notoriously bloodthirsty and equally Vile crown prince comes to arrest Julian’s father, he immediately recognizes Lorena for what she is. So she makes a deal—a fair trial for her betrothed’s father in exchange for her service to the crown.

The prince is desperate for her help. He’s spent years trying to repair the weakening Door that holds back the Vile…and he’s losing the battle. As Lorena learns more about the Door and the horrifying price it takes to keep it closed, she’ll have to embrace both parts of herself to survive.

Review:

I love fantasy books.  Authors can create worlds and situations that examine real world themes, and do so without sounding preachy.  What We Devour, by Linsey Miller, is both a coming of age story, and an exploration of serious themes such as worker exploitation.  With rich world-building, colorful characters, and important themes, this was a highly entertaining book.

What I Liked:

World-Building:

There are so many rich details to this world, but the author seamlessly incorporates them in her storytelling.  I never felt like I was reading the obligatory "exposition" scenes.  Some characters are sharing a body with a "Noble" spirit.  These people can heal and create things.  Other characters have a "Vile" spirit within them.  They mostly cause destruction.  Lorena has both a Noble and a Vile spirit within her.  This makes her quite unique.  I liked that, in order to use their magic, the characters had to make "deals" with their spirits.  A deal might be taking away a memory, or causing a small injury in exchange for a magical deed.  Most people with Noble or Vile spirits are taught how to make iron-clad contracts with their spirits so that the spirit won't take too much, or cause something the  host person doesn't want to happen.  The people with this ability are also "bound" to a rich person who can control what kind of contracts they make.  Essentially, the people with magic are kept under tight control by the wealthy.  Lorena, who has been in hiding, is unbound and approaches her spirits in a more cooperative way.  As a result, she can do both wonderful and awful things with her magic.

I also liked that the characters studied their abilities in a kind of scientific way.  They would come up with a theory and test it out.  They'd look at their results, come up with a new hypothesis, and try again.  This demystified their abilities from mere magic to something organic that would be found in this universe's world.

The spirit characters did seem more magical than the living characters.  There were ghosts, and The Vile.  Both type of spirits could communicate with the living. But the Vile had an agenda.  They wanted to open The Door that is holding them back in another realm.  The Vile could look inside a character's mind and manipulate someone into doing the Vile's bidding.  So the characters had to constantly question what was real or not. 

Characters:

Lorena has been hiding out in a small village so that no one would notice her abilities.  This created a stable, but boring life.  When she is taken by the prince to the big city, she realizes that to deny such a big part of herself was actually harmful to her.  I loved that message.  You should never suppress who you actually are in order to "fit in".  Ultimately, doing that leads to unhappiness.  

The prince reminded me of The Darkling in Shadow and Bone, by Leigh Bardugo, but more sympathetic.  The prince has done, and will do, terrible things to keep The Door closed.  But he takes no joy in it.  He really wants to be understood. I found his motivations to actually be in line with Lorena's.  They both want to protect the most people from the coming catastrophe.

Representation:

There were a variety of characters who helped enrich the representation in this book.  Lorena, although not explicitly stating it, seems to be somewhat asexual.  She enjoys the romantic parts of a relationship, but the sexual part?  She can take it or leave it.  There were other characters who were gay, or who had various skin colors, and backgrounds, which added to the richness of this world.  Also, I really appreciated that there wasn't some epic attraction between Lorena and the prince, or it would have felt like a rip off of Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone series.  While there were some aspects of that series (like the misunderstood darkling character), this was a truly original story.

Story:

I really enjoyed the story.  Lorena has a wonderful story arc.  She went from hiding out and letting others decide her fate, to making friends, and making her own choices.  And she had enough self-worth not to settle for a dreary life.  

The story itself centers around the threat that The Vile poses to the world.  The Noble and The Vile have been banished to another realm, and a magical door is all that holds The Vile from taking over the world.  The prince, along with Lorena and a group of other young people with magic must find a way to keep the door closed.  But it's a losing battle.  What will happen when the door opens?

Themes:

This is a book that uses the fantasy realm to explore themes of worker exploitation and classism.  Lorena's mother worked in a mine until she is hurt in a fire. The hazards of the mine were completely preventable if the owners had just taken some safety measures.  This shows Lorena that the rich find the masses to be expendable.  The ruling class knows that The Door will open soon enough, and they are preparing, stockpiling supplies, and figuring out where they can hide out when The Vile show up.  They have no care for the majority of the people, who will die when The Door is opened.  This is the prime motivation for Lorena to risk everything to thwart the ruling class, regardless of the personal consequences.

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Release Date:  July 6, 2021

Author:  Linsey Miller

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Genre:  YA Fantasy

Page Length:  336 Pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  E-Book

Recommendation:  An exciting beginning of a YA fantasy,  I loved the world-building and characters.  I can't wait to read the next book!