Review: Moth Dark

Today, I’m delighted to be sharing my review of Moth Dark by Kika Hatzopoulou, whose previous duology I adored. This romantasy promised a high-concept story that would stay with me, but how did it measure up?

Thank you to Penguin Random House Children’s UK for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. This review originally appeared on The Nerd Daily.

Six years ago, vicious creatures began to crawl out of the dark crevices of the world, and with it Sascia’s fascination with the darkness was born. Now eighteen, that fascination has become an obsession, and while exploring an area known for its connection to the Darkworld, Sascia sees a person climb out of the darkness. But Nugau is no ordinary person, they’re a genderfluid elf prince with one mission . . . to kill Sascia.

Except, the second time they meet, Nugau is younger and doesn’t recognise Sascia. And the third time, Nugau stumbles out of the darkness with poison running through their veins, expressing their undying love for her.

Piecing together the puzzle, Sascia makes two shocking discoveries: the timelines of her world and Nugau’s are not linear, and she is inexplicably enmeshed in a war between humanity and elves. But with their worlds at battle, is it worth fighting for each other . . . ?

Publication Date: 30th October

CW: death, violence, injury, war, blood, manipulation

Goodreads | Waterstones

My Thoughts:

Moth Dark is an achingly romantic and gripping romantasy with an ingenious concept at its heart. It is beautiful and heartbreaking in equal measure.

The concept of this story is phenomenal. It’s Inception meets Cloverfield with a wonderfully romantic twist. Kika Hatzopoulou makes the most of this exceptional premise with a fascinating and expansive world that celebrates the endurance of love against the odds. It is impactful, timely and leaves a mark on your heart. As you get so entrapped within this story, the emotional beats hit that much harder. You have seen glimpses of what is to come and yet you root for it to be different anyways. There is something in that narrative hope that is incredible and Hatzopoulou utilises it to the fullest extent. Her way of writing is gorgeous but devastating, as she does not pull the punches. Everything builds to a conclusion that will blow you away.

For this to land as well as it does, you have to be wholly invested in the central characters.

Luckily, this is a shining strength of Hatzopoulou’s. We follow Sascia and Nugau, both of whom are utterly captivating, layered and have brilliant journeys over the course of the book. Sascia has grown up in a world that suddenly changed overnight, with unimaginable monsters appearing from nowhere. Despite this she has always been drawn to the

Darkworld and deeply interested. She is smart, loyal and curious, a combination that leads to fierce protection of those she loves but also a way of stumbling into danger. Nugau springs out of nowhere and drops into her life by trying to end it. It is a fantastic sequence that has your heart in your mouth. Of course, their next encounter is entirely different and this makes their dynamic constantly shift and evolve. The non-linearity is inspired, as it gives you plenty to fall in love with but also wrench your heartstrings. You can never fully expect how their next meeting will go and it adds an interesting take on the growth and change of this. It is so cleverly done. I also liked the way Hatzopoulou explores gender fluidity through Nugau’s character and how this ties into the wider magic system at play. It is a lovely addition that further breaks an expected binary of the world Sascia is used to, a subtext about the alienation and demonisation of those who society deem to be outside their understanding. It is impactful and sadly increasingly timely, so it is important that it has been included here.

Hatzopoulou has such a vividly imaginative way of writing that pulls you into the lush world she’s created. This dystopian setting is unrelenting, with the impact of the emergence of the Dark keenly felt. I liked how we got to learn more about this as the book progressed, mirroring the non-linear nature of Sascia and Nugau’s story. You get dropped into this new world and follow along until the larger picture starts to form around it. It’s also a key component of Sascia’s character arc as she holds immense guilt and hidden secrets over this that she must confront. I love the subtle, small details that feed into the bigger picture as you start to fit the jigsaw pieces together. It is great world-building with a real sense of how the events of the past six years have fundamentally changed the entire fabric of this world. I loved how visual it felt as well, able to bring these places to life around me. The magic system is fascinating too and feels naturally enmeshed with this world. You have a rich sense of history that you are barely able to touch in this book, but there is a whole library of stories just beyond reach.

Moth Dark is a wonderfully imaginative YA romantasy that makes best use of its incredible premise and delivers a story that will stay with you long after the final page.