These Shattered Spires
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These Shattered Spires
Narrated by:
Kit Griffiths
Buy Now for £16.68
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Narrated by:
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Kit Griffiths
In this YA high fantasy, four magical rivals must work together to survive a deadly competition. Perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Gideon the Ninth.
Entombed beneath a tooth-filled sky, the world rots. At the heart of the decaying world is Fourspires Castle, home to arcanists from the four disciplines--bone, blood, botany, and stone.
The castle is thrown into chaos when the ruler of Fourspires is assassinated. To crown a new ruler, the arcanists and their human familiars must kill or be killed in a bloody fight to the top of the Fifth Tower. For the familiars, who are the arcanists' servants and sources of power, this will mean certain death.
Amid the bloodshed, four rival familiars must work together . . . Taro, a bone witch still obsessed with her ex. Nixie, a botanical familiar determined to do anything for her freedom. Elliot, a cursed and vengeful blood familiar. And Alix, a banished stone familiar shrouded in secrets.
It's a dangerous and deeply illegal quest, but if they want to survive, the four must ally long enough to battle reanimated skeletons, possessed plants, and undead nuns . . . if they don't kill each other first.©2026 Cassidy Ellis Salter (P)2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
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Critic reviews
In this heartrending trilogy opener. . . . Salter deftly balances the intersectionally diverse characters’ grim existence with gleefully gruesome worldbuilding, snarky banter, and fraught queer romance.
Sets the stakes high immediately, and Salter never lets up on the urgency. . . . The four protagonists are deeply sympathetic, with staggering power that they have been forced to yield to others and distinct, relatable motivations to want to live, despite being imperfect in their shared core emotions--even the end of the world can’t derail desire, love, and spite.
This darkly humorous fantasy trilogy opener, which will appeal to fans of Tamsyn Muir’s Locked Room trilogy, starts strong with a fast pace driven by imminent life-or-death stakes, irresistibly self-destructive characters, and absorbing worldbuilding. . . . A grim, engrossing, and captivating fantasy.
Salter transports readers into a world that’s as deadly as it is putrid. . . . The plot is fast-paced, making it hard to put down.
Utterly fabulous and darkly imaginative. Complicated, flawed characters shine in a world of grit and bloodshed, all brought to life through effortlessly evocative prose. I devoured every page.
A grotesque extravaganza of a book, with a labyrinthine quest and complex, morally grey characters you can’t help but root for--no matter how many times they make clear you shouldn’t. With utterly unique world-building, a brilliant magic system, and writing that flips from fun and entertaining to heart-wrenching . . . I've never had so much fun.
Absolutely perfect for fans of Gideon the Ninth, These Shattered Spires pulses with the weird and wonderful macabre. Salter weaves a ragtag crew of lovable misfits with uniquely grim world-building that is impossible to forget. Witty, diverse characters and tongue-in-cheek humor make this gothic YA fantasy both upbeat and chill inducing.
Part fantastical court intrigue, part murder mystery, part lush queer romance, and part dysfunctional found family. At times, the writing is humorous, at others it bites like a scorpion's sting.
Gruesome, gothic, gay, and glorious. I ate this up from cover to cover. Addictively weird, heartfelt, and a bloody good time!
Fans of fantasy will eat up the worldbuilding in this novel. . . . The story leaves readers waiting breathlessly for the sequel that’s sure to come.
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