Reviewed by Lotte:
I’m not sure how to summarise Seven Devils because so much happens! We have 5 main characters: Eris, an ex-heir to the throne; Clo, a natural born, mechanic; Nyx, an ex-soldier; Rhea, a courtesan for the empire; Ariadne, a teenage genius behind the workings of the Oracle. We kick of this novel with Eris and Clo being sent on a difficult intel mission, one where neither wish to be with the other. During this mission they end up colliding with Nyx, Rhea and Ariadne, Tholosian fugitives looking to join the resistance and escape the Empire. However, with the Empire’s new plans for a truce with their previous sworn enemies and suspicious findings, things don’t seem to add up, so these five are forced to work together to uncover and prevent the Empire’s plans. The fate of the entire galaxy and millions of lives rests on their success but can they pull it off when al the odds are against them?
What a fantastic read! Seven Devils has pretty much everything you could want from a sprawling space saga: great characters, detailed back story, well-built worlds and so much action! And I love where the name for the book eventually came from – nicely done!
I really enjoyed the five main protagonists that Lam and May created. Their diverse characteristics were subtly woven into the plot bringing different elements and so much more depth. With each chapter being told from one of the five perspectives we experienced such a range of emotions and responses.
I appreciated having no repetition in the chapters as we switched between characters, instead it was either a flashback or the next step of the story. The flashbacks themselves were really useful and added a lot of context to the plot and world-building without requiring a ton of effort. It almost felt like we’d read a prequel! I also loved that there were so many ‘events’ plus twists and turns within the story which didn’t all end in doom, halting the progression of the story and requiring some farfetched solution. It was refreshing to see the characters face difficulties but find ways to get through them meaning we got so much more story and the plot continually moved forward without losing out on the drama. The Sci-Fi element was pitched perfectly for me too. There was enough for us to understand the different empires, races, space craft, technology etc. without it being too overwhelming and confusing. Elements like the Oracle’s all knowing, all controlling influence were neat little complexities Lam and May added to their novel.
The chapters themselves were short and easy to get through but I did find the pacing in the first half of the book a little slow and I didn’t always feel compelled to read the next chapter. I think part of this was because Lam and May were fleshing out both the characters and the worlds. It completely paid off though! The story reached a gripping crescendo, and cleverly one that left us wanting more, despite all the action. Seven Devils ended with so much drama, I could hardly believe it when they wove in such suspense for the next novel. It had me checking to see when Lam and May were planning on releasing it (please be soon!) as they’ve proved themselves to be a stellar writing duo!
There has been quite a bit of discussion around categorising Seven Devils as an adult novel or a YA. In my opinion it’s definitely aimed more at adults, but reading is subjective so if this sounds like your thing I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.
Author: Elizabeth May & Laura Lam
Publisher: Gollancz
Release date: 6 August 2020
Lotte's Library 