I loved the urban fantasy setting, combined with the Chinese gods, it made for a compelling story. Certain aspects of the magic system did lose me at times, but I found the three main characters each engaging in their own ways, and the ending of the book was very exciting! Looking forward to the sequel

One of my new favorites !
This book is highly addictive and impossible to let down. We really feel the "The Mortal instuments" vibe blended with chinese mythology and a little bit of "Lockwood&Co" for the revenants parts. It is really anime coded, and I had this impression thoughout my reading. I crave for an adaptation right now !
Everything is efficient and well built. The plot, the characters,... OMG the characters ! Can we talk about them just for one minute, please ? They're fantastic ! One of the greatest strenghts of the story.

Now all I want is the final book of this duology !

Thank you Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for this ARC. 3.75⭐ rounded up.

I don't typically read a lot of *urban* fantasy. But DB4 was able to hook me quickly with its atmospheric writing, interesting magical lore of vicious ghosts/exorcism/Courts of Hell, and a maddening mystery that I HAD to know the resolution to. The latter especially was enough incentive for me to keep on reading, even when at times the three main characters of Rui, Zizi & Yiran weren't necessarily the most intriguing.

Rui and Zizi were the easiest to grow attached to, with their fun dynamic that they play off each other and contrasting personalities that is complementing rather than a source of conflict. Rui's drive for vengeance for her mother's murderer and ambition to rise up the ranks to join the Exorcist Guild is tempered well by her genuine compassion, which saves her from being a one-note GirlBoss. "She cares about people," as said by another character. Zizi comes off as a typical too-cool-for-school rebel with a heart of gold, but is so enigmatic and offers much welcomed comedic relief in an otherwise dark and tense atmosphere.

Meanwhile, I struggled with the character of Yiran, given that his character arc depended on him having Rui's magical power transferred over to him. Suddenly, this "normie" boy is given a place in a community of Exorcist cadets and a chance to prove himself. While I empathized with how he is ostracized by the patriarch of his family, being a child out of wedlock, and had never felt accepted by anyone until now, it still leaves a sour taste in my mouth how he is banking off an underprivileged girl's power. Rui never had his resources and privilege to get to where he does, and so I completely understand her frustration expressed on page. Tan at least makes sure to try to make Yiran somewhat likeable despite this premise, what with his attempts to befriend Rui and him learning to take Exorcist duties seriously given the lives at stake. The ending doesn't help my overall disdain for him, though.

While I appreciate that Tan takes her time to build up the main romance—they don't kiss until 80% into the story, which is my preference for a believable YA romance—I personally find the two lacking in romantic chemistry. Instead, they could've been an excellent example of Platonic Soulmates, and I far enjoyed their dynamic as ride-or-die friends before it evolved to will-they-won't-they. That said, ultimately I am ambivalent towards them as love interests, and therefore the romance doesn't take away my overall enjoyment of the story.

There's just enough to keep me interested and wanting to know more of this world & the impending war between the humans and Revenants/Hybrids. The action was good, side characters were neat, and I am eager to read the sequel!

I'm really struggling to sum up this book, but rest assured it is a bad ass fantasy with all sorts of supernatural elements. There was a lot to learn at the beginning which made the start a bit slow, but I'm glad I persevered as that ending was unreal! A really stand out story.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

"Darker By Four" by June presents an intriguing premise with potential, but unfortunately falls short in its execution. While the concept of a magical world filled with dangerous monsters and complex characters is appealing, the story suffers from inconsistent pacing and underdeveloped plotlines.

The novel's central characters, Rui and Yiran, lack depth and fail to evoke genuine empathy from the reader. Rui's quest for vengeance and Yiran's struggle to find his place in a world without magic are compelling on paper, but their motivations and actions feel contrived and lack authenticity.

Additionally, the romance between Rui and Yiran, touted as an "achingly slow burn," feels forced and lacks chemistry. The relationship between the two protagonists fails to evolve organically, leaving readers feeling disconnected and uninvested in their journey.

Furthermore, the world-building in "Darker By Four" leaves much to be desired. While the idea of a shadowy urban fantasy setting brimming with magic holds promise, the novel fails to fully immerse readers in its intricacies. The world feels thinly sketched and lacks the depth and detail necessary to truly captivate the imagination.

Overall, "Darker By Four" falls short of its potential, delivering a lackluster and uninspired tale that fails to leave a lasting impression. Despite its promising premise, the novel struggles to engage readers with its flat characters, lackluster romance, and underdeveloped world-building.

An absolutely fantastic and unique story. Really well written. I loved the magic system and the world building. I’ve read Junes CL Tan’s previous book (Jade Fire Gold), and for those that have read that this is quite different. But consistently good writing and entertaining books, I will definitely be reading whichever story this author releases next :)

This book played like an Anime in my mind.

Each character was so well written I adored each perspective, I always enjoy books with multiple points for view and in Darker by Four you get three. Each were complex and nuanced and full of delicious trauma.

Rui, oh Rooroo, burdened by guilt over the death of her mother, she is spurred by a need for revenge. She is strong, independent, sarcastic and keeps everyone at arms length or tries to.

Yiran, is all kinds of trauma wrapped up in more trauma. Being a magic-less normie and belonging to a family who are renowned for being Exorcists with strong magic was not going to end well, cue some severe grandaddy issues. So when he finds himself in possession of Rui's magic he isn't eager to give it back. He's got morally grey covered.

Nikai, is a Reaper from the Fouth Court, searching for Four. He the insight into the Underworld and is desperate to find his best friend and King and to stop the destruction of the realm.

And now the character who stole my heart, even though he didn't have a perspective of his own, he steals the show!
Zizi with his banter, his pyjamas, his sarcastic attitude and fondness for cats and creating the cutest nicknames was just perfection. I adored everything. He is my favourite.

The world building was brilliant, split between the duel setting of a contemporary city being terrorised by Revenants, with a guild whose job is to quell this supernatural enemy and the Underworld of Ten Courts and Ten Kings, the realm an unstable mess since Four abandoned his post as King, under threat of complete destruction unless he's found.
The threat levels were high throughout with made for an exciting read.

It's a fast paced read with themes of grief, guilt and revenge. Of familiar trauma, questionable morals and a desire for magic.
This story keeps you gripped with action packed scenes, unravelling mysteries and a slow burn to end all slow burns.
Don't even get me started on the ending...
I need book 2 NOW! It's just not right to leave me like this.

Thank you Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to netgalley for providing me an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This is a strong 3 stars, I dont have anything really negative to say, it's just one of those books that didn't stand out to me. This book really suffered because of ME, I wasn't really paying that much attention sooo take everything I say with a grain of salt‼️‼️

 
For most of the book we follow Rui, an exorcist in training, and her friends Zizi, a mage( idk what that is tbh), and Yiran, the only magicless one in his family. I enjoyed the dynamic these three. The slow burn was fine, I thought it was enjoyable however the banter and tension didn't really stand out to me. The ending was CRAZY and I'm so excited to see how the character's dynamic will change. I enjoyed the characters as a whole, I would say they were pretty fleshed out, and they were all SO charming.

The plot provided was simple. Its an urban fantasy (be warned there are tik tok references, one of the characters literally says their face card never declines), an accident causes Rui’s power to transfer to Yiran, everything turns upside down. The world gets taken over by these things called revenants, and our three main characters have to solve mysteries and, yk, save the world and all that.

I was kind of bored through the 50-80% marks of the book, but the ending *kinda* made up for it.


Overall a really strong first book in a series, and I might pick up the next one.

This was sensational.

From its first page, Darker by Four pulled me into a dark and shadowy world of vengeance, monsters and secrets and I was more than happy to be there. With superbly developed characters, an excitingly crafted world and a plot that had me latched on to its every word, Darker by Four is an addictive start to a gritty new urban fantasy duology and one I can't wait to revisit when the time for book two comes around.

It was a slightly disappointed read. I did like the universe very much, and I would have liked to have more of it. The plot was rather interesting and the ending was particularly intriguing. However, I did not connect with the characters at all. Especially Yiran.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

DARKER BY FOUR is a contemporary/urban fantasy full of Chinese mythology about the underworld and death.

It was really interesting to read a book that look at underworld mythology from a less familiar (to me) perspective. It was so different to the Greek one dominates and I enjoyed learning a bit more about some myths that I wasn't familiar with.

Rui and Yiran contribute the bulk of the narration, with Nikai providing a minor part to flesh out a bit of what is happening in the ten kingdoms of hell. Rui and Yiran are the teenagers in the world trying to stop the disasters that keep finding them, while Nikai is a much older soul (literally) so the balance kept the book feeling a bit younger.

I liked that the romance was not between the two lead characters, but instead lead plus non-narrator. It's less predictable than other YA fantasies at the moment this way, and this book also makes the romance a significantly smaller thing than is the current norm, another thing I liked. I also enjoyed Rui being potentially demi - more acespec rep in SFF!

As much as there were these elements I like, this book simply didn't click for me. It could well be that I was reading this in the middle of the night (in the most difficult hours of a night shift) but this was a book that I wanted to like more than I did.

The ending sets up some major conflict between the characters for the next book that should be interesting.

thank you to netgalley and hodder & stoughton (UK) for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review


i read this book while in the middle of assignments & it was such a struggle because i just could. not. put it. down!! i dont know how to explain it only that it was a wild ride and a comfort read at the same time. as an asian & part of the chinese diaspora that grew up exposed to all sorts of stories and media about the chinese underworld, everything about darker by four (si) felt so familiar to me that i did not have to put in too much effort to learn about the world, because the underworld elements were all part of my childhood. i was able to fall in love with our main characters almost instantly.


june's writing has really improved so much from jade fire gold and maybe it was because this book was truly the book of her heart, but i found myself loving all the characters, even those who were meant to be antogonists. rui, my girl, i felt for her so much. she was brave, strong, resilient, determined and so selflessly caring. the main trio of rui, zizi & yiran have all been through harrowing experiences of varying degree and are all carrying so much trauma, and are all just trying their best to survive and do whatever they can for the ones they care about.

i LOVED the character dynamics between the three (& also each pairing within the three), and their relationships with each other. esp zizi!!!! *chef kiss* that's my dramatic traumatized man right there. his love for rui was immaculate and i have so many screenshots of every single one of their ~moments~ together lmao, i cant believe they had such little time together (june!!!! wtf) and i cant wait for the sequel to see how their story will continue after THAT ending in book 1. yiran, my miserable sad boy with grandfather issues who's just doing his best, i loved how morally ambiguous he was.

i loved the discussion of the main antogonists, the "hybrids", whether they deserved to be treated as demons and eradicated simply because they were different, because they, too, are merely trying to survive in a world that does not accept them. not all of them are heartless monsters, yet all of them are hunted. this question was a big part of the 2nd half of the book and im excited to see how that will be explored further in the sequel.


june c.l. tan has scored another hit with me, and i need the sequel so baddd!!! i know she's currently working on it and i know she's gonna make my faves suffer and i cant wait to be wrecked by it lmao. 5/5 stars for me!

I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book so much. The concept, characters, and writing all amazing; even early chapters were so interesting that it was hard to put it down halfway through, and it got more exciting towards the finish!

4.75⭐️

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored this book. I'm not a huge YA reader, but when I was reading this I was getting big Legendborn vibes and it had me hooked from the beginning.

I really enjoyed the characters in this story and honestly never really felt like there was a POV I didn't like, I was genuinely hooked from the get go. It's not often there's an ensemble cast of characters where I like every single one of them (aside from the big bad) and the side characters. I thought everyone was so well written and distinguishable from each other and I genuinely loved being in their heads and seeing them all interact and how their stories progressed.

I also really loved the writing style. It was simple, but not so simple that it felt like you were being spoon-fed information. Everything just seemed to flow together nicely and the pacing was fantastic. I never once really felt bored or like I wanted the story to hurry along, I was just really enjoying the whole experience of reading.

I'd definitely recommend this to people who loved Legendborn, and the TV show 'Wynonna Earp'.

4,5

Initially pitched as a blend of Shadowhunters and Chinese Mythology, this book transcends that comparison while embracing elements that made the Mortal Instruments series popular. With whip-smart, weapon-wielding teens facing familial and relationship issues, deadly non-human creatures, and a captivating found family dynamic, the narrative unfolds through three perspectives: Rui, a skilled exorcist cadet; Yiran, a member of a powerful family lacking supernatural abilities; and Nikai, a mysterious soul usher to the underworld with ties to the Fourth King of Hell. The story moves swiftly, easily consumed in two sittings, and I'm thrilled to anticipate a sequel!

thanks to netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me the e review copy!

Darker by Four is a YA urban fantasy with multiple POVs; characters who wouldn't normally interact, but of course whose paths inevitably cross. It is action-packed, full of mystery and a lot of fun to read.

The story draws inspiration in part from Chinese diaspora folklore and mythology. The world building is really intriguing, but I felt like we only got the tip of the iceberg and I want more! From the underworld with the ten courts of hell to the hierarchy of the exorcists, all of it was fascinating to me. This is described as part of a duology which I'm pleased to hear; I will definitely be reading on to find out more.

Recommended to fans of YA fantasy, particularly urban and paranormal.

I’d like to start of by thanking netgalley and the publisher for granting me a free e-arch in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts and opinions are my own

Not to be that person but back when I was 14, the shadowhunters chronicles were my entire personality so now, almost 10 years later when I see a book being blurbed with the words ‘’shadowhunters chronicles meet the chinese underworld’’ my heart starts beating a lil faste

I gotta be honest after the first couple of chapters I immediately went ‘’eh i’m not so sure about that’’. Especially the first 3 chapters felt like a whole lot of infodump to me and I literally put my ereader down to just take it all in?? Only to pick it back up like 3 days later. I was lowkey dreading picking it back up again, cause infodumps and me?? Yeah we’re not a good match. I have a slow brain sometimes, I need some time to absorb ya know??

BUT FEAR NOT. I did indeed pick it back up and oh boy did I enjoy myself! I absolutely loved how all of the main characters were connected in some way and this was one of the rare cases where I literally enjoyed all of the pov’s we got.

Infodump in the beginning aside, Darker by four is definitely a very unique story and I think it’s pretty unfair that it got compared to the shadowhunters chronicles cause it’s so much more than that!

"Darker by Four" is the first chapter of a ya fantasy duology written by June C.L Tan and currently in progress.

A city invaded by Revenants, souls corrupted by a supernatural virus that feed on the energy of the living. An exorcist-in-training who loses her powers following a spell. A powerless boy, member of one of the most illustrious families of exorcists, who receives them. A bizarre, listless and distracted mage. A reaper in search of his missing boss. And finally, the underworld, with its Ten Courts of Hell, on the verge of collapse. These are just some of the ingredients that make up "Darker by Four," a compelling, bewitching and exciting novel that completely won me over. I read and loved "Jade Fire Gold," the author's debut work, and couldn't wait to jump on this her new book. And in the end it did not disappoint! I was captivated by the dark and intriguing story, the author's evocative and vivid writing, the ominous yet enchanting setting, the extremely complex and tormented characters, and the numerous references to Chinese mythology. In addition, there is a wonderful queer representation, an intense and suffering found family, and a slooow burn that made me sweat and despair so much. Basically, I loved everything about this book and can't express anything but kudos!

The story takes place in a city of contemporary China, haunted by hordes of Revenants, in a world where the existence of the supernatural is officially recognized. Revenants are the souls of the dead who, at the moment of detachment, waiting to be collected by reapers and transferred to the underworld, are reached and infected by a supernatural plague that turns them into monstrous creatures, hungry for the energy of the living.  To fight them are the exorcists, endowed with spiritual energy, who hone in magic and infuse in customized spiritual weapons. The exorcists are gathered under the control of the Exorcist Guild, and aspiring exorcists train in the Xingshan Academy. In contrast to the Guild, there are a whole range of magic practitioners who operate outside the organization, illegally. In addition to all this, thanks to one of the protagonists, the underworld, the realm of the dead, with its ten courts, controlled by ten kings, is introduced. A dangerously unstable realm, on the verge of destruction after Four, one of the kings, abandoned his position and disappeared. It is a simple world building, without too much explanation, which fascinated me so much. I loved the numerous references to Chinese mythology! Maybe I would have liked to know and see more of the underworld, but I guess there will be time in the sequel.

The story proceeds quickly and dynamic, accompanied by a brisk pace and the presence of short chapters. Intrigues, mysteries and action alternate between the pages of the book, without moments of boredom or heaviness. I admit that I guessed some plot twists in advance (except for one, which surprised me and made me scream), but this did not affect my overall enjoyment. I loved the angst of the novel and suffered at the same time! It is a story about grief, remorse, revenge, sense of helplessness, and complicated family ties, but it is also a story about friendship, hope, and love. I loved everything, even the highly illegal ending, and can't wait to read the sequel!

Rui, Yiran and Nikai are the main characters, all with their respective third person povs. Rui is an exorcist-in-training at Xingshan Academy, first in her class and endowed with high spiritual energy. Marked by the death of her mother, right before her eyes, at the hands of an unusual Revenant, Rui aims to hone her skills, find the Revenant responsible and kill him. A task that suddenly becomes unattainable when, during a fight with a strange Revenant, to save her life and that of a boy, she uses a new, experimental spell that transfers her power to the boy, seemingly permanently, depriving her of her magic and setting events in motion to try to recover it. Rui is a protagonist that I loved! Strong, determined, courageous, independent, stubborn, sarcastic and reckless, she hides a sensitive soul, tormented by grief and guilt. Rui feels responsible for her mother's death, for the destruction of her family, and this pushes her to try to keep everything and everyone at a distance. Yiran, is the black sheep of a renowned family of exorcists, born without magic. That is until one night he finds himself fighting a Revenant in an alley, with Rui, and as a result of a mysterious volatile spell he receives the girl's power, killing the monster and finding himself with everything he has always desired. Yiran is a morally gray character with whom I have a complicated relationship! In the sense that yes, I like him and find him well portrayed, but at the same time I detest him. Seriously, I have alternated between moments of affection and sympathy for him and moments when I wanted to yank him and yell at him. Yiran is the only one without magic in his family, and this has stuck him in a difficult situation. Yiran was forced to grow up fast, developing a cocky, brash and sarcastic attitude to try to hide his constant sense of inadequacy, his disappointment, his feeling of being a constant failure. Yiran covets magic and is envious of those who possess it. And when he finds himself with Rui's powerful magic, the last thing he wants to do is look for a way to give it back. Even though it does not belong to him. The conflicted friendship that develops between Rui and Yiran, made up of lies, mistrust, and deceptions on the one hand and open-hearted confessions and mutual support on the other, sent me into juices! I can't tell you the angst they gave me!

And then there is Nikai, reaper of the Fourth Court, searching for Four, the missing king and his best friend. Nikai is a nebulous character, with few chapters and few interactions with the other protagonists. However, he intrigued me a lot!Through him more of the underworld and the Ten Courts are shown. He is a complex character, well portrayed, who because of his particular situation doesn't remember anything from when he was alive. I am curious to find out more about him!

And lastly, I can't not mention Zizi, a not quite legal mage and Rui's best friend. A character who won me over from his first appearance, despite not having his own pov. Zizi has a seemingly distracted, listless and sarcastic attitude, with a fondness for pajamas, a great love for cats and a deep passion for tea. A quirky and ambiguous figure, able to alternate between wry jokes and swoon-worthy statements! Zizi and Rui met shortly after Rui's mother died and little by little, bit by bit, they became first friends and then a kind of family. I madly love Zizi and, along with Rui, they are my favorite characters!

All in all, "Darker by Four" is a fantastic start to the series, characterized by powerful writing, a fascinating setting, a dark and intricate story, and wonderful characters. I can't wait to read the sequel!

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange of a honest review.

Actual rating: 3,5/5

“Darker by four” by June CL Tan is a YA fantasy novel inspired by Asian underworld mythology and follows Rui and Yirian’s lives after an unfortunate event that transferred Rui’s powers into Yirian’s body. The plot blends with a more tangled matter: the Fourth King of Hell has disappeared, unleashing chaos and on both the human realm and the underworld. Rui and Yirian, flanked by an eccentric magician, must face what is happening in their city and fight for their lives.

The underworld magic, the Guild that ruled the world in this universe and that trained people with a strong spirit core and a high level of yangqi to become Exorcists able to kill the Revenants, and the Ten Kings of Hell were what piqued my interest. The writing style was both dazzling and engaging, it transported me into the gloomy world described into the book and let me be part of it. As an urban fantasy, the whole book is set in a world comparable to ours where the citizens are aware of magic and what the dangers it entails.

This book was compared to Shadowhunters and I can feel the vibes, but unfortunately it didn’t last as long as I expected.
There are three different point of views in the book.
Rui, our main character, is a soon-to-be Exorcist. A strong girl forced to address her mother’s murder and live with a burning thirst for revenge. Her chapters were supposed to be filled with rage, trauma, and sadness, but the emotions troubling Rui’s souls didn’t shine through the pages. Her story wasn’t fully investigated and her goal was forgotten and replaced too quickly. She didn’t feel like the main character in the story and I couldn’t emphasise with her.
Yirian is the grandson of the most influential man in the city, the brother of one of the most promising Exorcists in circulation. But Yirian was born a “normie”, he doesn’t have magic in his veins and it has always adversely affected the relationship with his grandfather. But everything changed when Rui’s powers are transferred into his body, letting him being part of the world and the family that kept him sidelined. Yirian’s development from a spoiled boy to a brave man was well-written, his storyline from the little interest I felt at first, turned to be the most intriguing.
Nikai is a Repeaer in the fourth realm of Hell responsible for the collection of the soul of the dead. We have few chapters from his point of view, therefore his storyline feels incomplete. He is involved in the search for Four, his master and friend, and the book needed more chapters set into the underworld rather than the Academy or the human realm in general since it was a far more interesting topic to address and study further.
Zizi, a magician whose friendship with Rui is going to be significant for the plot, didn’t have his own pov and he remained a background character that deserved to be deepened more given his importance. His smugness and humor made him my personal favourite character but his charm got lost on the way.

Darker by Four is a fast-paced book that tried to develop too many plot lines at once in few pages, ending up not paying the proper attention to every single one of them.
I have loved Jade Fire Gold and I hoped to see something of it in Darker by Four but it didn’t meet my expectations.

Darker by Four remains an easy-to-read book and an interesting first novel in a new series focused on Chinese mythology and folklore.

I first heard of June CL Tan when a friend of mine mentioned to me the plot of “Jade Fire Gold”. I still haven’t had the opportunity to read this book, but when I saw that the author was going to publish another book I wanted to give it a try. I was pretty curious about “Darker By Four”. Now that I finished reading it, I have mixed feelings.

I think DBF’s biggest flaw is that it’s not long enough. The whole story felt too rushed, at the point that sometimes it resulted confusing and make it difficult for me to empathise with the characters and their struggles. There were also many subplot opened at the same time during the story, and only a few were truly dealt with (Fuor’s disappearance, Rui losing her power and Yiran gaining them, the deal with Ten, the Revenants’ situation and the Hybrids’ mystery…).
In my personal opinion, Zizi and Yiran were the most interesting characters (even though, Yiran had to grown on me before I started to really like him). I would have liked for Zizi to have more POVs. Rui still remains an enigma to me. I couldn’t connect to her for the whole book. Overall, I had the impression she was dragged by the current of events.

I enjoyed Tan’s writing style, though, and there were some aspects of her book that I appreciated. Zizi’s questionable sense of humour, for starters. And the potential of Yiran and Yuki’s relationship.

I honestly don’t know if I’ll read the sequel to Darker By Four, but I still want to give a chance to “Jade Fire Gold” and I look forward to June CL Tan’s next novels.

I received an ARC of this book from its publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.