I have been a huge fan of this series, but found this sequel to just drag on before catching my attention. I absolutely loved our new MMC that was added to the mix, but I couldn't stand to see Rhys acting like such a child, despite all the growth we have seen so far. Writing was as lovely as I have come to expect from Gibson, but personally could have done without this plot line.

I can't decide how i feel about this series...
I read the first one thinking i would never pick this series up again but found myself reading the second book. I enjoyed the second book more than the first and I liked how the characters developped throughout this second instalment.

I will continue reading this series but I don't think it is one I would easily be able to recommend to people.

Another fantastic addition to the series! Featuring found family, family trauma, mystery, betrayal, and magic! I had so much fun reading this and getting to know more about the characters. I love the messy relationships and the dynamics between the characters. The romance continues to grow and I can't wait to get more of their relationship in the next books. I especially adored the found family aspect and how the much the members mean to one another. Overall, a fantastic addition to the story and universe and I honestly will read anything S.T. Gibson writes. They just have a gorgeous way of writing and crafting characters with so much depth and heart.

3.5 ⭐️ I loved the character, but the story fell flat


Quick Summary:
⭐️ LBGT rep
⭐️ Found family
⭐️ Family trauma
⭐️mystery elements
⭐️Betrayal
⭐️ magic
⭐️Tension
⭐️ Slow pacing



My Thoughts:

I thought this book would really hop on the plot from the first. Rhys now has a blond tie to a demon that will end his life by saving David’s life. This is a huge plot, yet it barely was in this book. Instead the focus was more personal with Rhys being unable to be high priest, and ruining relationships. I enjoyed the messy characters with this, however I do think this book needed a stronger plot element like the first had. Instead I felt as if this book truly wasn't needed.

I loved:

Romance
I did love Rhy, Moira and David. Their dynamic is beautiful even with the ups and downs. I think this book did a great job of showcasing how easy and hard their dynamic is. From the planning of dates, communication and boundaries of relationship. I loved the exploration of their dynamics.


Found Family
I loved the found family of the society. I do think this book showcased it more how much the members mean to both David and Rhys. I wish it was used with the plot of the demon more like somehow saving Rhys. Instead it really just was used to showcase the dynamics of the main characters.

Disliked
Plot Set Up
The plot actually was just Rhys with his rise and downfall of being a high priest. This is fine, but shouldn't have been the only plot especially with Rhys having a blood tie to a demon. This should have been tied into his downfall more, and made a bit more. Instead the plot felt overall light, and the max situation felt more like jealousy than what it truly was.

Pacing
The pacing of this book felt off. It could be the plot being Rhys made the book feel slower, but overall I felt as if the book dragged along especially compared to the first.



Overall, I would recommend if you loved the characters with the first book.

It is always such a pleasure to read S.T. Gibson's books even if I don't necessarily love the characters. I have felt very off about Rhys since book one and honestly feel like he isn't bringing much to the table which again, another book and my opinion stands. Regardless of that fact, I love this world and love to see all the characters once again and the new ones pop up. I am firmly team David here and i'm hoping he gets his own story. Such beautiful characters, I always end this series wanting more.

Another brilliant adventure from ST Gibson! Regular followers of mine know that I've been singing her praises since the very first days, and it's a joy to see these characters move forward and blossom (kind of!) as they're allowed their own series.

I'm still 100% Team Moira, adoring her practicality combined with her spirituality, and her honesty about her own doubts and the troublesome menfolk that she loves... who are once again making questionable decisions that really won't end well.

Readers should definitely read 'Evocation' first to avoid feeling lost, but this stands as a triumphant second part of this magical polyamorous romance. Regular fans will adore it.

It’s hard to write a review of a book when there’s an aspect of it I really loved, and another aspect I didn’t, and both are crucial to the making of a good novel. Overall, what I liked and disliked about Ascension are the same things I liked and disliked about Evocation.

I’ll start with what I liked, which are the characters. As in Evocation, I found them all very interesting, and they work so well together. I appreciate that the focus was on Rhys this time because, although I loved David in Evocation, Rhys is such an interesting character. I love how S.T. Gibson didn’t shy away from making him absolutely pathetic and so flawed. It’s not often that the author digs so deep into their character’s flaws, to the point where their actions are understandable but not excusable. It made the book really fun to read, because I was constantly getting frustrated at Rhys for making bad choices and digging his own grave, but also being really invested because these bad choices really moved the book forward and didn’t let the plot stagnate.

I do regret that Moira wasn’t developed in a more multi-dimensional way like Rhys and David. She’s a really sweet character, but I feel like she’s sometimes reduced only to that sweetness. I want her to get mad, I want her to lose control, I want her to be a bit darker than this sweet bubbly girl. I feel like her potential is a bit ignored, and that she’s a too simple in comparison to Rhys and David. These two are really flawed, and Gibson fully uses that for the sake of the plot and character arcs, but doesn’t do it as much with Moira. Perhaps she will do it more in the third book.

I also wasn’t as invested in the relationship between Rhys, Moira, and David as I was in Evocation because it’s an established relationship, but it was still fun to read about. I love the way S.T. Gibson treats polyamory, and I think we could all benefit from seeing more of this kind of relationships in media. Generally speaking, and even if I wished Moira were more developed, the characters and their relationship are what made this book good for me.

As with Evocation, the main issue with Ascension is the plot. With Evocation, there was virtually no plot going on until the very end, despite a very promising premise. It didn’t bother me so much because the characters and their budding relationship more than made up for it. Admittedly, Ascension has a lot more plot than Evocation did. Whereas in Evocation, the characters did close to nothing to advance towards the end goal until the very end, they are far more active in Ascension. But in Evocation, I could at least clearly point at what was the end goal they were supposed to be working on. In Ascension, I simply had no idea what they were working towards, what the climax might look like, and what I was supposed to look forward to. I kept reading because I was invested in the characters and wanted to know what would happen next, but if asked, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you what the book’s plot was about. Even now that I’ve finished it, it’s not totally clear.

More disappointing was the fact that the series’ overarching plot—or what I thought it was—is barely ever mentioned. The end of Evocation led me to believe that in Ascension, Rhys would battle with the same demon David battled with, and find a more permanent way to be rid of it. That’s not what happened at all. The demon’s presence and the events of the previous book were only ever mentioned in passing, as if the deadline was not looming over the horizon, as if the characters didn’t care about trying to get rid of the demon anymore. That simply didn’t make sense given the urgency with which they tried to find a solution in the previous book. I understand that Rhys has more time than David did, but why isn’t he actively looking for a solution all the same? It very much felt like I was reading an adjacent series, with the same characters and themes but a completely different plot with completely different stakes, instead of the continuation of Evocation.

I also eventually got a bit tired of the magic system. It’s interesting, and maybe it’s just that I am personally tired of Catholicism, but it feels like Gibson only took what already exists about summonings, rituals, tarot, etc., without trying to make something new of it, without trying to subvert it. It’s not bad worldbuilding per se, but it’s not very creative and original either, and Gibson hardly ever questions religion, whether God is good or not, whether angels are good or not, etc. She mentions Catholic guilt, certainly, but there is no real conversation about the goodness of Catholicism as a religion, or even the harm that it has caused to so many groups because it was weaponised against them. Again, there’s a lot of potential here, and Gibson fails to fully exploit it, which gets a bit tiring.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the book. I had a good time with it, and if the premise of the third book sounds interesting enough, I’ll come back to read it, with the hope that Gibson will have gotten better. It’s just that Gibson misses out on a lot of potential. Since I’ve only ever read this series and none of her other books yet, I can’t tell if she’s a weak writer who has good ideas, or if it’s just that she’s not getting the hang of this series as much as she could have.

Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5

This one was way better structured than Evocation, but the plot still feels like an excuse for the characters to hang out rather than something they’re actually engaged in.

Since Rhys is the focus, I was hoping for some real growth, but no—he just breezed through every conflict with zero lasting consequences. Once again, David and Moira stole the show (and let’s be real, they’ll keep doing that in every book).

I loved seeing familiar faces again, and meeting new ones! The whole thing felt way smoother than the first book, though I wish the occult world had more spotlight.

I do have high hopes that this series will get better with each book, but it's a crime to make me wait til 2027 to read the next one!

DNF at 26%.

Evocation was one of my favourite books of last year and I’m a big fan of ST Gibson’s writing - Savage Blooms is one of my most anticipated books of the year - but I struggled with Ascension so much.

I adore Moira and David, but Rhys is insufferable in this book and being in his head so much while David and Moira were pushed aside and there was little growth or even tension and angst in their relationship left me a little bored. I was having to push myself through so I decided to DNF. I loved Evocation and I’m happy to leave this series there and look forward to Savage Blooms instead.

This has become one of my favorite series and I’m glad that Rhys’ book had came second because he was my favorite in Evocation. I find they ST Gibson has created a great cast of characters that I learned so much about in the first book but left enough mystery that I was yearning for this second book and it didn’t disappoint. I found that learning more about Rhys, his character, history, relationships, and desires helped to continues to round him out to be an even more engaging character. I also found that she didn’t throw other characters to the side and continued to build and round out each character with an attention to details that made them all continue to feel original and true to themselves. I think this was a great addition to the series and honestly it’s going to be hard to top it.

I do adore this occult fantasy series. And book two did not disappoint.

The complexities of Rhys, David and Moira's relationship was brilliantly entwined with the demonic magic vibes.

It was interesting seeing how the author developed the individual characters, the polygamous relationship and the magical aspects of the series so well.

Seeing Rhys struggle to control his demons, internal and literally, was amazingly well laid out alongside both Moira and David trying to help him. While at the same time the societies are trying to keep themselves from exposure. The multi POV chapters work so well in this series.

I loved how we got to see a new twist in the relationships with Max, and a new element of complexity as all the society heads are called together.

S.T Gibson has a captivating and expressive way of creating, and developing, both a story and it's characters.

Roll on book three.

St Gibson writes in a way that makes me feel younger, like I am in my family's house reading novels. Her writings are like fluid, water running, so you don't understand when the novel finishes.

I loved Evocation and was looking forward to second book, I was lucky enough to get an eARC from Angry Robot. In Ascension, we return where we left off in Evocation, Rhys being High Priest, Moira worrying about Rhys and David being David. Gibson builds character strong. They are gray, they are human, they have flaws. None of them is better than another. So both Evocation and Ascension differ from romantasy in my opinion. I love Moira and David, and I also liked the new characters introduced in Ascension. I only hate Rhys, being a selfish greedy arrogant man. Gibson makes you feel for the characters and read in a night, which is a rare combination.

I really love this series. I just wished there was not spice, but I guess every genre has it right now. I am looking forward to reading other novels of St Gibson and other novels in this series!

Thank you so much Angry Robots for giving me a free eARC. Opinions are my own.

Thank you to @angryrobotbooks for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read the first in this series last year and was a bit disappointed with it, so when I saw the sequel I was in two minds whether to continue, but I’m glad I did. I really enjoyed this one as there was more about the Society, demons and magic than the first.

Rhys has finally got his dream of being High Priest but it’s taking its toll. He’s tetchy, argumentative and overstressed. He’s doing too much, expecting too much, taking on too many demons and it’s not helped when someone does a ritual outside of the Society building. This draws unwanted attention to the order and things get ever tenser.

This book plays out so well, new characters are introduced and don’t gel into the dynamic well. We see more of Leda too in this one, who is a great side character and David develops in many ways. I’m looking forward to the next instalment already (which I hope there will be).

DNF. I don't think S.T. Gibson is a very good writer. I keep trying, because I love her premises, but they do not work for me at all.

The first book (Evocation) focused more on David and Ascension focuses more on Rhys. It picks up after the events of the first book. Rhys is a perfectionist and he’s always striving for control. It was interesting to get into his thought process in this one. He really had a lot of growth in this and I loved to see it. Like with Evocation, the characters are what makes this series special. They’re all so different but lovable! You get to see Rhys, David, and Moira setting boundaries and adjust to their relationship. It’s complicated and there’s definitely growing pains. This book was spicier than the first too! Moira is my fav though and I can’t wait for her book!
If you enjoy a book with cozy occult vibes and summoning demons, then pick up this series!

4.5 stars
——————

ST Gibson was already an auto-buy author for me, but this book really solidified why.

This is the captivating sequel to Evocation, following Rhys this time as he battles his own demons…literally. Told in three voices, the reader gets an immersive experience. The core of this book and its magic really is just how well researched it is and the reality of the experience and magic system. ST Gibson has a way with creating a realistic environment. Despite its setting in modern Boston, the setting created of the Society housing is phenomenal. The characters are all well written and each side character has a point, they’re not fillers. I love the relationship between Rhys, David and Moira. They have wonderful banter and they all play their role in the story really well. I loved the glimpses of Leda, too. The magic system in particular caught my attention for how accurate it is and well researched the factors are. Moira’s tarot, Rhys demon work, David’s charm. They all are really well done and rooted in so much history.

I could read this series and this book over and over again.

Ascension is a captivating story filled with magic and love. The plot is spellbinding, focusing on Rhys and his job as High Priest in a secret occult society. His adventure is dark and full of demons, yet this is the norm for the characters. Talking of characters this series is a character driven. Our characters are complex and under pressure. We also get more of an exploration of their polyamorous relationship, which is tender, sexual and emotional. I feel that S. T. Gibson is amazing at drawing you into her characters and their inner circle. I also really enjoyed the religious themes and supernatural elements. This made for a fun read that also explores connections in a beautiful way. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

I loved Invocation and this was an incredible sequel. Gibson knows how to write such good characters! Auto buy author for sure.

4.5 stars
I enjoyed this second installment quite a lot. The relationships between the characters continue to develop in meaningful and complex ways—especially considering the polyamorous dynamics at play. These relationships feel thoughtfully crafted, and I appreciated the way conflicts arise naturally from who these people are, rather than being imposed by the plot. Even more, I loved how they communicate through those conflicts—imperfectly, but in ways that feel honest and true to their personalities.
The plot weaves beautifully into this intricate web of emotional and personal development, never overpowering the characters but instead complementing them. It maintains that cozy, gothic atmosphere I loved in the first book—moody yet warm, dark but never bleak.
I really enjoyed it. It’s the kind of story where the magic feels like part of the everyday—a quiet, persistent presence rather than a spectacle. That tone, combined with the rich emotional layers, made this a truly satisfying read.

i absolutely love s.t. gibson's writing and this book is no exception. the first book in this series, evocation, was one of my favourite reads last year so i was excited to dive back into the world and reunite with the characters. 

unlike the first book, ascension focuses a lot more on rhys, since it's mostly from his pov, and it really helped me understand a lot more about his character. he's constantly striving for perfection/status within the magic community and he's willing to go to extreme lengths to reach it. at the same time, he's full of self-doubt and guilt, which affects him and all the people around him. i felt so bad for him at times because i could see he was trying to do good but going about it in the wrong way. i honestly loved his character development and can't wait to see more of it in future books.

this is book two in a four-part series, excluding the odd spirits novella, so i'm hoping that we get more of moira in the next book because i love her and need to know more about her life. her and david are the biggest highlights in this series for me, i absolutely love their little friendship, and i can't wait for more of it.

the story is more character-driven than plot, and while i did enjoy this book, it felt a lot more like a filler read. it left me with so many unanswered questions. although, at the same time, i'm kind of glad it wasn't rushed to solve the major issue from the end of book one. i'm still very intrigued to see how it all works out (if it does) and can't wait for the next book.