The Maiden and her monster is such a good story. One of the best stories I've read this year alone. 5 stars from me. I totally recommend everyone to read this book as fast as they can because it's really good.

Thanks to the publisher and author, I was lucky enough to read an ARC of The Maiden and the Monster via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion -- this novel only being my most anticipated debut novel of the year, no big deal - except it IS.

As a huge fan of dark fantasy and someone who has a deep rooted interest in religion, mythology and mysticism, the concept of Maddie Martinez retelling the myth of the Golem of Prague and turning it into a dark sapphic fantasy tale appealed to me so much. I’m happy to say I was not disappointed! The Maiden and her Monster is an excellent debut novel with gorgeous lyrical writing. Honestly, just start reading – the opening line will tell you enough: <i>The forest eats the girls who wander out after dark.</i> I was immediately HOOKED: the scene is set, the cards are laid out; after I read this very first line I knew exactly what kind of story I was getting myself into.

The Maiden and the Monster has a beautifully fleshed out world – which is both reminiscent of the 16th century Czech lands and made even richer with Maddie’s magic system, language system and social system.

The magic system- which is rooted in faith and mysticism takes center stage and is really well thought out and gorgeously described. I love how magic becomes stronger with faith and intent – and how it is not a matter of skill or study. The passages where magic was being used or discussed were among my favorites in the novel.

Make no mistake with this novel, though. While it is marketed as sapphic and there is a romantic subplot, this is by no means a romantic fantasy novel or a romantasy. This is a dark fantasy novel about a devout Yahad girl set in a deeply, violently bigoted and antisemitic world. The way Maddie handles these themes is, in contrast with her beautiful descriptions of the world and the magic, unflinching and gritty. Oftentimes I set aside the novel to reminisce on the many parallels with our own world – both historic and present. A small example of this is how the Yahad people (the Jewish folk) are forced to wear badges in the capital city so that others can identify them and keep themselves safe. This was a common practice in historical Europe – many people mistakenly believe that the nazis invented this practice, but it is far, far older and more widespread than that.

The Maiden and her Monster is not an easy novel to get into. As mentioned: Maddie has fleshed out the world of The Maiden and the Monster extensively, and that means that she uses a combination of Czech, Hebrew and made-up words specific to this world, which means that as a reader you’ll have to invest in getting to know the world’s language. Maddie doesn’t take your hand in the text (though there is a glossary which you can find via her goodreads review and on her website) and while I’ve seen people complain about this, I personally appreciated that the author trusted that I do the work in order to understand what’s being talked about.

All in all The Maiden and the Monster is a beautiful, ferocious, high-stakes debut novel and I can’t wait until the novel is out so I can add a physical copy of it to my collection and read it again. Highly recommended!

The Maiden and her Monster has been one of my most anticipated releases of this year so I was super excited when I got approved to read the book months in advance of release!

The whole idea of a reimagining of the Jewish myth of Golem immediately piqued my interest. When I found out the book was sapphic, I was even more interested. And when I saw a vision board video by the author, Maddie Martinez, on Instagram, I was so hooked. I was sure this had the potential to become one of my favorite reads of the year and even though I didn't give the book the full five stars, I absolutely loved it and it will probably indeed be among this years' favorites.

The story got so much bigger than what I was expecting from the synopsis and the plot took quite some twists and turns. Magic being portrayed as a part of faith instead of it's antithesis was very unique to me, and the book did a great job of showing how complex belief and religion are and how entangled with politics they can be. The protagonist really went on a journey, both in a literal and in a metaphorical way.

The romance part of the story was a lot more subtle than I had expected and then moved very fast in the end of the book. I didn't mind the first but the latter then just wasn't necessary for me.

Nevertheless, I especially recommend this book to readers who love a dark forest setting and Middle Ages Europe; readers who want to read something completely unique that broadens their horizon; and readers who want diversity in their books.

4.25 out of 5 stars

5⭐

Thank you so much to Maddie Martinez, Pan Macmillan & NetGalley for this ARC!

The Maiden and Her Monster is sapphic retelling of Jewish myth of Golem. Martinez weaves a rich tale with Jewish mythology into a lush and evocative tale.

I haven't been eagerly waiting for this book
for years now ever since the author announced it in 2023! I was entirely swept away to this atmospheric world when I first started reading it.

The glorious canopy of Jewish folklore made it an enchanting read --- along the with sapphic romance and sentiment forest. The story is written with gorgeous prose that never failed to meet the mark.

The tale is supported by a cast of diverse and unique set of characters, who are very different and the same, with a common goal in the end. The themes of grief, hope and passion are explored from the very first page to the last.

The magic system- which is rooted in faith and mysticism takes center stage and is really well thought out and gorgeously described. I love how magic becomes stronger with faith and intent.

I love how Malka and Nimrah's relationship evolves from dislike, to respect, to caring, and to something more.

Overall, I had a really emotional and amazing time reading this book! If you enjoyed Ava Reid's 'The Wolf and the Woodsman', you will enjoy this tale too!

Thank you Netgalley for the e-arc. The Maiden and her Monster is a lush dark fantasy story, it weaves stories within stories in a beautiful way. It is such an atmospheric story and makes the setting and the folklore a haunting character following Malka and Nimrah on their journey. It is a beautiful standalone story and I cannot wait to read more from Maddie!