This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers' Favorite
Kristina Elyse Butke’s The Step and the Walk, book two in The Darkening Gate series, follows Andresh Zatavier, a magician studying literature at the University of Evandra, where an alchemical text offers a path to defeating death. Determined to pursue the Magnum Opus, a ritual that promises immortality, Andresh summons Isabelle, a demon whose knowledge of hidden truths can lead him to its first Gate. Passage requires Andresh to surrender his desire, making Lily Bellamy, the childhood friend he has loved for years, central to what the ritual may demand from him. As Isabelle urges him onward, the life Andresh expected to build falls away as he moves back toward Lily, believing the power of the Gates could let him protect her from the death he has spent years trying to overcome.
Kristina Elyse Butke’s The Step and the Walk is an outstanding gothic dark fantasy, with real imagination behind the world surrounding Andresh. Glaphyra has centuries of history in its very bones, which comes through beautifully in Evandra’s National Library, where forbidden grimoires sit beneath protective glass as exposed pages begin darkening after six minutes. That same sense of a lived-in world reaches the Dositheos amphitheater, whose stonework carries performers’ voices through a place regarded as a divine gift. The fire magic is fantastic, with every casting drawing from the lifespan of the person using it, turning magic into something with a real human price. Andresh’s friendship with Erina gives him a warmth that feels genuine whenever they confide in each other. His journaling voice is excellent, letting his own words tell us far more about him than he realizes. Readers who love fantasy built around alchemy should absolutely read this book. Very highly recommended.
