Bram Stoker Award–nominee and USA Today bestseller Johanna van Veen unveils a sapphic folk-horror tour de force?perfect for fans of The VVitch and The Salt Grows Heavy. A skull’s grin is eternal…
The year is 1635.
Sister Ursula, a young nun fleeing the ruins of her convent, and Elsebeth, a sharp-witted peasant, escape a band of marauding soldiers and disappear into the Bavarian forest. War scorches the land, and no one survives it alone. Amid the devastation, they find something in the arms of a dying man: the gilded skull of a saint.
It is said that if you reunite the saint’s skull with her body, a wish will be granted. Desperate for salvation, and each with secret desires of their own, Ursula and Elsebeth follow a ragged map across the blighted countryside. But darkness follows them. A necromancer, drawn to the relic’s power. The saint herself, whispering at night. And as the lines between blessing and curse blur, the women must face a harrowing truth: the magic they seek comes at a cost.
At the journey’s end, they’ll face an impossible choice?one that could tear apart everything they know… or bind them to each other forever.
Sam
3.6.2026
Reposting the Netgalley review I have written for the ebook: Thank you Sourcebooks UK and Poisoned Pen Press for making this book available on Netgalley. I loved Blood On Her Tongue, so I was very excited for this book and its medieval setting. JvV, as per usual, did not disappoint. - post Medieval times (The 30 Years War). - Folk horror and witchcraft - feminism and sapphic love - strong religious themes The ending was EXCELLENT. Pre release note: I think this book is going to translate well into audio so I can’t wait for release day to have another round with the audiobook. Post Release note: the audiobook was 10/10 5 star read for me.
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