The Inkborne Society | To Clutch a Razor (Curse Bearer,...

To Clutch a Razor (Curse Bearer, 2)
Veronica Roth

#1 New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth pulls from Slavic folklore to explore family, duty, and what it means to be a monster in this sequel to the USA Today bestselling novella When Among Crows.

A funeral. A heist. A desperate mission.

When Dymitr is called back to the old country for the Empty Night, a funeral rite intended to keep evil at bay, it's the perfect opportunity for him to get his hands on his family's most guarded relic—a book of curses that could satisfy the debt he owes legendary witch Baba Jaga.

But first he'll have to survive a night with his dangerous, monster-hunting kin.

As the sun sets, the line between enemies and allies becomes razor-thin, and Dymitr’s new loyalties are pushed to their breaking point.

Family gatherings can be brutal. Dymitr’s might just be fatal.

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September 2025 New SFF Book Releases (+ My Thoughts & Ratings)

Wild Reverence (Rebecca Ross)
A young goddess who serves as the herald of the gods must forge a path for herself - and her heart - in this enchanting romantasy from the author of Divine Rivals.

My Rating & Review: ⭐ 4.75 - Wild Reverence is Rebecca Ross’ best work so far, and this story of love, sacrifice, and the power of words was absolutely exquisite. Ross’ prose is so lyrical and evocative, and this book had me crying and smiling within the same page (I was rooting for Matilda and Vincent’s relationship SO HARD).

Thorn Season (Kiera Azar)
Shadow and Bone meets The Selection in this first book of a debut YA romantasy trilogy. In a world of Hunters and Wielders, Alissa Paine knows how to keep out of trouble. But when debutante season begins, Alissa doesn't know which mysterious suitor she can trust with her dangerous secret in this gripping romance filled with twists and tension.

Boudicca's Daughter (Elodie Harper)
The story of Boudicca, the notorious warrior queen who led a legendary rebellion in 60 CE against the Roman Empire in Britain, following Boudicca's meteoric rise and devastating fall through the eyes of her youngest daughter, Solina, who seeks revenge against Rome.

Honeyeater (Kathleen Jennings)
A richly imagined dark fantasy that pulses with the beautiful destruction of a town reclaimed by the natural world.

A Land So Wide (Erin Craig)
Drawing from Scottish folklore, a deeply atmospheric and profoundly romantic exploration of freedom versus security in a stunning celebration of one woman's relentless bravery on a quest to reclaim her lost love - and seize her own future.

The Maiden and Her Monster (Maddie Martinez)
An atmospheric debut fantasy rooted in history, folklore, and sapphic romance about a forest that eats the girls who wander out after dark and a dangerous bargain.

The Macabre (Kosoko Jackson)
A stand-alone novel blending time travel and globe-hopping adventure, art history, and dark fantasy about magical paintings and the lengths people will go to collect them, destroy them…or be destroyed.

You Weren’t Meant to Be Human (Andrew Joseph White)
Alien meets Midsommar in this chilling debut adult novel about identity, survival, and transformation amidst an alien invasion in rural West Virginia.

Play Nice (Rachel Harrison)
A woman must confront the demons of her past when she attempts to fix up her childhood home in this devilishly clever take on the haunted house novel.

To Clutch A Razor (Veronica Roth)
Drawing from Slavic folklore, a fantasy novella that explores family, duty, and what it means to be a monster in this sequel to When Among Crows.

My Rating & Review: ⭐ 4.00 - When Among Crows was one of my surprise hits of last year, and I was so excited when I heard that Veronica Roth had written a sequel. I’ve always been drawn to stories about redemption, and Roth’s ability to explore that theme while blending rich Slavic folklore with modern urban fantasy in both When Among Crows and To Clutch A Razor was so fascinating to me. I didn’t love this sequel quite as much as the first book, but I thought it was a well-paced and immersive novella overall!

The Summer War (Naomi Novik)
In this poignant, heartfelt novella, a young witch who has inadvertently cursed her brother to live a life without love must find a way to undo her spell.

Among the Burning Flowers (Samantha Shannon)
With the awakening of fire-breathing dragons, Among the Burning Flowers sees the first sparks of danger that threaten to consume the world in The Priory of the Orange Tree. Take your first steps into the epic. Yscalin, land of sunshine and lavender, will soon be ablaze.

The Faerie Morgana (Louisa Morgan)
A reimagining of the story of Morgan Le Fay, one of the most enigmatic and powerful women in Arthurian legend.

The Book of Guilt (Catherine Chidgey)
In an alternate world where nobody won WWII, three brothers are the only boys left in an orphanage whose dark secret is the reason for their existence - and the key to their survival.

The Second Death of Locke (V. L. Bovalino)
A devastatingly romantic epic fantasy about the undying bond between a knight and their mage.

Alchemised (SenLinYu)
In a riveting dark fantasy debut, a woman with missing memories fights to survive a war-torn world of necromancy and alchemy - and the man tasked with unearthing the deepest secrets of her past.

The Court of the Dead: A Nico di Angelo Adventure (Rick Riordan, Mark Oshiro)
A new adventure in which Nico di Angelo teams up with his half-sister Hazel Levesque to protect... monsters?

One of Us (Dan Chaon)
A playfully macabre and utterly thrilling tale about orphaned twins on the run from their murderous uncle who find refuge in a bizarre traveling carnival.

Daedelus is Dead (Seamus Sullivan)
Reimagining the Greek myth of Daedelus, a meditation on fatherhood, grief, and the monstrous truths we build around ourselves.

My Rating & Review: ⭐ 4.50 - Daedalus is Dead had a depth and complexity I was not at all expecting going into the novella, and I think lovers of Greek Mythology will find this to be a really thought provoking read about fatherhood, grief, and the monstrous truths we build around ourselves to become the heroes of our stories. That said, I probably wouldn’t recommend it to readers unfamiliar with Greek myths, as it leans somewhat heavily on references that aren’t always explained. Overall, I was really impressed by this - I’ve always wanted a mythology retelling of Icarus, but a retelling of the myth from his father Daedalus’ perspective proved far more interesting than I could have imagined.

Fate’s Bane (C.L. Clarke)
A sapphic tragedy novella of warring clans, burning desires, and inescapable fate.

My Rating & Review: ⭐ 4.25 - A sapphic tragedy that felt like a story being told by ancestors around a fire, Fate’s Bane delivered all the yearning I could ever want. Set in a Celtic inspired swampy world filled with warring clans and inescapable fate, this novella offered a take on Romeo and Juliet that felt both familiar and fresh. It’s beautifully written and well-paced, and I had a hard time putting it down!

Saltcrop (Yumei Kitasei)
An epic tale of two sisters who sail across oceans to find their missing third sister - and Earth’s environmental salvation.

Midnight Timetable (Bora Chung)
A novel-in-ghost-stories, set in a mysterious research center that houses cursed objects, where those who open the wrong door might find it’s disappeared behind them, or that the echoing footsteps they’re running from are their own…