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To a Darker Shore
Leanne Schwartz
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When her best friend is sacrificed to the devil, she’ll go to hell and back for him.
Plain, poor, plus-size, and autistic, Alesta grew up trying to convince her beauty-obsessed kingdom that she’s too useful to be sacrificed. Their god blessed their island Soladisa as a haven for his followers, but to keep the devil at bay, the church sends a child sacrifice to hell’s entrance every season—often poor or plain girls just like Alesta.
With a head full of ideas for inventions, Alesta knows her best shot at making it to adulthood is to design something impressive for the festival exhibition so she might win a spot in the university—acceptance could guarantee her safety. But Alesta’s flying machine demonstration goes awry, a failure that will surely mean death. What happens is worse: Her best friend and heir to the throne, Kyrian, takes the blame expecting leniency but ends up sacrificed in her place.
To stop the sacrifices forever, Alesta plans to kill the monster that killed her friend. Prepared to save her kingdom or die trying, she travels to the depths of hell only to find Kyrian—alive, but monstrously transformed.
There is no escaping hell or their growing feelings for one another, and the deeper they descend into hell, the closer they come to uncovering a truth about the sacrifices that threatens to invoke the wrath of not only monsters but the gods as well.
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Posts about this title from chronicallybookish
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jul 16
\ \ We are officially half way through Disability Pride Month, and to celebrate I’m giving away one of my FAVORITE YA fantasies with own voices disability representation! When I saw my local indie had a copy of To a Darker Shore on display, I knew I had to snag it to for a giveaway for yall—and Leanne is the sweetest person ever and was kind enough to send me a signed bookplate, art print, and bookmark for you guys!\ \ About the Book \ \ To a Darker Shore is a Dantean-inspired journey through hell starring not one but TWO autistic main characters. It’s an interrogation of monstrosity, religion, and belonging.\ \ When her best friend is sacrificed to the devil, she'll go to hell and back for him. Plain, poor, plus-size, and autistic, Alesta grew up trying to convince her beauty-obsessed kingdom that she's too useful to be sacrificed. Their god blessed their island Soladisa as a haven for his followers, but to keep the devil at bay, the church sends a child sacrifice to hell's entrance every season—often poor or plain girls just like Alesta. With a head full of ideas for inventions, Alesta knows her best shot at making it to adulthood is to design something impressive for the festival exhibition so she might win a spot in the university—acceptance could guarantee her safety.\ \ But Alesta's flying machine demonstration goes awry, a failure that will surely mean death. What happens is worse: Her best friend and heir to the throne, Kyrian, takes the blame expecting leniency but ends up sacrificed in her place. To stop the sacrifices forever, Alesta plans to kill the monster that killed her friend. Prepared to save her kingdom or die trying, she travels to the depths of hell only to find Kyrian—alive, but monstrously transformed.\ \ There is no escaping hell or their growing feelings for one another, and the deeper they descend into hell, the closer they come to uncovering a truth about the sacrifices that threatens to invoke the wrath of not only monsters but the gods as well.\ \ The Giveaway \ \ This giveaway is open to all members of my Bindery community, and it will run from July 16th through 11:59pm pacific on Sunday, July 19th.\ \ To enter:\ \
- Leave a comment on this post!\ \
- Must have a US shipping address\ \
- As always, Follower tier members get 1 entry, Inner Circle members get 5\ \ \ I will announce the winner on Monday here on Bindery, so keep your eyes peeled for that!\ \ I've got giveaways planned for the next couple of months--mostly contemporary romance, but I'm hoping to pick up some fantasy and books with disability rep for future giveaways as well! Best of luck to all who enter, and even if you don't win, I highly recommend picking up TADS!](https://chronicallybookish.binderybooks.com/item/SQqho5nAecOAM2Mq3NSV/)
GIVEAWAY!! To a Darker Shore by Leanne Schwartz + swag!!
1 book
8
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Sep 1 2025
10/10 experience every time @The Book Rack #booktok #bookstore #indiebookstore #bookshopping #bookhaul
14 books
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jul 30 2025
Inner Circle Exclusive: Every Book I've Read With Disability Rep in 2025 So Far
Link to Q&A with Leanne: https://youtu.be/cRlU0Jh38FA
I actually have a lot less reviews than I thought I did... I need to write reviews more often I guess.
Fable for the End of the World Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7309161033
Unloved Review: https://www.tiktok.com/@chronicallybookish/video/7472960553997192491?is\_from\_webapp=1&sender\_device=pc&web\_id=7482910883225191966
23 books
1
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jul 27 2025
Author Q&A Recording- To a Darker Shore with Leanne Schwartz
Recording of the Chronically Bookish Book Club livestream for their April pick To a Darker Shore with author Leanne Schwartz
15 books
1
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Apr 1 2025
April Book Club Pick + Q&A Announcement!!
1 book
1
Posts about this book from across Bindery
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jul 16
GIVEAWAY!! To a Darker Shore by Leanne Schwartz + swag!!
1 book
8
ofpagesandprint\ \ Dahlia\ \ • Jul 15
Join for free
[Happy Disability Pride Month! To celebrate, I've gathered some stories I adore written by and/or featuring disabled authors and characters:\ \
- Inheritance of Scars by Crystal Seitz - A twisty, atmospheric YA contemporary fantasy brimming with Norse mythology and enemies-to-lovers romance.\ \
- One for All by Lillie Lainoff - An empowering, sweeping YA retelling of The Three Musketeers with sisterhood and swordfights. \ \
- The Maid and the Crocodile by Jordan Ifueko - A spellbinding, tender YA cozy fantasy perfect for fans of Howl's Moving Castle. \ \
- The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrew - A haunting, gripping YA dark academia novel with mystery, horror, and romance.\ \
- This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede - A charming, laugh-out-loud funny YA fantasy with a bodyguard romance, found family, and magic. \ \
- Behooved by M. Stevenson - An adventurous, enchanting cozy fantasy perfect for fans of My Lady Jane.\ \
- Tarnished by Erica Rose Eberhart - A lush, cinematic fantasy with magic, sapphic romance, and an action-packed plot.\ \
- Unseelie by Ivelisse Housman - An immersive, twisty YA fantasy with found family, faerie lore, and twin bonds.\ \
- To a Darker Shore by Leanne Schwartz - A captivating, beautifully monstrous YA fantasy with a friends-to-lovers romance, perfect for fans of Hadestown.\ \
- The Princess Knight by Cait Jacobs - A heartfelt, addictive medieval cozy fantasy brimming with adventure, romance, mythical beasts, and magic. \ \ \ What are you reading this Disability Pride Month? 🫶\ \ Join for free or login](https://ofpagesandprint.binderybooks.com/item/XU59rbdjMcI0yzfSsUSL/)
Disability Pride Month Book Recs!
10 books
2
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Sep 1 2025
10/10 experience every time @The Book Rack #booktok #bookstore #indiebookstore #bookshopping #bookhaul
14 books
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jul 30 2025
\ \ Upgrade for $5 or login](https://chronicallybookish.binderybooks.com/item/wXAxzmCmVZJmGMyiPSb5/)
Inner Circle Exclusive: Every Book I've Read With Disability Rep in 2025 So Far
Link to Q&A with Leanne: https://youtu.be/cRlU0Jh38FA
I actually have a lot less reviews than I thought I did... I need to write reviews more often I guess.
Fable for the End of the World Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7309161033
Unloved Review: https://www.tiktok.com/@chronicallybookish/video/7472960553997192491?is\_from\_webapp=1&sender\_device=pc&web\_id=7482910883225191966
23 books
1
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jul 27 2025
\ \ Join for free or login](https://chronicallybookish.binderybooks.com/item/oBU6nPET8D2zy9QDGnaw/)
Author Q&A Recording- To a Darker Shore with Leanne Schwartz
Recording of the Chronically Bookish Book Club livestream for their April pick To a Darker Shore with author Leanne Schwartz
15 books
1
Fat Forward Books\ \ Samantha Puc\ \ • Jul 26 2025
Join for free
Fat Forward Books: Disability Pride Recommendations
Happy Disability Pride Month! 🙌 Today marks 35 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law. This year especially, disabled people and our allies are fighting for our rights with everything we have—and as fervid readers and advocates for more and better intersectional disabled representation in media, we know how much of an impact reading disabled stories can make. 📖
In collaboration with author and fellow fat, disabled babe @laurelhollbooks, #FatForwardBooks presents 36 books with intersectional fat and disabled representation! 📚✨
How many of these titles have you read? How many are new to you? Let us know in the comments! For more, tap the 🔗 in the usual place and join FFB on @bindery_books for fat+ refs all year long.
#DisabilityPrideMonth #ADA35 #DisabledAndCute #ReadFatBooks
[Image ID: Carousel consists of four images. The first three are 4x3 book grids featuring fat & disabled book recommendations for Disability Pride Month. The last page explains how to follow Fat Forward Books on Bindery, which is also reflected in the caption above.]
36 books
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Apr 1 2025
April Book Club Pick + Q&A Announcement!!
1 book
1