by Ivy Asher
First published 2020
For her entire life, the protagonist of Grave Signs has seen monsters. They never noticed her back. Now they do, and she is locked in a cage, being tortured past the edge of sanity. Her name is never far from the bars that hold her. To her left sits a creature wrapped in chains, golden eyes watching from the shadows, a monster who has stopped expecting rescue. To her right is a girl with purple wings and gray eyes that look familiar. The girl says they are sisters. She also says the protagonist is half demon, half angel. The wings growing from the protagonist's back confirm it. So does the scythe in her hand. She spent years convinced she was losing her mind. Turns out she was just waiting for the truth to catch up with her. Now the truth has arrived, and it came with a choice: submit to the captor who put her here, or fight. Ivy Asher builds the tension around that single question. To survive, the protagonist may have to stop running from the monster she is becoming and start using it.
Genres: fantasy, supernatural, young-adult, psychological-thriller, dark-fantasy, paranormal-romance
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotionally-harrowing, gritty, intense, suspenseful
Tropes: chosen-one, enemies-to-lovers, found-family, self-acceptance
482 pages · Paperback · Independently published
Content warnings: abuse, torture