Inspired by an ominous Prague legend, What Wakes the Bells is a lavish gothic fantasy by debut author Elle Tesch that is perfect for fans of Adalyn Grace, Margaret Rogerson, and V.E. Schwab.
Built by long-gone Saints, the city of Vaiwyn lives and breathes and bleeds. As a Keeper, Mina knows better than most what her care of Vaiwyn’s bells means for the sentient city. It’s the Strauss family’s thousand-year legacy—prevent the Vespers from ringing, or they will awake a slumbering evil.
One afternoon, to Mina's horror, her bell peals thirteen times, shattering the city’s tenuous peace. With so much of the city's history and lore lost in a long-ago disaster, no one knows the danger that has been unleashed—until the city begins to fight back. As the sun sets, stone gargoyles and bronze statues tear away from their buildings and plinths to hunt people through the streets. Trapped in Mina’s bell, the soul of a twisted and power-hungry Saint festered. Now free of his prison, he hides behind the face of one of Vaiwyn’s citizens, corrupting the city and turning it on itself.
As the death toll rises, the only chance Mina has to stop the destruction and horrific killings is finding and destroying the Saint’s host. Everyone is a suspect, including Mina's closest loved ones. She will have to decide how far she’ll go to save her city�������and who she’s willing to kill to do it.
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Built by long-gone Saints, the city of Vaiwyn lives and breathes and bleeds. As a Keeper, Mina knows better than most what her care of Vaiwyn’s bells means for the sentient city. It’s the Strauss family’s thousand-year legacy—prevent the Vespers from ringing, or they will awake a slumbering evil.
One afternoon, to Mina's horror, her bell peals thirteen times, shattering the city’s tenuous peace. With so much of the city's history and lore lost in a long-ago disaster, no one knows the danger that has been unleashed—until the city begins to fight back. As the sun sets, stone gargoyles and bronze statues tear away from their buildings and plinths to hunt people through the streets. Trapped in Mina’s bell, the soul of a twisted and power-hungry Saint festered. Now free of his prison, he hides behind the face of one of Vaiwyn’s citizens, corrupting the city and turning it on itself.
As the death toll rises, the only chance Mina has to stop the destruction and horrific killings is finding and destroying the Saint’s host. Everyone is a suspect, including Mina's closest loved ones. She will have to decide how far she’ll go to save her city�������and who she’s willing to kill to do it.
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Praise for this book
"A stunningly atmospheric debut that is both wildly imaginative and wholly unique. Tesch crafts her world with utmost devotion and delivers a sweeping fantasy brimming with dark romance and infused with gothic flair." - Skyla Arndt
"A can't-miss debut! With What Wakes the Bells, Tesch has created a fantasy world that is both completely absorbing and utterly new. Your heart will race as her winning cast of characters navigate a maze of city streets shadowed by enigmatic gods, terrifying gargoyles, and intensely personal stakes." - Christine Calella
"What Wakes the Bells is stunningly atmospheric and wholly original ... a clever, intricate gothic fantasy that's as brilliantly built as the sentient city where the story takes place." - Lyndall Clipstone
"An utterly fresh tale you'll want to read over and over again, What Wakes the Bells stuns from the first page to the last, reverberating through your heart like a vesper bell--without the doom, of course. Mina is the demisexual heroine of my dreams, whose love--for her family and friends, for her duty and her heart--creates its own powerful, world-shaking magic." - Kamilah Cole
"Set in a sentient city built upon the bones of a dead god, What Wakes the Bells is a wonderful exploration of complex family dynamics, self-determination, and first love, all set against the backdrop of an ancient battle generations in the making." - Kalyn Josephson
"What Wakes the Bells is a haunting, page-turning mystery set in an exquisitely wrought gothic city, where ancient beauty and eldritch horrors walk side by side. The lush prose, immersive world building, and ominous atmosphere make for a thrilling and unique YA fantasy debut." - Nicki Pau Preto
"An action-packed debut about duty and divinity, with layered family dynamics, a lovers-to-enemies romance to sink your teeth into, and a setting so vivid, you can feel the cold--and the toll of the Vesper Bells--in your bones. Moody, fun, and wholly original." - Allison Saft
"Gripping and atmospheric, What Wakes the Bells resounds with action and angst and echoes with the complexities of grief, family, connection, and belonging. Tesch's epic storytelling of a living city seized by fear of murderous statues, ticking clocks, and waking saints delivers the demisexual love story we've been waiting for." - Leanne Schwartz
"A can't-miss debut! With What Wakes the Bells, Tesch has created a fantasy world that is both completely absorbing and utterly new. Your heart will race as her winning cast of characters navigate a maze of city streets shadowed by enigmatic gods, terrifying gargoyles, and intensely personal stakes." - Christine Calella
"What Wakes the Bells is stunningly atmospheric and wholly original ... a clever, intricate gothic fantasy that's as brilliantly built as the sentient city where the story takes place." - Lyndall Clipstone
"An utterly fresh tale you'll want to read over and over again, What Wakes the Bells stuns from the first page to the last, reverberating through your heart like a vesper bell--without the doom, of course. Mina is the demisexual heroine of my dreams, whose love--for her family and friends, for her duty and her heart--creates its own powerful, world-shaking magic." - Kamilah Cole
"Set in a sentient city built upon the bones of a dead god, What Wakes the Bells is a wonderful exploration of complex family dynamics, self-determination, and first love, all set against the backdrop of an ancient battle generations in the making." - Kalyn Josephson
"What Wakes the Bells is a haunting, page-turning mystery set in an exquisitely wrought gothic city, where ancient beauty and eldritch horrors walk side by side. The lush prose, immersive world building, and ominous atmosphere make for a thrilling and unique YA fantasy debut." - Nicki Pau Preto
"An action-packed debut about duty and divinity, with layered family dynamics, a lovers-to-enemies romance to sink your teeth into, and a setting so vivid, you can feel the cold--and the toll of the Vesper Bells--in your bones. Moody, fun, and wholly original." - Allison Saft
"Gripping and atmospheric, What Wakes the Bells resounds with action and angst and echoes with the complexities of grief, family, connection, and belonging. Tesch's epic storytelling of a living city seized by fear of murderous statues, ticking clocks, and waking saints delivers the demisexual love story we've been waiting for." - Leanne Schwartz
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