Rooting Out Evil: A Review of Secrets of the Under Market

Title: Secrets of the Under Market

Author: Krysten Harlow

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: May 4, 2021

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: 73 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Review:

Content Warning: spiders, the kidnapping of human children, and the killing and dismemberment of demons. I will not mention these topics in my review.

Never underestimate a demon.

Character development is one of those writing things that can be trickier to display in a relatively short work like this one than it would be in a full-length novel. I mentioned this first so that my next sentence would have some context to it. Seeing how Max changed as a result of his adventures was delightful. He behaved just like any fourteen-year-old should as far as his emotional and cognitive development went, but I also saw exciting glimpses of the adult he would soon become. Honestly, that’s all that’s needed in the beginning of a series. I’m glad the author included them while still leaving plenty of room for further development in future instalments.

I would have preferred to see a faster pacing in this novella. There were times when my interest in it wavered because of how long it took for the next action-heavy scene to appear. Introducing the characters and setting was obviously important, but I did find myself wishing that those descpritons and conversations had been broken up more often by conflicts with demons or similar events. The author had plenty of material to work with, and I would have happily gone with a much higher rating if the pacing had been sped up.

The world building in this novella was extensive and impressive. I actually stopped reading a few chapters in to confirm that I hadn’t accidentally started halfway through the series. There was so much attention paid to the countless little details that make a fictional world come to life in my imagination that it was hard to believe this was the introduction, and I mean that in the best possible way. This isn’t an easy thing to accomplish in a prequel by any means. Ms. Harlow should be proud of how seamlessly she wove everything together.

Secrets of the Under Market made me smile.