It seems like just yesterday when Stacey opened up to us on Tik Tok, asking if we would be interested in reading a story about a village of humans, trapped on a frigid mountain ledge, who are subjected to the terror of huge beasts…and we were all like, say no more, bestie. GIVE IT ALL TO US. So here it is. I’m going to try my best to avoid spoilers.

Ledge by Stacey McEwan is the first in an unfinished, fantasy trilogy, The Glacian Trilogy, that is everything I wanted it to be. Dawsyn, the main character, is alone, the remaining member of her family, in a survival of the fittest kind of world. Life or death depends on one’s ability to hunt, fight, and lower one’s morals. Food and supplies are air dropped into the village and the community is forced to literally fist fight for them. Often, people go without.

A few years ago, I visited the Grand Canyon; an incredible, once in a lifetime experience. However, it was there that I unlocked a new fear, not of heights, but, more specifically, deep in my soul, I knew with absolute certainty that I and everyone else in attendance would be somehow enticed off the edge by some mysterious force. To make matters worse, my travel partner simultaneously discovered their inner danger mouse that day, so you can imagine how comfy it was for me. I’m here to tell you that reading about people, who live close to the edge of mountain that drops into an endless chasm was…for lack of a better word…triggering. Of course, that’s a me problem. Not a reflection on the quality of the book.

Once of the devices that I love in books is when authors use a phase that is repeated throughout to represent enhance emotion. Stacey has implemented this beautifully to help the reader understand the visceral harshness of this climate and environment, “the cold is not alive. Stay the frost. Watch the Chasm.” The way this is worded gives you the sense that both the cold and the chasm are like characters themselves. They are such imposing elements to the story that we sit up and pay attention to them as we move throughout the plot.

If the cold, limited resources, and violence doesn’t get you, once per year they are subjected to the “culling” when large, winged creatures invade the village, stealing sacrificial humans into the sky and over the chasm. The chasm separates the humans on the ledge from the kingdom of Glacians. Humans are brought to the glacian kingdom for reasons unknown, until one day Dawsyn is chosen. We follow her on her harrowing journey out of her snowy hellscape, right into an even more violent and terrible hellscape, as she has to face the horrid creatures on the other side.

In an effort to keep some of the story behind a veil, let’s just say that she escapes the castle and is hunted all the way down the mountain by the winged beasts. One of those beasts, Ryon, ends up proving to be on her side for reasons that we learn over time. As all of us romance readers can already guess, yes, Ryon is the love interest. It is a delicious slow burn that feeds your heart with all the tension that you crave. You’re welcome.

Somehow Stacey packs a cornucopia of plot into only 288 pages, but all the while, you’re so invested that you don’t realize how much story is in this story. From the jump, you’re hooked, so make sure you clear your calendar before you tuck in. I think I consumed this one in less than 24 hours. Secrets are revealed with masterful pacing, so that you’re satisfied and always wanting to know more. It’s twisty, it’s turny, and, by the end, you trust no one, not even Dawsyn. Gotta love an unreliable narrator.

I absolutely loved this book and can’t wait until the next one, Chasm, comes out in September. If you’re interested in learning more about Stacey, feel free to check out her website here. She also makes hilarious Tik Tok videos @stacebookspace. My favorites are the ones where she stomps into the room and tries to turn her unsuspecting husband into a fictional man. They are both on the same dry, sarcastic humor level. Truly a perfect pairing.

Have you read this book? Have you seen Stacey’s Tik Toks? Let me know!