The Red Winter

Bonnie

A dang good debut!

"In 1780s Gévaudan, France, a mysterious Beast is running around, killing and terrorizing indiscriminately. Sebastian Grave, a centuries-old practitioner of arcane arts, has a long and colorful history with the Beast—you might even say a “red” one… 6 Reasons to Read: 🐺 Frame narrative told via Sebastian recording his tale across three timelines: His journey with Jacques in 1785; his history with Jacques’s dad, Antoine, in 1766; and Livia’s reports detailing an important search for a bone relic belonging to Joan of Arc in the 1430s. 🐺 Humorous footnotes that enhance the narrative, characterization, magic elements, and worldbuilding rather than distract from it. 🐺 A smooth blend of history, magic, fantasy, warring ancient deities, monsters, horror, mystery, romance! (What isn't in this?!) 🐺 A werewolf-y retelling based on the real-life French historical mystery of the Beast of Gévaudan. 🐺 Sarmodel, the fussiest, snarkiest demon who is possibly older than dirt. 🐺 Excellent character and plot work. If you've been searching for something to soothe the itch that Empire of the Vampire left behind, look no further! The Red Winter is kind of like EotV’s little werewolf bro but with a slightly less profane mouth. It's still plenty violent, horrifying, and sexy though. Livia’s addendums could sometimes feel a little confusing, but they culminate in an interesting payoff and tie in with the other storylines. The Red Winter isn't perfect, but it's pretty dang close for a debut! It appears to be a standalone for now, but there's definitely more story that can be told. ["

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February 28, 2026 Verified Purchase

Anthony E. Thomas

Fantastic Read

"Highly Recommended! A Perfect Blend of History, Myth, and Dark Fantasy I loved Red Winter! It takes historical events, twists them into a dark fantasy, and flawlessly blends mythology into theology. Beyond the amazing world-building, it is just so well-written—witty, comical, and difficult to put down. Every single character feels deep and engaging. Sebastian is a fantastic lead, and the dynamic he has with his "guest" is brilliant. I highly recommend this book to everyone, and I am sincerely hoping for another installment so I can see where these characters go next! ["

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May 16, 2026 Verified Purchase

Lindsey Wolgast

A Magical, Witty, and Unforgettable Read

"I absolutely could not put The Red Winter down, it completely pulled me in from the very first page. The writing is sharp, funny, and wonderfully witty, but it also carries real emotional weight. The story weaves together magic, love, heartbreak, monsters, and even elements of religion in a way that feels rich and immersive without ever being overwhelming. It truly delivered everything I could have hoped for and more. The characters and world stayed with me long after I finished, and I’m already eager to dive into more from this author. If you enjoy historical fiction or stories with a supernatural edge, I highly recommend giving this book a try you won’t be disappointed. One small note: there are a few scenes involving a relationship between two men, but they are meaningful to the story and handled in a way that fits naturally within the narrative. ["

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April 9, 2026 Verified Purchase

caitlinelizabeth1018

Immortal, magician, professor, monster hunter...oh my

"Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group for allowing me access to an ARC of The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan. I am solidly stuck in the middle on this one. There were certainly things I liked about this book, but there were also things I really struggled with. I am not sure that either tips the scale one way of the other, hence my 3 star rating. I did have a very rudimentary knowledge of The Beast of Gévaudan attacks in south-central France between 1764 and 1767. While a beast, a wolf, was killed at the end of its murderous spree, there have always remained stories and legends that the beast was something far more sinister. Sullivan takes this tale and creates an ambitious historical fantasy with many layers to uncover. Sullivan creates a very gritty atmosphere that I enjoyed and I thought a lot of the dialogue was very deftly written. I am not squeamish by any means, but I do think that excessive gore was used to make it seem scarier. It just felt unnecessary to me. There are several main characters and the book is told through multiple POV’s and timelines spanning hundreds of years…if not far longer for some. This combination got a bit chaotic at times, feeling like it was bouncing all over the place, some feeling more relevant than others. First we are introduced to Sebastian, an immortal magician/professor/monster hunter who is called upon the help vanquish the Beast terrorizing Gévaudan. He is quite literally joined by his Guest, Sarmodel, a type of old god or demon that lives in Sebastian’s mind. We discover that the man imploring Sebastian for his help, Jacques, is none other than the son of Antoine, the man that Sebastian fell in love with 20 years prior. The plot thickens further when we get a big reveal about Antoine’s son pretty much right off the bat. I found it frustrating that Sebastian’s magic and abilities are never really explained, the building of the magic system just kind of fell by the wayside. Some of this revolves around the many religious aspects Sullivan incorporates. However, I found the smaller scale interpersonal relationships between the characters to be far more satisfying. As a side note, I found it difficult to maintain suspense in terms of caring about Sebastian’s well-being when not only do we know he’s still alive…but he’s also immortal. Seems to me Sebastian’s peril is something we really don’t need to worry about. I do enjoy Sullivan’s writing style, I think his prose is expressive and creates a great atmosphere. I must say that the footnotes drove me crazy. I know some people liked them and they provided some more modernized levity, but I found them super distracting. Honestly, I stopped reading them altogether very early on. Lastly, to touch on that big reveal we receive at the beginning. After hundreds of pages we don’t get any conclusion! This would be reasonable and a great cliff-hanger if this was the first in a duology or trilogy, but it’s a standalone novel as far as we know. If you’re looking for an outcome, you will be left wanting. I know that this was a debut novel for Sullivan and I truly think The Red Winter shows great promise. The concept and many aspects of the book are interesting and well done, I just don’t feel like it was as polished as it could have been. I will keep an eye out for what Sullivan tackles next. ["

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March 23, 2026

Brooklyn Bookish

Fantastic, dark and funny

"Really loved the layers of humor and perspective woven through the bloody parts, and through the yearning and romantic parts. The audiobook is brilliantly narrated and handles the hilarious and informative footnotes seamlessly. The overall structure and tone of the story with shifting timelines really differentiate this debut. I love this genre, so I don’t know if it’s “genre defying” but this book is truly special. I always hope to read something as good as this every time I try a new book. Very much looking forward to more from Cameron Sullivan! ["

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March 12, 2026 Verified Purchase