The Dark Lord Clementine Review

Hey guys! Hopefully you’re getting this on Monday. I have sadly neglected all of you, and I am so sorry. I’ll hopefully have another Story Dig post next week, but today is a book review for The Dark Lord Clementine by Sarah Jean Horwitz.

For this book review, I’m not doing spoilers, so those of you who want to know what you’re getting into can read it all!

I heard about this book when The Everhart Author reviewed it here. It seemed to be a goofy, cute read designed for a younger audience. Right up my alley! Plus she mentioned that Clementine lives on a farm where she tends to nightmares and fire-breathing chickens and that sounds so comfortable! So I decided to give it a spin.

I loved this book! I usually read a lot of YA, but after reading Brandon Mull’s work (reviews to come) I have a new appreciation for mature middle-grade fiction. I love the cuteness, originality and simplicity in middle grade. There’s a new game coming out called DokeV that is just so cute and sweet!

The Dark Lord Clementine fits the bill perfectly. The world and characters were was so charming and whimsical. Clementine Morcerous is a Dark Lord in Training, and lives with her father Elithor in their mountain castle, terrorizing the local village. Clementine takes care of the chores and studies to become the best Dark Lord she can be. One day she notices her father is getting weaker and smaller, and everything on the farm begins to go awry as well. The Whittle Witch is slowly chipping away at the Dark Lord Morcerous and his estate, and Clementine has to stop her.

Clementine is easily my favorite character. She is ready to carry on the Morcerous legacy, but likes her secret garden and gazing at the Lady in White a little more than a proper Dark Lord should. And at some point in the story, she realizes she has an aptitude for light magic. She changes from a timid, shy girl to a confident one in a wholly satisfying character arc.

The side characters in this book are GOLDEN! Sebastien Frawley is a wannabe knight boy from the village who aids Clementine. Darka Wesk-Starzec is a huntress with an intriguing backstory and ANGST who also comes to Clementine’s aid and becomes sort of a mother figure. There is Dave, who is a boy-turned-sheep who is so cute and fluffy! And there is the Lady of the Lake, who is hilarious and yeets swords at people in the hopes they will catch them and become heroes. The character dynamics are so interesting.

The tidbits of lore that we get are intriguing. The hedgewitches, the Lady of the Lake, the Gricken (read and find out ;p), and just the general sense of wonder and curiosity you get from this world is so fun to read! All in all, I give this book a ten out of ten.

There is some violence in this book. Someone is shot twice, there’s mentions of blood, two people are stabbed [REDACTED FOR SPOILERS], stuff like that. I know this can make some people a little uncomfortable, but I didn’t find it bad at all.

There is also a lot of magic in this book, both dark and light, but the book does not go deep into it, so just keep that in mind if that’s a concern for you.

This was a great book, and I am so proud of actually having a blog post on time! Have you read this book? Will you read this book? Would you like more book reviews? Let me know! Have a blessed day!

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