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The Revenant Records #2
Feral Night
Return to Kell Shaw's Vestiges of Magic world in a knife-edge sequel.
Lukie's father is trapped in the Underworld and it's all her fault.
Twenty years after her murder, Lukie has returned to life and is ready to go home, but her father isn't willing to believe his beloved daughter is back from the dead. Before she can reconcile with him, a supernatural predator steals her father's soul. One that she's led straight to his door, after foolishly ignoring the signs that something was amiss.
To get her father back, Lukie must uncover the true nature of the ancient horror haunting Thunderhead Ward before a spectral hunt of bestial ghosts is unleashed upon the world.
And she only has until midnight on New Year's Eve, when the borders between the dead and living lands seal, or her father will be lost forever…
Lukie's father is trapped in the Underworld and it's all her fault.
Twenty years after her murder, Lukie has returned to life and is ready to go home, but her father isn't willing to believe his beloved daughter is back from the dead. Before she can reconcile with him, a supernatural predator steals her father's soul. One that she's led straight to his door, after foolishly ignoring the signs that something was amiss.
To get her father back, Lukie must uncover the true nature of the ancient horror haunting Thunderhead Ward before a spectral hunt of bestial ghosts is unleashed upon the world.
And she only has until midnight on New Year's Eve, when the borders between the dead and living lands seal, or her father will be lost forever…
- GenresFantasy
288 pages, Paperback
Published November 28, 28
About the author
Kell Shaw
6 books25 followersKell Shaw is an author and avid tabletop roleplaying gamer, whose lifelong passion for fantasy—especially Shadowrun, the Lord of the Rings, and the World of Darkness—inspired him to create the Vestiges of Magic urban fantasy universe. Kell’s fascination lies with the modern world colliding with magic, and his stories explore the lives of individuals caught between these realms.
Identifying as queer, Kell is committed to writing diverse characters who embark on thrilling adventures, and who aren’t defined by their love lives. He released the first book of the Revenant Records saga in 2022, following an undead teenage detective who wants to grow up despite being forever seventeen.
Based in Sydney, Australia with his partner and beloved feline companion, Kell’s diverse career has included roles as a technical writer, risk analyst, and project manager.
Sign up for Kell’s newsletter at https://kellshaw.com/newsletter to receive free short stories and stay up-to-date with his latest projects.
Identifying as queer, Kell is committed to writing diverse characters who embark on thrilling adventures, and who aren’t defined by their love lives. He released the first book of the Revenant Records saga in 2022, following an undead teenage detective who wants to grow up despite being forever seventeen.
Based in Sydney, Australia with his partner and beloved feline companion, Kell’s diverse career has included roles as a technical writer, risk analyst, and project manager.
Sign up for Kell’s newsletter at https://kellshaw.com/newsletter to receive free short stories and stay up-to-date with his latest projects.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 2, 2026
Feral Night is the second book in the Revenant Records series by Kell Shaw. It follows shortly after the first book and sees Lukie return home for the first time since coming back from the dead. Unfortunately—but unsurprisingly—her dad doesn’t welcome her with open arms after 20 years of being dead, and things go from bad to worse from there.
Fans of the first book will welcome the return of Lukie, everyone’s favorite undead mystery solver, and her erstwhile partner Tam. They continue to work really well together: Lukie as the impulsive teenager struggling to understand her place in the world, and Tam the world‑weary detective.
Again, for me the world is the highlight here, and in this book we get a deeper dive into the Indigo world as she ventures into the Hells to free a bunch of trapped souls. There is genuine magic in these scenes (no pun intended), and I can’t wait to see more of the underworld—there are so many unanswered questions.
I’m a big fan of Shaw’s Vestiges of Magic series, and this is another really solid entry.
Fans of the first book will welcome the return of Lukie, everyone’s favorite undead mystery solver, and her erstwhile partner Tam. They continue to work really well together: Lukie as the impulsive teenager struggling to understand her place in the world, and Tam the world‑weary detective.
Again, for me the world is the highlight here, and in this book we get a deeper dive into the Indigo world as she ventures into the Hells to free a bunch of trapped souls. There is genuine magic in these scenes (no pun intended), and I can’t wait to see more of the underworld—there are so many unanswered questions.
I’m a big fan of Shaw’s Vestiges of Magic series, and this is another really solid entry.
November 13, 2024
Feral Night: The Revenant Records: Book 2, my second read from author Kell Shaw. A 290-page Contemporary Fantasy read. Well-written and enjoyable, fantasy read, almost double the length of Final Night, the introductort book in the series. If LGBTQ themes offend you this book may not be for you althogh the LGBTQ theme is tastefully and quietly done. “I received a Kindle copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review." The gifting of this book did not affect my opinion of it. I look forward to reading more from this author with Fractured Night: The Revenant Records: Book 3 due out in March of 2025. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).
January 15, 2024
What a world Kell Shaw has created here. This second in the series takes us to the underworld where a hideous mass murder takes place yearly. Luckie enters this realm voluntarily for personal reasons, she must rescue her father's soul before his physical body expires in the here and now. This was quite an exciting read. A diversity of characters brought to life by a deft hand. I very much enjoyed the book and am looking forward to the third.
I received a free advance reader's copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free advance reader's copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
November 22, 2023
This was a little different for me. I don't like giving spoilers so it is a little difficult to say how the main character returned after 20 years and is desperately trying to find out who killed her all those years ago. It was interesting to see her having to investigate her own death with clues so old but the truth will not be denied and that made this book totally enjoyable for me. I can't wait to read what's next!
April 11, 2024
I was provided with a copy of this book by the author, who is personally known to me, in exchange for an unbiased review.
Sixteen year-old Lukie Carpenter was questioning her identity even before she was murdered. Now she's a revenant, a life-draining monster who walks the earth in service to one of the Lords of the Underworld. In Final Night, the opening novella of this series, she succeeded in avenging her own death. But by the terms of her deal with the Murder God, she remains, still sixteen, in a world that has very much moved on. Chaperoned by one of her schoolfriends, now a forty-something police detective, she is charged with preventing another Lord from taking souls while the victims are still alive. But Lukie has other priorities. Disobeying the advice of friend and patron both, she goes to see her father, certain that he'll understand...
Shaw's first full-length novel is a journey of self-discovery along the borders of a world not entirely our own, accompanied by grave-hounds and dark poets. A knowledge of the nastier corners of history may prove as useful as the ability to wield a sword, and righteous anger will only get you so far.
Not entirely our own, but not so different either. We too forget our history, and racism and bigotry flourish in this enlightened modern age. It's just that in the Vestige world, history features an age of magic that ended with the defeat of the Dark Lord, and the races include elves, dwarrow and ogres. No one really believes in magic, or crazy stuff like undead anymore, and the average orc citizen commuting to his office job is completely unaware of the struggle taking place in the shadows. It's a pleasing conceit that is carried well, and quickly becomes the "normal" against which Lukie's adventures play out.
Lukie boils with emotion and completely understandable angst. Wallowing in self-pity one moment, castigating herself for selfishness the next, she is a basically likeable teen caught in an impossible situation, along with her old friend Tamlyn, who she remembers as another gender. Tamlyn's maturity and experience with transformation (albeit of a different kind), provides a vital anchor for Lukie, although it doesn’t stop them bickering. As the world around them grows increasingly wide and threatening, introducing characters such as the enigmatic elvish Steward and Maven (a fellow revenant with a different patron), the relationship between these two becomes the reader's anchor, our hope that things will eventually turn out alright.
There is a fair amount of detective work (carried out more or less efficiently, depending on whether it's Tamlyn and Lukie - but she's the only one who can talk to ghosts). There is a fair amount of listening to other people's stories ("the last time this happened was a hundred year ago, and only I remember the truth…"). No answer is glib, every step is logical, every puzzle-piece earned. It makes some sections quite slow but means the climax takes place on rock solid foundations. Which given it takes place in a hell castle is only appropriate.
Trapped in an underworld realm, during a masquerade of the damned, Lukie struggles to free herself and the taken souls, aware she only has so much time before all are lost forever. Allies betray and enemies offer succour, but in the end, she has only herself. To overcome the Blood Queen, she must accept that there are two sides to every story, and that people make mistakes. Sometimes healing means a further sacrifice. In short, she must do what is for her, the hardest thing of all.
Grow up.
Sixteen year-old Lukie Carpenter was questioning her identity even before she was murdered. Now she's a revenant, a life-draining monster who walks the earth in service to one of the Lords of the Underworld. In Final Night, the opening novella of this series, she succeeded in avenging her own death. But by the terms of her deal with the Murder God, she remains, still sixteen, in a world that has very much moved on. Chaperoned by one of her schoolfriends, now a forty-something police detective, she is charged with preventing another Lord from taking souls while the victims are still alive. But Lukie has other priorities. Disobeying the advice of friend and patron both, she goes to see her father, certain that he'll understand...
Shaw's first full-length novel is a journey of self-discovery along the borders of a world not entirely our own, accompanied by grave-hounds and dark poets. A knowledge of the nastier corners of history may prove as useful as the ability to wield a sword, and righteous anger will only get you so far.
Not entirely our own, but not so different either. We too forget our history, and racism and bigotry flourish in this enlightened modern age. It's just that in the Vestige world, history features an age of magic that ended with the defeat of the Dark Lord, and the races include elves, dwarrow and ogres. No one really believes in magic, or crazy stuff like undead anymore, and the average orc citizen commuting to his office job is completely unaware of the struggle taking place in the shadows. It's a pleasing conceit that is carried well, and quickly becomes the "normal" against which Lukie's adventures play out.
Lukie boils with emotion and completely understandable angst. Wallowing in self-pity one moment, castigating herself for selfishness the next, she is a basically likeable teen caught in an impossible situation, along with her old friend Tamlyn, who she remembers as another gender. Tamlyn's maturity and experience with transformation (albeit of a different kind), provides a vital anchor for Lukie, although it doesn’t stop them bickering. As the world around them grows increasingly wide and threatening, introducing characters such as the enigmatic elvish Steward and Maven (a fellow revenant with a different patron), the relationship between these two becomes the reader's anchor, our hope that things will eventually turn out alright.
There is a fair amount of detective work (carried out more or less efficiently, depending on whether it's Tamlyn and Lukie - but she's the only one who can talk to ghosts). There is a fair amount of listening to other people's stories ("the last time this happened was a hundred year ago, and only I remember the truth…"). No answer is glib, every step is logical, every puzzle-piece earned. It makes some sections quite slow but means the climax takes place on rock solid foundations. Which given it takes place in a hell castle is only appropriate.
Trapped in an underworld realm, during a masquerade of the damned, Lukie struggles to free herself and the taken souls, aware she only has so much time before all are lost forever. Allies betray and enemies offer succour, but in the end, she has only herself. To overcome the Blood Queen, she must accept that there are two sides to every story, and that people make mistakes. Sometimes healing means a further sacrifice. In short, she must do what is for her, the hardest thing of all.
Grow up.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews