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Honor & Heresy
Not yet published
Expected 21 Apr 26Instagram sensation Max Francis makes his highly anticipated debut with this atmospheric, gothic, dark academic fantasy of two scholars racing each other to find answers to an invasion in a haunted library, perfect for fans of Katabasis and A Study in Drowning.
Roy Dawnseve cares more for philosophy than battle. But, in a society that shuns literature in favour of their ongoing war, Roy must face a difficult choice: brave the front lines or investigate the identity of their foes in the Orphic Basilica, an ancient, abandoned library.
When Roy chooses to unravel the mystery, it soon becomes clear that the Orphic Basilica isn’t without its own horrors. Strange voices echo down the halls, ghosts roam the bookshelves, and those who stepped foot in the library have either emerged insane or were driven to their own demise.
Roy’s partner in the investigation is Percival Atherton, a manipulative, enigmatic and distractingly charming scholar who has no qualms about belittling Roy. As a fierce snowstorm isolates them from civilisation, Roy and Percival must grapple with their tormented pasts, an unexpected romance, and an age-old conspiracy whose secrets are certain to wipe Northgard from history.
Filled with all the yearning of a rivals-to-lovers romance, the intrigue and fear of a dark academia, and the wonder and discovery of an epic fantasy, Honour & Heresy is ultimately a story of self-discovery amidst the chaos of war and a long, cold winter.
Roy Dawnseve cares more for philosophy than battle. But, in a society that shuns literature in favour of their ongoing war, Roy must face a difficult choice: brave the front lines or investigate the identity of their foes in the Orphic Basilica, an ancient, abandoned library.
When Roy chooses to unravel the mystery, it soon becomes clear that the Orphic Basilica isn’t without its own horrors. Strange voices echo down the halls, ghosts roam the bookshelves, and those who stepped foot in the library have either emerged insane or were driven to their own demise.
Roy’s partner in the investigation is Percival Atherton, a manipulative, enigmatic and distractingly charming scholar who has no qualms about belittling Roy. As a fierce snowstorm isolates them from civilisation, Roy and Percival must grapple with their tormented pasts, an unexpected romance, and an age-old conspiracy whose secrets are certain to wipe Northgard from history.
Filled with all the yearning of a rivals-to-lovers romance, the intrigue and fear of a dark academia, and the wonder and discovery of an epic fantasy, Honour & Heresy is ultimately a story of self-discovery amidst the chaos of war and a long, cold winter.
Hardcover
Expected publication April 21, 2026
72 people are currently reading
23770 people want to read
About the author
Max Francis
3 books907 followersHi, I’m Max Francis! I was born in Melbourne, Australia and completed my Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing at RMIT (Melbourne Campus) in 2021. Since I was young, I’ve dreamed of becoming an author and have been writing science-fiction/fantasy novels for over a decade now. If I’m not plotting the best way to break readers’ hearts, I’m probably reading a fantasy or romance book that will break mine.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
January 15, 2026
Coming soon.
February 23, 2023
i had the honor of beta reading h&h and i’m so glad i was able to. this novel really showed me what it means to dedicate yourself to writing. there is no sugarcoating—no cheesiness tipped into the lines to make it more digestible for the readers—which is something i’m not used to seeing in recent releases. i had forgotten what it meant to be attached to characters and a story without the overwatered tropes and archetype characters.
this novel is genuinely unique in every way imaginable.
as i was reading, i had to be patient and let the characters show me what was going to happen, instead of anticipating the ending. this is not a forgettable novel; it’s shocking, heartwarming, maddening, and devastating all at once.
it’s incredibly hard to find an author that is a good storyteller and writer, but you when you find both, it can make all the difference. max francis truly is a force to be reckoned with.
this novel is genuinely unique in every way imaginable.
as i was reading, i had to be patient and let the characters show me what was going to happen, instead of anticipating the ending. this is not a forgettable novel; it’s shocking, heartwarming, maddening, and devastating all at once.
it’s incredibly hard to find an author that is a good storyteller and writer, but you when you find both, it can make all the difference. max francis truly is a force to be reckoned with.
February 21, 2023
Max laughed at my distress.
Want to read
February 9, 2023life has no meaning if i don't get to read this
Want to read
November 7, 2025E-ARC generously provided by Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much!
M/M dark academia?? Say less.
M/M dark academia?? Say less.
November 13, 2025
I received a free copy from Harper Voyager via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Release date April 21st, 2026.
I thought this book's haunted scholarship and queer romance premise sounded interesting, so I gave it a shot. In Honor & Heresy, young Roy lives in a world where scholarship is illegal and punishable by death. Caught out by the ruling governor, he's sent to his city's ancient library with one task: discover the secret of the armies that invade Northgard, or die.
I've consistently had a bad time with books where the first line of the cover copy describes it as a "Tiktok sensation", but I decided to give this Instagram sensation a shot. Unfortunately, my first instinct was correct. The book is written in an attempt at a formal style that obviously isn't quite fluent. Each descriptive word is ever so slightly wrong and the overall effect grates horribly. In addition, the text is also impressively overwritten. Why have one mediocre sentence when you can have ten instead. Stuff some more unnecessary adjectives in there, and why don't we stop the plot dead for three pages for a little light description. I don't say this lightly, but I found the prose almost entirely unreadable. I haven't had such a bad experience since When the Moon Hatched, and I dnf'd that one with extreme prejudice after about ten pages.
The actual characters are cardboard-flat stereotypes: the sweet sister, the cruel older brother, the scheming ruler, and so forth. The one exception is Roy and his love interest Percival, who are each allotted one trauma apiece. Their romance is propelled Percival's instant, groundless hostility rather than by any real chemistry. In one of Percival's first on-page appearances, Roy startles him by entering a room, and he knocks over his own ink bottle. Percival screams that Roy is an imbecile, and then grabs and threatens Roy when he apologizes and attempts to mop up the ink. Highly unpleasant, and also pointless in a world where there's not even any tenure to fight over. In a book where the romance is a central element, ugly squabbling is a poor substitute for attraction.
I found the other central element, the dark academia, to be equally underwritten. For a book that's supposedly focused on research and scholarship, I don't think Francis has the faintest clue what higher-level historical research looks like. In Honor & Heresy, the work of a historian is depicted as consuming books in a series of Instagram-pretty montages. To be fair, both Percival and Roy are entirely self-taught, but what about writing, let alone primary sources...? In addition, the central premise of a world where books are banned and historians are executed was straight out of the ill-advised YA dystopia trend of 2010. It may be possible to pull this premise off with dignity, but not with such vague and politically naive worldbuilding. Give me a nice bureau of government propagandist historians or something, rather than climactic speeches where Roy declares that historians are an oppressed people.
Clunky prose, poorly written characters, and barely defined worldbuilding. We might have parted on better terms had I been able to dnf at about page 20, but alas, the commitments of an advanced copy. Not recommended.
I thought this book's haunted scholarship and queer romance premise sounded interesting, so I gave it a shot. In Honor & Heresy, young Roy lives in a world where scholarship is illegal and punishable by death. Caught out by the ruling governor, he's sent to his city's ancient library with one task: discover the secret of the armies that invade Northgard, or die.
I've consistently had a bad time with books where the first line of the cover copy describes it as a "Tiktok sensation", but I decided to give this Instagram sensation a shot. Unfortunately, my first instinct was correct. The book is written in an attempt at a formal style that obviously isn't quite fluent. Each descriptive word is ever so slightly wrong and the overall effect grates horribly. In addition, the text is also impressively overwritten. Why have one mediocre sentence when you can have ten instead. Stuff some more unnecessary adjectives in there, and why don't we stop the plot dead for three pages for a little light description. I don't say this lightly, but I found the prose almost entirely unreadable. I haven't had such a bad experience since When the Moon Hatched, and I dnf'd that one with extreme prejudice after about ten pages.
The actual characters are cardboard-flat stereotypes: the sweet sister, the cruel older brother, the scheming ruler, and so forth. The one exception is Roy and his love interest Percival, who are each allotted one trauma apiece. Their romance is propelled Percival's instant, groundless hostility rather than by any real chemistry. In one of Percival's first on-page appearances, Roy startles him by entering a room, and he knocks over his own ink bottle. Percival screams that Roy is an imbecile, and then grabs and threatens Roy when he apologizes and attempts to mop up the ink. Highly unpleasant, and also pointless in a world where there's not even any tenure to fight over. In a book where the romance is a central element, ugly squabbling is a poor substitute for attraction.
I found the other central element, the dark academia, to be equally underwritten. For a book that's supposedly focused on research and scholarship, I don't think Francis has the faintest clue what higher-level historical research looks like. In Honor & Heresy, the work of a historian is depicted as consuming books in a series of Instagram-pretty montages. To be fair, both Percival and Roy are entirely self-taught, but what about writing, let alone primary sources...? In addition, the central premise of a world where books are banned and historians are executed was straight out of the ill-advised YA dystopia trend of 2010. It may be possible to pull this premise off with dignity, but not with such vague and politically naive worldbuilding. Give me a nice bureau of government propagandist historians or something, rather than climactic speeches where Roy declares that historians are an oppressed people.
Clunky prose, poorly written characters, and barely defined worldbuilding. We might have parted on better terms had I been able to dnf at about page 20, but alas, the commitments of an advanced copy. Not recommended.
December 28, 2025
there will come a time in your life where someone (me) will recommend a book to you. this book will be honor & heresy by max francis. it is important that you listen. i will look you in the eye, shake you a little, and thrust the book in your face--just not without some stipulations.
are you a fan of wordy, sprawling literature? can you handle page upon page of straight, probably drab information? do you find a character endearing when they are, quite honestly, unlikeable?
does a poorly executed ending ruin a book for you, even when the journey there has been so wonderful?
honor & heresy is many things. it's part ghost story, part romance, part love letter to literature. a terrible, frozen war sits at the edge of each page, out of sight from our main characters but never out of mind. chapters upon chapters are spent with the boys spilling over books, over old secrets, mysteries and, eventually, each other. they yearn and they weep. they sink into companionship while thousand-year dust eagerly welcomes the fresh faces. it's certainly not for everyone--but for the right person, honor & heresy bleeds tragedy twined with wonder from every page.
the problem (or my problem, at least) lies in the story's final hurrah. with the mystery solved and our heroes equipped to save the day, the story began to feel clunky. gone was the romantic creak of an old library staircase. gone were the lingering glances, the teasing quips, and the hands staying ever just out of reach. no more would there be the simple fascination of this strange library they'd been tossed into--just a mess of ideas, too many for one book to cobble together, trying to wrap up in too short a time.
i fell in love through the first 60–70% of the book and felt oddly betrayed through the rest. but i did, however, appreciate the characters enough to stick with them to the end. my reward was closure: knowing that the story i’d spent so much time with, the characters i adored, found their happy end.
given everything, the book is still worth a read to me. percival might have charmed me a little too much to think otherwise. 💕
are you a fan of wordy, sprawling literature? can you handle page upon page of straight, probably drab information? do you find a character endearing when they are, quite honestly, unlikeable?
does a poorly executed ending ruin a book for you, even when the journey there has been so wonderful?
honor & heresy is many things. it's part ghost story, part romance, part love letter to literature. a terrible, frozen war sits at the edge of each page, out of sight from our main characters but never out of mind. chapters upon chapters are spent with the boys spilling over books, over old secrets, mysteries and, eventually, each other. they yearn and they weep. they sink into companionship while thousand-year dust eagerly welcomes the fresh faces. it's certainly not for everyone--but for the right person, honor & heresy bleeds tragedy twined with wonder from every page.
the problem (or my problem, at least) lies in the story's final hurrah. with the mystery solved and our heroes equipped to save the day, the story began to feel clunky. gone was the romantic creak of an old library staircase. gone were the lingering glances, the teasing quips, and the hands staying ever just out of reach. no more would there be the simple fascination of this strange library they'd been tossed into--just a mess of ideas, too many for one book to cobble together, trying to wrap up in too short a time.
i fell in love through the first 60–70% of the book and felt oddly betrayed through the rest. but i did, however, appreciate the characters enough to stick with them to the end. my reward was closure: knowing that the story i’d spent so much time with, the characters i adored, found their happy end.
given everything, the book is still worth a read to me. percival might have charmed me a little too much to think otherwise. 💕
May 8, 2023
I cannot wait for this book to be in my hands.
Want to read
January 1, 2023I can't remember the last time I've been this excited for a book release.
April 4, 2023
BRO I WANNA READ THIS SO BAD FRFR
IVE SEEN REELS AND QUOTES. PLEASE I NEED IT BEFORE OCTOBER
IVE SEEN REELS AND QUOTES. PLEASE I NEED IT BEFORE OCTOBER
November 14, 2025
I like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for allowing this book up as a 'read now'.
Welp.
I came in looking for a fantasy with M/M vibes, instead I get weak M/M vibes with a plot that literally is stretched out for the sake of the two characters talking and talking about their intellectual obsessions.
Somehow in this world 'research' and 'historical documentation' is banned, except in this forbidden 7 story library. The mysterious group called ' The Old Ones ' are fighting with this long standing city. The governor has allowed a scholar to come and raid the library for insight on who the Old Ones are and, work alongside another. Oh, did I mention Scholars are frowned upon?
Cue these two characters having the equivalent of a gay Rosencrantz & Gildenstern are dead for chapters upon chapters. Meanwhile, spirits of forgotten scholars are trying to tell the the truth.
I feel cheated. There was some weak M/M feelings, a weak plot (because lol, education and historical documentation banned), but there is hardly any world building that when they start putting the pieces together regarding the Old Ones I couldn't give a fuck because I didn't care or feel for the city they were trying to save.
This book is going to be the Wes Anderson of the lit world 2026. It'll appeal to some but I'm not one of them.
Welp.
I came in looking for a fantasy with M/M vibes, instead I get weak M/M vibes with a plot that literally is stretched out for the sake of the two characters talking and talking about their intellectual obsessions.
Somehow in this world 'research' and 'historical documentation' is banned, except in this forbidden 7 story library. The mysterious group called ' The Old Ones ' are fighting with this long standing city. The governor has allowed a scholar to come and raid the library for insight on who the Old Ones are and, work alongside another. Oh, did I mention Scholars are frowned upon?
Cue these two characters having the equivalent of a gay Rosencrantz & Gildenstern are dead for chapters upon chapters. Meanwhile, spirits of forgotten scholars are trying to tell the the truth.
I feel cheated. There was some weak M/M feelings, a weak plot (because lol, education and historical documentation banned), but there is hardly any world building that when they start putting the pieces together regarding the Old Ones I couldn't give a fuck because I didn't care or feel for the city they were trying to save.
This book is going to be the Wes Anderson of the lit world 2026. It'll appeal to some but I'm not one of them.
Want to read
August 11, 2024I am convinced that this is never releasing
Want to read
March 21, 2026Pre-read
This should be in my April Locked Library box 👀
This should be in my April Locked Library box 👀
Did not finish
March 18, 2026***Thank you to the publisher for offering me this eARC on NetGalley***
This was rough. It’s an early DNF for me.
The immediate problem for me is the prose. It reads like an early draft for a writer who is still finding their voice. It feels like every sentence is bogged down by parenthetical phrases in an attempt to sound smarter. Maybe if this book had been read aloud at some point during the editing process to actually HEAR how all these words sounded out loud? Then we wouldn’t be in this situation. The order of the words comes off weird. Sentences drag on and on. It’s not natural sounding. And it’s like there’s simple words that are replaced to sound more “academic,” like a thesaurus was on hand at all times. I just struggled a lot with this prose right off the bat and I can’t bring myself to care about Roy and…whatever this story is trying to say.
It’s a shame too. The cover is great and the commissioned artwork of the two main characters was enticing.
ALSO! Stop saying content warnings are located in an author’s pinned Instagram post. You can’t view an Instagram post easily without an account and pinned posts get replaced all the time. Just print the content warnings in the book!
This was rough. It’s an early DNF for me.
The immediate problem for me is the prose. It reads like an early draft for a writer who is still finding their voice. It feels like every sentence is bogged down by parenthetical phrases in an attempt to sound smarter. Maybe if this book had been read aloud at some point during the editing process to actually HEAR how all these words sounded out loud? Then we wouldn’t be in this situation. The order of the words comes off weird. Sentences drag on and on. It’s not natural sounding. And it’s like there’s simple words that are replaced to sound more “academic,” like a thesaurus was on hand at all times. I just struggled a lot with this prose right off the bat and I can’t bring myself to care about Roy and…whatever this story is trying to say.
It’s a shame too. The cover is great and the commissioned artwork of the two main characters was enticing.
ALSO! Stop saying content warnings are located in an author’s pinned Instagram post. You can’t view an Instagram post easily without an account and pinned posts get replaced all the time. Just print the content warnings in the book!
Did not finish
March 9, 2026DNF @25% but skimmed to the end
I hope this book goes through extensive edits before publication, because that was painful to experience. You cannot just plop your reader into the story with little to no background knowledge or worldbuilding. I was watching everything from far, far, FAR away rather than experiencing it with the characters. Also, the author used words I know, but gave them different meanings in this world I didn’t know—just poor planning on all sides. The immediate disgust of MC2 to MC1 was ridiculous, and the overuse of the term “darling” made me want to tear my hair out. Not good, in my opinion.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.
I hope this book goes through extensive edits before publication, because that was painful to experience. You cannot just plop your reader into the story with little to no background knowledge or worldbuilding. I was watching everything from far, far, FAR away rather than experiencing it with the characters. Also, the author used words I know, but gave them different meanings in this world I didn’t know—just poor planning on all sides. The immediate disgust of MC2 to MC1 was ridiculous, and the overuse of the term “darling” made me want to tear my hair out. Not good, in my opinion.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.
February 28, 2026
Thank you Netgalley for the e-arc ( ◠‿◠ )
I’ve had this on my tbr since 2023 so when I got the chance to read it early… I knew I had to.
This book to me was a 3.5. I wasn’t super invested in the backstory or the world-building, and I think the relationship between Roy and Percival was what kept me going. I found the first 50% or so of the book to be slow movingly and again, it was the character development that kept me reading more, not necessarily where the plot would go. I think I would have liked it to be a big longer to be honest.
I’ve had this on my tbr since 2023 so when I got the chance to read it early… I knew I had to.
This book to me was a 3.5. I wasn’t super invested in the backstory or the world-building, and I think the relationship between Roy and Percival was what kept me going. I found the first 50% or so of the book to be slow movingly and again, it was the character development that kept me reading more, not necessarily where the plot would go. I think I would have liked it to be a big longer to be honest.
November 25, 2025
I really really wanted to like this more as a M/M dark academia set in a library is so up my alley. However, this was mostly just pages and pages of characters thinking and occasionally talking about thinking with nothing really happening. The world building was also a bit shallow as I still don’t really understand why “scholars” are forbidden (like all scholarship, some banned subjects?) and the politics was all over the place. I like subtle world building through context clues but felt mostly in the dark the entire book (and as wordy and verbose as it is that just mostly annoyed me).
I found myself knowing I was supposed to be shocked or invested when certain things occurred or were revealed but just didn’t have the world building or emotional connection to actually care. I’m hopeful this all was mostly just debut novel issues (and would read give this authors next work a try) as the final third picked up a bit - but by then I was kind of just speeding through to finish as parts 1 and 2 are a slog.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I found myself knowing I was supposed to be shocked or invested when certain things occurred or were revealed but just didn’t have the world building or emotional connection to actually care. I’m hopeful this all was mostly just debut novel issues (and would read give this authors next work a try) as the final third picked up a bit - but by then I was kind of just speeding through to finish as parts 1 and 2 are a slog.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 12, 2026
Roy lives in a world where being a scholar is illegal and his world is being attacked by "Old Ones." Some kind of enemy that seems like they are impossible to defeat. Roy has an abusive brother, a sweet, loving sister and a cold, horrible mother. When Roy is is caught doing illegal scholarly activities, instead of being put to death he's sent to the imposing Orphic Basilica to work with another scholar, Percival to find a way to defeat the Old Ones and save their city.
My first take on this story is that it's very wordy. I found the first 20-30% really dragged. I felt like there were a lot of really good ideas that I maybe just didn't quite understand. Why is being a scholar illegal? Is all reading outlawed? Why are both Roy's brother and mother so abusive? I think I was little lost on some of the plot.
I think they were going for enemies to lovers with Roy and Percival but they never quite got there with them being enemies. Although they did fight a little they never quite seems like real enemies.
The story really started to pick up around 30% when the boys actually started to work together and began to figure the mystery out. Once they actually opened up to each other and started talking to each other their relationship became very sweet. I enjoyed the descriptions on library and magical system in the story. I also always love a story where people get what's coming to them.
Overall once the story picked up I did enjoy this story. I'm giving this a 3.5 rounded up to 4. It's a very ambitious story and I can't wait to see what else the author comes up with.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
My first take on this story is that it's very wordy. I found the first 20-30% really dragged. I felt like there were a lot of really good ideas that I maybe just didn't quite understand. Why is being a scholar illegal? Is all reading outlawed? Why are both Roy's brother and mother so abusive? I think I was little lost on some of the plot.
I think they were going for enemies to lovers with Roy and Percival but they never quite got there with them being enemies. Although they did fight a little they never quite seems like real enemies.
The story really started to pick up around 30% when the boys actually started to work together and began to figure the mystery out. Once they actually opened up to each other and started talking to each other their relationship became very sweet. I enjoyed the descriptions on library and magical system in the story. I also always love a story where people get what's coming to them.
Overall once the story picked up I did enjoy this story. I'm giving this a 3.5 rounded up to 4. It's a very ambitious story and I can't wait to see what else the author comes up with.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Want to read
January 1, 2024I want to read so badly !
I don’t know where the 26 people are reading it but I want to be one of them 🥲
It would be lovely if you could bring it out as an E-book !
I’m going to patiently wait until I get to read it
I don’t know where the 26 people are reading it but I want to be one of them 🥲
It would be lovely if you could bring it out as an E-book !
I’m going to patiently wait until I get to read it
Want to read
April 30, 2024Every day of my life is lading up to the day that I can read this.
This book seems like perfection
This book seems like perfection
March 2, 2026
I really enjoyed this book! 4 solid stars 🌟
I found this book via instagram and was pleasantly surprised to have been approved for the ARC on NetGalley a few weeks later. I loved the concept of this book as it touches on themes of our current world situation where literature and academia are being punished and ripped away from us under the cover of “bans”.
This is a dark academia setting with a slow burn rivals/enemies to lovers trope.
Roy receives a life altering letter from the Governor and he is tasked with an assignment to gather intel on an enemy. However academia and libraries have been banned and burned for years. All but one. This unique library that refuses to fall. Roy needs to find the answers in these ancient pages before it’s too late.
Percival is to join Roy on his mission but he really doesn’t want to be there but they are stuck together for the better half of a year.
I loved how this story wasn’t focus on the romance or spice. The story was the focus and the romance was in the background which is a nice switch up for me. However, I do think there were parts of the story that felt like they were glossed over and other that were far too detailed. I don’t want to give anyway away so I’ll keep it simple. I did read some other reviews before posting mine and I saw that apparently the original story was a bit longer than this final draft and I have a feeling that’s where all those missing details went. I don’t think it took away from the story enough to cause any confusion but I’m a long book girl and I love all the little details so I could have used those here.
I’ve read a lot of debuts this year and so far they have all been my favorite and I think this one will sit up there with them. I’m eager to see what Max puts out next because his world building skills and ability to create vivid images with his words are something I’m looking forward to reading more of in the future.
Spice 1/5 🌶️
I found this book via instagram and was pleasantly surprised to have been approved for the ARC on NetGalley a few weeks later. I loved the concept of this book as it touches on themes of our current world situation where literature and academia are being punished and ripped away from us under the cover of “bans”.
This is a dark academia setting with a slow burn rivals/enemies to lovers trope.
Roy receives a life altering letter from the Governor and he is tasked with an assignment to gather intel on an enemy. However academia and libraries have been banned and burned for years. All but one. This unique library that refuses to fall. Roy needs to find the answers in these ancient pages before it’s too late.
Percival is to join Roy on his mission but he really doesn’t want to be there but they are stuck together for the better half of a year.
I loved how this story wasn’t focus on the romance or spice. The story was the focus and the romance was in the background which is a nice switch up for me. However, I do think there were parts of the story that felt like they were glossed over and other that were far too detailed. I don’t want to give anyway away so I’ll keep it simple. I did read some other reviews before posting mine and I saw that apparently the original story was a bit longer than this final draft and I have a feeling that’s where all those missing details went. I don’t think it took away from the story enough to cause any confusion but I’m a long book girl and I love all the little details so I could have used those here.
I’ve read a lot of debuts this year and so far they have all been my favorite and I think this one will sit up there with them. I’m eager to see what Max puts out next because his world building skills and ability to create vivid images with his words are something I’m looking forward to reading more of in the future.
Spice 1/5 🌶️
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
In a tense and snow-covered world where academic studies are punishable by death, Max Francis’s Honor & Heresy follows a pair of scholars tasked with discovering the identity and motivations of a mysterious invading force threatening the city of Northgard. Accustomed to a life of persecution and suffering by political leaders that detest scholarly pursuits, Roy Dawnseve is recruited by the Governor to explore the mysterious and vast archive of the Orphic Basilica in the company of the standoffish and opposing philosophical scholar Percival Atherton. A highly atmospheric and immersive dark academia tale featuring a rivals-to-lovers M/M romance, this book is a slow burn story that’s haunting and a very promising debut novel despite a somewhat weak ending.
Highlights:
☕︎ Great atmosphere, sense of environment, and mysterious intrigue perfectly suited to the dark academia premise and story.
☕︎ Strong storytelling matched with a refined prose that’s intellectual while also visual.
☕︎ Features highly relevant themes including the censorship of knowledge, study, and scientific pursuits. Philosophical musings, extensive fictional literary figures and their academic writing, and dueling scholastic outlooks are impressively crafted and handled.
Considerations:
- Overall pacing is slow and the plot is sparse at best. The book is conceptually and thematically strong vs its weaker plotting and rushed ending. Some may consider the book overwritten.
- Excellent philosophical discussions and academia developments feel like they’re notably missing when the plot picks up. Percival’s characterization is less distinctive and memorable in the last third of the book.
Marketed as a story set around the concept of scholastic inquiry and a mysterious library, Honor & Heresy mostly delivers on its promise of a dark academia tale crossed with M/M romantic interests. Dark academia is a very popular genre buzzword that can relate to a variety of narrative topics and styles depending on who you ask, this book’s take on it is one of literary interest and analysis of textual details. Scholars Roy and Percival spend most of the story endlessly reading books in the Orphic Basilica ranging from historic records, fictionalized accounts, thanatology theories, ethics of war, followed by discussing their thoughts and differences. Honor & Heresy is the kind of book that talks about war and fantasy theoretically more so than having actual on-page action or development, so this is not a recommended read for those that prefer more overt narratives. For those that do appreciate academic discussions and INTP-esque musings, this book is a treat.
Where other scholars have been sentenced to death for academic interests, Roy and Percival exist in a world that condemns their very existence, and one of the book’s most impressive elements is its philosophical debates on the merits of scholarship and interpretation of historic scripture. While their early debates serve dual purposes of displaying their ideological differences as well as setting up the rivals-to-lovers romance trope, I found Francis’s academic sparring very compelling and expertly crafted. Both having tragic backstories of suffering and betrayal, Roy and Percival’s differences in academic interests, opinions on established writers, thoughts on their conscripted task, and more are well-executed across the board. Philosophical debates aren’t for everyone and admittedly aren’t usually my thing, but I enjoyed Francis’s discussion and use of it thanks to the sharp ideas and effective dialogue used to convey them.
In addition to the philosophical discussions, the book’s other strongest asset is its consistently great ambiance and atmosphere. A story that is fully restricted to a single location lives or dies with its setting but fortunately the Orphic Basilica is portrayed with great flair and mystique. Evoking both a sense of being alive while also immortal and haunted, the library’s foreboding, endless shelves and balcony tiered floors illustrated on the book’s cover are portrayed beautifully. Mixing paranormal fantasy elements with arcane detailing, the material is heightened by Francis’s impressive tone that is quietly measured but engaging. His prose is accessible with a distinctively intellectual lilt fitting for the dark academia material. In addition to Roy and Percival’s exploration of the library, the considerable amount of in-lore literary works are presented on-page through various historic or academic figures. Ranging in topics, writing styles, and phrasing, the literature presented is diverse and a great showcase of Francis’s writing chops. While I had some grievances with the book’s plotting and ending, the quality of his storytelling was so good that I almost didn’t care what I was reading about.
Complimenting the book’s great tone and ideas are its appealing main characters Roy and Percival. Each haunted both metaphorically and literally by their personal demons, the two young adults have wonderful chemistry and interactions that help carry the book through all its slower and sometimes mundane sections. While written and marketed as a gay dark academia romance in a gothic setting, their dialogue and banter are decidedly more academic and literary than typical for the genre. One of my reading pet peeves is books that are marketed as dark academia stories that either lack the academia part of the genre or have very juvenile or insta-lust plotting that uses the theme for aesthetic purpose only. Fortunately, Honor & Heresy introduces the two scholars as light rivals with conflicting academic philosophies which provides great opportunities for unique exchanges. Instead of generic snarky banter or jokes, Roy and Percival trade mental jabs of theological stances in a self-proclaimed competition for intellectual recognition. Percival’s standoffish persona is nicely balanced by his signature nickname for Roy “darling”. Amusingly, the brief romantic moments were just as satisfying for me to read about as Roy punching an irrefutable hole in Percival’s confident and opinionated argument. While there’s some physical interest presented such as Percival's blonde hair that catches the moonlight through the library's windows or how the image of him furrowing his eyebrows while studying lingers in Roy’s head, the romantic interests start off as scholastic intrigue that’s on-brand and fitting for the story. Admittedly I found the challenge and competition from Percival to be a bit silly and clumsily handled during the “rivals” section of the rivals-to-lovers arc, however I enjoyed their camaraderie and relationship that followed enough to not get too caught up with the earlier setup. With the current new adult/adult fantasy romance genre trends favorite heavy spice, I also found the book’s sweet and light gay romance to be refreshing; for those who prioritize spice, Honor & Heresy is quite chaste and does not go beyond kissing.
While the book has a strong start and a slow approach to its story, Honor & Heresy’s plot is unfortunately not one of its stronger aspects. The book features great themes of academic censorship, destroying and rewriting history, and corruption of power, and ideas are represented via interesting storylines. Though the story starts out very promising, the book’s plot is quite sparse and the limited narrative developments are few and far between. While I personally enjoyed Roy and Percival’s academic discussions and their inquisitive interest in each other, there’s really little movement or progression of the core premise ont the research of the dangerous and invading Old Ones threatening Northgard. And though I was a big fan of most of the book despite the limited plot, the book takes an expected turn at around the 70% mark that feels mismatched to the rest of the story; up until this point, the book was a 4.5 - 5 star read for me.
As the book approaches its ending, the mostly grounded and intellectual story pivots into a paranormal angle that I didn’t feel was adequately foreshadowed or set up. While I normally love ghost stories or arcane-themed books, I felt like the academia part of dark academia was forgotten and replaced by fantasy dark magic that felt more generic and standard material. The nuanced and detailed philosophical explorations and the wonderfully distinctive atmosphere that had been building over the course of the book felt abandoned in favor of more typical dark magic fanfare. The plot developments felt clunky, character motivations basic, and despite the large-scale conflict threatening Northgard, the story kind of ends on a short and casual note that felt a bit lackluster, anti-climactic and as uncertain as its characters feel. The last 30% of the book in general also came off as being rushed, crunched together, and quite disruptive compared to how carefully paced and written the rest of the story was, even Francis’s intellectual prose feeling simplified and lost. This shift also occurs soon after Roy and Percival’s relationship develops and while their romance was overall quite good, Percival’s characterization and dialogue lost a lot of his unique cadence, edge, and banter that I found so impressive earlier in the book. A point could be made that Percival’s softer, gentler, and less confident portrayal is due to the character letting down his guard to Roy, but their different yet complimentary natures and compelling dynamics also seemed to drop for me the further the book progressed. While the ending is by no means a disaster, subjectively it wasn’t what I expected based on how the rest of the book was handled. The overall ideas and key moments were conceptually good, but the execution left quite a bit to be desired. I almost got the impression that the book was written with themes, concepts, and the gothic library visual in mind first, the plot coming second as if Francis wasn’t quite sure what to do with the ending. Apparently Honor & Heresy was originally set to be indie published before being picked up and edited for traditional publishing and I don’t know if the subsequent revisions the book went through affected book’s outline for better or worse (previous indie listings indicate it was originally part of a series titled The Great Fall of Northgard but I do not see any reference to this book being a series from Harper Voyager at the time of this review) .
Featuring wonderfully unsettling ambiance, engaging writing, appealing and attractive collaborating scholars and great thematic concepts, Honor & Heresy is an impressive debut novel. Although this book didn’t quite stick its landing and the world-building outside of the library and its written text was a bit foggy at best for me, it’s still a well-written dark academia novel worth reading for those that enjoy detailed lengthy narratives with atmospheric intrigue. Also, do not be discouraged by the marketing blurb advertising Max Francis as an Instagram/Tiktok sensation which many consider to be a warning sign or a mark of poor writing quality; his social media presence covers the writing process of this book and is not a bookstagram or book influencer content creator. Despite the shortcomings with the plot, I was so impressed by Francis’s storytelling that I am already committed to and looking forward to whatever book he cooks up next.
This review is based on a complimentary Advanced Reader Copy provided by Avon and Harper Voyager via Netgalley.
*For more reviews, book lists and reading updates, check out my blog TheBookGrind!
Highlights:
☕︎ Great atmosphere, sense of environment, and mysterious intrigue perfectly suited to the dark academia premise and story.
☕︎ Strong storytelling matched with a refined prose that’s intellectual while also visual.
☕︎ Features highly relevant themes including the censorship of knowledge, study, and scientific pursuits. Philosophical musings, extensive fictional literary figures and their academic writing, and dueling scholastic outlooks are impressively crafted and handled.
Considerations:
- Overall pacing is slow and the plot is sparse at best. The book is conceptually and thematically strong vs its weaker plotting and rushed ending. Some may consider the book overwritten.
- Excellent philosophical discussions and academia developments feel like they’re notably missing when the plot picks up. Percival’s characterization is less distinctive and memorable in the last third of the book.
Marketed as a story set around the concept of scholastic inquiry and a mysterious library, Honor & Heresy mostly delivers on its promise of a dark academia tale crossed with M/M romantic interests. Dark academia is a very popular genre buzzword that can relate to a variety of narrative topics and styles depending on who you ask, this book’s take on it is one of literary interest and analysis of textual details. Scholars Roy and Percival spend most of the story endlessly reading books in the Orphic Basilica ranging from historic records, fictionalized accounts, thanatology theories, ethics of war, followed by discussing their thoughts and differences. Honor & Heresy is the kind of book that talks about war and fantasy theoretically more so than having actual on-page action or development, so this is not a recommended read for those that prefer more overt narratives. For those that do appreciate academic discussions and INTP-esque musings, this book is a treat.
Where other scholars have been sentenced to death for academic interests, Roy and Percival exist in a world that condemns their very existence, and one of the book’s most impressive elements is its philosophical debates on the merits of scholarship and interpretation of historic scripture. While their early debates serve dual purposes of displaying their ideological differences as well as setting up the rivals-to-lovers romance trope, I found Francis’s academic sparring very compelling and expertly crafted. Both having tragic backstories of suffering and betrayal, Roy and Percival’s differences in academic interests, opinions on established writers, thoughts on their conscripted task, and more are well-executed across the board. Philosophical debates aren’t for everyone and admittedly aren’t usually my thing, but I enjoyed Francis’s discussion and use of it thanks to the sharp ideas and effective dialogue used to convey them.
In addition to the philosophical discussions, the book’s other strongest asset is its consistently great ambiance and atmosphere. A story that is fully restricted to a single location lives or dies with its setting but fortunately the Orphic Basilica is portrayed with great flair and mystique. Evoking both a sense of being alive while also immortal and haunted, the library’s foreboding, endless shelves and balcony tiered floors illustrated on the book’s cover are portrayed beautifully. Mixing paranormal fantasy elements with arcane detailing, the material is heightened by Francis’s impressive tone that is quietly measured but engaging. His prose is accessible with a distinctively intellectual lilt fitting for the dark academia material. In addition to Roy and Percival’s exploration of the library, the considerable amount of in-lore literary works are presented on-page through various historic or academic figures. Ranging in topics, writing styles, and phrasing, the literature presented is diverse and a great showcase of Francis’s writing chops. While I had some grievances with the book’s plotting and ending, the quality of his storytelling was so good that I almost didn’t care what I was reading about.
Complimenting the book’s great tone and ideas are its appealing main characters Roy and Percival. Each haunted both metaphorically and literally by their personal demons, the two young adults have wonderful chemistry and interactions that help carry the book through all its slower and sometimes mundane sections. While written and marketed as a gay dark academia romance in a gothic setting, their dialogue and banter are decidedly more academic and literary than typical for the genre. One of my reading pet peeves is books that are marketed as dark academia stories that either lack the academia part of the genre or have very juvenile or insta-lust plotting that uses the theme for aesthetic purpose only. Fortunately, Honor & Heresy introduces the two scholars as light rivals with conflicting academic philosophies which provides great opportunities for unique exchanges. Instead of generic snarky banter or jokes, Roy and Percival trade mental jabs of theological stances in a self-proclaimed competition for intellectual recognition. Percival’s standoffish persona is nicely balanced by his signature nickname for Roy “darling”. Amusingly, the brief romantic moments were just as satisfying for me to read about as Roy punching an irrefutable hole in Percival’s confident and opinionated argument. While there’s some physical interest presented such as Percival's blonde hair that catches the moonlight through the library's windows or how the image of him furrowing his eyebrows while studying lingers in Roy’s head, the romantic interests start off as scholastic intrigue that’s on-brand and fitting for the story. Admittedly I found the challenge and competition from Percival to be a bit silly and clumsily handled during the “rivals” section of the rivals-to-lovers arc, however I enjoyed their camaraderie and relationship that followed enough to not get too caught up with the earlier setup. With the current new adult/adult fantasy romance genre trends favorite heavy spice, I also found the book’s sweet and light gay romance to be refreshing; for those who prioritize spice, Honor & Heresy is quite chaste and does not go beyond kissing.
While the book has a strong start and a slow approach to its story, Honor & Heresy’s plot is unfortunately not one of its stronger aspects. The book features great themes of academic censorship, destroying and rewriting history, and corruption of power, and ideas are represented via interesting storylines. Though the story starts out very promising, the book’s plot is quite sparse and the limited narrative developments are few and far between. While I personally enjoyed Roy and Percival’s academic discussions and their inquisitive interest in each other, there’s really little movement or progression of the core premise ont the research of the dangerous and invading Old Ones threatening Northgard. And though I was a big fan of most of the book despite the limited plot, the book takes an expected turn at around the 70% mark that feels mismatched to the rest of the story; up until this point, the book was a 4.5 - 5 star read for me.
As the book approaches its ending, the mostly grounded and intellectual story pivots into a paranormal angle that I didn’t feel was adequately foreshadowed or set up. While I normally love ghost stories or arcane-themed books, I felt like the academia part of dark academia was forgotten and replaced by fantasy dark magic that felt more generic and standard material. The nuanced and detailed philosophical explorations and the wonderfully distinctive atmosphere that had been building over the course of the book felt abandoned in favor of more typical dark magic fanfare. The plot developments felt clunky, character motivations basic, and despite the large-scale conflict threatening Northgard, the story kind of ends on a short and casual note that felt a bit lackluster, anti-climactic and as uncertain as its characters feel. The last 30% of the book in general also came off as being rushed, crunched together, and quite disruptive compared to how carefully paced and written the rest of the story was, even Francis’s intellectual prose feeling simplified and lost. This shift also occurs soon after Roy and Percival’s relationship develops and while their romance was overall quite good, Percival’s characterization and dialogue lost a lot of his unique cadence, edge, and banter that I found so impressive earlier in the book. A point could be made that Percival’s softer, gentler, and less confident portrayal is due to the character letting down his guard to Roy, but their different yet complimentary natures and compelling dynamics also seemed to drop for me the further the book progressed. While the ending is by no means a disaster, subjectively it wasn’t what I expected based on how the rest of the book was handled. The overall ideas and key moments were conceptually good, but the execution left quite a bit to be desired. I almost got the impression that the book was written with themes, concepts, and the gothic library visual in mind first, the plot coming second as if Francis wasn’t quite sure what to do with the ending. Apparently Honor & Heresy was originally set to be indie published before being picked up and edited for traditional publishing and I don’t know if the subsequent revisions the book went through affected book’s outline for better or worse (previous indie listings indicate it was originally part of a series titled The Great Fall of Northgard but I do not see any reference to this book being a series from Harper Voyager at the time of this review) .
Featuring wonderfully unsettling ambiance, engaging writing, appealing and attractive collaborating scholars and great thematic concepts, Honor & Heresy is an impressive debut novel. Although this book didn’t quite stick its landing and the world-building outside of the library and its written text was a bit foggy at best for me, it’s still a well-written dark academia novel worth reading for those that enjoy detailed lengthy narratives with atmospheric intrigue. Also, do not be discouraged by the marketing blurb advertising Max Francis as an Instagram/Tiktok sensation which many consider to be a warning sign or a mark of poor writing quality; his social media presence covers the writing process of this book and is not a bookstagram or book influencer content creator. Despite the shortcomings with the plot, I was so impressed by Francis’s storytelling that I am already committed to and looking forward to whatever book he cooks up next.
This review is based on a complimentary Advanced Reader Copy provided by Avon and Harper Voyager via Netgalley.
*For more reviews, book lists and reading updates, check out my blog TheBookGrind!
November 16, 2025
E-ARC provided by Harper Voyager for an honest review - thank you!
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
I’m really struggling to put my feelings into words for this one because I’ve been looking forward to reading this book for years. I enjoyed elements of this book, and I can see how others may really enjoy it, but unfortunately it just never pulled me in and a lot of things fell flat for me.
I noticed in the acknowledgments that the original manuscript was much longer, and I can’t help but feel like a lot of details ended up being edited out. I think the bones of this story and the world were left in, but all the juicy worldbuilding details were cut.
Without those details the world felt hollow and I couldn’t get immersed in the story, which also meant that I wasn’t really invested in the characters or their mission. The twists and turns didn’t excite me and the emotional moments didn’t hit like they should have. The pacing of the romance also felt odd to me, and the prose felt needlessly complex.
Pros: loved the vibes, the setting, and just the library overall. If you pick up a copy of this book, I hope you love it. I will absolutely read more books by this author, and I hope he continues to write more MM dark academia fantasy because those are truly the best vibes.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
I’m really struggling to put my feelings into words for this one because I’ve been looking forward to reading this book for years. I enjoyed elements of this book, and I can see how others may really enjoy it, but unfortunately it just never pulled me in and a lot of things fell flat for me.
I noticed in the acknowledgments that the original manuscript was much longer, and I can’t help but feel like a lot of details ended up being edited out. I think the bones of this story and the world were left in, but all the juicy worldbuilding details were cut.
Without those details the world felt hollow and I couldn’t get immersed in the story, which also meant that I wasn’t really invested in the characters or their mission. The twists and turns didn’t excite me and the emotional moments didn’t hit like they should have. The pacing of the romance also felt odd to me, and the prose felt needlessly complex.
Pros: loved the vibes, the setting, and just the library overall. If you pick up a copy of this book, I hope you love it. I will absolutely read more books by this author, and I hope he continues to write more MM dark academia fantasy because those are truly the best vibes.
April 16, 2023
Mysterious and captivating, Honor & Heresy grips the reader from the very first page and doesn't let go until the end. Francis weaves a powerful tale of humanity's desperation for righteousness, a man's exploration of love and grief, and the stark reality of a world on the brink of destruction. The first in a series of interconnected standalones, Honor & Heresy is a dark fantasy novel fans of Garth Nix and Patrick Rothfuss won't want to miss.
** Thanks to Max Francis for allowing me to read, review, and blurb this novel ahead of release. Seriously, don't miss out on this talented new voice in the dark fantasy genre.
** Thanks to Max Francis for allowing me to read, review, and blurb this novel ahead of release. Seriously, don't miss out on this talented new voice in the dark fantasy genre.
March 10, 2023
I'm trading my soul for Roy Dawnseve and Percival Atherton!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHH
Want to read
June 20, 2023I'm dying to read book! Counting days till 10th October
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Honor & Heresy was one of my most anticipated reads for this year. Ever since the blurb was released, I was hooked. So it pains me to say that I ended up not loving it as much as I'd hoped.
The blurb had everything I wanted - m/m romance, Gothic dark academia, a haunted library, a war torn fantasy world - this should have been everything I ever wanted and more. But as I read on, and on and on, the plot and characters just felt...flat. The story was slow, which would have been fine if it felt like something was happening in those slow spaces, but the story felt less slow for the sake of storytelling and more like it was simply meandering.
While I wanted to love Roy and Percival (and I really did for the majority of part one) the more the story carried on the less love I felt for them. Percival called Roy "darling" a total of 86 times. I highlighted the first twelve before I started losing my steam. I wanted their romance to be this epic rivals to lovers slow burn but it was kind of all over the place.
I don't know if I should re-read this at a later time, maybe I'm the problem? Maybe I need to try again in a different setting, at a different time, as an audiobook? I had such high hopes, so maybe my expectations were just too high and if I come back to this later my opinion may change but for now I'm putting Honor & Heresy down as just okay.
The blurb had everything I wanted - m/m romance, Gothic dark academia, a haunted library, a war torn fantasy world - this should have been everything I ever wanted and more. But as I read on, and on and on, the plot and characters just felt...flat. The story was slow, which would have been fine if it felt like something was happening in those slow spaces, but the story felt less slow for the sake of storytelling and more like it was simply meandering.
While I wanted to love Roy and Percival (and I really did for the majority of part one) the more the story carried on the less love I felt for them. Percival called Roy "darling" a total of 86 times. I highlighted the first twelve before I started losing my steam. I wanted their romance to be this epic rivals to lovers slow burn but it was kind of all over the place.
I don't know if I should re-read this at a later time, maybe I'm the problem? Maybe I need to try again in a different setting, at a different time, as an audiobook? I had such high hopes, so maybe my expectations were just too high and if I come back to this later my opinion may change but for now I'm putting Honor & Heresy down as just okay.
January 4, 2026
Although the writing in this is incredible, I didn't really enjoy this book as much as I wanted to. In my opinion, I think it was very conceptual (not in a good way), though the plot and mysteries were intriguing. The world building and politics were weirdly bland for such rich setting. Importantly, I'm very much a character-driven reader, so I'm more upset about not liking the characters... Roy and Percival were, in all fairness, flat. They felt more like an idea of characters rather than "people" who can exist in that far away universe (it might not make sense, but they didn't feel "real" to me). I found myself, unfortunately so, not caring about them or their backstories at all. However, I really enjoyed dark academia elements and the setting of this story. The blizzards in my city were growing strong as I was reading it, so I will definitely recommend this book if you crave dark academia story on a snowy winter night. I will certainly read future stories by Max Francis but sadly Honor & Heresy wasn't really for me.
Want to read
November 23, 2025"Atmospheric, gothic, dark academic fantasy of two scholars racing each other to find answers to an invasion in a haunted library, perfect for fans of Katabasis and A Study in Drowning."
January 26, 2023
I CANNOT WAIT TO READ THIS ;)
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