Thorn by Joshua Ingle is first in the Thorn Saga and follows the demon Thorn. This Netgalley copy actually contains the first two books in the series. Thorn rules supreme in Atlanta, Georgia, commanding an army of lesser demons. He and his wreak havoc among the spiritual landscape, subverting humans as they please. That all ends when Thorn finds his powers gone, just when an old rival enters the scene. As one might expect of demons, Thorn’s minions and ‘allies’ flee his side, abandoning their now weak leader.

Bereft of his powers, Thorn begins to question everything he thinks he knows. He begins to desire to change- to be good, something no self-respecting demon would want. Desperate to protect those he’s come to care about, Thorn takes matters into his own hands. He earns his place back as head of Atlanta’s demons, though part of the price to pay for this uneasy truce is that Thorn must take a demon named Shenzuul under wing, teaching him how to corrupt humans. But Shenzuul isn’t all he appears and Thorn’s rival isn’t as diminished as hoped. No, he has a most unpleasant plan in mind.

This reminds me somewhat of Crowley in Supernatural, as the King of Hell began to gain a soft spot for the Winchesters, and became more willing to inadvertently help humanity through helping the Winchesters (though they rarely seemed grateful for his assistance when given, no matter how useful it may have been). Of course, Crowley helping them started as self-serving behaviour, but he definitely changed, just as Thorn begins to change. Crowley doesn’t really have the moral dilemma Thorn does, at least he didn’t til the Winchesters tried turning him human. Despite that, Crowley does adhere to a strict code of ethics as he defines them. Thorn seems to begin doing likewise.

I found the storyline interesting. It poses philosophical questions regarding the nature of good and evil, and if those things are ever truly set in stone. Thorn certainly starts out very much on the evil side. He’s thoroughly unlikable. Sad to say, he never really grew on me. He may have, if I’d continued with the series, but I wasn’t motivated. There were parts where the dialogue felt stilted, and parts where action seemed bogged by more telling than showing, which lost my engagement at times.

Worth considering if you enjoy stories grounded in Christian mythology, or tales of moral quandary.

***Many thanks to Netgalley and City Starlight Press for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.