As Many Souls as Stars by Natasha Siegel is an extraordinary novel: one of the most intense and emotionally gripping gothic fantasies I’ve read in recent years. What truly makes it shine isn’t just its tormented love story, capable of both enchanting and breaking your heart with a kind of delicate cruelty, nor simply the depth of its two protagonists, antiheroines so vivid and layered they seem ready to step right off the page at any moment.
No, what struck me most, perhaps more than anything else, was the perfect circularity of the plot. The novel closes with an ending that feels as inevitable as it is ironic: one that surprises you precisely because, in truth, it was written in the stars from the very beginning.
That alone makes this deeply underrated historical fantasy a book I would recommend both to lovers of dark, toxic, atmosphere-rich romances (like that of Catherine and Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights) and to fans of Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by Victoria Schwab.
Plot
1592. Cybil Harding is a First Daughter, cursed to bring misfortune to anyone who comes close to her. Trapped in a home suffocated by grief and the ruthless ambition of a father willing to do anything to claim magic for himself, Cybil grows up under the shadow of a curse that seems impossible to escape.
Miriam Richter, on the other hand, is a creature of shadows. Forged through dark arts, immortal and hungry for emotion, she survives by devouring mortal souls. But when she first meets Cybil, something begins to shift: the girl’s soul shines with such brilliance that it becomes irresistible.
The two women strike a reckless bargain: Miriam will grant Cybil reincarnation, a chance to truly live. In return, one day, the demon will claim her soul.
From that moment on, a dance unfolds across centuries: a hunt, a pursuit, a bond that renews itself life after life. But Cybil is not meant to obey, and when she glimpses a chance to break her family’s curse, she decides to change the rules of the game.
Yet as they struggle to outmaneuver one another, both will be forced to confront a revelation as chilling as it is extraordinary…
Because it becomes increasingly clear that only one of them can win. And yet, Cybil and Miriam may no longer be able to exist without each other.
As Many Souls as Stars: a review
When characters drive the story…
A witch falls in love with a demon… but Cybil and Miriam embody each other’s antithesis. Not just light and darkness, but also a hunger for life versus predatory instinct, a thirst for freedom versus a need for control.
They desire and reject each other with the same intensity with which the sun and the moon endlessly chase each other across the sky.
For this reason, reducing their relationship to the “enemies to lovers” trope would feel limiting. After all, the two protagonists seem perfectly capable of occupying both roles at once: lovers and nemeses, each other’s salvation and downfall… all at the same time, without any need for intermediate steps. Theirs is an openly toxic, obsessive love… and precisely for that reason, it is utterly magnetic to follow.
As you may have guessed, Natasha Siegel’s novel is strongly character-driven. The true core of the story is the evolution of this ambiguous and tormented relationship, unfolding across multiple lifetimes and transformations. Cybil (sardonic, wild as brambles on an English moor, yet painfully vulnerable) fights to free herself from a society that would rather see her docile and disposable. Miriam, by contrast, clings stubbornly to fragments of humanity that don’t necessarily make her better… but always make her deeply understandable.
Atmosphere and style
Despite its strong focus on character, the pacing is surprisingly dynamic. Twists come frequently and are carefully placed, creating a constant sense of anticipation.
And the atmosphere, thanks to Natasha Siegel’s evocative writing, is so immersive that the witchy vibes and star-crossed lovers trope feel even more vivid and compelling.
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