The Demon Star, by Jesse Aragon

The Demon Star is a science fantasy novel written by Jesse Aragon, published by The Broken Binding Publishing. An extremely ambitious debut full of promises, and that somehow manages to not only fulfill all of them but went a step further, delivering a story that refuses to stay in a single organized box, simultaneously threading multiple storylines with well-fleshed characters, all to firmly position Aragon as one of the debuts of the year.

A planet ruled by Gods, where people are harvested at the dim and wits of them, all to keep them happy until the next Harvest season starts; demons roam the cannons of this planet, and in them there might be the opportunity to change the established order. An opportunity that appears when Neri, a weak telepath, is sent to the Desert to be imprinted by a demon powerful enough to destroy Gods, the catalyst of change; we will be mainly following those around him, people whose decisions will shape his future and that will irremediably shatter the established order.

How those characters are shaped and developed is part of what makes Aragon's debut so memorable: not only we have an incredible opportunity to appreciate how their backstory is affecting their present, but they feel so human, flawed but still trying to defend what they believe in. I think it's particularly interesting to see the journey of Brother Jacen, not only because it's a flawless execution in many aspects, such as the struggle of an addiction and how it happened, but also to see how faith crumbles but something is built over; he's trying to do good for the world. And the best part? Most of the characters are equally compelling, each one with their own vision and their motivations to act; a marvelous cast to make this story work.

Worldbuilding is on par with the character work: it's complex, but Aragon doesn't unveil all at the start; instead, you start getting answers together with the characters, slowly developing new ideas about what's happening in this planet, about the nature of the Gods and Demons and what needs to be done. There's already a past, and religion, or more adequately named, faith, and how each character conceptualizes it plays an important role in the own story.
Aragon's writing is quite cinematic, embracing this mash-up between horror, fantasy and sci-fi that this novel is; the imagery is quite rich, the action scenes are superb portrayed, and in particular, I loved how precise is the language regarding physical/mental injuries/conditions.
The pacing is relentless, keeping you on the edge of the seat from the start, and not letting you take a breath until the end.

The Demon Star is a superb novel, a remarkable tour de force that effortlessly blurs the line between genres choosing to be an unique thing; if you are into expansive worldbuildings that are the setting of really ambitious plots, this is a book that you should totally pick (and remember to check the content warnings first). Jesse Aragon is a name to keep an eye on the future!