🗡️ Book Review: The Six Deaths of the Saint by Alix E. Harrow (Kindle Edition, Into Shadow Collection)
A lyrical, haunting meditation on sacrifice, identity, and the cost of devotion—Alix E. Harrow’s short story is a masterclass in emotional depth and narrative precision.
🧠 Overview
Published in November 2022 as part of Amazon’s Into Shadow collection, The Six Deaths of the Saint is a 31-page fantasy short story by Alix E. Harrow, the Hugo Award–winning author of The Ten Thousand Doors of January and The Once and Future Witches. Told in second-person point of view, the story follows a dying servant girl who is spared by the Saint of War and sent to serve a prince as his holy warrior.
Her victories make him a king, then an emperor. Her name becomes legend. But the war never ends—and each time she dies, she returns, changed. The story unfolds across six metaphorical deaths, each marking a transformation in her understanding of love, loyalty, and self-worth.
✨ Key Themes & Highlights
- ⚔️ Sacrifice and identity: The protagonist’s repeated deaths reflect the erosion of self in service to power
- 💔 Love and loyalty: Her bond with her squire—subtle, tender, and deeply felt—grounds the story’s emotional arc
- 🧠 Second-person narration: Harrow’s use of “you” creates intimacy and immediacy, pulling readers into the heroine’s psyche
- 🔁 Repetition with variation: Scenes recur with slight changes, mirroring the protagonist’s evolving awareness
“He doesn’t move or speak, but he doesn’t need to. I know his desires by the pace of his breath and the tilt of his shoulders, by the shape of his jaw and the heat of his gaze.” — Bookish Delights review
💬 Reader Reception
- ⭐ Goodreads rating: 4.32/5 from nearly 30,000 ratings
- 📖 Readers praise the story’s emotional intensity, poetic prose, and philosophical depth
- 🧾 Many compare it favorably to full-length fantasy novels, noting its ability to deliver a complete arc in just a few pages
- 💬 “It will grab you, alter your brain chemistry, and leave you thinking about it for a long time after you’re done with it.” — Bookish Delights review
⚠️ Considerations
- 📄 Short format: At 31 pages, it’s a compact read—best approached as a literary vignette
- 📚 Philosophical tone: The story leans into metaphor and introspection, rather than action-heavy fantasy
- 🧾 Part of a collection: One of six stories in Into Shadow, each exploring dark, transformative themes
🏁 Final Verdict
The Six Deaths of the Saint is a devastatingly beautiful short story that showcases Alix E. Harrow’s mastery of language and emotional storytelling. With its mythic structure, intimate narration, and aching humanity, it’s a must-read for fans of literary fantasy and character-driven tales of sacrifice.
