Nightshade & Oak - Molly O'Neill // Book Review

  

Nightshade & Oak
Molly O'Neill || Publication Date - 03.02.2026

A delightful tale of unexpected meetings, trust, friendship & what it means to be human

Fantasy | Adventure | Mythology

Mellt is the Goddess of Death. Her task for thousands of years has been to assist the dead and dying towards the afterlife. After a battle between Britons and Romans has left a field full of carnage, she sweeps through the despair with her hounds, pulling souls from their tortured and mortal lives and ushering them away. As she leaves the battlefield, one final scene captures her attention. A woman lay dying with her soul tethered to her body, unable to escape. When Mellt touches the woman's face to coax her soul, the next thing Mellt knows is that she's mortal and comes into contact with Bellis, a princess.

Bellis is the reason why Mellt is no longer a Goddess, and is now trapped within a mortal body. Much to her dismay, she is forced to travel weeks westward to enter the afterlife and by chance regain her Immortality. Bellis on the other hand, wishes to go to the same place, in order to save her sisters life.

The Review (may contain spoilers)

I would like to thank Hachette UK for providing me a copy of this book for review purposes.

I did feel the beginning of this novel was a bit clunky. Being written in first person is not much of an issue, however the profuse use of 'I' at the beginning of each sentence got irritating very quickly. As the story progressed, this became less of an issue and I was able to really sink into Molly's writing style, which I did end up really liking. By about 20% of the way through, it was exactly the kind of Adventure Fantasy which I was hoping for.

Both Mallt and Bellis as characters were unique and fun to get to know. We have snippets sprinkled through the novel of Bellis as she grows up, watching her sister being born and experiences life as a Princess and the next leader of her people. The only excerpt we get regarding Mallt and her duties as a Goddess are within the first couple of chapters. However I feel this provided the perfect amount of context to the book and gave enough of the world building to allude that we are within a historic tale woven with Mythology.

As a decent hook for this book is a journey to the gates of the afterlife, this novel could have blown the travelling portion out significantly longer than it did. I believed that a decent chunk of the 270 pages were going to be the characters travelling. Molly needs an award or something, because this is not even what the book is narratively going to focus on. The afterlife is corrupted, and in danger of being destroyed. This is what the novel is truly about and what a pleasant surprise that was.

What lowered the rating for me in terms of enjoyment was the final stages towards the ending of the book, which felt rushed. A lot was packed into the last 30 or so pages and it was jumping around trying to close off plot lines while also adding in a smaller side possibility at the same time. It didn't harm the narrative overall, but did make the ending appear lightning fast, and I do feel it made the final moments a little less impactful.

Overall Thoughts

What I loved the most about this novel is that it is a STAND ALONE Fantasy! So many lately have been a part of a series and I've been hanging out for a novel I can sit and devour without having to worry about a sequel. Another thing I loved about it was both Mellt and Bellis. Nothing overstayed its welcome and the story moved swiftly and steadily towards the conclusion.

If you're looking for a novel that's easy to read, fun and a Fantasy under 300 pages, please look no further than 'Nightshade & Oak'. It certainly wasn't a perfect read, but it was exactly what I've felt the Fantasy market has been lacking for a very long time and it was a refreshing welcome.