Book: They Call Me Blue by Loren Huxley
Reviewed by Weird | weird.reads.books
Rating: 4.5/5
WARNING: this review may have slight c@nnib@lism jokes
I signed up for this ARC skeptical that high fantasy, graphic horror, and dark romance could share the same spine. I’m came out convinced… and a little obsessed.
The worldbuilding is bold and delightfully grotesque, but what sold me is how coherent it feels. Elgrew (a wood-nymph/elf hybrid) must eat elves to survive and can only reproduce with them because all female elgrew are infertile. That biology doesn’t just shock; it structures everything—an economy of slavery and trafficking, the city’s politics, and even its theology. Huxley doesn’t flinch from the premise, and the setting feels built from it outward rather than decorated after the fact.
We follow two leads: Arden and Lyrick. Arden, the only known blue elf, is relentlessly hunted; before she reaches her Age of Majority (elven magical adulthood), Lyrick “claims” her to keep others from consuming her—protection that’s both lifesaving and chilling. Arden’s arc threads into an underground elven resistance, while Lyrick—son of the Grand Overseer and an unflinching hunter who prefers elves “fresh” (what I’d call free-range elf; not ethically-sourced as he does like chasing and having them beg 😳)—pulls back the curtain on elgrew culture, ethics, and appetites. Their connection is a TRUE slow burn, and that push-pull between care and predation gives the romance real bite.
As a reader who loves horror, grimdark, and dark romance, this hit my sweet spot: vivid set pieces, razor-edged stakes, and a premise that refuses to blink.
I would highly recommend this, but please check ALL the trigger warnings. If your taste includes graphic horror and morally messy worlds, this is a gnarly treat. I closed the final page already hungry for Book 2 in the planned trilogy.
Thank you to Loren Huxley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.