The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig
Sybil Delling is a Diviner. She and the other five Diviners she lives with in Aisling Cathedral in the kingdom of Traum are visited by Omens in their dreams, and the Omens tell them the future. Royalty and common people alike travel across the kingdom to visit the sacred Diviners and receive tellings of their future. To look upon a Diviner and receive a prophecy from one is a great privilege. The Diviners are all foundling girls (orphans) and have agreed to trade a decade of service in exchange for a home and the opportunity to be a great prophetess.
Sybil’s life at the cathedral doesn’t have much variety: she works on repairing the stone of the cathedral, interacts with the stone gargoyles that take care of the Diviners and the cathedral, and she spends time with her fellow Diviners, the closest thing she has ever known to family. Sybil’s routine is disturbed when a group of knights arrives at the castle, among them the newly crowned King.
Sybil is chosen to Divine for the new King and is quick to notice one knight in particular that so obviously does not buy what the Diviners are dishing out. He leaves during Sybil’s dream of the King’s future, something that is simply not done and labels him a heretic in Sybil’s opinion. From then on out the knight is a thorn in Sybil’s side.
Unfortunately for Sybil, she won’t be able to ignore the knight as she wishes, for her fellow Diviners begin to go missing, one each night. Sybil and her dwindling group of Diviners are panicked and understandably scared, their caretaker the Abbess seemingly unfazed. The Abbess sends gargoyles to find the missing Diviners, but for Sybil things are not happening quick enough and her protectiveness for her fellow Diviners has her turning to the one person she wanted nothing to do with: the knight.
Sybil sets off on an adventure that will ultimately change the course of her life. She will not rest until she finds her Diviners. Sybil is very much a character that is driven by protecting those she loves. On her journey she is joined by the heretical knight, the King and one of his other knights, and her trusty gargoyle friend Bartholomew, who offers frequent comic relief and was admittedly my favorite character. With their help Sybil intends to figure out what is happening to her Diviners, and stop it at all costs. Along the way Sybil encounters fantastical creatures, Omens brought to life, magic, and her own true potential.
If you are a reader that enjoys gothic fantasy with a sprinkle of romance, run, do not walk, to get this novel. Released in May of 2025 it has been a popular fantasy novel across various social media and reading platforms. Part of this is because of the fantastic plot and writing. Part is because this is not the first gothic fantasy novel by Rachel Gillig that has become a bestseller. Her previously released duology The Shepherd King was her debut and got me hooked on her writing. If she writes it, I’m reading it, and The Knight and the Moth did not disappoint. It is the first in The Stonewater Kingdom duology. The plot is unique and consuming. The atmosphere is moody and gothic. The romance is slow burn. The worldbuilding is rich and developed. The setting is dark and chilling. The main character is super cool and her love interest has the potential to be your next book boyfriend. I’m not sure what Rachel Gillig puts in these pages, but I’m sat and waiting for more.
Review by Sarah Turner-Hill, Adult Programming Coordinator
