Son of the Morning

A spicy and addictive Southern Gothic paranormal romance of angels and demons, forbidden love, heavenly secrets and deadly desires

By: Akwaeke Emezi

Narrated by: Indigo Brown

From Sunday Times bestselling author Akwaeke Emezi comes a steamy paranormal romance set in the Black South - a bold new foray that takes us on a journey of magic and fantasy, from the whispering creeks outside the city of Salvation to the very depths of Hell itself.

Galilee Kincaid is haunted by the pull of something ancient - a whisper in her bones, a secret too vast to name. Raised in the shadow of the Kincaid legacy, a formidable clan of Black women rooted in the weeping willows and rushing creeks, a hollow ache has always pulsed inside her...

Until she meets him. Lucifer Helel. Head of security for her wealthy friend's family, he guards a mysterious relic older than time itself. From the moment Gali lays eyes on him, something stirs within her. His gaze burns like fire, a predator's hunger concealed behind the mask of a mortal. In an instant, Gali knows he is not human.

From their very touch, Lucifer sees the truth about Gali - something she doesn't even know. She's not human either.

Enter Leviathan, Lucifer's most trusted prince of Hell. A creature of shadow and fury, Levi has one mission: destroy Galilee before she unravels the delicate balance that binds Heaven, Hell, and Earth.

Because Lucifer and Galilee's unstoppable attraction is more than forbidden - it's powerful enough to tear apart the very fabric of existence. As war rages and the world teeters on the edge of eternity, will Galilee embrace the untamed force within her and risk everything to reclaim her true self?©2025 Akwaeke Emezi

Critic reviews

November 2025 Indie Next List

Holy moly, is it the flames of Hell making it hot in here or is it Akwaeke Emezi's phenomenal writing?! With captivating characters full of tensions both supernatural and sensual, SON OF THE MORNING is romantic, scorching, and not to be missed!

Son of the Morning sizzles with evocative, lyrical prose and tantalizing spice. A story of yearning and dark indulgences amid a clash of angels and demons. Akwaeke Emezi's story kept me hooked as Lucifer, the seductive Devil, and Galilee, an alluring woman brimming with unknown magic, fall into each other while trying to stop the world from ripping apart at the seams.

A deliciously sexy paranormal romance set in the Black South with a cast of biblical characters like you've never seen them before! The love interest? The literal devil. Awkaeke Emezi peels back the layers of Galilee's heritage and examines themes of salvation, power, and the struggle between legacy and desire. I could not put it down!

Son of the Morning plunges readers into a lush South where a young woman with untapped power and a dangerously alluring supernatural are drawn into a game of desire that could split the cosmos. Emezi delivers a hypnotic, heat-drenched romantasy that is sumptuous and charged with sizzling, forbidden chemistry.

Son of the Morning is a delicious inferno of cosmic war and conflicting loyalties amidst a journey towards reclaiming identity. With enough romantic tension to make Hell itself look like tundra, this sizzling romance is an absolute delight.

Akwaeke Emezi's Son of the Morning is a sizzling rollercoaster of a novel! Galilee is a heroine to root for, and the Kincaid women who love her are a force to be reckoned with, even for the devil himself. Hotter than a Southern summer, this story of fallen angels, demons, and badass women is an absolute treat.

Emezi's skillful storytelling is lush and evocative, [their] signature prose is haunting. In a time of overwhelming choices for romantasy books, this deeply seductive novel stands out with a visceral allure. An absolute must-have.

An exciting new direction for Emezi.

Sizzling hot

An alluring paranormal romance [with] a tantalizing love triangle unlike any you've read before.