Reviews

Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston

maddy_garlicbread's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

9queenbee9's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging inspiring mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

mysteriousmissm's review against another edition

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5.0

Laboom Daboise?
Ok, so maybe besides a couple corny jokes and puns, I absolutely adored this book. It was paced pretty well and especially at the end I simply flew through those last chapters. I'm so excited to read more all the hype for Amari is hype worthy and B.B. Alston blew me away. All those plot twists!!!! Ahhhhh
Sorry it took me a while to read, college is a lot.

voldemin's review against another edition

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3.0

This is a super cute childrens debut book with everything a kid dreams of: magic, friendship, adventure and action and a lot of secrets. There are a lot of magic creatures: evil wizards, dragon girls and lot more. I liked it but it didn't blew me away and the ending did disappoint me a little bit because I had different hopes and expectations. The whole book didn't wow me and at times I found it generic but I enjoyed it and would recommend it to fans of Harry Potter and Nevermoor. I don't think I will continue with the series.

cillen's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging funny lighthearted mysterious

4.5

ellereadsalottt's review against another edition

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5.0

This book is incredible. Blurbed by Jessica Townsend and just as rich and intricate a world as the Nevermore one she’s creating. This book feels like a mixture between Nevermore and Men in Black, and I bloody loved it. I’ve been in a bit of a physical reading slump and this has well and truly forced me out of it!
I’d highly recommend to anyone but especially to any children and pre-teens in your life

beckys_books's review against another edition

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5.0

Amari and the Night Brothers was, simply put, brilliant! I would have loved this book as a teen, and luckily enjoyed it just as much as an adult. It was magical and fun whilst still bringing to light some social commentary but in a way it relates to it’s target audience and it was that good, I read it in one sitting.

If Amari Peters knows one thing it’s that her brother Quentin is still alive, despite what the police are saying. So when a random package appears and she gets an invitation to the summer camp her brother Quentin went too, Amari has questions. Questions that triple when she realises that the summer camp is actually a training academy for the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs and not only has her brother nominated her for the programme, but he was their golden boy. Amari knows that if she is ever to find out the truth of what has happened to Quentin she has to join this programme and investigate from the inside. But she is a fish out of water, she is competing against kids who have known about the supernatural world all their lives, and she finds that the prejudices she had to deal with in the outside world are just as prevalent here. She will have to overcome a multitude of difficulties, and make sure she puts her trust in the right people if she is to find her brother, and leave the programme alive.

Amari is such a brilliantly written character. She is unbelievably resilient, even in the face of the police telling her that Quentin must have been involved with illegal activities and that’s why he’s disappeared. She is loyal to her family, and anyone she classes as a friend and she is fierce and unbelievably strong for someone who has been bullied and told she is lesser most of her life. She finds it hard to believe she is special, that she is made for something more, but her time at the Bureau shows her that maybe there is somewhere out there for her, somewhere were she can excel and live up to the legacy of her brother. What makes this extra special is the author talks about how long it took him to be able to write Amari’s story and how once he gave himself the chance it just flew from him. It’s amazing seeing more and more books out there with POC main characters, dealing with the issues they deal with in day to day life and exploring their culture.

As well as Amari we are treated to a wealth of well built side characters, my favourites being Elsie, Amari’s roommate and best friend at the Bureau and Agent Magnus, one of her supervisors at the Bureau. It was such a treat seeing Amari building relationships throughout the book, we have Elsie and Dylan, her two friends. They are very different relationships with Elsie and Amari both knowing what it’s like to be an outcast, whereas Dylan is the golden boy with a secret that he feels only Amari can understand. And then there is the relationship between Amari and Agent Magnus, he fears for her, not wanting her to get hurt looking for her brother, but seeing the same drive in her he saw in Quentin and knowing that there is very little he can do to stop her.

There will be the usual comparisons to the likes of Harry Potter, and whilst there are some similarities, Amari and the Night Brothers is completely its own. The mix of the mundane and the magical is brilliantly done, and boy would I have killed to get a spot at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. There is everything from a wide variety of magical beings, to talking elevators and its all gets wondrously brought to life as we visit all the different sections alongside Amari. It may not be worldbuilding as we have come to know it, but the author creates an almost ‘mini world’ inside the Bureau and I got absolutely swept away learning about all the different divisions and seeing how they mix the magical creatures and beings into a world that doesn’t know they exist.

Amari and the Night Brothers is action packed to the max. It pretty much sets off from the word go and it isn’t hard to get completely swept away by the story. Amari entering the Bureau sets off a chain of events that no body saw coming and made the magical community start asking questions of itself. I really liked how the author made Amari different, magic wise, and used that to show how archaic the Bureau is. She is the face of change, and though the book doesn’t end on a traditional cliff hanger, it does hint at more potential drama in the next book.

Filled with a wide breadth of characters, plenty of twists and turns and one hell of an ending, you need to get this book for any teen in your life. I can guarantee you and they wont be disappointed. One of the easiest 5* I’ve given all year and a new firm favourite, I am incredibly excited to see where Amari’s story goes next.

juli_mod's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

celestial_hawk's review against another edition

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5.0

Enjoyable read and lovable characters. The story was interesting and engaging. I could not put the book down I can not wait to read the second one. I excited to read more of Amari's adventure and delve deeper into the world as well as the characters.

chelsbereading36's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5