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kellan_writes's review
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
From the minute the prologue introduces us to Nausicaa to the ending Epilogue, I was hooked. The characters brought me in and the story had me guessing all the way through. Who is responsible for the gruesome deaths of the Ironborn children, and why are the adults not doing anything about it? It is up to for queer teens to solve the mystery, which is only the beginning.
This is a book I wish I had when I was growing up, surrounded by those who told me I was wrong for being anything other than cishet. That the four POV characters in the novel are all queer and that many side characters are as well, it made the story all the better.
This is not a perfect book, but for a first novel? It was amazing and I'm so glad I finally read it. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series. A definite recommended read of the year, and probably one of my favorite books so far.
This is a book I wish I had when I was growing up, surrounded by those who told me I was wrong for being anything other than cishet. That the four POV characters in the novel are all queer and that many side characters are as well, it made the story all the better.
This is not a perfect book, but for a first novel? It was amazing and I'm so glad I finally read it. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series. A definite recommended read of the year, and probably one of my favorite books so far.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Gore, Child death, and Body horror
Minor: Drug use, Suicide, and Gaslighting
noellelovesbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings: Grief, violence, depression, disownment, murder, ableism, suicide [off-page], racism, body horror, child neglect and abandonment, death, human trafficking, blood/gore, and drug use.
This book has been on my radar for a bit, and as book two was recently released I knew it was time to dive in. Right off the bat, I knew Shuttleworth was an author who cared about their readers. At the very front under “Author’s Notes,” they discuss the heavy topics that will be covered in the book along with content warnings.
I’m always so excited when an author ensured content warnings are listed within their book or on their website. As someone who’s used reading as an escape for years [woohoo childhood trauma 😅], it’s important that I avoid certain subjects or at least have ample warning to prepare myself, emotionally, ahead of reading. Any author, or publisher, that puts that little bit of effort to list potential content warnings will always have a special place in my heart.
Nausicaa, formerly known as Alecto, is a fallen fury. Taking vengeance into her own hands and exacted revenge on those responsible for hurting her dearest sister so badly that her sister ended her own life, she had no regrets. Nausicaa now spends her immortal life finding new ways to annoy and anger the Fae.
Arlo the daughter of a Fae mother and a human father is determined to find her place in the world. Never fully fitting in with the Fae, as so far she’s shown very little ability in magic, she’s struggled to find where her strength lies and where her future will take her.
Vehan, the prince of Seelie Summer, has had questions for the last few years so when things start happening he’s set on finally finding answers and solving the mystery that’s haunted him.
Aurelian, Vehan’s retainer and steward in training, is determined to protect the prince at all costs…even if that cost is creating distance between the two. Hiding a huge secret is hard but Aurelian will do whatever it takes to protect the prince physically, mentally, and emotionally.
We also get to see the inner thoughts of someone who despises the ruling Fae and is set on a path to destroy them… but I don’t feel like writing about them. 😋
I enjoyed seeing pieces fall into place and forces joined though we definitely don’t get every question answered in this book. Shuttleworth has set up quite a few questions that I’m thinking will be elaborated on and answered within book two. I didn’t quite get the found family trope I was hoping to get within this book, as all four characters I talked about aren’t super close yet, but I’m hoping that we’ll see friendships and relationships continue to grow in book two which will give that overall found family feeling.
Overall getting to know all the characters, except the one I refuse to write about 😤, was so much fun and I look forward to seeing where book two takes us. If you’re looking for a fantasy where most of the characters are still finding themselves and finding their inner strength, I recommend giving this book a go!
This book has been on my radar for a bit, and as book two was recently released I knew it was time to dive in. Right off the bat, I knew Shuttleworth was an author who cared about their readers. At the very front under “Author’s Notes,” they discuss the heavy topics that will be covered in the book along with content warnings.
I’m always so excited when an author ensured content warnings are listed within their book or on their website. As someone who’s used reading as an escape for years [woohoo childhood trauma 😅], it’s important that I avoid certain subjects or at least have ample warning to prepare myself, emotionally, ahead of reading. Any author, or publisher, that puts that little bit of effort to list potential content warnings will always have a special place in my heart.
Nausicaa, formerly known as Alecto, is a fallen fury. Taking vengeance into her own hands and exacted revenge on those responsible for hurting her dearest sister so badly that her sister ended her own life, she had no regrets. Nausicaa now spends her immortal life finding new ways to annoy and anger the Fae.
Arlo the daughter of a Fae mother and a human father is determined to find her place in the world. Never fully fitting in with the Fae, as so far she’s shown very little ability in magic, she’s struggled to find where her strength lies and where her future will take her.
Vehan, the prince of Seelie Summer, has had questions for the last few years so when things start happening he’s set on finally finding answers and solving the mystery that’s haunted him.
Aurelian, Vehan’s retainer and steward in training, is determined to protect the prince at all costs…even if that cost is creating distance between the two. Hiding a huge secret is hard but Aurelian will do whatever it takes to protect the prince physically, mentally, and emotionally.
We also get to see the inner thoughts of someone who despises the ruling Fae and is set on a path to destroy them… but I don’t feel like writing about them. 😋
I enjoyed seeing pieces fall into place and forces joined though we definitely don’t get every question answered in this book. Shuttleworth has set up quite a few questions that I’m thinking will be elaborated on and answered within book two. I didn’t quite get the found family trope I was hoping to get within this book, as all four characters I talked about aren’t super close yet, but I’m hoping that we’ll see friendships and relationships continue to grow in book two which will give that overall found family feeling.
Overall getting to know all the characters, except the one I refuse to write about 😤, was so much fun and I look forward to seeing where book two takes us. If you’re looking for a fantasy where most of the characters are still finding themselves and finding their inner strength, I recommend giving this book a go!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Violence, Grief, Child death, Murder, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Ableism, Abandonment, Child abuse, and Racism
Minor: Suicide, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment
jennamcclendon's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
***SPOILERS AHEAD. DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK.***
I heard this book was like a queer ACOTAR and that immediately intrigued me, and I’ve been wanting to read it for quite a while. Turns out it was everything I was hoping for and more. It definitely did feel a little like ACOTAR, but also a little bit of The Cruel Prince (from what I remember from that book). But God, I loved this book. I couldn’t put it down when I really got into it.
I heard this book was like a queer ACOTAR and that immediately intrigued me, and I’ve been wanting to read it for quite a while. Turns out it was everything I was hoping for and more. It definitely did feel a little like ACOTAR, but also a little bit of The Cruel Prince (from what I remember from that book). But God, I loved this book. I couldn’t put it down when I really got into it.
I will admit that at first I was confused about the whole fae/faerie/folk system and their magic and how all of the Courts and families worked, but that’s pretty typical of a fantasy book so it’s something I can look past. I immediately fell in love with Nausicaä and that love only continued to grow. She’s so snarky and I love that she’s so morally grey, but underneath the surface, you can tell she has a soft spot for the people she loves. I mean, she literally burnt down a boat for Tisiphone, she can love people. I also really liked Celadon at first (Arlo was kind of 50/50 at the beginning) but I couldn’t deny that this book had you already loving the characters as soon as they were introduced. And Aurelian and Vehan had such a compelling dynamic (PRINCE/BODYGUARD FORBIDDEN ROMANCE TROPE) from their first introduction and I shipped them probably instantly just from them describing each other. I’m usually not one for the friends-to-lovers trope but with them... yes. I could spend hours talking about how in love I am with Nausicaä and how amazing these characters are.
The only real complaint I would have with this book (hence the half star) is that it seemed a little slow in the beginning. There had to be a certain setup of events, like Hero meeting his Hunter and the Reaper in the cafe so Nos and Arlo could meet and Lethe being introduced with his past with Nos and everything. There was a lot of setup and the main squad didn’t even really meet until the latter half of the book. I would have loved to see more of them together. At the end in the lab, their dynamics (AURELIAN AND NOS ESPECIALLY) were so entertaining and I feel like it could have gone so much deeper. It just felt super long at the beginning only to pick up with the major conflict at the end.
However... the ROMANCES. There wasn’t a lot of it, but it still definitely was there. Arlo and Nausicaä had that tension from the beginning in the cafe, and then at the Faerie Ring with Nos being all protective, and then finally at the factory? With Nos being even MORE protective, and also THE KISS??? THE TITLE, THEIR KISS, AND AN ITALICIZED “oh.” ALL ON THE SAME PAGE. I love them so much. I’ve already checked for fanfics and there AREN’T any which should be a crime. And then Aurelian and Vehan. I mentioned it earlier: usually, friends-to-lovers isn’t my thing, but the way they’re so clearly in love with each other but if Vehan’s mom picks up on it Aurelian is going to die? If that happens in the next book I may combust.
Some of the other things I really liked were the way that gender and sexuality were presented. Vehan, Aurelian, and Nausicaä were all CANONICALLY AND EXPLICITLY STATED to be bisexual, gay, and lesbian respectively, and the author said Arlo is later going to come out as pansexual. All of the conversations about the deities and their pronouns and their gender fluidity were very straightforward too, and it was great to see they/them pronouns. Also the neopronouns (Vesper and xe/xem)! This was the first time I had ever seen neopronouns in a book and it was super cool! All of the pop culture references took a second to get used to (as is the case with urban fantasy) but all of the Pokemon and Dungeons & Dragons (I want that die so badly) and Lord of the Rings and SHE-RA references were great.
I think I’ve said all that I’ve wanted to say, but this was such a great book. Once you get sucked into it, you really can’t put it down and you fall in love with the characters (Nausicaä please marry me). It was all super cool and to be honest, I would rather read something like this than something like ACOTAR and The Cruel Prince (although I do want to reread those). Absolutely amazing, 10000/10. I CAN'T WAIT FOR A CRUEL AND FATED LIGHT THIS SUMMER.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Gore, Stalking, Suicide, Child death, and Violence
Minor: Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Racism, Trafficking, Body horror, and Drug use
taras's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I absolutely loved this book. The beginning was very slow paced and towards the end turned into more fast paced which I loved. I also enjoyed the world building and even the info dumping was interesting to me, after a while of reading.
About the characters:
Arlo - my second favourite character, I loved her personality from the start, her insecurities, her fear, she was relatable and I just got her. I loved that she had so many POV chapters.
Nausicaä/Alecto - my absolute favourite! I adored everything about her from the start. Her pain, her revenge, her anger, depression, sarcasm and humour, just everything about her made me love her more and more. I do like the name Alecto more than Nausicaä, and it's easier to pronounce too. I just wish she got more chapters from her POV, hopefully that will happen in the next book!
Vehan - I liked him, felt like there wasn't that much about his character but at times he was interesting and charming.
Aurelian - probably my least favourite character. He had his moments where I liked him but the majority of the time I was just kind of bored with him. I felt like his 4 chapters of POV were pointless and should've been given to Nausicaä instead.
Lethe & the wild hunt- I loved Lethe so much my third favourite, he was so interesting and mysterious! Everything about him made me love him so much. I don't even care if he's a villain (or maybe he's not) but I just loved him along with the rest of the wild hunt, all of them were so interesting too. I hope I get to know more about the others in the next book.
Celadon - my precious spoiled prince, I want more of him in the next book, hopefully he also gets a POV, because he's perfect!
Riadne - THAT ENDING MADE ME LOVE HER?! I LOVE TWISTED AND EVIL WOMEN!
Urielle, Megaera, Luck - I NEED MORE OF THEM I LOVED THEM!
Hero - he was okay, I liked him at first, he got very annoying towards the end but I guess that's what greed does to you, along with jealousy.
The only thing that really bothered me about this book was the lack of racial diversity, since it's set in Toronto and someone in the story even said, the city is very diverse yet the majority of the characters were white?? Just makes no sense. I hope in the next book it'll be more diverse!
Because of that I give this a 4.5 star rating, instead of 5.
About the characters:
Arlo - my second favourite character, I loved her personality from the start, her insecurities, her fear, she was relatable and I just got her. I loved that she had so many POV chapters.
Nausicaä/Alecto - my absolute favourite! I adored everything about her from the start. Her pain, her revenge, her anger, depression, sarcasm and humour, just everything about her made me love her more and more. I do like the name Alecto more than Nausicaä, and it's easier to pronounce too. I just wish she got more chapters from her POV, hopefully that will happen in the next book!
Vehan - I liked him, felt like there wasn't that much about his character but at times he was interesting and charming.
Aurelian - probably my least favourite character. He had his moments where I liked him but the majority of the time I was just kind of bored with him. I felt like his 4 chapters of POV were pointless and should've been given to Nausicaä instead.
Lethe & the wild hunt- I loved Lethe so much my third favourite, he was so interesting and mysterious! Everything about him made me love him so much. I don't even care if he's a villain (or maybe he's not) but I just loved him along with the rest of the wild hunt, all of them were so interesting too. I hope I get to know more about the others in the next book.
Celadon - my precious spoiled prince, I want more of him in the next book, hopefully he also gets a POV, because he's perfect!
Riadne - THAT ENDING MADE ME LOVE HER?! I LOVE TWISTED AND EVIL WOMEN!
Urielle, Megaera, Luck - I NEED MORE OF THEM I LOVED THEM!
Hero - he was okay, I liked him at first, he got very annoying towards the end but I guess that's what greed does to you, along with jealousy.
The only thing that really bothered me about this book was the lack of racial diversity, since it's set in Toronto and someone in the story even said, the city is very diverse yet the majority of the characters were white?? Just makes no sense. I hope in the next book it'll be more diverse!
Because of that I give this a 4.5 star rating, instead of 5.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Body horror, Death, and Racism
Moderate: Blood and Murder
Minor: Suicide
traeumenvonbuechern's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Gore, and Child death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, and Gun violence
Minor: Drug use, Body horror, Stalking, Suicide, and Racism
hannahwhiteyy's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This was a really good book! Written by a queer author, the book showcased a beautiful diversity of gender, sexuality and race. It was slow-paced in the beginning, which I didn’t love - hence the 4 stars. By the middle and end, I was truly engaged and genuinely related to each of the main characters. Worth the hype, but be careful of the content warnings!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Gun violence
Moderate: Mental illness, Drug use, Drug abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, Trafficking, Stalking, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism
jenny_librarian's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
I was in a slump when I started reading this. The sheer amount of infodumps and worldbuilding nearly put me off altogether. But I pushed through and I kept reading, and it never really got any better.
Part of it is probably due to this book being a debut. Big chunks could have easily been edited out and some sentences would have had much more punch if they’d been shortened to erase some of the purple prose. It’s not bad, but it’s distracting and a bit clunky.
I was slowly familiarizing myself with the character (although I still can barely tell Vehan from Aurelian), and then the whole D&D and seven sins things were dropped in and it was just too much. The whole faerie world was already big enough without including the sins in it. And the whole role play thing with the dice was too much. If you want to make a game type book, then make a game type book. Don’t just drop a role play element in the middle of a novel that had nothing to do with it until then.
I really wanted to enjoy this book (gay fairies in Canada, I mean come on!) but it fell flat for me. I don’t care enough about the characters to continue with the sequel, and the dice thing is just too weird for me anyways.
Part of it is probably due to this book being a debut. Big chunks could have easily been edited out and some sentences would have had much more punch if they’d been shortened to erase some of the purple prose. It’s not bad, but it’s distracting and a bit clunky.
I was slowly familiarizing myself with the character (although I still can barely tell Vehan from Aurelian), and then the whole D&D and seven sins things were dropped in and it was just too much. The whole faerie world was already big enough without including the sins in it. And the whole role play thing with the dice was too much. If you want to make a game type book, then make a game type book. Don’t just drop a role play element in the middle of a novel that had nothing to do with it until then.
I really wanted to enjoy this book (gay fairies in Canada, I mean come on!) but it fell flat for me. I don’t care enough about the characters to continue with the sequel, and the dice thing is just too weird for me anyways.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Trafficking and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Gore, and Death
Minor: Body horror, Mental illness, Drug use, Grief, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
tonimmarie's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Yeah this is my new obsession.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Body horror
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
mirandavictoria's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book was incredible! The plot was gripping, the characters were loveable, and the magic system was immensely intriguing. I loved reading a book set in Toronto, as it provided a unique reading experience for me, as someone who lives near there. The pop culture references were witty and very well done - something that can be hard to do, as they can get cheesy. The LGBTQ+ and mental health rep was also very well done and refreshing to see. Overall, a magically enjoyable read!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
thecourtofreading's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
"heroes went through so much hardship. heroes were the stuff of tragedies."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Drug use, Gore, and Blood
Minor: Gun violence, Body horror, Racism, and Emotional abuse