Scan barcode
A review by rachandbooks
Night Shine by Tessa Gratton
4.0
“She wanted to feel as big as the night sky and as filled with magic. Dark distance, silver light, that night shine—she wanted to know the kinds of purple and midnight blue and sparks of red layered together that made it seem so black between the stars, and she wanted to stare and stare until the stars stopped being silver and turned pink, blue, orange, and gold. She wanted the stars to be butterflies. Nothing wanted to know what she could be.”
NIGHT SHINE by Tessa Gratton starts by introducing a girl named Nothing and her closest friend, Prince Kirin Dark-Smile, heir to the throne. Nothing appeared from nowhere in the palace and was taken under Kirin’s wing and protection. Nothing lives quietly and often moves through the castle in mysterious, shadowy ways, and she is often found making friends with the local spirits and the Great Demon of the palace. Her days of moving about unseen are stopped short when Kirin returns from his summer away from the palace with his private guard, Sky, and only Nothing can tell that it is not truly Kirin, but an imposter in his place. Once Nothing and Sky realize what has happened, they take off on a quest to find him, as they suspect he has been taken by none other than The Sorceress Who Eats Girls, though they are perplexed why she would take him and not another girl. Nothing and Sky embark to find the Fifth Mountain where the Empress reigns ruthlessly and Nothing discovers parts of herself she could have never guessed or dreamed. And the bargain with the Sorceress to regain her dearest friend may very well cost Nothing her heart.
NIGHT SHINE is magical and heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. The reason I was drawn to it in the first place is because of the comp to Howl’s Moving Castle, which is one of my favorites stories in the entire world. If you liked the darkness of the movie, then you’re in luck, because it felt more like the movie in tone and atmosphere, which I truly enjoyed so much. I was also pleasantly surprised that this book reminded me of another one of my all-time favorite novels, In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente, with the orphan girl origin story, mysterious creatures, and interesting names like The Day the Sky Opened, or Sky for short. NIGHT SHINE is fairy-tale-esque but adventurous at the same time. It’s about finding yourself and loving yourself and embracing all parts of who you are, and what makes you, you. It showcases the importance of names. The importance of what you desire deep down. It also has heavy themes of what love means and how many different forms it can take on. Love is a complex and messy thing, and Gratton did a fantastic job exploring different facets of it. Gratton also wrote a compelling plot of what it means to be non-binary and genderfluid, and I can’t speak to the representation myself, but I was personally extremely moved by it. This was my first book by Tessa Gratton and it won’t be my last. I’m really excited to go back and read her other books now, especially knowing that she’s written books that are Shakespeare retellings. Yes, please.
I loved the way the relationships in this book played out and developed. I had many *squeeeee!!!* type moments because it was so charming. There are a few “pairings” that are just so well-developed. Make no mistake that the relationships in this book are very queer :) It is fantastic. The friendships also really stood out to me, but defining the relationships in the book as simply platonic friendships would be misleading because it’s deeper than that. Gratton wrote a story that is not heteronormative in the least and I’m thankful that it will be out in the world. And like I mentioned earlier, Gratton writes about relationships in different forms, so she does touch on things like toxic relationships and codependency, which I thought added depth to the narrative and the arcs of the characters.
While I loved the characters and magical elements of the novel, it felt as though it was cut short. At least for me. When it ended, I felt like… no. Wait. It’s not really over yet, right? I saw another reviewer point out that it took a long time for the actual story to begin, and part of me is inclined to agree. I was waiting for some moments to happen that never did. Other than that, I really enjoyed this book. It was dreamy and weird and beautiful, which is right up my personal reading alley. Tessa Gratton’s prose is fantastic and I could probably gush about it for another whole paragraph but I’ll just say: the writing is incredible, the characters will have you pulling on your heartstrings, and the story is memorable. Definitely read this book if you’re looking for something that feels distinctively different in fantasy.
The story inside this book is a special one. 4.25 stars for NIGHT SHINE.
NIGHT SHINE by Tessa Gratton starts by introducing a girl named Nothing and her closest friend, Prince Kirin Dark-Smile, heir to the throne. Nothing appeared from nowhere in the palace and was taken under Kirin’s wing and protection. Nothing lives quietly and often moves through the castle in mysterious, shadowy ways, and she is often found making friends with the local spirits and the Great Demon of the palace. Her days of moving about unseen are stopped short when Kirin returns from his summer away from the palace with his private guard, Sky, and only Nothing can tell that it is not truly Kirin, but an imposter in his place. Once Nothing and Sky realize what has happened, they take off on a quest to find him, as they suspect he has been taken by none other than The Sorceress Who Eats Girls, though they are perplexed why she would take him and not another girl. Nothing and Sky embark to find the Fifth Mountain where the Empress reigns ruthlessly and Nothing discovers parts of herself she could have never guessed or dreamed. And the bargain with the Sorceress to regain her dearest friend may very well cost Nothing her heart.
NIGHT SHINE is magical and heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. The reason I was drawn to it in the first place is because of the comp to Howl’s Moving Castle, which is one of my favorites stories in the entire world. If you liked the darkness of the movie, then you’re in luck, because it felt more like the movie in tone and atmosphere, which I truly enjoyed so much. I was also pleasantly surprised that this book reminded me of another one of my all-time favorite novels, In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente, with the orphan girl origin story, mysterious creatures, and interesting names like The Day the Sky Opened, or Sky for short. NIGHT SHINE is fairy-tale-esque but adventurous at the same time. It’s about finding yourself and loving yourself and embracing all parts of who you are, and what makes you, you. It showcases the importance of names. The importance of what you desire deep down. It also has heavy themes of what love means and how many different forms it can take on. Love is a complex and messy thing, and Gratton did a fantastic job exploring different facets of it. Gratton also wrote a compelling plot of what it means to be non-binary and genderfluid, and I can’t speak to the representation myself, but I was personally extremely moved by it. This was my first book by Tessa Gratton and it won’t be my last. I’m really excited to go back and read her other books now, especially knowing that she’s written books that are Shakespeare retellings. Yes, please.
I loved the way the relationships in this book played out and developed. I had many *squeeeee!!!* type moments because it was so charming. There are a few “pairings” that are just so well-developed. Make no mistake that the relationships in this book are very queer :) It is fantastic. The friendships also really stood out to me, but defining the relationships in the book as simply platonic friendships would be misleading because it’s deeper than that. Gratton wrote a story that is not heteronormative in the least and I’m thankful that it will be out in the world. And like I mentioned earlier, Gratton writes about relationships in different forms, so she does touch on things like toxic relationships and codependency, which I thought added depth to the narrative and the arcs of the characters.
While I loved the characters and magical elements of the novel, it felt as though it was cut short. At least for me. When it ended, I felt like… no. Wait. It’s not really over yet, right? I saw another reviewer point out that it took a long time for the actual story to begin, and part of me is inclined to agree. I was waiting for some moments to happen that never did. Other than that, I really enjoyed this book. It was dreamy and weird and beautiful, which is right up my personal reading alley. Tessa Gratton’s prose is fantastic and I could probably gush about it for another whole paragraph but I’ll just say: the writing is incredible, the characters will have you pulling on your heartstrings, and the story is memorable. Definitely read this book if you’re looking for something that feels distinctively different in fantasy.
The story inside this book is a special one. 4.25 stars for NIGHT SHINE.