sophs_mood_reading 's review for:

Of Mountains and Seas by Emily Renk Hawthorne

4.0

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Magic-less in a family of shapeshifters, Davis is desperate for approval and power. Enter Iris, a girl with dreams as big as her mysterious illness is debilitating. Their paths cross in Yuras, a sleepy California town with a not-so-sleepy secret: a cave full of magic transferring stones. Jackpot, right? Not so fast. With locals snooping around and Davis’s skeletons threatening to burst out of the closet, their quest turns into a rollercoaster of secrets, magic, and a whole lot of drama.

This is a multi POV, timeline hopping adventure, shifting between the perspectives of the main characters across different points in time. It’s a perfect blend of shapeshifters inspired by Chinese mythology, strong female leads, and villains you’ll love to hate. The political intrigue surrounding magical folks blending in with the normies adds a juicy layer to the already rich plot. Think magical realism with a side of suspenseful drama.

I listened to the audiobook, which was pretty solid overall, though I did find myself wondering “Wait, which timeline are we in now?” a couple of times. But hey, the smooth narration made it easy to dive back in after those minor hiccups.