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A review by sagec_13
Evergreen by Devin Greenlee
4.0
**Thank you to the publisher for providing an electronic ARC through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**
In Devin Greenlee’s queer young adult fantasy debut, we follow Quill, a young half-dryad who has been hidden away from the outside world as he grows into his magic.
The problem is, his magic hasn’t come yet (much to Quill’s frustration). He longs to explore the world, go to school, maybe even make a friend… but for now he’s restricted to his family’s garden and flower shop.
Then their new neighbor Liam comes crashing in (literally) onto Quill’s fire escape. A potential new friend combined with a mystery involving a thief that has broken into the (magical, fragile, nothing-in-it-should-be-in-the-hands-of-anyone-outside-Quill’s-family) garden… Quill has a lot to juggle after a life of complete secrecy.
This coming-of-age book pulled me in and didn’t let me go for a good while— just as the original Secret Garden story did the first time I read it! It was fascinating to see how Quill navigated learning about himself, about his magic, and the outside world, I adored the character interactions (Liam and Quill’s budding romance is so sweet!), and it was so refreshing to see that Quill has a loving and supportive family.
While I was very excited to read a queer fantasy retelling of The Secret Garden (one of my favorites as a kid), this felt more like a reimagining than a beat-for-beat retelling. Which isn’t a bad thing, just wasn’t quite what I was expecting from the marketing.
All in all this was a wonderfully heartwarming queer urban fairytale, and I look forward to reading it again and again!
In Devin Greenlee’s queer young adult fantasy debut, we follow Quill, a young half-dryad who has been hidden away from the outside world as he grows into his magic.
The problem is, his magic hasn’t come yet (much to Quill’s frustration). He longs to explore the world, go to school, maybe even make a friend… but for now he’s restricted to his family’s garden and flower shop.
Then their new neighbor Liam comes crashing in (literally) onto Quill’s fire escape. A potential new friend combined with a mystery involving a thief that has broken into the (magical, fragile, nothing-in-it-should-be-in-the-hands-of-anyone-outside-Quill’s-family) garden… Quill has a lot to juggle after a life of complete secrecy.
This coming-of-age book pulled me in and didn’t let me go for a good while— just as the original Secret Garden story did the first time I read it! It was fascinating to see how Quill navigated learning about himself, about his magic, and the outside world, I adored the character interactions (Liam and Quill’s budding romance is so sweet!), and it was so refreshing to see that Quill has a loving and supportive family.
While I was very excited to read a queer fantasy retelling of The Secret Garden (one of my favorites as a kid), this felt more like a reimagining than a beat-for-beat retelling. Which isn’t a bad thing, just wasn’t quite what I was expecting from the marketing.
All in all this was a wonderfully heartwarming queer urban fairytale, and I look forward to reading it again and again!