A review by hsinjulit
There's Magic Between Us by Jillian Maria

5.0

God forbid anyone assumes I’m heterosexual.

Fiery pansexual disaster with too much energy! Magical woods! Faeries!

Lydia Barnes (16, pansexual) spends a week with her grandmother at Fairbrooke. Her mother hates the town and the townspeople hate her. But Lydia’s grandmother is nice and there is a forest nearby that everyone tells her to avoid. So what will Lydia find if she set foot in the woods when her grandmother naps? Eden Yu (16, Chinese American) and lots of secrets.

It’s been a while since I had so much fun with a new read, but I did up my rating a bit just because I would have loved it even more had I been ten years younger, which is in the range of the targeted audience. I love Lydia, this prickly teen who would probably bite all her enemies. She has unbounded energy and will be quick to scale a wall when she can. The love interest Eden is more of a mysterious character. Who is this girl in the woods? Why is she trying to find those wood pieces?

You know how when you mix too many colors together, it turns into a mushy brown? That’s what my emotions are doing.

In some ways, this book reminds me of One Last Stop sans the queer found family (but there are other queer characters including a genderfluid side character): disaster m-spec main character, mysterious Chinese American love interest, and the mother-daughter bond. Yes, we need more books with chaotic queer people and magic and cuteness!

There are some heavier elements here and there, such as trapped humans, and facing ones desire and fear honestly. Overall, though, Lydia’s week-long adventure was both sweet and exciting. Oh, and Lydia lives in Chicago, one of my favorite cities, so I am definitely biased.

Read this if you want a cute, chaotic queer YA fantasy with faeries. Note that there are no intimate scenes beyond kissing.

content warnings: teen pregnancy of side character (pedophilia???), bullying, kidnapping, arson

I received an e-ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.