A review by bookishvicky
Call Forth a Fox by Markelle Grabo

adventurous hopeful 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

4.0

Thank you to NetGalley and Page Street Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

Rating: 4 stars★
Release Date: 02 April 2024

Review:

Call Forth a Fox was a magical experience with charming characters, using winter as a brilliant backdrop for such a bleak story that breaks through to hope just in time for spring. The twists in this book were great, and had me reading well into the night. 

I found Ro to be such an intriguing main character; her love of the forest and distaste for village life felt perfect for a story about faeries. I loved watching her grow and discover who she truly is as the story progressed, both in heritage and love. 

On the flipside, I do feel like the pacing was a little slow and dragged out. The final confrontation scene felt five pages too long, with constant back and forth. I also wished we got more of Eirwyn, as we’re constantly told about the sisters’ bond rather than witnessing it in action. Also, I can’t lie, the girls’ mother being gone for the majority of the story felt like a cop-out. I know her being there would answer a lot of the questions the girls had, but still. 

Overall, I did enjoy this book, though I wish it went a bit more in-depth with the world and characters. It felt like everything sort of overshadowed each other, with the romance being on the backburner for the faerie realm which was put on the backburner for whatever Ro and Brend had going on. 

I’ll absolutely read a sequel if there ever is one, as I adore the world and the characters and need to know more! It’s the kind of open-ended conclusion that just leaves me wanting, but also satisfied, which a lot of books struggle to pull off as well as Grabo did here. 
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