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stress_reader 's review for:
Quicksilver
by Callie Hart
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-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:
Complicated
Quicksilver by @calliehartauthor is a magical adventure across realms that immerses you in lands with mythical beings, magic, and mystery with a twist you won't see coming.
Saeris is from a desert and has always had to beg, fight, and steal for water so that she and her brother might have a chance to live another day. When she inadvertently opens a portal and Death shows up and carries her through the portal, she wakes in a foreign world at war, full of ice and snow - and Fae. She's told she's an Alchemist and must use her Alchemist powers to create things for the Fae before she'll be allowed to go home. But she doesn't even know what that word means, let alone how to access and use that power. When she meets Kingfisher, a handsome Fae warrior with a terrible attitude, it's loathe at first sentence. The Fae realm has been at war for centuries, but everyone says The Alchemist is the only one who can change the tides. Will Saeris be able to harness her powers and save the Fae realm? Will she get back to her beloved brother? Will she and Kingfisher be anything more than enemies?
I loved Quicksilver, couldn't read it fast enough. It grabbed ahold of me immediately and left me inpatient for October when the second book releases. By 20% I knew I needed a physical copy. Unfortunately the SE was already sold out 😭, but I'm hoping for a restock. 🤞🏻 I read it on KU because I kept hearing about it and was curious what the hype was about (plus didn't want to risk it being accidentally spoiled). I also didn't want to have the hype built so high in my head that there was no way anything could compare. I'm SO glad I did, because I would've been heartbroken to have missed out on the magic of this gem. 😍
Most romantasy books seem to fall on either side, being more romance or fantasy heavy. Quicksilver, though, falls right in the middle. This one made me feel all the emotions, happy, sad, angry, and a laughed some.
"Easy to judge... from a postion of privilege."
The plot is great, interesting with some twists and turns (that ending 🤯). There are some deeper themes throughout the book, like consent, privilege, racism, and xenophobia.
"Easy to judge... from a postion of privilege."
"The easiest way to win any war was to create dissent amongst your enemy's ranks so that they wasted their time and energy fighting each other instead of you."
The world building is really good. The magic system is unique and interesting, well put together and explained.
I enjoyed the pacing, I never got bored. Overall I would say medium pace and is roughly equal on character vs plot.
"So yes, I'll hurt you if it means I keep you safe. I'll force you to follow me to the ends of this realm, because that is the only way I can make sure you stay alive. Now drink your beer."
Prose is good, as is the dialogue. Easy to read, flowed well, descriptive enough to immerse yourself. Of you're a fan of a male with a dirty mouth, you're going to love Kingfisher.
The characters were interesting and very well developed. I loved most of them, and loved to hate a few. I don't love Kingfisher's name, even though that's probably petty lol.
"But you couldn't hate something without caring about it just a little, too."
There are a couple lines that Kingfisher says that made me uncomfortable, but they were also true. 🤷♀️ Later in the book it 💯 makes sense why he said those things and it fit his character and arc perfectly.
There's a little bit of mental health rep, and it's done well.
There are about 5 spicy scenes throughout, with a couple being various levels of making out. About 3 of them are detailed full on spicy scenes. I only skimmed 1 or 2 of the "completion" scenes, because I didn't care about the spice much at that point - I just needed to know what happened next in the plot. 😅
If you're looking for a book with a good mix of fantasy and romance, this one is for you. If you like Red Queen, A Court of Thorns & Roses, Throne of Glass, From Blood & Ash, Crescent City, Shatter Me, Folk of the Air series, and/or Serpent & Dove, Daughter of No Worlds, you should check this one out - I think you'll love it!
It does end on a mild cliffhanger. However, it's more of a set up for book 2 than it is a big cliffhanger.
I'm not sure what things should/shouldn't be given new names in fantasy lit, or don't belong in a fantasy world. I didn't take issue with any of the ones changed/not changed in 'Quicksilver,' but I also can't say someone else wouldn't. Like should "moon" stay the same? Would time be measured and called the same thing? I feel like a fantasy world probably would have "cliff notes," but I'm absolutely not sure. Regardless, none of the things I was unsure if belonged or should be differently named impacted the plot so I don't feel it matters.
Saeris is from a desert and has always had to beg, fight, and steal for water so that she and her brother might have a chance to live another day. When she inadvertently opens a portal and Death shows up and carries her through the portal, she wakes in a foreign world at war, full of ice and snow - and Fae. She's told she's an Alchemist and must use her Alchemist powers to create things for the Fae before she'll be allowed to go home. But she doesn't even know what that word means, let alone how to access and use that power. When she meets Kingfisher, a handsome Fae warrior with a terrible attitude, it's loathe at first sentence. The Fae realm has been at war for centuries, but everyone says The Alchemist is the only one who can change the tides. Will Saeris be able to harness her powers and save the Fae realm? Will she get back to her beloved brother? Will she and Kingfisher be anything more than enemies?
I loved Quicksilver, couldn't read it fast enough. It grabbed ahold of me immediately and left me inpatient for October when the second book releases. By 20% I knew I needed a physical copy. Unfortunately the SE was already sold out 😭, but I'm hoping for a restock. 🤞🏻 I read it on KU because I kept hearing about it and was curious what the hype was about (plus didn't want to risk it being accidentally spoiled). I also didn't want to have the hype built so high in my head that there was no way anything could compare. I'm SO glad I did, because I would've been heartbroken to have missed out on the magic of this gem. 😍
Most romantasy books seem to fall on either side, being more romance or fantasy heavy. Quicksilver, though, falls right in the middle. This one made me feel all the emotions, happy, sad, angry, and a laughed some.
"Easy to judge... from a postion of privilege."
The plot is great, interesting with some twists and turns (that ending 🤯). There are some deeper themes throughout the book, like consent, privilege, racism, and xenophobia.
"Easy to judge... from a postion of privilege."
"The easiest way to win any war was to create dissent amongst your enemy's ranks so that they wasted their time and energy fighting each other instead of you."
The world building is really good. The magic system is unique and interesting, well put together and explained.
I enjoyed the pacing, I never got bored. Overall I would say medium pace and is roughly equal on character vs plot.
"So yes, I'll hurt you if it means I keep you safe. I'll force you to follow me to the ends of this realm, because that is the only way I can make sure you stay alive. Now drink your beer."
Prose is good, as is the dialogue. Easy to read, flowed well, descriptive enough to immerse yourself. Of you're a fan of a male with a dirty mouth, you're going to love Kingfisher.
The characters were interesting and very well developed. I loved most of them, and loved to hate a few. I don't love Kingfisher's name, even though that's probably petty lol.
"But you couldn't hate something without caring about it just a little, too."
There are a couple lines that Kingfisher says that made me uncomfortable, but they were also true. 🤷♀️ Later in the book it 💯 makes sense why he said those things and it fit his character and arc perfectly.
There's a little bit of mental health rep, and it's done well.
There are about 5 spicy scenes throughout, with a couple being various levels of making out. About 3 of them are detailed full on spicy scenes. I only skimmed 1 or 2 of the "completion" scenes, because I didn't care about the spice much at that point - I just needed to know what happened next in the plot. 😅
If you're looking for a book with a good mix of fantasy and romance, this one is for you. If you like Red Queen, A Court of Thorns & Roses, Throne of Glass, From Blood & Ash, Crescent City, Shatter Me, Folk of the Air series, and/or Serpent & Dove, Daughter of No Worlds, you should check this one out - I think you'll love it!
It does end on a mild cliffhanger. However, it's more of a set up for book 2 than it is a big cliffhanger.
I'm not sure what things should/shouldn't be given new names in fantasy lit, or don't belong in a fantasy world. I didn't take issue with any of the ones changed/not changed in 'Quicksilver,' but I also can't say someone else wouldn't. Like should "moon" stay the same? Would time be measured and called the same thing? I feel like a fantasy world probably would have "cliff notes," but I'm absolutely not sure. Regardless, none of the things I was unsure if belonged or should be differently named impacted the plot so I don't feel it matters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, War
Moderate: Violence, Murder, War
Minor: Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Death of parent, Alcohol