AJ Lancaster's The Prince of Secrets
I liked this second volume a little bit less, because the love interest is added as a POV character and he’s not as interesting to me. To be fair, the book does mention that he is melodramatic, which is exactly my complaint! Things do pick up and get a lot more fun like halfway through. It looks like this series is going to be more about Fae politics than amusing squabbling relatives, which isn’t exactly what I wanted but I’ll still read the next one. B/B+.
AJ Lancaster's The Lord of Stariel
I'm still seeking out new fantasy series to read, and this one was definitely up my alley. It's set in your usual old-fashioned-version-of-England-with-magic (or anyway somewhere England-ish, I think the author is from New Zealand). Our heroine left home years ago to study magic and work in the theatre, gasp, scandalous! but now she is heading home because her father has died and a new Lord must be chosen (magically). Lots of secrets and mysteries and hijinks and a lil romance ensue, which is just how I like it. There's also a lot of good (and funny) family stuff here, which I look forward to seeing more of in the rest of the series. A-.
Jaclyn Moriarty’s A Tangle of Gold
Definitely a satisfying and charming conclusion to this series; it is a little bit of a slower start than the others, but once the plotlines start to come together, it gets great (and in the meantime, everything with Keira is a delight). And I love every single thing about the ending. So good.
Jaclyn Moriarty’s The Cracks in the Kingdom
This is such a good volume two of a trilogy—raises the stakes, answers some questions and introduces some others, has a totally great cliffhanger ending, and is also really satisfying in of itself. I really love Moriarty’s characters and their relationships, and I especially love her sense of humor. I mean, even her discussions of physics manage to be interesting! (Maybe you already like physics, even better!) This series is perfect escapism.
Jaclyn Moriarty’s A Corner of White
Just rereading one of my favorite series because I wanted to be sure I was reading something great and magical and full of mystery and friendships and family etc. Not to mention a lot of conversation about Lord Byron and Isaac Newton. And general humor and adventure and great characters. You know, an awesome book.
TJ Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea
This book is a good example of why sometimes you need to be in the right mood or headspace to enjoy something: I got it from the library months ago and read the first few pages and felt very MEH about it for whatever reason. But I kept seeing people talk about how sweet it was, so decided to give it another shot, and this time I connected with it. It’s the story of a caseworker for the government department who deals with orphanages of magical children, and what happens when he’s sent to inspect some very special children indeed. It’s all predictable and a little bit cheesy at times, but it is also very sweet. I was partial to Talia for sure. There are some great funny moments, which help balance the sometimes heavy-handed moral lessons. B+.
Emily M. Danforth's Plain Bad Heroines
This is a pretty solidly creepy October read full of lesbians, so fairly up my alley. It’s about a girls' boarding school in 1902, where a group of girls are obsessed with the diary of an unconventional girl (apparently a real book), and where mysterious deaths start to happen. And it’s also about three young women in modern times making a movie about said school and its supposed curse. I was a little more invested in the latter plotline; the historical plotline has a lot going in and doesn’t feel fully resolved. Actually, the ending of this is kind of disappointing in general. I liked the very last scene but it felt like a whole section leading up to it got chopped. Good spooky atmosphere though, this book furthers my resolve to stay indoors as much as possible. B+.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on Tuesday.
Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl
I’m partway into two different perfectly fine fantasy novels, but I got volume one of the manga version of this (it's cute) which of course made me want to put those other books down and revisit this one. And it’s such a satisfying story to revisit. I really love these characters, and I think this still holds up even as fandom is much more in the public eye than it was ten years ago. I mean, a lot of people will relate to a super anxious person going to college and being freaked out even if they don’t think it’s weird she writes fic. Rainbow Rowell is one of those writers who writes nice people trying to figure out their shit, and I love it.
Victoria Goddard’s Love-in-a-Mist
I think I would have felt much more bereft about being done with the epic fantasy series I spent the last month on if I didn’t have this book to look forward to! This is the fifth Greenwing and Dart book, and it’s just as funny and full of magic and adventure (and a wee bit of romance) as its predecessors. After the events of the last book, our intrepid duo and their friends are finally heading home, when a storm finds them waylaid at a mysterious manor. There is a UNICORN! And also a MURDER! So basically everything I love in one story. I can’t wait to see what happens next in this series, it looks like a lot of stuff is going to come to a head soon (and perhaps there will be a ball?). A.
Robin Hobb’s Assassin's Fate
Well, I’ve spent basically all of the last month reading this series, and here it draws to a close. And Hobb sticks the landing, bringing all of the various characters and storylines together for an epic finale. I was bawling for like the last four chapters. It was really satisfying as a conclusion and it was also really satisfying to be able to really immerse myself in another world for so long. I need more giant epic series! A.
Robin Hobb's Fool's Quest
Look, it's not like a plot summary of the 15th book in a 16 book series would make sense anyway, but this book is a lot of "hurry up and wait around." I mean obviously I still enjoyed it, as I'm super into all these characters at this point, but it takes way too long for all the inevitable stuff to happen, plus there is a lot of rape. Way too much rape. And then the last couple chapters get so good and it ends! What the hell, Robin Hobb. B/B+.
Robin Hobb’s Fool's Assassin
Sometimes even the most responsible adult gives in to the urge to stay up too late reading because you’ve just GOT to find out what happens. And the first book of the final trilogy set in this world is a doozy. I mean, I enjoy spending time with Fitz and his compatriots, but the introduction of Bee really had me hooked. (She is great, and Fitz is frustratingly stupid about her.) And then that ending! So glad I only have to wait till tomorrow to start the next one! A/A-.
Robin Hobb’s Blood of Dragons
So the conclusion to the Rain Wilds series is /pretty/ satisfying, though perhaps not as totally satisfying as I wanted. I did enjoy one hated character's demise, and the dragons are still awesome in this one. I guess the wrap up just felt a little YA-ish to me with its focus on romance (though I should note that there are some cute gay couples in this series, which is nice). Anyway, I imagine all of this will play into the FINAL TRILOGY, omg, only three books left in this world, crying emoji. B+.
Robin Hobb’s City of Dragons
This was another one that felt like the first part of a book and not a full story on its own. I was glad to see some of my favorite characters make a return, but again, there’s no conclusion here! Not satisfying, really. I do have faith the fourth book will wrap things up well, though. B/B+.
Robin Hobb’s Dragon Haven
Now, /this/ has a conclusion that’s satisfying but still makes me eager to see what will happen next! Lots of good character development, lots of awesome dragons, and a fun little side plot with the developing relationship between two messenger-bird keepers (I love an epistolary story). I really liked this one. A/A-.
Robin Hobb's Dragon Keeper
This is the start of Hobb's Rain Wilds Chronicles, a series of four books that follow on the Liveship Traders trilogy (though obviously the other trilogies are also relevant), with mainly a new cast of characters. I mean, obviously some of the earlier prominent characters make appearances, but I definitely wanted more Malta and missed Amber (AMBER) a lot. Anyway, some of the characters here are a young Rain Wilder girl, recruited to help escort the unhealthy dragons away; a Bingtown woman who wants to study the dragons (and also prove something to her cruel, secretly gay husband); her husband's secretary (and secret boyfriend); a barge captain; one of said dragons, etc. This is all pretty entertaining and interesting, but it ends super abruptly. Like I know this is a series, but normally Hobb kind of wraps things up in some way or another. I thought I was missing chapters! Well, it doesn’t really matter, as I’m obviously about to immediately start the next one. B+.
Beth O'Leary's The Flatshare
Taking a brief break from epic fantasies to slide in this month's book club book under the wire! This is sort of a romance/women’s fiction-y thing, but it’s British, and I always like those. This centers on a woman, an editor at a craft book publisher with an eclectic personal style, who has to move out of her Extremely Bad ex's apartment, and winds up flat sharing with a (male) night nurse. So they have opposite schedules and communicate via post-it notes. That part is all very cute. There’s also a whole plotline where the heroine realizes she has ptsd and deals with that, and another plotline with the nurse's brother in jail for a crime he did not commit. Much of this was a little bit too on the nose, but I think the side bits about the gay WWII vet and the crochet designer becoming an Internet celebrity help balance things out. A-/B+.
Robin Hobb’s Fool's Fate
The final book in the Tawny Man trilogy does feel like an ending, except I know there are two more series left to go! Anyway, fairly satisfying stuff, though I did have some issues with the way a thirteen year old girl was portrayed. But yeah, totally great epic wrap up for sure. A-.
Robin Hobb’s The Golden Fool
The second book in the Tawny Man trilogy has a lot going on but also not much going on? Which was fine, because I enjoy reading about these characters (even though Fitz still acts like a sulky teen while being in his 30s). This one had more homophobic characters and also characters being pretty rude about a guy who I think is supposed to have Downs Syndrome, so that was somewhat unpleasant. Anyway, it’s all setting up an epic journey of adventure in book three, so I’m looking forward to that. A-.
Robin Hobb’s Fool's Errand
This is the start of another trilogy in Hobb's world, once again focused on Fitz, set fifteen years after the first trilogy. Fitz has been chilling as a hermit, but he's called upon to use his unique skills to track down a missing prince. Adventures and magic ensue, but this was overshadowed for me by the very bad timing of having to read the deaths of beloved animal companions just a week after the death of my own beloved animal companion. Sob city. SOB CITY. A-.
Robin Hobb’s Ship of Destiny
The conclusion to the Liveship Traders trilogy is a satisfying one, as all the story strands come together, secrets are revealed, dragons are revealed, etc. There are a lot of rape threats and an actual rape, which obviously I would have preferred to do without. This is kind of balanced by the extremely interesting and awesome women characters, who continue to have a lot of personal growth to become even more awesome. A-.
Robin Hobb's Mad Ship
More magical ship adventures ahoy. This one ramps up the political intrigue, adds more characters (including one familiar one!), has some romance and a bunch of interesting women (unfortunately it also has some rape). Gradually all the pieces are coming together and making sense in the larger context of the universe here, and I have faith Hobb can stick the landing with volume 3. A-.
Robin Hobb's Ship of Magic
This is the start of a new trilogy set in the same world as the ones about Fitz; I was psyched to start because these characters sail around on LIVING SHIPS! Yes, some boats are magically alive and have personalities and feelings!! I mean, there are also a lot of interesting humans in this one. It has a lot more POV characters—Althea, the daughter of a ship captain, stuck with a horrible sexist brother in law; her father's first mate; her nephew, in training to be a priest; various other of her relatives; an extremely unpleasant sociopath who wants to be King of the Pirates; a couple of living ships, sea serpents etc. I liked the first three and all the ships a lot but wanted someone to kill the two awful dudes. Smash the patriarchy! Parts of this I read with dread (including the ending) and parts have me rooting for romance and friendship and happy living ships. Only two more 800 page books to go to see how it wraps up! A-.
Robin Hobb's Assassin’s Quest
While I don’t at all mind a slow paced fantasy novel, I don’t love fantasy novels with interminable road trips (or whatever the version of road trip is where a group of people is marching inexorably forward for hundreds of pages), so I was a little frustrated during this book. Still, I was invested in the characters and their relationships (even when they were being stupid), and really liked how things wrapped up. Content warning for a brief discussion of rape. A-.
Robin Hobb's Royal Assassin
This one starts a little weird, because it feels like it negates a lot of the ending of the first one, but eventually I got into it. The pace is slow, which at times I really enjoyed, and at other times was frustrated by (someone stop that bad guy already!!). Good animal pals and interesting women in this one, and I remain invested in all the various characters and their relationships. A-.
Robin Hobb's The Assassin's Apprentice
Well, I wanted more fantasy series to read, and it turns out Robin Hobb is a woman, and this series has like 16 books and thousands of pages, so let’s go! In this first one, a little boy, the bastard son of the king's heir, is growing up, mainly raised by his father's stablemaster, and then apprenticed to the king's assassin (as the title indicates). Also he can psychically talk to animals!! I really liked this, though there are some rough and heartbreaking parts. Great narrative voice, and kept me interested (I woke up this morning like “I gotta get back to reading to find out what happens to Verity!”). I’m looking forward to reading more! A/A-.
C.L. Polk's The Midnight Bargain
I love a historical fantasy, which this isn’t, because it’s explicitly set in a fantasy world (the fancy rich people are Black!), but it has a real Regency/Austen kind of feel. So our heroine is on the marriage market, but is determined to avoid marriage and use her magic to become a sorceress, because married women are prevented from using magic until menopause. Except her family reallllly needs her to marry well because they are deep in debt. And the richest guy in town is super cute and sympathetic, and his sister stole a magical book she needs, and maybe they should band together to solve their magical problems caused by patriarchal societies? I liked the relationships between the main three a lot, but did think the story spun in circles for a chapter or two too long (I love him! But I don’t want to lose my magic! Etc etc). Still a really fun read, and reminds me I’ve been meaning to check out Polk's Witchmark series. Nadi 4-eva! A-.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in October.
Tracy Deonn's Legendborn
This YA debut has been getting a fair amount of buzz, and I was mildly intrigued by the concept—a teenage Black girl and modern day Arthurian knights fighting demons or something—but often I find YA fantasy annoying so was planning to pass on this. And then I discovered IT IS SET IN CHAPEL HILL. The protagonist, Bree, is in an early college program at UNC! Well, of course then I was dying to read it. The author clearly went to UNC and her details are spot-on (I am not sure we needed so MANY descriptions of the campus, but obviously I was here for it). Anyway, so the deal here is, Bree's mother died in a car accident, and when she sees magic stuff at UNC, she realizes she saw magic stuff the night her mom died, so maybe it wasn’t a simple hit and run? And also Arthurian secret societies? And a cute boy? And a million queer teens! (I can’t tell if the series is setting up a love triangle or a throuple, but honestly, hardcore rooting for the latter.) Not to mention literal Black Girl Magic, laying bare some truths about racism in the South, and basically telling Julian Carr to go eff himself??? Some really powerful writing about Black pain. Y’all, I went into this a skeptic and it proved me wrong on every page. Even if it didn’t talk specifically about UNC (one of my alma maters), I would think this book was AWESOME. Freakin' A.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on September 15th.
K. Eason's How the Multiverse Got Its Revenge
This sequel to Rory Thorne is .... fine. I maybe would have liked to have more spaceship adventures before being thrust back into intergalactic battles and diplomacy. The non-Rory parts were a lot more interesting than the Rory parts, here. I mean, a sentient bioweapon is some good stuff. I’m not sure if the end implies a third volume is forthcoming, but if so, it needs to sound a lot more compelling. B/B+.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in October.
K. Eason's How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse
Rereading this because a sequel is due shortly, and also because I remembered it being fun and satisfying! And it was! It’s a fun mix of fairy tales and science fiction, with a great heroine and secondary characters. Our protagonist is the descendent of Sleeping Beauty and her prince, also gifted/cursed by fairies as a baby, and now as a royal teen has to deal with political machinations and plots and the media and maybe marriage. Great stuff, and I especially love her relationship with her bodyguards. Can’t wait to read the sequel.
Diana Wynne Jones' Dogsbody
Decided to reread some Diana Wynne Jones as a palate cleanser, but I forgot how much casual animal cruelty is in this book. People just beating on dogs (and occasionally children and cats). If you have not read this,most the story of the star Sirius, on trial for a crime he didn’t commit, sentenced to live out the lifespan of a dog on earth (and hopefully find the Macguffin that will restore him to his rightful place). Lots of excellent dogs and cats in this one, and a couple of excellent humans (mostly horrible humans though).
Lois McMaster Bujold’s Brothers in Arms
Despite all sorts of assassination attempts, this one has a slow start. I am just not interested in Miles whining about his love life. Plus, I was promised a clone, and he takes forever to show up. But once he does things get pretty interesting, lots of plots and adventure and assorted mishegas. I might take a break from these for a few books, I am starting to get burned out on Miles and his shenanigans are beginning to feel repetitive. B.
Lois McMaster Bujold’s Cetaganda
In this Vorkosigan book, Miles and his cousin go as diplomats-in-training to a planet they have an uneasy alliance with, and of course immediately get embroiled in a murder mystery/political plot. There are some really interesting women in this one, and the action and pacing are great. I liked this a lot. A-.
Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Vor Game
This volume deals with the start of Miles' military career, such as it is. It has some good outer space adventures and manages not to be rapey for a change. This book has a real anti-toxic masculinity vibe, which rules. I liked a lot about this, but don’t want to be spoilery, I’ll give it a solid B+.
Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Mountains of Mourning
God, why are these books so GRIM. In this one, Miles is sent to solve a murder—a murder of a little baby with a birth defect. It’s a novella and not really satisfying as a mystery (it’s not like there are a lot of suspects), more of a story meant to show Miles learning to take leadership and solve problems and be a good paternalistic overlord over the local people. B-.
Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Warrior's Apprentice
This book focuses on the teenage son of the couple from the previous books, who I gather is really the main character in the series. Because of an attack before his birth, he’s physically handicapped, but he’s determined to be an army man like his father and grandfather. I liked this character a lot (aside from his lovelorn advances to his girl friend), and it’s really fun to see him think his way out of one mess, only to find himself in a bigger mess. This was written in I think 1986, so be warned that there is some business about characters who are hermaphrodites (I have the impression Bujold was trying to be progressive with this, but she calls them “it” which is gross). The main character also has to deal with a lot of people calling him names and being rude because of his disabilities. A good and satisfying wrap-up, though. B+.
Natalie Zina Walschots' Hench
OK, I am probably the target audience for this book, but like OMG THIS BOOK!!! It's about a young (bisexual) woman who gets by doing data entry jobs for a Henchman Temp Agency, working for whatever villain comes along. And then a job goes wrong and she's badly injured--by a beloved hero. And then things really start cooking. I loved this. The narrative voice, the pacing, I could easily have read this in one sitting. I will say the ending is kind of .... unsettling .... and there are a few unresolved plot points (especially regarding the best friend character), which makes me wonder if (hope!) a sequel is in the works. This is a good companion to the Harley Quinn tv series (which I also love). A/A-.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.
Lois McMaster Bujold’s Barrayar
This is actually the seventh book in the Vorkosigan series, but since it picks up where the first one leaves off, I decided to read it second. Maybe I should have left it for later though, because I felt like there were some continuity issues (particularly with the character of the sergeant). Anyway, I still love Cordelia, and this is full of political intrigue and assassination attempts and worrying about a pregnancy on a less-scientifically-advanced planet. Also still a fair amount of discussion of rape/rapiness, like, PLEASE STOP. In retrospect this is really more of a “heroic/magical backstory to the actual main character of the series” and not necessarily “badass lady doing stuff” kind of story. I mean a badass lady does DO stuff, but only because of her kid. On the other hand, how often does a mom get to be badass for mom reasons? Is this retrograde or not? I honestly can’t tell. B+.
Lois McMaster Bujold’s Shards of Honor
I am still seeking out series to read, and having enjoyed the author's fantasy books, decided to try out this sci-fi series of hers, which has a billion books. I liked this one a lot; it’s about a thirty-something scientist, commander of a mission to do scientific research on a planet, and what happens when she encounters a man from a much more militaristic society. I enjoyed both these characters and their interactions, lots of humor and adventure to be had. Content warning for a very unpleasant attempted rape and a lot of mentions of other rapes, which makes me downgrade this to a B+.
Naomi Novik's A Deadly Education
AAAAHHHHHHHH this is everything I ever WANT in a book!! I mean I assumed I would like it bc it’s by Novik, but I loooooooved it. It’s narrated by a surly girl in an extremely dangerous MAGIC SCHOOL, and she is a secretly powerful loner, but eventually she makes friends and has dangerous magical school adventures, and also the resident hero boy is hanging around. It reminded me of a less queer In Other Lands or Carry On. The protagonist is half-Indian and two prominent secondary characters are Indian and East Asian, and there's lots of diversity rep in the more minor characters. Best of all, this is the first in a series and it ends on a dramatic note that makes me very eager to see what'll happen next. Ugh, I cannot properly convey the entertaining awesomeness of this book, but I am very sad I can’t read the whole series right now.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.
Jacqueline Woodson's Harbor Me
I’ve been mainly reading books for pure escapism, but this is the book club book this month and it’s due back to the library tomorrow. I mean obviously it was great! It’s Woodson! But it’s also heartbreaking! Because Woodson! And thoughtful and gorgeous. Because . . . Woodson. Anyway, it’s the story of a group of six middle schoolers who have to get together and talk once a week, with no grownups, and it’s the story of how they become closer and more confident and it’s great and sad. But like it is a reflection on the current suckiness of America so if you can’t handle that right now, wait till you feel stronger to give this a go. A.
Corinne Duyvis' The Art of Saving the World
So when this book's protagonist was born, an interdimensional rift opened up on their family farm, and government scientists moved in to study it—and her. Now she's 16 and trying to figure out life, whether she's into girls, etc, but the rift has gone haywire and a bunch of versions of her from alternate dimensions have popped out of it. Also, a dragon. And together they have to save the world! What I liked about this: queer teens, a good depiction of anxiety, the relationships between the girls. What didn’t really work for me: the government stuff, the Powers That Be, an all-over-the-place ending. Great characters, slightly less good plotting, overall a fun read and recommended for teens. B+.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on September 15th.
Susanna Clarke's Piranesi
Clarke's first novel in yeeeeaaaars is weird, and sad, and wonderful. It’s told through the journal entries of a man in a mysterious world, about his explorations and his scientific researches with the only other person there. And I’m not going to say anything else about the plot, because I knew nothing going in and I was totally caught up in the narrative. I am just like AAAAHHHHHH about all of this. I recommend it highly! A/A-.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on September 15th.
Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows' My Lady Jane
One of my friends recommended this to me when I said I was looking for more sff series to read, and I hadn’t actually known this was a fantasy! I think based on a cursory reading of reviews and on the cover, I thiught this was one of those CWish “sexy” historical books. Ha. Anyway, it’s England, the main character is Lady Jane Grey (who ruled for nine days before Mary Tudor beheaded her), but instead of Protestants vs Roman Catholics, the conflict here is between people who can shapeshift into animals and those who are anti-shapeshifter. This was a super fun read, good adventure, good romance, and a good sense of humor. I’ll definitely be checking out the companion books. A-.
Micaiah Johnson’s The Space Between Worlds
AAAHHHHHHHH I FREAKING LOVED THIS BOOK. I mean it was totally my jam and also EXCELLENT?!? It’s about a young (Black, bisexual) woman employed as a traverser, someone who can travel to alternate worlds, but only to worlds where no version of her exists. But she had a rough life and so only exists on like out out of over three hundred worlds. Also, she has a total crush on her handler, an uptight (rich, Japanese) lady. This book is so good on racism and classism and capitalism and power dynamics, but it’s also a totally exciting and gripping read. Romance, action, mystery, family, traveling to alternate worlds . . . this book has it all. Seriously, this is GREAT, read it now. A.
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Content warning for domestic abuse.
Juliet Marillier's A Dance with Fate
I loved the first book in this series, and there was a lot to like in this one, but it was waaaaay dark. Like, a sadistic guy torturing animals and people dark. So like . . . ugh. Still, I love the two main characters and their relationship. The brother character's storyline in this one is not as interesting, but it might get interesting? I guess I read the next one? I love Marillier's relationships. B+.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on September 1st.
Hilary McKay's The Time of Green Magic
This middle-grade book focuses on three step-siblings with overextended parents, whose new house has some magical stuff going on. I liked the characters here a lot, but found parts of this mildly stressful to read. Still, I liked how it wrapped up, and I think this will be really popular with its intended audience. B+.
Wendy Palmer's The Frog Prince's Daughters
Well, I liked this very much! It’s playing with fairy tale troops on a way I found to be more interesting than usual. The protagonist is the cousin of a princess descended from the famous frog prince, and they're busy waiting for her fairy tale prince to come for her—but instead, a wizard comes. Magic and adventures ensue, with great characters and some cute romance. It’s not as fluffy as it sounds; I loved the narrative voice here and also loved how things wrapped up. Perfect escapism. A/A-.
Seanan McGuire's A Killing Frost
Look, this is like the fourteenth book in this series, a plot summary won’t even begin to make sense. Suffice it to say Toby is off on one of her usual reckless quests that will somehow change the game in Faerie. Actually, that sounds more sarcastic than it should, because I actually liked where this one ended up. I do think this series needs to have an endgame planned, though, instead of spinning its wheels forever. A-/B+.
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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on September 1st.
Sarah Jean Horwitz's The Dark Lord Clementine
This was a SUPER cute book about a twelve year old girl who is the daughter of a Dark Lord, and is trying her best to be a proper dark heiress. And then her father is cursed and she has to run things and it’s not exactly easy . . . I loved the characters in this and really liked the narrative voice. It’s not as funny/irreverent as say, Ursula Vernon, but it kind of scratched the same itch for me. A-.
