There Is a Door in This Darkness

by Kristin Cashore

A magic-tinged contemporary YA about grief and hope from the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of the Graceling Realm novels.

Wilhelmina Hart is part of the infamous class of 2020. Her high school years began with the election of Donald Trump and they ended with COVID. Now Wilhelmina, like so many of her peers, is in limbo, having deferred college because of the pandemic. Compounding the national trauma of 2016 to 2020, Wilhelmina has wrestled with the devastating loss of one of her three beloved aunts shortly after the 2016 election. This is a loss she felt so keenly that she’s spent the last years deep in her personal depression, only obscured by the seemingly endless waves of national trauma. Now on the cusp on the most consequential election in living memory, Wilhelmina may have found a door in her darkness and perhaps the courage to pass through it, if she can decipher the bizarre messages that keep appearing in her life.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Contemporary, Magical Realism, Fiction, Audiobook, Grief

384 pages, Hardcover

First published June 11, 2024

About the author

Kristin Cashore grew up in the northeast Pennsylvania countryside as the second of four daughters. She received a bachelor's degree from Williams College and a master's from the Center for the Study of Children's Literature at Simmons College. She currently lives in the Boston area.

Reviews

[Provin Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly didn’t know if I wanted to read There is a Door in this Darkness by Kristin Cashore Because it is very political. Truthfully, I’m not into politics and I understand that that will upset some, but there will also be a group of people cheering me on for not letting it stress me out. This book takes place during Covid and the 2020 election. The main character, Wilhelmina, is a teenager who is very stressed at the thought of Trump winning the 2020 election. After all, she barely made it through 2016-2020 with him being in office. She is so hyper focused on the election, that it has affected all aspects of her life. The best part of this book is Wilhelmina ‘s three aunts. They are not related to her by blood, but they are family, and they are very wise. They often tell her that when she feels things around her changing, she needs to look for “a door“. It is not a real door, but a feeling of a door. The three aunts are also against Trump Spending another four years as president. Due to covid they are Living with Wilhelmina and They are not in their home state. (Coincidentally a swing state)the aunts are worried that their mail ballots will not arrive in time for them to vote. In addition to those two plots there are some supernatural elements that are fun but overshadowed by all the hate for Trump.

[Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

I need to start this review with saying I think it’s too soon to be immersing myself in books/movies/television that is based around the pandemic. I understand for some writing/creating based on that will heal them, but I read to escape and the pandemic isn’t a place I want to escape to. That being said I liked this book even if I had a hard time reading it. This was definitely a book I put down often and if it wasn’t one I’d found on BookishFirst I may not have finished it. I liked the magical realism in this book. I liked the characters even if the lack of communication between Wilhelmina and her friends was painful. I loved James and his push to talk about what was happening. I didn’t love the combination of the election and pandemic. Those things sucked beyond all words and I don’t need the reminders. The writing was good, but I thought the flashbacks were too long and there were too many mentions of the election. While I loved that he was referred to as the Monster I didn’t think he needed quite so many pages dedicated to him and his hissy fits. I think I would enjoy other things by this author more and maybe I would have enjoyed this book in a few years. I gave it 3.5 stars and rounded up since I think it might have been more of a me problem.

[Chloe Frizzle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't object to the politics in this book. I do object to the fact that the many pages of Trying to Make a Political Point in this book are boring, lacking stakes, and don't tie in well with the rest of the plot. Every few pages there's a surprise paragraph about the 2020 USA election, or covid lockdown protocols. It rarely works well with the rest of the book, and feels out of place. This feels less like a story, and more like the author had many rants and emotions during 2020 that she wanted to share with a weak framing device.

The one Very-2020 part of this book that I feel DID WORK is the ruminations on isolation. This ties in with one of the major conflicts of the book; the protagonist is cut off from her friends and adrift from regular life. I just wish the other points of this book also tied in with the plot and internal conflict.

Thanks to Netgalley and Dutton Books for Young Readers for a copy to review. All opinions are my own.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went to a library conference recently, and the ARC of this book was the thing I was most excited by. I love Kristin Cashore, and the synopsis of this book was so intriguing. Great news-it's really, really good. Weird, and trippy, but also funny and touching and inspiring. It was slightly stressful to read, since so much of it takes place around the 2020 election and the anxiety of that, and we're currently rapidly approaching the 2024 election with the same participants and we're once again faced with the absolute horror of the orange one potentially being our president. On the bright side, Wilhelmina tries some coping methods in the book that I'm going to incorporate into my own life to help me get through it.

[John Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was obviously a personal journey for Ms Cashore, based in her home town in Massachusetts, and partly where she grew up in Pennsylvania, and covering the traumatic elections of 2016 and 2020. This was a wandering read without any clear direction with our MC Wilhelmenia leading the way, somewhat. Also very much in the midst of Covid, lockdown and masks to the fore. Especially with our recent disaterous return to the election travesty of 2016, this was not an easy read. I have loved the Graceling series and eventually Jane, Unlimited, this was a book looking for a story. 2+ stars.

[Renata · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know much about this book when I picked it up-I was just like, "Oh, new Kristin Cashore book? I'm IN" and then I was like "WHOA it's set in my backyard!" and then I was like "uh oh it's set in 2020??" And skimming through the GR reviews I saw a bunch of people like, "I don't want to read about 2020, it was bad" and like. Yeah. It was bad. But this is such a good emotional time capsule of things that were not that long ago but I'd already forgotten stuff like, when everyone was taking 6 feet apart really seriously and like going for a walk and putting your mask on if another person approached, and just the deep anxiety of feeling the slightest potential symptom of anything.

And then the dread of the election, and the days before it was announced, and how unseasonably hot it was that day (in the Boston area anyway)... yes, this is how it was. I mean I didn't have any magical realism encounters with talking birds or anything, myself, but other than that, that's how it was.

And adding in the teen-ness of it all and how extra awful it must have been to miss out on those high school/college times...oof! Powerful.

And I loved the non-linear narrative and getting to see Wilhelmina's past moments.

Just a really powerful coming of age, coming of COVID story. Not going to be everyone's cup of tea but whew. I have to imagine it will especially mean a lot to young adults who were in high school during COVID.

[Carla Black · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway for my honest review. I'd have to say I was disappointed in this book. It's a no from me. A big miss. This could have been a good story but the author failed to deliver one. I kept reading giving the benefit of the doubt, but it never had a good rhythm. Instead of getting g better it just got worse and worse. If the story stayed with Wilhemina more and the magic she was seeing around her and the love of her Aunts it might have been good. Instead the author couldn't stop talking about politics and the 2016 presidential run including Donald Trump. If it wasn't about politics it was of all the things to hate about the Covid pandemic In 2020. Shut downs, masks, and the isolation of it. It felt more like a memoir of the authors frustrations between 2016 and 2020 than a fictional story. Which ruined the whole book. Not one bit of entertainment or excitement anywhere in this book. Don't waste your time with this one. Worst book I ever read. I give this one an F for failure.

[Amna Al · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this novel incredibly interesting, especially considering how difficult the pandemic was for me. Not only did I graduate during this challenging time, but I also lost a relative to COVID-19. This novel really resonated with me. The characters were amazing, and the storyline was captivating. Normally, I prefer young adult novels, but this one completely changed my perspective. I've already recommended it to two of my bookish friends, and I'll definitely be recommending it to more. Reading this book was a pleasure, and I can't wait for more future books from this author. Lastly, I want to acknowledge all the families and individuals who suffered during the pandemic. Your pain is valid, and we stand with you. May your suffering ease, and may grief be gentle on all of us. A big thank you to Bookish First for giving me the opportunity to review this novel!

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a diehard Kristin Cashore fan, and this book did not disappoint. Was it weird? Yes. In fact, I’d posit that it was even more weird than Jane, Unlimited, her other standalone, which has a notoriously weird structure (and is also, incidentally, one of my favorite books). Anyway, although it was weird, it was also beautiful and emotional and deeply engaging. She has such a way with words, and a way of weaving intricate plots and building complex characters, and all of that really shined through in this book, even though the setting was different than many of her other books.

--
Previous:

"I have a new book coming out next May! I’m really proud of it. It’s a YA full of magic, and also doughnuts, owls and albatrosses, friendships, mysteries, and even a little romance, plus it happens to take place during election week 2020, during the Covid pandemic, in my own home of Watertown, Massachusetts." -Kristin Cashore

I cannot wait

[mimi (depression slump) · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a fellow COVID-changed-the-course-of-my-life girl, Wilhelmina and I share the perpetual grief for a version of ourselves that the world has left behind.
But trying to explain that to people through hallucinations might be a stretch.

I'm not sure things have gotten better since 2020, especially since this story was written with nowadays knowledge. Wars, inflation, another election, and whatever you wanna add in a few years are no joke, but the pandemic is still a tough subject for a valid reason.
So, keep in mind the book takes place in 2020 but was written with the understanding of 2023 (at least).

Wilhelmina has depression, but everyone is too busy noticing - even her therapist of a mother. She can't properly grieve the loss of her beloved aunt and, due to COVID, doesn't have a goal in life, only the survival instinct of trying to keep her family alive by doing everything they need or can't do by themselves.
In the end, she comes to the realization - thanks to weird visions followed by odd dreams - that she needs to embrace the magic of the world to let herself move on and grieve her loss properly.
Honestly, how the subject is handled is bullshit. We gather she loved her aunt very much and she misses her dearly, but she's not grieving her: she feels stuck and she's suffocating in a small apartment with other six people, she doesn't know what to do with her life and how can she change it. She's miserable because she's in a miserable situation and her mental health went out of the window, but justifying all of this with grief and magic - again, more hallucinations than anything else - is kinda insulting.

And if that isn't enough, there's the other matter: for some inexplicable reason to me, she's in the wrong about how she behaves.
She's going through something very serious and pretty palpable if someone could just properly look at her for more than five seconds, and her supposed best friends don't even have the time to text her back.
But everything is obviously forgiven by the end because hey, she was in a bad place and she’s sorry she was so weird.

Also, and this is the last effort I’ll use for this book, the narration’s only flaw is being made way too many words for talking about nothing in moments where the focus is on something else.

↠ 1.5 star (DFN @20%)

Thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Youn Readers Group and NetGalley, who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was mostly disappointed with this book. I've come to expect so much more from Cashore. Aspects of this were really great and I enjoyed Wilhelmina's internal journey. The flashbacks and the way things started to tie together and the exploration of grief were exactly what I expect from a Cashore novel.
I'm having a hard time knowing how to express what disappointed me.
One thing, which is more a me issue than this book issue - I'm just not ready to read fiction set during the pandemic. This is the second time (I think) that I've read a book that deals with it and it's just too traumatic for me. So that was setting me on edge the whole time.

I enjoy reading books from a wide variety of perspectives. I read books from people I agree with and people I disagree with. So I didn't have an issue with the characters in this book (and clearly Cashore) coming from a very different political perspective than mine. What I did have an issue with was characters decrying the "other side" for their prejudice and intolerance and then grouping half of the United States with all the same, horrible motives and beliefs. There was absolutely no nuance introduced that there might be many, many, many reasons people might vote for any candidate or that voting for them might not mean they agree with or approve of everything that person says or does. There was one scene in particular that really troubled me - while waiting in line to vote, one of Wilhelmina's aunt's chair breaks and someone else in line quickly and generously offers to go to their car and get a replacement so they don't have to stand. This offer is met with skepticism, hostility, and utter disbelief because the woman is supporting the other candidate. Instead of being like, oh, hey, they're all just people trying to figure out the best way to navigate a trash-fire situation with no good candidate options, it just talks about how they must be idiots to be nice but support a terrible candidate. The political vitriol that poured out through this book was highly upsetting and literally read like all the internet rants I try to avoid. I think authors are entitled to their opinions and to putting their opinions in books, but they also have some sort of responsibility not to add to the hate and division that has made our country so polarized to the point where polls show young people refuse to be friends or talk to people who don't hold the same political views. How are we ever supposed to find any kind of understanding of each other if we refuse to engage with people different from us? And I honestly feel like this book simply adds to the prejudices and hatred (there is no other way to describe the way the characters act and talk about people from the other side of the aisle). It was disappointing and disheartening and frustrating and I pounded through this book to get a full picture before reviewing it but also because it was literally weighing me down in a lot of ways, both intended and, I think, unintended.

[Sheila Samuelson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rating: 2.5 Stars!!
Review:
Thank you to Penguin Random House for picking me to win this FREE ARC Copy in a giveaway on their website last year.

Honestly I don't know what to say about this book because for me it wasn't a great read for many reasons 😕.

The Characters and Setting were fun and enjoyable to read. Wilhelmina Frankie and Margaret were definately my favorites especially with the witty banter between them.

The Storyline was okay but could of been better since it seemed super repetitive like the author didn't know what else to write about especially when she kept bringing up about the 2016 Election.

Overall it was OK but could of had so much potential. I will read more by Kristin in the future but I hope here other books won't be like this one was.

[Annika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book!! So much! Because it had all the ingredients - magical realism, a fantastic cast of characters, and Cashores incredible writing… but the spark was missing. Reading this felt like a chore, and the moment I felt like the story opened up to me it was over. Maybe it was a too realistic reminder of how things were in the midst of the pandemic, social distancing, the always feeling just a tad hopeless. This could have been a shortstory and maybe worked very well. But alas. Hoping for the next one from her!

[Bethany Gorski · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I loved the Graceling series by the author, so I jumped on the chance to read her latest book. I didn't even read the synopsis, which I should have. This is nothing like Graceling. T This is a magical realism book set during the COVID pandemic and the 2020 election. Both of those topics a bit too raw, and the 2024 election is looking to have the same candidates run. This book focused on a time I'd rather forget, and is heavily politicized. I don't think I would have picked this book up had I known how politically focused it was.

I thought the author did a good job expressing Wilhelmina's emotions through the pandemic regarding anger, jealousy, grief, chronic pain, and loss. She wasn't coping well with any of her feelings, and I think that was pretty true for many of us as we navigated the pandemic. The book is told in alternating timelines that eventually bring her story together with all of the strange things that have been happening to her and make her face that she isn't OK. I can understand and appreciate why the author wrote this book as a way of coping with what we all went through especially the stress, grief, and trauma many experienced. I hope that readers can relate to Wilhelmina and the journey she goes on.

Overall I do think this was well written, but this one wasn't my favorite by the author. Readers are either really going to connect with the main character and the journey she is going on or they aren't going to like her at all. Perhaps younger readers will relate to Wilhelmina a bit better than I did. The timeline jumps are either going to be to your preference or not. This book is very heavily politicized, and I prefer to keep real life politics out of my fiction. I have my opinions, but I part of the reason I read is to escape real life, and this book put me right back into the center of several very hard years.

[Charlie Newman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did an audiobook of this. I have to admit, I didn’t enjoy a lot of it. It’s funny— I think this book will be much more palatable in 10-20 years, when COVID and Trump (and Biden) can be looked at historically. In 2024, I didn’t really find reliving Election Day/Week 2020 enjoyable, and while I agree with the book’s politics more or less, they felt raw and unrefined compared to the magical things happening.

I liked the aunts a lot, and the book does deal very sensitively and meaningfully with grief on multiple fronts. I’ve certainly read plenty of World War II historical fiction that uses devastating world events as a backdrop for characters’ personal stories…. But right now, I can’t successfully treat COVID, Trump, etc as a backdrop. It’s still happening.

[Fuchsia Rascal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review will come later (going to do a video and everything!), but initial thoughts:

This isn't an easy book. There are plenty of reasons people won't like it, or won't want to read it, or will rate it low. Some are obvious: it's a deeply political book, and many people don't want to read that in their fiction, even people who may agree with the politics presented here. I get it, books can be a great form of escapism... but this isn't one of them. Others may hate this book exactly because of its political framework, to which I say... yeah, not much, honestly. But there are less nefarious reasons people may not like it: it's a deeply uncomfortable book to read, and some people may not be ready to read a book that's centered around the COVID pandemic and the 2020 elections (not to mention the overall theme of grief). That's totally fair. I see and acknowledge that. That being said, I think this is an important story about loss and coming of age in a tumultuous time.

There is a Door in This Darkness is a stark departure from Kristin Cashore's Graceling series, with a real world setting instead of high fantasy. It's a harshly realistic novel, and while the Graceling novels have never shied away from sensitive topics, they're much more visceral here because we've lived this life, or at least something similar. We lived through 2020 and all the medical and political turmoil that came with it. (Readers finding this review 20 years in the future, obviously that might not apply to you.) We remember the fear and, as the election cycle comes back around, are living a version of it again. So, yeah, this book hits a lot closer to home in a way that the Graceling novels never could. (Okay, and the setting being a half hour drive from where I grew up and now live again also hits very close to home, but I wasn't talking literally.)

Readers expecting more like Graceling will be disappointed, but the other trademarks of Cashore's writing shines through. She has always addressed injustices, abuse, and atrocities. The injustices and atrocities are on a broader level here than happening to an individual character like in her other books, but the characters feel the weight of them all the same. And the thing that Cashore does the best, that I praise her for in every single book? Character development. Oh wow, her strength in writing characters' inner journeys really shines through here. Wilhelmina, dealing (badly) with personal grief and national grief, has so much growth that she keeps denying herself... until she can't. And then magic happens.

Literally.

And I loved the magic! As a practicing witch, the depiction of magic, of the craft, in this book is amazing to see. Some of it's a little more flashy than we'd ascribe to everyday magic (and yet, nothing is so far out of the realm of possibility) but most of it is just our normal, commonplace craft. Cashore's descriptions of tarot cards were so spot on and beautiful (I'm familiar with all three decks mentioned in the book, and it was great to see more than just the RWS used), as well as just the little ways in which we feel and use energy around us. I would have loved to have three aunts like Wilhelmina's to spend my summers with; I want them even more than the aunts from Practical Magic, and that's saying a lot! But, really, the aunts in general were delightful (and you can see why Wilhelmina's grief over losing one is so profound-- not a spoiler, it's mentioned very early on) and I want to be them both as a witch and as an elder when I grow up.

So, yeah, I loved There is a Door in This Darkness. It hit a lot of personal notes for me -- from the Massachusetts setting, to the political turmoil, to the cunning craft. Wilhelmina's journey resonated deeply; I didn't come of age in 2020 (I'm well past that!) but I also experienced profound loss (of my father) when I was in high school and dealt badly with the grief for a long time. I also lived through 2020 and all the anxiety that brought with it. And I also got through it with the help of my family magic. Again, not a book for everyone, but it is definitely a book for me.

(This was supposed to be a quick, brief review...)

[Chris G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s fall of 2020, around the time of the election and at the height of Covid. Mom, dad, two younger siblings and two elderly great-aunts are crammed into a Boston duplex with Wilhelmina, who is deferring college and helping her family manage while grieving the death of Frankie, a third great aunt who lived with the other two in Pennsylvania where Wilhelmina spent every summer. Best friend Julie lives in the upstairs unit and is in a bubble with other best friend Bee, who is in a bubble with Julie’s family so they are close, but Wilhelmina is still incredibly lonely since her interactions with them are virtual or socially distanced.

A mysterious encounter with James, whose family owns the local doughnut shop, leaves Wilhelmina with nothing but questions. Why does she sometimes see people who are glowing and receive confusing messages in lights? How are these things connected to Frannkie’s death? Extended flashbacks provide clues and context; Cashore is pitch perfect at recreating the fears and stresses of 2020 that are echoed in the present. EARC from Edelweiss.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is magical and moving, but if you are terrified that Trump might win, don't read it until after the election (and then only if he loses) because it is set during the pandemic just before and during the 2020 election and all the horror and worry of that time came tumbling back....

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Look, Kristin Cashore's books don't always make me feel great, but they always make me FEEL, and that itself is magical. I absolutely loved this book, and it's exactly what my grief-heavy mind needed.

Will update this review with a bunch of my favorite quotes when I'm done processing.

[Liz Fully Booked · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great coming of age story set during the 2016 presidency, 2020 covid pandemic and 2020 election. While very enjoyable, I feel as if this book was just a bit too political. While I don’t disagree with the political viewpoints in the book, it was just too much. I guess I just didn’t want to have to relive it all again, especially with the next election about to be a repeat of that one.

But aside from that, I really did enjoy the story. The relationship Wil has with her great aunts was so sweet and lovely. The sadness she goes through after losing one, and the desolation she feels being separated from her dearest friends because of the pandemic made you feel for her, as we all suffered through the same. But woven through all that was the joy she was finding getting to know James.

This book has a few fantasy elements, despite being a contemporary story. An enjoyable and easy to read YA book.

Thank you to Penguin House and NetGalley for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Third fabulous book I’ve read in a row. Stunningly beautiful and made me unexpectedly burst into tears multiple times.
.
Where’s my James Fang? (Where’s my Pacey?)
.
I’ve been a Cashore fan forever. But this book is so different than the Graceling books that I didn’t expect to like it. (“Jane Unlimited,” Cashore’s other non-Graceling book, is my least favorite.) .
.
Not 100% sure why but it feels like a really good companion read to The House in the Cerulean Sky by TJ Klune. I think the aunts would have been fans of Linus.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rating, pushed up to 3.0 because I really enjoy Kristin Cashore's writing voice.

I think this book highlights a problem that's concerned me for a while. What happens when you have an author whose work you love, who then writes a book that just doesn't vibe with you? Does that mean that they're no longer your favorite author, or do you give them a pass, figuring that nobody's perfect and sometimes even not-so awesome books still get published?

Because this is where I find myself with this novel. Don't get me wrong, I am happy to have met Wilhelmina, with her cute outfits and glasses and little activist progressive heart. I adore her witchy throuple aunts, her messy family, and her cuteboy crush. I don't even mind the walk down pandemic nostalgia lane. This is essentially a story about Wilhelmina's grief and how she was so enclosed in it that she failed to see how everybody was walking on eggshells around her and waiting for her to get out of it. If you've ever been in the same place of grief, you know how difficult it is to escape that miasma of sadness, and even more difficult to want to leave in the first place. But I forgot that with Cashore's works, the plotting is structured in such a way that you may feel that you're going somewhere, but you're not. You kinda walked in a big circle only to find yourself where you started. Which is probably a good analogue for grief? As a reader though, it wasn't where I wanted to find myself and that's why I'm not putting this book as one of my faves from this author.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is no Graceling!

Cashore brings her usual attention to detail but leaves the fantasy magic home. Instead we’ve got the all too gritty real world with a smattering of tarot card and energy and words from the grave magic.

I didn’t dislike it, exactly. The characters were classic Cashore, even if they wore jeans and had boring eye colors. Loves the aunts, obviously. Plus one. Set during the pandemic and 2020 election. Minus one. I have trouble getting behind pandemic books. They depress me. Too soon, for me and my anxious memories. A natural insertion of medical issues and handling the grief of losing a loved one. Plus one. Spending so much time ignoring the magic. Minus one. Refusing to call the Orange One by his name lest he achieve Voldemort-esque powers. Plus one.

So in the end, I say 3 stars. It wasn’t my cup of tea, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t well brewed.

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book is barely 0.5 star for me. Overly politicized and biased. I was hoping to have an interesting light read with bits of magical realism, instead its 300+ pages of ramblings of not a teenager but rather an old lady (just my feel of the state of mind of the protagonist). The constant flashbacks into the past I've also found annoying. I once loved Graceling and its two follow-up installments and hoped to find smth as intriguing and captivating here, instead it was a boring generic contemporary story, one of those that provide a background for smth else and totally forgetful.

[Elise · Rating 1 out of 5]

This should have been called “There is a Door into this Darkness.” It may be the worst young adult book I’ve ever read. Top two anyway. It is grotesquely biased politically, but worse it is horribly dull. I struggled to finish it and to care about any of the characters or thin plot line. I cannot believe this is the same author who wrote the fabulous book “Graceling.” She should stick to fantasy! By fate of the universe, or magic, or tarot cards, or the wheel of some nonsense, I finished it on the night of the 2024 election. It must be a sign….

[Amanda Chartrand · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Penguin Teen for an early copy of this book. This book just wasn’t for me. I found the plot a bit confusing and the jumping from flashbacks to present day hard to keep track of as well. I also, thought this was wayyyy too political for me and for a YA book. COVID and COVID related protocols were frequently mentioned and the 2020 presidential election was a huge part of the plot. Not really what I prefer to read in my books and not the escape from reality I typically look for.

[A. Lorna Warren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

I requested this because I love Kristin Cashore's writing and it did NOT disappoint! SO good. This tugged at my heartstrings in all the right ways. While very different from her Graceling series it was beautiful in its own way and so well written. I definitely need this on my shelf for a re-read in the future!

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was hard to get through because of how political she made it- one sided political. She alienated or outright offended me about every 50 pages. I love the Graceling books so much! She is a great storyteller, and the story part of this book was nice enough, but still offensive at times. I’m not stupid, I have valid views. So, it was hard being called such.

[J R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic fantasy that’s kinda subtle with it in a way that works utterly gorgeously. Thanks for the arc, would recommend