The Hunter In The Room

by Ariana Tosado

After last semester, the last thing Emmalynn Marie wants is to be integrated even further into the Hunter world... but with the Callistro Academy reopening as a Hunter school, she's finding that she has no choice but to dig deeper into her cover so that nobody suspects her of being a magician... again. Having the Redway Boys share the first month of second semester with the Callistro Girls doesn't exactly help, either—not when one of them is the son of the two Grand Hunters who hunted Emma last semester and has no idea whether or not they've moved on as they claim. But Emma soon realizes that, surprisingly, she has even bigger problems on her plate this semester: a mysterious number that may or may not know one of her secrets won't stop texting her; an anonymous kidnapper she calls Hunter starts experimenting on her for an unknown reason; one of her teachers is secretly scoping out his students; and not only has a new boy caught feelings for her, but his father is a Master Hunter thirsty for her family's blood. Emma's known her whole life that she would never be able to escape from the Hunter world; now she's realizing that, if anything, she needs to grow into her Hunter side just as much as her magic side if she's ever going to eventually fulfill her fate as Adara and bring an end to the mortal vs. magic war. After all, she can't ignore the Hunter in the room forever.

316 pages, Paperback

Published October 28, 2020

About the author

Ariana Tosado is an author, book editor and formatter, and content creator for teen and young-adult audiences. She started pursuing her passion of writing novels in middle school. Today, she’s homed her focus on the EMMALYNN ATERA Series, promoting THY KINGDOM COME, and writing the next heartwarming (and -shattering) fantasy adventure for her readers. She aims to make the most of her hip keeping her stuck at home by writing books and creating relatable content on her platforms—all with her cat, Sophie, in one hand and an iced vanilla latte in the other.

You can find out more about what she’s up to on her website (www.arianatosado.com) or on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok (@thearianatosado).

Reviews

[Bryant]

If these books just get better from here, I can recommend them to anybody. Clean fiction is difficult to find these days, but this author does it well.

[Sabez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my gosh! This book was so good, I think I enjoyed this one even MORE than OMI! It took so many different turns and I enjoyed every second of reading it! I CAN NOT wait for book 3!

[Mikayla Pearce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Content warnings:
Magic
Romantic touch—nothing further than kissing
Mild violence
Anxiety/panic attacks that could possibly be triggering to some people

I’m somewhat conflicted on this book. I somehow liked and disliked the writing style at the same time. It’s written as if Emma is actually telling us the story—with her from the future making little comments here and there. I didn’t love that—it took me out of the actual story.
I wish Ariana hadn’t introduced a love triangle. Emma’s relationship with Nolan could have so easily been platonic, and I wish it had been, because mixed gender friendships that aren’t friends to lovers are so underrated.
I don’t understand why Emma is the way she is with Jak. She’s saying they’re not dating and she hasn’t even told him she likes him (though it’s insanely obvious) and her reasoning for why she doesn’t want a relationship now makes sense, but like… why don’t you tell Jak??? If you like him then stop sending mixed signals—especially when he met Nolan!! Otherwise it’s going to end in someone getting hurt and likely a breakup due to miscommunication which is a big book pet peeve of mine.
Sarah and Breanne both seem a little flat, Sarah more so. There were some hints to Breanne’s backstory and I hope there’s more of that in the next books. I really liked Emma’s interactions with them, though. As someone who’s never really been able to pick one best friend, I love that there’s two of them.
The plot is super intriguing and pretty well executed. The chosen one trope is SO heavy though and it’s getting annoying.
[SPOILERS]
The plot twist with Julia was… interesting. The foreshadowing is definitely there, once you know what the twist is. It was pretty well done, but I didn’t love it. I really loved Julia and I wish she had turned out to be an ally. I suspected a different betrayer and I’m disappointed it didn’t happen. (I’m still kinda holding onto that it though). But that’s just a personal preference, nothing wrong with the twist itself.
[SPOILERS OVER]
I feel like I’m criticizing a lot, but there was a lot I liked too.
Jak was my favorite character. It would be cool if we could see more of him and what he’s thinking or feeing because I can tell he’s really complicated, but it’s first person so I understand.
The world building is really cool. I love that there’s so many different kinds of magicians. I agree with what another reviewer said—world building is definitely Ariana’s strong suit. The history of the country is awesome and the academy’s history is awesome.
I really liked that the villain didn’t wait until the end of the school year to attack like some other boarding school books (cough cough harry potter).
Plus the romance is completely clean!! It’s so hard to find good clean ya books these days so I really appreciate it.
Overall I definitely really liked the book and I want to continue the series!!

[Elsa Singer · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

(review to come later 😉)

[Kailyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZALICIOUS

[Lauren Fulter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4/5

THITR was a step up from OMI in it being a much smoother read, and expertly expanding on the world previously established. The plot had some clever twists, and the characters had some fun moments, but once again, Tosado’s strength is world-building.

CHARACTERS

Emmalyn—I found myself liking her more in this book! Her experience with anxiety attacks was interesting (as someone who’s had them before), and she seemed to take a step up from Book One. But overall, I found myself bogged down by the increasing “Emma-is-so-awesome-and-almighty”. Her character took on some flaws and became interesting, but the chosen one trope is driven in a litttllleee too hard. Might just be nitpicking though. Heh heh

Jak—LOVE HIM. His relationship with Alexa adds more depth and edge to him plot wise, and I was SORELY disappointed by the fact he was only in half of this book. Jak is truly the highlight of this series.

Breanne and Sarah— I’m sorry, but they haven’t changed much from book one. Breanne now hints at a backstory,a dm I’m intrigued, and Sarah got more alone page time which I LOVED, but nothing much. Still holding up hope that they get their chance to shine in Book Three.

Alexa—MAN COME ON ARIANA. I did not see that twist coming, and it opens up so much potential for future books. And a redemption arc?? I don’t love Alexa as an antagonist. She has so much morally grey potential, and I just **gah** think her becoming a help to Emma in this book might mean they’ll join forces in a later book??

Nolan— uhhh. He’s a hot baseball player who has a crush on Emma, AND I’m indifferent to him. But the tension with his dad and a Emma was REALLY FUN.

Opal— **incoherent screaming**YES MY GORL. I LOVE HER SO MUCH. BRING BOOK THREE ON!!! GIVE OPAL THAT PAGE TIME!!!

Plot

Tbh, I still don’t feel like anything happened? The book felt like a random series of events, and maybe that was intentional, but there was no clear plot as I can see. Some twists felt a little random, and not intertwined with the story, but some LANDED and totally caught me off guard.
**applauds**
the whole creepy teacher story though was confusing to WHY it was important?? It was well written, but confusing to the plot XD.


Overall, it was a really fun read and I am SOOO looking forward to book three!!

[books.bananatoes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book might win a record for the amount of times lips were described.

Also how do you know that someone is looking between your top and bottom lip specifically? lol


Okay in all seriousness, here's my thoughts although it might be a little chaotic. Some likes and dislikes:

Good soup:

1. The book has better writing than a lot of other indie books I've read. It has good imagry and a good balance of when to use and when not to use description.

2. I like Emma's sass in the narritive.

3. The characters had some fun personalities. I like Sarah and Breanne a lot more than I remember when reading the first book. And I really like Mr. Dawson and Annisa.

Some stuff that I didn't love:

1. Emma is too stupid for someone who's supposedly been training her whole life for survival. Over all she seems too defenseless and her secret keeping felt entirely unnecessary. There wasn't a good reason for her to not tell her mother and Dawson half the stuff she kept from them.

2. Nolan's existance pissed me off. (Not really that much I am indeed being dramatic). But he did feel like a plot convenience and because of Jak's existence it felt kind of icky.

3. The plot was really jarring. We went back and forth from being in school or with Emma and her boyfriend back to something intence back to normal which could be fine if it flowed well with Emma but it didn’t. The first example that comes to mind is Emma finds out some of her family is missing and then we're immediately thown into a date with Jak in which Emma doesn't even think about her family for a few pages.

4. The magic presents itself as almost a hard magic system that has rules but because we don't really know them, magic does whatever the plot needs magic to do. This one doesn’t bother me that much, just an observation.

Back to some good because I'm doing a compliment sandwhich:

4. I love Annisa and Emma meeting and paralleling each other.

5. I love the play with who actually is the hunter in the room. Is it Alexa? The hunters? Hunter? Or is it Emmalynn???

6. Jak is a great example of a character who is very show not tell.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even better than her first book, Hunter I’m the Room leaves you waiting on the edge of your seat for the next book in this Urban Fantasy series. In this novel, Tosado’s wiring is smooth and subtle and reflects how people would truly react to the occurrences of the first book. Filled with shocking surprises, unexpected yet aligning revelations and new turns, I can’t wait to see what Tosado does next!

[Annalise Cavazos · Rating 4 out of 5]

OMG this book was amazing! I enjoyed it even more than I had the first one. The characters, especially Jak, had more depth and backstory. You could see Emma grow from book one to here, as well as her relationships .

The plot twists were INSANE I was not expecting that ending or anything leading up to it. This book has been set up perfectly for the next book and I am SO EXCITED to read it!

[T Nilsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS IS MY FAVORITE SERIES OF ALL TIME!!!
Quite literally INSANE! The plot twists are something else!
I love that it's our world, but with magic, and the relationships are so well done! Also the cutesy teen romance is the best 🥰

[Piper Morse · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was even better then the first, I loved it so much, the twists and turns were so good.

[Johnny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing read! Can’t get enough of this series!

[Mike Diener · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hunter in the Room hooked is the best YA book I've read in the last 10 years!

I am a slow reader, and I am easily distracted. This book is the first time I have read 200 pages in the same day.

*I understand that this book was originally released but taken down and revised. I have not read the original version, so I will only be reviewing the current version as of April 2022.

*Spoilers from the first book, Our Mistaken Identity, but no spoilers from this book.

The author uses this book to develop the stakes of the world, the main characters's powers, and the main characters's relationships. The main character, Emma, has accepted her role as a magician in the world of hunters who want her captured and/or dead. Throughout the book, her powers grow in new and interesting ways that don't feel unrealistic for the world created in the first book.

Emma's relationships all take varying steps forward in depth, making the reader understand Emma's actions better and the world as a whole better. We get more of Sarah and Breanna, albeit to a slightly lesser extent than in book one. We see Emma grow in her relationships with her mother, father, Aunt, Mr. Dawson, and even Nolan. Of course, Jak takes up a big portion of her time in this book, and their relationship develops significantly.

The world-building in this book was the perfect step up from the first book. We learn about new magic powers, new characters who may be allies or foes (it's impossible to tell while you're reading). We learn more background on the magic world, and we learn more about what's going on in other places outside of Callistro Academy.

The plot was perfectly paced, and the plotlines were woven together perfectly. The foreshadowing throughout the book (and even clues from the first book!) were planned and executed so well, I felt like I was reading a book by a seasoned veteran in the author world. Still can't believe this is only her second published book!

The few concerns or complaints I had about the first book were completely absent in this book. The author seems to have grown tremendous amounts since the release of the first book. Much of this likely attributed to the revising done after the first version was released.

TLDR: The world-building, character development, dialogue, and plot are outstanding. I wholeheartedly believe this is the best YA fantasy book I have read in the last 10 years.

Overall, I give the Hunter in the Room an 5/5. Literally, top-tier YA. I think if you like reading YA fantasy with a female protagonist, the Hunter in the Room is an absolute MUST READ.

[T Nilsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS IS MY FAVORITE SERIES OF ALL TIME!!!
Quite literally INSANE! The plot twists are something else!
I love that it's our world, but with magic, and the relationships are so well done! Also the cutesy teen romance is the best 🥰

[Annalise Cavazos · Rating 4 out of 5]

OMG I loved this book! I enjoyed it even more than I had the first one. The characters, especially Jak, had been given more, or at least hinted at, backstory. Sarah and Breanne seem to have more personality and have been written better than in the first book. You could see Emma grow from book one to here, besides her ability to constantly get kidnapped, and her relationships deepen.

The plot twists were INSANE! I was not expecting that ending or anything leading up to it! This book has been written and set up perfectly for the next book. I am SO excited to read it.

That being said I didn’t enjoy Nolan that much. He often didn’t feel like much of character himself, more his purpose. Like his father’s past with Emma’s moms, and as an obstacle between Emma and Jak. He had felt very plain the few times he was in the book.

But other than the I thoroughly enjoyed the world building and plot of this book! Definitely recommend!

[Annalise Cavazos · Rating 4 out of 5]

OMG I loved this book even more than the first one. I felt that the characters were given more, or at least hinted at, backstory, especially Jak. Sarah and Breanne had a little bit more development than in the first book, and had more personality. The most development you could see, though, was from Emma herself. Besides from her ability to constantly get kidnapped, you could see her relationships with her peers and family deepen and grow.

The plot twists were INSANE! The leading up to and pull off of it all was amazing and unexpected. Other than a few things, Nolan, I didn't like but everything else was very interesting. All things said I thoroughly enjoyed this book and and excited to read the next!

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great sequel!! This book expanded so much off the first and was even harder to put down! I love the way the story developed- lots of action but also really sweet moments that focus on the characters. I can tell this will be a series I’ll love. Can’t wait for book 3 💜

[Amanda Denney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the entire second half today in one sitting. Another excellent read from Ariana Tosado!