THE CHERISHED By Patricia Ward

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

THE CHERISHED By Patricia WardThe Cherished by Patricia Ward
Published by HarperTeen on 4/18/23
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Horror & Ghost Stories, Mystery & Detective, Young Adult
Pages: 336
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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Jo never expected to be placed in her absent grandmother’s will—let alone be left her house, her land, and a letter with mysterious demands.

Upon arriving at the inherited property, things are even more strange.

The tenants mentioned in the letter are odd, just slightly…off. Jo feels something dark and decrepit in the old shack behind the house. And the things that her father used to talk about, his delusions… Why is Jo starting to believe they might be real?

But what Jo fears most is the letter from her grandmother. Because if it’s true, then Jo belongs here, in this strange place. And she has no choice but to stay.

Short and Sweet Review

When Jo’s estranged grandmother dies and leave’s her property to her Jo doesn’t fully understand why and it doesn’t help that the letter her grandmother left for her doesn’t entirely make sense. Jo and her mom travel to the house and find that there are tenants who aren’t completely normal, and something feels off with the house. The longer Jo stays in the house the more she thinks the delusions her father used to talk about were true, and her grandmother’s letter was right and she belongs in this house.

The Cherished was a hot mess, it was offensive and the way the author tackled mental health and talking about how people looked was not okay. Jo and her mother don’t have the best relationship and so their conversations are mostly filled with snark and snappy comebacks. Abigail (Jo’s mom) was an insufferable character, she thought she was above everybody else and was constantly complaining. I didn’t like that Abigail already had it in her head that she was going to sell the house and tries to get rid of the tenants that Maureen (the grandma) wanted to stay there. Jo and Abigail come and start rocking the boat and were inconsiderate of the people around them. It wasn’t until 50% through the book when we realize what’s actually going on. There’s fairies and they like to kidnap children. Jo is responsible for keeping the fairies at bay which is why Maureen gave her the house.

I didn’t like the attitudes that Jo and Abigail came into town with, like they were better than everyone and that what they want to happen was going to happen. The book was slow and the ending was rushed. The whole thing about the fairies would have been better if they were introduced earlier. There are issues with this book and I don’t think the execution was great. The characters were entitled, the plot was slow and the ending was too easily fixed, especially when Jo really didn’t know what she was doing. I personally wouldn’t recommend this book.

THIS IS NOT THE JESS SHOW By Anna Carey

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

THIS IS NOT THE JESS SHOW By Anna CareyThis Is Not the Jess Show by Anna Carey
Series: This Is Not the Jess Show #1
Published by Quirk Books on 2/2/21
Genres: Contemporary, Mystery & Detective, Thrillers, Young Adult
Pages: 319
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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The year is 1998: Titanic just won six Oscars, boy bands are dominating MTV’s airwaves, and like any other teenager Jess Flynn is just trying to survive high school. Between a crush on her childhood best friend, overprotective parents, and her sister’s worsening health, the only constant is her hometown of Swickley, which feels smaller by the day.

Jess is resigned to her small-town life, until the day she discovers a mysterious device with an apple logo, causing her to question everything and everyone she’s ever known. As more cracks appear in Jess’s world, she faces a choice: can she live the rest of her life knowing it’s a lie, or should she risk everything for the truth?

Short and Sweet Review

It’s 1998 and Jess is trying to survive high school and live her best life. Jess hangs out with her best friend, has a crush on a boy, is worried about her sister’s health, and has overprotective parents. At school Jess sees a strange device with an apple logo on it and she begins questioning everything and everyone around her.

This Is Not the Jess Show, was a pretty entertaining book. Jess lives on a TV set and she doesn’t even know it, but when she finds the apple phone she starts asking questions, and someone finally admits the truth to her. Jess knows that she can’t let people know she’s on to them so she tries to keep calm. Jess eventually escapes with Kipp another actor and in the real world Jess realizes that everything she thought she knew was actually made up for the show. It’s not 1998 its actually 2037 and that just throws everything off. Even though Jess makes it off the set, that’s half the battle. She and Kipp still have to find some way to avoid being detected and find a safe place to stay.

I liked that Jess had to run from everything she thought she knew and that people were still searching for her. I felt bad for Jess, she didn’t even know what kind of life she was living, and that millions of people would tune in to see her. This was like a game of cat and mouse and I just really wanted Jess to succeed. I’m excited to read the second book and see how some unanswered questions are answered and how Jess wraps everything up.

THE SHARP EDGE OF SILENCE By Cameron Kelly Rosenblum

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

THE SHARP EDGE OF SILENCE By Cameron Kelly RosenblumThe Sharp Edge of Silence by Cameron Kelly Rosenblum
Published by Quill Tree Books on 4/11/23
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Pages: 492
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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WHO WILL YOU BE AT LYCROFT PHELPS?

This is the question all Lycroft applicants want to be asked. It means they’ve been accepted to one of the most prestigious private high schools in the nation.

Over 150 years is plenty of time for traditions to bake into the campus’s bricks and ivy. Ceremonies. Athletic rivalries. Secret societies. Pranks taken too far. But navigating it all will make Charlotte (perfect, straight-A student), Max (scholarship kid and STEM whiz), and Quinn (artist, dreamer, Lycroft legacy) question all they thought they knew about themselves…and the school.

Especially when Quinn’s sexual assault becomes public and implicates one of the top-tier athletes on campus.

Short and Sweet Review

To be accepted into Lycroft Phelps is a great accomplishment as it’s one of the most prestigious private schools in the nation. Charlotte is an Straight A student and a dancer, Max is a scholarship kid who excels at STEM, and Quinn is a Lycroft Legacy, and an artist. Each of these three think highly of Lycroft Phelps until the news of Quinn’s sexual assault at the hands of a popular athlete becomes public and makes them rethink everything they thought they knew.

The book is told in all three characters POVs and we see how they’re all entangled in each others lives. Quinn obviously has PTSD after what happened during summer send off, she tries avoiding her friends and she plans on getting revenge on Colin by doing things she thinks will bother him, and trying to anonymously spread the word about him. Charlotte is dating Seb which is one of Colins best friends, she knows somethings up with Seb and his group of friends but she can’t really put her finger on it. Max on the other hand becomes friends with the group of guys after he gets on the rowing team and he sees how awful their behavior is.

I will say that the synopsis is a little misleading, it isn’t until almost 60% through the book when Charlotte finds out about the sexual assault and almost 90% when Max finds out, so before than this is something Quinn has been dealing with on the down low. Even though this is about Quinn, Max and Charlotte added a lot to the book we see from their POVs how everything just comes together. Charlotte was determined to reconnect with Quinn even before she knew what was happening and was a big reason why Quinn was okay with coming forward. Max does something the guys encourage him to do and it gets the ball rolling. I did like the encouragement Quinn received from a few girls who were close to her and even teachers who were cheering her on from the sidelines without her knowledge. The ending was good and I just enjoyed seeing the support that she had around her.

This book has some tough content, but I think it was written in a way in which you can get through it and fully understand what the characters are going through. I would recommend this book.

OCULTA By Maya Motayne

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

OCULTA By Maya MotayneOculta by Maya Motayne
Series: A Forgery of Magic #2
Published by Balzer + Bray on 4/6/21
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 541
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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After joining forces to save Castallan from an ancient magical evil, Alfie and Finn haven’t seen each other in months. Alfie is finally stepping up to his role as heir and preparing for an International Peace Summit, while Finn is traveling and reveling in her newfound freedom from Ignacio.

That is, until she’s unexpectedly installed as the new leader of one of Castallan’s powerful crime syndicates.

Just when Finn finds herself back in San Cristobal, Alfie’s plans are also derailed. The mysterious organization responsible for his brother’s murder has resurfaced—and their newest target is the summit. And when these events converge, Finn and Alfie are once again forced to work together to follow the assassins’ trail and preserve Castallan’s hopes for peace with Englass.

But will they be able to stop these sinister foes before a new war threatens their kingdom?

Short and Sweet Review

After the events of the first book, Alfie and Finn haven’t seen each other in months. Alfie is preparing for a peace summit with Englass, a place where magic has been outlawed and their citizens are treated as less than. Meanwhile Finn is enjoying her freedom, but unbeknownst to her she becomes the new leader of a powerful crime organization. Alfie and Finn are brought back together when there are multiple murders occurring in the city and they seem to be attacking people related to the summit.

Alfie has a lot on his plate, the summit is actually something his brother Dez wanted to happen and Alfie feels an obligation to make sure everything goes right. It doesn’t help that there are murders occurring around Castallan during the time of the summit. Alfie and Finn try to find out who is calling the shots when it comes to these murders and they’re doing a lot of digging and at times I felt that this changed the pace of the book and things were moving so slowly. It doesn’t help that Alfie has to try to make the Englassian Royals feel welcome, he tries to make sure Prince Marsden feels the most welcome because it seems he’ll be the hardest to convince, Princess Vesper on the other hand seems to try to help Alfie with convincing her family that the summit is a good idea. Finn is on the other side working with a crime syndicate and she knows she needs to succeed in finding out who’s in charge so she can pass on the title of leader. Finn and Alfie obviously like each other, but they try to fight their feelings for whatever reason. They both know that they basically complete each other so this ridiculous take on we should fight our feelings didn’t work for me. The ending was intense and a lot of great stuff happened there, but I think it took way too long to get there. This book could have been 100 pages shorter.

This book had such a different vibe from Nocturna. I was waiting for more magic and fun but I think this book took on a darker tone. The ending was great the twists and turns were unexpected and I’m interested to see what the last book has in store.

CREEP: A LOVE STORY By Lygia Day Peñaflor

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

CREEP: A LOVE STORY By Lygia Day PeñaflorCreep: A Love Story by Lygia Day Peñaflor
Published by Clarion Books on 9/27/22
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Thrillers, Young Adult
Pages: 269
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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Laney Villanueva and Nico Fiore are the perfect couple: beautiful, popular, talented, and hopelessly in love. Everyone looks up to them at Holy Family High School.

But Rafi doesn’t just admire them. She watches them. She’s drawn to them.

Intent on becoming their closest friend, Rafi weaves her way into their lives. She starts small: taking photos of the senior class for the yearbook, joining Laney’s club, and babysitting Nico's little sister. And it works—soon they invite her to parties, take her on joyrides, and ask her for favors. Rafi’s actions quickly turn invasive, delving deeper and deeper until she’s consumed by their most intimate secrets.

When tragedy strikes the young lovers, Rafi’s obsession spirals, and she will do anything to keep the perfect couple together. Anything . . .

Short and Sweet Review

Laney and Nico are the perfect couple, at least they are in Rafi’s mind. She watches them and takes it one step further by infiltrating herself into their lives. She starts babysitting Nico’s younger sister, she goes to parties with them, and even gets rides home from them. This isn’t enough for Rafi, she wants to know everything about them, but when it seems like things aren’t going great for the couple, Rafi will do anything to keep them together.

I get the concept of the book, I really do. Rafi is obsessed with Laney and Nico and it’s uncomfortable how she’s not self aware that their kindness is not an actually invitation for her to do the things she’s doing. It’s kind of interesting because this is not the first time Rafi has become obsessed with someone, she’s not a first time offender. I think it would be nice to know what made her the way she is but I think that could be attributed to her parents relationship not working out. Reading from Rafi’s POV and seeing how delusional she is was hard, it also made me feel like I was creeping with her. The ending was not good. ITs not often that I don’t want a main character win but Rafi is not a character I liked, I kind of wanted her to get locked up and evaluated but that’s not what happened. Again I get what was happening her but maybe the execution didn’t work as well as it was supposed to.

THUNDERHEAD By Neal Shusterman

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

THUNDERHEAD By Neal ShustermanThunderhead by Neal Shusterman
Series: Arc of a Scythe #2
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on 1/9/18
Genres: Dystopian, Fantasy & Magic, Science Fiction, Young Adult
Pages: 509
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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Humans learn from their mistakes. I cannot. I make no mistakes.

The Thunderhead is the perfect ruler of a perfect world, but it has no control over the scythedom. A year has passed since Rowan had gone off grid. Since then, he has become an urban legend, a vigilante snuffing out corrupt scythes in a trial by fire. His story is told in whispers across the continent.

As Scythe Anastasia, Citra gleans with compassion and openly challenges the ideals of the “new order.” But when her life is threatened and her methods questioned, it becomes clear that not everyone is open to the change.

Old foes and new enemies converge, and as corruption within the Scythedom spreads, Rowan and Citra begin to lose hope. Will the Thunderhead intervene?

Or will it simply watch as this perfect world begins to unravel?

Short and Sweet Review

After the events of Scythe, Citra has become Scythe Anastasia and has Scythe Curie as her mentor, while Rowan has stolen Scythe Goddard’s ring and has become Scythe Lucifer. Citra tries to do her gleaning with compassion and her way of doing things are starting to rock the boat. Rowan on the other hand is gleaning scythes that he finds to be corrupt. The Thunderhead is also more engaging in this book. It still has rules it has to abide by but it uses one of its favorite people to try to be able to make sure that Citra is safe. The Thunderhead is also upset with all of the corruption that is going on around the world. We also see old and new enemies, and the question is will the Thunderhead do anything to help?

Thunderhead was a pretty well written sequel. Now that Citra is a scythe we see how divided things are within the scythedom, every scythe has different opinions on how things should be conducted. We’re also introduced to a new character Greyson whom the thunderhead uses as a go between because it’s not allowed to speak to scythes. There was a lot of Greyson in the story but it made sense because I think this book really revolved around the Thunderhead and how it was feeling about the things it was seeing and Greyson was its way of trying to fix things. I do think there wasn’t a lot of Rowan we saw him go about taking out scythes that he found to be corrupt and then more towards the end when an old foe shows up to use him for their gain. There’s also a lot of Citra as she’s new to being a scythe and we see her new ideas aren’t going over well with other scythes and there’s someone trying to take either her or scythe curie out.

This book was so good and hard to put down. I remember some parts made my jaw drop because I just wasn’t expecting the book to take the turns it did. I enjoyed reading the little tidbits from the Thunderhead and seeing its reactions to the things going on. The ending was great and I’m excited to see where things will go from here. I would definitely recommend continuing on with this series as it only gets better!

ENTER THE BODY By Joy McCullough

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

ENTER THE BODY By Joy McCulloughEnter the Body by Joy McCullough
Published by Dutton Books for Young Readers on 3/14/23
Genres: Historical, Retellings, Young Adult
Pages: 336
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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In the room beneath a stage's trapdoor, Shakespeare’s dead teenage girls compare their experiences and retell the stories of their lives, their loves, and their fates in their own words. Bestselling author Joy McCullough offers a brilliant testament to how young women can support each other and reclaim their stories in the aftermath of trauma.

Short and Sweet Review

In the Trap Room, a room beneath the theater stage, there’s a room full of girls who have met a tragic end in Shakespeare’s plays. Ophelia, Cordelia, and Juliet share their stories and maybe even change things around to make it so they’re living their own lives and not one that was written for them.

Enter the Body is a novel in verse, which was interesting because through this style each girl told her story differently. The girls take turns telling their stories and how they ended up dying in the tragic ways they have. I liked reading their stories, mainly because I’m only familiar with Romeo and Juliet. Ophelia and Cordelia were more mature than Juliet and they did tell their stories as if they were older. The sharing of stories in the trap room formed a bond between not only the three, but with some of the other girls who were listening in the background. At first we see them share what has happened in a way that we’re all familiar with: the way Shakespeare wrote it, but they decide to take matters into their own hands and change the parts of their stories that made them so tragic and change it so that they’re the author of their own fates.

This book was short and easy to get through and I enjoyed how creative it was in how it was written in verse and how each character had their own flair.

MY DEAR HENRY By Kalynn Bayron

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

MY DEAR HENRY By Kalynn BayronMy Dear Henry by Kalynn Bayron
Published by Feiwel & Friends on 3/7/23
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Historical, LGBT, Retellings, Young Adult
Pages: 266
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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London, 1885. Gabriel Utterson, a 17-year-old law clerk, has returned to London for the first time since his life— and that of his dearest friend, Henry Jekyll—was derailed by a scandal that led to his and Henry's expulsion from the London Medical School. Whispers about the true nature of Gabriel and Henry's relationship have followed the boys for two years, and now Gabriel has a chance to start again.

But Gabriel doesn't want to move on, not without Henry. His friend has become distant and cold since the disastrous events of the prior spring, and now his letters have stopped altogether. Desperate to discover what's become of him, Gabriel takes to watching the Jekyll house.

In doing so, Gabriel meets Hyde, a a strangely familiar young man with white hair and a magnetic charisma. He claims to be friends with Henry, and Gabriel can't help but begin to grow jealous at their apparent closeness, especially as Henry continues to act like Gabriel means nothing to him.

But the secret behind Henry's apathy is only the first part of a deeper mystery that has begun to coalesce. Monsters of all kinds prowl within the London fog—and not all of them are out for blood...

Short and Sweet Review

The year is 1885 in London, and Gabriel Utterson is in medical school per his dad’s wishes. The medical school is predominately white, but Gabriel ends up meeting Henry another student who is black and they hit it off. Unfortunately, this time period doesn’t look to kindly upon the relationship these two boys form. Both of the boys are kicked out of the school and along with them Henry’s father, Dr. Jekyll. After being kicked out of school Gabriel is offered a position as a law clerk and he hasn’t seen Henry in quite some time, but Henry does make it clear that Gabriel should keep his distance. Gabriel begins watching the Jekyll house and comes across Hyde, a strange gentlemen who claims to be friends with Henry. Gabriel can’t understand why Henry would push him away but he’s not going to stop pursuing his friend until he finds out.

I can’t really say anything about Bayron’s take on the story of, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, because I’m not really familiar with the story unless you count that one episode of Scooby-Doo I watched as a child. That being said this was a book that held my interest, I wanted to know more about Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and what exactly was going on in that house. Gabriel and Henry had a sweet relationship, but they were really risking it all to have a same sex relationship in 1885 and I don’t think it made it any better to those around them that they were both black. I did like the representation and the fact that both boys were intelligent. We do see that Henrys father Dr Jekyll is a mad scientist. Also Hyde was just so mysterious that it made trying to figure him out more fun, like why is he always stalking around at night? I did like that even though Gabriel felt alone without Henry, he did have a good support system, his landlady, his cousin, and another friend from med school.

The mystery of Henry was great to solve and I also learned a bit about Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. This is the third book I’ve read by Bayron and I just think her writing has a way of sucking you into the story. I would recommend My Dear Henry, its a good remix on a classic and it was short, fast, and captivating.

GREYMIST FAIR By Francesca Zappia

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

GREYMIST FAIR By Francesca ZappiaGreymist Fair by Francesca Zappia
Published by Greenwillow Books on 3/28/23
Genres: Fairy Tales & Folklore, Fantasy & Magic, Horror & Ghost Stories, Mystery & Detective, Retellings, Young Adult
Pages: 310
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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Two roads lead into a dark forest. They meet at Greymist Fair, the village hidden in the trees, a place kept alive by the families that never leave. The people of Greymist Fair know the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and to set foot off the road is to invite trouble.

When Heike, the village’s young tailor, discovers a body on the road, she goes looking for who is responsible. But her quest only leads to more strange happenings around Greymist Fair.

Inspired by the original, bloody, lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, acclaimed author Francesca Zappia crafts an enthralling murder-mystery that will keep readers turning the pages. Told from multiple points of view, with each narrative building on the crime discovered by Heike, Greymist Fair examines the themes of childhood fears, growing into adult responsibilities, and finding a place to call home amid the trials of life and death.

Short and Sweet Review

Greymist Fair is a village hidden in the trees. There’s only two roads that led into Greymist and the villagers know that leaving will only cause trouble. Heike, one of the villagers finds a body on the road and she decides to find out who is responsible, but on her quest she learns that there are other strange things happening in Greymist.

Greymist Fair is one interesting book. There are seven Grimm fairytales that are being retold and each story is told as a short story and they are all interwoven. Even though all of the stories connect I still felt like this book was disjointed. Heike is a character that is shown throughout the whole book and her story is the first one told, but she finds the solution to her mystery pretty quickly. If I’m going to be honest I think the rest of the stories are there just to show the other people who are in Greymist Fair and how it got to be the way it is. The other stories do tend to have different timelines than the one we originally started off in. I liked that the book was retelling lesser known Grimm fairy tales and I think that’s where the book shines, in its telling of short stories, but the way it was all supposed to come together it just fell short of what I think the author was trying to achieve.

Overall, Greymist Fair was an easy book to breeze through and I love how Zappia made the fairytales her own. The book would have been more successful if the stories came together in a better way, otherwise I think it would have been better if it wasn’t short stories but just one story and some of the characters had their own POVs. I would still recommend this book, I would just suggest going into it with a very open mind.

FOUL LADY FORTUNE By Chloe Gong

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

FOUL LADY FORTUNE By Chloe GongFoul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong
Series: Foul Lady Fortune #1
Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books on 9/27/22
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Historical, Mystery & Detective, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 525
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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It’s 1931 in Shanghai, and the stage is set for a new decade of intrigue.

Four years ago, Rosalind Lang was brought back from the brink of death, but the strange experiment that saved her also stopped her from sleeping and aging—and allows her to heal from any wound. In short, Rosalind cannot die. Now, desperate for redemption for her traitorous past, she uses her abilities as an assassin for her country.

Code name: Fortune.

But when the Japanese Imperial Army begins its invasion march, Rosalind’s mission pivots. A series of murders is causing unrest in Shanghai, and the Japanese are under suspicion. Rosalind’s new orders are to infiltrate foreign society and identify the culprits behind the terror plot before more of her people are killed.

To reduce suspicion, however, she must pose as the wife of another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong, and though Rosalind finds Orion’s cavalier attitude and playboy demeanor infuriating, she is willing to work with him for the greater good. But Orion has an agenda of his own, and Rosalind has secrets that she wants to keep buried. As they both attempt to unravel the conspiracy, the two spies soon find that there are deeper and more horrifying layers to this mystery than they ever imagined.

Short and Sweet Review

Four years ago Rosalind was brought back from the brink of death and after an experiment Rosalind can’t die. After the things she’s done she’s looking for redemption so she uses her new abilities to act as an assassin for her country. The Japanese is beginning to march into Shanghai and people are being murdered by chemical attacks and that causes Rosalind’s mission to pivot. Now Rosalind has to infiltrate foreign society to find who is behind these murders, but to avoid suspicion Rosalind is teamed up with Orion and they have to pose as a married couple. The more these two unravel the layers to this mystery the more they realize that this mission isn’t as open and shut as it first seemed.

First of all, I love Chloe Gong’s writing. I loved the These Violent Delights Duology and it was interesting to see where some of the characters we know from that series ended up. Rosalind kind of reminds me of Black Widow, trying to get some redemption for mistakes made in the past. It was interesting that Rosalind was working for the Nationalists while Celia was a working for the Communists, they’re on opposite sides but I liked how they still looked out for each other. We also see Alisa, she’s a few years older and ends up running into Rosalind at the office building they’re both infiltrating but for the opposite sides. The partnership between Orion and Rosalind was great, they’re both obviously hiding things from each other. We have multiple POVs which I liked because it just added to how crazy everything going on was, and it was interesting to see how alliances shifted and who might be a double agent. We have some characters we recognize, but there’s also some new comers like Oliver and Phoebe, Orions siblings.

This book brings us back into a world we know and love but with something different. I loved the element of spies and traitors and a whole new era of panic in Shanghai. Orion and Rosalind did a good job at being undercover and investigating the people they worked with and also each other. The chemistry between these two just worked, Rosalind may have been annoyed with Orion at first but throughout the book you could feel the slow burn.

I wasn’t sure about following Rosalind’s story at first but she’s a badass and she makes you fall in love with her one page at a time. The ending was mind boggling and it just made me want the next book in my hand immediately, I can’t wait until Foul Heart Huntsman is released.