Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for sharing this copy in exchange for my honest review.
Tala Warnock has little use for magic – as a descendant of Maria Makiling, the legendary Filipina heroine, she negates spells, often by accident. But her family’s old ties to the country of Avalon (frozen, bespelled, and unreachable for almost 12 years) soon finds them guarding its last prince from those who would use his kingdom’s magic for insidious ends. And with the rise of dangerous spelltech in the Royal States of America; the appearance of the firebird, Avalon’s deadliest weapon, at her doorstep; and the re-emergence of the Snow Queen, powerful but long thought dead, who wants nothing more than to take the firebird's magic for her own – Tala’s life is about to get even more complicated…. I am… very confused. I love Rin Chupeco’s writing so much, as well as the ways she shifts her fantasy writing away from the typical Western approaches. However, this book just didn’t hook me, and I’m not totally sure why. I think my main source of confusion is the world building, which is central to the story but somehow never fully fleshed out. There’s Alice in Wonderland inspiration, “spelltech” (what?), as well as the Slavic Firebird myth and an Ice Queen. What do these stories have in common? How are they somehow combined and real? The best part of the book is clearly the characters. Tala is cool—she’s a bit of a chosen one, but there’s a reasonable explanation so I don’t have a problem with this. She’s Filipina, living in the US (where there’s a royal family, but many aspects of our IRL government are still in place), and has a tight-knit family around her neighborhood, who are all affiliated with Avalon. Alex, the Prince of Avalon, is kind and dorky and I just! want! him! to be! SAFE! I love him so much, if anything happened to him I would reach inside of this book and resuscitate him myself. Well… that’s an exaggeration. However, he and Tala are the best characters in this novel, so my love is justified. Two things about Alex that I like: first, he’s gay (queer rep, yay! see my list of 2020’s hottest LGBTQ+ YA here!) and he’s not given a tragic story because of that. Yes to having queer characters in fantasy novels! No to the bury-your-gays trope! Second, he’s got an angsty backstory and new curse to live with, (a la Rhen from A Curse so Dark and Lonely), a trope I love. A hallmark of Chupeco’s books is the diverse cast, which includes characters of many ethnicities, gender identities, and sexualities. So many people will be able to find themselves in this novel, and I can definitely get on board with that. I appreciate how much attention Chupeco gives to the plot, so each character has clear goals and motives. Even the side characters had purpose, which helped me remember them. Two of my favorites are Lola Urduja and Tala’s mom, who are both fierce warriors. They had some truly awesome fight scenes in the book. Even through my confusion, I didn’t want to put the book down, just so I could find out what happens to Tala, Alex, and Avalon. In the beginning, I worried that I wouldn’t feel connected to Tala’s quest because I couldn’t understand the world, but that fear faded as I kept reading. I wouldn’t say that everything makes sense at the end, but I am surprised by some of the different plot points and excited for their potential in future books. As always, the writing is perfect. I’m a big fan of Chupeco’s prose; I find it deft and adaptable, which serves all of her novels well. I will be anticipating the second book in the series, in the hopes that it fleshes out more of the world building and characters. 3/5 stars. I am still confused about the ways fairytales and the real world intersect here, but the pace picks up in the second half of the book, so I didn’t want to stop reading. Perhaps other readers will be able to unlock the secrets of this book’s magic, but until the sequel comes out, I will say it’s just not for me.
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The BaronessHey, I'm Shreya! I love to read, write, travel, and drink tea. Disclosure: I am an affiliate of bookshop.org and I will earn a small commission if you click the above link and make a purchase.
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