“I am actually speechless.”

“I am actually speechless.

You guys… I was not expecting this to be grab-me-by-the-collar-and-refuse-to-let-me-go AMAZING. This was one of those cases where an unknown author reached out to me and offered me a book for review, which I say “no” to 99% of the time. I did some research before accepting, but I still wasn’t expecting to be blown away.

I. Am. Blown. Away.

The hook that got me here was an author writing YA Fantasy with male protagonists and a story revolving around brotherhood. I want to see more of that (done well and without toxic undertones) for my boys, so I read this with guarded hope and it far surpassed my expectations.

Yes, we have brother MCs, yes they share an incredibly close bond, yes there’s action and fighting scenes, but ALSO we have sensitive navigation of masculinity and two very non-toxic protagonists who are using new powers they don’t yet understand to bring an abusive man to justice. There’s also ghosts, cemeteries, complex family dynamics, and hints of a much deeper supernatural world to come.

This book left a door definitively open for more to come, and I am telling you, I WILL BE WAITING ON THE EDGE OF MY SEAT! This was a bit more thriller/mystery (some intense scenes had me skimming ahead to make sure everyone was going to be okay) than I usually pick up, but I think that’s exactly what will make my reluctant reader love this when he’s a bit older. I LOVED these characters and the world @lsmooreya is building for them. Their voices are so well-developed and authentic— I could see my boys in these brothers, but more to the point, they became real to me and I was completely invested in their journey. Seriously, if they made a tv show out of this I would not be surprised.

TWs in the comments, but seriously, please consider this a rave review. I’m stunned! This was stunning.”