A random pick from my last library visit. This fantasy has a lot going for it if you like a certain type of fantasy: atmospheric (but not gothic) reworked folklore with YA-level romance.

YA fiction is very hit-or-miss for me. Sometimes it’s clever and complex and nuanced. Sometimes it’s just… kinda dumb. (Same dichotomy applies to YAs themselves, if you know what I mean.) This one, while clever in some ways, is mostly kinda dumb.

I liked the characters, the centrality of women, and the world itself. I got tired of the very detailed atmospheric/emotive writing. I don’t need a full paragraph about the twitch of her hand against the rough bark of the tree on every page. This felt like a book written by someone who is very much in love with the way they can play with language.

There were some great, creative sections of writing but halfway through the book I felt like yelling, “We get it, you can write a lush description, you like to use a noun as a verb! Okay!”