2nd DNF of 2022
In the aftermath of World War I, a naive woman is swept into a glittering world filled with dark magic, romance, and murder in this lush and decadent debut.
On Crow Island, people whisper, real magic lurks just below the surface.
Neither real magic nor faux magic interests Annie Mason. Not after it stole her future. She’s only on the island to settle her late father’s estate and, hopefully, reconnect with her long-absent best friend, Beatrice, who fled their dreary lives for a more glamorous one.
Yet Crow Island is brimming with temptation, and the biggest one may be her enigmatic new neighbor.
Mysterious and alluring, Emmeline Delacroix is a figure shadowed by rumors of witchcraft. And when Annie witnesses a confrontation between Bea and Emmeline at one of the island’s extravagant parties, she is drawn into a glittering, haunted world. A world where the boundaries of wickedness are tested, and the cost of illicit magic might be death.
I don’t know why I could purchase this book but the real release date is 29/03/2022 for Redhook and 31/03/2022 for Orbit Books
CW: alcohol/drug use, anxiety/panic attacks, death, discrimination, gore,necromancy, self-harm, aborbtion, parental neglect/emotional abuses (for more click here)
Rating
DNF @ 60%
Review
I wanted to love this book. I bought it because I love the cover but also the synopsis looks so exciting, but as I was reading the book, I was less and less interested in it.
The first part of the book is so atmospheric and slow (in a good way). It was so good to read, I saw many people say that it was painfully slow, but I was so immersed in the book that it didn’t feel sluggish. Also, you have a lot of moments that are mysterious and whimsical but in the darkest way of it. The only thing was that I was a little taken aback as I wanted to know a lot more about everything. It’s like you have some explanations, but it wasn’t enough for me. As the atmosphere was still here and the story looked interesting, I wanted to continue, but everything changed in the second part.
In the second part, I feel that the seductive black magic is replaced by only practical black magic, which was redundant. The same scene was here again, and again just the elements used aren’t the same as their aims aren’t the same. With the arrival of the practical part, you lose the atmosphere that was in the first part.
Then you also have some subjects that are used and reused a ton of time in the book. The sentences change a little, but it’s to say the same thing in the end. However, you have nothing when you want more insight into something or have some questions. Even the MC asks herself about it, but you just have a reminder from time to time and a big revelation like: “I’m the villain!” It’s very frustrating.
Also, it feels like you have a ton of different stories which have links, but in the second part of the story, they all want to be at the forefront of the book. So I was sometimes lost about it.
Lastly, the characters. How to talk about the three main characters, because, yeah, even if you have only two povs, you have three characters. They are described as complex, but I didn’t really see it. The only one that fits is Emmeline, but as you have her past in some chapters, she is the one that is the most interesting. Annie is a naive girl initially, but she evolves to be a little more stubborn as she wants to help. I like her evolution, but I was a little fed up with her focus on what will people think of her, like even dead people. For you, it’s the thing to do? Do it! In last we have the most annoying character of the book. The one that really started the story, and let me tell you, I was enraged by her behaviour toward Annie and Emmeline. This character is Bea (aka Beatrice.) I found her toxic as hell, and as the second part of the book focused a lot on her, I just couldn’t! Sorry.
This is my opinion, but as you go on Goodreads or other websites like that, you have a lot of people liking it. So the only advice I’m giving you is to try by yourself.
Liz.
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