Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
With so many intense, high stake fantasy novels available to readers, Assistant To The Villain brings a refreshing air to the genre with its humorous, and ‘realer than life’ characters, with the way their relationships intertwine to create an entertaining plot. For a book ripe with topics of death and destruction, it brings a humorous tone to it that, simply, works. This book’s shining element is the interactions between the characters and this shines through with the witty banter between the entire cast. However, the best part of the book by far is the relationship between the two main characters with the slow progression of the romance, making it satisfying to see it unfold. Unfortunately the book’s strong spot is in some places, also a weakness. With such incredible characters, one would expect astonishing character backstories that invoke a deep emotion in the reader, but unfortunately these fell flat. This could have been the book’s downfall, but luckily, it is not much of an issue. At its heart, Assistant to the Villain is the perfect mix of comedy and fantasy that is sure to delight anyone who reads it.
Foxglove by Adalyn Grace
Foxglove by Adalyn Grace brings to readers a second murder mystery continuing right where Belladonna left off and is in many ways worse than its predecessor. Foxglove brings back Signa and Death with their continued romance, only with an intrusion, that being Fate. The book has a lot going for it which in theory could make it spellbinding, but alas, it all falls flat. Characters are what makes a good novel great and with them already established from the first novel, one would think they would grow readers love from the first book, but this was not the case. Paired with lackluster characters, the prose is nothing to aspire for, and frankly, is far too dull to be considered entertaining in any sense. The first novel had skillful twists and turns that although the characters left something to be desired, was enough to tie readers over in hopes it will get better, but Foxglove replaces this excitement with predictability. The saving grace of Foxglove is the concept, not in the murder mystery, in the idea of Death, Fate, and Life being three living and breathing people. This lore is what will keep readers going with the backstory of Death and Fate and how their lives intertwine with Life. Overall Foxglove tried in many areas, but failed in nearly all of them.
A Multitude of Dreams by Mara Rutherford
A Multitude of Dreams strives to bring something new to the fantasy genre with its characters and plague, but unfortunately they are not enough to save it. Readers meet the two main characters early on, but neither of them really do anything for them. They seem interesting and they are in many aspects, but something just feels like it is missing. It is unfortunate as the book seems interesting, mixing fantasy elements with real life topics from the history of the real world in a way that is easy to understand and draw parallels from. The main character, Seraphina, talks about her religious heritage and readers can easily see how the author drew inspiration from real events in history. As for the plague itself, it can be seen how it likely drew inspiration from the black plague, but luckily, the book makes it its own thing. The characters both had very different experiences with the plague, and their interactions show it, which again, had the potential to be interesting, but secrets were revealed too quickly. Their backstories play into it with how their world affects them as people, but there is still a lack of connection. Inherently there is not anything wrong with it, but it also is not anything special.
Bring Me Your Midnight by Rachel Griffin
At first glance, Bring Me Your Midnight seems like it will be the stereotypical YA(young adult) book with a protagonist to match, but instead it brings originality to the genre. While at first the main character seems like any protagonist, she quickly proves herself to be not just an interesting person to follow, but someone willing to do what it takes to protect her people. Bring Me Your Midnight brings a magic system that gives in to readers’ curiosity with its wonder. It could have easily been like other books’ magic, as many are so similar these days, but they chose to do something new which makes it stand out. In Bring Me Your Midnight readers are quickly captivated by this magic, and are eager to learn through Tana, the main character, how it ties into the sea. It gives a mysterious, fun filled vibe that carries through the novel. All in all, the unique characters and magic are fascinating to see, and really make the novel something truly special.
