Actual rating: 3.5 stars
Do you know what I hate? The stereotypical YA heroine. The one that's stoic but badass and has a haunting past and is "destined to bring about change."
Fortunately, Teodora di Sangro isn't one of these heroines.
She's badass, but also in an understated way? I don't know how to explain it. But she's a refreshing character to read about among all the other cliches in the genre. And Cielo, her "sexy magic tutor", is amazing. I love their romance and I ship them so much!!
With that said, I also feel like their romance was kind of insta-love like? I mean, they knew each other for only a few days and they were declaring that they loved each other. But it's okay I guess, because I liked the romance. Which shocked me because I usually find YA romance cringey.
Unfortunately, the romance overpowered the plot at times. Some of what happened...I didn't think it was realistic. But somehow, it was still so easy to get lost in the story! It was fast-paced and fun, and the book just flew by! And the writing style was so whimsical and lovely. It wasn't purple prose, but it somehow managed to keep an elegance to it that added to the story.
And both Teo and Cielo are also genderqueer!! I'll admit, that was the reason I picked up this book. I wanted to read about these characters. I didn't expect to find a discussion about the different expectations surrounding gender and seeing Teo struggle with them. I loved how it was resolved too. It gave the story a much more...well, it resonated with me. Which is awesome and it made me like this book even more.
There better be a sequel, or I'm rioting.
(P.S. Can we just take a moment to appreciate how pretty the cover is??)
Do you know what I hate? The stereotypical YA heroine. The one that's stoic but badass and has a haunting past and is "destined to bring about change."
Fortunately, Teodora di Sangro isn't one of these heroines.
She's badass, but also in an understated way? I don't know how to explain it. But she's a refreshing character to read about among all the other cliches in the genre. And Cielo, her "sexy magic tutor", is amazing. I love their romance and I ship them so much!!
With that said, I also feel like their romance was kind of insta-love like? I mean, they knew each other for only a few days and they were declaring that they loved each other. But it's okay I guess, because I liked the romance. Which shocked me because I usually find YA romance cringey.
Unfortunately, the romance overpowered the plot at times. Some of what happened...I didn't think it was realistic. But somehow, it was still so easy to get lost in the story! It was fast-paced and fun, and the book just flew by! And the writing style was so whimsical and lovely. It wasn't purple prose, but it somehow managed to keep an elegance to it that added to the story.
And both Teo and Cielo are also genderqueer!! I'll admit, that was the reason I picked up this book. I wanted to read about these characters. I didn't expect to find a discussion about the different expectations surrounding gender and seeing Teo struggle with them. I loved how it was resolved too. It gave the story a much more...well, it resonated with me. Which is awesome and it made me like this book even more.
There better be a sequel, or I'm rioting.
(P.S. Can we just take a moment to appreciate how pretty the cover is??)