Quick Stats
Age Rating: 13+
Over All: 4.5 stars
Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4.5/5
Setting: 4.5/5
Writing: 4/5
Disability Rep: 5/5
An autistic changeling faerie. A heist. Found family on the run.
This book has it all—and it was so good!
Seelie is a changeling; she’s also autistic. I absolutely loved this premise, but I’m not sure how best to describe it to you, so I’m just going to give you the little authors note/dedication/epigraph that the book starts with.
Stories tell of children stolen away by faeries, replaced by inhuman look-alikes.
These look-alikes, they say, could be identified by their strange speech or silence. They cried without reason or never showed any emotion at all., and struggled to relate to a world that seemed foreign to them. Folklorists theorize that these stories were early descriptions of autistic children—proof that autistic people have always been there.
But once, they called us changelings.”
Seelie is such a compelling character, and I think the portrayal of her as an autistic character was executed wonderfully—in the way that only own voices authors can accomplish. She simply is autistic. It played a part in every scene, it was woven throughout her internal monologue, without ever being heavy-handed because it was simply who she is, and how she is. Because of this, Housman never needed to point out autistic traits, reactions, and experiences. She didn’t draw any special attention to them. They just were there, a cohesive part of the story and Seelie’s character.
I also really loved Seelie and Isolde’s interactions and connection. I think Housman’s portrayal of a neurotypical-neurodivergent sibling relationship was great. She made sure to capture the overwhelming love and devotion the girls have for each other while still portraying the hardships that can come with that dynamic. Seelie is jealous of how easy things are for her sister. Isolde feels overly responsible for her sister and gets frustrated with her. I loved the acknowledgments on both sides of how that dynamic can be difficult and can evoke strong emotions. It validated both girls’ feelings, and I appreciate how it played out in the end.
I enjoyed the writing and execution of the plot, however I do think that it was obvious that it was a debut. The pacing lagged at times, and while the writing was easy to read, it did sometimes feel repetitive. The only time the repetition got genuinely annoying to me was when Seelie was struggling to come to terms with and understand Isolde’s big decision. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the portrayal of how Seelie struggled to deal with this change in plans and routine. I just think that the execution of those around her helping her come to terms with it was repetitive. Every character had the exact same conversation with her, sometimes twice, and she kept thinking the exact same thing about it. I swear it was almost word for word. I think that the same sentiment could’ve been relayed in different ways each time instead of what felt like identical conversations every chapter for a hundred pages, still allowing Seelie to process how she needed, without the intense repetition of scenes.
I think some of the subplots and plot through-lines got lost in the middle of the story. The biggest instance of this was the compass guy. I think that storyline, and even the story in general, would have been stronger if that aspect had a little more emphasis, a little more page time. I think that aspect would have been a great way to keep up tension and pacing in between confrontations with their trackers, where it often seemed to lag.
Despite these couple of things that I think could have been executed a little bit better, I do think this was great read, and such a strong debut. Ivelisse Housman has so much talent, and I think she has the potential to really make a name for herself. I am wholly invested in the plot and characters of this world she’s crafted, and I cannot wait to see what comes next.
Unseelie was published by Inkyard, a YA imprint of Harlequin. While HQ was bought by Harpercollins, it is not a part of the HCP union, and reviewing its books is not considered crossing the picket line. I stand with the HCP union.
Age Rating: 13+
Over All: 4.5 stars
Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4.5/5
Setting: 4.5/5
Writing: 4/5
Disability Rep: 5/5
An autistic changeling faerie. A heist. Found family on the run.
This book has it all—and it was so good!
Seelie is a changeling; she’s also autistic. I absolutely loved this premise, but I’m not sure how best to describe it to you, so I’m just going to give you the little authors note/dedication/epigraph that the book starts with.
Stories tell of children stolen away by faeries, replaced by inhuman look-alikes.
These look-alikes, they say, could be identified by their strange speech or silence. They cried without reason or never showed any emotion at all., and struggled to relate to a world that seemed foreign to them. Folklorists theorize that these stories were early descriptions of autistic children—proof that autistic people have always been there.
But once, they called us changelings.”
Seelie is such a compelling character, and I think the portrayal of her as an autistic character was executed wonderfully—in the way that only own voices authors can accomplish. She simply is autistic. It played a part in every scene, it was woven throughout her internal monologue, without ever being heavy-handed because it was simply who she is, and how she is. Because of this, Housman never needed to point out autistic traits, reactions, and experiences. She didn’t draw any special attention to them. They just were there, a cohesive part of the story and Seelie’s character.
I also really loved Seelie and Isolde’s interactions and connection. I think Housman’s portrayal of a neurotypical-neurodivergent sibling relationship was great. She made sure to capture the overwhelming love and devotion the girls have for each other while still portraying the hardships that can come with that dynamic. Seelie is jealous of how easy things are for her sister. Isolde feels overly responsible for her sister and gets frustrated with her. I loved the acknowledgments on both sides of how that dynamic can be difficult and can evoke strong emotions. It validated both girls’ feelings, and I appreciate how it played out in the end.
I enjoyed the writing and execution of the plot, however I do think that it was obvious that it was a debut. The pacing lagged at times, and while the writing was easy to read, it did sometimes feel repetitive. The only time the repetition got genuinely annoying to me was when Seelie was struggling to come to terms with and understand Isolde’s big decision. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the portrayal of how Seelie struggled to deal with this change in plans and routine. I just think that the execution of those around her helping her come to terms with it was repetitive. Every character had the exact same conversation with her, sometimes twice, and she kept thinking the exact same thing about it. I swear it was almost word for word. I think that the same sentiment could’ve been relayed in different ways each time instead of what felt like identical conversations every chapter for a hundred pages, still allowing Seelie to process how she needed, without the intense repetition of scenes.
I think some of the subplots and plot through-lines got lost in the middle of the story. The biggest instance of this was the compass guy. I think that storyline, and even the story in general, would have been stronger if that aspect had a little more emphasis, a little more page time. I think that aspect would have been a great way to keep up tension and pacing in between confrontations with their trackers, where it often seemed to lag.
Despite these couple of things that I think could have been executed a little bit better, I do think this was great read, and such a strong debut. Ivelisse Housman has so much talent, and I think she has the potential to really make a name for herself. I am wholly invested in the plot and characters of this world she’s crafted, and I cannot wait to see what comes next.
Unseelie was published by Inkyard, a YA imprint of Harlequin. While HQ was bought by Harpercollins, it is not a part of the HCP union, and reviewing its books is not considered crossing the picket line. I stand with the HCP union.