Nothing piques my interest quite like a prologue of possible murder followed by a heist, it has to be said. It successfully had me curious about multiple different things and I was gripped by foreboding as we time skipped back a week. Meeting Severin just added to the intrigue at that point, and I was basically hooked pretty early on. It steadily pulled me in with the rich writing style, and the notes of intrigue that left me wanting to know more, alongside the humour and banter between the characters that kept me amused.

Gilded Wolves is a complex book, we've got the main heist, but we also have lots of smaller heists and cons to pull off along the way...and a mysterious figure banging on about revolution. I have to say, I got some serious National Treasure/Relic Hunter vibes with all the clues, codes, historical elements and artefacts and I was living for it! We get Severin and Tristan's past in some short, snappy flashbacks and to my mind it was a bit like A Series of Unfortunate Events, with them getting dropped off at a different bad persons house every however many months/years, and their new guardian dying mysteriously. I did have my suspicions about the deaths but nothing was confirmed which was a bit disappointing.

I thought the plot was well balanced, the quiet moments never felt dull or boring to me because I always had something to keep me reading, a mystery, or some humour or information and so on. There's a nice balance of action, mystery, intrigue, answers, questions, history and sprinkles of romance with everything building up towards the confrontation at the end and just when you think it's all over...there's more plot twists and an epic cliffhanger. I was screeching.

On the world building front we've got record extracts and other text extracts at the beginning of parts to fill in some blanks and build up a nice sense of foreboding, while fleshing out the history and our understanding of Forging a bit more. The world is built up to quite a nice extent right from the start. We've got so much to love, Sphinx masks, moving marble lions, the two different kinds of Forging and what they can do, lots of things are mentioned and explained right at the beginning which makes for a bit of a heavy start, but you know...we've also got a heist going on to keep things interesting.

I was so curious about the Babel fragments and then the Knights Templar were mentioned, and there's an Eye of Horus and an Ancient Egyptian creature and I lost my mind a little bit! But I really loved Forging and how it was built up and more magical things brought in here and there, with more tidbits of the history of it dropped or mentioned in passing. The world building is so rich with such a great ambience to it, and there's such a nicely developed and intriguing magic system to it, and I actually feel like the magic system fits quite nicely with the time period. There's also some nice historical detail with the building of the Eiffel Tower and the Exhibition and so on.

Roshani's writing is gorgeous, she gives us some decadent descriptions of Laila's baking, but then again the descriptions in general are quite decadent and lush. The writing is just as rich as the world building, painting a vivid and vibrant picture and bringing everything and everyone to life while weaving in tension, foreboding, danger and mystery. Time moves along nicely in the book and for the most part time skips are smoothly handled. There is one instance were that was just...not correct but I'll get to that. As for the pace, for me it was just right. Not too draggy, not too rushed, with enough different threads of intrigue and excitement to keep me hooked and it's clever in more ways than one.

We’ve got quite the diverse cast of misfits with specific skill sets to embark upon all these heists, with some excellently fleshed out backstories. Each brings something different to the table, and they all work so well together and they each have different relationships with each other and we get to see the different friendship dynamics, which I loved.

Severin “Secrets keep my hair lustrous” Montagnet-Alarie had me curious because of his little vendetta against the Order. He is the brains, he is the main schemer and he broke my heart by wanting to steal for the Order so the others would stay with him. Laila is seeking an ancient book to discover what she is and she touches objects and see's their secret histories. She's kinda soft and fluffy a little when she's baking and taking care of everyone but she has an entirely different vibe to her when she's her alter ego for the cabaret. Enrique, my boy. He is such a M O O D and he cracked me up but the fact he's a Historian with his nose in a book frequently, meant he was gonna be my new BFF. Zofia has a forging ability for metals, she's the engineer, she's not good at conversations and she was kinda similar to Drax from GotG. Then we have Tristan, he's got a forging ability to do with plants, but I knew I wouldn't be friends with him because of his...pets. I was suspicious of him purely because we don't get his POV and we get everyone else's but....my poor little bean. He just needs a hug.

Hypnos had me in two minds, I instantly hated him yet loved his extra self when we first met him. He was so hilarious but I started out really not liking him because of his threats, it made me so wary of him. But I also really wanted to like him because of how funny he was and I'm weak so...I ended up loving him. Bless him, he's pretty harmless. He was loving being part of a team and having friends and it seems to me like he's just really lonely, and wants to be part of the group and have friends but....sweetie we don't make friends by threatening people.

We switch POV's between all the group, like I said, except for Tristan, we also briefly get Hypnos' POV. I did like the switches, it was seamless and with no jolting around, there wasn't too much of one and too little of another. It let us get to know the characters more, and their pasts as well as their personalities via their narratives as well as others. Plus we got more info on Forging from those that could do it. I really loved the banter between all of them, but I also loved the respect they had for each other.

We have a couple of ships. Romance isn't the main focus of the book it's more like little threads here and there to spice things up even more. Laila and Severin who had a thing at one point and now Severin is lowkey pining. They're so obviously attracted to each other but don't want anything to get in the way of their missions. They really understand each other and their pasts and their scars so of course by the end of the book Severin smashed that to pieces and then Laila ground it all in to dust. I was reading the scene and just softly mumbling "NO NO NO NO".

Then we have Zofia and Enrique and Enrique and Hypnos. I found Zofia and Enrique particularly interesting because I wasn't expecting it, and they didn't really seem to get along with how they came across to each other in their narratives. Zofia kinda figures out romance and her feelings and grows close to Enrique, I was living, I thought they were quite sweet and Enrique has some feelings but then Hypnos happened. He's very forward. I'm as torn as Enrique about who I ship, but either way all romance leads to angst.

I want to talk briefly about the comparison to Six of Crows because while there are vague similarities it's not EXACTLY the same like a lot of people had been saying when it first came out. I don't feel Severin is anywhere near as vicious as Kaz, and I feel like the group has an entirely different dynamic to it than the SoC one. None of them wants to kill each other/hates one's very being for one, Matthias I'm looking at you. Yeah it's similar, we've got a group of misfits, and there's heists but this has a more Relic Hunter/Indiana Jones vibe to it with the quest for a lost treasure and the puzzle solving, whereas SoC has the build up for a prison break.

I can see them being touted as similar because of the group of misfits but I don’t see how people are saying they’re exactly the same. Admittedly it has been a while since I read SoC but I didn’t read it and immediately think holy crap this is basically SoC in 1890’s Paris like a lot of people implied.

The only negatives for me were that the time skip initially tripped me up, because we had the prologue, then we skipped to a week before, and then Hypnos came in and said how the events of the prologue had happened at X time and I got very confused because it didn't add up to me, we hadn't moved that far along in time. I went backwards and forwards a few times until I finally registered that tiny little sentence were Severin's like "yeah so a week and a half passed". Now this could have been me not paying attention or my brain betraying me, but then again perhaps it could have been more obvious or apparent time had passed.

Much as it pains me to say this, but while there is some historical detail, at times I forgot that this is set in historical Paris because the way of speech didn't match the time period, which is fine, I wouldn't usually mind, it's okay for some books to be more chill with the historical wording because sometimes it makes the dialogue a bit heavy and clunky. But I'd be reading, and then they'd mention a carriage, or the Eiffel Tower being built and I'd be like "WTF?!.....OOOOH YEAAAAAAAAAH".

The characters don't exactly dress normally for the most part but I didn't get a solid grasp on the time period from their clothes either, possibly because the most solid descriptions were Laila's costumes, but it never fully registered that this is 1890's Paris to the extent that Zofia wears a corset at one point and my brain was like "lol wtf why would you do that just for a con? It's so uncomfortable" I forgot this is a time period were corsets are probably a thing. I kinda guess that normal clothes are out considering the world of the book and the magic, but it's just something that occurred to me when I finished reading, I hadn't really been like "Wow 1890's Paris", I spotted some historical detail sure, and the world building is rich for the most part, but I just didn't solidly have that time period in my head. I knew it was historical in the back of my head, but the exact time period was fuzzy.

I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did after seeing what others had to say about it, but it caught my attention and then slowly sucked me in more and more as I got to grips with the world and the magic that subtly twisted it and history. Or rather the book revealed the hidden magical side with history twisted to suit it. I loved the diverse cast of characters, there’s a lot of representation, each had different voices, each had an interesting background I wanted to know more about and each had something they struggled with. Romance was scattered and teased but the main focus was the action and adventure and mystery and history nerd I am and lover of Relic Hunter and National Treasure I lived for all the historical document extracts filling in some of the world building and the clues and codes that had to be figured out and the fun settings brought to life like the Catacombs and so on.

There’s some twists you do see coming thanks to the set up for them but there’s others that you dont, and the book leaves you screeching at the end like “no way”, and wanting more. Some very interesting things have been set up for the next book and I can’t wait to get my hands on it! It’s by no means perfect but I enjoyed it a hell of a lot!

This book is set in Paris in the 19th century and like many a good tale involves a hunt for an ancient artifact. Like others I was initially drawn to the book by the fantastic cover (not the one shown here). I requested an audio version from Netgalley. I was delighted that I did. I thought that this was a great story line, and worked very well as an audiobook for tweens, with lots of great twists and turns, and my daughter tells me also that she thought it was a thoroughly enthralling listen.

I think this was enjoyable enough, but definitely took me a lot longer then usual. I felt hardly any connection towards the characters, but the plot definitely kept it going for me. The audiobook, which is how I read this book was really well done. I love the accent and the voices. Definitely helped me envision the characters

rereading this book through the audiobook was a fun experience, and the narration only adds to the beauty of this book. i fell in love with the characters once again, and now i want to reread the entire series!

My thanks to Hodder & Stoughton Audio for a review copy of the unabridged audiobook edition of ‘The Gilded Wolves’ by Roshani Chokshi. It is narrated by Laurie Catherine Winkel and P.J. Ochlan.

I had difficulty with comprehending the plot with just the audiobook and partway through listening I did purchase its ebook for reference.

A historical fantasy set in La Belle Époque, late 19th Century France, with magic and treasure hunts - this should have been a great match for me. However, it proved disappointing for a variety of reasons.

First, a very brief plot overview. The focuses is upon a found family made up of a diverse group of teenagers. The leader, who is a successful hotelier at eighteen, is seeking to reclaim the position of patriarch of one of the Four Houses of France linked to the Order of Babel. In order to persuade the leaders of the remaining two Houses to grant this, he has to fulfil a quest and draws upon the skills of his friends to accomplish his goal.

In short what didn’t work: I didn’t particularly connect with the characters, found the plot and magical system confusing, and the historical setting failed to convince. Added to this, I found the audiobook unsatisfying due to one of the narrators.

Yet there were definitely positive points. I appreciated the diversity that Roshani Chokshi brought to her characters as well as the opportunity this and the setting of the 1889 Exposition Universelle allowed for discourse about the legacy of European colonialism. I enjoyed her use of mythology and esoteric theory and practices at a deeper level than just wand waving and spells. Her magical system wasn’t that clear though given that this is the first in a trilogy I expected that it might become more defined as the story progresses.

So more specifics on what didn’t work for me. From the outset the characters appear to be gifted and successful despite their youth. Perhaps this is common in YA fiction but it didn’t convince me. Add to this was the teen angst, which was distracting to me though may appeal to the novel’s core demographic. Still, I could cope with the angstation and even a somewhat confusing plot if I had felt more convinced by the setting.

I read a great deal of historical fiction, including alternative history that allows for elements of fantasy and steampunk. However, I still expect to experience a sense of immersion in the setting. Sadly, ‘The Gilded Wolves’ failed for me in this respect.

While meant to be set in 1889 Paris, I felt little sense of either the time or the place. The dialogue was gratingly modern and also riddled with Americanisms. This constantly broke my sense of engagement with the narrative. Again, it may not be an issue for other readers.

Moving on to the audiobook. Some narrators are a pleasure to listen to, while others are somewhat invisible, which at least allows the story and characters to come to the fore without distractions. However, if a narrator’s voice grates it can be a disaster.

Certainly both actors involved in this production have narrated quite a number of other audiobooks. In general Laurie Catherine Winkel was okay, though sometimes her voice went quite high and cutesy. Not ideal but I reminded myself she was voicing teenagers.

However, P.J. Ochlan’s voice was a constant irritation. He was flat and monotonous and I felt that he had little engagement with the material. At times he seemed to be trying to be funny, though it seemed strained. Both actors had American accents but at times adopted faux French accents. Neither were convincing to my ears.

A number of times I came close to abandoning the audiobook though continued through to the end. Over the course of the hours I did get more used to their voices but it was never ideal or pleasurable.

Overall, I felt that Roshani Chokshi’s writing was good and she’s clearly brimming with ideas. Also, her heart feels in the right place in terms of seeking to address sensitive historical issues rather than just have her characters wear pretty clothes and drink champagne. I admit that the parameters for YA fiction, including the criteria for historical details, are different and don’t always appeal to an older readership.

In this case, the audiobook edition was a rare letdown. I know that it’s costly to re-record though rather wish that the U.K. publishers had done so.

In terms of ratings: I gave the book itself 3 stars; though the audiobook only 1 star. So, a 2 star rating.

I really enjoyed this one, it reminded me a lot of Six of Crows and The Court of Miracles, but targeted perhaps at a slightly younger audience. There was a brilliant range of characters with very clear defined personalities and allegiances, and the story made for an excellent adventure. The narrators really helped the story come to life as well.

I knew exactly what I was getting with this one and expected to tuck right into it. But I hit an unexpected snag with this fantasy heist adventure – I found narrator P.J. Ochlan’s narration rather difficult to listen to. While his command of the various character voices is excellent, his delivery of the text tended to fall into a slightly sing-song cadence that I found very irritating. While there were times when it worked for me – for instance when I felt it matched the rhythm of the writing. But particularly during some of the descriptive passages, I felt Ochlan’s delivery diminished the lushness of Chokshi’s prose. This led me to limit the length of time I listened to the story, especially in the early stages when there is a significant amount of scene-setting and description. Fortunately as the book progressed, this issue became less of a problem due to the gathering pace of the story and the heightened tension as the stakes grew ever larger. Once again, I was struck by Chokshi’s deft characterisation as each one of the gang was well drawn, with both strengths and weaknesses that were highlighted throughout the story.

I would mention that this story definitely falls within the YA genre – the young protagonists are still struggling to discover who they are within the wider world. Emotions within the team are ramped up as they also are trying to work out how they feel about each other. Interestingly, listening to this story had me far less sympathetic to Séverin than when I read it. In fact, I wanted to shake him until his teeth rattled to snap him out of his self-pitying fugue, whereby he seemed to think it was fine to hurt others around because he was also in pain.

However, despite my issues with one of the narrators, I still became caught up in the twisting plot and enjoyed the vivid depiction of a fantastical Paris where magic and a decadent pursuit of pleasure collide to produce a bright world, full of colour and enchantment. Now I have once again been drawn into the story, I want to discover what happens next to this disparate group. Recommended for those who enjoy a richly depicted fantastical world and a magical heist adventure full of twists and turns. While I obtained an audiobook arc of The Gilded Wolves from the publishers via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
8/10

It’s Paris 1889, during Exposition Universelle - a worlds fair that features grand operas, displays of locomotives, the largest diamond in the world at the time …. and a black village.

Severin Montagnet Alarie is a thief and the son of a French father and North African mothers. He’s also the heir to the dead House Vanith; if only the order of the babel would accept him and grant him his inheritance. Severins pursuit of what is rightfully his leads him on a hunt for the “Horus Eye” - an item which is said to reveal the location of the babel fragment.

But … he will need to help of his allies.

Tristan
Laila
Zofia
Hypnos
Enrique

Follow this fabulous group of people on the journey of a lifetime, a action packed story.. you won’t be able to put this down

TW: Racism, antisemitism and abuse.

4.75 stars rounded up

<b>Plot</b>: After being coerced by the powerful Order of Babel to 'acquire' an artifact for them, Severin (a wealthy man whose rightful inheritance was stolen from him) gathers a group of unique individuals to help him with his task - his brother in all but blood, a dancer with a serious secret, an engineer with strong abilities and a troubled past, and a historian who was banished. This takes place in Paris in 1889 in a version of the world where a type of ability called forging exists.

<b>Review</b>: This book really blew my mind - I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did, and I was literally on the edge of my seat some of the time. The switched POVs really helped (we get a number of perspectives from the different members of the crew) and I believe gave the book a different feel. My only potential poing of constructive criticism is that it felt a bit long at places, however there was never a point where I felt bored or tuned out. The different representation in this book was great too - people from different cultures and ethnic backgrounds, an autistic character (as an autistic woman myself it is great to see someone who displays neurodiversity in a way books often shy away from), as well as LGBT representation. Each character felt distinct and though it took me a minute to get used to the large cast, it didn't take too long before I was invested in every single one and their story. Overall an absolutely brilliant read and I am so happy to have received this book!

Potential triggers for <spoiler> child abuse, torture and death </spoiler>

<b>Narrators</b>: The narrators of the audiobook did a brilliant job of portraying the different emotions and the personalities of different characters as we went through the story. Our male narrator took the segments in the POV of male characters and our female narrator did the reverse, and yet all the characters had a similar 'voice' throughout. There are many accents which had to be done for this audiobook, primarily French, which I think is incredibly difficult but was executed I think quite well. I truly have to congratulate them on making me feel like I knew where each charater was in the room in the way they spoke - a combination of good story and good narrating!

<b>Highly recommend</b> and I cannot wait for the next installment in the series to be translated into audiobook format as I have started the series in audiobook and would value continuing it in the same format!

<i>I have been provided with this audiobook complimentary via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, which I leave voluntarily</i>.

Thank you Hodder & Stoughton Audio and NetGalley for granting me advance access to the audio version of The gilded wolves by Roshani Chokshi in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

I’ve had this book on my TBR for a while now, but if you’ve seen my TBR on my bookstagram account, you’ll get why it hasn’t quite happened. You can find me as Librow0rm on Instagram. And now that my work travel has increased audiobooks are a must.

There were 2 narrators (Laurie Catherine Winkel and P.J. Ochlan, who worked well together, didn’t deliver too clichéd a French accent, and gave each character a clear tone, distinguishing amongst the group of protagonists.

I definitely enjoyed the world building and magic system, with a definite feeling of Paris wrapped in a world of magic. The political and economic system was well defined, without being overblown and the societal hierarchical structure was appropriate to the time period.

Add in the many mysteries, wrapped in mystery, and surrounded by enigma that seem to encompass each and every character, and of course the will they, won’t they romantic aspect, all serve to trigger curiosity and sn innate desire to keep listening…even when this story breaks your heart into pieces.

I loved the characters, particularly Laila and Zofia, and the whole sense of found family amongst them all.

There’s no question, this is a great start to a series snd I definitely won’t object to sn audio version of the next book.

I had the pleasure of recieving an advance audio copy of The Guilded Wolves from the publishers via NetGalley in return for my honest review.

The blurb
It's 1889. The city is on the cusp of industry and power, and the Exposition Universelle has breathed new life into the streets and dredged up ancient secrets. Here, no one keeps tabs on dark truths better than treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier Séverin Montagnet-Alarie. When the elite, ever-powerful Order of Babel coerces him to help them on a mission, Séverin is offered a treasure that he never imagined: his true inheritance. To hunt down the ancient artifact the Order seeks, Séverin calls upon a band of unlikely experts: An engineer with a debt to pay. A historian banished from his home. A dancer with a sinister past. And a brother in arms if not blood.Together, they will join Séverin as he explores the dark, glittering heart of Paris. What they find might change the course of history--but only if they can stay alive.

In terms of audio books I am a big fan of bigger cast renditions, where each character really comes alive and is easily distinguished making the story flow. I especially liked Laila's portrail - her sexy, self-assured, powerful characteristics really shine through the actors voice.

The Guilded Wolves for me a was hybrid baby between a Robert Langdon series and a magical fantasy, taking my best bits from both and producing this gem! I love it when stories contain genuine historical myths, in this case the tower of Babel and the Egyptian Eye of Horus. They really getting my brain ticking and keep me intrigued.

The cast of characters are really diverse in their ethnicity, cultural following and sexuality making them modernly relevant and interesting. They really work well as a group and play off each other well.

After having listened to the first book in the series I will definate be reading the rest. Certain characters didn't end up where I wanted them to be and the ending was left to open, I need to find out what happens next to my favourite characters.

It was a great book, the story was captivating and interesting. I do think that it was similar to Six of Crows in a way but it is still it's own independent story and I never thought of it as a direct parallel to that story.
I also enjoyed both narrators, they added a really nice touch to the reading experience and I look forward to reading more from Roshani Chokshi.

This is a beautifully character-driven novel, and it was meant to be an audiobook. Each nuance and hidden meaning in dialogue was delivered so carefully and expertly, and there was a lot of nuance on every page as the characters each have distinct goals, fears, and even charged relationships with one another. I was tentative at first when the narrators used accents for the characters, afraid this would make the book cartoonish, but it did the exact opposite. It enhanced the fact that our cast of characters come from diverse backgrounds and helped draw me into the story even more.

This is a rich narrative - like eating a dark chocolate truffle. The prose, the world-building and the characters. Oh the characters they stole my breath away in the best of ways. I loved them them all. Excited to read book 2, but willing to wait for the audiobook, because truly, this was the best way to take in this story.

The Gilded Wolves has been on my TBR for a while now so I was grateful for the opportunity to request the audiobook in exchange for a review.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to complete my listen of the audiobook before the archive date so this review covers to Chapter 9.

The Gilded Wolves is a found family heist novel with an intriguing plot and magic system. I have been really enjoying the story and will absolutely be completing the book.

Unfortunately, I wasn't a huge fan of the narration. The narrators spoke quite slowly - I normally listen at 1.25 speed but increased to 1.75 to fit my preferences. I also found that the emphasis for sentences a little off and that there were unnecessary pauses after sentences which threw off the pacing.

I did enjoy the narrators' ability to use different voices for each character which I really felt helped bring them to life.

DNF

My main issue was that I just didn't like the way the story began. Here's the thing, I don't like being thrown in the middle of the action in the beginning of the story. I want to be eased into the world and learn to care about the characters and their motivations before the actual action begins. I understand that it is mostly a matter of taste, and I also get that some people actually do enjoy this kind of action packed beginnings, but it's just very hard for me to follow the story when I am expected to learn a whole lot of magical concepts and at the same time care about the goal before I get to know the characters.

This book was everything you need in a YA fantasy. Found family trope? Yes. There was not one character in the group that I didn’t adore to pieces. Their personalities, stories and relationships made this adventure even more magical.

The world building and history is impeccable and I devoured this book.

The audiobook readers made this even more enchanting. I literally could not stop listening.

A great fantasy story with magic, treachery and murder.

I would recommend reading this rather than listening to the audiobook as it only detracts from the experience overall. I found it a chore to get through, which was a shame because the writing was excellent.

The female narrator was okay. However I was not a fan of the male narrator, I didn’t feel like his style suited the story at all - it was really stilted and flat. (This is reflected in my rating)

The gilded wolves by Roshani Chokshi

I received an advance review copyif the audiobook for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to netgalley, hodder & stoughton and Roshani Chokshi for the opportunity to read this book.

I'm quite surprised to be giving this 4 stars. From the reviews I'd seen I wasn't sure it would be my thing but I enjoyed it.

The narrators (Laurie Catherine Winkel and P.J. Ochlan) did a good job with this one, the French accents seem to be done well (I will admit I don't have a lot of experience with an authentic French accent). I felt like they did a reasonable job of giving each character their own tone and making them distinguishable as best they could when they all had French accents. Their voices worked really well together too.

The magic system here was similar to other YA series and yet I felt like it was something I've not seen before until I really thought about it.

The twist surrounding laila and her origin story was very interesting and definitely not something you would guess. I really enjoyed her character, especially in the moment between her and zofia that showed how much she cared and respected her needs. While all the main characters have a strong found family vibe the two of them were the ones I was most interested in.

The romance potential was there but I was glad it took a back seat to the backstory development and friendships during this book. The series has time to introduce romance more later.

I was desperate to read the next book until the final part. The aftermath of the twist took the momentum out of the book somewhat and effectively ruined the found family aspect. I will still read it though and hold out hope for another twist that might fix it.

An interesting story of friendship, family and adventure with a splash of magic and intrigue.

With hints of the past albeit in the near future, this is a great introduction to a new series of books about great houses and the people in and around them.

3/5 stars for the first 20% that I listened to.

I dnfed this audiobook, not because of the story but because of the narration. I’m not familiar with French accents and words, and I found the French accent of the narrators when they were reading dialogue really hard to understand and I kept getting confused with words. The female narrator was good aside from that, but the male narrator sounded very monotonous when speaking between dialogue, and it wasn’t an enjoyable listen.

The plot of what I read was quite interesting, the magic system seemed really unique and nothing like what I’d heard of before. There was five main characters; Severin, Laila, Zofia, Enrique and Tristan each with their own POV. Out of all of them Zofia intrigued me the most. I’ll probably get a physical copy of this at some stage to read and I’ll probably enjoy it more.