Holy Nightmares, this book was EPIC.

I was looking for a good Spooktober read and remembered I got approved for a The Lumanaries ARC so of course it became my next read. It was delightfully spooky and interesting and wowza! I still have soooo many questions so I sure hope we're getting sequel and SOON.

This was an action packed adventure that was over waaaay too soon. I need MORE MORE MORE. GIMME GIMME GIMME.

Sooz always sucks me into her stories and she's done it once again. Her writing is just unlike anyone else's. Any another author would have me annoyed at the fact we know so little still about The Whisperer and The Wolf, but Sooz just makes me crave that next book.

I would looove to see Jay and Winnie's friendship / relationship grow. I already love their connection and wish we'd seen just a tad more of it.

I'm giving The Luminaries 4,5 stars because there's a few things that irk me too much to give it the full 5 stars but DAMN, this book was so cool. I could really feel how much love went into writing this book.

So book two... Can we strike a deal, Sooz? GIMME GIMME GIMME

[This e-arc had a defect on my device and I was graciously given the US e-arc by Sooz.]

The Luminaries was a pleasing opening to a new YA Fantasy series. The premise was interesting and the world building mostly worked well. I still had a number of questions at the end, but hopefully they'll be answered as the story progresses in the next book. Winnie was a fun character and I was really able to get behind her. I would have liked to have seen Jay fleshed out a little more, but, again, this may come in future books in the series. Overall, it was a solid start that left me keen to discover what would happen next, so I am interested in reading on in book two. It gets four stars from me. Recommended for YA Fantasy fans.

First of all, I wanna thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this in advance.
When I read the synopsis for this, I thought it was really interesting but reading it was way better than I imagined!
The systems in which they are "separated" in societies within their society is really unique and different from everything I've read. I loved the kind of trials with the nightmares they have to pass and love the main character Winnie for how resourceful and courageous she is.
Really this was a fantastic read and I'm really curious to read the continuation and see what happens with the unsolved issues of the last couple chapters! A 5 stars for me!

A fantastic monster-hunting adventure!

In a world cut off from our own, Winnie is a luminary, part of a society of people dedicated to keeping the rest of us safe from the monsters in the woods. Or she was, until an incident left her, her mother and her brother as outcasts, still part of the town of Hemlock Falls but not really accepted or welcomed by anyone there.

A large part of the focus of the book is on Winnie's outcast status, and how it makes her and her family feel, the mistreatment or neglect from other members of the town and the few exceptions to that. Then, as she's welcomed back into it, that emphasis shifts to both gladness and gratitude at their new found acceptance, and also resentment and anger at how readily people can shift their opinion. It's a fascinating mix of emotions and something that I'm sure will resonate with anyone who's found themselves outcast in any kind of social circles. Adding further to this heady mix is Winnie's own guilt that her new status is built on a lie, something that escalated beyond her control.

I particularly liked the subversion of popular tropes in the way different people treated Winnie. Some of the coolest, most popular kids weren't the "mean girls" and actually treated her really nicely, something she had a hard time accepting. The relationship between Winnie and Jay is absolutely delicious! From the hurt, resentment, and bitterness at how easily a close friend cast her aside to the sneaked glances and forbidden thoughts and feelings, I loved every moment of them together!

There are greater dangers in here than teen emotions though. The nightmares are particularly nasty! Monsters that roam the forest at night, they're the reason there are clans of hunters patrolling and people ready to clean up the corpses in the morning. Most of them are based on mythological or folklore monsters but with some really interesting twists and changes, and whenever Winnie is in the woods the tension is palpable! There's a very real sense of danger throughout and it gets positively frantic as she's running from one nightmare only to run into yet more. It feels scary and tense and I loved it! There's also some really intriguing lore about sleeping spirits around the globe, and I'm looking forward to seeing it explored more in future books.

There's a lot left unresolved here. It's clearly written as book one of a series, with threads just starting to reveal themselves for future plotlines, and other secrets yet to be uncovered. And a lot of sexual tension just aching for release!

I really enjoyed The Luminaries, with its mix of dangerous emotions and dangerous monsters!

thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for this arc.

3.5 stars.

i've been thinking about what to write about this book for the past five minutes and figured i would just have to begin, and hope it'll come on its own. because i just finished reading, and for some reason, i just can't transform my feelings about this book into words. i will try, though, for the sake of writing a coherent review. bear with me, please.

the first third of this book was a little boring to me, and i didn't like winnie much because she annoyed me a little. that said, i didn't like any of the other characters much either at first, and then throughout the book some of them grew on me, but most of them didn't. i'd come to love winnie, and jay, and the twins. i guess that's about where it ends. i didn't care much for any of the other characters, winnie's family included.

on the other hand– the premise of this story is really intriguing. a forest with monsters that are only able to come alive at night, and within the forest's boundaries. until suddenly, there's one that defies all previous knowledge, and no one believes it exists. and i enjoyed reading it, it was well written and kept me amused once i was past that first third. i just really wish i could've loved those other characters more. and winnie, sometimes, was just a bit of an unbelievable character to me.

all that said, this was still a good book. and that revelation at the end of chapter 40 definitely has me wanting to read the next book. :)

i really enjoyed this! i liked the world building and the story kept my attention throughout the whole book. i do feel like there’s a lot of answers we didn’t get (mainly about the werewolf and the whisperer) but since this is a series i guess we’ll get to know more later on. however i don’t think this is a book i’ll find myself rereading so i hope i remember enough by the time the sequel gets published!

I’ve never read any works by this author before so requested the book on the basis of its stunning cover and its description.

Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me, it read like the characters and world were already set up instead of introducing me to them so it instantly put me off as the first few chapters were really confusing.

I checked to make sure this wasn’t a secondary book in a series etc…

Maybe it’s just me but I couldn’t get into it as I need the world built for me and not instantly placed within it.

I always enjoy books more when there’s background information and character development.

4.5 stars

Winnie Wednesday is determined to fix things but is unprepared when she actually gets what she wants. Acceptance and a role in society where she fights badass monsters.

Overall, I’m not sure what to write because while I really loved the story and cannot wait for the next book…this one did have some flaws.

The main issue is that this book doesn’t seem to resolve some questions we may have. Why does she feel sadness from monsters? Why were the twins nice when everyone wasn’t? Why did nothing come back to the hints in the prologue? (I assume it was about Jay anyway).

I suppose all these answers are meant to be found in the second book but it leaves this one feeling unfinished. Also, as another reviewer mentions, there is a lot of telling but no showing. We are told about the monsters before we see them which takes away from the tension and mystery of “oh no! What is it?!”

I did like how Winnie’s anxiety spoke through her actions. In literal contrast to what I said previously, we weren’t “told” about it but we could sense it. The constant teeth clacking and zipping of her jacket was clearly a coping mechanism. Plus reciting the Compendium.

Now……Jay 😍 bad boy extraordinaire but shy personality. You can’t help but fall for him despite his strangeness. I hope his story is more fleshed out in the next book because there is so much more we need to know. I also liked how his relationship with Winnie is slow paced. They are tentatively friends at the end with a hint of more. It’s perfect suspense for the next book.

So yeah, I feel like this will be a hit or miss with some people but for me, I enjoyed the story and look forward to reading more.

Spellbinding read.
Gripping teen novel that will leave you wanting more.
If like me you've read a few books about vampires and werewolves, then the subplot was easy to solve the moment it was mentioned. But it doesn't make it less fun.
There are plenty of other little twists and turns that have the promise of seeing the Hemlock falls that people know come crashing down their ears in later novels.
This makes it more interesting, and a fun, intelligent read for curious minds.
Looking forward to the next one!

Winnie, my lovely, brave, idiotic, badass.. please stop clicking your teeth! A unique system of hunters all work together to fight “nightmares” that form in the mist in the forest, separated into clans named after each day - Winnie, her mother and brother are exiled as the father is found to be an enemy of the luminaries - this is the part that I find largely odd as the family is punished and exiled for something they had no control over, after being betrayed by the father himself. Winnie, against all advice and objections fights her way into the first of three Hunter trials, and changes the lives of herself and her family and throws them back into the luminaries life after years of being ignored and bullied. The further Winnie goes the more questions we find, I very much look forward to reading more about this story and impatiently await the next book, I desperately need answers and I’m invested!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'The Luminaries' by Susan Dennard.

'The Luminaries' by Susan Dennard felt like it'd be dubbed a marmite book to me. This YA Contemporary fantasy featured a mixture of writing types - from mass description on minor details to blunt sharp sentences - woven into a beautiful novel. I did enjoy Winnie and the story as a whole and certain bits did make me smile and amaze me to a degree. However, the ending just fell flat a smidge. I know that this book is not a standalone but I felt like the ending could have had a bit more pizzazz or even a shock ending instead of just a starter line to a new book. It felt empty? And some side plots weren't resolved - I feel like that will happen in the sequel though, so I'm not holding any grudges for that.

Will I read book 2? Of course I will, but I was a smidge disappointed in that end. Would I read again? Yes. Yes I would.

Winnie Wednesday wants nothing more than to join the Luminaries, the ancient order of hunters that protect humans from the monsters and nightmares that rise in the forest of Hemlock Falls every night. On her sixteenth birthday, she can take the deadly Luminary hunter trials and prove herself true and loyal, but in order to survive, Winnie seeks help from her ex-best friend Jay Friday. Together, he and Winnie will discover a danger lurking in the forest no one in Hemlock Falls is prepared for.

This book was a fun ride, taking back to pre 2010 YA days. The action starts pretty early on, shaping a really fun read. Winnie is well written, well rounded and mostly as enjoyable as a sixteen-year-old can be. Her ability to recite their local bestiary to keep herself focused, certainly helped us as readers understand deeply exactly what was going on and what we should be seeing in terms of the nightmares. Local bad boy Jay is dark and mysterious, which was a major check for the YA theme. Heavily descriptive in the sounds kept me well on the edge of my seat while reading of Winnie and her trials. This is the kind of book that you get exactly what you are offered in the description, and tiny little tidbits more fed to keep you interested in the next novel.

The way Dennard has created and described a whole new world and community, even with its fast pace, was strong enough to not get lost during any speech or thought. Fairly early on the hierarchy is explained enough in a way, that you always know who is who and where they belong, which can often be a struggle when entire new worlds are created. This read would be perfect for younger readers just dipping their toes in to the YA genre, and for older readers, especially those who enjoy other authors like Veronica Roth, Cassandra Clare and Richelle Mead.

This has less pages than the average novel, yet somehow for me dragged for longer.
I suppose my problem with this lies in how the plot was *very literally* a paint-by-number of the synopsis, and nothing more.

3.0/5

I have never been so drawn in and thoroughly gripped by a book before. I binged this book in a day.
A.
DAY.

My emotions have been thrown through the proverbial wringer and I am now left hanging waiting for the next book (WHEN THIS ONE HASN’T EVEN BEEN RELEASED YET) and I have to know what happens next!! I have so many questions! Do we get a full romance sub-plot? Where does Winnie go from here? What does that note mean?!! My brain is going 100 miles a minute trying to guess the answers to these questions. I’m hooked. I want more. I NEED more.

From the gripping, fast-paced plot, to the wonderfully vivid world building, and the beautifully written, flawed, but relatable characters, Dennard has managed to create a world that I have quickly fallen in love with, but also frightens me just a little bit.

A masterpiece. 10 out of 10. Utter perfection.

Winnie clicked her teeth.
Winnie shoved her glasses up her nose.
Winnie wiped her glasses; they were still smudged.
Emma and her twin skipped. Not walked. They never walk.

And repeat over and over until you tear your hair out. Honestly, if I have to read about Winnie’s clicking teeth one more time this year, I’m going to cry.

Now, with that out of the way…

The Luminaries sounds phenomenal on paper. The town of Hemlock Falls is secluded from regular life, and everyone is divided into clans based on the days of the week (although it’s never explained why they’re named so). These clans hold trials on the month of a person’s 16th birthday to determine whether they will become Nightmare Hunters—that is, they send teenagers into a deadly forest after dark full of horrific creatures that want to kill them in a range of imaginative ways, and wish them good luck. Winnie, the protagonist, is four years into being an outcast in the Luminary community (along with her mother and brother), because her father turned out to be a traitor and a spy.

This. Sounds. AWESOME. No?

Unfortunately for me, The Luminaries fell a little short of what I had hoped for.

It was too YA for its premise, I think. I know it is a YA book, but there is so much you can do within that demographic, and there was so much that could have been explored here, but instead Dennard gave a little too much focus to the romance and other aspects.

The villains of this story are the monsters, yes, but also this group of people called the Dianas. We’re given almost nothing about them, such as their motives, their history, their whereabouts, their goals, their motivations… nothing. Just that they’re witches, traitors, and bad. Winnie’s dad was apparently a spy for them, but basically no information is given on how he was found out, what happened (other than his exile and his family’s outcast status), or… anything.

The way the whole outcast bit was handled was difficult and clunky, although by and large it is meant to be, and I hope that this is given more attention in the sequel. Basically, the moment Winnie and her remaining family become outcasts, everyone in Hemlock Falls starts being vile to them… and it is supposed to continue for 10 years. The only reason it doesn’t is because Winnie passes her first Hunter trial, and then suddenly everyone is just peachy to them as if nothing ever happened.

Now, this is addressed in the book. The polar opposite reception of the townsfolk is heavily discussed internally by Winnie, and noted by multiple characters. That’s fine. But what didn’t sit well with me was how Jay, Winnie’s close friend before becoming an outcast, was included in the whole ignoring thing, and then suddenly as soon as Winnie is Socially Acceptable again, he’s ok with being around her? And he’s acting like he fancies the pants off her? What?? After ignoring her for four years he suddenly thinks it’s ok to act all chill about it all? And to make matters worse, Winnie obviously fancies him right back. If it were me I would have told him to go do something very rude and never try to worm his way back into my friend circle again. The only people who deserved Winnie’s time were the twins.

I really do love this world that Dennard has created, but I think that more focus should have been given to world building. Just being told “there’s fourteen spirits sleeping around the world. We don’t really know where they come from or what they do (other than dream up creatures into reality in a really precise area at a really precise time only) but we’re going to fight their nightmares and not tell you anything more about them.” It was really frustrating to read! I so hope the next book goes more into everything. Please please please.

All that being said, I did like this. I like the setup very much, and the world is my kind of atmosphere. I just desperately wish we’d had more lore and less clicking teeth.

Wow. Just wow.

I was a bit hesitant with going into The Luminaries, I was so hyped for it but also I couldn't get into Truthwitch though I adored the Something Strange and Deadly trilogy, so I wasn't sure which way The Luminaries would go for me and I'm so happy to be able to say that I just fell in love with it, the plot was interesting and I was grabbed by the characters and I need book two like now please😍 I have so many questions and I need more 😭

The Witchland is one of my fave series, so I was very curious to read something else from Susan Dennard. Alas, The Luminaries is completely different from her previous work, and not in a good way. It's too YA for my liking and lacks the characters and plot's complexity I found in Truthwitch. The worldbuilding isn't fully explained and some things are confusing, especially at the beginning. The characters are okay but nothing special. I really hoped to love this book as much as Truthwitch but, unfortunately, it wasn't my cup of tea.

Thank you to Netgalley and Daphne Press for providing the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is such an atmospheric and immersive world, one that does not shy away from its horrors but perfectly and vividly describes them. I really appreciated the illustrations and descriptions that were depicted as though being from Winnie's own sketchbook - such a creative narrative tool and really helped me, as a reader, to connect with the main character. The characters and their relationships felt authentic in this claustrophobic, close-knit community. I can really empathise with how Winnie would feel after having been ostracised for four years!

A wonderful balance of fantasy and horror.