Night Spinner: A Book Review

I've never read a retelling of The Hunchback of Notre-Dame. But I am thoroughly impressed with Addie Thorley's Night Spinner. Enebish is a monster. After destroying a caravan of innocent people with her dark night magic, she is disfigured and sent to live a traitorous and lonely life in a monastery. But her life changes yet again when her stepsister offers her the opportunity to be reinstated as a warrior if Enebish captures a deserter in the midst of a war. But when she leaves the monastery, she discovers that the war is a lot worse than she thought and she's not sure who to trust anymore.

This book is chock full of twists and turns, and I honestly didn't see hardly any of them coming. I loved Enebish as a character because she is an ugly, maimed traitor—you don't see this a lot in YA fiction. Enebish was refreshing, and I learned and was betrayed right alongside her. Her character arc is strong, and I can't wait to see it fulfilled in the next book.

Speaking of the next book, I need it immediately. Night Spinner took me a couple chapters to get into, but after that it sucked me in and I had to finish it as soon as possible. This is a fantastic story for fantasy and magic lovers, and especially for those who want to see something new in the YA world.

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 4
Plot/Movement: 5
Character Development: 4
Overall: 4

Thank you, Page Street Publishing, for the ARC!

For more ratings and reviews and to see what I'm currently reading, visit my Goodreads page here!

The Henna Artist: A Book Review

This beautiful, lush story takes place in vibrant India in the 1950s. Lakshmi, after running away from her abusive husband, makes a living by making herbal remedies and being a henna artist. But everything changes when her little sister she never knew she had turns up, homeless, lost, and known as the "Bad Luck Girl." 

It's no secret that I love reading about India and its culture. The Henna Artist delivered. It is so richly drenched in Indian culture with food, clothing, castes, hennas, herbs, and Jaipur, India. I felt drawn to Lakshmi because of her ambition, work ethic, reason, feminism, and loyalty. It was an absolute pleasure to follow her throughout the book. She has a solid character arc as well as her sister, Rahda. The plot is well paced and had lots of tension to keep me reading—I couldn't put this book down all day. The writing flows very well. I would definitely recommend to those who love reading about India and about woman fighting for their future. A great debut by Alka Joshi.

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 4
Plot/Movement: 4
Character Development: 5
Overall: 4

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin-Mira for the ARC!

For more ratings and reviews and to see what I'm currently reading, visit my Goodreads page here!