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| TITLE: The Girl at Midnight (The Girl at Midnight #1) AUTHOR: Melissa Grey PUBLISHER: Delacorte Press PUB DATE: Apr 28 2015 |
For readers of Cassandra Clare's City of Bones and Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone, The Girl at Midnight is the story of a modern girl caught in an ancient war.
Beneath the streets of New York City live the Avicen, an ancient race of people with feathers for hair and magic running through their veins. Age-old enchantments keep them hidden from humans. All but one. Echo is a runaway pickpocket who survives by selling stolen treasures on the black market, and the Avicen are the only family she's ever known.
Echo is clever and daring, and at times she can be brash, but above all else she's fiercely loyal. So when a centuries-old war crests on the borders of her home, she decides it's time to act.
Legend has it that there is a way to end the conflict once and for all: find the Firebird, a mythical entity believed to possess power the likes of which the world has never seen. It will be no easy task, but if life as a thief has taught Echo anything, it's how to hunt down what she wants . . . and how to take it.
But some jobs aren't as straightforward as they seem. And this one might just set the world on fire.
Beneath the streets of New York City live the Avicen, an ancient race of people with feathers for hair and magic running through their veins. Age-old enchantments keep them hidden from humans. All but one. Echo is a runaway pickpocket who survives by selling stolen treasures on the black market, and the Avicen are the only family she's ever known.
Echo is clever and daring, and at times she can be brash, but above all else she's fiercely loyal. So when a centuries-old war crests on the borders of her home, she decides it's time to act.
Legend has it that there is a way to end the conflict once and for all: find the Firebird, a mythical entity believed to possess power the likes of which the world has never seen. It will be no easy task, but if life as a thief has taught Echo anything, it's how to hunt down what she wants . . . and how to take it.
But some jobs aren't as straightforward as they seem. And this one might just set the world on fire.
- Source: NetGalley
Rating:
“But memories make us who we are. Without them, we are nothing.”
This would actually be the first time I witnessed a book meet its hype and book comparisons. When the blurb mentioned that this was for fans of Cassie Clare’s City of Bones and Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone, it truly was fitting. Hooray!
To be honest, I kind of thought this was another overrated, hyped up debut novel. I’ve been lucking out since last year with debut novels that sadly do not meet my expectations, so I was really happy to find my experience with this book take a different turn.
The Girl at Midnight has an impressive set of characters and POVs – not to mention an interesting mix of species, [way to go creative, Ms. Grey!] – that would keep readers turning page after page after page. I’m quite surprised to find that although we have a witty, snarky female protagonist in Echo, we have with us a not so brooding, non-enigmatic love interest, Caius, who also happens to show a fairly humorous side. Normally when we have an amusing female, the male comes off the mysterious, serious type. I say, “yay!” to that change!
The plot does not fail either, this was way more adventurous than I expected. Readers will find themselves immersed in a unique and well thought of storyline, filled with funny banters, intense escapes and bold discoveries. It’s not the type of book that you’d make predictions ahead and they turn out exactly the way you thought. Although you might come close, The Girl at Midnight has its fair share of twists and surprises that would leave you impressed. This is an exciting new series to watch out for! Kudos, Melissa Grey!
*Thank you, Random House Children's, Delacorte Press and NetGalley for granting my request to view The Girl at Midnight.
