I think I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. The hand on the cover was quite an eye-catcher and the pages in between were good too! Join me below for Sass & Trash & an objective, spoiler-free review to close it out! TW: Mass alcohol consumption, drugging drinks, graphic descriptions of deceased persons, talk of ab*rtion, sl*t shaming
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Sass:
• Ivy (or I guess I should say Sarah Gailey, the author) has a way with words! They make so many similes and metaphors that you think wouldn’t work but they somehow mesh perfectly.
• How did the murderer manage to cast the blame on the PERSON I’D GUESSED while keeping themself completely in the clear?!
• P O C K E T S for the many LGBT+ characters! Some of them didn’t get much page time, but…I guess that’s okay. Ivy’s twin sister, Tabitha, was in a relationship with the deceased Sylvia. Two of Alexandria’s cronies are dating each other (one is pansexual and the other a lesbian). Rahul has previously dated men and then is currently pursuing a woman.
Trash:
• Ivy definitely has a bit of a bad relationship with alcohol.
• Sl*t shaming of a character who is never seen on the page.
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Overall:
Ugh. I absolutely loooved this book. The MC, Ivy, has such a strong internal voice that there were times I felt myself thinking how she would think. The witty internal monologue had me laughing out loud at times and I have many flagged lines in my copy that I reread because they were so good. Thoroughly enjoyed this one. It’s billed as similar to The Magicians (Lev Grossman) and I actually think it’s fairly good for comparison. The Magicians shows that magic isn’t always cutesy like the Sanderson sisters: it’s brutal and gross and can be found right under your nose if you look hard enough.
This early release copy was graciously given to me by a dear friend, via Tor Publishing (Macmillan). It is due for release on June 4th, 2019. I am deeply thankful for the kindness shown to me.
Stacia Loves To Read 