Quick Synopsis – Lorelei Kaskel is a Yevani folklorist and is granted the opportunity to join an expedition to find the source of all magic. While on the expedition her mentor is murdered and Lorelei must team up with her academic rival and royal, Sylvia. As Lorelei and Sylvia grudgingly work together to uncover the truth—and resist their growing feelings for each other—they discover that their leader had secrets of her own. Secrets that make Lorelei question whether justice is worth pursuing, and if this kingdom is worth saving at all.

Publication Date – Sept. 17, 2024

Song This Reminds Me Of – Closer by Tegan and Sara

Other Reviews of Allison Saft – A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft

Content Notes – This book takes place in a fictional realm, but the Yevani people are modeled after the Jewish faith and heritage. There is a lot of antisemitic views and language. The Yevanish are also kept in seperate neighborhoods at the whim of the ruling class. There is graphic violence, blood, death of a family member, and war.

Spicy Rating – 🌶️

Rating – ⭐⭐⭐out of 5

Review – First I have to comment on the cover, the cover is gorgeous. I have mixed feelings about the book though. On one hand it’s two idiots who are clearly into each other trying to find a magic river while solving a murder. On the other hand, there are so many red herrings for the story to end up EXACTLY where you think it would. I hated that part. I would have preferred more background on the characters rather than the middling murder plot.

Lorelei is a folklorist and throughout the book, there are folktales scattered. Each tale relates to that point in the story which I really enjoyed. Again, the murder plot wasn’t really necessary. There was already so much tension on the expedition. Aside from Sylvia, there were four other people who were side characters that didn’t really trust Lorelei. Also, there is magic in this world. People who can channel magic basically have water-bending skills. There are also a lot of magical creatures that seem sinister but are mostly misunderstood. Most things will hate you if you just try to kill it instead of understanding it.

I wouldn’t really say this is enemies to lovers, more like dark academic vibes. Rivals to lovers is a better description. I would also say this is still pretty young adult to me, there is one kind of steamy scene, but it isn’t too graphic. The themes of the book (us vs. them) are also portrayed in a way that might resonate more with younger readers. I also didn’t like the ambiguous ending. I wanted to know more about the Yevani and how that storyline could be resolved. It was very clear to me that Yevani people were scapegoated, but I wanted more history and a concrete conclusion.

I liked this book, but I just felt like more interesting story choices could have been made.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine | Del Rey for the advanced copy, all opinions are my own.