Cassel comes from a shady, magical family of con artists and grifters. He doesn’t fit in at home or at school, so he’s used to feeling like an outsider. He’s also used to feeling guilty–he killed his best friend, Lila, years ago. But when Cassel begins to have strange dreams about a white cat, and people around him are losing their memories, he starts to wonder what really happened to Lila. In … to Lila. In his search for answers, he discovers a wicked plot for power that seems certain to succeed. But Cassel has other ideas–and a plan to con the conmen.
more
At first when I read the blurb I saw mobsters and con artists and was like, I don’t know man, that doesn’t sound good. I’ve loved everything else so far by Holly Black, so I was like, well, let me go ahead and take a chance on this. Plus, what a weirdly cool title. And I LOVE weird things!
Cassel was so awesome, and it felt nice to read a whole book from a guy’s perspective. Also, he seemed like a real teen boy. And the magic system? Very interesting with the whole we-have-to-wear-gloves-thing. It’s one of the best urban fantasies I’ve read!
There are some pretty great twists, and that freaking ending! Oh man, I need to start the next book. Seriously!
When I first read the synopsis for this book I knew I was going to read it. The premise was so interesting that I couldn’t resist. Magic mobsters? Yes, please!
The entire idea behind this series was so intriguing. The different elements combined were just perfect and so clever. The plot of this story was so suspenseful. I really love the way that the story was mapped out and executed. The world-building in this book was slow-moving but satisfying. The author gives the reader just enough information and slowly builds on it as the story progresses. I thought that the alternate universe that the author created was unique and well-developed. I have always adored Black’s writing style and this book read very much the same in that respect. Even though this book was a bit different from some of the other books that I have read by her, it still had the distinct feel of a Holly Black book.
I really loved Cassel, the main character. He was kind of an outsider, even within his own family. He was smart, intuitive, and compassionate. Despite coming from a family of criminals, he managed to stand apart. Cassel had some really great character development in the story and I was very pleased with his character arc. I liked that the other characters in the story were vastly different from each other and had their own personalities. There were some characters in the story that I just loathed (not because they were badly written but because they were just evil =P) and some that I would have loved to see more of. I felt that Cassel’s school friends could have used more page time.
The romance in this book was very sparse but there is an underlying romance in the story. From the ending, I can tell that more will develop in the romance department in the next book.
Overall, I was so delighted with this book. I loved the original premise and the way that the author created this world. This book has an exciting and mysterious plot, a main character that you can easily connect with, and a unique world that will fascinate you. I definitely recommend picking this one up!
BLOG FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM TWITTER GOODREADS AMAZON PINTEREST
This was a lot different that the Tithe series that I previously read. I loved the beginning to this series and didn’t see the ending coming at all! I really liked Cassel’s voice as the main protagonist. You couldn’t help but really like him and root for him! I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
A sometimes brutal (in the emotional gut-wrenching sense) book set in a world where folks with magical gifts have two options: government or mob.
A great book to reread. Love the mystery in it and a shocking twist to be discovered. Read it to find out.
I don’t usually read this dark of genre, but this was really interesting and well-written. It had a bit of an X-Men type flavor to it in parts. I guessed some plot points, but I totally was surprised by other twists and turns. Cassel, the main character, was enjoyable to read about because he wasn’t your typical white-knight kind of guy; he was more of a con man who enjoyed the schemes he did. That was actually a rather refreshing change from the norm; it made it more difficult to predict what he would do.