Releasing November 1, 2022 from Tor Teen
The Luminaries is the kind of YA novel that really appeals to me. It’s a bit of a throwback to early 2000s YA contemporary fantasy, but also has fresh ideas and a darkly imaginative world. Reading it felt like snuggling under a warm blanket.
Winnie Wednesday lives in Hemlock Falls, a town next to a forest that’s full of monsters. Winnie is an outcast from the Wednesday clan, a group of monster hunters who were betrayed by her father. Her only way to win redemption for her family is to sneak into the hunter trials when she turns 16 and survive in the woods against vampiras, werewolves, basilisks, kelpies, and other creatures that want to eat her.
Our heroine Winnie feels like a real person. At times she’s optimistic and brave, and sometimes she’s bitter and fearful. She’s smart and caring, and a nerdy badass. There’s a very slow burn romance set up for book 2 (my favourite: slow burn and no love triangle!), and Winnie’s larger group of family members, friends, and enemies are all interesting, well-drawn characters.
The stars of this book for me are the monsters. The Luminaries completely immersed me in its world. I’m obsessed with the different twists on monsters that Dennard created — the vampiras and the whisperer in particular are so delightfully creepy. I also like the slow mystery of what’s really going on in the town, and I wish I had book 2 in this series right now.
🌟🌟🌟🌟 1/2
Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Teen for my review copy of this book.
Leanne Olson 
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