Reviewed for NetGalley:

Maude, from a line of witches goes on a quest to find her missing childhood friend Odette, in an abandoned power plant?

I did not mind Maude, did not care for the atmosphere.

It's interesting that this book was compared to the Hazel Wood. I did not get a hint of that comparison, unfortunately.

This book was very interesting, I really enjoyed to story and the characters.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

(4.5 stars) This book was not was I expected, it was better! I’ve never read a book quite like this. I loved the story and character building, along with all of the witchy vibes it gave me! (I mean obviously, she’s a witch, but the vibes were immaculate) I thought I knew what was going to happen all throughout this book but left and right things were changing and I loved it.

*I received this as an ARC from NetGalley for my honest opinion*

Thank you NetGalley and Random House/Delacrote Press for allowing me to read this book for an honest review!

This was a fun quick read with a really great premise. Our mc Maude is convinced her friend is not dead and sets out to find her and along the way is introduced to some harrowing adventures.

While the plot was solid I did walk away feeling like I wanted more. The start of the novel did give the impression that it would be set in a past fantasy time but is actually set in a modern day which seemed very off.

Other than that, the book was an enjoyable read!

I ended up DNF this one 11% in. This book just isn't for me. It sounded like something that I would enjoy, and it does has elements that I enjoy; but the execution just wasn't there. I enjoyed the concept of magic being a resource and being controlled and then having a main character that either doesn't have magic or their magic has disappeared. However, I felt like this would have been better if the characters had been aged up a bit. They just were a bit too young for me and then they read even younger.

"I cry out for every girl who was told to comb her hair and wash the mud from her face. To keep herself contained. To be ashamed of her voice, her hair, her flesh. To be quiet and good and nice. Girls are not nice. Girls are wild and fierce and powerful, and I will not let anyone take that away. Not ever again."


4.5* wow. what a wild ride.
the vibes were immaculate??!
i am fascinated not only by the writing in this but the world the author created and all its characters. i loved every single one of them and i find it so hard to come across a book these days that manages to do that.. maude, our amazing MC, is a force to be reckoned with, and it was amazing to see her growth throughout the book.

i also feel the need to point out how crazy it is to look at this cover after reading the book, you see so much... highly recommend taking a few minutes to soak up all the amazing details hidden. the artist definitely understood the assignment.

While the story loses its urgency for a portion of the second act, this was overall one of the most compelling YA reads of the year for me. The darkness steeped in the fairy tale-esque setup struck a distinct and fascinating tone. I can't say I've really read anything else quite like this.

There's so much more brilliance at work here. The dynamic between Maude and Odette in particular rang brilliantly, painfully true. Maude has to be one of the most thoughtfully depicted and realistic fictional teenage girls I've seen in a while; her internal conflict between being good and being true to yourself will definitely strike a chord with older YA readers.

Wonderful. I'm thrilled to have gotten the opportunity to read this.

2 stars

This is one of those books when you finish reading it you wonder what was the point. The main character was a teenager, but has the naiveness and maturity of a toddler. The plot had potential, but it was executed badly. The book was extremely forgettable and something I’ll hopefully forget about in a month.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC of this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lili Wilkinson for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book had a really interesting premise and it was an intriguing read. I didn’t love that the book was set in modern times and it felt sort of jarring that it was.

This book is not allowing me to download it, which is a bummer! But I still plan to read it when it comes out… I’ll just have to go another avenue.

Having spent a childhood weaving stories and going on wild adventures with her best friend, a young witch’s adolescence has been an ongoing experiment of adults attempting to tame her fierceness but a search for her missing best friend releases a morphed wildness in Lili Wilkinson’s A Hunger of Thorns.

Raised in a world of magic as a witch, Maude spent her childhood showing off her magical abilities to and weaving enchanting stories for her best friend Odette; the girls ran wild and were close until Maude lost her magic, which is when Odette stopped spending time with Maude and sought magical delight elsewhere. Odette’s search for dangerous magic has left her missing for two weeks and Maude has not given up on Odette like everyone else and is determined to find her despite their estrangement. Entering the forgotten about remains of Sicklehurst, a power plant built over a magical forest, Maude is unaware of and unprepared for the dangers she’ll face but believes this is where she’ll find Odette; equipped with her storytelling abilities, her witch-eye to see the mettle around her even if she can no longer wield it, and help from some unlikely characters, Maude’s adventure is fraught with danger as she aims to rescue Odette and attempts to set things right.

With an enticing premise of a magical forest wherein a search for a missing friend ensues, the story combines elements of fantasy and fairy tales with capitalist industrialism as it explores friendships, both those that have been idealized and underappreciated, and embracing a wildness within that might not “fit” within societal expectations. The age of the main characters, Maude and Odette, comes across as indeterminate as at times their interactions and dynamic feels childish to match with the instigation of their friendship and at other times it feels more like the angst of someone in their mid- to late teens, resulting in a jarring disconnect, especially when flashbacks or memories comprise a majority of their depiction together. While the writing itself is descriptive and generally engaging, there’s a roughness to this story that makes it difficult to connect with and become immersed in; there’s evident thought behind the magic that governs the world and the characters’ actions, but the oblique way it’s approached and presented comes across as slapdash, making it seem as if you’ve missed vital details about the world, but they just hadn’t been shared in enough depth yet.

Overall, I’d give it a 3 out of 5 stars.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A sweeping saga of magic and the fear and wonder it incites in others. Maude is a descendant of witches and lives during a time when magic is controlled by others. Her mother was one who rebelled against the tight control and suffered the consequences. Her grandmothers try to keep a tight rein on her, but her friend Odette encourages her to unleash all of the magic hidden inside of her. When Maude is unable to satisfy her friends wants, Odette abandons her and turns up missing. Maude then embarks on a quest to save her. The secrets of where she is lies inside of the last magical place of freedom, Sicklehurst. This book kept me intrigued but I wish it was set in the past instead of the modern era.

Lili Wilkinson has a great writing style and I was invested in what was happening. It was such a good scifi novel with a great concept. The characters worked so well in this universe and I was glad I was able to go through this journey. The cover was what drew me in and it was beautifully done. I'm glad I was able to read this and look forward to reading more from Lili Wilkinson.

"My chest tightens. All of a sudden, a fresh start doesn’t sound so unappealing. Away from Odette. Away from the walls of Sicklehurst and the guilty secrets contained inside. Away from the sad, worried eyes of my grandmothers. I don’t want them to worry about me. Maybe this is what I need to do. Put aside adventures and hero business and become the predictable, unremarkable adult that everyone seems to want me to be. A good citizen. A productive consumer. The only magic I’ll interact with will be safely packaged in plastic. Stable magic. Predictable and mundane. A simple life."

Maude is the daughter of witches in a world where magic is very much real but highly regulated, reduced to glamour patches and special energy drinks. She spent her childhood with her magic less best friend, Odette, using her magic to tell stories of girls who slayed dragons and saved princes. Then Maude grew up and lost her magic and shortly after, Odette. Odette was always envious of Maude’s magic, and she disappeared in search of her own power. Maude is sure she can find Odette inside the ruins of Sicklehurst, an abandoned power plant built over an ancient magical forest that they once snuck away to together as kids.

Maude’s journey is aided by a variety of characters, including her grandparents, long time friend Rufus, and a few new friends she meets inside Sicklehurst. This was a very fast paced story with a ton of action, magic, and plot, that teaches lessons about empowerment, love, storytelling, and friendship. My only critique is that I found the mention of present day technology to be a little jarring when the rest of the story felt so separate from our society. I would definitely recommend this to middle grade children in my life!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!

Pub date: April 18 2023

A creepy and chilling magical dystopia for fans of The Hazelwood by Melissa Albert, Bloom (The Overthrow) by Kenneth Oppel, and Naomi. Novak's assorted fractured fairytales.

This was mystical, it reminded me of cruel prince meets the hazel wood. Naomi Novik and Marissa Meyer, A HUNGER OF THORNS is an atmospheric fantasy about discovery, secrets, mysteries, and the magic that makes us uniquely ourselves.

Maude lives in a world where magic is very much real, alive, and highly regulated.

The first few pages of this book seemed promising, unfortunately the choppy way of writing did not at all work for me. It was also jarring to realize this book is set in present day and not a land long ago as it was seemingly setup to in the beginning.

I wish that the publisher had made this easier to read (like making it available on a kindle instead of just in the netgalley app). Despite that, I liked it. I love the name Maude so that was a fun treat for her to be the main character and I couldn't help but like her. I love the setting of the novel created by Wilkinson as well. It was dynamic and made for a great set up for the quest.

This is a fun look at a world where magic is supposedly controlled, but where it really isn't. The characters are good--there's much more to them than you think at first, and the nuances of the characters really adds to the nuances of the story.

This is a great read to add to your witchy fall vibes. The story is set it on modern day where a witch's power is regulated and has been reduced to basically vanity patches. The main character, Maude has always been good at telling stories--too good. Her former best friend goes missing and she is determined to find her. Determined to be the hero of her own story. It took me a little bit to get into, but once they story gets going it has a good pace.