Thanks so much to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC copy of this book!

I have scheduled promotional posts around release day for this book and I will provide a full review on my Instagram once I am able to get to this read.

Rating 5 stars on Netgalley as a placeholder for me to update later once the review is complete.

Will also complete a review on Goodreads once read.

Thanks again!

I was given an ebook ARC of this book from Netgalley and Inkyard Press but the review below is all my own.

It took a little while for me to get into this book but it did come around after a bit. I found I was confused about the world it was set in for too long and wished there was some earlier explanations of the weird things that were happening. The fighting between Keynan the member’s of his crew felt forced at times and I agree with another reviewer that there were too many questions left unanswered. When we got more information about what the storms were and how the magic worked it became a lot more interesting and then I was hooked. There was a magical, almost Wonderland vibe to the breaks and I really loved how the arts were the key to dealing with it. I wish I could see what they were seeing because from the description it was pretty wild. I’m definitely interested to see where this is all heading since the end was quite the shocker and cliffhanger. I can see some of the unanswered questions that were left dangling really paying off in the future books.

I received this book as an ARC on NetGalley

Keynan is a kid living in a neighborhood that is cut off from the rest of the world by these highly destructive storms. He gets an invitation to Peerless Academy because he is doing so well on his online learning and, although he is initially reluctant, is persuaded to go so that he can figure out a way to stop the storms. When he gets to Peerless he finds out that everything is simple repetition and boring and they are learning NOTHING of any substance. Then weird things start happening and Keynan and his friends find that the world is not quite as it seems and they mean to be the ones to fix it...

The world building was creative. The way the storms were this terrible, almost living force. The way people banded together in co-ops to survive. The amazing sense of community. The descriptions were a feast of the senses; colorful with strong scents and sounds.

With that being said I had some problems with this book. First, there were so many questions that were raised but then pushed off and left unanswered. Now, its possible that these will come to light in following books, but I feel some of the smaller issues could have been explained. Like, why do none of the students know any of the history of the storms? It is brought up several times and even when Kinder and Toure are asked point blank it just gets brushed off and barely addressed. Second, I had a hard time liking Keynan. He was so self-centered even when he knew he needed his crew. Finally, this book was so heavily steeped in slang and, working at a middle school, I already see some of the slang used dying off. Last year I heard 'Bet' several times a day and this year I've maybe heard it twice, but it is used in the book. It makes me wonder at the longevity of this book.

I really enjoyed the concept for this opening chapter in this fantasy series, it does a great job in telling the story it needed to and worked well overall. The characters were what I was hoping for and felt like realistic characters. DaVaun Sanders does a great job in telling the story and keeping me invested. I can't wait for more in this series and author.

"Unbelievable. The kid who vaporized my snacks is in my cohort? A horrible thought comes to mind: Dez couldn’t be Starbreaker, could he? He’s stubborn enough—Starbreaker hates giving up on Mirror Maze Castle. How am I even going to ask? Hey, you crushed my neighborhood’s care package, but I think we’re best friends? Would I even want to be friends anymore?"