Huge thank you to Knopf Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for providing me with this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

“Les Misérables meets Six of Crows in this page-turning adventure as a young thief finds herself going head to head with leaders of Paris's criminal underground in the wake of the French Revolution.”

When I saw this tagline and then the GORGEOUS cover of The Court of Miracles I knew I absolutely had to read it. France + Les Misérables + secret underground societies + history + Six of Crows!? Sign me up! I was thrilled to be approved for an eARC of The Court of Miracles.
Overall, I liked The Court of Miracles. Was it amazing? No, but it was a fun story with beautifully descriptive scenes and an intriguing criminal underworld.

My favorite parts of The Court of Miracles were the author’s descriptions and then the actual Court of Miracles. This is Kester Grant’s debut novel and I have to say I am very impressed with her writing. The way she described each scene . . . whether it be the gaudy palace or the creepy Halls of the Dead . . . everything was vivid and excellently crafted. I could truly see the scenes playing out in my head.
My other favorite part was the Court of Miracles itself. This criminal underground made up of nine guilds was totally captivating. Each guild is overseen by a Lord or Lady who leads their “Wretched Children” in whatever their guild specializes in. It is a fascinating system of politics and court intrigue. I could have spent so much time just exploring each guild!

The Court of Miracles started off with a bang! I was immediately pulled in by the first chapter. It was super intense because we are immediately thrown into this life and death situation in which our main character, Nina, is forced to run for her life. The whole first sequence of Nina joining the Guild of Thieves was so exciting! The plot kept me interested, but I will say that the timeline was somewhat confusing at first. There are several time jumps throughout the book.

Part four of The Court of Miracles is by far the best part. The plot is non-stop and so exciting. I flew through the end of this book!!

I think the main thing that caused me not to love The Court of Miracles was the choppiness of the plot. This was due to two reasons. First, the time jumps. I don’t mind time jumps, but these felt very stop start. That probably doesn’t make sense, but the time jumps felt abrupt and made me feel very disconnected. The second reason why I didn’t love The Court of Miracles was the structure of the plot. Everything was very task oriented. Our protagonist would encounter a problem then immediately solve it and move on to the next problem. It felt like a bunch of mini plots rather than one cohesive plot. It was just . . . weird.

I did like all the Les Misérables aspects. Although dumb me did not catch that Ettie is short for Cosette.

Overall I enjoyed The Court of Miracles. It was a fun story with a beautiful setting. I would love to explore the guilds of the Court of Miracles more. The Court of Miracles is set to be a trilogy.

The Court of Miracles by Kester Grant will be released on June 2nd, 2020.

Thank you to Random House Children's / Knopf Books for providing an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to like this book, and I'm sad to say I was left disappointed.

Let me begin by saying that the premise is exciting, and the author is good at setting and description. I found my skin crawling with some of the vivid imagery. However, I found the execution in general lacking.

My biggest issue is that I felt nothing for any of the characters except annoyance. Every last one fell flat, and often I had to refer to my notes to remember who was who because they were all static. Nina, our main character, reads so cold, self-serving, and emotionless, that even knowing her motivation to protect her sisters, I still couldn't sympathize or root for her.

The story was all over the place. Emphasized issues were swapped so abruptly, and the time jumps left me floundering and wondering if something that was true years ago (in the last chapter) still holds because it wasn't mentioned again. Such as things pertaining to manner and appearance that were written to be very important, then pretty much fall away, this is also true of motivations and left me scratching my head. There were scenes where something would happen to a character, such as a terrible wound, and suddenly they're up and acting like nothing happened—going from laying there bleeding to hopping up and rushing around. There were a lot of unrealistic actions that are quite detrimental to the story, especially considering the book is written in first person. Yet, Nina's thoughts are contradictory to what happens. Again, I don't want to spoil anything, suffice it to say when something big was revealed, I didn't understand how it was possible considering the character's mindset on the issue.

Overall the scenes seemed jumbled, some rushed, others pointless. The "love interests" felt tossed in simply to say there was some nod to romance, they too fell flat. There was no passion or actual interest, for that matter. It was more like being told one person liked another just for the sake of knowing. Like the characters themselves, it wasn't fleshed out.

At the halfway point, I was bored. I pushed through because, as I said before, I wanted to like this book. There were some points of interest in the beginning, it sagged throughout the middle, and the end felt thrown together and rushed. The pacing was just odd. It was mostly slow with these odd random bursts that tricked me into thinking something was happening. Repetitive phrases were exhausting, and honestly, I just wanted something to happen. I felt a bit surprised, perhaps once in the book. Even parts meant to be surprising or shocking, I think, were done in a way that left me confused instead of that rush of excitement or dread I wanted to feel.

Bear in mind this was not a final copy, so there may yet be editing to help tighten and brighten this manuscript, and I sincerely hope that is the case. I think this has so much potential; it just needs some work.

The Court of Miracles by Kester Grant.
In this page turning, brilliant retelling of Les Mis, we meet Nina, a young but determined cat burglar who is adopted into the thieves guild as a child. The thieves guild is one of the nine underground, criminal enterprises that make up the Court of Miracles. In the world of 19th century Paris, the inhabitants of the court strive to create their own world, despite the tyranny and hatred going on above in the royal palace.
Nina has one goal when she enters the thieves guild; to save her sister, Azelma, from a life of prostitution forced upon her by the Flesher’s guild and the man behind it, the Tiger. However, after Azelma is taken, Nina turns to her guild for support. She becomes the most successful cat burglar there is. This also leads her to a new cause... saving the young, afraid and beautiful Ettie from suffering the same fate as Azelma did.

What I liked:

The characters, especially Nina, are tragically flawed, brutally honest and realistic characters. The decisions that haunt them haunt the reader as well.
Nina is an incredibly strong female lead! She puts nothing in front of her need to save her sisters.
The bond of family, blood and guild, is such a beautiful thing. It’s almost like the reader can see each thread that knits the characters together, and feel how thick some of those bonds become.
You don’t have to know the story of Les Mis to enjoy the book! I only knew the general theme, and was still completely wrapped up in Grant’s fictional world.

What I didn’t like:

I would have loved more information on the other guild leaders and guild members. I felt myself growing so attached to them, yet I knew nothing of their upbringing or what made them into the lovable characters they are.
There definitely could have been more romance! Nina was presented with not one, not two, but THREE wonderful love interests, and she barely seemed to notice at all. That definitely could have been explored more and added some relief to the dark tone of the story.

I want to thank NetGalley, Random House Children’s, and author Kester Grant for providing me with an ARC of this novel.

What a different experience while reading a YA novel! And it was a phenomenal experience! This re-telling of Les Miserables and Jungle Book… Just wow. How do you even meld those two things together?! But the author figured out how and did it well. This version of France that is built within your imagination is just gorgeous; you feel like you’re falling smack dab into the middle every time you crack open this book. I was entranced the whole way through, and I definitely enjoyed this re-telling.

Thank you again to those named above for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!

I loved this book. Wow. While I am not too familiar with Les Miserables, this book still sucked me into its constant adventure and danger. The worldbuilding within The Court of Miracles is thorough and detailed, making this version of France just as tangible as the real one. Each character was so dynamic and full of life that I felt like I was running through the streets of Paris with them. I loved Nina and all of the incredible schemes that she pulls off with her only goal in mind: protecting her family. While elements of romance were sprinkled throughout the novel, the main bonds of sisterhood and duty to one's country were prevalent and the core of this book. My only complaint would be the hazy timeline within the book. A chapter would go by and I would only realize after that two whole years had passed by without any noticeable notation. It made things a bit difficult as I tried to picture how old Nina was when certain events took place, but otherwise, I adored this book!

I was so excited to see that there was going to be a Les Mis reimagining from Eponine’s point of view, and this was only made better when I found out it would also take on a fantastical twist as well. Les Mis is one of the few classic historical fiction novels that has appealed to me, and yes, maybe it was primarily motivated by my love of the musical. Nevertheless, it was a huge deal for me when I received a copy of this to read and review.

Sad to say I was a bit disappointed overall. The premise and the world Grant creates out of 19th Century Paris is exciting, definitely more so than Victor Hugo and his tireless descriptions of the French sewer systems among other things. The idea of there being these guilds that ran the underworld of this indulgent city was very creative and utilized the characters we know from the original Hugo novel in a fun way (especially Montparnasse). Counteracting these guilds is the backdrop of the French Revolution’s very long fallout. The opulence and extravagance of the scenes set in the French palace were so well done that you understood why the guilds would be so angry with the way the country was being ruled.

Where the story fell flat for me was pretty much everything else. With such an incredible premise, I was hoping the actual plot would be executed differently. Time jumped around in odd ways from chapter to chapter, making it very hard to figure out how much time had passed. The plot got very convoluted at points and I couldn’t exactly follow what was happening until it had already happened. A lot of the relationships between characters that were set up didn’t feel fully fledged out. It was like waiting for the best part of a song to play in the club and then the DJ changes it only moments before it hits. I was just left feeling underwhelmed by most of the characters.

Speaking of which, I felt like some of the characters felt oddly out of character, based on the source material of this reimagining. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but some of the characters felt like they were only the same characters from the original Hugo novel in name with not much else all that similar. This perhaps could’ve worked more for me if the plot and pacing were a bit stronger, but without that, it just felt like new characters that just happened to have the same name.

Overall, not a bad book, just not what I was hoping for when I picked it up.

I received an e-ARC via Netgalley but all the views expressed below are my own.

I have heard a lot of good things about this book and when I saw that amazing cover....oh my I knew this was going to be good. The first half of the book was a little confusing at times. There were time line jumps that you weren't 100% sure of until halfway through the chapter you were told its 2 months or 2 years later. And the plot line was a bit all over the place bouncing from this story to that story (some of which was needed to set the background). BUT the second half of the book immensely made up for the beginning!! Wow oh wow when this book started to get interesting it got interesting FAST and made it nearly impossible to put down!! The twists and turns, betrayals and intrigues had me so thoroughly engrossed in this book!

One of my favorite parts of this book were the Courts of the Wretched! Normally, fantasy books are all about princesses and palaces or coming from nothing to woo a prince but this book was nothing like those and I LOVED it!! These courts were all about beggars, thieves, assassins and they were even more intriguing! The world building was so intricate I felt like I was a part of these courts and understood their rules and customs, of which there are MANY let me tell you! And the politics and scandal were taken to a whole new level within these courts. I'll let you read the book to find out more but wow I just loved it!

I was also thoroughly attached to the main character Nina. Reading this book was like growing up with her. We start the book with her as a young girl ripped apart from her sister (more like mother) by a Father who is an awful, awful human. And with the help of a friend she becomes part of a new family, the court of the wretched. I absolutely loved that we got to see part of her upbringing and how that influences her later in life. I also loved that while there were many men interested in her (ahem hello gorgeous) that she was all about sisterly love. She fought and bled for her sisters (one biological and one not) and that made me love her all the more. Nina was a take no crap, dish it out as hard as you give it, amazing thief that I would love to be best friends with.

All around I really enjoyed reading this book. The writing was beautiful and creative and entranced me in this world. I could definitely see myself getting lost in an audiobook version. I would definitely recommend this book especially if you like a beautiful story about thieves and sisterly love with a bit of politics and revolution thrown into the mix. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-ARC!

This book was just okay for me. I actually ran into small issues with it right away. I don't know how old Nina is supposed to be during most of this book. I know how old the character she is loosely, very loosely, based on is supposed to be. But that doesn't mean she's that age. So a lot of the context of who the character has become is supposed to be. I am also not very familiar with the source material this is a retelling of, Les Misérables. I know the names of a handful of characters and that's about it. I had to look up how old Eponine was in that book/play, but I am unsure if she is that old in this book.

There was a lot of action at the start of the book, and I was really into it. There was a heist to "steal"/release a man from prison, Orso, The Dead Lord. He rules over the "dead", who seem to mostly be orphan children. A lot of things happened really fast. The pacing was just a little strange. Time and detail weren't given to things in a way that didn't really make sense until near the end of the book.

Around the middle of the book, there is a scene that I think was meant to feel stressful, because of where Nina and Ettie were and who they were around. But the scene ended up having no consequences from those people. It happens later and to someone else. Not everything felt like a cause and effect situation. This is around when the book started to take a dip in pacing for me.

There's a 2-year time jump, which I usually hate in books. But it worked for this book. The latter half of this book was about as face-paced as the first quarter of the book. Again, a lot happening very quickly. There is a twist that I didn't expect, and that helped raise the book for me. At first, I was unsure how this could be more than one book, but with where things were left I am very interested in continuing the series. I hope certain characters are explored more and expanded on.

**I was provided an electronic ARC by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**

Kester Grant's The Court of Miracles leads readers in a retelling of Les Miserables where Eponine, called Nina, is the star of the show. Nina is a Thief in a France where the criminal underground of the city is run by various guilds. Nina swears to protect her foster sister, Ettie (Cosette), from the Lord of Flesh.

I was generally pleased with this retelling. While I was not overly impressed with the characters themselves, I found the world and the various factions within it to be compelling. I actually felt the concept could have stood without the framework of the retelling to fall back upon. Eponine is probably one of my favorite characters of Les Mis anyway, and I was happy to see her in the spotlight with her cleverness being key to her success or failure. It was interesting how Grant wove each of the characters into the new story being told.

I was entertained all the way through the story and feel it could appeal to fans of Les Mis or those who are unfamiliar with the original work. I look forward to seeing what Grant comes out with in the future.

*My thanks to the Author and Publisher for gifting me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review*

The Miracle Court is lauded as Les Miserables meets Six of Crows and it certainly did not disappoint.

In mid-1800s France, Nina Thernadier was robbed of her home and her beloved sister all in the span of a single night. To escape the wrath of her father, she is whisked away to the Miracle Court where she is sworn into the Thieves Guild and bound to never go after the man responsible—The Tiger. Lord of the Guild of Flesh. But Nina cannot let her sister go, and as she grows and learns to cultivate the skills she has learned within her guild she will stop at absolutely nothing to save her, and the Miracle Court itself, from the Tiger's corruption.

I. Loved. This. Book.

The prose is absolutely beautiful. It drew me in immediately with it's dark, breathless pace and Nina was a wonderful character to follow. Flawed characters are so much more beautiful to me, so much more human, and she encompasses everything I love about this archetype. I have never been one for politics, but the political intrigue concerning the Guilds of the Miracle Court was absolutely fascinating. Les Miserables is a familiar storyline for me, but the interwoven world-building drew me in and did not let me go until the very end. I had not expected to be so enthralled. There were so many characters that surprised me with how much I adored them. Ettie: A character who's an archetype I usually do not enjoy. A fierce and beautiful little thing. Gavroche: My sweet angel. Montparnasse: The silent killer with a loyal and loving heart.

And it did not gloss over or remove the horrible, ugly, heart-wrenching areas that Les Miserables is so famous for. While Nina's own agenda took precedence, we were often thrust right into the heart of what fear and cruelty can and has done to those without the means to protect themselves. I was concerned that things would be lost, or left unresolved with so many things going on at once, but the author did a wonderful job of weaving them together again.

There were a few things that I did not enjoy as much: Nina being in the middle of a pool of two(three?) men was not something I generally care for, but the romance was most certainly not the focus here and in the end, I was able to overlook it. Also, there were parts where we would skip quite a bit ahead and I had to read in a way to realize how much time had passed, and I think it would have been helpful to have more dates for such large jumps.

As these were all minor, I did not feel the need to remove or half a star. This book genuinely surprised me in many ways and I am so pleased to know that it is the first of a series. I am so eager to delve back into the fascinating intrigue that is the Court of Miracles and the Guilds within it.

What a beautiful book! THE COURT OF MIRACLES held me captivated for the entire time I read it. In fact, I read the whole thing in one sitting. The language was magnificent and the story rich and poignant. When I started, I wasn't quite sure what to expect given this seemed to be a Les Miserables retelling. Marketed as a Les Miserables meets Six of Crows, I was excited to see how this would turn out. And boy were my expectations blown out of the water. While I knew the Les Mis story, this book kept me surprised as it twisted and turned in every direction. I was excited to see character names I recognized and to see how they made an impact on the story, as well as new faces that I came to love as their journey unfolded in the narrative..

I thought this was a clever, dark, unique take on the Les Mis story. While it was hard at times to navigate through the broad cast of characters, the plot kept me moving along and excited to find out how the Black Cat of the Thieves Guild would make it out of this revolution alive.

Kester Grant did an exceptional job at bringing this story to life while navigating the harsh waters of retelling a well-beloved story.

5/5 stars

The Court of Miracles is a stunning tale of thievery and one girls treacherous journey to save the ones she loves. In the after math of a French Revolution vastly different from the one we all know, Nina lives her life in darkness, trying to protect those she loves and still abide by the Law that has protected her.

This book was such a wild ride that I couldn’t put it down. It’s face paced (albeit too fast at times), horrifically graphic and will betray you over and over again. I loved every second of it and only wish that at times there was more to the Tory instead of jumping time so much.

4.5!

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Children's for the e-arc to review!
So I didn't know much about this book going in, besides that it was supposed to be Six of Crows meets Les Mis. And well that premise was very appealing! And I think it lived up to that!

The Court of Miracles is set in an alternate 1828 Paris, where the French revolution has failed. The city is divided between the cruel royalty and nine criminal guilds. The nine guilds make up The Court of Miracles, where the city's underbelly thrive and live by their own set of laws. Eponine (Nina) Thénardier is a member of the Guild of Thieves, stealing to survive. She's also trying to protect her naive adopted sister Cosette (Ettie), from the Tiger, the ruthless leader of The Guild of Flesh. Nina's mission to keep Ettie safe leads her into sticky situations. Nina must ultimately decide if keeping Ettie safe is worth starting a war between the guilds.

So the beginning of this book is a bit slow, but it helps set up the guilds, Nina's story, and the world. It will quickly hook you though! I was trying to do a buddy read with some friends but I couldn't put the book down and finished it in one night! I loved the characters and all of the Guilds! It was so interesting and set up well! There's a ton of action, and layers to the story. The overarching plot is centered on Nina saving Ettie, but there's so much more involved in it than just that.
I wanted more of all of the guilds though! We get to see a lot of the Thieve's Guild, and a few others. But I hope further books in the series elaborate on the other Guilds more. I also cannot wait for more from some of the side characters! There's so many we get to see and I really liked that.
There's a bit of romance in the book, but it's definitely not the central focus. There's the barest hint of a love triangle but I didn't mind it, because it wasn't a big focus at all. Also I loved that Nina got to have a group of male friends that were just genuinely friends and not potential love interests. That's missing in a lot of YA.

I wasn't always loving the use of the same names as Les Mis. We got Cosette, Eponine, Javert (with a fun twist though!), and Jean Valjean. I feel like there could have been a bit more creativity there. But the characters were given enough of a twist that you didn't feel like you're reading a Les Mis retelling.

Overall, I love this book!! I think it's going to be crazy hyped, and talked about endlessly, and for good reason!! If you like fantasy, are in any way intrigued by a Les Mis on its head premise, and like action packed stories, jump on this book!!!

Ultimately, I enjoyed this novel and will continue with the series and I'm very grateful for NetGalley to allow me to read this early.

I have never read a retelling of Les Misérables and it's extremely refreshing to have more variety in the retellings. I have not finished Les Misérables, I'll admit, but I have wanted to read it and I know the basis of the story. This story didn't grab me throughout. My favorite aspects were the different guilds and Madame Cordray. One aspect that bothered me throughout and is why I gave it three stars, Ettie should have been taught more to defend herself. Instead of just having Nina run around like a chicken with her head cut off. I understand that's probably more on the part of Les Misérables and that is my weakness there as an audience with this novel. There were a lot of things as readers we were kept in the dark about, as well as most of the characters. I really enjoyed the characters.

This book was absolutely incredible. I couldn’t read it fast enough. I was amazed that this was the authors debut novel. The characters are so diverse and interesting. They were fleshed out really well and I loved learning more about each of them. The entire book is packed with action and if full to the brim of heart. It was truly a pleasure to watch Nina grow from a frightened girl into a bold, fearless woman with a heart of gold. The characters in this story are so relatable and wonderfully flawed. The story flows seamlessly and the world building is phenomenal. It was so easy to get lost in this book and be able to vividly picture the events that were being described. The originality of the story is what piqued my interest initially and I was not disappointed. I loved learning about the guilds and am highly anticipating what will happen in the following books. I don’t have a single criticism about this book, it was captivating from beginning to end. I would rate this book higher than 5* if it were possible.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

"I wear this city like skin wrapped around my bones. I know each street by the feel of the stone beneath my feet. It speaks to me; it shows me the way."

Okay, I really like this one.

Court of Miracles is set in an alternative post-revolutionary France, and told in three stages-- in 1823, 1829, and 1832. It is a heist-y Les Misrables retelling.... and a good one at that.

Eponine Thénardier, or Nina, loses a sister and gains a new life in the Thieves' Guild all in one night. But she can't forget about her beloved sister who was taken from her. She can't just move on as if nothing happened. When Ettie enters her life, a small girl who fills the spot her sister left empty, Nina swears not to let the same thing happen to her new sister. This proves harder than she ever imagined.

Nina is good at her job. She's got the cunning and skill of Kaz Brekker, and the stealth and compassion of Inej Ghafa. I don't necessarily agree with the comparisons to Six of Crows because, I mean, come on. We're all tired of that (though I will say that many SOC comparisons have certainly been far less accurate). But, though there are lots of thieving hijinks and mischief, I don't feel like The Court of Miracles is trying to be Six of Crows. It has its own world and style: the gritty, city-underbelly crime juxtaposed with the glamor of French Court.

Speaking of Court, I loved the worldbuilding of the Guilds. When Nina swears her life to the Thieves' Guild, she enters the Court of Miracles, a world of crime and all manner of strange and gifted people who bend the real world to their will-- all under the noses of Those-Who-Walk-By-Day. There are Assassins, Ghosts, Smugglers, Thieves, Dreamers and more-- all coexisting within the Court by a structured but wary alliance laid out carefully by the Laws of the Miracle Court.

Nina is pitted not only against the Lord of the Guild of the Flesh, who would take Ettie and break her as he turns her into his empty possession, but the rest of the Guild Lords as well, who are loathe to test their alliance and plunge the Court of Miracles into another devastating Guild war.

But Nina would do anything for both of her sisters.

"Sometimes we must pay a terrible price to protect the things we love."

I loved all the Les Mis-ish references and court life and thief life and I just wanted MORE. That's my only complaint*. I want to see the insides of every guild, explore more backstory, explore this world more. But there are two more books so I have my hopes high :)

This is my honest review of The Court of Miracles novel. I was able to be able to read an advanced copy of this novel from the publisher, Random House Childrens, via an ebook through NetGalley.

I saw quite a few IG accounts, from authors and various book instagramers, rave about this book. That being said I decided to request it via Netgalley and was excited when I got approved for it! I immediately started to read it and was sucked in. This book follows Nina, a Cat, of the Guild of Thieves and her endeavor for revenge against the Tiger.

I quite enjoyed the Court of Miracles Guild set up systems, although it did take me a minute to understand each guild has different branches and who the heads of those branches are. There are many characters through the book, and each play their own unique roles in progressing the story. I think Nina was a favorite of mine as well as Orso- the dead lord. I did apricates Etties development as the story progressed as well.
There is somewhat of a possible love triangle within this book between Nina, St. Jude, and Montparnasse. The romance isn’t to heavily touched on which can be good or bad depending on what you like- in this book I would say its sprinkled throughout but nothing heavy happens. I am interested to see where this goes in the future installments (spanning three novels as on Goodreads). I could thoroughly enjoy her pulling a Sarah J Maas and having Nina love Montparnasse only to have him die and her get with the prince. I don’t however, see her much falling for St. Jude long term- maybe Ettie though.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed reading this Novel and cant wait for the next two. I am curious to see what happens with the progression of the story and other situations that were not wrapped up and new situations which have arose. I would recommend this novel for anyone interested in fiction with a twist of revolution.

I just, I’m still reeling from that ending. I can’t even put into words how I feel about what I just read. It was so bloody good! I CAN NOT wait for the next installment of this series!

The plot is so freaking awesome. It was intriguing and so complex. Twists and turns throughout the whole book that left me staring off into space trying to figure out how I missed it.

The story is so exciting and written so well, although the jumps in the timeline could’ve been better explained. I was a little lost a certain points because of that.

The characters were so fun and exciting. The grey boys are my absolute favorite. Nina is kind of a ‘Mary Sue’ in some aspects but that doesn’t really take away from how awesome she is.

The world building is lacking in the most frustrating of ways because I want to know every single detail about this amazing and complex world the author has built but we only get snippets here and there.

I’m not going to lie, at first I was not so thrilled about the writing. There is a lot of telling over showing and that is my biggest pet peeve. I want to be shown the details not told about them. But literally everything thing else completely made up for that.

With that said, I give The Court of Miracles 4 stars.

*I received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.*
Described as Les Misérables meets Six of Crows, this first installment in the A Court of Miracles series is sure to be a hit. I’ll admit at first it was a little slow going, but it soon took off like a rocket and didn’t let up until the end. I am in love with this book and I know I’ll be reading this one many times.
The Court of Miracles is a Les Mis retelling that follows Eponine (Nina) Thénardier who goes by the moniker Black Cat, and is a very skilled cat burglar for the Thieves Guild. The Thieves Guild is one of the nine guilds that make up The Court of Miracles. When Nina’s sister is taken by the Tiger, it sets off a series of events that will shock and amaze you.
One of the main laws of The Court of Miracles is to not attack members from other guilds. Nina will do whatever it takes to take down the Tiger and free her sister. Even if it means creating a war between the guilds.
This is truly an amazing book that is extremely well written. The ending of this one made me glad there is more to come. I cannot wait to see what happens to Nina next.
This book will be available for sale in June 2020.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Court of Miracles follows Nina, a young girl thrust into the underworld of France in search of protection after her sister is sold to an underboss. It takes place over the span of many years and incorporates many facets of the underworld and the guilds it includes as Nina attempts to free her sister. However, Nina finds a bigger foe than she could ever imagine in The Tiger, the Lord of the Guild of Flesh who purchased Nina's sister from their father. Will Nina with the help of many of the Guilds be able to free her sister from the Tiger's claws, or will she spark an all out Guild war and bring only more death and destruction to France?

Where to even begin with this book! It is by far one of my top reads of the year, if not the top read. Nina is such a great character who seems inspired by many literary heroes/heroines of the past. She is trained as a nimble thief, earning herself the name of the Black Cat(she even reminds me a bit of the Marvel villain in the way she is able to get in and out of places) . She is super witty in that she plays everything at least 3 steps ahead of any foe, predicting their reactions in a Sherlock manner. She is fiercely protective of those she sees as family and willing to put herself at risk to ensure their safety. Like a cat, she is also quick on her feet, even if a plan goes awry she is able to manipulate any situation to her own benefit, and while she does receive aid from many of the guilds, it is the guilds that receive the better end of the bargain. She is truly a great heroine that you can't help but fall in love with as she navigates the streets of France.

The guilds add such a great texture to this story. You really get a sense that they aren't just gangs set under a new guise but a whole new government with which the night is ruled. They are divided and ran by very competent and well thought out Lords and presented in such a way I found myself hungry for a "Which Court Guild would you belong to?" quiz. The villain is equally as well written, you find yourself hating him and fearing him but as the story progresses you find an understanding of him and what he has become. He never becomes someone I felt sorry for, but I feel like all his actions were justified and it was fresh to have someone who wasn't just doing everything to avenge a dead love.

The story is so fresh and well paced that I couldn't put it down and hunger for more in this world. I am eagerly awaiting the second installment and will be purchasing a physical copy when this is released. I highly recommend this to anyone, even fantasy readers regardless of no magic being present. The prose and characters weave enough magic of their own, they've completely put me under their spell. Brava, Kester Grant. I can't wait to see what happens in the future.