Thank you to the publisher for an ARC via NetGalley for review.

I loved this story. It was magical, exciting, and it reads almost like a fairy tale. I was a huge fan of The Bone Houses, so I was really eager to read this one. It did not disappoint at all. I liked the found family elements, the magic, the corgi, and the adventure.
Mer was an excellent character. Her relationships with the other characters, particularly Renfrew, Fane, and Ifanna were really interesting. Her thoughts and feelings came across clearly, and I was able to feel them as well. She was easy to like and to root for on her journey. Fane was also a really great character. His magic makes him a formidable fighter, but his fear over hurting people leaves him conflicted. His relationship with Trefor was adorable.
The concept of magic in this world was fascinating. Mer is a water diviner meaning that she has control over water and that she can sense and find water. Because of her power, she’s forced into the prince’s service as a child and is made to do things that lead to her feeling guilt for many years. Fane is an iron fetch gifted magic by the Otherfolk through a bargain. Iron hums when he’s near it so that he can sense it, and this was a really interesting form of magic.
I thought the pacing was really good in this story. The writing style was easy to follow along with and it flowed well.

I first read The Bone Houses from Emily Lloyd Jones and immediately fell in love with her writing. This book follows the same type of story telling techniques where you really feel as if you're living and breathing like these characters. Her worlds really come alive and she makes these tales that seem to be old wives tales that get told over a bonfire.

The Drowned Woods tells the story of a girl who carries water within her and can call water to do her bidding. She gets capture by the Prince of her kingdom at a very young age and she gets sent into missions that only she can do due to the her ability to control water. However, as his doings start including her in macabre plans she escapes. She is found by a spy whom she loves almost as a father, and together they set out to hurt the Prince's reign by destroying a well that seems to keep the wall that surrounds his castle intact. They find help from a man that has magic in him as well. His magic is dark and mean to kill, as he sold seven years of his life for sever human lives. They also get help from other members of the community, which really didn't get much back story.

The adventure is fun and has small bits of romance here and there that leaves you really caring for the relationships that are building within this heist.

My favorite part of the book is the way everything seems to be woven together at the end. I really mean it when I say that the story reads as if it were a legend.

Overall rating: 4 stars

* I received this ebook in exchange for an honest review

plot: 5/5
pace: 5/5
characters: 5/5
writing: 5/5
enjoyment: 5/5

final rating: 5/5

FOUND FAMILY, BETRAYAL, PLOT TWISTS, A HEIST, AND MAGIC. IM SOLD.

The Drowned Woods is a fast paced, standalone, fantasy, with a heist, found family, and an unpredictable plot.

this book had all of that and more, and it reminded me so much of Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo & Among Thieves by M.J. Khun. I'd consider The Drowned Woods a perfect mix of both; it has the heist, found family, and magic like Six of Crows, but the betrayal and plot twists like Among Thieves.

All of my favorite things in books were found in The Drowned Woods. The writing was stunning, and from the start, the writing style in this book made me feel like I was reading a fairytale. The author developed the world and the characters so well. All of the characters were so complex and so unique, which enhanced the unpredictable aspect of the plot lines.

PLOT TWISTS. I LOVE PLOT TWISTS. even though they hurt, a good plot twist is my favorite thing ever. I feel like I've read enough fantasy now that I can sort of guess the plot twists before they happen, but I was wrong SO MANY TIMES THAT IT WAS MAKING ME MAD (in a good way ofc). Although, some of the ones that I did guess were smaller plot twists or more minor plot points in the book. I think I only predicted one of the big twists right.

My favorite characters were Mer, Ifanna, and Renfrew. They were funny, smart, and made the book so much more enjoyable. The characters that I felt like were the best written were Mer, Renfrew, Fane, and Gryf. Mer is smart, powerful, and an amazing main character. Renfrew was also very well written, especially to fill the mentor role that he played. He's one of the smartest characters in the book, so he was always very unpredictable.

For all my Grishaverse/Six of Crows fans, I would recommend reading The Drowned Woods next!

“𝘏𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵.”

I loved Mer as a character, strong but also vulnerable, selfless and extremely determined.
The story itself had some surprises, some great side characters and world building. Overall I quite enjoyed this one!

While I haven’t actually read The Bone Houses, which is set in the same world as The Drowned Woods, I had no trouble following along with the story. In fact, reading The Drowned Woods made me want to read The Bone Houses even more, because I loved the system of magic and Emily Lloyd-Jones’ style of writing! She combines humor and adventure so wonderfully that I was laughing one minute and on the edge of my seat the next! My favorite character (and I doubt I will be alone in this opinion) simply has to be Trefor, Fane’s beloved corgi dog. He is such a fun presence in the story, and one of my favorite scenes was when Trefor decided to “help” Fane out in a fight.

In addition to reading a physical copy of The Drowned Woods, I also had the pleasure of listening along to an audiobook version from Hachette Audio. Moira Quirk, the narrator of The Drowned Woods, is one of my all-time favorite narrators, so I knew that I would be in for a treat with her take on The Drowned Woods! I loved the way that her voice pacing matched the cadence of the story, making it so easy for me to get sucked in while listening!

My Recommendation-
If you love adventurous fantasy novels with lovable characters (and even more loveable dogs!) you need to grab a copy of The Drowned Woods! I would especially recommend this book to fans of Fable, Six of Crows, and Avatar: The Last Airbender!

Happy Wednesday y’all! Did I accidentally write and post my blog tour post for The Drowned Woods 2 Days early? 100%- in my defense, I had a migraine all morning on Monday, so my days were getting confused, but I noticed it early enough that it hopefully wasn’t too big of a deal. Man, this was such a busy weekend and week so far and I am so exhausted- not because I did a lot of stuff (I just went to Costco, bought a couch, went to a workout class, and babysat my nephew), but it just felt like so much. Hopefully the rest of week doesn’t get too exhausting! Today’s my stop on The Drowned Woods tour by TBR and Beyond Tours– this was such a cool book! I really enjoyed reading it, and I definitely think y’all will too.

The Drowned Woods 4/5 Stars

Summary from Goodreads:

A magical, ethereal fantasy from IndieBound bestselling author Emily Lloyd-Jones.

Once upon a time, the kingdoms of Wales were rife with magic and conflict, and eighteen-year-old Mererid “Mer” is well-acquainted with both. She is the last living water diviner and has spent years running from the prince who bound her into his service. Under the prince’s orders, she located the wells of his enemies, and he poisoned them without her knowledge, causing hundreds of deaths. After discovering what he had done, Mer went to great lengths to disappear from his reach. Then Mer’s old handler returns with a proposition: use her powers to bring down the very prince that abused them both.

The best way to do that is to destroy the magical well that keeps the prince’s lands safe. With a motley crew of allies, including a fae-cursed young man, the lady of thieves, and a corgi that may or may not be a spy, Mer may finally be able to steal precious freedom and peace for herself. After all, a person with a knife is one thing…but a person with a cause can topple kingdoms.

The Drowned Woods—set in the same world as The Bone Houses but with a whole new, unforgettable cast of characters—is part heist novel, part dark fairy tale.

The Drowned Woods was such a cool, fun book with such a great crew of characters and such fun magical twists and turns, and I really enjoyed where everything ended up going by the end of the book. I really liked Fane and Mer as characters and OMG the corgi- I lovedddd the corgi so much and he added so much to the book for me! The fact that in Welsh mythology, corgis are spies for the fairies is one of my favorite things. As someone who owns a corgi mix, that just makes me laugh. The heist itself was interesting and I really liked some aspects of it, and there were aspects I wasn’t a huge fan of, but it didn’t change how much I enjoyed the book. Overall, I really liked The Drowned Woods, and I’m excited to read more by Emily Lloyd-Jones in the future! Make sure you grab it today!

The Drowned Woods was one of my most anticipated releases of 2022. This YA Fantasy novel is a companion to Emily Lloyd-Jones 2019-release, The Bone Houses. Full transparency, I hadn't even read The Bone Houses until this month. The reason I was so excited for The Drowned Woods was based on its synopsis alone. It sounded absolutely captivating to me.

Spoiler Alert: It so totally was!!

Once I picked this up, it was all I could think about. I absolutely adore this story with my whole heart and soul. Lloyd-Jones swept me away into another world.

This story follows 18-year old Mererid, 'Mer', who is the last living water diviner. Her powers being known, she was wrenched from her family in order to go live in the castle of Prince Garanhir and be bound into his service. She's made to do terrible things, such as finding the wells of Garanhir's enemies so that he can poison them. This results in the deaths of many, many innocent people.

Mer is devastated to have been a part of this. Luckily, she is able to slip out of the Prince's grasp and flee. After that, avoiding recapture is her only focus. Mer's able to fly under the radar working as a barmaid. That is until the day her old handler, Renfrew, the Prince's ex-Spy Master, approaches her with an opportunity to bring the Prince down.

He proposes a heist of sorts to steal an important magical artifact that in a sense secures the Prince's control over their kingdom. Mer is intrigued and swayed by her old mentor. They can actually do this, make Garanhir pay for what he put so many innocent people through.

Together they assemble a team including a fae-cursed young man, the lady of thieves and an adorably-loyal corgi named Trefor. They were all brought onto the mission because of the special skills they each portrayed. This crew, I loved watching them all come together and as they set off on their quest, I knew this story was going to be a slam dunk for me.

I loved everything about it. The world creation was fantastic, the magic system was easy to understand, yet intriguing, and the character interactions and motivations were so well done. Mer, Fane, the fae-cursed young man, and Trefor in particular were so well developed. I loved watching their relationship build into what it ultimately becomes.

Mer's character arc was so beautiful, heart-wrenching and ultimately satisfying. I adored her and her free will, determination and strength in face of set-backs.

As you get to the end, the truth behind the connection to The Bones Houses is revealed. I cannot even tell you what that moment was like, reading that reveal. My heart swelled; insta-tears. It made me want to reread TBH knowing what I know now, even though I just read it! What a moment. It was so good.

Thank you to the publisher, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate it so much and have no doubt this is going to be on my Favorites list for 2022!!

[Review will be posted on readervoracious.com 9/3]

I adored The Bones Houses and the short story included in His Hideous Heart, so the excitement I felt for The Drowned Woods cannot be overstated. I preordered a copy of the book before finishing the prologue, and by the time I finished the book, Emily Lloyd-Jones was added to my autobuy author list! I hope I can write somewhat of a cohesive review to do this amazing book justice.

"Magic was not a human trait. It was other; it was something to be feared and wondered at."

Part heist novel and part dark fairytale, The Drowned Woods is a lush and captivating tale that draws you in on the first page. It feels like nestling into bed for the night for storytime and the story unfolds easily around you with atmospheric writing.

"[T]here was no light. None at all. The darkness was all-consuming -- the kind that seemed to close around a person, to fill their every breath."

Expertly plotted and fast-paced, there is not a word that doesn't serve to expand the reader's understanding of the world or the events driving the plot forward. Lloyd-Jones expertly unveils not only the history of magic but also Mer's backstory and quickly instills a sense of danger for the road ahead in a manner of pages. As a lover of immersive and vast worldbuilding, this book is a beautiful delight.

"Sometimes it felt as though she were more storm than person, bringing chaos and pain everywhere she went."

Worldbuilding and atmosphere are met with characters you can't help but root for... and then curse. The diviner, the ironfetch, and the thief (and the corgi spy?) have found one another on an unlikely adventure, and I loved each of them. Especially Trefor the delightful and loyal doggo companion with an affection for boots who sneezes near magic and might be a spy for the Otherfolk. (Side Note: I found myself emotionally attached to another animal companion from Lloyd-Jones! Let us not forget the delightful zombie goat from The Bone Houses!)

I love stories with an unlikely band of characters with a common goal, and the ragtag crew that Renfrew pulled together for the heist to topple a cruel ruler . The banter! The barbs! The quiet moments of concern. Each character breaths life into the story and have their own complex set of motivations. There's tension and action, and there are real stakes.

"She had learned how to be a deadly shadow, but Fane had the power to walk where he liked without fear. She didn't understand why he sounded so haunted."

🌊 The Diviner Mer has power over water and was stolen from her family as a child, bound in service to a cruel king who used her powers against his enemies. She's quick to temper when seeing injustice and is haunted by the results of her actions at the behest of others.
👊 The ironfetch Fane bargained with the fey who has a pure moral compass and has experienced more heartbreak than I'd like. He's also haunted, but I won't say more about that. He has an adorable corgi named Trefor and I will die for him.
💰 The Thief Ifanna is a former paramour who brings sarcastic comedic relief and is also haunted by her former choices.

"Death lurked in the shadowy spaces between his fingers."

At its heart, The Drowned Woods is a dark fairy tale exploring power, and choice - and the consequences of our choices. The lengths one will go to in order to ensure a better world. Mer has been a pawn and weapon all her life but does that absolve her from the consequences of her actions? Where does the blame lie? Will she be able to live with herself if she keeps running?

"A person with a knife was one thing. A person with a knife and a cause could topple kingdoms."

There's so much I could say about this book. It made me cry. It's beautiful and painful and powerful. I wholeheartedly recommend this book and need more people to read it so I can scream with them about [redacted] and [redacted], so please be sure to scream at me when you read it, ok?

I received an eARC from the publisher via Netgalley for my honest review. This has not affected my opinions or the contents of my review. I have since purchased a finished copy.

Content warnings: character death (both on-page and off-page), grief & survivor's guilt, violence, war (off-page)

LOVED loved loved this so much. SO much. The writing, the characters, the Welsh influence. And the epilogue tying it into The Bone Houses? I screamed. Favourite August read, one of my top 2022 reads, easily.

Having read and loved the Bone Houses, I was so excited to learn I’d been gifted an ARC for The Drowned Woods. Before this one, I’d read two books by Emily Lloyd-Jones, and both were absolutely captivating. Because of this, I had high expectations going in. The Drowned Woods is a magical and mesmerizing fantasy novel that follows quite the interesting cast of characters.

The world building was one of my favorite parts of the Drowned Woods. Each description of the current setting was vast and comprehensive, easily allowing me to imagine the scenery. The inclusion of two of the main characters’ back stories—Mer and Fane—was an excellent addition to the story. It really set the scene for the direction the book would be heading, as well as what the two had endured to get to this point in their lives.

In addition to the world building, I found the magic system fascinating. There are different diviners with the power to control certain elements. Mer is a water diviner, and through her we learn a lot about how each power works. There are also otherfolk (essentially fae) hidden in the forest that we still don’t know a whole lot about, but could make for a fantastic exploration in a future book. Fane’s past is directly linked to the otherfolk, which leads to some intriguing reveals later on that had me waiting on the edge of my seat.

While the characters were each unique and fleshed out, I’d say I had trouble connecting with them more than any other aspect of the story. I can’t quite put my finger on why. All three of the main characters—Mer, Fane, and Ifanna—had well thought out backstories and characteristics, but still I found something lacking. I will say that Ifanna was my favorite of three, and I wish we’d had even more time with her. As part of the thieves guild, she made for a compelling character with a feisty attitude, badass fighting skills, and a history of pain that she was still working through.

Mer, on the other hand, was closed off due to the traumas of her childhood. Her character is what I would call a “stoic badass.” This allowed for her and Fane to form a special bond due to their shared grief. Fane’s family was taken from him at a young age, and because of this, he distanced himself from others (and because of other reasons I won’t get into due to spoilers). Until he meets Mer. She’s the only one he feels comfortable being himself around, so the two grow close throughout the course of the novel. I enjoyed their friendship a lot, and the progression of their relationship was pleasant and natural.

So, even though I had a harder time connecting with the characters than I did the story’s plot and world, they were all well-written and developed. However, there is one character who I had zero issues connecting with, and that’s Fane’s companion, Trefor the corgi. He was such a sweet and endearing addition to the plot. When things looked bleak, Trefor would always be there to give a boost in attitude. I absolutely love his inclusion in this book!

All in all, though, I really enjoyed the Drowned Woods. This take on the Welsh legend of Cantre’r Gwaelod was fascinating, atmospheric, and a delight to read. If you enjoyed the Bone Houses like I did, then I highly suggest checking out the Drowned Woods! It won’t disappoint!

Having enjoyed The Bone Houses (a unique take on zombies) by this author, I was excited to see this story is set in the same world.

As one of the few existing water diviners, Mer’s skills are coveted and her life has rarely been her own. After being forced to work for a power-hungry prince, he used her abilities to help kill hundreds of people. Since escaping, she’s constantly on the run and is seldom in the same place for more than a couple months. She longs for a home and people to call her own. When her old mentor offers her an opportunity at freedom, Mer jumps at the chance. The catch? It involves a dangerous heist. The two of them round up a team with diverse skills and make a plan. Among this team is Fane, a talented fighter with unusual abilities of his own who’s suffered tremendous losses. His furry companion is Trefor, a corgi and possible spy who stole my heart along with plenty of scenes.

Not all of the team survive the mission, and the plot throws in some unexpected twists along the way. Some of the characters’ actions surprised me, and I love it when that happens. I was determined not to like Mer’s ex-girlfriend and thief-extraordinare Ifanna because of a prior betrayal, but she steps up when it counts and won me over. The ending is absolutely perfect, exactly what I’d hoped, and left me with a big smile on my face.

With a magical well and an ambitious prince bent on toppling kingdoms, The Drowned Woods is very much a dark fairy tale that kept me flipping the pages. I finished it in a day. It’s a quiet, standalone novel that will thrill fantasy fans and corgi lovers alike.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was very nearly a DNF for me unfortunately. The writing is beautiful, and I did enjoy the worldbuilding, but I had almost no connection with the characters beyond the Corgi; and I just wasn't enraptured with the plot.

Good, solid storytelling with an interesting premise and a satisfying ending. The corgi was my favorite character!

I received an ARC of The Drowned Woods from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I had such a fun time reading The Drowned Woods. It was indeed a heist novel at its best, plus some. The heist is over two-thirds of the way through the book, and the last part was, by far, my favorite. And that twist at the two-thirds mark? Brilliant. Looking back, I can honestly say that I did not see it coming, even though the signs were there.

The characters themselves were interesting. You have Mer, the water diviner; Fane, the helper of the Fae; Ifanna, the thief; and Renfrew, the prince's spymaster. Oh, and we can't forget about Trefor, the potentially-a-spy corgi. Their interactions and banter were enjoyable to read. My only problem with them--which was the reason I removed a star from my rating--was how they ended up getting to their conclusions. I can honestly say that throughout most of the story, there was no real change in how the characters thought or acted. Then, all of a sudden, at the end, they all changed. Like, snap your fingers and do a 180. It happened way too fast. The changes were good, and there were hints here and there about where the characters were likely to end up, but not enough to justify how fast everything ended up happening. Even though the last part of the book was my favorite, it did move a little too quickly. The plot, the character development, the romance. It all felt rushed at the end, and I think it could have been fleshed out more to give it a more realistic feeling. On that same note, I understand why it happened so quickly (the characters themselves were on a deadline), but still. I would have loved for it to have taken just a little bit longer.

The beginning of the story also felt a little stilted to me. When we begin, Mer is already on the run from the prince after everything that happened while she was under his employ. Now, because this is mainly a heist novel, I understand why all of that backstory was glossed over and mentioned in conversations between the characters. However, I would have loved to have read about it. The author could do a whole other novel about Mer before the events of this book, and I would 100% read it because, holy cow, there was a lot to unpack there. Honestly, she could include all the characters in this prequel because they all have such a rich backstory that we just didn't get to see. It's brought up, and there are some scenes that the author fleshes out, but it wasn't enough for me. I love these characters, and I wish there were more pages because they were terrific.

Now, for giving it four stars, it probably seems like I have more bad things to say about it than good. But I truly loved The Drowned Woods. It was a fun read that didn't claim to be anything that it wasn't, which I'm seeing a lot of in books these days. This was a mythologically based retelling with a heist thrown in. And I love that it didn't claim to be anything but that. Highly recommended.

I was really interested in this one after reading the synopsis, especially the Welsh mythology part.
While I enjoyed the storyline and the magic, the characters unfortunately fell flat for me (all except the little corgi) and I just couldn't connect or really care all that much about any of them in the end. Overall I would say give it a try and see if you feel differently.

Thank you so much Hachette Book Group for giving me the chance to read and review this E-ARC. I will publish this review on Goodreads, Amazon Canada, Barnes & Noble, and on my Instagram (@ABookishStar).

This book hooked me from the start. It starts off strong and ends even stronger. This book, throughout its entirety, was a solid 4.5 stars for me. However, that ending made me boost my rating up to five stars. Emily Lloyd-Jones does an excellent job at getting readers attached to this cast of characters, their histories, their goals, and the world they call home.

The Drowned Woods is told from two points of view. I thought the author did a great job at pacing the story while making it flow seamlessly between two points of view. I liked that the author incorporated flashbacks into this book. I thought the main character was beautifully fleshed out. I liked the corgi companion.

The plot was fast-paced and easy to follow. There were a few surprises along the journey.

My only critique is that I would have liked to have seen more of the King.

This book has made me want to read The Bone Houses (set in the same world) by Emily Lloyd-Jones.

Overall, if you're looking for a standalone fantasy, then I highly recommend reading The Drowned Woods. It has beautiful storytelling and a wonderful cast of characters. It is fast-paced, filled with magic, and a cute corgi.

I was very excited to pick this up when I heard it was a heist novel with magic based on Welsh mythology, because I don’t think I’ve read a book like that before. The prologue set the tone up nicely, albeit probably too nicely, that the rest of the novel didn’t really deliver what I was expecting. It’s definitely “part heist” like the synopsis says so I would not go into this expecting some huge heist plot line like I did. The plot was okay but it fell flat quite often when I was expecting it to build bigger. My biggest issue was that some parts felt very unserious for what the characters were supposed to be doing? I’m not sure if that makes sense but at times it felt more to me like I was reading a middle grade novel instead of a YA novel. I also wasn’t head over heels in love with the characters by the end of the novel. We got to know Mer pretty well but the rest of the crew didn’t quite develop how I wanted them to, and the final romance felt really out of nowhere. Also, the corgi? Cute, but I’m not sure it really fit into the story that well haha. But with all these small gripes, I did still enjoy reading this and would recommend it if it sounds interesting to you! I think maybe my expectations were a bit too high.

final rating: 3.5 / 5

Water Divination? Fae interference? A fairy tale retelling? I am here for it! The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones is a heist with a twist. I relished the slow uncovering of each character’s’ “why.” And for a reader who is not a huge fan of heavy or spicy romance, the subtle hints of love are perfect. It’s not distracting but rather adds to the mystery of what is really going on within this ragtag group of criminals.

This tale contains treachery-abound and with that comes the constant thought that every character is unreliable. Except for Trefor the sneezing Corgi. He seems to be the only one who deserves and maintains trust. The “found family" trope is also upended, which only adds to the mistrust of the characters.

Emily Lloyd-Jones’ fantasy world-building is phenomenal, as is to be expected. She regales the reader with picturesque descriptions of towns, cities, islands, caves…all the places to which the characters travel.

I loved the resilience that the main character(s) exhibit when faced with making-decisions and slowly coming the realization that “things” may not be as everyone expected.

The ending was phenomenal and the epilogue…I loved the connection to Bone Houses, a book published prior to The Drowned Woods. The “easter egg” connection enhanced the tale.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys YA fantasy and tough female characters.

Contains: LGTQ relationship (slight side plot), violence/death/extreme peril

{Thank you to NetGalley & Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the e-ARC.}

This dark fairy tale retelling follows the story of Meredid, a 18 year old girl running away from a prince who used her skills to poison and kill hundreds of his enemies without her knowledge. Meredid will find herself in a peculiar crew, where they will combine their skills to take down the prince.

This novel is absolutely mesmerizing, I didn't know about the original tale, so it was a delightful discovery for me. If you're looking for a story with lovely characters, a fast paced tale filled with magic and little drop of romance, this book might be for you. Younger me would've been obsessed with this novel.

It was a little bit predictable for me, but not in a problematic way at all. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for an e-arc of this book!

This book was really a fairy tale. The epilogue just reinforce that with the way it was beautifully written. I was so excited while reading the book because a heist is always an exciting thing especially when the stakes are high. This book has a water diviner, an innocent killer, an evil prince, an unforgivable thief and even more. Even the creatures the characters had to battle were terrifying. I can just say I didn't expect the plot twist at the end but I was so sad when the truth came out that I had to pause for a second before continuing the book. Mer deserves the best and I felt for her each times she had to suffer. This book would've been a 5 stars read, I just felt like the other characters besides Mer, Fane and Ifanna aren't really fleshed out so I didn't really care for them. Finally, the romance in this book is amazing, I like it is subtle in the way Fane and Mer slowly trust each other as opposite of Mer and Ifanna. Ifanna is still amazing as she is goal-oriented and always think of her people.
The corgi sidekick pet named Trefor is the best boy in this book. I kind of want a corgi now after reading this because Trefor was simply the cutest.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a fairy tale about a magic heist with Welsh folklore. I definitely have to read the Bone House from the same author as this book.