This was so good! So much different than Dennards previous books but still so engaging and interesting.

I loved the themes of forgiveness and found family that are present in this. I love the characters and their dynamics with each other. I loved the lore and the "magical" creatures and forest.

I cannot wait to read more from this series and see if any of my theories are correct because that ending left many questions! Also, I cannot wait to hear about these creatures more and hopefully in book 2 we get some Diana rep because that would be interesting to see.

One of my pleasant memories of the pandemic was participating in the “Sooz Your Own Adventure” aka the book whose plot was determined by a daily Twitter poll. So when I heard the author would be releasing a novel version of it, I had some hesitation. After all, Twitter hive mind led to some occasional, uh, interesting choices, as well as lots of #ughJay hilarity. But this book is mostly completely rewritten, not to mention it’s only part of the story.

After her dad was revealed as a traitor to the Luminaries, Winnie and her family were banished from the order. The Luminaries are responsible for dealing with the creatures, called nightmares, that appear in the forest every night. Considering that nearly everyone in Hemlock Falls was involved in the secretive group, that made for a lonely past four years. Her only hope is to take the first of the Hunter Trials on her sixteenth birthday and convince them to take her back. But the forest is nothing like she remembers it and neither are the Luminaries. When Winnie sees evidence of strange things happening in the forest, no one believes her, except for Jay, the town bad boy and her former best friend. With a new nightmare lurking in the forest and little help, can Winnie survive the Trials?

Some of the world building as definite promise. The hunters are divided into families, each taking the name (and corresponding hunting night) of a day of the week. Each family specializes in certain things, whether that’s training the next generation of hunters, developing new gear, or managing the bureaucracy. While the Luminaries are focused on containing the spirit in the forest by ridding it of nightmares every night, another group, the Dianas, seek to use its power for their own ends. The Dianas were the weakest part of the world-building for me, as it’s never quite explained why they’re so evil. The “never quite explained” bit is unfortunately true of the rest of the world-building, though. How do they manage to keep their towns so secret? How do they manage family trees when literally everyone has one of seven last names? Why is the position of Lead Hunter so important?

“She belongs in the forest. She belongs as a Luminary. She belongs as a hunter.”


Part of that could be explained by Winnie’s character. At times, Winnie read a lot younger to me than sixteen. Of course, she’s suffered without any friends for the past four years, watching her family fall further into poverty while her mother works herself to exhaustion. But the Wednesday line prides itself on loyalty and Winnie never seems to question her family’s banishment, instead rebuking herself for not realizing her dad was a Diana. She trains by herself in secret and refuses to accept any future for herself that doesn’t involve her being a hunter. Of course she accepts the Luminaries’ worldview without any questions as she’s never known anything else!

“So what if last night didn’t go according to plan? So what if everyone was right and she hadn’t been ready for the forest? She still got what she wanted and what her family needed. There’s no reason not to keep going.”


It’s only when she passes the first trial that her thinking starts to change. After four years of shunning, the rest of the Luminaries suddenly act like the intervening four years never happened. She’s welcomed back into hunter training, the kids who were bullying her a few days ago now act like her best friends and her mom and brother get job promotions. It’s exactly what she wanted to happen, but the whiplash is too much for Winnie. Why does she have to risk her life – because Winnie does nearly die, several times – before they decide her dad’s actions don’t matter anymore? How could her supposed best friends have turned their backs on her four years ago? Why is she so unhappy even though she everything she thought she wanted?

“It is disconcerting that he can be so extremely well-proportioned while also being, ugh, Jay.”


After she’s welcomed back, Winnie also starts connecting (or reconnecting) with some of the Luminaries. Some of the other prospective hunters reach out to her, but there’s still a distinct chilliness between her and one of her former best friends, Erica, that leaves Winnie hurt and confused. But the biggest chunk of time is spent with her other former best friend, Jay – who’s also her former crush. There’s the barest start of a romantic relationship, along with a lot of anger and confusion, because he falls somewhere on the enemy to friend spectrum but she still trusts him, even though it’s obvious Jay’s keeping secrets of his own.

The plot was fine as well. What it says in the blurb? That’s exactly what you get, Winnie trying to make it through the three hunter trials. It felt like there was a lot of choreographing of future plot points. I’m not sure whether that’s because I knew the original plot (so I have a general idea of where this version might be headed) or if it really was that predictable. Some things were so blatantly obvious that I was banging my head against the wall going “ugh, Winnie”. All that – and the fact that it’s told in third-person present tense – could be forgiven because I honestly enjoyed the majority of the story, except for this last point. The ending was ridiculously abrupt, like I kept trying to turn the page on my ereader in confusion. In a way, it makes logical sense where the book ends, but the structure of the book and the pacing left me hanging. Most (almost all) of the subplots are unresolved, including one introduced near the end of the book. It felt unfinished in a way that really rubbed me wrong.

“You either trust the forest or you don’t, Winnie.”


Overall, 3.5 nostalgic stars. Without that nostalgia, this would be more solidly a three thanks to that ending. Either way, I know I’ll read the next book just because I want some resolution to, uh, any of the plot points.

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

2,5/5
At first, I was intrigued by the concept of living nightmares roaming the forest of a small town and there being an ancient order that protects the town and the rest of the world from these monsters. The premise is interesting, but the execution of it was very reminiscent of paranormal fantasy YA books back in the early 2010s. The Luminaries follows quite the typical fantasy plot, which didn't diverge much from what the book description says, of the main character being an outcast and then needing to go through 3 trials in order to prove her worth. There's nothing wrong with this, but I didn't find anything brand-new that kept my attention within the predictable plot.

The writing is fantastic though, however, the 3rd person present tense threw me off - it was hard for me to read, but I'm putting that down to personal preference. There is a lot of fun supernatural lore that we learn of the different monsters, but lacked in the overall world building of the history of the Luminaries order. Winnie Wednesday was a delight to read about, being that outcast, awkward, and intelligent. She works hard to redeem her family's name after her father is shunned for supposedly practicing witchcraft.

With hints of a romance for Winnie, that didn't take centre stage, which isn't required in this book. But the way I could predict exactly what would happen wasn't a fun reading experience compared to other "predictable" books I've recently read. I felt there was a special spark that was missing from this book that would've made The Luminaries shine brighter for me, but unfortunately, it fell flat.

"He charges. Winnie moves. And the forest looks on with knowing eyes."

Wow, this was some of the best YA fiction I've ever read, and I am NOT YA myself, not even close. I've recently attempted a different, very popular YA series, and had a breakdown because I was sure that was it for me, that I can't read YA anymore. I'm so, so glad I received this early copy because not only I enjoyed it SO MUCH, but it made me believe there must be more YA that I can still fall in love with! *dark romance reader struggles, if you know - you know*

I won't be going into explaining the story here, the blurb pretty much covers everything you need to know, and once I read it myself, I instantly knew I'll like it. Well, technically I was wrong because I didn't like it, I LOVED IT. The secret society vibe with a very spooky, creepy plot that was just perfect for late October evenings, lovable characters with such a wise and mature perspective of the world and duty (well, most of the time at least *wink*), so many mysteries, and such a perfectly constructed world - Susan Dennard is my new hero!

And UGH - Jay. Let me tell you something about Jay. This book might be YA but Jay in my imagination is definitely NOT. Susan's writing is descriptive like that and works wonders apparently because I'm obsessed and I need more. Like right now.

So, if you ever feel like YA is not for you anymore, read The Luminaries. Well, I'd tell you to read it anyway.

Read if you like:
- secret society
- hunters of monsters
- spooky forest
- initiation rituals
- loyalty and treason
- "we are just friends"

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy!

***Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book to review.***

With creepy monsters, painful family dynamics, and a determined protagonist, The Luminaries feels like a love letter to Dennard's faithful fans. With a richly built world that's intricately intwined with the magic system, The Luminaries is perfect for fans of the TV show Grimm.

I didn't expect to love this book quite as much as I did. Susan Dennard created a vivid, fascinating world, full of mythical creatures, monster hunters, and espionage. It's always a good sign when one finishes a book and either wants to re-read it or read the sequel immediately afterward, and that's how this particular ARC made me feel.

Thank you to NetGalley for supplying me with a free copy in exchange for an honest and fair review. I'm giving this book 4.5 stars out of 5

The opening of The Luminaries is masterfully written and pulled me in from the first few sentences. The idea of our nightmares taking form in the forest, requiring a special group of hunters to protect us from the monsters is quite fascinating. That, along with Winnie as a character who is shunned and bullied by everyone she knows because her family has been outcast for years due to something her father didl--all of this convinced me I would love this book. I could not put it down through the first 100 pages.

Unfortunately, as the book goes on, my interest waned. The pace slows as Winnie finds herself caught in a lie that restores her family's respectability, and even a few of her past friendships,, but isn't sustainable. By the third act, I really didn't feel like much had happened, and by the ending, I began to feel the whole novel was just a set up for the another book.

In short, while there are good and entertaining parts of The Luminaries, the characters don't really develop and the plot doesn't move towards any real answers, which for me was disappointing.

Thanks to NetGalley and Torteen for providing me access to this eARC in exchange for a fair review.

I was enthralled by this book and found myself not wanting to put it down during the day. I really loved the setting of a small town/secret society on the outskirts of an enchanted forest that hosts some truly horrific monsters (and even some oddly beautiful ones). There’s also multiple mysteries at play in this town that I can’t wait to read more about in the next book! I really sympathize with Winnie and her struggles with being a literal outcast in this small tight knit community but it was great to see her slowly start to come out of her shell and I hope that gets expanded on more in the next book.

Overall, it reminded me of books from the golden age of YA books circa 2010 and if you liked those, I think you’ll enjoy this too.

Winnie Wednesday wants nothing more than to return her family to their former glory and take her place as a Hunter in the Wednesday clan, because in Hemlock Falls, Nightmares aren't only contained to dreams. Monsters walk the forest after nightfall, and the Hunters are tasked with killing them to keep the town safe. Exiled from the clan, Winnie has to sneak into the forest to perform the first task that will see her become a Clan Hunter, but what she see's there terrifies her more than she could ever imagine. Working with her ex-bestfriend, Jay Friday, Winnie is determined to investigate the Nightmare she saw in the Forest that night, sure that Hemlock Falls is in more danger than anyone will want to admit. But she quickly comes to realise that not all monsters can be slain, and not all nightmares are confined to the dark.

Ok, so flashback to twitter 2019 and Susan Dennard decided to do a 'choose your own adventure' style post focused on a girl called Winnie Wednesday that absolutely took off, shoot to now and we get to follow her again and I, for one, couldn't wait to get my hands on the book and dive straight into Hemlock Falls. Winnie is the perfect POV to follow this story from. For the last 4 years she and her family have been ostracised from the Clans, with only a select few people deigning to acknowledge their existence. But when Winnie sneaks into the first Hunter trial and succeeds, all of a sudden she gets thrust into the limelight, her family are no longer outcasts but slowly working their way back into the life of the Luminaries. At first Winnie is delighted, this is all she's wanted, to see the spark back in her mothers eyes, to see her and her brother welcomed back to the Wednesday estate with open arms, but the longer it goes on, the more annoyed she gets, the more she see's the hippocracy of it all, how easily the Luminaries went from outright ignoring them, to engaging with them all again as if nothing had happened. It's incredibly easy to empathise with Winnie, she's feisty, not afraid to get he hands first, but she's also someone who just wants to make her family happy, wants so much to belong again, but once let back into that world, starts to see the the true darkness to it.

The setting for this story was wondrously dark and creepy. Hemlock Falls is one of several places throughout the world where 'Nightmares' creatures such as manticores, kelpies and werewolves appear at dark through a magical fog that encases the forest. The seven clans of the Luminaries, Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, all play their part in hunting the Nightmares, researching into them, protecting the non's, people who aren't Luminaries but live in the world, and mundanes, regular humans who have no knowledge of the Luminaries, from the dangers that lurk in the forest. The world was incredibly well built, and thanks to Winnie's near eidetic memory for the Compendium, we get to learn plenty about all the different kind of Nightmares that prowl the forest, as well as all the Clans responsibilities within the luminaries.

Dennard has a knack for writing incredibly well paced stories, filled with tension, drama and emotions, and The Luminaries was no different. During Winnie's trials to become a Hunter, her time in the forest, the tension bleeds off the pages. She's the MC, so we have a good idea no real harm will come to her, but Dennard still manages to put that niggle of uncertainty into our heads every time she gets into some sort of trouble. Her writing style brings Hemlock Falls, the people and Nightmares that inhabit it to life and some of my favourite scenes were the ones where we see our characters in some kind of battle, something Dennard is extremely skilled in writing. But I also loved how much time we spend in Winnie's head. Seeing her internal warring and indecision over how easily the Luminaries have let her back into their ranks, their absolute lack of acknowledgement of the past 4 years, but also her desperate need to become a Hunter, give her family back their lives, live up to all the Wednesday's that have come before her.

Ugh Jay was exactly the kind of brooding, swoon worthy, heartthrob my teenage self would have adored... and my adult self adored him just as much. After Winnie begrudgingly asks him for help to catch up on the four years of training she missed out on, they end up spending a significant amount of time together, fighting, sweaty, and it doesn't take long for Winnie to start to realise just how much Jay has grown into a man in the last four years. But, like with the other Luminaries, Winnie finds it hard to trust him fully after he dropped her so easily when her family became outcasts. Something that adds tension to their scenes, as well as making their relationship wondrously slow burn. Their scenes together were hilarious, but also a little steamy in parts, and I cannot wait to get more of them in the next book.

Dennard did a wonderful job of winding this story line up, whilst leaving lots of little plot points open for the next book and I have so many theories, about things I can't talk about because... spoilers. I loved the 'choose your own adventure', which Susan is running on her twitter again if you're interested, but I adored the book so much more and suffice to say I am desperately eager to get my hands on the next book.

This is one of my favorite things that Sooz has written! It is this perfect blend of her previous two series. All of the worldbuilding and magic of the Witchlands with the fun and readability of Something Strange and Deadly.

The monsters that exist in this world (which seem to mostly be based off of our own myths) are so well written on the page they come alive while you're reading them. They are definitely nightmare inducing and yet reading about the Luminaries taking them down fills you with adrenaline like you're fighting alongside Winnie and the others.

I love the mystery aspect that we're given of trying to figure out who the werewolf is (thought I'm sure we alllll know who it is) and also what happened with Winnie's dad. And what is the Whisperer? There are plenty of mysteries for us to try to solve.

I always love Sooz' books, they fill me with joy reading her books, but I've been on a YA spooky kick for the past year or so and this one really fit the bill!

I really enjoyed this. It was very creative and unique. There is a lot of mystery that keep the reader entertained from start to finish. I will definitely continue this series. There were so many things that come to light and I am dying to get all of the answers.

My biggest complaint was that this almost felt like a prequel book. I have so many questions and so little answers. I understand wanting a cliff hanger.. but I felt like I still knew nothing at the end of this book.

Overall, I am invested because I think it has a lot of potential but just with I had a few more answers at the end of this book!

I'm giving The Luminaries a very hopeful four-star rating. In truth, the setup is a little shaky at times, a little caught up in the details, but by the end, it looks like this series is heading in a very interesting direction.

"All around the world, the Luminaries live near fourteen sleeping spirits. Each night, when the spirits dream, their nightmares come to life. And each night, the Luminary hunters guard the world against those nightmares, one clan for every day of the week."

I tend to be more lenient when rating the first book in a fantasy series. When you're creating a new world, even if it's based on a recognisable setting, there's still a lot of groundwork to lay. And The Luminaries certainly does not skimp on the details. The nightmares in the forest are based in legend and folklore, and the family hierarchies protecting the world from these nightmares have their work cut out for them.

I do think too much time was wasted on things that didn't seem necessary to the plot, but it's hard to know for sure until this series is completed. At this point, anything could end up being important, but it sometimes felt a little clunky and a little slow. Of course, that could also be because I just wanted more and more information about these delightfully creepy nightmares.

As long as my hopeful four stars don't turn out to be a premature four stars, I think this will be a series to look out for.

Personally, I didn’t care for the writing. It was kinda clunky and didn’t have great flow. The main character also gives off major "I’m not like other girls" energy, and she lacks some depth.

A second book is set up in the end, but I can’t say this one grabbed me enough to anticipate its release.

The trials and action were pretty good along with the observations of taboo/social outcast.

Childhood friends —> something more?
Coming of age
Friendship

I was given an Arc copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I had such a hard time actually getting into this book! The character felt un relatable and it felt like it just drug on and repeated things over in the beginning!

However once the book got going I actually enjoyed probably the last ⅓ of the book! With that being said I will definitely get the second book when it comes out!

4/5 stars and I will definitely let my friends know to pick this one up.

The Luminaries is the first in a series about a community of people tasked with eliminating creatures of nightmares in the nearby forest. The main character, Winnie, and her family have been ostracized and ignored by former friends and family based on the actions of her father. Winnie has the opportunity to redeem herself on her 16th birthday, and does so despite her lack of preparation in comparison with the other potential "hunters". A former friend, Jay, begins to help her train for the other phases of the trial, and the rest of the community welcomes Winnie, her brother, and her mom back into the fold with open arms.

Despite now being included, there are clearly things amiss, questions unanswered, and deceptions within the community. The story ends leaving more questions asked than answered, so I am looking forward to the sequel.

Unique world and premise for a fantasy. Great ending that left me interested in what was to come, but yet wasn't the dreaded cliff-hanger.

I knew when picking up The Luminaries that I wasn't the intended audience and I should of trusted my gut.

You'll follow a shunned Winnie Wednesday, a young girl living in a community that hunts monsters in the town of Hemlock Falls.You'll watch as Winnie desperately tries to earn her families way back into the towns good graces after her father, a traitorous witch, left them as outcasts. Danger lurks around every corner and an ill times misunderstanding plunges Winnie straight into the middle of it.

I was in a bit of a dilemma when I saw this book announced. I adore Susan Dennard while simultaneously having a deep dislike for Urban Fantasy. I knew it was a roll of the dice trying this one and sadly it just didn't work for me. I certainly don't think that's a fault of this book though. The writing is strong and the characters are likable. If you are someone who really enjoys urban fantasy, that reads on the younger side, this will easily be a five star for you!

I was lucky enough to get an early copy of both the book and the audio version and I read them interchangeably. The narrator of the audio really adds to the youthfulness in the story. It's a wonderful option for someone who's looking for a listen.

Endless thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copies.

In this first-in-a-series young adult fantasy, Winnie Wednesday has spent four years as an outcast in her society due to the actions of her father. But she comes into her sixteenth birthday with a plan to take the hunter trials and force The Luminaries to allow her, her mother, and her older brother back in. What follows is exciting and scary and filled with the emotions of a teen outside of her group.

I enjoyed this dark fantasy and raged with our main character as she fought to be heard and believed. I liked how the main story wrapped up but with plenty of loose ends for the next book. And I can't wait to see what happens with her childhood friendships and possible romance?

YA books when you’re an adult—that’s always a take-it-or-leave-it thing; some like them, some don’t. Well, I do, that is, the good ones. And this novel definitely belongs to the category of good YA books. It combines a well-thought-out fantasy universe with likeable characters and a gripping storyline.

The plot is set in Hemlock Falls, a small town at the edge of a spooky forest beneath which an ancient spirit is sleeping. Each night as the spirit dreams, it spawns nightmares, monsters come alive that roam the forest hunting for prey. That’s why the local population consists mainly of people who know about the nightmares, who know the lore, and who generation after generation have learned how to keep their town and mankind safe by killing the bloodthirsty monsters.

Winnie Wednesday is one of these Luminaries. She’s sixteen, she does corpse duty in the early mornings, and she’s… an outcast. In fact, her father was exposed as a witch and a traitor some years back, which meant immediate retribution by the close-knit community. She, her brother and her mother were not so much expulsed as put on a six-year-hiatus from village life, ostracized by everyone. But Winnie knows the compendium of monsters by heart; she has also read the rules. She plans to run the trials everyone, even the outcasts, are allowed to attend in order to become one of the Hunters. Little does she know that the nights in the forest are even more dangerous than she ever thought… and that sometimes it’s not the monsters one knows that one should fear most…

The book turned out a compelling page-turner from start to finish. I read it with bated breath, literally, first trying to wrap my head around the universe the author created (she leads the reader into it little bit by little bit), then trying to process the countless twists and turns. I never knew what expected me, and as the plot progressed, the secrets became thicker and thicker, the tension more and more palpable.

Winnie is a likeable character, as teenagers go, of course. She shows flaws, fears, hopes, sometimes random behavior (weren’t we all like that at that age?). There’s even a burgeoning love interest (no insta-love but a slow-slow-slow-burner, perfect) with the town bad boy—granted, that’s not an original trope but rendered interesting by the character in question, Jay, whom I couldn’t quite fathom, but who, I’m sure, will show his true face in the next instalments.

Because yes, and that’s a huge plus for me, this is book 1 of a series (hopefully longer than just 2 books), so the author had time to lushly paint the setting in several brushstrokes, to unravel the spooky universe, to present the different characters, their interactions, the links, the back stories (not too detailed so I still kept guessing at the end), the whole dynamics of the place. I finished the book in no time with loads of questions (and suspicions) in my mind and can’t wait to read the next book. A story that drew me in and didn’t let me go.

I’ve heard a lot about the author, but I don’t think I’ve ever tried one of her books.

The Luminaries is the first book in a new series, and I have to say that I was immediately intrigued by the synopsis.

Winnie and her family were exiled when their people discovered that our heroine’s father was a spy. Since then, they have all been trying to make amends, to no avail. But Winnie’s 16th birthday is coming up and if she can pass the trials of Luminaries, she can help her family reclaim their old life. But these tests are dangerous and she is not trained. Still, she goes in without a second thought, hoping that she will succeed in killing a nightmare in the forest. Unfortunately, her ordeal doesn’t go as planned and she soon discovers that the woods are home to a much more terrible creature, one that no one believes in.

I had a great time with the novel. Winnie is determined to change her life and do what it takes, even if it’s far from easy. She’s going to team up with an old friend who ditched her when she was exiled so he can help her train. And then there’s the werewolf whose behavior is strange and who I had my suspicions about from the beginning.

This was a nice first volume. Several stories were started and I am curious to see where the author will take us.