A new and delightful allegorical fantasy by Nadine Brandes. I thought the plot unfolded beautifully and I loved how each character and their choices so powerfully impacted the next, like ripples in a pond. The story line is creative and fresh, and the ideas of talents and banes are symbolic of choices we make every day based on the voice we listen to the most. Myrthe just wants to be seen and loved and her path to true love is a powerful journey. I loved Bastiaan as well and his pursuit of truth. He loves well and cares for others in a truly moving manner. Together, their stories unfold and weave together in a meaningful and beautiful allegory. I won’t say more so as not to spoil it for those who will relish in the details. I cannot recommend this Christian fantasy highly enough for both adults and young adults. The truths are powerful and significant, regardless of your age, and messages are conveyed on various levels, leaving nuggets of wisdom and blessings for all.
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

I really enjoyed the multiple pov.

I liked watching the plot come together, all the seeds are the start joined nicely.

However

Myrthe never felt "trapped" by Oma, uneducated yes, not trapped. I felt there was no real reason to stay in her situation for as long as she did.

Bastiaan and Runt, I loved these two together. I hope we get more of their story, maybe a spin off of their time in the stillness.

I found the middle of the book really dragged and the plot was predictable.

Special thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review

🧞‍♀️🥲Wishtress Review⏳👑

✨4.5/5✨

This book’s pace can be a little slow at first, but it’s interesting enough to keep you reading even through the slower sections.

I really enjoyed the split perspective. Bastiaan is an interesting character and it’s fun to read about him and read through him.

One complaint I have is that I wish there was a pronunciation guide.

Myrthe is a very cool, complex character. She did terrible things, but you still feel bad for her because of how she was raised and treated. Abuse leads to abuse.

I think the romance developed quite nicely. Maybe a little fast, but I really enjoyed the cute little love scenes. I also think Bastiaan and Myrthe have really funny dialogue, especially through the trial.

"This is romantic," he joked..."It's certainly not how I pictured my first foray beneath a blanket with a man."

‼️SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT‼️

The ending was kinda predictable. There were a few surprises, especially with Runt and Banes, but I guess Runt's identity right from Anouk's story. I was surprised by the dual power ending with people getting to decide against having a Bane and Talent.

I really hope there is a book two in the Stillness with Bastiaan teaching Runt the ways of being a king. I also want to know more about Myrthe's talent. It was eluded that she still had the power inside of her.

Definitely recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for providing me with an ARC. This review is honest and fair as it is my opinion. All thoughts are my own.

All the hearts for this book!!!!

Nadine Brandes knocks it out the park again in this incredible fantasy tale. It's been several weeks since I finished reading Wishtress and I'm still in awe and very much wanting to go back and reread it. Myrthe, Bastiaan, and Runt are amazing, and I love their relationships and banter so much (honestly, that's probably my favorite part of the whole book). The plot kept me glued to the pages--having to put it down to do responsible things was incredibly hard. I can't wait to be able to hold this book and reread it in all its physical copy epicness. Definitely recommend preordering a copy!

~~I received an early copy of this book for launch purposes and was not required to write a positive review.~~

This book wasn’t what I expected.  It had a great premise and a lot of twists. When I thought I was near the end more kept happening. 

With our characters, I loved Myrthe’s growth throughout the story and Bastiaan as well. I love how they both try to use their powers for good. Then, there's Runt who you cannot help but love.

You can tell the story was set in older times and it was a really cool concept. I loved the “talents” and “banes” we got to see. 

I will say, it also took me a while to get into the book. I am not sure if it was a slow start, or I just had trouble connecting to the characters. However, once it takes off Wishtress is an adventurous story.

A beautifully written book. Really enjoyed reading this. Thanks to publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read

Does Nadine know how to write a novel that’s not compellingly original? :) I was absolutely intrigued by the premise of Wishtress and it held my attention from the first sentence. As always, the writing style was beautiful and captivating, and I loved how much this book was so classically, iconically Nadine!

A few setbacks: I saw the love story coming a mile away, and while I did like it in the end, at first I was skeptical that it belonged in the story. I found there to be quite a few unnecessary scenes that seemed to add action just for the sake of action. My biggest issue, though, was I felt the characters lacked strong relatable motive. I struggled to connect with Myrthe and felt for most of the story she didn’t even know what she was trying for. Yes, Mythre wants more than anything to break the curse…but it’s hard to resonate with a desire to break a curse because none of us have been cursed. I know that Myrthe had deeper desires beyond that, but I felt we didn't get to see her truly wrestle with any of them for long.

Same goes for Bastiaan - I struggled to connect with him for most of the book. I also struggled with Coralythe -- I had no idea what her motive was or what she truly wanted or where she was going. She says she wants revenge for her sons, but is that truly what she wants on the inside? I felt like a deeper struggle was hinted at, but never given, which made her hard to figure out.

Conversely, I thought Anouk was extremely well written in this regard. I could easily identify what she was fighting for. Same thing goes for Runt. We know he wants belonging and love and purpose, and that he is hurt by the abandonment that has happened and he is trying to fight for his friends. This made him easy to resonate with and cheer for—which is why I was really bugged when he kept getting left behind without any ramifications. I felt like Runt was used a lot in the book, and never truly got his redemption moment; even in his most critical moments he was abandoned for the sake of plot structure, and I didn’t like that. His glorious finish, to me, ended up feeling more like trying to quickly make up for things than an actual redemption.

On the flip side: I loved watching how so many character and plot threads tied together over the course of the story, and I really enjoyed the narration style of getting inside many different characters’ heads but only doing first person for Myrthe. I loved the author's name choices and found the worldbuilding to be absolutely phenomenal. I could believe a place like this existed—it had such a great historical fantasy vibe, which I know was the intention. :) I couldn't get enough of the symbolism behind the Well of Talents and Nightwell, and I fell in love with the thematics I was gently guided through. Wishtress did a great job of showing me a story, not telling it to me, and leaving me to make my own decisions based on its prompts.

All my talk on critiques may make it seem like I disliked Wishtress, but the truth is that honestly I did love this book, and I couldn’t stop once I started. I thought it had weak points, but all books do. Generally, phenomenal worldbuilding, strong storyline, beautiful symbolism. I think what I loved most about Wishtress, though, was how iconically Nadine it was. She has mastered her own voice, that is for sure, and it is inspiring to read as an author myself. I hope one day I can be as iconic and identifiable as Nadine.

Wishtress is a beautifully written story that takes you on a journey to another time. The blend of fantasy with its unique take on gifts and curses is addicting. Nadine’s style of writing pulls you in and you don’t want to escape. I can’t wait to read more from her.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

I really enjoyed the characters. And I liked the premise of the story. Of the characters, I especially liked Myrthe and Bastiaan. There is a totally different kind of world, which is a nice change!
One thing I did not like, is the torture in it. I have a hard time reading that kind of kind of thing.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance e-copy of this book. The opinions expressed our entirely my own.

An absolutely gorgeous story about finding the power within yourself, set in a magical frozen world reminiscent of Scandinavian culture! I expected to love this book based on past Nadine Brandes novels, but I absolutely devoured Wishtress because I could not put it down. There was so much action and the stakes were so high that I had to keep reading to find out what was going to happen to Myrthe, Bastiaan, and Runt.

I received a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review; all thoughts and feelings on the story are my own!

Breathtaking and beautifully written. I couldn’t get enough.

Secrets, romance, magic—this book is unique and brilliant.

This is a book I wish I could forget and read, over and over, for the first time.

Anything Brandes writes is highly anticipated, and this story did not disappoint. Unique magic, lush world building, and relatable characters all worked together to make a potent, heart-stopping tale.

My only (and sadly big) issue with this story was the main male mc felt too stripped of foundational explanation. I wouldn't blame the author, but it felt like an editor had pulled too much life and info from the introduction. It left me confused and rereading too many times to try to understand what was going on.

This book intrigued me from the moment I saw the synopsis. A girl who has a Talent where she can grant wishes from her tears and a boy who has a Talent where he can stop time? That just sounded so cool. And it was!

In the beginning, it took me a while to understand what was going on. But once I understood, I got invested. These characters lives were basically turned upside down from the moment this book started. A happy ending seemed nearly impossible. I was really interested in how this story would end. Well, it was a long journey and I was surprised at every turn! There were plenty of plot twists and plenty of action to keep me turning pages.

Both of the main characters were interesting, flawed, and complex characters. I loved Bastiaan! He was just so kind and understanding towards Myrthe even when he didn’t completely understand her. And I love his desire to do right. He was such a great character!
I liked Myrthe too. I did struggle a little bit with liking her when her personality was ever-changing as she went back and forth between hardening herself towards people and then softening again. But it was understandable since she had a good reason for it— if she let herself feel emotions, she risked crying… and if she cried, she died. Also the fact that she had been used by her aunt for most of her life made her attitude understandable. In the end, I did like her.
Runt was really cute and Anouk was interesting.
The romance was really sweet! It felt a little insta-love on Bastiaan’s part but it didn’t bug me like it does in other books.

This story was very well-written! Nadine Brandes is an amazing writer and storyteller! Her writing style kept me intrigued. Also, the way she ends each chapter with a bit of a cliffhanger is genius!
I liked that the magic concept was clear about which was the good magic and which was the bad. I really like good vs. evil stories and this one did it well! I also really liked the themes of healing and surrendering. There’s a good message in here and I think I must reread it at some point to get the full impact of it.

To be honest, some parts of this story confused me. It was probably because I was reading through it too quickly or distracted but some things didn’t make total sense to me, like what was going on in the allegory. I often get confused in fantasy books so it was probably just me!

On another note, I thought the setting/world was really neat! The wintery setting would make this a good winter, fantasy read!
Also, the trials were super interesting and intense!

As for content, this book does have some violence. Nothing too gruesome or overly-detailed though. The romance is clean, only a few kisses. No language.

Overall, I thought this was story was super neat! While a few parts were a little slow for me, I did enjoy it. I’d recommend it to those who enjoy a clean, YA fantasy book with a unique plot!

*I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This cover and the hook, chef’s kiss.
I stayed up 2 hours past my bedtime to finish this book. Of course, when it ended…well, I’m not sure what I can say that won’t be a spoiler but I will say, you will have feelings and an opinion about the ending.

The allegory, if taken in parts, works well and I like it at lot. If taken as a whole, isn’t very theologically sound. But it’s fiction so I’m not looking to get my theology in fiction…

The writing was good and story engaging and characters well developed and world building great (obviously if I stayed up past my bedtime to read it). The romance was just a thread—not a big part of the story at all.

An interesting book overall. :)

3 stars: it was ok, I liked it, quick easy read but it missed that special something that makes me love a character or fictional world.

For me Wishtress felt more like a middle grade than a young adult book. Everything was just a little bit too easy solved and the characters too obviously 'good' or 'bad' guys.
What I liked was the magical system of wishes, talents and banes. Runt was cute and Bastiaan was an interesting character, I would have liked to read more about his time in the Stillness and the impact this must have had on him and the people around him.

What I didn't like was the random use of words from different North European languages. There are several Dutch words used, mixed with German and others. For example, they call the king 'majesteit' (Dutch), but Myrthe calls her mom Mutti (German) and her dad Pappj (I think this is Norwegian). It didn't make any sense and for me it felt messy, like the author has no idea of the different languages and countries

I would recommend this book to everyone who loves a cute mg/ya fantasy fairytale story, or just an easy read on a sunny afternoon :)

Like all of Nadine Brandes’ books, it’s easy to see the heart of the author written into the pages of Wishtress. From the characters’ plights to the magic of talents versus banes to the inspiration behind the worldbuilding, this book is empowering and heartfelt. I love Nadine’s messages and themes about healing and faith woven through Myrthe’s story and journey.

I enjoyed so many aspects of it and there were moments when I couldn’t handle continuing because it was so intense and I was so worried about what might happen. (I totally don’t trust Nadine not to kill off main characters.) Reading this book made me want to write fantasy again.

But I wasn’t a fan of the ending. The last 25% of the book seemed to drag out longer than necessary and it didn’t go in the direction I expected. The ending-ending left the story in an odd place that made me think there’s going to be a sequel. Unless it’s just left open for reader interpretation. I couldn't tell, and I wasn't completely satisfied by the way events unfolded in the end.

Other than the ending, though, I adored it immensely and I look forward to what Nadine writes next!

This was an intriguing story that kept me interested with the multiple POVs and cliffhanger chapters. It had a unique ambiance, too.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

Rumplestiltskin meets Frozen in a gorgeous fantasy world that reminds me very much of The Netherlands or Denmark.
What would happen if a power that was intrinsically part of you would kill you the next time you use it? How do you cope when everyone around you wants to use that power, regardless of the consequences? And how do you know when someone truly cares for you instead of the power you have? Nadine Brandes handles all of these questions beautifully and I seriously love this book.
Myrthe and Bastiaan are the best and I love them. 10/10 recommend!

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher, all opinions are my own and a review was not required.

Wishtress is an engaging and enchanting read with an interesting and unique concept. I enjoyed the growth journey of the characters. Baastien had me rooting for him from the beginning. Myrthe took me a little longer to connect with, but once I did I couldn't wait to see how things worked out for these characters. Overall, a solid read for fans of YA fantasy.

Really well written book. The character development was great. The author did a great job of telling the characters story.