What isn't to love about this book? Monsters, Supernatural mystery and a little bit of romance. This one captured me from the very beginning. A young girls quest to prove herself. The ending did feel a little abrupt but that just leaves me waiting for more.

3.75 ⭐The Luminaries is an atmospheric, paranormal, YA coming of age story following Winnie as she plots to restore her family name after her father’s betrayal resulted in them being cast out.

There’s a sprinkle of slow burn romance , lots of mystery, twists and turns and I was theorising up a storm! The world was unique and interesting and I can’t wait for it to be further developed in book 2! I loved that the chapters were short and, as the story progresses and you meet various monsters, I love the inclusion of the monster manual pages. This really adds to the story, immersing you into the world and was so beautifully done😍

I was left at the end of this book immediately wanting the next one to see if my theories were correct (🐺) and to unravel the mysteries that surround Winnie (let’s be real I also need more Winnie & Jay 🖤✨)

I devoured this. I mean it’s a secret society of monster hunters, who fight nightmares in a magical and mildly terrifying forest. I adored Winnie and her strength to fight for her rightful place in her community and boldness when it comes to trying to warn them of a danger they are yet to believe exists. All this strength exists despite her self-doubt and insecurities. Throw Jay and all those stolen glances into in the mix and well, I read this in 2 sittings. With twists and turns and mysteries throughout The Luminaries is well worth a read and i’ll definitely be interested in picking up future releases in this series.

Absolutely stunner of a book!! One that kept my gripped from page one and got me out of my reading slump. I definitely can’t wait for the second book as I need answers and I need to see where the romance between Jay and Winnie will go! Thank you to Daphne Press, Black Crow PR for my finished copy to read and be a part of the blog tour!

The Luminaries is a creepily atmospheric YA read with a constant thrum of tension throughout.

I really enjoyed the mysterious and intriguing world that Susan Dennard has created in The Luminaries. The forest itself is a living, breathing entity; menacing and wondrous, creepy and liberating. It is the life-blood and pulse of Hemlock Falls, and feels like a character in itself.

I found Winnie's viewpoint unique. She is not new to the area or the Luminaries. Her and her family have been ostracised for years, so she is very much an outsider looking in, but one who used to belong. They have complicated relationships and emotions with the rest of the town, which were shown really well. How do you feel about a childhood friend who has ignored you for four years?

The Luminaries has great LGBTQ+ characters, as well as representation of disabled people and different religions, which was seamlessly interwoven.

The pace starts off more slowly as Dennard does a lot of culture and character building, laying the groundwork for what I’m sure will be a whole series. There are many mysteries left to be solved!

I'm keen to read Book 2 and see what is next for Winnie and Hemlock Falls! Luckily, it looks like I'll only have to wait until the Autumn.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Pretty forgettable book. In few days I will ask myself if I read it or not because I'm not gonna remember anything that happens in it.

The luminaries follows a 16 year old girl trying to regain access to the world she has always known, by taking the trial to become a Luminaries, after her family had been ruled as outcasts of Hemlock Falls. As the trials progress, it becomes clear the forest is not haunted by the regular nightmares anymore.

This book was a classic YA novel. Overall I enjoyed it, but it is clear that it is meant to be part of a series. A lot of plot points were brought up, but none were resolved to make this story stand on its own. I really appreciated the small community the author depicts, and the overall feeling of the forest.

A superb new YA fantasy, also suitable for older middle grade readers with a love of vampires, werewolves and fanatsy world building. The town of Hemlock Falls is situated alongside a dark forest where shadows and fear inducing creatures reside. Winnie wants nothing more than to join the Luminaries, who protect the town each night from these creatures and shadows, but her family are outcast after her father's shameful public downfall. Winnie decides to take action herself and comes face to face with the horrors of a banshee and the threatening chase of a werewolf. The detail is all in the world building and the slow build of romantic tension between Winnie and Jay. This is the first book in the series, so I look forward to lots of action and resolution in the next book. The character of Winnie is one that is flawed, yet brave. She is filled with anxiety, and the constant clicking of her teeth emphasize a stimming or repetitive tic. Her nervous energy is channelled into determination to fight the forest shadows and win back her family's reputation. A well narrated and enjoyable audiobook. #theluminaries #susandennard #netgalley #yafantasy

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the eArc.

This book was a pleasant read for the holidays, however I was confused about the end- it sort of got me wanting to read the next book but it kind of didnt either. It was not a massive cliffhanger that got me gasping, but more of a soft slow burn. I enjoyed the plot of the book, however I think there were still some plotholes around the book. Overall, it was a 3.5 star read, perhaps I'll read the next book when it comes to the time.

I loved this from the start! Thrown into the action early on, you meet Winnie and Jay, the scene is set and the journey begins. Hemlock Falls is full of nightmares and monsters, there are nightly walks to defend the town and it's villagers, do they really know who, or what from? Something is there as they find bodies, or more exact, bits of them... is Winnie ready for the trial?

This book had a very Hunger Games vibe but with monsters not against people. Loved how gripped I was with this book! Definitely could be a series! Loved Jay's personality and his part in the story with Winnie.

This book was provades to me by NetGalley as and eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The luminaries by Susan Dennard was a very enjoyable read. I really liked the world building and characters, especially the main character with how determined she was. I also loved the there wasn’t any typica mean girl behaviour between the female characters and instead they showed such positivity in some parts. I would probably read it again but there were still some things that bothers me with the ending.
I felt like the ending could have been a bit longer and with more details because it felt very rushed and left us with many loose ends that I hope gets tied up in the sequel.
Overall I liked the book and would recommend it to everyone who loved deadly magic and mysteries with a dash of romance.

I have been a Susan Dennard fan for years, so holding an early proof of The Luminaries feels like an absolute dream. I have been following the journey of this novel from it's 2019 creation as a single Twitter poll to the 'Sooz your own Adventure' it became, which transformed (through many edits & changes) into the novel released as The Luminaries. Susan Dennard kept the LumiNerds updated through regular newsletters and continues to include us in the incredible process of this story.
I knew I would love this book, simply from knowing that I already adored the characters and the world that the author had created all those years ago. But the plot itself kept me hooked from beginning to end and I'm already desperate for the sequel! I loved the fascinating families and their surnames that are based on the days of the week. Through reading The Luminaries I was able to delve deeper into this incredible world and learn about the deadly creatures lurking in the forest. I was on the edge of my seat as Winnie desperately faced the hunter trials to salvage her family's reputation. This is a brilliant new addition to the YA fantasy worlds.

I am slowly getting myself back into YA Fantasy and Fantasy in general, and reading The Luminaries displayed why I want to go back into reading more fantasy. This book for me was really enjoyable. I loved the setting of Hemlock Falls, enjoyed the history and explanations about each clan and its nightmares, and I liked the characters, too. Yes, this book felt a bit slow at times and there wasn’t a lot of action, but it presented a perfect foundation for the series and storylines to be expanded over the next instalments. I also really enjoyed the cliffhanger at the end of this book, which made me feel super excited for the second instalment.

The story follows Winnie Wednesday who grew up in Hemlock Falls, a magical town surrounded by a dangerous forest, where the nightmares and the spirits that create them, live. All the different clans in town train to be hunters that hunt nightmares every night and Winnie’s biggest dream is to become one of the hunters. Though, for Winnie to become a hunter will be much harder than for others in town. She and her family are the outcasts, due to her father’s betrayal of the Wednesday clan more than four years ago. Winnie comes up with a plan on her 16th Birthday, she will attempt the hunter trial, not only to become a hunter but also to prove her loyalty and make sure that her family are no longer outcasted. However, she soon realises that there is something really dangerous lurking in the forest that might not only affect her hunter's trial but could be potentially very dangerous for everyone at Hemlock Falls.

Firstly, I loved the setting of the forest and the world-building that Dennard did in this book, especially how she weaved so many mythological and paranormal creatures together as inhabitants of one mystical forest.

Secondly, this book was so easy to read and as I was so invested in Winnies stories, I just flew through the short chapters. And I also wanted to know more about the mysterious Jay and some other characters more, hence I couldn’t put this book down.

Finally, the book finished on such a cliffhanger and some really important questions weren’t answered in this book (which hopefully will be answered in the next instalments). I still feel there is so much unknown about the Dianas, Winnie’s father and the town itself (as in why they don’t speak to the outside world about The Luminaries or the forest).

My only negative thing was that there were romantic feelings and loads of tension between the two main characters but nothing has been done to address it…I wish that romance was explored a bit more in-depth.

Overall: A very promising and exciting story, that reads very quickly with characters and a plotline that captures the reader and doesn’t want to let go. Honestly, enjoyed this book so much and can’t wait for the sequel.

Mixed feelings about this to be honest. I enjoyed the world that was created here, you can see the attention that's gone into it. And Winnie is sweet as a protagonist but I didn't end up feeling much more than that. The whole thing was an odd mix of overexplained and underexplained elements which led to jumpy pacing. That said, I do think this will find a solid audience who really love it.

4.5 Stars
The Luminaries is the utterly addictive and highly anticipated YA fantasy, which reads like the love child of Shadowhunters and The Hunger Games—complete with high octane action scenes, gorgeously rendered nightmare monsters (we get illustrations) and atmospheric prose that I thoroughly loved.

It follows sixteen year old Winnie Wednesday-a girl soo devoted to the secret, monster hunting society that made her family outcasts, she’s willing to risk everything—including her life—on a deadly trial for a chance to win back her family’s coveted reputation. And, follow in the hallowed footsteps of her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother by becoming the next leader of her clan.

The world building was so incredibly lush and the attention to detail in the descriptions (particularly during all those intense action scenes) was incredible.

I absolutely fell in love with Winnie (whose full name is Wednesday Winona Wednesday btw) in all her indecisive (yet utterly adorable) awkwardness. Having been outcast as punishment for a crime her father committed, and spending years being ignored by close friends and family alike it’s not hard to understand why Winnie is so cynical and emotionally disconnected from everyone around her.

But I really liked that, despite her (super relatable) bouts of self-doubt and insecurity she didn’t let the naysayers win—and showed just how brave, capable and utterly badass she could be with only a fraction of the training or resources that everyone else had.

Given the treatment Winnie and her family experience during their time as outcasts, there’s only a handful of characters that I genuinely liked (out of solidarity with Winnie that is) but Bretta and Emma won me over pretty much instantly. Their kindness and optimism was soo infectious and it was soo heartwarming to see that Winnie had at least two people to liked and cared about her (besides her mum and brother that is) I desperately need to see more of them both in the next book.

Likewise, Winnie’s intense, slow-burn chemistry with former friend and resident bad boy Jay Friday was really interesting (if a little too slow for my liking) and I can’t wait to see how things develop between this too—I feel it’s gonna be explosively intense.

Overall, a fabulously intriguing and utterly imaginative YA Fantasy that fans of breathtakingly nail-biting action, monsters or monster hunters definitely don’t want to miss!

Also, a huge thank you to Blackcrow PR and Daphne Press for the finished copy (and for including me on the tour.)

This was so much fun, and such a clever way to write a fantasy series. I'm super excited to continue the story.

This book does a fantastic job of developing its setting. The unique characteristics that each of the book's characters possessed almost immediately piqued my interest in the story's protagonists and antagonists. Because of how realistically the characters spoke to one another, I had the distinct impression that I was present in the room with them when they were having their conversations. This gave me the distinct impression that I was there with them. Because of this, I had the feeling that I was actually present there. I found myself getting a lot of enjoyment out of the various ways in which the characters communicated with one another, particularly Winnie and Jay. The interactions were carried out in such an authentic manner, and the flow of the conversation was so unforced and unforced that it felt completely natural. I can hardly contain my excitement about finding out what the future holds for the two of them as a couple in the years to come.

My heart will always have a soft spot for Winnie, who played the role of the primary protagonist in. It didn't take me long to recognise that she was someone I could have faith in, and it didn't take me much longer to start cheering for her to triumph over the challenges and achieve the goals that she had set for herself. When I saw how much she was going through, it tore at my heart because I felt like I was connected to her. It tore at my heart when I saw how much she was going through. This is as a result of the captivating and fast-paced plot, the beautifully vivid world-building, and the beautifully written, flawed, yet relatable characters that are contained within the story. Additionally, this is as a result of the fact that the story is beautifully written.

4/5 Stars from me.

***A big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.***

Wow what a great start to the series! There's something so captivating about the Luminaries world and I was drawn in and hooked instantly. I'm intrigued about the mystery surrounding Winnie's dad, and am eagerly awaiting the next book!

Mixed feelings about this book. It poses a lot more questions without the satistafction of feeling like you have a full story line. I know it’s the first book of the series but it truly feels like the first episode of a tv show. I wanted it to be a bit more rounded.

The story is also very young YA. It has a little bit of edge to it with the monsters and surviving the forest. There is a lot of angst - some very justifiable as Winnie struggles with living like the town pariah one day to having everyone suck up to you the next. I think the author dealt with the rage and mixed feelings very well.

I just have all these questions now that are leaving me very unsettled (spoilers ahead so stop reading if you haven’t read the book)

- Who is the Werewolf? I mean I thought it was Jay from the jump and I’m annoyed we still don’t know at the end of the book.
- Do we believe her father was really framed? And who could have done it and why? Seems hard for such a small insular society.
- What is the significance of the locket? And the similarity to Jenna’s locket?
- Is Winne something other? Why didn’t the banshee’s tears affect her?
- Is Jenna in the lake? Is she a siren and so not really dead?
- What is the spirit? What is the Whisperer? Are the offshoots of the same thing? Is the spirit good or bad?

All in - interesting but too many things left hanging. The love interest angle is cute but does nothing for me. I feel this is just a smidge too young for me. That being said I read it on sitting so not that bad. 3.5 stars

I'm not sure I can even put in to words how much I loved this book. It was everything. It was just different enough from other books in the genre to make it new and interesting, while also hitting that itch for a good monster hunter book.

I didn't interact much with the twitter story that inspired this book, but I knew enough about it to get some of the references while still being surprised by the story. It's really nice to see it being made into a proper book like this as I found the twitter thread a bit difficult to keep up to date with. I love the idea that Dennard's readers inspired her and that this book is what came out of it.

I think what really makes this book is the characters. Winnie just hits the spot for a YA protagonist, a brave underdog who's going to do her damn hardest to become a hunter. She is relatable, she is something to be idolised and she just feels special. With Jay there to be a bit of a love interest and a whole cast of background characters to make the society feel vibrant and interesting, we really have a great group of characters to follow.

I can't wait to see what else comes out of this world next!