I really want to say I loved this book, but unfortunately I'm only at I really liked parts of it. I think this book could have used a heavier editing hand. There were long sections that were painful to get through, especially with the Aunt's treatment and high school drama. The book would have pulled me in better with less time spent in those areas.

That said, I enjoyed the story. The magic system is interesting! The world building was excellent and I wish we had seen more of Anna and friends interacting with the world instead of things being very focused on high school life.

I think my main issue with the focus on the high school element, is that this book is listed as Adult fiction. And while some theses were dark and complicated, the age of the characters, the immaturity, and many of their conflicts made this novel read as purely YA.

The more I think about the book, the more tempted I am to move it down to two stars, because I also did not like any of the characters... even the ones we are supposed to like. Anna's three female friends actually seemed like horrible people to me. I get that they are teens making mistakes but they did not have enough of a redemption to make up for the horrible things they were doing.

Overall, I would say give this book a try. The beginning is slow and painful but once you get to the magic, it really picks up. I am intrigued enough to be interested in more of the story but I will hope that the maturity is bumped up a notch.

Threadneedle follows Anna, a young witch who falls under her aunt's care after her parents are killed by magic. Her aunt is part of a restrictive magical contingent called the Binders, who feel magic not to be used. Anna has grown up waiting for the day when her magical abilities will finally be bound; however when she meets others with a different magical perspective, she begins to question everything she thought she knew.

What Worked:
• The writing style and vocabulary felt very elevated.
• The scenes focused on the high school dynamics, bullying, etc felt very real and not at all cliche.
• The intersection of magic and the contemporary London setting was melded very organically
• The world-building and descriptions of the magic were very rich and detailed.

What Didn't:
• At times the scope of the story and subplots felt too big; could have been a bit more focused with fewer subplots.
• Pacing felt a bit off, was a fairly slow start.
• The "twists" felt a bit predictable and not very innovative.

Overall I rate it 3/5; fairly enjoyable and definitely has some promise.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this e-arc.

As I go to review this book, I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it. It starts out as a meditation on suffering in lyrical and poetic language. It then segues into a YA coming of age book similar to the movie the Craft. (In fact, a lot of the beats of the Craft are present in this book down to the party and the curse going wrong.) It then moves into something like the movie Practical Magic. The parts are all present and correct, but they don't mesh together well.

Moreover, this is all compounded by the _very_ leisurely approach this book takes to the plot. After I'd been reading for some hours, I remember thinking "15%? How can I only be at 15%?" I agree with other readers that this could have been tightened up by a lot and not missed anything.

Another issue is the intended audience of Threadneedle. I _think_ it's meant to be a YA book, but at 576 pages, it's too long and a lot of the plot would normally push this into being an adult book. However, the surviving high school plot will probably put some adult readers off. As another note, if you have any abuse in your background, I almost guarantee you'll be triggered by Aunt's treatment of Anna.

Am I sorry I read this? No. Will I read the next book in the series. Probably not.

Overall a very fun read! Anna was a wonderful MC and I am really looking forward to the next one!

If you enjoy cool magic systems/ magical realism also set in contemporary London this book is perfect for you.

This sounded like a really unique ya fantasy and the cover is very eye appealing. I liked the different types of magic unfortunately that was all I enjoyed. I ended up dnfing this book about 15 chapters in. I felt no connection to the characters and it read a little too young adult for my liking. The school setting led to some high school drama that I no longer enjoy at my age. The story dragged on for me and I felt at its length I'd be forcing myself to push through each chapter.

ThreadNeedle is set in contemporary London and follows teenage Anna on her journey to uncover the truth behind her parents' deaths along with finding out some uncomfortable truths about herself and her own magic. Raised by her Aunt, Anna's magic has been suppressed. It's only once she joins a coven at her school and connects with her cousin and some of the other girls, that she starts to understand what her magic is capable of.

I liked the last 20% of the book the most - the ending was filled with some fun twists and grand reveals that I did not see coming. I enjoyed the witchy aspects and honoring the Sabbats within the text, but the story itself fell a bit flat. There were fun moments that the coven has being naughty teenage girls causing mischief with the extra dose of magic.

Thank you to Harper 360 and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review - 3.5 stars!

I do not understand why this title is up on NetGalley. It is available for purchase in both Hardcover and Kindle format on Amazon and elsewhere. Is this just for the paperback release? I could just go buy this and read it without the obligation of providing a review. I don't think it's right to put this out here where reviewers rely on a good feedback ratio to receive books from publishers.

3.5 stars. This book started off a little slow for me but got better once Anna and her friends started their coven. The high school drama aspects make it read a bit young, but I loved the witchy parts and all of the spells and mysteries. There were several twists which made for an exciting ending and a good setup for the next book without being too much of a cliffhanger.

Part of why I gave this less than four stars is because I only found a couple of the characters to be likeable and even those ones didn’t really make me feel any sort of connection. That being said, it did hold my interest overall and there are things I’m still curious about, so I would be interested in reading the next book.

Thank you to Harper 360 and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“The potion wants your stories! There’s nothing more powerful than a story.”

Threadneedle was magical - and not just because of the actual magic that took place. The author creates a hidden, detailed, unique world throughout this book that draws you in with starry-eyed wonder.

This is a story where you’re in the thick of it with the main character; you don’t know who to trust, what some people are, the twisted and mysterious histories of the characters, etc.

This book gave me second half of the Harry Potter series vibes; dark, mysterious, immersive, magical. The main character is 16, so it was (unexpectedly to me) a YA book. It took me longer than normal to finish this one. It’s dense and has a lot of detail packed into its 576 pages!

2.5 stars

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for a honest review.

This book read a bit too young for me. The first two-thirds of the book was tough to get through, mostly focused on the characters and their experiences in high school as they explore their witch powers. I was more interested in exploring some of the dynamics of Anna and her Aunt’s relationship and the mystery surrounding the murders of some witches. However every time we made some progress with those plot lines we were pulled from them as the characters sneaked out to attend parties, skipped classes to go shopping, or made rumors about the school bullies. These moments took me out of the story and made me struggle to continue. This jump between these sections was jarring.

The last 25% book was significantly better and I enjoyed the twists on the story. I actually had a hard time putting the book down when I got to that point and I really liked the ending.


For a younger audience who wouldn’t be bothered with the high school drama bits, I think they would enjoy this book, but it didn’t quite work for me.

I didn't care for this story. I found myself getting bored or struggling to keep up with it. Might be good for someone who really likes fantasy and whimsy, but I didn't. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to try, though!

Anna's story is colored deeply by her highly abusive aunt. It makes sense that she wants to get away and that she is scared to even try. If you can read through the abuse, which is hard and brutal at times, you are rewarded with this story of found and natural families. What really makes it sing is the intricate magic system Thomas develops here. I am very curious to see where the next volume goes.

Absolute perfection. There's a reason she's a bestselling author! She knows how to weave magic into words, and vice-versa. The words just suck you into the world she's built, and it's such a wonderful escape.

#Threadneedle #NetGalley Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out! Really solid read.

Star Rating: 4.1/5⭐

I really enjoyed this book! This feels like a blend of Harry Potter, Practical Magic, and Sabrina (the Netflix one). It's got dark academia vibes features a young coven full of outcasts at a school of normies/cowen. This book is pretty dark; there's heavy presence of extreme physical and mental abuse from a parental figure who is practically an anti-witchcraft binder witch, plus there's the whole murder-suicide of parents and the mystery surrounding that.

This was marketed as an adult fantasy, but I'd say it's YA with the ability to grow into adult fantasy as the series continues. Still a very enjoyable read, but the majority of the story revolves around young adults and their angsty problems, with the backdrop of Anna's, the FMC, dark home life and backstory.

The writing and pacing was great, I never felt bored while reading it and really think it's a perfect rainy day read. The worldbuilding was lovely and I really can't wait to see more of the witchy world in the next books. The library was really intriguing and hope we get to visit again. All the magic is based around the elements, and seemed to flow more with vibes than exact science, which I really enjoyed.

I love the girls in the coven, Rowan is my spirit animal with her exuberance for life and boys, and her mom has the similar warm mama-bear nature as Mrs. Weasley in Harry Potter. Amanda's character arc from ultra-religious to... not so much, really endeared her to me. Effie I'm so torn on. Her character has so much depth and by the end of the book, it becomes a lot clearer why she is the way she is. She's a rebellious teen who is so brash and carefree, and just wild, sometimes taking things too far. Despite those things, it's hard not to get caught up in her energy and I can't wait to see how the relationship between Anna and her continues to evolve. Attis is a sort of orbiting non-member of the coven and such an interesting character and his part in the overall story was brilliant.

To sum up, if you want a darker YA fantasy set in modern times with Practical Magic & Sabrina vibes, definitely give this one a go. I'll definitely be checking out the next one.

3.5/5 stars

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC!

This book was nearly a DNF but I am honestly so glad I stuck with it. While it took a while to get me interested and I can't say I ever truly felt 100% invested, I did really enjoy the twists and setup for book 2 at the end. The writing was good and the world building was fine (it's Urban Fantasy, and the way magic was woven into the "real world" was pretty standard), but where I struggled was getting invested in the characters. My favorite characters were those on the side that only really got page time when it related to the main character, Anna. While I didn't dislike Anna, she wasn't the easiest main character to truly get invested in. However, I do think she had a good bit of growth and was set up really well to see a lot more in a sequel.

I will definitely read more in this series as it's released and I do recommend this to fantasy lovers, but it isn't one I think everyone will enjoy. If you only love high fantasy or fast-paced adventure, this is not the book for you. But, it was good and I'm glad I read it.

This novel is a pretty-good entry into the magic students (here, Sixth Formers) genre, with the requisite humiliations, tests, finding of magic, abuse of magic, difficult friendships, jealousies, sex, and parents. At the same time, it's an interesting kind of thought experiment about belief and practice and religion and fundamentalism. A weak subplot involving politics and witches is mostly a distraction or an annoyance--I kept asking, why bring it into the story if you're not going to use it til the end, and there, still weakly? Poor Anna has grown up with her abusive Aunt, a magic-user who thinks magic is bad but should be used to keep other people's magic under control. Anna soon becomes close with her cousin Effie, a stereotype of the Rebellious Teen Girl, but with magic added, and other aunt, whose use of her powers is manipulative and cynical, but believes in celebrating the things magic can do and bring to its users. Anna struggles with these very different attitudes and is desperately trying to find her own way, albeit through fits and starts and renunciations and reversing her renunciations. There are many, many twists in the story, most of them predictable but a few that are unexpected and a pleasure to uncover as a reader. The climax of the story comes a little late and is messily written in relation to the rest of the book, and as soon as it's over, we're left with that political sub-plot setting up a sequel. Despite the conclusion being less than satisfying, Threadneedle is a fair read and I'm sure will attract YA readers.

Threadneedle follows the story of Anna, who has grown up learning about how dangerous magic can be, and is taught that it is a sin. Until the day she joins a coven, and has to question everything she’s ever known.

I enjoyed parts of this story. I really liked the premise, the magic school setting, the complex characters, and the magic system quite a bit, particularly because I love elemental magic. However, I thought overall that the book was slow-paced. I also felt that the subplots felt unnecessary and didn’t add much to the main story. By the time I got to the end, I felt unsatisfied with the direction of the story.

While it didn’t fully work for me, I do think that in the hands of the right audience, this is a great start to a new series. I would recommend this to readers who enjoy YA coming of age stories, fantasy set in London, and the idea of magical high schools.

Threadneedle, by Cari Thomas, is a witchy, fantastical story set in modern-day London. The characters are complex and well-developed, the societal and familial relationships are relatable, and the world Thomas has created made me reluctant to put the book down.

Anna Everdell, an orphaned 16-year-old who lives with her maternal aunt, has been brought up under the strictest conditions. Aunt has raised her with the tenets of the Binders, a group of witches that believe magic is a sin and must be controlled. Anna has learned to keep her head down and her mouth closed at school so as not to draw attention, and thus far in life she has sustained a solid reputation as Nobody.

Anna’s quiet, restricted life is sent into an upheaval with the arrival of Selene, a friend of her late mother, and her teenage daughter Effie. The opposite of Anna, Effie thrives on attention, does not care what others think of her, and soaks up all the benefits of being a witch. Along with her best friend Attis, Effie begins attending Anna’s school and wastes no time shaking things up. Along with two more outcasts, Anna is thrust into the spotlight by Effie and shown the joys (and dangers) that magic can bring. With her initiation into the Binders upon her, can Anna decide to give up this newfound world of magic? Or will Aunt force the decision for her?

This book has magic, murder, romance, and plenty of teenage angst. Youth, magic, social media, love interests, mean girls, and family secrets – what could go wrong?