I fought through the first chapter of this book, I honestly wanted to put it down but I am so glad I didn’t! It kept me interested at every turn and I was honestly truly terrified in that last third of the book. A classic whodunit!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This was so fast paced and fun. I absolutely love the cover. It doesn’t give much away but draws you in so well.

Ever since Knives Out premiered, almost every murder mystery has been compared to it. I get tired of rolling my eyes over how not like it most books are. This book pleasantly surprised me, however. It even had the white sweater!!

The plot twists were making my head spin. It was 1 thing after another. You kept wondering what was happening and then I thought I knew and I was wrong. Excellent deflecting. I was suspicious of every character and then my opinion would change but I was actually kind of right from the beginning?

The only thing I didn’t like was how Tabitha spoke to the audience at random times in the book. It was more annoying to me instead of helpful. I liked Tabitha, and she definitely reminded me of a Knives Out protagonist. I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to like Solomon or not, but I didn’t really like him in the end. I felt bad for his family and for Tabitha having to pick up the slack because he’s a jerk.

This story was great and it was so fast paced that I felt like I was watching a really action packed movie. I will always love a good magical murder mystery!

These Deadly Prophecies is a magic fused murder/mystery with a hint of romance. Tabatha Zeng is enjoying studying under the world’s most famous sorcerer. But when Sorcerer Solomon is murdered, it’s up to Tabatha and the sorcerer’s youngest son to solve the murder. Otherwise they just might be at the top of the suspect list…

The Knives Out vibes are there. Think more the general vibes and not the actual plotline. Although, at one point a character literally wears a white knit sweater so do with that what you will. I very much enjoyed that.

I’ll say right away, I think this book is for a younger YA crowd. It read very YA which is fine and fits the category it’s marketed in. However, I tend to prefer the older YA/New Adult books, so it didn’t grab me as much. I had a parent/teen combo ask me for recommendations for a YA stand-alone mystery book with light romance, not scary category. Next time I see them I’ll let them know I’ve got the book for them.

Additionally, in this setting, magic is just another career choice. “Regular” jobs like lawyers and police officers intermingle with Sorcerers and *Magic* Police Officers (officers that police magic, not perform it). It’s stated numerous times that the Solomon family is not only wealthy, but very famous in the US. Personally, that setting didn’t speak to me. I tend to avoid the magical realism genre, and while this book doesn’t belong in that genre, I had a hard time immersing myself in it. I also felt that the magic was shown far less than I expected or wanted. More magic, please.

If this did end up as a series, I’d probably check out the next one just to see.

Thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group for providing me with an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

As soon as I saw fantasy and murder mystery I knew this would be my jam. I loved how fast paced this book was. I found myself just flying through it because I just had to know what was next. This did really give me Knives out vibes and I am here for it. Definitely one I will recommend.

I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I found this book enjoyable. Murder mystery and magic? Sign me up! I was absolutely invested in the mystery and wanted to know how the story ended. The narrator gets distracted at times, which was by design, as it says a couple of times in the book that prophets have trouble keeping sequences of events in order because of the nature of their abilities. It worked for the story and she still mostly stayed on track, but it is something to be aware of going into the story.

I can't decide if I loved how the narrative was written (in that the protagonist is engaged in telling a tale for the person reading the book), or if I didn't like it. I fluctuated between both sides of the spectrum throughout reading this book. It was an interesting concept and at times I enjoyed the snark. While I found it fairly easy to spot the person behind the murder of Sorcerer Solomon, the how of it was an interesting detail.

Overall this was a good read, and a fairly quick one, but I was hoping for more. I feel like this will end up appealing to adults that read YA more than teen readers.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, and G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.

I unfortunately DNF’d this one at 69%. I truly gave it more of a chance than I ever do with a book that isn’t holding my interest, mostly because the premise was really interesting and I truly wanted to love it. Two of my favorite genres (fantasy & mystery) blended together in one book?! Heck yes! I was so excited. But I’ve been reading it for over a month and just found myself DRAGGING through it and with the new year coming and as soon who believes in not finishing a book that I’m not loving.. I decided to finally put the book down *sigh*.

I wish it was for me, but sadly, it wasn’t! However, it totally could be for you so I’d definitely look up the amazing synopsis!

Love a magical realism with a family mystery and massive inheritance being left to someone not in the family. (not sarcasm)
The mystery was cool, the pace was there, the adult characters were mostly bog standard rich people, and the kids were nuanced, but not overly. I'd definitely recommend this to a YA audience. The only thing I didn't really enjoy was the ending---it got a little preach-y for me with the culprit reveal and motive. But if that's all I've got to really complain about, I'd say we're doing alright.

Now this was fun. It's delightfully dark with a tinge of dark academia vibes, all against a sorcerous setting. While at times it felt like the story wasn't sure where it wanted to go, it was still an enjoyable read. Tabatha Zeng quickly goes from apprentice to murder suspect when her mentor is gruesomely killed. I really wanted more of this story - Give me the build-up to the big reveal, give me prophecy magic, give me ROMANCE!!

*Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Thank you to netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers. This magical mystery was so damn good. I couldnt and didnt want to put it down.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and PRH Audio for the gifted ARC and ALC of These Deadly Prophecies by Andrea Tang. All opinions are my own.

This was a quick and interesting story that had lovable characters and a unique premise.

I liked the fact that I couldn’t figure out who to trust, so the mystery reveal at the end was great.

The narrator did a nice job telling the story and distinguishing between the different characters.

If you enjoyed The Inheritance Games, I think you would like this book as well. It reminded me of that story but with a magical twist.

Overall, I would recommend this book to both teens and adults for a fun mystery.

I actually enjoyed this book more than I was expecting to! I did think it was just a wee bit boring in the beginning, there wasn't enough action for me, I like a good fast-paced book, the climax of the book wasn't until the last like 20 pages, so the entire exposition of the story felt dragged on to me. That being said, I did think the characters had good dynamics with each other and that's always a major green flag (major plus) for me! It was a quick read and was a great switch up from reading a heavy romance.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group for letting me read an advanced digital copy!

A fun, quirky urban fantasy read!

THESE DEADLY PROPHECIES really does read like Knives Out x magic. Tabatha's voice was fabulous, and the direct address to the reader was a nice touch. I really enjoyed the magic system and seeing how it twined with our world, and the characters were very reminiscent of A GOOD GIRL'S GUIDE TO MURDER.

The writing does skew pretty young YA, but there's some graphic-ness with dismembered limbs and some strong language, so it's tricky to know how to recommend it. But I had fun, and think fans of Knives Out stories would enjoy it as well.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you to PenguinTeen for giving me access to the Netgalley e-arc of These Deadly Prophecies. This review is entirely my own thoughts and opinions on the early unfinished digital copy gifted to me!

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These Deadly Prophecies is a fantastic YA murder mystery about the death of a sorcerer and his apprentice's search for the truth about his murder.

RATINGS:

OVERALL: 5/5🌟
PLOT: 5/5🌟
WRITING: 5/5🌟
CHARACTERS: 5/5🌟
ENJOYMENT: 10/10🌟

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STORY, PLOT, & PACING:

This was a fantastic story. One of those that I picked up and 5 hours later, I've turned the last page and closed the e-book with a smile. Andrea Tang has weaved a fantastic mystery that kept me guessing up to the end. Her foreshadowing is excellent and its spaced out well enough that it all clicks together right before the big reveal.

WRITING:

I love this modern but with magic world that Andrea has created. It was easy to fall into the story with a world familiar to our own, yet magical enough to make me dream. I appreciated the nods to historical moments in the history of the occult, particularly The Salem Witch Trials. It just made this book's world all the more real. Andrea's writing is perfect for the young adult audience, easy to read, and beautifully descriptive.

CHARACTERS:

I loved these characters. All of them were hits to me! Tabitha is a fantastic main character, who highlights a lot of the anxiety and hang ups teens have in regards to their parents. The desire to follow your dreams, but feeling like your dreams will only serve to disappoint your parents. Tabitha is written to be relatable, to show other teens they are not alone. I feel Andrea did a wonderful job with Tabitha.

The Solomons were all their own pile of chaos and I appreciated them all. Callum was a fantastic partner for Tabitha. As she got to know him more, she began to learn of his own hang ups and family problems, opening up the door to understanding that everyone has their own closet demons. Out of all the characters, he was my favorite.

ENJOYMENT:

I really enjoyed this book! Like I said earlier, this book was one I just couldn't put down. I had to know who killed Sorcerer Solomon, same as the rest of the characters. Thank you again, PenguinTeen! This book was a treat.

"A teenage sorcerer's apprentice must solve her boss's murder in order to prove her innocence in this twisty, magic-infused murder mystery perfect for fans of Knives Out and The Inheritance Games.

Being an apprentice to one of the world's most famous sorcerers has its challenges; Tabatha Zeng just didn't think they would include solving crime. But when her boss, the infamous fortuneteller Sorcerer Solomon, predicts his own brutal death - and worse, it comes true - Tabatha finds herself caught in the crosshairs.

The police have their sights set on her and Callum Solomon, her murdered boss's youngest son. With suspicion swirling around them, the two decide to team up to find the real killer and clear their own names once and for all.

But solving a murder isn't as easy as it seems, especially when the suspect list is mostly the rich, connected, and magical members of Sorcerer Solomon's family. And Tabatha can't quite escape the nagging voice in her head asking: just how much can she really trust Callum Solomon?

Nothing is as it seems in this quick-witted and fantastical murder mystery."

The cover design is a little too on the nose for a book compared to The Inheritance Games.

I really liked the urban fantasy elements of this book: the fact that sorcery is a hobby/career path just as valid as any other is very imaginative and different.

I did struggle with the pacing of this story. It felt like nothing was happening for a long time and then the ending moved so quickly. I also wish the urban fantasy elements had been developed more.

All in all a fine story. I wish that it had more to it. I think that 100 more pages of world building would maybe have helped the pacing.

These Deadly Prophesies was a fun murder mystery story with magic.
This book is fairly short and clean enough to recommend to a younger audience.
I felt that it lacked in world building and character depth, but the trade off is a quick read that was still full of twists and turns to keep me guessing. The POV was interesting in that is was Tabatha relating the story to an audience, so there were a few 4th wall breaks. I always think that is kind of fun and brings the reader into the story.

3.5 stars overall

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin for an early copy for review.

This was such a fun read, i truly didn’t know what direction the story was going in. I was rooting for Callum and Tabatha to NOT be the killer, the plot twists, the side characters and the utterly unlikeable ex-wife made this story so fun. I never wanted it to end, i was hoping that it could just go on for ages, I’m hoping (begging?) that there will be more books in this universe it was so fun to dive into. I love a magical murder mystery to kick off winter break I’ll never forget this one

Thank you penguin teen for the e-arc! All opinions are completely my own

When I first read the excerpt for These Deadly Prophecies I was intrigued immediately and couldn’t wait to read it. All you have to say is Knives Out and I’m all in. The book started a little slow for me and I found myself feeling like we didn’t get to know the protagonist well enough. I feel like the character and overall storyline fell a little flat and I found myself wishing that there would have been more detail put into the book. Especially when it came to the characters and there scorchers powers. I also fell it lacked description in the magic department as well. Al so at times I felt my self really annoyed with our protagonist Tabitha and found the romance between her and Callum to be predictable. What I’d did really enjoy about this book was the ending because I have to say it did keep me guessing and changing my mind and that’s hard to find in books anymore. I would give this book a 3 star because honestly I just found myself wanting to know more. All in all is was an interesting read if you enjoy Ya mystery with a touch of magic thrown in.

I love a good murder mystery but what's the cherry on top? When it has a magical element to it! This was such a fun read and I'm interested to see where the story goes from here!