I have to give up on this for now. I’ve tried a few times to get into it but I can’t get into the world. There’s a lot of info and I feel like once I get through it I’ll get invested but for now it’s just not for me

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc.

I DNF’ed this rather early on, hence my one star rating. I couldn’t get into this book from the get go, the world building wasn’t rich and the magic system was far too confusing. The magic lacked something special and was over complicated for no reason. It was compared to Six Of Crows which I know definitely sold a lot of people, but I don’t think this book reached what it was marketed to be, at least not for me anyways.

"Until We Shatter" by Kate Dylan bursts onto the scene with a premise that promises exhilarating high stakes and a desperate fight for survival, wrapped in a thrilling fantasy heist. This is a book that immediately grabs your attention and refuses to let go.

At its heart is Cemmy, a protagonist caught between two impossible forces: the Church, who wants her dead for possessing magic, and the Council of Shades, who deems her insufficient. This dual threat creates an immediate sense of urgency and sympathy for Cemmy, painting a picture of a character perpetually on the run, fighting for every breath. Her motivation for turning to thievery is deeply human and relatable – a sick mother – which adds a powerful emotional core to the high-octane plot.

Kate Dylan appears to have crafted a world where magic is both a gift and a curse, where powerful institutions wield immense control, and where a single desperate act can tip the balance of an entire civilization. "Until We Shatter" seems poised to deliver on its title's promise: a story where characters are pushed to their breaking point, and the consequences of failure are truly shattering.

Who should read this? If you're a fan of high-stakes fantasy, intricate heist plots, morally grey protagonists, dangerous magical realms, and the electric chemistry of a dangerous partner dynamic (think Six of Crows, Shadow and Bone, or even elements of Mistborn), then "Until We Shatter" is definitely one to add to your must-read list. It promises a thrilling ride from start to finish.

Oh my gosh!!!! That book shattered me (a very appropriate title)!! I loved it! Probably my favourite Kate Dylan book yet!

Cemmy—a half-Shade thief working to save her ailing mother—unexpectedly must team up with the mysterious and alluring Chase to pull off a dangerous heist in a deadly realm of shadows. It's all very fast-paced, emotional and full of twists. I was hooked from page one! I also particularly enjoyed the magical system.

I loved this ride and can’t wait for more from this world. Thanks to Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I fear no god, no man, and no Council of Shades - but I do fear how unhinged I got over this book!

Cemmy is THAT GIRL - chaotic, stubborn, magically semi-illegal, and would absolutely lie, cheat, and flirt her way into (or out of) a dungeon. She’s giving “I have a plan” vibes, when in reality that plan is held together with stolen string and pure rage. Naturally, I adored her.

This book is what happens when you throw a morally flexible girlboss, a dangerous and beautiful maybe-enemy-but-make-it-romantic partner, and a suicidal heist plan into a blender powered by shadow magic and trauma. Result? ✨angst smoothie✨ delicious.

The worldbuilding is vivid, the action is breathless, and the banter?? Sharp enough to slice open your feelings. Also, did I yell at the book when a certain twist hit? Yes. Did I then continue reading until 3am like a little gremlin with no impulse control? Also yes.

Only reason it's not five stars is because I needed more time with the supporting crew - they were giving “iconic side character energy” and I need to collect them all like tragic little Pokémon.

But all in all? Cemmy and Chase are now permanently renting space in my brain.

Verdict: Shadowy realms, thievery, enemies-to-something, and just enough recklessness to feel like home.

Intricate worldbuilding combined with beautifull prose makes for a interesting read. I love flawed characters as I find their growth to be such an appealing part of the story and Kate's characters were believable. And that cover is stunning!!

A YA fantasy heist book with found family and queer rep should have all the themes I love but ultimately this was not for me. I think comparing it to Six of Crows but unrealistic expectations in my head that this book couldn’t reach. The heist didn’t start until 3/4 of the book had past and the plot could not keep me engaged. I’m sad I didn’t like this as much as I hoped!

I received this as a review copy to read through netgalley loved it.

I have read other books from this author and I would read anything written by her in the future.

i'm a bit conflicted on this one, i did enjoy it overall but felt like the worldbuilding really could have been done better and it wasn't much of a heist story until about 3/4 of the way through

Kate Dylan has done it again! Until We Shatter was so so so good. Kate Dylan could write a shopping list and I’d read it. Until We Shatter sent me on a rollercoaster of emotions. I cannot wait to see what comes next.

A haunting, otherworldly landscape where energy-wielding ascetics are hunted. The world feels intimate yet ominous, with shifting power dynamics that keep readers on edge. The writing style is poetic and introspective, Dylan’s voice is lyrical, raw, and emotionally resonant. The pace is methodical, with emotional stakes that build slowly but steadily.

2 ⭐️ I’ll just be honest this wasn’t the book for me. The prose was beautiful but that’s where it ended for me. I just didn’t emotionally connect to the characters and found a lot of things that didn’t make sense.

This was an advanced read copy I received through Netgalley but this is my honest review!
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Unfortunately, “Until We Shatter” was a book that didn’t work out for me. I tried multiple times, but this book kept putting me into a slump. It had nothing to do with the author’s writing style, but more to do with the plot. I was thrown in the thick of it, and I felt like I was drowning.

Thank you so much for the ARC, Netgalley and Hodderscape!

This book has a compelling plot and I really liked the authors writing style.

However, the world-building felt a little heavy for such a short book. It felt like there was too much to take in without enough time to fully explore it. I also would have liked a bit more depth from the characters. I think they had so much potential but maybe the book needed to be a bit longer to fit it all in?

I still really enjoyed the overall story and look forward to book 2!

I'm really surprised by how low this is rated overall. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, I felt some of the side characters were a little underdeveloped but other than that for me this was a well written and captivating tale.

Complicated magic system? Really??!! Mind you, I'm old school and grew up reading Katherine Kerr, Andre Norton, Marion Zimmer Bradley, David Eddings etc so I didn't find it difficult to follow at all. This isn't as deep or complex as the work those authors produced in the 80s and 90s but it's a darn sight better than most of the trash that is hyped to the high heavens on TikTok and that I usually end up DNFing because they are so trite and formulaic.

Our tastes vary, personally I love Kate Dylan's author voice, her ability to write characters who are flawed and may irritate you at times but who you also care about and her skill at producing an utterly enthralling story I didn't want to put down.

To start, even as someone who hasn't read Six of Crows, I think it was a disservice to this book to comp it to that. Until We Shatter is a heist novel with forced alliances, magic, and more. Unfortunately, I didn't think that there was anything super special about this. While normally I don't mind this, the writing didn't capture me from the beginning, and I found I didn't think to pick it back up once I put it down. Cemmy has good intentions but constantly makes bad decisions, which after a point, got frustrating to follow.

Overall, I don't think this was a bad story, but it wasn't for me. I wanted more depth from everything; more character interactions, more of the magic. I'm sure some of these issues will be resolved in the next book, but it wasn't in this one enough to make me want to continue with the series.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
0.5 🌶️

Genre: fantasy/ romantasy
Tropes: Queer Rep, Enemies To Lovers, Heist, Found Family, YA, Magic, Religion

‘Your salvation is only an In-Between away.’

‘I am the violence the world made of me.’

Cemmy has turned to theft to keep myself & her mother safe in this city. When she’s forced into carrying out an impossible heist. The reward? Her mother’s health returned. The cost? Her and her friends could shatter…

I initially started this book with high hopes from the marketing & cover design. And initially I was getting into it, however as we progressed further through the story it began to shatter very much like the concept within it.

Early on the FMC’s motivations are clear & the descriptive writing gave a good view of the city where this takes place. The start gets straight into it & by page 30 I was intrigued. But then it kinda falls apart…

The pacing comes to an abrupt stop at the start of every chapter from here on, due to a backstory info dump on the FMC. Which destroyed any tension built from the previous chapter.
As we get further into the story it feels like place after place & by act 3 I was desperate for a map to reference.
Speaking of act 3 I felt it did pick up a bit from there but I had guessed the twist much earlier in the book so I wasn’t surprised.

In terms of characters, I actually preferred some of the side characters to FMC & MMC. Sadly though I just didn’t feel that invested in the characters & if they shattered. I was also confused by the romance in this one, it’s YA so not a lot happens but the FMC is really horny & jealous??

Thank you to Kate Dylan, Hodder & Stoughton & NetGalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for the review copy!
I found the idea of this book quite interesting but I found the magic system quite complicated. There was a scene in the book where the magic got a bit more of an explanation but it was further in than I'd have liked. There was a lot to remember which got to the point where I wished for a visual or that I'd taken notes.
The cast of characters could have been interesting - I thought the relationship between Cemmy and Novi could have had more to it and I'd have enjoyed seeing more of what they had been like at the beginning of their relationship. Chase was, in my opinion, a bit of a damp squid when it came to being a romantic interest for Cemmy. The just didn't seem to mesh as well as Cemmy and Novi but that's just my opinion.
The authors writing style was enjoyable - probably the main reason why I stuck with the book until the end. If not for that I'm not sure I'd have made it. The book was a slow start in the beginning with most of the action taking place in the last 100 or so pages.

This was my first book by Kate Dylan. I was impressed by her candor in relation to the making of this book, having rewritten it over and over till it was perfect.

I really enjoyed the story, with an exciting plot and a main character I was rooting for. UNTIL WE SHATTER was filled with themes of hope and good lessons such as learning to accept your flaws and be who you truly were.

Can't wait to read more of her books!

3.75 Rounded up. First and foremost can someone please tell me what's going on with this book? I received an ARC from Netgalley but it is nowhere to be found in the US and I'm so confused by this because it says it was released Nov 2024???? What happened?

Okay, onto the review. This had me rolling my eyes a little in the beginning because I found the whole "color classification of powers" a little like things my friends and I thought of in freshman year of high school. HOWEVER, once I let that go, I started to enjoy the ride a little more. Was it predictable? Mostly. Was I mad about that? Not really. If I was a teen while reading this, I'd probably have rated it five stars so for the target audience this book is, yes, I recommend completely. For my adult tastes, less so but it was still an overall fun time. I see there will be a sequel that I'd be interested in as it follows Ezzo who deserved better but I'm a little wary of how that will play out in the synopsis I've seen so far...its gonna have to convince me HARD.