*I requested this ARC from NetGalley mistakenly assuming it was the sequel in the series. I'm still relatively new to NetGalley, so I did not expect a previously published book to have an ARC available. I had initially read Book of Night in 2023, and I own a physical copy of it as well. But upon learning that the sequel is expected to be published this year, I did a reread of the book and felt my opinions on it did not change since my initial review, which is pasted below. I am excited for the sequel!*

I genuinely really did like this book. As someone who didn’t love Cruel Prince, I liked the connections to the modern world and the dreariness of day-to-day adult life.

In so many other stories, the character has a job but it gets forgotten about at some point in the story… it sort of fades out. This story ensures that you don’t forget that while everything is going on, Charlie is still working every chance she can to earn money to keep up with responsibilities. I know that seems like a small detail, but it just made me feel more connected to the MC.

Many other fantasy stories these days glorify the MC and sort of paint them to be better than everyone else. I love that Charlie was so morally gray, and you got to see her battle with herself a bit to make a decision. I can see how people think she didn’t have much of a personality, but to me, it’s just because she wasn’t painted to be some unforgettable, super powerful princess. She’s a capable, struggling, emotionally traumatized and hardened 28-year-old trying to deal with murder, bad guys, and understanding magic while also making sure she doesn’t forget her responsibilities that will still be there when the story ends.

I absolutely love when a fantasy book flips the script and trades in the usual medieval setting for something more modern while still keeping all the magic and wonder. This one does exactly that—it’s rooted in a contemporary world, but the fantasy and paranormal vibes are still front and center. There are Fae-like creatures, shadows that hold magic (and can even become sentient!), and a moody atmosphere that still gives off classic fantasy energy without relying on castles and swords. It’s the kind of blend that feels fresh but familiar in all the right ways.

What really hooked me was how shadows—something that usually freaks people out, especially kids—are used as this powerful magical force. It was so cool to see them reimagined as more than just something spooky in the dark. That contrast between everyday fears and mystical power made the story stand out. It gave the book a unique twist that stuck with me long after I finished. If you love fantasy with a modern edge and just a little bit of eerie magic, this one’s definitely worth checking out.

I will be consuming this story for my own personal pleasure ;)
Holly Night, let's see what this hype is about.

I decided not to finish this book. I stopped at 34% and I just cannot make myself read it. It has done a poor job at capturing my attention. I don't think thr characters are very likable. The world seems interesting but things are staying too vague for me to feel sucked in. This was unfortunately just not for me.

Charlie Hall has spent her life perfecting the art of thievery. It has gotten her tied up into all sorts of trouble & now is spending her days trying to distance herself from her past. However, life isn’t that simple & when the Liber Noctem is stolen it puts everything she’s been trying to achieve into a tailspin.

Going into this I went in almost completely blind & with an open mind. I haven’t read any of Black’s other works which have given her fans some high expectations going into this as seen in some other reviews. So this will be an unbiased review.

With that being said, my main grievance is with how the first half of the book was slow. Having a slow burn isn’t bad but I really felt like I was pushing myself to get through it. I was intrigued enough to keep reading but it seems the first half has made a lot of readers turned off to the book.

Once things started to pick up & the pieces were fitting into place, I found this an enjoyable read. It kept building up until I was on the edge of my seat until the end. And that ending!! Set us up for the next book & I absolutely need to know what happens next.

3.5★ rounded up

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for the arc!!

I am really struggling to give feedback on this. I love Holly Black and find myself picking up everything she has written, so I was very excited to receive this book. Writing-wise, amazing, as always. I needed more on the world in which the characters live. The story started out slowly, although it picked up by the end. I'd suggest sticking with it. Cool concept and premise of the novel.

I didn’t love this one. The Book of Night follows Charlie, a retired bad girl thief. Shadows that come alive and a sketchy boyfriend. It felt very messy. I read a lot of fantasy and this was a bit hard for even me to grasp. I didn’t care for the characters or the plot. I don’t think I’ll be reading the next book when it comes out. This whole book just fell short for me.

I was really hoping to love this, as I really enjoy Holly Black (cruel prince is just 👌👌), but truthfully I think it had been built up to a point I was more let down.

It's not a bad book by any means. It's just... Not the potential I was hoping for. It's slow, and the world building is lacking. The characters are a bit flat for my taste. It's just overall kind of bland. It's the slowest of slow burning plots.

The last part of the book really picked up (like the last 50 pages or so?) but personally it wasn't enough to keep me invested in the next book.

3.5 ⭐

Not a big fan of the beginning, but loved the explosive ending.

I love Blacks writing style but I have to admit I struggled a bit at the beginning. Despite that, i fell in love with Char, one of my now favorite main characters!

I feel like I am very behind on this bandwagon, but glad that I finally got the opportunity to read this book. Really good character development and world building, and a great story line!

Thank you for sending me this book to review! I absolutely loved Holly Black's The Folk of the Air series. The author does an amazing job of capturing the reader’s attention by immersing them in the characters’ emotions and motives, while also creating interesting character dynamics. While the author’s other characters resonated with me, I had a difficult time connecting with Charlie Hall. It’s not that I didn’t like Charlie; she just wasn’t as dynamic as the other characters created by Holly Black.

It also took me a while to get through the first half of the book because I didn’t understand the magic system. While shadows were mentioned as being powerful, I didn’t fully grasp what quickened shadows or blights were until Charlie and her sister visited the graduate student about halfway through the book. I also had trouble finding the world and magic particularly interesting. Besides shadows being used cosmetically and to increase one’s power, I didn’t completely understand shadow magic’s significance in the world.

Additionally, Charlie making a huge sacrifice for Vince/Red at the end of the book didn’t make much sense to me. I understand that their relationship was established before the book started, but Charlie didn’t seem that attached to Vince, and he was literally missing for half of the book. Therefore, I, as a reader, struggled to see how she went from “I don’t know this man” or “I don’t trust him” to sacrificing her freedom. I wish I’d seen more of their romance develop before he disappeared.

My favorite part of the book was the ending. Charlie outwitting Vince's grandpa was fun to read. I also enjoyed her proclamation to Vince that she’s going to “steal his heart” again.

I didn’t think The Book of Night was a bad book; Holly Black’s other books are just so good that this one fell a little short for me. Overall, I enjoyed reading it and would continue the series.

Book one in Holly Black’s Charlatan Duology introduces a world in which shadows can come alive and those who can afford it, trade shadows underground. It’s a crime drama with magical elements, and the romance does not feel like the focus until the latter half. I think this story is perfect for fans of The Ninth House; it’s got similarly spooky vibes.

Don’t go in expecting the humor or whimsy from the author’s Folk of the Air series– this is her adult debut. You’ll find the characters grappling with subjects like discovering gruesome murders, dealing with child abuse, and anxiety.

“There’d always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked, from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn’t willing to double down on.”

Charlie Hall, our protagonist is a con artist whose world is turned upside down when she tries to find the Book of Night. In between chapters of Charlie’s increasingly dangerous present life, we get a look in to scenes from her tough upbringing. At times I found these chapters more interesting at the start of the book, until the pace picks up in the second half.

I’m looking forward to picking up the sequel after the heart-wrenching twist ending!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for the advanced reader copy.

This hooked me from the first page. I love Holly Black's writing so I knew this would be good. I love the magic system with the shadows and the lore she developed surrounding it. Reminding me a bit of Peter Pan's lost shadow.

I honestly loved Charlie and that she is another morally grey FMC. Also love that she is a curvy girl.

My main issue is that the end of this book felt so abrupt, I got the end and felt like ok where is the rest? I know it has a sequel, but even then the ending didn't feel like a real ending. I feel like I needed at least one more chapter to wrap up this first book and set up for the next. So, I am really looking forward to the next book and seeing if it starts where this one left off or if we will have a time jump.

Overall great book, just felt very unfinished so 3 stars.

I really enjoyed this one! It took me a minute to get into it and wrap my head around everything going on but then I was really able to sink into the world. I really liked the shadow magic and dark magic… the vibes were vibing! The writing was very easy to read, descriptive, and satisfying. Charlie is quick witted, and I just loved her attitude. I loved getting a bit of morally grey in an FMC! Definitely looking forward to book two!

Love Charlie. Great character. The writing style is awesome and Charlie sacrifices for the sake of others. Great world-building and compelling urban paranormal storyline.

Thank you Tor Books and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of Book of Night by Holly Black!

In a world full of shadow magic, power, danger, and deception, Charlie Hall is doing her best to stay out of it. A former con artist, Charlie is grappling with suppressing her darker instincts and building a better life for herself and her sister. When her old life comes knocking once again, will Charlie be able to resist doing what she does best? With secrets hiding around every corner and chaos suddenly at her doorstep, Charlie must use the skills she honed to survive and protect the people she loves.

As a fan of the Folk of the Air series, I have been so excited to read Holly Black’s adult debut, and I was not disappointed! Book of Night was just as dark and mysterious as I hoped it would be. The descriptive writing style drew me in immediately, magic system had me hooked, and the way Holly slowly unravels this story had me constantly wanting to turn the next page. It’s intense, secretive, and sinister. Part two of this duology, Thief of Night, is publishing this September and I will be eagerly awaiting the continuation of this story!

The book of the night follows Charlie our ex con artist who has decided to throw in the towel on her old life, but its coming back to haunt in this dark urban fantasy! I was so absolutely intrigued by the premise of this book! I also love holly blacks the cruel prince series. Unfortunately this fell a little flat for me. I had a hard time connecting to Charlie when it felt very info dumpy at times describing and going into detail on her. The pacing in this also felt very off being that it felt like nothing happened for over half the book. That being said the magic in this world is super interesting and id love to delve into that more, I think the next book could have potential, because holly black has such a unique writing style that I do enjoy for the most part!

I was really looking forward to reading this one, but was a miss for me. I didn’t connect with characters and little slow. But I will keep reading and hope next one connects with me!

Holly Black is an author I love. The Tithe series was my favorite as a teen, and I am so excited for this book being an adult novel. Stories about the fey and shadows and magic have me hooked along with a whimsical dark cover.

Modern fantasy and magical systems are a wonder to get into. The beginning is slow with getting set up and having two timelines makes it more fun. I'm not a huge fan of mystery stories, but add some magic and I'll be a happy reader. Just don't ask me to make predictions or know any clues or catch anything. Most clues go right over my head.

I found a new favorite fantasy story only to find out it is being labeled a duology - it can’t be true, but if it is, and you enjoy contemporary urban fantasy, you need to pick up 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 (Out Now!) by @blackholly so that you can read 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙚𝙛 𝙤𝙛 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 as soon as it’s published on September 23rd. The Charlatan duology features fierce ne’er do well Charlie Hall - her backstory is featured in book 1, and book 2 amps up the action.

Perhaps this was a planned duology, but it has me interested in reading more, please.

Maybe we can increase the readership and make it happen? Please?

Charlie Hall has never found a lock she couldn’t pick, a book she couldn’t steal, or a bad decision she wouldn’t make.

She’s spent half her life working for gloamists, magicians who manipulate shadows to peer into locked rooms, strangle people in their beds, or worse. Gloamists guard their secrets greedily, creating an underground economy of grimoires. And to rob their fellow magicians, they need Charlie Hall.

Now, she’s trying to distance herself from past mistakes, but getting out isn’t easy. Bartending at a dive, she’s still entirely too close to the corrupt underbelly of the Berkshires. Not to mention that her sister Posey is desperate for magic, and that Charlie’s shadowless, and possibly soulless, boyfriend has been hiding things from her. When a terrible figure from her past returns, Charlie descends into a maelstrom of murder and lies.

Determined to survive, she’s up against a cast of doppelgangers, mercurial billionaires, gloamists, and the people she loves best in the world—all trying to steal a secret that will give them vast and terrible power.

I also enjoyed The Curseworkers series by this author, and this had the same vibes as my favorite Bone Season series - please read this if you like dark, delicious, contemporary urban fantasy.

QOTD: What book did you read that made you long for one more chapter or story with its characters?
#newbooks #bookofnight #currentlyreading #urbanfantasy #darkfantasy #duology #series #fantasyseries