This is one of the best novellas I’ve read. It’s rare that a standalone short story can feel complete and fulfilling. I could have read more, but I didn’t NEED more.

It read like a sweet fairy tale - beautiful writing, intriguing story.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this eARC!

Novik’s lyrical prose swept me into a fairytale world of curses, sibling bonds, and ancient grudges. Celia’s journey from impulsive child to thoughtful young woman was beautifully told. I only wish the novella had been longer—there’s so much more I wanted to explore in the Summer Lands.
Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey for the free eARC in exchange for my honest review

Thanks to Del Ray and NetGalley for this eARC!

I liked this a lot! It is a shortie, but packs tons in. Most of the world building really worked for me, and I liked that it was mostly about family relationships.

I have another Naomi Novik title on my shelf, and I think it is time to dive in!

Thank you Del Rey for this eARC!!

Naomi is such a great storyteller and I enjoyed this short novella length fairytale-esque story!

Since it is a novella, it’s quicker in building a fantasy world which is very straightforward and adding a nice whimsical atmosphere to it. The plot was quite interesting and the Summer War itself was very well thought out. The storytelling was, as another reviewer put it, like a fairytale. Very definitive characters, with good and bad guys and a shocking ish twist.

As enjoyable as the world was, I found that the characters were not fleshed out enough (makes sense given the length) and I felt like they could’ve been developed further. However the length of the story was probably cause for the lack of development.

I found that we were very much told rather than felt/experienced the plot and it went pretty quickly. Celia became kind of useless as a species except to fulfill the promise, but aside from that, her one attribute was pretty quickly forgotten. At least she is smart enough to think things through and to find loop holes.

This book has everything I expect from a fantasy story. I loved the well-paced story and I thought it was very touching. Other very strong points include character development and world building. Magic played a role in the story but wasn’t overplayed. I have to start reading more books by Naomi Novik. Thank you to Netgalley and Del Ray for the advance reader copy.

For a short novella/novelette, this little original fairy tale packs quite the punch. As a huge fan of Naomi Novik and someone who is no stranger to her short stories, I am always amazed at Novik's ability to both world and character build in a relatively short space, while wholly focusing on the plot at hand.

In the Summer War, three siblings are caught up in the machinations of a centuries old war/peace treaty between the Summerlings, fairies upon whom can only visit the mortal lands during the month of summer, and the human realm of Prosper. When the eldest queer son, a renowned knight give up his family title for fear of never being truly accepted, his sister unknowingly curses him to a life without anyone loving him in return. Years later, facing her own duties betrothed to the prince, Celie and her other brother hatch a plan to save the eldest from the Summer Lands into which he has ventured.

Although I loved the originality of the story and the ending, I felt that Celie's family history of sorcery was underdeveloped and would love a longer novel exploring the rest of the world and lore into which The Summer War took place. For a fun, quick standalone summer read however, this one definitely hit all the right notes. Due to the small size of the story, I don't know that I would purchase it on its own, but would have rather it be included in another short story/novella anthology.

Recommended for fans of Naomi Novik and T. Kingfisher or those who love original fairy tales.

Thank you to NetGalley, Naomi Novik, and Del Rey for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

*thank you so much to Netgalley and the Publisher for this one!*

Novellas often leave me wanting, too short to develop characters fully, too rushed to deliver emotional payoff. But The Summer War is a rare exception. Naomi Novik hits it out of the ballpark with this beautifully crafted, emotionally resonant story that feels complete despite its brevity. I was thoroughly enthralled from the first page, carried along by Novik’s lyrical prose and the quiet power of her storytelling.

The novella centers on Celia, a young witch who discovers her magic by cursing her eldest brother Argent in a moment of childish rage. Her angry, grief-fueled words doom him to a life without love, setting him on a path of hollow glory while she spends years trying to undo what she has done. Their story, shaped by war, magic, and family, unfolds with aching intimacy against the backdrop of a long-simmering conflict between mortals and the summerlings.

Where many novellas feel like snapshots or sketches, The Summer War delivers a fully realized world and a beautiful emotional arc. Celia’s growth—from impulsive girl to determined, compassionate woman—is deeply satisfying. The sibling dynamics are especially strong, layered with love, resentment, guilt, and loyalty. The unexpected emotional weight carried by her relationship with her often-overlooked middle brother adds depth and even humor to an otherwise melancholic tale. I'll admit the ending had me tearing up.

Honestly, even the larger mythos of the story feels purposeful, not lacking. Novik focuses on the human cost of magic and war, and in doing so, crafts a narrative that lingers long after the final page.

Overall - I really enjoyed this one. 10/10

Naomi Novik does it again! An absolutely lovely book that both nods to traditional fairy tales and their tropes but is nevertheless as fresh and new as spring flowers.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.
4.5/5 Stars
The Summer War is a classic fairytale story (with a few twists) of how people act on their values of love, honor, and revenge. I loved the queer elements and undertones laid throughout this novella, and would recomend it to anyone who is looking for a quick and entertaining read.

ARC courtesy of Netgalley.

The Summer War by Naomi Novik is the first novella of hers I've read. The book tells the story of Celia, a young sorceress, who comes into her powers the moment she curses her beloved older brother to find only glory rather than love. She grows up in the shadow of the Summer War, in the tentative peace after the hundred year war with the summerlings (essentially Faeries), haunted by what she's done to her brother but also caught up in the ever-changing post-war political landscape.

This is a challenging story to tell in 144 pages, but I found Naomi Novik balanced exposition with scenes and dialogue very well. The world was compelling, the descriptions of battles surprising and occasionally a little funny. The family relationship dynamics were very sad, but ultimately moving by the end. The world Novik has built is intricate and curious, her characters compelling and distinct. My favorite character was Roric, the oft forgotten middle brother, who ultimately bargains his way into familial love and retrieving his mother's lute?

I do wish that the main character did more sorcery than just the one curse but you can't win them all.

Highly recommend for a fun quick read!

This novella is well-written, it just isn't my kind of story.
I didn't like how the fae had memory issues.
It would be great for people who love the G in LGBTQ.
I did really like the character growth of each sibling.

Naomi Novik has this way of creating worlds that feel so immersive and real to me. I really wish this were longer so that I could stay with this for a while. The lack of pages helped it to be fast paced, and almost reminded me of a fairy tale being told to me instead of it being one im reading.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.
I went in expecting a fairytale and I got one, with the faes that everybody loves, a curse caused by grief, and a quest to free a captive princess.
The book felt a bit too descriptive at times, stalling the story with recounts of past history of the realm, useful to paint a poignant picture of the MCs’ father but still a bit boring.
The story uses the curse to talk about love, both familial and not, and I guess it succeeds in doing so. Still I was left a bit unsatisfied. The novella format didn’t leave much soace for character evolution, and Celia’s felt a bit too forced.

A beautifully written fairytale that reveals what it means to truly be a family in a world of elusive fae and political machinations. Novik deftly asks the question of what we lose when our focus lies with power and revenge. It is, as every fairy tale should be, a fable filled with truth. Regrettably short, but no less poignant.

Celia feels the first touch of her powerful magic when she gives in to childish anger and curses the one person she loves — her elder brother Argent — to live a life without love. Embarking on a quest to undo this unintended cruelty, she finds herself tangled with the immortal Summerlings who have been at a vengeful war with her people for over a hundred years. What follows is a magic-based Romantasy that explores the strength and pull of both romantic and familial love, with a hefty (but not exclusive) LGB flavor.

I know better than to think anything from Novik would be a “standard” story. While her characters do adhere to archtypal descriptions, they also have nuanced (and surprising) personalities to remind you that they are indeed individuals. Her intricate plot lines veer constantly into surprising territories and her prose keeps up such that you never get lost and can handle the complexity. This novella is more akin to Novik’s earlier works (Spinning Silver and Uprooted) which I preferred, though I have honestly liked everything she has written.

Absolutely no notes, no niggles, no nitpicks for this one. Genuinely. Also, apparently in 2025 almost all my five stars are going to novella-length faerie/fairytale stories? Incredible.

While I easily could've read two, four, six hundred pages more of this one, it's honestly perfect exactly how it is.. And I think it actually excels because of it's short page count. Nothing feels rushed, despite some stakes, and every moment counts; both for those with a mortal lifespan and those without.

Anyone can write a story with this kind of setting but the true masters are the ones who are really intentional with the way they use promises, oaths, and words of binding. And Novik does that beautifully.

Also, the way the stories, new and old, are resolved in this, the way these siblings love each other, both simply and with layers of complexity, without thought and yet with purpose.. it's all just done so well.

And yes, I cried a bunch, whatever, no one is surprised.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go read something else right away before I convince myself to derail all my plans and finally give in and do an UPROOTED reread.

If you've yet to try a Novik, I would definitely recommend this one.

This was perfection.

If you love the fairytales in Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries or Holly Black's catalog, this title is worth your time. It's clear from every inch of this that Novik deeply loves fairytales and The Summer War is a new gem to add to the existing canon.

Whether it be the evocative imagery conjured -like the Summer Lands and the Green Bridge slowly becoming more visible and concrete through the mists as summer draws near- or if it be in the clever subversion of popular storylines, the entire story is so full of heart and excellent writing craft.

I loved every second of this; I even braved carsickness for this story!!

A delightful "King of Elfland" sort of story - there's a ton of interest in fractured fairy tales these days and this is a great one.

Is Novik my favorite author at this point? Probably. A lovely little fairy tale. I love the genre generally, but this is an excellent entry.

I feel that Naomi Novik's narrative voice is really well-suited to short, fairytale-esque stories like The Summer War. While Novik's novels are usually a bit hit-or-miss for me (loved the Scholomance trilogy, hated Uprooted), I was pleasantly surprised by this short tale. The way that the fae and humans interacted was so interesting to me, and much more true to legends characterizing the fae. I liked the descriptions of the ways Celia's dad outsmarted the fae during his time in the army a lot, although I really didn't like Celia's dad as a person. All in all, this was a really fun read and I hope to see more like this from Novik.