Author: Julia Ember
Publication Date: 24 Nov 2020
Publisher: FSG BYR
Page Count: 368
Dates Read: Apr 19 – 20
Reading Method: Physical // YA Backlog
Review
If you like magic, music, and evil queens, have I got the recommendation for you!
Cadence’s voice is her weapon. Though her singing can bring about healing as easily as pain, she is forced to do Queen Elene’s bidding and use it to torture the nobles. Cadence desperately wants to get out from under the queen’s thumb, she doesn’t see how that will be possible. Enter Remi. Remi is one of the nobles, and Cadence’s childhood friend. When they are reunited, Cadence must choose which side she will end up on when the rebels rise.
The pacing was good, the writing was good, the romance happened a little too fast for my liking, but it seems we are relying on the character’s past relationship to speed it along. I enjoyed the idea of singing magic, but I wish it had been explained a little more. Even Cadence only knew a portion of the magic, so she wasn’t able to tell the reader things like where the magic came from, how exactly it works, or any other of the particulars.
~ SPOILER AHEAD~
I really really hated the plot point with Nip. Anything like that in a book makes me instantly want to quit reading it. It’s the worst. I understand why it happened, and it was a motivator for Cadence to make changes, but I just hate it.
~SPOILER OVER~
Though the kingdom is in turmoil, the relationships between the characters was often very sweet. Remi and her father share a wonderful bond, and I liked (and would have liked to see even more of) Nolan. The ending explodes into pure chaos, but the story wrapped up well enough. I wouldn’t have minded this book being a duology. There would have been more time to develop and explore relationships, the Rebellion, and the backstory of the magic system. That might have helped with some of the depth issues. Overall, it was a decent read and I look forward to reading more from this author!
//This story contains elements of torture, death, and animal death
About the Book
Her voice was her prison…
Now it’s her weapon.
In a world where magic is sung, a powerful mage named Cadence has been forced to torture her country’s disgraced nobility at her ruthless queen’s bidding.
But when she is reunited with her childhood friend, a noblewoman with ties to the underground rebellion, she must finally make a choice: Take a stand to free their country from oppression, or follow in the queen’s footsteps and become a monster herself.
About the Author
Julia Ember’s books include The Seafarer’s Kiss duology, a Norse myth inspired retelling of The Little Mermaid, published by Interlude Press (Duet Books), and Ruinsong, a standalone high fantasy reimagining of The Phantom of the Opera, published by Macmillan Kids (FSG) in November 2020.
Ember’s work has been featured in USA Today, Bustle, Book Riot and Autostraddle, among many others. Julia has a lifelong appreciation for history and classic literature, and holds an MLitt in Medieval Literature from the University of St. Andrews. She currently lives in Seattle with her wife, two cats and a very fluffy pony. When she isn’t working on her prose fiction, Julia writes for video and app games.
