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booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Any book which depicts changelings in the traditional sense, with children stolen from the cradle and a faerie put in their place, leaving behind a child who speaks too well, and knows too much, but has trouble adjusting to the human world... such stories must grapple with the striking similarity that this basic description has to an allistic parent seeing their autistic child and misunderstanding them or being disturbed by their existence. Rather than merely acknowledging this fantastical descriptor of what are most likely real autistic children through history, UNSEELIE embraces it, centering on an autistic, changeling protagonist. Iselia, "Seelie", is loved by her family, knows who she is, and finds herself on an adventure with her human sister after the prejudice of their neighbors forced them to leave their parents behind and start a new life.
The story opens with a heist gone wrong forcing them to team up with a couple of people who want Seelie to help them accomplish their goals. Seelie is trying to deal with more magic than she's ever had in her life while staying focused on her goal of fixing things and getting back to their parents. Unfortunately it seems like everyone else has a different goal in mind, and eventually things come to a head. As the first book of a duology, UNSEELIE resolve several of its major plot threads and establishes a new paradigm for the sequel to resolve. I like the main characters and I'm excited to see where the sequel goes.
The story opens with a heist gone wrong forcing them to team up with a couple of people who want Seelie to help them accomplish their goals. Seelie is trying to deal with more magic than she's ever had in her life while staying focused on her goal of fixing things and getting back to their parents. Unfortunately it seems like everyone else has a different goal in mind, and eventually things come to a head. As the first book of a duology, UNSEELIE resolve several of its major plot threads and establishes a new paradigm for the sequel to resolve. I like the main characters and I'm excited to see where the sequel goes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Body horror, Violence, Murder, Medical content, and Death
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Self harm, Kidnapping, and Child death
chronicacademia's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Ableism
Moderate: Blood, Death, Violence, Gore, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
thelittlestmermaid's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
* Thanks to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review! *
This book was an absolute pleasure to read. In Unseelie we follow Iselia "Seelie" and her sister Isolde on their journey to make enough money to be reunited with their parents. They're identical twins, but they are so different from each other. Isolde loves adventuring and treasure. Seelie on the other hand would be happy to stay at home and bake every day. Not to mention that Seelie is a changeling and Isolde is human.
Reading this from Seelie's point of view felt very relatable. I loved getting to read about how she views her world and the people around her. Her response to others' actions and her emotions felt very real.
I loved the magic and the faerie courts and the dragons and just every bit of magical fantasy goodness in this story. The characters were all enjoyable and their interactions with each other were (usually) fun to read.
The sister relationship between Seelie and Isolde really shines. Their arguments felt realistic and had me emotional a few times. The way a Seelie love her sister with all her heart despite being upset with her is portrayed very well.
I cannot wait for this to be released so I can buy a proper copy. This was so much fun to read.
4.5 stars
This book was an absolute pleasure to read. In Unseelie we follow Iselia "Seelie" and her sister Isolde on their journey to make enough money to be reunited with their parents. They're identical twins, but they are so different from each other. Isolde loves adventuring and treasure. Seelie on the other hand would be happy to stay at home and bake every day. Not to mention that Seelie is a changeling and Isolde is human.
Reading this from Seelie's point of view felt very relatable. I loved getting to read about how she views her world and the people around her. Her response to others' actions and her emotions felt very real.
I loved the magic and the faerie courts and the dragons and just every bit of magical fantasy goodness in this story. The characters were all enjoyable and their interactions with each other were (usually) fun to read.
The sister relationship between Seelie and Isolde really shines. Their arguments felt realistic and had me emotional a few times. The way a Seelie love her sister with all her heart despite being upset with her is portrayed very well.
I cannot wait for this to be released so I can buy a proper copy. This was so much fun to read.
4.5 stars
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Murder, and Violence
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