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Title: All the Stars and Teeth
Author: Adalyn Grace
Sub-genre: Fantasy
Not going to lie, when I discovered this book in my Owl Crate in February, I wasn’t sold. The title felt like it came out of some YA fantasy Twitter generator, and I’ve been so meh about YA fantasy lately that I was kind of dreading this one going into it. Lo and behold, this book is amazing. Probably my favorite YA fantasy in at least a year. And this special edition cover is to die for, so I’m so glad it was included in the box!
Amora is an acrimancer, a master of souls. As princess of Visidia, she has trained her whole life to master her power so she can rule her island kingdom. Each island holds all the inhabitants who practice a particular magic, and no one is allowed to practice more than one kind. Amora believes that in order to keep her people safe, she must enforce this rule, or an age old curse will destroy all of Visidia’s citizens. When Amora fails at her acrimancer test, she is forced to flee or face possible execution, but she also feels like she must save her people. She sets off with a pirate to travel to an outcast island to search for answers. She and the pirate, Bastian, are joined by Amora’s betrothed and eventually also seek the help of a mermaid, and together the four set out to save Visidia. But what Amora discovers will change her life forever.
Okay. I was sold on this one from basically the first chapter. This book strikes just the right balance of new and inventive, mixed with classic fantasy. I loved the island kingdoms and I really enjoyed being immersed in the world of this book. All that fantastic world-building aside, this book is all about the characters. Amora is fabulous. When people talk about unlikeable female characters, it sometimes raises my hackles, but Amora is the perfect example of a heroine who does bad things, but you still root for her. On top of that, Bastian is the perfect pirate hero, and the betrothed and the mermaid siren round out a truly stellar cast.
I was completely lost in this book from the moment I started reading. It was exciting, unique, heartfelt, and captivating. I loved reading every second of it, and I cannot wait for the sequel to come out. I’ll probably even buy it in hardback, which is saying a lot for me!
Overall Rating: 5 stars