Thank you to the publisher for access to this title in return for a fair review.

In a world of magic, Kallia finds she must fight for her right to perform even though her inherent magic is heads and tales above those who've spent their time learning to use the magic rather than being born with it. When she discovers that everything she believed to be true was a sham, she sets out to prove herself to the world, only to find herself embroiled in a competition that is proving deadly.

I was excited to read this after reading the premise, but I was slightly disappointed at the execution. It was difficult to pick up the parts of the story and follow the action at the beginning, especially the prologue. The middle of the book is a lot easier to understand and I really enjoyed that part, but then the ending seemed very abrupt and unremarkable, to the point that I couldn't remember if I had actually finished it or not. I'm sure there will be readers who love this, but it just wasn't something that was a stand-out book for me.

4 Stars

Where Dreams Descend pulled me out of a reading funk! I usually read some before bed at night, but I was feeling very meh about it and then I started this. I ended up reading during the day because I was pulled in to the story.

There was a perfect blend of magic and mystery, mystical and menacing. These two aspects of the plot danced back and forth and struck a unique balance. I was entranced by the magical acts that were kept a mystery to the reader until performed and very curious about the underlying peril to the performers in the city. I’m still fascinated by the secrets it’s hiding.

Kallia was a striking main character. I loved her vivacious nature and strong backbone even if she felt some of the barbs underneath. She flies like a spark across the page with her energy and magic and the creativity she put in to each performance. Kallia is a performer through and through and I just really loved her, especially the way she was with her assistant.

All of our side characters: Demarco, the conquering circus, the seamstress Ira, Aaros, are vivid additions to this tale and expand the world of Where Dreams Descend. I’m eagerly anticipating the sequel and looking forward to future books by Janelle Angeles!

I was fortunate enough to receive a Netgalley ARC of When Dreams Descend, a twisty blend of fantasy and magical realism from Janella Angeles. Kallia is a star performing magician at Hellfire House, a nightclub situated in a magical, forbidding forest, but when she hears of a magical competition happening in the city of Glorian, she decides she wants more. After a daring escape from Hellfire House, Kallia lands a spot in the competition as the only female magician, but as the rounds progress, danger builds, leading competitors to wonder what forces are behind the darkness that surrounds Glorian and its magicians.

The concept of Angeles’ novel is intriguing, and her main character, Kallia, shines throughout. The best moments of the novel came when Kallia was espousing ideas of female empowerment. For example, the scenes involving the Conquering Circus--which was completely run by women--had a brightness that other moments lacked. Additionally, Kallia herself personified female empowerment as she demanded a spot in the competition and never wavered from her goal, no matter what the male magicians threw at her. The tone of female empowerment is clear through Kallia’s thoughts that “The fools thought they could treat her like a flower--take away her sunlight...so she would shrivel up and die...Little did they know, she would always find a way to grow through cracks in the stone.”

However, despite Kallia’s great characterization and strong theme of empowerment, the entire novel just didn’t gel for me. I wasn’t sure what to make of Glorian and had a difficult time picturing the city and its relationship to the rest of the world. Additionally, since there was so little focus on the other competitors, I never bought into the competition, though it was clear that Angeles was playing with tropes from The Bachelor and Dancing with the Stars at some moments. And while Kallia was so beautifully fleshed out, I felt a lack of explanation for other characters. Both Jack and Demarco weren’t given enough of a backstory to make them plausible characters I could root for; was I supposed to love Demarco and fear Jack for Kallia, or vice versa?

While I couldn’t completely buy into Angeles’ world-building, I would definitely recommend this novel as another option for readers who enjoyed Caraval, The Night Circus, and even Phantom of the Opera. Recommended for purchase in libraries where fantasy is in high demand.

I was really disappointed by this book. It had a great premise, but the execution was poor. Most books are plot driven or character driven, but I felt like this book had neither. The characters were flat, and I didn't feel invested in the story. It took me 2 weeks to read this book, because it was so slow. I'm the eternal optimist and kept reading thinking it would pick up, and it did in the last 10%. As other reviews note, this book is basically the background for the next book. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

I didn't know much about this book going in. I requested it because I thought it was interesting and then forgot what it was about. I'm glad I went in not knowing much as it only added to the mystery of the story.

This follows Kallia as she enters a competition and Jack who tries to stop her. It also follows Demarco who is a judge in said competition.

This is told in 3rd person POV focusing on the three main characters. I liked this as we didn't dive too in their heads but had some idea of what they were feeling. It was interesting to see how the story connected and how it would play out.

The magical world is really intriguing as the city where the competition is set has a lot of secrets. The magic that they have is very different and unique and even they don't know the limits of it. I loved the atmosphere of the book and I didn't know what to expect next. It was very mysterious but also had a cosy feel to it.

I really love Kallia and how she knows what she wants and does whatever she can to get it. She doesn't care that women are not seen as good magicians. She knows that she's the best.I really like Demarco, he was very mysterious and I loved his relationship with Kallia. Jack grew on me. I feel like by the end of the book I liked him again and I really want to know his backstory.

In terms of romance, it was very slow burn. This is the sort of romance I love and I love the two of them together.  They are just perfect for each other.

The ending has me wanting the second book right now! I'll have to wait so long for it as this book only released recently.

I would highly recommend this book if you like books with competition and intrigue.

5/5

Have you read this?Is it on your TBR?

I did not know the true feeling of freedom until I, after a whole month of struggling, finally, finally finished this book.

Where Dreams Descend follows a girl named Kallia, a magician who has only known the world of the Hellfire House and its master, Jack. Soon, she makes her way to the city of Glorian to participate in a magic competition, despite pushback against her being a female magician. But there are more sinister things taking place that might keep Kallia from achieving the one thing she wants—to win.

This was a character-driven book, which I genuinely prefer over plot-driven books. But it doesn’t work when I don’t connect to the characters, and I just didn’t care about Kallia or Demarco. I liked that Kallia was powerful and ambitious, and I loved seeing her drive and refusal to let the men around her bring her down. Demarco, on the other hand, was very bland and I will be forgetting about him 3.5 seconds after I write this. I didn’t particularly care to see where either of their stories would go—I was content to leave their mysterious pasts unsolved and just get the book over with.

The romance made me feel... absolutely nothing. It gave me nothing. When they finally kissed, I had an “oh finally!” moment, but it was less in the “finally they get together” way and more in the “finally something happens” way. I also thought that perhaps a side character could redeem it for me, if not for the main characters or romance, but Aaros is included in the first half and then completely forgotten about. And while I did like what little was portrayed of their platonic relationship, the way he and Kallia became friends was so unbelievable; there was no development whatsoever. (view spoiler)

The writing in this book is definitely on the more flowery, descriptive side, but it feels very simple because of the way everything reads really choppily. The writing also made me feel weirdly distant from the characters—their emotions weren’t portrayed well through it, at least to me, and prevented me from further connecting to them.

The parts that were supposed to be exciting were not, because the plot basically repeated the same events over and over again. It was either Kallia performing some big magical act that ended in a stunned audience or a weird mishap that was soon forgotten about, or it was people disappearing/not waking back up that got only one page of attention before moving on. In general, the way that the characters in this book gloss over major events made no logical sense to me. I think the story could have been so much more interesting if the author had actually taken the time to explore these mysterious, dark events rather than just returning to mindlessly boring scenes.

The worldbuilding was, simply, nonexistent. I normally don’t mind poor worldbuilding, but when the book lacked in other aspects, I turned to the setting to be impressed and... I was not. Very minimal information was given about the magic system (which is so bizarre considering this is supposed to be a book about a competition involving magic), the city of Glorian, and the rest of the world. There’s a difference between “an air of mystery and intrigue” and “complete utter confusion,” and this book was trying to achieve the former but resulted in the latter.

Finally, probably the thing I am the most upset over with this book: It is absolutely useless to write a mysterious competition between magicians if you don’t know anything about the competitors and won’t even show their acts in comparison to the protagonist. I don’t mind that Kallia is much more powerful than them (because to me it read as a commentary on how even if a woman is more skilled than nine men, this society would still shun and mistreat the woman). But it’s a sign of really terrible writing when I can’t tell you a single thing about the competing magicians—not even their names—so there is absolutely zero way for me to care about how or why they are disappearing, which is supposed to be the main plot point of the book.

I was going to keep my rating at 2 stars rather than 1.5, mostly for the ending, which did have some plot twists that I didn’t see coming and really liked. But that 5% was truly only the good part, and when I think of this book, I don’t think of anything other than the pain I felt from having to force myself to read this. I definitely won’t be reading the sequel.

There are a few complaints I had that could just be a personal thing, but overall, I wouldn’t recommend this. I was bored the entire time and could not make myself care at all about what happened to the protagonists as a result of this book’s poor writing. If you’re looking for an exciting magic competition or an interesting cast of characters/romance to get invested in, you might want to read another book.

I have to admit that I did struggle with the first half of this book. I wasn't able to jump into the story, and was doing EVERYTHING other than reading it. But when the third act began... OH. MY. GOD. I couldn't do anything but reading it. When I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. It was that good. I was obsessed with how the story was developing.

This is a dark book: absolutely nothing is healthy in the relationship between Kallia and Jack (TW for controlling behavior), and the way she has to fight her way into the competition, because she's not a man, and the emotional abuse that comes with it...

But! I loved watching the relationship unfurl between Kallia and Demarco, and Kallia and Aaros. The characted are so well-defined that you can easily love them or hate them, even if their first moments with Kallia left me confused.

Overall, I really loved the book. I really can't wait to read the second book!

Many thanks to Wednesday Books for the complimentary e-copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

It’s important that I get these thoughts out while I’m still reeling from this book.

Let’s get the formalities out of the way first. Thank you Wednesday Books and Edelweiss for a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Y’all... 😭😬 I just made a false claim that I would no longer request arcs for book ones of a new series. Why? Because when I finish a good one I need the next book right away and waiting a year (forever) for the next book is painful. And I need book two of this series ASAP. Lemme tell you why...

Where Dreams Descend is a fantasy mystery. There’s magic so obvs fantasy but there’s something dark at work here and we don’t exactly know who or what it is at the start of the book. As each Act is complete we learn more and more about the pasts of the characters on the center stage. Kallia, our fierce female lead, is a solid character but she’s a unreliable narrator because of Jack. Jack is a powerful magician (or something stronger 🤷🏽‍♀️) who deals in memories. Early on we learn that he has been taking memories and creating illusions and despite their strange relationship, Kallia is not safe from him toying with her mind. Daron “Daring” Demarco is a born magician who has a tragic past that has caused him to stop using magic. He is a judge in a show that Kallia enters against Jack’s wishes. Y’all know there’s a love triangle right? Kinda. Not really but kinda... I mean it’s complicated anyway despite Daring Demarco’s best intentions he cannot seem to resist Kallia.

Now the reason why I need the next book now is that as usual book one ends with a cliffhanger. It was expected however what I didn’t expect is to be left with some fundamental questions being left unanswered. Throughout most the book (SPOILER ALERT HERE) we are led to believe that Jack is the antagonist. He is the big bad and every time he enters the story we are on edge. But... nope. He’s not. There is a bigger problem than Jack. A stronger, darker force behind all the horrible things that happen in this little forgotten town in the middle of a cursed dark wood that is from a different dimension. And we don’t know who or what it is. We also don’t know anything about this mirror dimension. (I’m going to call it the Shadow Realm.) At the end of the day, I have plenty of crazy theories.

1. The town is a gateway to hell.

Yeahhhh I should have started with a different theory first because now that I’ve said that one... it’s definitely a gateway to hell because I can’t understand how it can be anything else. Other than like the land of the dead which is just a cooler way of saying hell.

Anyway, I enjoyed the story and I need more of it. Now. This review is much more spoilery than my typical reviews but I did hold a lot of stuff back. I texted my friends when I was about 30% into it and said “I feel like I’ve read a lot of this book because there is so much happening but I’m only 30% in.” It’s well written, intriguing and fully immersive if you love fantasy, magic and stubborn, fierce female leads.

Phantom of the Opera is one of my favorite stories. When I saw the description of this book I knew I had to read it. I loved every minute. I will definitely be buying and sharing this book with other people.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St Martin's press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

I had seen this get described as a combination of Moulin Rouge and Phantom of the Opera and those are definitely the vibes I got from this. It's fun and dark and magical, with enough mystery and tension to keep you on the edge of your seat from page 1 until you're done.

I would've loved to have gotten more background on the world. Now it often felt like stumbling around in the dark, although I do understand that the world was kept small intentionally, for story reasons. I can only hope we see a bit more of this world in the sequel, or at least some of the gaps in the world's history get filled in.

This has a very whimsical atmosphere, and the story is told in beautiful prose, but I think the characterization could've benefited from some more layers. I wouldn't exactly call the main characters flat, but they did feel sort of trapped in their respective tropes.

All in all this, was a solid debut and a very good start to a duology.

Kallia is unusual. She is a woman that is a powerful stage magician in a world where men are the only one’s that do that sort of magic. She has patiently lived her life performing in a sort of club that is also her home. Until she realizes that her patron, Jack, has been lying to her. So she runs away to the next town and enters into a magical competition. But Glorian isn’t what it seems and Jack might be in the middle of it. The writing in this book is quite beautiful, and I couldn’t help but like Kallia. But I still don’t quite understand what the “big bad” actually is. I kept waiting for the ah-ha moment but it just never came. While pretty to read, there just wasn’t the payoff for me.

Mystery, magic, and romance, this book has quite a bit of everything. Kallie feels trapped in her gilded cage and when she finds a way to escape the House to the nearest city she finds an immediate ally from the streets. Jack, the Master of the House has kept Kallie hidden away for reasons he felt are the best but maybe they are only best for him. Daron is a judge in a contest to find the best magician but he has his own reasons for being there. I really enjoyed the secondary characters and the support they showed to Kallie throughout the book. And there are secrets, so many secrets, secrets everywhere...

I love books set in the theatre and I can’t resist a good heist plot – which may explain my weakness for stage magicians (fictional, not their real life counterparts). They all share certain points of appeal: the thrill of seeing characters put in a situation where anything can happen, with the potential of bringing out hithero unseen elements of themselves, the elevated tension of ensuring that everything goes off smoothly, as well as the spectacle of the final show.

Where Dreams Descend is interesting, as it features a creative combination of both real and stage magic, making it extra fun to read about. It’s difficult to create a magic system that feels like something new given the sheer number of fantasy worlds out there, but this definitely feels refreshing. It also informs the characters and plot, as to be a skilled magician you must have practised skill and a willingness to take risks, as well as raw power.

I liked the smoke and mirrors motif that runs throughout the book, both in a literal and metaphorical sense. The mystery was intriguing and open-ended, which is to be expected given this is the first book in a duology. However, I felt like it left a few too many loose ends, making the ending feel unsatisfactory. There’s a careful balance to be struck in how much you give away in the first part of a story that is based around suspense and mystery; too much and you lose the tone, but too little and the reader ends up feeling slightly cheated.

The main romance had sweet moments, following the model of outwardly aloof man clashing with passionate, outspoken woman before they come understand each other a bit better and fall madly in love. Some of the relationships seemed to form a bit too quickly, leading me to question whether this was intentional in light of the ‘nothing is as it seems’ theme, though as of now it doesn’t seem like it was purposeful.

I would recommend this book to fans of Moulin Rouge and Caraval . It wasn’t quite to my taste, but remains a fun read with some imaginative magical feats.

This book!!! was so so goooood! It gave me the mysterious and magical vibes that I've been missing ever since I read Caraval and the Night Circus for the first time. The writing is beautiful, the characters are lovable, and the plot had me guessing all the way through. I'm still shook by the ending and cannot w a i t until the second book comes out. If you're into magical competitions, mystifying forgotten cities, and a juicy mystery, this book is most definitely for you!

An interesting read!! I loved the musicals tie-in! Two incredible musicals warped into this book and I found it a fantastic read. It was different and fun. I enjoyed it.

Perfect for fans of the magic in The Night Circus and the relationships in Ninth House, Where Dreams Descend is an attention grabbing story of magic and ambition. Kallia wants to escape a house where she can’t trust what she sees and venture to Glorian, the city with a competition for magicians which may be her only ticket out of the life and the master of the club she was so eager to escape. Daron wants to forget about his blunders that lead to the loss of someone dear and figure out the riddle that is the city of Glorian, a land without magic. When paired up as mentor and mentee for the competition Daron and Kallia’s tense relationship takes on new meaning as their butting personalities transform into the softer sides of each of them. In all Where Dreams Descend is filled with magic and enticing relationships and with the way it ends, I am absolutely hungry for the next book!

I couldn’t finish this book. I just wasn’t invested in the characters. The story was going too slow. I thought the magic was interesting but nothing was happening and the city they were in was mysterious but not enough to keep my interest.

Though I forgot to post a review on the publishing date, I did not forget about the content of this book. It has a beautiful cover that I'd love to have on my bookshelf, and inside the cover is an equally beautiful and well written story about a girl getting out of her cage after years and years of oppression. Though, it's not the usual kind that you would think of.

Kallia has been a showgirl and using her magic inside a casino for as long as she can remember. Her only escape from the owner she used to trust but now dislikes is her greenhouse, and she's willing to throw that away to follow her dream of being the only famous female magician. The problem is, is that the owner is a master of illusion, faking friends and even people she would have liked to think of family, and that makes it very hard to get out of his grasp.

Though she loves showing off her powers and gaining a crowd, she really just wants to make a name for herself outside of that world she's in, without a mask on. Even after escaping from the house and through this insane forest that tries to trick her into losing her mind, she faces horrible sexism and insults from the judges. But one of them is different.

Taking the world by storm is something she can do easily, showing off her insanely powerful magic tricks and spells, full of illusion and music and just life, but what she can't do easily, is fight off her past. Especially when it's trying to hunt her down and bring her back to the world she fought so hard to escape from.

Everything about this book was so well put together, and left me wondering what could possibly happen in the next installment. I can't wait to check it out. I don't have any questions left over aside from that one, and I didn't for even a minute think that there was something out of place or missing from it. I'm so glad I got to check it out, it was everything I wanted and more, and books like these make me rethink my usual opinion about books about magic.

(Radioactivebookreviews.wordpress.com)

This is an amazing new novel. So thankful I got an advanced copy. Janella is an amazing human and her writing is breathtaking. Definitely the next big thing. So looking forward to getting the physical book.

Where Dreams Descend is a novel that hooked me from the moment I read the synopsis. Magicians? A Circus? A dangerous threat? Oh HELL yes!

Very reminiscent of Caraval and The Night Circus, Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles is a book that transports you into a daring world of magicians and danger. The tone is dark and angsty, the reader is automatically thrust into a world with people they know they cannot trust, and the characters are to die for. The main heroine, Kallia, starts off as the star of the show in a mysterious club after being orphaned at a young age, but after discovering that the club's owner, Jack, has been feeding her lies and manipulating her mind, she runs off to compete in a magical competition. However, after fleeing the club she discovers this competition wants nothing to do with a female magician. Kallia is an absolute spitfire, and a joy of a main character. Her chemistry with Jack and judge Daron Demarco is undeniable, and made it so hard for me to pick one to root for. Jack is nothing if not seductive, and while he has his flaws they make him all the more interesting in my eyes. Demarco is a damaged magician on a mission who I grew to adore the more I found out about his past. Each of these main characters were such a delight to read, and I cannot wait to see where the next chapter in this story takes them.

The writing was absolutely gripping, and the last few chapters left me with a serious case of whiplash. I am dying to get my hands on a copy of the next book in the series because I absolutely need to know what happens with these characters. There is just so much I want to say about this book, but I do not want to ruin it for anyone who is looking forward to picking it up once it hits the shelves.

Overall, I give Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles four and a half out of five stars for being a enthralling first installment in what is sure to be one of my new favorite duologies. I highly recommends this book to fantasy lovers everywhere, but especially to fans of Caraval, The Night Circus, and Phantom of the Opera