3.5 or 4 stars

I liked this! I'm a big Broadway fan and I was humming the musical the entire time. RTC closer to release date.

THE COURT OF MIRACLES is an enagaging and lush YA historical that imagines an alternate France where the revolution has failed and a Court of Miracles was born. The Court of Miracles contains groups of criminals with a code. This includes a Guild of Thieves, a Guild of Beggars, a Guild of Assassins, etc. Nina was very young when her sister pushed her to leave home, and she joined the Guild of Thieves, becoming the Black Cat.

Since then, she has gained some notoriety for her thievery. However, what truly drives her is getting her older sister back/free. Her sister was sold to the Tiger, the man who took over the Guild of the Sisters and made it into Flesh. He is ruthless and many of the Guild leaders are afraid of him. Nina's plot to get her sister back goes awry due to her own emotions, and she ends up running with a young girl, Ettie. In the process of figuring out how to keep Ettie away from the Tiger and how to get her sister out, Nina will encounter a new revolution, dangerous royalty, and much cruelty.

This is not a light story. As warnings, there is domestic abuse, forced prostitution, maimed children (for begging), starving, horrific deaths, and drug abuse.

What I loved: Nina completely captivated me from the start. She has had a really difficult life and maintains her humanity in a world where that is an impossible challenge. The plot is paced perfectly, gripping from the start and making it unputdownable. I also really loved the building of the criminal empires with rules and non-rules and questionable morality. We explore some of the Guilds a bit, and it was entirely fascinating.

I also really liked how Nina does not have a romance here. Her love for her sisters is paramount. There are a few potential romantic interests who seem to be interested in her, but Nina is focused on her goals and does not seem to get caught up in these (no matter how much Ettie wishes her to have romances). It made the story and Nina's drive that much stronger.

What left me wanting more: A small thing, but there were time jumps that I needed a bit more information to fully orient myself to. Each section leaps ahead by an amount of time, which varies. This may be corrected in the final version of the novel.

Final verdict: Lush, captivating, and filled with compelling characters, THE COURT OF MIRACLES is a beautifully crafted YA historical series. Highly recommend for fans of THE GILDED WOLVES, SIX OF CROWS, and/or SOMETHING DARK AND HOLY.

Please note that I received an ARC through netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis:

Les Misérables meets Six of Crows in this page-turning adventure as a young thief finds herself going head to head with leaders of Paris's criminal underground in the wake of the French Revolution.

In the violent urban jungle of an alternate 1828 Paris, the French Revolution has failed and the city is divided between merciless royalty and nine underworld criminal guilds, known as the Court of Miracles. Eponine (Nina) Thénardier is a talented cat burglar and member of the Thieves Guild. Nina's life is midnight robberies, avoiding her father's fists, and watching over her naïve adopted sister, Cosette (Ettie). When Ettie attracts the eye of the Tiger--the ruthless lord of the Guild of Flesh--Nina is caught in a desperate race to keep the younger girl safe. Her vow takes her from the city's dark underbelly to the glittering court of Louis XVII. And it also forces Nina to make a terrible choice--protect Ettie and set off a brutal war between the guilds, or forever lose her sister to the Tiger.

My Thoughts:
A huge thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review....
The plot of this story is fast paced, and completely enthralling!!
The band of misfit characters is awesome, and gives the story a relatable point for readers. The guilds are extremely detailed, vivid and cruel. The world building was honestly impeccable.
There was alot of politics and court intrigue between both parts of the world.
The guild however aren't so complicated you can't follow.
The plots timeline was easy to follow also. All around this is going to be a great read, and one to watch out for... Coming soon!!!

Yes.

All the yes.

I loved this book so much, and I can't wait to get the next book in my hands.

This is a loose retelling of Les Misérables, and I believe I've seen The Jungle Book pop up somewhere before the official summary came out? Anyways, I know very little of Les Misérables but I know the general story. A few other books I thought of when reading this were Six of Crows, Diamond City and Ace of Shades. Some of them more than others of course. I also had a nagging feeling towards the end of a lot of similarities to another book, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what book (or maybe even show/movie) it was. That's beside the point though.

The writing style was amazing, and I never once felt like the book dragged or started to bore me. I grew to enjoy the majority of the characters introduced, and some I even grew to dislike (but in a good way). The main plot isn't anything out of this world, but the journey as we get to the end of this first book was filled with so many things that surprised me. I was never bored even though I knew how some events would begin or end. Even the ending, which was what I expected, was something that I really liked. The pacing isn't fast, but it did get slow at times. Despite that, I never once felt like skipping around or begging for the book to get my attention again. I enjoyed the slow parts, and I never once minded when the characters needed to get a breather.

I haven't read a book that caught my attention like this in a while. Usually when I give 5 stars it's because I'm rounding up from 4.5 or 4.75. This is different though. I'm seriously confident in my feelings. I know I adored this book, and every second spent reading was enjoyable for me. It got me to enjoy the characters, both the good and the bad, and I didn't mind the predictability that occurred at times. There aren't many books that made me genuinely have fun reading. So for that I'm giving it the solid 5 stars. I enjoyed it so much that my mind completely blew past anything that might've usually been an issue for me. I loved this, and I seriously recommend checking it out.

I enjoyed this book.. it was a little slow at first but in the end it actually surprised me. Thank you @netgalley for letting me read this book!

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Holy cannoli guys. I remember the first time I ever watched Les Misérables on Broadway. It was completely magical and I loved every second of it. Then I dove into the movie, and loved that all over again. Now I get this wonderful and magical book, boy was I hooked from the very beginning. YES, it took me two days to devour it but I fully blame work. For some reason, it kept cutting into my damn reading time.. which I'm not a huge fan of.

Seriously, this book was so freaking good. I loved all the characters so much. Especially my bad ass ninja Nina. Not quite sure if I want to ship her with anyone because she is just completely amazing all on her own. I'm one hundred percent okay with friendships all around right now. Then there's Ettie, and I'm excited to watch her grow up even more. Heck, with what little Nina has taught her she is bound to survive and thrive on her own. Look at you little ghost!

Other than that, this book had a lot of betrayal in it. Like a LOT. I was shocked on a bunch because what the hell... who can you really trust? The only thing I would change is the ending. I'm so mad with how it ended and I desperately need the next book! I NEED TO KNOW WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT GUYS!

I received a copy through NetGalley for review.

I want to first preface that I am not a big Le miserables fan.
So the fact that I enjoyed this as much as I did says a lot.
There's absolutely no wasted plot points in this entire book. Every motion has a purpose and a lot of it I didn't even see coming. I'm really impressed.

The Court of Miracles. The wretched of France, with their own guilds and laws.
The Guild of Gamblers, Beggars, Assassins, Mercenaries, Smugglers, Letters, Thieves, Dreamers, Flesh.
Nina, the black cat. Is a clever, whip smart girl. Belongs to The Guild of Thieves.
She will do whatever it takes to save one sister after she has lost the other. Sold into the The Guild of Flesh, by her terrible father, the other may face the same fate if she does not intervene.
Nina does not forgive and she does not forget.

Ettie is a ward of her father. Sweet and naive and of all else, beautiful. Nina cannot bare to see her broken, like Azelma. Her eyes hazed and empty from opium. To be sold and used by the cruelest of men. Like Kaplan, the Tiger. The Lord of Flesh.

The additional cast of characters really are something. Each with their own secrets. Many of who owe a debt to Nina for one thing or another. She's been collecting them.
I'm excited to see what the pay off will be for her, in the next book.
Although she has gotten far, there are many moving parts.
I'm very curious to see what it has gotten her in the end.

I really, really enjoyed this one.
* and someone better hurry up and turn this into a movie or show stat. It's written for it.

Very rarely does a book hook me within the first five pages. This book automatically grabbed my attention and held it for a good majority of the book. The characters were intriguing, the plot, the setting...everything! I loved how unique this book was with such different and strong-willed characters.

The world building is amazing. Set in 1800s France you can see the period and lifestyle of that age clearly through the description of clothing, the royalty, problems lie famine and plague. What makes this book stick out from any period fiction, is The Court of Miracles itself. Thieves, assassins, ghosts...each aspects of the courts is so well thought out. This book truly is one of a kind. I felt immersed into the world being able to visual what I was reading.

I loved the characters and found myself relating to them, loving them, and feeling empathic. Nina “Black Cat” is our main character desperate to save her sister the Lion, lord from the Fleshers Guild. We end up seeing Nina throughout the years, the book starting when she is nine and ending with her as an adult. Her goal stays the same throughout the book but her character development is what keeps you intrigued. Her love for Ettie (her adopted sister) is admirable. She’s also an interest character because of the three long interests. Who will you pick? I’m #TeamMontparnasse Montparnasse is an assassins and I adored his character—I just wish we got more of him.

This book definitely lived up to the hype. It was thrilling, action-packed, adventurous, unique, shocking, heartfelt and heart wrenching. You won’t want to miss out on The thrilling Court of Miracles! Five stars without a doubt!

Thanks NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review! Full review to come on my blogs two week prior to its release date.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Opening Sentence: "All Wretched are equal before the Miracle Court; neither blood, race, religion, rank, or name is recognized."

The Good: The worldbuilding is rich and lush. I could smell the pain au chocolate and it made my mouth water. I coughed on the dust as they ran through the city of the death under the streets of Paris. I winched and ached as Nina was whipped with the cat of nine tails. The imagery was spectacular and it left me wanting more. Just another glimpse. I love the Court of Miracles. The different guilds and their laws and the darkness of it. I wish we could have gotten to see more of them, their people, their ethos.

The Bad: The failed revolution left a bad taste in my mouth. The whole sale slaughter of men, women and children never sits well with me and I honestly hate it. I hate how everyone just brushes it aside like St Juste should be glad he wasn't caught up in the death of hundreds of people. I hate how damn spineless the Crown Prince was. It was a part of the plot that added nothing to the tale and wouldn't have taken away anything if it had been left out.

The Ugly: You know how you can spot a Mary Sue in a book? The main character is a girl, woman, old lady, female presenting characters and the rest of the cast of characters are boys, men, male presenting characters. you have Nina as the main character, and then her sister Azelma (who gets a whole chapter before she is swallowed up) and then her adopted sister Ettie. The rest of the cast are non-femme characters.

Nina is a complete Mary Sue. She is good at everything without the effort of learning or being taught. Everyone is in total love with her at first glance and willing to risk life, limb and liberty at her every whim. She listens to no one and always knows just what to do. She manages to walk into the French Palace and steal one of the crown jewels from the neck of the Dauphine without so much as a plan. She breaks into the most feared prison in Paris and manages to break out not one but two prisoners. She gets the Crow Prince of France to give her carriages full of bread, grain and other foodstuffs to fead all the guilds for months.

Basically everything she touches turns to gold and loves her with a shining devotion and loyalty that is not earned nor returned.

Nina is selfish and hides behind her tender heart to use and abuse people to their own peril. When she lost her sister, she put Ettie in the path of the Tiger to use her has a sacrificial lamb and then when she comes to her senses its too late to save Ettie, and then sparks off everything else in the book.

Thenardier, her father is just fodder for the chance for Nina to show how awesome is she. Here is a man that is a Master in the Thieves Guild. He has attained his greatness, he has a way to keep gold in his pocket, he has power, he has animals to do his bidding. And yet he sells his daughter to the Lord of Flesh?

Why? The price he got could have been stolen and in his hands in a single night of burgling. And then he just, 'always backs the winning side'. But why!! Where is his motivation to be this way? What is there to be gained by being this way? You can't just have a man sell his own flesh and blood to a slaver that he knows is going to use ad abuse his daughter for a few pieces of gold that he doesn't need. It doesn't make any sense.

The Court of Miracles gets 3 Stars despite its main character who doesn't deserve the love and loyalty of the rest of the characters.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

My Rating: 2.5 Stars

Alright, so I would like to begin this review by discussing the things that I liked about this book. For a debut novel, the prose was impressive. I really enjoyed the overall flow of Kester Grant’s writing, and the way that she was able to set a scene in my mind without over-describing things. The main character, Nina, was stunningly fierce and I loved her relationship with Ettie. The world the story was set in is wonderfully dark and I was beyond intrigued by the Court of Miracles and all of the different guilds. This novel has a badass heroine, and an incredibly gothic feel that I got sucked into immediately.

Unfortunately, there were a few things that kept this from being entirely enjoyable for me. I personally don’t need romance in all of my books. I enjoy a book with little or no romance, and have grown to only enjoy a love story that actually adds to the plot. Somehow, this book both lacked real romance, and had enough romantic interests that the plot sort of hinged on them. Let me explain, there are apparently three men in love with Nina – an assassin, a prince and a revolutionary. Without the feelings these three men had for Nina, with little to no prompting or reciprocity on her end, (with one exception) the entire plot would have fallen apart. Hell, even with these “romantic entanglements” I was surprised by the lengths some of these men went to for Nina. I just wish that the author had selected one romantic interest and developed Nina’s bonds with the other characters in a different manner.

The other struggle I had with this book was the lack of world building. We are introduced to this amazing world of thieves, murderers and criminals, but are given little real insight into their world. There are occasionally glimpses into the seedy underbelly of Paris, but given how enmeshed in it Nina is, I was honestly surprised by how little of it we saw. This book seemed to race along to the climax of the book, never slowing down to focus on world building and I feel that the plot suffered a bit as a result. Speaking of rushing the plot, there were time hops that threw me completely off balance. At one point, we skipped ahead two years and it took me way too long to figure out how far in the future we were and what the hell had happened in the meantime. I could do the math, I’m sure, but at this point I’m not even sure how old our MC is because I’m pretty sure I just straight up missed the lengths of a few time jumps.

Additionally, as a result of these time hops, I feel that Nina’s character development suffers. She goes from being a dependent and emotional young girl, to a ruthless thief in the blink of an eye and I felt deprived of her growth.

I think that I will give the second book in this series a chance when it comes out because I enjoyed Nina as a character and despite the difficulties I had, I did read the entirety of The Court of Miracles in one sitting. That being said, I don’t think that I’ll rush out to buy it on release day, sadly.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Children’s for an e-arc of this review in exchange for an honest opinion.

I hemmed and hawed about what I was going to rate this book, because I wasn’t sure at all what I thought it should be, but in the end I settled on three stars. There were several reasons why, and I think it needs to be broken down into pieces to explain why I struggled so much with this book. This is not to say I didn’t enjoy the book, I did overall. I liked Nina a whole lot, and I was cheering her on the whole while, and yet…
First off, I don’t know what Les Mis is outside of memes and other references. I have never read or seen it. I essentially had no basis for this, and I think that partly played into my issue with this. Such as I recognized names, but they meant nothing outside of the book to me, and that in and of itself made the book hard to understand. Without the context, I felt some of the characters were left dangling, because to know and/or understand them, you had to know the original characters. And I didn’t.

The Writing
I really liked Kester’s writing. I thought it was lovely, and I liked reading it. I didn’t think that it was overly jarring one way or the other. I think the prose worked really well for me overall, and I enjoyed the dialogue.

The Pacing
The pacing I didn’t love. Skipping time, scenes…it just wasn’t working for me. I think it had so much potential but we would get really fast parts and then really slow parts…and it felt messy to me somewhat. Overall, I was left a bit dizzy.

The Plot
I was confused. I’m going to be honest, as I’m writing this review, this book was clearly out of my wheelhouse. The concept seemed so interesting, but I felt like you needed a degree in Les Mis to understand it. I didn’t know that at the time, and I wished I had. I feel that so much of the plot was related to the original work…and I didn’t understand it. I got the concepts overall, and what was going on. I liked bits and pieces overall, but I struggled through parts of the plot.

The Characters
Nina, Ettie, and like two other characters are the only ones that stuck with me. So many characters, and slightly hard to tell them apart. Not only that, some of the characters as I mentioned earlier were clearly related to Les Mis and I knew the names…but not what purpose they served. I don’t know, I liked Nina best. She was one of my favorites, and I liked her strength, but overall, I just didn’t love any of them. Most of them fell rather flat, but this was an enormous cast.

The World building
As an alternate Paris, I think it was really creative. Taking history and mixing it with Les Mis and other portions could have turned out really well. And I think it was atmospheric, and well described.

Overall
I enjoyed the book, but I think this one just wasn’t totally for me. I think if you like French history, Les Mis or anything like that, you’ll like this.
HOWEVER, advertised like Six of Crows? It sort of is, but not really.

This is another book that didn’t do it for me. I liked the main premise but it didn’t come together as I had hoped. I liked the French influence a lot because that’s one of my favorite things!

It has been quite awhile since a book kept me reading like this one did. I didn't want to stop reading. I was so invested in the characters and the plot.

This is a retelling/alternate history of Les Miserables and 1828 France. There are whispers of revolution, underground criminal guilds, and strong sisterly bonds.

I so enjoyed picking out names and events and hints at lines from Les Mis. I loved, loved, loved the relationship between Nina and Ettie. I am finding that more and more books are emphasizing loving relationships between sisters lately, and I absolutely love it!

The only part that fell a little flat for me was the romance. It obviously wasn't supposed to be the main plot, and that is more than okay. But I could also tell that the author was trying to include some kind of romantic subplot. The problem was that there were three different romantic interests and it was never very clear who Nina preferred, if any of them. There were a handful of events that could have moved all three relationships forward, but instead they just happened and the story moved on and I was left feeling confused at who the main love interest was supposed to be. Or have we moved on from love triangles to love squares?

Regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed The Court of Miracles and will be eagerly awaiting the publication of book two!

This was such a fun read as a Les Mis fan. It's epic without being so grand as Les Mis, and I loved that because it was it's own story. Love, revenge, survival and sacrifice. It's such a web of stories within one grand tale, and i love that it would veer a certain way for a while because it added to the journey of the Black Cat. Nina is such a great heroine and she's absolutely fire and spirit. She's a fun character to follow with the soul of a survivor. I loved the addition of Les Mis characters and how those stories play into Nina's tale. It's a job well done in this book.

When it comes to this book, I seem to be in the minority. I'm not giving five or four stars but three. I wanted to love it but sadly, the middle of the book just wasn't for me. I loved the beginning and ending but in between, I was just not enjoying myself. Now, I've never read Les Misérables (even though it's a french classic) or Six of Crows so I can't comment on the comparisons made here but the settings are interesting. There are multiple guilds and our main character belongs to the Thieves.

Her father, however, isn't a good man and for a few coins of gold, he didn't hesitate to sell her older sister to the Flesh Lord, a cruel man who buys women to be prostitutes against their will. In this world, they are supposed to obey by the Laws made by these Guilds. However, the Lord Flesh seem to scare everyone and he does as he pleases. Nina, with her wit and nimble fingers, will try to rescue her sister from him but it's not an easy task.

Overall, this book was okay. I didn't hate it, didn't love it. Between each part of the book, a few years pass but the time jumps aren't really well explained so that's probably why I was confused sometimes as to what was going on and why things seemed different all of a sudden. I don't think I'll be continuing with the series but I'm hoping you'll love this story more than I did <3.


(Thank you for letting me read and review an ARC via Netgalley)

Concise, quick, and engaging. Court of Miracles manages to work within the world of Les Miserables while restructuring the story (and characters) into something refreshing and new.

Nina is a fabulous protagonist/;anti-hero to follow through the twists and turns of the Court of Miracles, tough-as-nails and determined to the point where one sometimes cannot tell whether this is her strength or her downfall. While the sotry is her own, Grant does such fine work in utilizing the cast we know and love, sliding them into sometimes comfortable yet often not shoes, letting the reader's predisposition and understanding of the likes of Valjean, Javert and Cosette flesh out their personal stories. With a deft hand, Grant hints and teases at the narrative known to so many, weaving the threads in and among what stands, in the end, as a wholly original work.

Sigh. Another super-anticipated book that just left me disappointed. This book severely suffers from debut-novel syndrome.

The idea and effort is there, but the author has a lot of room to grow.

I did not enjoy this story for a number of aspects. Although everything about it is intriguing, and I was very excited to dive in, it was not well written. I do wonder whether it went through a beta-reader stage; it feels like a first-draft story. What I mean by a first-draft story is not that the grammar was bad, it was fine, is that it reads as if the author said: "Hey, imagine Guilds of criminals in old France, now that would be a cool story." There isn't much more to it than that.

This suffers from some of the worst white-room scenes I have ever read. Not a single room, house, area, building, was ever adequately described. The castle was the only place that the author spared a few sentences to describe what it was like. And, I'll emphasize, that was only just a couple sentences about a confectioner's box. I feel the author said, "It's taking place in old France, you can imagine it yourself." There was absolutely no immersion into this world. None of the 5 senses were ever engaged. Old France, and PARIS most of all, could have been a beautiful setting, the author could have used so much to engage us. She wasted that opportunity.

We'll move to where I think the story is most lacking. I am a strong believer that characters are everything. You can have a complex plot and a beautiful setting, but if characters are lackluster, the book will never exceed 3-stars. Because at the end of the day, if I don't believe in the characters, there is nothing at stake. The characters in this book weren't written badly, they were just boring. They had no depth.

The main character, Nina, is such a special snowflake that gets away with everything. Everybody loves her; she somehow always succeeds in everything that she tries. She was ten-years-old and she broke into Versailles (this is me assuming, the author just describes it as a palace), and and steals a jewel of France right off the prince's neck while he was sleeping in his bedroom. A ten year old, guys. A ten year old did this. Do you really find that believable in any aspect? But allow Nina to defy all that is possible.

I can't even describe Nina's personality. She's not fiery, she's not kind, she has no quirks, she has.... nothing. She is only the "sharp Black cat". That's it. Yet everybody falls in love with her. I mean, the Prince of France doesn't execute her after she (a peasant, might I remind you) SLAPS him in his own home, because he likes her so much even though he met her ten minutes ago. Do you really think that's believable? Readers are given nothing but her talent as a thief (a talent which she doesn't need to hone or practice or grow at all, because a ten-year-old on her FIRST heist broke into the most secure place in France).

Ettie was the secondary character. She fares a little better personality-wise then Nina. She's a little meek, a little nervous and quiet, and loves stories and romance. She's really the damsel in distress for Nina to save.

All the other characters, I mean honestly, I can't even name them. I just finished this yesterday, and I've already forgotten most of anything about them. Because they are unremarkable. There is not a single personality, or back story, or manner that stands out.

I'm giving 2 stars instead of 1 (even I would never recommend this book) because I can see the effort is there. The Guilds of criminals are intriguing. An over-used concept that I've read about before, sure, but you can tell the author fleshed out laws and hierarchies in it. I appreciate her for that. This isn't a lazy-story, this is just an ill-written one. So, I'll give it 2 stars. Because writing is hard, and the only novels that deserve 1-star are the lazy ones.

I don't believe I'll be reading the sequel. I can't see this series saving itself as long as Nina is the star in it. She's just not someone I root for.

Brutal. Full of flawed, fascinating characters. A wild, eventful ride from start to finish.

"In the violent urban jungle of an alternate 1828 Paris, the French Revolution has failed and the city is divided between merciless royalty and nine underworld criminal guilds, known as the Court of Miracles.

Eponine (Nina) Thénardier is a talented cat burglar and member of the Thieves Guild. Nina's life is midnight robberies, avoiding her father's fists, and watching over her naïve adopted sister, Cosette (Ettie).

When Ettie attracts the eye of the Tiger - the ruthless lord of the Guild of Flesh - Nina is caught in a desperate race to keep the younger girl safe. Her vow takes her from the city's dark underbelly to the glittering court of Louis XVII. And it also forces Nina to make a terrible choice - protect Ettie and set off a brutal war between the guilds, or forever lose her sister to the Tiger."

The dark, gothic criminal underground of Paris was such an amazing backdrop for this retelling.

(Yes, this is a Les Mis retelling.
From Eponine's perspective.

I know, I know. Feel free to make dinosaur noises, and squawk like the adorable, awkward, nerdy pigeons we all are.)

It felt...Cozy...If that makes sense? I often find myself describing a world "cozy" when the author has made the setting feel something akin to a home for my imagination. The criminals are cutthroat, and the city is alive with mystery, and mischief, and smog; it breathes life into the narrative with every turn of a page.

"Now these are the laws of the Miracle Court, as old and as true as the sky; the Wretched that keep them may prosper, but the Wretched that break them must die."

Ah, *chef's kiss*
Pure poetry.

I will say: You do not necessarily have to know the story to enjoy this interpretation of it. This retelling is so richly imagined and somewhat faraway from the original (in a good way!), that if anything, knowing the story will only make you smile at the some of the ways in which the author has flipped things.

Now, make no mistake: Nina is not the heartbroken, lovesick Eponine we know from the classic tale and the beloved broadway musical ( 🎶do you hear the people sing 🎶). She is cutthroat, clever, and menacing. She does not shy away from saying the honest thing, or doing what is painfully right (or wrong). I found myself wanting to shake her for the lengths she was willing to go to get what she wanted, and protect the people she loved. The closest thing she ever comes to being heartbroken and lovesick is in regards to her sister(s). I won't say more (because spoilers) but - the girl loves fiercely. FIERCELY.

Also, just one of the many things I loved about this story: Nina.has.somany.love.interests. This was one of the many changes from the classic tale that I loved. She's not just pining over one guy. She's not pining over anybody, tbh. She's pining for her family. I think in so many narratives (especially in fantasy novels), we see mainly men who get to have several flirtations with so many female characters, and it's rarely ever the other way around.

Let me just list each fine specimen:
1. St. Juste
2. The Dauphin
3. Montparnasse

It is a love RHOMBUS.

All of them, with amazing qualities. All of them - exceedingly attractive in their own ways. St. Juste with his fiery sense of justice, the Dauphin with his kindness and tenderness, and Montparnasse WHO WOULD DIE FOR NINA. WITH HIS SILENT, FEROCIOUS, FOREVER ENDURING LOVE. YOU ADORABLE LITTLE ASSASSIN, YOU!

I don't want to pick sides (I love you all, bebes) but I'm clearly leaning some-type-of-way.

My only complaint: I wish there hadn't been so many time jumps. Obviously, it's an element of the original tale, but time jumps have a tendency to make me feel disconnected from characters. I want to suffer with the characters. But that's just me. They were artfully done, though.

There are so many other things/elements/characters that I could go on and on about, but that would turn this review into a book report...Hehe.

Anyway, if you loved Eponine, or Les mis, or 'Six of Crows', or anything to do with kickbutt heroines, sisterhood, and brutal criminal undergrounds systems - this is the one for you.

A big thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for sending me an ARC of this book!

A really clever and interesting retelling of a story I feel like I’ve known since childhood. I really loved the characters and the idea of the guilds, I thought that it was a creative and interesting setup, and I personally enjoyed the brilliant personality written in to the guilds and the characters themselves.

Such a great story. I would love to see more books as amazing as this one. It's an amazing story with great characters!