The Blot a plague where ink takes over peoples bodies and kills them. Shae is concerned she might have the Blot and has not told anyone that what she see in her dreams come true. Hush is set in a dystopian world where a few control the plague and where people are forbidden words and stories. When Shae's mother is murdered she needs justice. She goes in search of the Bard's to see if they will help her. When Cathal, the leader of the Bards discovers that Share has magic he takes an interest in her. He agrees to help her find justice for her mother if she helps him get a book. Yet things are not what they seem. You can't believe everything you see or trust everyone. Will Shae be able to find out who killed her mother?

An interesting storyline and it ends with a cliff hanger. I liked it but didn't love it. I just felt something was missing from the story that would make me love it. The magical system could have been developed more but that is just my view. Also the characters in the book didn't leave a lasting impression on me but like I said overall not a bad story.

I wanted this to be a four or five star read, but something about it kept it from reaching those heights for me. The concept of the illness, the blot, and the unfolding plot full of magic and mystery, lies and truth, and misdirection were well done. I tried hard to like each of the characters or try to find some quality that would appeal, but they each fell short in some way. All this being said, I will still give the sequel a chance when it comes out.

When I saw the description for Dylan Farrow’s YA fantasy debut Hush, I was intrigued by the premise. There’s an original, magical world with exciting elements to be explored here, but unfortunately, the overall development is half-baked at best.

Seventeen-year-old Shae lives in a world without books and written language due to the Blot, a pandemic-style disease that infects people through the use of ink. The only people allowed access to such materials at the magical Bards who oversee the nation, traveling to the villages to grant “miracles'' that sustain the communities… if they gain the Bards’ favor. On top of banning books, the Bards have a slew of taboo words and activities for the everyday citizen. Disobeying means death.

Years after her brother died from Blot, Shae and her mother are outcasts in Montane. The people fear that they, too, have Blot. Then Shae finds her mother viciously murdered and is told by the Bards that what she saw was not real-- her mother died in an unfortunate accident. The experience opens up a new revelation: That Shae has reality-altering magic of her own. Suspecting a murderer among the Bards, she joins their ranks, training to become one of them while secretly trying to hunt down a killer.

Thrilling premise, right? I wish the rest of the novel lived up to it.

To give the novel some kudos, the early worldbuilding really worked for me. Montane felt like a dreary but very real village. Its mistrust of Shae jumps off the page in a pretty visceral fashion. The way townspeople are expected to turn on each other to appease the Bards is chilling. As Shae travels, the places she goes to leave a mark. The magical system that rules over the kingdom and gives the Bards their power, however, is never clearly defined. Nor is the history of the kingdom beyond Blot occurring and somehow allowing the Bards to take power.

The worldbuilding shortcomings could be forgiven if there wasn’t a much bigger issue with plot and pacing. Shae’s magical abilities cause her to lose grip on reality often, thrown into a chaotic state where she can be sure of nothing. This is fascinating TO A POINT. The novel quickly becomes so caught up in Shae’s real-or-not-real fever dreams that it forgets focus on a plot beyond that. Shae is investigating her mother’s potential murder, but everything is interrupted by her breaks from reality. Perhaps it’s meant to be purposefully jarring and drag you into an unsettling headspace, but instead it’s tedious.

The repetitive nature of her illusions is not helped by the fact that, to me, obvious villain is obvious and the minimal red herrings provided felt wafer-thin. Throughout the novel, Farrow is trying to deliver a message about victimization and gaslighting that should be particularly poignant coming from her, but it’s tangled up in so many distractions that it never fully develops. That was probably the most frustrating part for me.

There’s also a wet cardboard love interest. It’s been a couple months since I finished the book and honestly, I don’t remember his name.

I’m not saying Hush is a horrible book. I just think it wasn’t fully there yet. Farrow’s ideas are good, but need finesse and development. As a writer, there’s plenty of potential, it just feels like Hush needed a few more brainstorming sessions to shore up the plot and more investment in the character interactions.

First of all, I want to thank you for the opportunity to read this novel.
It started out great but lost steam halfway through and it took me two tries to get through it. I can’t give it more than 3 stars so I won’t post a review anywhere else.

I enjoyed learning the world that was portrayed in the book and would like to explore more.. I have no doubt that I will read at least one future novel. I do not like obvious cliffhanger endings and did not like our main character's fate left dangling.
That said, I believe that Ms. Farrow has talent and will read at least one more novel written by her. Hopefully the next will have better character development and not leave so many gaps in the story. At times It was a frustration read because I lost my mooring.

I really wanted to like this book. It sounded so cool and had such an interesting premise and a beautiful cover and a lot of buzz, and I was so stoked to be granted access to the e-arc on NetGalley but instead, I struggled with this book for months. The prose was great and descriptive, the characters were engaging and I was interested in the world-building and wanted to know more about all the mechanics of how things worked. The problem I had probably ultimately comes down to preference and taste. I hate to say it like this but reading this book was a very miserable experience for me. Miserable strictly in terms of plot in that we start out with our main character in bad and unhappy circumstances and then as the book goes on it just gets worse and worse and worse and somehow even worse. The first 35% of the book could basically be called a Series of Unfortunate Events in that Nothing good happens and then it keeps getting worse. There were three distinct points where I was struck by how unhappy I was reading but just kept thinking that if I kept going it would get better and that things couldn't get worse and then somehow each time it did! It was such a melancholy experience. I'm not saying everything has to be sunshine and roses but there was nothing to hold onto for me, no indication is given that things would turn around any time soon. I'm all for gritty and dark and realistic if done right but if you don't give me any light at all or any glimpse of joy to hold onto, I'm going to give up. I hated to do it but that's just what I did here. I was still curious about the Bards that Shae had met earlier as well as her power but my curiosity and interest wasn't strong enough to beat the misery the rest of the plot was giving me. Maybe I'm not in the right headspace for that much unhappiness this year though. It is well written and interesting but just not for me.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me the opportunity to review this title.

This is definitely an interesting concept and there is some groundwork laid, but its very bare bones. I didn't feel like the magic system was explored enough, the characters are pretty one-dimensional, and the pacing/flow is off at times. and I couldn't shake the feeling that I was constantly missing something to really connect all the dots throughout.

I think there is enough content to build upon and improve as the series progresses, but the jury is still out as to whether I am interested enough to continue reading the books.

Despite it being boring and confusing, I still liked the novel because of the themes and messages that it presented.

Hush is a compelling read set in a fascinating world where the phrase "words have power" has an entirely new meaning. Dylan Farrow's debut novel was an intriguing anthem for using your voice and speaking up for yourself and I'm curious to see where her writing career will go from here.

Amidst the effects of a plague spreading through ink that has signed the restriction of written words and the exclusion of certain words from speech, a sister and daughter—Shae—is out-casted and all alone after losing those who were closest to her, In a world where words are power and can only be possessed by the privileged ones blessed with pure magic, a young Shae finds herself creating magic. Following the mysterious death of her mother, the main character runs to a group of prodigious people who promise to use words for the betterment, like growing crops or inciting rain, but are high on Shae's list of suspects. With a whirlwind of secrets unraveling and illusions shattering, this tale also explores power in its raw form and smoothly hints towards a timely theme of silencing those below the dominant. However, the strong exclamation of an adamant teen girl is often replaced by a mismatched voice of stereotypical balance commonly used to highlight a young chosen one—which is annoying, to say the least—and the debut underdelivers in the aspect of feminism with no true female friendships or platonic relationships explored, unless a particular dialogue from the story: "us women have to stick together" is considered even slightly powerful.

I had a hard trouble putting this down, it kept me so interested and kept me continuously turning the page to find out what would happen next. This was pretty interesting, from reading ya fantasy it made some plot points predictable.

I loved how unique the world building was. The idea that speech is a form of magic and that there is a disease called the blot or indigo death. The story is about power struggles and how truth is important. I am excited to read the next book.

I was super excited about the concept of this - murder mystery and MAGIC? Sign me up. However, I would have loved the magic system to be a bit more developed and the characters to be more well rounded. The writing was BEAUTIFUL.

Love the magic system, love the plot, love the twists and turns, and I love the characters, I thought this was a captivating, amazing story that I couldn’t get enough of and didn’t want to put down.

I love the premise of this book. Fantasy reads are not my preferred genre but there was something in the blurb that reminded me of Neil Gaiman's books, which I love. It is a good, entertaining debut but a little lacklustre in parts where I felt my attention wandering. I did finish it though and, while not for me personally, I do feel that it will do well in the YA market.

Okay, so to start, I love this cover! It easily caught my eye! I was also intrigued by the story blurb and am really glad I picked this one up.

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a debut novel, and I'm happy I picked it up! It has everything you wanted in a YA fantasy: curses, magic, epic adventure and characters to root for! Also can we talk about how this book has a strong female lead too? I recommend this book if you love YA fantasy and you want to lose yourself in a magical and dark adventure.

Shae, a 17-year-old girl, has been cast aside by many because of the tragedy that has touched her at such a young age. She has a best friend, Fiona who she adores and another friend, Mads, who knows how to make her smile. Between losing her little brother to a disease that is basically a curse and her dreams that blur reality, it was the murder of her mother that let her know she can no longer pretend that everything is normal.

This was a ride that could have been both shorter and longer at the same time. I really liked Shae’s relentless attitude and pursuit of the truth. Her mind played so many tricks that even I felt crazy questioning several outcomes. I thought her decision to go seek answers were both bold and terrifying. Having never left her small time, Shae had a lot in store for her.

With the stigma of the Blot, I understood the way some people treated her in Aster. I however did not understand the hate radiating off of most of the Bards in High House when Shae first arrived. I was under the impression that they all started out the same way, as recruits. I had my doubts about several people and a little disappointment in others. There were some moments that I thought were too convenient but then I was proven yet again not to trust everything I read.

This was a really good fantasy filled with lots of secrets and mystery. I was left with several questions so I cannot wait to get my hands on book 2.

Oh my! Hush is a must read for fans of YA fantasy! I loved this book. I was drawn to it by the stunning cover and was thrilled to discover within the pages all the best elements of a five star fantasy: a curse, a labyrinthine castle, dark secrets, and powerful magic and a strong female lead. Creative and exciting, Hush is one that should be on every reader's TBR!

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

“Sometimes being extraordinary is to be extraordinarily lonely"

Name: Hush
Author: Dylan Farrow
Series: Book 1 of The Hush Series
Genre: Young Adult, Magic, Fantasy

Well that didn't turn out as I wanted it too. I was very excited to begin this story and get my hands on a magical and fantastical world, but this plot and this story didn't deliver. I wasn't astounded or amazed by the characters or the whole setting where the story takes places. There are a lot of plot wholes that could have been solved with few less internal banter and more external explanations of the world and the characters.

Hush tells the story of a world where not many people have magic, and those who do are powerful (not very creative). The people that have magic are basically a cult or that was how I imagined them and their purpose is to do these magical spells on the towns that provide goods and money to them. However, there is this "sickness" that is spreading and killing off the world? Shae is our main character and she lives in one of the poorest towns, she has always felt she was different. After her brother and her mother's death she runs off and finds this "school" where she basically learns she is one of the magical beings.

The story was very all over the place, hence why my summary is not very detailed or great. There's a very good idea behind it, I love schools and dark academia type of stories where there are magical and creepy cults, but this wasn't creepy or fun to read. All the plots twists were so obvious and the questions (the important ones) are never really answered. All though I know this is the first book and another one might probably come out to answer these questions I felt as thought we should have at least grasped the sense of the story or where it was going, but I never really got it.

One of the things I really didn't enjoy was the character development, as I felt it lacked in a lot of places. Our main character seemed bland and the love interested is stale bread. You guys know how I love my dose of romance, but in this story it was just thrown out there as a subplot and it wasn't even development enough for us to AT LEAST root for the lovers. There is not even a kiss... It all just felt like a high school crush for me.

There are some details here and there that caught my attention, but overall the story was so confusing to read and not developed enough for me to be invested in it.

"I wonder if he realizes that his words have the opposite of their intended effect. The more he taunts or warns me , the more determined I am. I want to see the look in his eyes when I prove him wrong"

* I received this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*


-- 2 stars --

#Dylan Farrow has a new fantasy novel #'Hush' out. And it's quite the debut YA novel. Dark, powerful magic, and a labyrinthine castle. All the elements of a winner.
Thank you,
#Netgalley, # Dylan Farrow and # St. Martins for the advanced copy