This book was so wonderful. It sucked me right in from the begin. It has some very amazing characters, and a plot that has you on the tip of your toes. This book really made feel with the characters. I can't do anything else then recommend this one!

“Mercurial” has immense potential but a very slow start and, at a time when I was overwhelmed with work, that made it very difficult for me to finish. I’d love to revisit this book at a better time, but right now wasn’t a great one.

You know when you're watching an old sports, coming-of-age movie and there's that inevitable moment when the team you're meant to be rooting for is failing SO badly? Like, man, has this team never even seen a *insert sport of choice* game before? And then! There's the magical moment! The switch! The moment when the coach pulls them aside and reminds them all of why they're here. They begin to believe in themselves and voila! The game (and their reputation) has been redeemed.

That's very similar to my experience with this book, with a few significant alterations.

The first and perhaps most notable one being this is a novel, not a team.

Beyond that, there was the fact this game - er, book - never fully got it's redemption. The second half was SO much better than the first, but it was still nowhere near what it had the potential to be. Which, I believe, is my biggest critique of this book. Don't get me wrong! I enjoyed it! But it was undeniably a shadow of what it could have been.

The world and plot was pretty interesting on its own, but what really made this story were the themes the author delved into. Not very many YA fantasy authors have decided to take a neutral, considerate approach to themes like religion and the different ways religions can help/harm different groups of people. She managed to do it in a way that really got you thinking, while pointing out the traps people fall into and the beauty that can come from religion.

And that's not even starting on the Destroyer and the walking moral dilemma that she was.

With that being said, I still had enough problems with this book that kept me from enjoying it the way I should have. As I mentioned earlier, I had problems with the first half of the book. It was so slow and not much happened, which brings me to another problem I had and that's the problem of 'telling not showing'.

Now, if you've ever been a part of the writing community, or even just the book community, you've heard the age old argument over show-not-tell. And here's the thing: both are necessary for a good story. The trick is knowing what to show and what to simply tell. This was a problem that I kept finding with this story. In the prologue, a decision is made and a union is formed between two characters. In chapter one, we've skipped two years ahead and are already moving past said union. We keep being told that this character does horrible things, but we're very rarely shown them (this does improve as the story carries on, though.) We keep being told these characters feel a certain way, but I very rarely felt like it was represented in their actions.

Overall, this was by no means a perfect book, but it was still enjoyable and I would recommend it for the themes alone.

Are you into enemies to lovers books? Good. This is one of those.

The destroyer is a soulless human who kills anyone her sister, the empress demands. And Tal has made a metal oath to defend the destroyer and thinking it is what his god wanted. Thought he could save this soulless human. But can he? Things go awry and the destroyer is led on a journey that shows another side to herself and tal as well.

I highly suggest this book, it’ll keep you on your toes at all times. The writing was very well done. I’d say I hope there’s a second book but the way it ended could go either way. It managed to end in a way that doesn’t need a second book, but at the same time I wouldn’t mind reading more about the characters.

*I received an ARC from netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review*

A very exciting and intriguing story that kept me riveted from the beginning to the end! The characters were relatable and I was rooting for them, and the plot was seamlessly pulled together.

What does it mean to make a choice to kill? What about making an oath that forces you to always protect or find someone and kill them? Would you do everything it takes, even murder, for your faith?

From the start, Hughes worldbuilding and description of the characters drew me in. Right away I wondered why the Destroyer is her sister’s (the Empress) weapon and whether or not her health issues are of her family’s making. Once she loses her memory, it’s almost like she’s a different character entirely, which makes her more sympathetic, and thus the relationship between her and Tal, who has sworn (with magic!) to protect her, even more fraught because as the synopsis says, his sister Nyx tries to kill her. Oops.

I read this book in one setting and would absolutely read it again! I recommend this to any readers who like romance, adventure in a fantasy setting (especially magic), strong characters, and 20 something year old’s trying to save their world when they would rather be doing anything but that.

Full review available at https://thefandomentals.com/mercurial-makes-engrossing-fantastical-read/
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"You were right when you said I loved Elodie. But you were wrong when you said you weren't her."


Finished this in one day, that's the level of obsession I had since the first page. The story was very original, with good world-building and complex characters. I really liked the plot and the "not all is black and white" vibe of the book, and all the fight scenes.

Now, I was expecting an enemies to lovers, but I wasn't ready for it to be so well done, Tal's feelings are so well developed it made me crazy. He truly hates her and he's truly falling for her too, this is a TRUE enemies to lovers where one scene is him almost killing her and another scene is him noticing a little romantic detail on her. It was so amazing, almost my favorite thing, cause Elodie is my top one.

"My name is Elodie. And I will forgive who I wish."

Her character is truly amazing cause she doesn't change abruptly, is a slow recognition of the girl she had always been.

This is a 4 stars only because I couldn't stand some of Nyx's pov and because I hated the little moments we had of Tal and Elodie, I'd love to see more of them, it felt like the end was rushed, and we almost didn't read them together. But it's an amazing story anyways.

I loved this unique fantasy novel.

This is the story of the Destroyer and who she is without her powers and memories. It's the story of Tal, her bodyguard, who idealistically swore his loyalty to the Destroyer. It's the story of Nyx, the sister that Tal left behind. These characters' path's twist around each other and create a truly wonderful tale.

Will Nyx kill the Destroyer? Will Tal fall for the girl beneath the Destroyer's façade? Will the Destroyer embrace a new path?

I loved how each character had their own struggles and demons to overcome and the way the plot wasn't entirely predictable. Honestly, this book caused the "binge-reading" phenomenon and I couldn't put it down until the end. I just had to know what happened next.

Also, I really am hoping that the author has a sequel planned. (This had a standalone ending, but was open enough that there may be a path for a sequel). All in all, this was a solid YA fantasy, and I look forward to more fantasy inspired worlds from this author, Naomi Hughes!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the author, Naomi Hughes for this e-ARC. I really appreciate the opportunity to read this gem!

On the face of it, this is not a book I should enjoy.

The setting is dystopian, and usually I avoid that genre diligently. It contains torture and cruelty. But the blurb, and the opening, made a pretty strong promise that this would give me a redemptive arc rather than a pointless grimdark tragedy, so I pushed on through the two or three initial chapters of horror until it started getting hopeful.

Not that things then became easy - not at all. The author has done a masterful job of keeping tension, setting up seemingly insoluble dilemmas, and then resolving them in a way that's both surprising and inevitable. It's a book of driven, damaged people struggling in a cruel world, and yet somehow finding their way to a better one through love, devotion, self-sacrifice and faith.

Initially, the metal-based magic reminded me of Sanderson's Mistborn books, but it's quite a different approach. The worldbuilding was not the strongest aspect; the way the magical people worked (and a few incidental moments, like the bone viper, which functioned a lot better as a metaphor than it did as a real animal) stretched my suspension of disbelief, sometimes to breaking. But the strong characters and plot made up for it for me.

I received a pre-publication copy via Netgalley for review. Apart from consistently getting "lay" and "lie" the wrong way round, and a few other verb glitches, which I hope will be fixed by publication, it was well edited, considerably above the usual standard.

Recommended.

More science fantasy than grounded, hard science. Still, an overall fun time. The characters stayed with me, most, vs. the science ideas presented here. Overall, I would not recommend this to my students (the classroom) for any science-based curriculum.

Tal is a bodyguard, sworn to protect The Destroyer, the most feared person in the Alloyed Empire. When an assassin’s attack leaves The Destroyer without magic or memories, they’ll have to survive the wilderness together to save her kingdom from the war that her death could spark.

First and foremost, the writing in this is so, so good. The use of magic is clever and original, and the underlying political tension throughout the whole book is really just great. I have a lot of problems with this book, if I’m being completely honest, but the writing was gripping and so thoroughly enjoyable that I really liked reading it.

It reads almost exactly like an Avatar: The Last Airbender fan fiction, in the best way possible (ahem, fem Zuko and Sokka, anyone?!). This both made me very happy but also somewhat conflicted because I was stopping fairly often and just questioning if that was on purpose or just a coincidence that my brain kept jumping to.

Mercurial also includes my favorite romance tropes, enemies to lovers, but there’s such important conversations of trauma and forgiveness that are associated with that relationship that I think makes this relationship stand out so much from other books that use that trope. It raises a lot of questions on how someone should be morally judged, especially in fantasy books where murder is really glossed over as something that just happens, and it was very refreshing as a theme in a YA fantasy.

I can’t write a review of this book without talking about how there’s a lot of really thinly veiled Christian preaching in this one. Like, A LOT. The use of religion in it is a major plot element, and it brought up some very uncomfortable feelings in me about coerced religious conversion. The characters loosely quote The Bible, and a vast majority of the conflict in this book stems from different interpretations of the religious texts that the characters believe in. What is most unsettling to me about the religious characters is that [SPOILER] the main villains, the extremist Saints, are the only characters that are described as being dark-skinned, and commit suicidal assassination missions under the guise of religious beliefs. It just left such a bad taste in my mouth because I immediately compared it to how some Americans believe that all Muslims are violent extremist zealots. Just, no thank you.

The lore of this universe was set up really well, but explanations of it felt really rushed occasionally. For example, you can tell that there were certain well thought out rules to how magic works in this story, but they were given throwaway explanations right at the end, as if the author just kind of remembered to explain them at the last minute. [SPOILER] Much of the ending had a rushed feeling to it. For example, the fact that the crown contained the magic that they needed exactly when it was needed just felt like such a cop out.

To be completely honest, I would not have read this book if it was not handed right to me because the cover art is so bad and the summary reads very differently from the way the book is written. I’m a graphic designer, I know how to market things on the internet, and this book wasn’t exactly sold to me in the way I’d want it to be. I really don’t go for books with illustrations of the characters on the cover because it changes the way that I think about them while reading. While the characters in this book can easily be imagined as not white, the cover is like uh yeah, they’re white, and I feel like this really limits them to a reader.

All of this being said, the TL;DR is that you should read this book if you like YA fantasy and wish that you could post all of the fan fiction that you secretly read on your Goodreads/bookstagram page. There are a lot of things that really threw me in this book, and even though I did genuinely enjoy reading this book for most of it, upon further reflection, it really is only worthy of 3 stars for me. It’s a standalone, so you won’t feel lost in the lore, but it’s a quick and exciting read that you could spend a weekend falling into if you don’t get caught up on small things in fantasy.

When I first read the blurb of this book I was excited,YA Fantasy is one of my favourite genres and a magic system surrounding metallurgy seemed interesting.

However, I just couldn’t really lose myself in it unfortunately as,to me it seemed that the introduction to characters Tal and Elodie (the destroyer) to whom he has pledged to serve as bodyguard-felt a little rushed and the world-building seemed to me,to be a little lacking. I feel that maybe this just might be a problem for me as I know many people have enjoyed it immensely.

I also want to give a huge thank you to Net Galley for the e-ARC.

~ received as an ARC from NetGalley ~
3/5 Stars

Okay, look, I really wasn't digging this but the cover is BEAUTIFUL and I'm a sucker for the more unique magic systems like the idea of metals being in blood and causing certain magics. Things I liked: the magic system, the pacing, Elodie/The Destroyer. Things I didn't like: the world building could have used more to support the magic system, Nyx (BLEH), and the alternating POVs.

3/5 instead of 4/5 because all of the alternating POVs between Elodie, Tal, and Nyx were operating on their own wave lengths and didn't necessarily interact until the latter 1/4 of the book. While it helped develop the story, I don't think Nyx's POV was necessary. It also just fell FLAT at the end with the conclusion.

I adored this book! A true tale of redemption and forgiveness.

The Unforged God sent Tal visions over the course of a year, urging he to swear to The Destroyer, the sister of the Empress. Tal swears an oath to the cruel, cold, deadly girl and, two years later, he’s disgusted at the things he’s done in her service and feeling abandoned by his gods.
A face from Tal’s past returns, hellbent on freeing him from his oath. Plans are set in motion, causing The Destroyer to be stripped of her powers, leaving only the funny, loyal and scared girl behind. Tal is caught between his memories of The Destroyer and the new reality of the girl, Elodie, now before him. What will win out? Hatred or love? Just how strong is Tal’s faith?

The story was beautiful and the characters were fantastic! I especially loved Helenia, who proved that forgiveness is not weakness.

My only critique would be that we didn’t see enough of Elodie as ‘The Destroyer,’ before she was stripped of her powers to fully gauge her previous personality. Having said that, I loved her and feel that would of been difficult had she been too villainized at the beginning! 🙈

Thank you to Naomi Hughes for a copy of this self-published ARC via NetGalley.

I want to thank Netgalley, Naomi Hughes, and Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles for giving me a chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I will talk about the characters first; in truth, I was a little disappointed with how the personality of The Destroyer introduced. The way that the narrator talk about how fearsome or dangerous she is, I just didn't find it in her. It's more like a case of the narrator saying she is "bad" instead of just showing how bad she is. However, I find her personality inside as soft. I can see her have some dufficulty to hide her humane or "good" side, so in her thoughts she's this kind of an in-denial girl who wanted to be soft but forced to be bad. It's also interesting when I came to the part where this book gave me a context on why she became the Destroyer in the first place. I only realized that the author somehow focused on the Destroyer's personality as Elodie. It became more explored and I enjoyed the time that I read her characters as "Elodie". Another character that I already find interesting in her first few scenes is Nyx. She is a representation of LGBTQ character. I really find the personality of Nyx as very complex. She has done some bad choices but not to the point that she is unlikeable. Her logic and reasoning is really admirable to read. And the way that she will analyze some certain things first before acting upon it is great. I am not saying that her character is perfect, she clearly have some issues but it really made her character realistic. As for Tal, his character is a little difficult to find some specifics on how I should evaluate him. I mean his character is also interesting but there are some moments in the book that his character was switching on and off in development. Sometimes he is logical and mysterious but there are also times that he will step back with his decisions and reasoning instead of going forward. What I mean when his character is also interesting is because every time Elodie and him has a conversation or interaction I can sense that he really cares for Elodie but he clearly hold it back with his hatred for her. I feel sad for his character also because his anger towards his Unforged God. His beliefs are also on and off but it is really understandable because he also stated that he really doesn't know if he is a believer or not anymore.

As for my whole experience with the book, in the beginning it is already easy to understand and I did not had a hard time getting immersed into it. This book is also thought-provoking when it comes to oath or promises. It is really fascinating to see in this world how much they value promises until death. The bond between the two pair of siblings---Tal and Nyx, and Sarai and Elodie--- are so incredible. Each of their relationship is caring but unique in their own way.

And also, one of the things that I thoroughly enjoyed in reading this book is the humour! The interactions, the comebacks, the comments between the characters is perfect that there are times that I actually need to stop reading for a second just to laugh. Especially the interaction between Tal and Elodie are very amusing to read. When one of the characters said some sort of "captive falling for their captor" I just realized that this book is some sort of retelling of Beauty and the Beast but gender swapped. It is really good!

It is also keeps getting interesting as I unravel the world. The magic system is easy and simple. Though I am a little unsatisfied with how the political and cultural system explained and shown in this world. I just wished that it explore more of the rebels, the silver smiths, the background of why this certain family rule or the standing of each person in the heirarchy. It has more potential if it provides some context on why some of the things here are happening.

Overall, I rated this book 4 out of 5 stars. Although i'm a little unsatisfied, I still really enjoyed my time through this book. And I totally recommend this to everyone!

This book was pretty darn good.
About the Book:
The book, Mercurial, centers around three characters (Elodie(AKA The Destroyer), Tal, and Tal’s sister, Nyx). They‘re from two very opposite rescues of the social ladder, and it just gets more complicated from there.
Elodie, AKA the Destroyer:
Elodie, the sister of the empress, is practically a person weaponize, pointed at domestic enemies of the empire, and stripped of her humanity so she would enjoy it. But, she finds someone she cares about in Tal, guard and the only person she trusts.
Tal:
Tal is a silversmith, which makes a him a trader of the empire, who bound his life to the one person most likely to see him dead because who’s god told him to do it. He should hate Elodie, he wants to hate her, but finds the real her harder and harder to dislike.
Nyx:
Nyx is a rebel and a desperate sister willing to do anything to save her brother. Even if it means clawing The Destroyer the empire down to do it.
What I am iffy about:
- Tal. Tal, Tal, Tal. It takes him until the end of the book the fully except Elodie! Sure, the plot was great and all but I was hoping for him to see the light earlier. I guess that’s a me problem though. It probably doesn’t bother others so don’t let me sway you with this little bit.
- I wish the author could explain a little about the world. The deviation between social classes with the level of metal in their blood was genius, but we don’t know much about the world. Is the whole empire cold, are all ruling fractions empires, etc. The author tells us about the people, but not much about the land.

What I loved:
- The character development was AMAZING and they were easy to empathize with.
- The idea for people’s power source was original
- It was gorgeously written
- I WANT MORE! Naomi Hughes, I’m begging mercy! They’re finally in a good place, but the books over. Ahhh!!!

Okaaaay so I received an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review! 😊 THANK YOU NETGALLEY!!! And I chose this book because of the bomb COVER!!! 😍😍
Starting with the most enjoyable parts. . . this book’s plot was too good! The pacing was perfect and every single scene keeps the plot moving forward. I was super excited and nervous at the same time, but NAOMI HUGHES aced it! The character development was greatttt throughout the book!!!!
Its packed with loads of action. . .twists and turns! ❤️❤️ I am excited to check out more from this author! ^_^

This book is told from the perspective of three characters: Tal, the reluctant bodyguard of the Destroyer who has magical fire powers and a long body count; and Nyx, Tal's sister who wants nothing more than to see his brother safe and away from the Destroyer.

What first attracted me to this book was the cover and I'm very pleased I decided to pick this up as I'm now obsessed and invested with these characters. The main cast of characters were wonderfully relatable and complex and go through fantastical development. Hughe's writing made me fall in love with the characters very quickly, their inner dialogues really made it easy to connect with the characters and understand their actions.

The writing as a whole really captured me, the worldbuilding was done very well by combining world details with the plot so there were no big chunks of information given at one time. It was fast-paced and engaging, simply good writing.

One of my favourite aspects was the sibling relationships explored throughout the book, from Nyx and Tal's loving sibling duo to the Destroyer and the Iron Empress' cold but fierce bond, it was really interesting to delve into these relationships.

My one criticism would be the use of 'modern' language that feels out of place in this setting and at times made me cringe. Other than that, I can't fault this book and I just wish there was more!

If you're a fan of fantasy, complex characters and wonderful family and romantic relationships then I recommend this book for you.

Mercurial tells the story of Tal, Elodie and Nyx. Tal has vowed to protect Elodie (who is known as the Destroyer at the beginning of the book), but has long since regretted his vow as he thinks his god is making him suffer without cause. When the Destroyer loses her memory and becomes Elodie, Tal is finally able to put a stop to her reign of terror as she also lost her magic. (I won't spoil it any further, you're just going to have to read the book!)

I loved the characters in this book. They all seem to go through a great deal of character development, which made it a lot of fun to read.
The story was set in the Alloyed Empire. In the Alloyed Empire, people who have metal in their blood have certain abilities. I loved the story building, it made me feel like I was actually there.
Another thing about Mercurial that drew me in, is the religion and faith that are constantly explored. For example: Tal vows his loyalty to the Destroyer based on visions of his god and Nyx then comes to save Tal also out of her religion.

Fast-paced with an interesting premise. You're introduced to the main characters right away {The Destroyer and Tal). It's a pretty easy read, which I'm sure a lot of teens will enjoy.

However I feel the story would've benefited from being a duology instead of a standalone. At times the plot seemed rushed, and though it was well thought out, I would've wanted to see more development, and more world-building. There were a lot of things that were just mentioned, and I would've preferred to see more showing than telling.

I do enjoy the role of religion and faith in this story, and that is one thing, as well, that could've been explored more. All in all, a solid read.