Talia does not like Mystics. She believes they are all scammers after one told her she wasn't really sick. When her boyfriend admits he is a Mystic and wants her to meet his family, she decides to try and be open-minded. Talia learns that his family isn't all bad and starts to change her opinion of Mystics until the wedding party goes into a coma and she is blamed. As she tries to prove her innocence, she learns truths about herself and her family that shake her beliefs.

Lumara is a stand-alone fantasy novel that sounds like it would be a captivating read, but in reality was one-dimensional. The last third of the book redeemed the majority and I finished happy I stuck it out. This is a short read, so most readers won't feel frustrated with the overall storyline. I recommend this book for those who need something to read, but not worthy of a TBR list.

Boarding school student Talia Morris has the perfect boyfriend in Nathaniel Woods. That is, until he reveals to her that he is actually a Mystic, someone who was born with magic...and Talia hates Mystics. But she loves Nathaniel and he loves her. When he invites her to be his date to his cousin's wedding and begs her to give his family a chance, she reluctantly agrees. What starts off as a beautiful adventure in a magical place turns dark when the entire bridal party falls into a coma and Talia, the only outsider, takes the blame. She goes on a journey to find the truth and it turns her entire world upside down.

The world in this story feels so dull and normal until Talia and Nathaniel reach the magical island of Lumara and I think that was exactly the point. It is reminiscent to me of the start of The Wizard of Oz - the "normal" world is in black and white and the color only shows up once they reach the island of Lumara. Once we reach the island, the author is able to paint a picture that brings it to life and makes you wish you could be there.

Each of the characters had such depth and complexity. They all had their own motivations and it's clear from the get go, but as the story progresses, you can see how much more was hiding under the surface. The foreshadowing of certain plot points was sprinkled in effortlessly, but some of it did feel pretty obvious (or I have just been hurt too many times and can't help but read into every little thing). While the magic systems were fun, I didn't completely get the feeling of "all magic has a price" in this world, though there were certain bits where it was clear there was a price.

The story overall was fun. I was able to guess most of the later revelations in the story (and it frustrated me a bit that the characters didn't see it), but that didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story as a whole. I was actually so engrossed in it that I finished reading after only a few hours. It's a quick read that is categorized as YA, but I think that even my seven year old daughter would also have enjoyed it (and probably had big reactions to and been surprised by some of the reveals).

Talia hates Mystics. After being defrauded by a mystic healer who couldn't heal her congenital heart problem but took her thousands of dollars anyway, she knows that they're all con artists. So imagine her surprise to learn her long-time boyfriend was one! She agrees to go to the secret mystical island where he's from for a fancy wedding, and of course, everything goes sideways pretty much immediately as the bride and her love ones are cursed in verrrry dramatic fashion.

The beginning of this book was really strong - the mystics and the worldbuilding felt unique but were integrated into the story pretty seamlessly. I got sucked in. But then, as the story began to unfold I started to lose interest mostly because the characters are a little one-note. I like standalones because I don't have to read 8 books to get the story but find that character development often suffers which was the case here. Everyone is likable but a little bland. The plot moves pretty quickly once the curse unfurls, but it's pretty predictable. There were a few surprises, though, and on the whole, it's a quick moving, creative read. I'd definitely read another book by this author.

TLDR: Lumara is a stand-alone fantasy with likeable characters, creative worldbuilding, and a fairly predictable plot. I think teen fantasy lovers will really enjoy it. I liked it! 3 stars Goodreads, 4 stars on Netgalley.

Thanks to Disney-Hyperion and Netgalley for the eARC which I received in exchange for an unbiased review. Lumara is out 06 Dec!

Wow! I just got blindsided by an unexpected twist!

This book starts off as the tale of two adorably over-achieving students at a posh boarding school who adore each other. The girl, Talia, has a debilitating heart condition and her mother died early from another illness so she just has her father, aunt, and cousin in her life. She attempts to get a cure for herself from what is essentially a magician, but when he can't help her she turns into an anti-magic social media influencer while staying top of her class. She then finds out her boyfriend has been concealing the fact that he is a magician from her, everything goes sideways, and it turns out this book is not at all about boarding school. This is magical murder mystery was a quick read and the ending was open enough there could be a potential sequel, although it wasn't a cliff hanger.

A dark curse, revenge, secrets, betrayal, and so much more lie inside this story about one girl’s mission to cure her family curse and save herself... but is she willing to pay the ultimate price? The story follows Talia Morris, a girl who has hated Mystics ( magical users) after her mother died being conned by one and when she herself was conned by one when she went to have herself cured by magic for her heart problem. A year after that incident she is dating the boy of her dreams, the handsome and popular Nathanial... who just happens to reveal to her that he is Mystic himself and wants to invite her to his family’s home and his cousin’s wedding. Talia is reluctant at first but he wins her over, except at the wedding reception 14 people fall into a mysterious coma and there is message left from the hex user : find the person who cursed my family and the cure or in 7 days those people die. Yet Talia’s memories are unlocked.... the person she has been has been a lie created by her family and that her father and her were the ones to create the curse in order to get a cure for her since she is dying.... and that Nathanial and his family are the enemy... yet now Talia is locked on this island and being accused of the crime... and if she doesn’t find a cure she’ll be sentenced to death... so now it is up to her to find out who really cursed her mother and her, who the strange ghost boy who haunts her is, and what truly went on between her family and Nathan’s before it is too late for everyone. This was a pretty interesting story snd I loved the twist and turns of the story, there was so much revenge and magic and it was a fun ride. I do wish at times the characters made different decisions and that the final ending had an added epilogue or something to give the ending a bit more of a finish but overall I did enjoy this book. This is a story about the bonds of family, just how far we are willing to go for those we love, mistakes and forgiveness, and atonement. This was a great read that would definitely keep you intrigued until the end.

*Thanks Netgalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

This is perfect for reads of Holly Black, Leigh Bardugo and Cassandra Clare. Excellent pacing, drama and interesting characters.

"Lumara" is full of plot twists and intrigue. In a world where control can be magical and revenge is plotted by the most unexpected characters, Lumara introduces a new heroine who is a puppet and a player.

I hope there is a sequel in the works. I want to know more about this world.

Engaging fantasy/mystery with plenty of twists and turns. Read it in a single day!

Summary:
The MC, Talia, has a congenital heart defect, the same defect that killed her mother. She attends a Mystic conference in hopes of being healed, but instead is conned out of her money, leading to an intense hatred of the Mystic/magical community. When Talia is invited to her boyfriend's private island to attend a wedding, it comes with the devastating news that he is a Mystic from a powerful family. Talia agrees to attend the wedding and attempt to set her contempt for Mystics aside, but Nathaniel's secret isn't the only one uncovered when she arrives on Lumara. When the wedding party is cursed and suspicion falls on Talia, she is going to have to piece together the mysteries of her family’s past before it’s too late.

Worldbuilding:
Lumara has a contemporary real-world setting where magic users, known as Mystics, are a known part of society. Mystics are celebrities and hold conventions where you can purchase spells and magical objects. I thought this was an interesting take, as magical communities in other contemporary fantasies are usually kept secret or hidden from society at large. Due to the small scope of the story, we don’t see too much of how this society functions, but it certainly set an interesting stage.

Characters:
Talia is in constant conflict over her own identity and comes off as a bit bland. Her character arc primarily revolves around her finding out who she is and what that means for her relationships, while uncovering the secret of her family's curse and their ties to Lumara.
Talia's boyfriend Nathaniel was somewhat one-dimensional compared to his more interesting and complex sister Olive, but the character's function was as a plot tool to get Talia on the island, so it is understandable. I did feel like his reactions were believable and appreciated that he set boundaries and ended his relationship with Talia after she broke his trust.
All of the characters in this story read as realistically flawed people with understandable motivations. Many of the actions they take are morally wrong, but a lot of the story is devoted to explaining why the characters act as they do. It leaves the reader with a lot to think about, and leads to a complex conflict where each party believes they were justified in their actions.

Plot/Pacing:
The strength of this novel was the plot. The numerous instances of characters not being who or what they seemed, and of secrets being uncovered made for a quick, engaging story. I thought it was interesting that the central conflict and arc did not belong to the main POV character and that she was merely collateral damage in a multi-generational curse. I felt like the mystery unfolded at a natural pace, and while there were no real surprises or twists that caught me off guard, it was still very well done.

Lumara is a magical island hidden from non-magical people. Our main character is visiting to be the plus-one for a wedding, but she was anti-magic before then. The story has an awkward shift around chapter 10 where it is revealed that our narrator is not really who we or even she thought. There is a mystery to solve involving a crime she purportedly caused.

I read the story the whole way through. The shift was strange as if there had been additional material in between that was edited out in a choppy way. It wasn't a matter of a cleverly crafted unreliable narrator, but instead the result of edits. The relationship the main character has with her own family is under-developed, so I did not really feel sympathy for her at the conclusion of the story or even find her reaction realistic. That said, the dialog between the characters flowed, and I appreciated that not everything was tied up with a tidy bow at the end. I also greatly appreciate that this is a stand alone story and not part of the trend to stretch every YA book into a duology or trilogy.

I think fans of Harry Potter and Fire with Fire would appreciate this title. Thank you NetGalley and Disney Publishing for this ARC in exchange for my review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this novel. I am rating this book based the stars due to lack of time to leave a full review.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley.

The cover of this book pulled me in and the description was intriguing. Netgalley says this book is for ages 12 and up and this book mostly leans toward MG, but there were a few small parts that felt like YA.

This was an easy read and I do think many middle grade students would enjoy this book because it has just enough complicated elements that lend itself to drama, but it also remained (somewhat) quaint and wholesome. There were a few scenes of death and pain, but nothing was described too grotesquely. Romantically, the characters never went farther than kissing, though other things were alluded to (just a little bit though).

Sometimes in books there are details that are unnecessary. In this book, I wanted more details, and more relationship descriptions. Talia's life basically turns upside down and the book went through her life more like an action story, but I wanted a bit more pause and reflection. I wanted this book to be a bit cozier and slower. Descriptions of magic were entertaining and I think there is a series that could be explored about the different kinds of magic in this world.

I was expecting a cliffhanger ending, and blessedly, the novel did wrap up and had a conclusion. (Hallelujah! Stand alone fantasies are so rare.) Though I would read a sequel of Talia's life if one is written.

Overall, I enjoyed the narrative, and I'm interested in reading other books by this author, as I do believe middle schoolers would very much enjoy her writing style.

Thank you NetGalley and Disney publishing Worldwide for the opportunity to read this arc copy of this book.

Lumara is a about a young woman who suffers from a heart condition in a world where Mystics have conventions similar to a Comic-Con. Talia wants to have her heart healed so she can live, but the mystic would do nothing for her. Talia’s hate of mystics are assured. Later, we find her going to a wedding on an island of mystics with her boyfriend, Nate. Soon after, everything is thrown into chaos.

The story kept me going and going. I finished it in a sitting. I kept wanting to find out who, what, when, where, and why!

There was so much going on but it didn’t seem chunky or heavy. It was revelation and new mystery throughout the book.

I loved the characters. Talia, Nate, Olive, and Kat were all different, bu5 I do admit they could have been fleshed out a bit more. The world building for Lumara was good. The feel of the island was all there.

A plot twist did send me for a curve. I guessed a couple of them, but the first true curve ball was unexpected.

There were a few places where I needed to go back and read because I missed something or I was confused by the action.

Other than that, I really liked this book.

Thank you again NetGalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide for this arc book.