Tehlor Kay Mejia has a brilliant and creative mind whose work is always a delight to read. Lucha of the Night Forest is no exception and is a great addition to YA fantasy canon.

Lucha of the Night Forest follows teenaged Lucha, a poor girl born in the Scar, as she tries to keep both her feckless sister and mother safe. Lucha's mother is addicted to Olvida, a drug that causes her to be violent and unable to provide for her daughters. So it falls to Lucha to strap on her knife, make deals with Alan, a corrupt, power hungry boy she knew from childhood, and fight the supernatural monsters in the nearby forest to earn enough money to be able to feed her family. After rescuing her naive, drugged sister, Lucha teams up with Paz, a mysterious and powerful girl she met one night on a quest to rid the land of Olvida once and for all. Lucha is more powerful than she knows, and her quest will lead her into a battle among gods and goddesses.

The strength of this book lies in its characterizations, its use of Spanish words, and in the way it handles the relationships between characters. The romantic relationship that slowly develops between Lucha and Paz is handled very sensitively, and examines ups, downs, and moments of doubt with care. High school or early college would be a good target audience for this book.

Lucha of the Night Forest was absolutely fantastical! Mejia wrote a story that was so well written I found myself flying through the pages, unable to put the book down, pondering what would happen next. My favorite piece of this entire story was how believable the characters were.

The writing is clear and clean, and very immersive. The book hums along at a good clip, but the pacing makes sure we're given time to breathe between plot-intensifying moments. The story was absolutely engaging and the work that went into the settings was noticeable and superb. I felt absolutely transported and I'm so incredibly glad I was able to read an arc of this story.

With a life that provides few options for protecting loved ones from harm, striking a dangerous bargain may seem like the only path forward in Lucha of the Night Forest by Tehlor Kay Mejia.

Living in Robado, Lucha laments her time there as much as the next person, especially with the horrors she experiences of Olvida, a forgetting drug, which her mother is addicted to, and the hunting of dangerous creatures in the forest Lucha undertakes to make ends meet for herself and her younger sister Lis. When their mother hasn’t been home or reported to work, the sisters face the threat of eviction; determined to save them, Lucha leaves to sort things out but when she returns home finds that Lis is gone, offering herself as collateral to stave off eviction. Angered by this turn of events, Lucha unleashes a display of power aided by El Sediento, a legend of the forest, that results in her being held captive. Caged, Lucha has little to do but seethe and plan; striking a bargain with El Sediento to rid Robado of Olvida in exchange for her help on a task at a lightening stricken tree deep within the forest, Lucha’s escape and rescue of Lis, with assistance from Paz, a goddess devotee helping addicts Lucha encountered on the street, leads them on a journey through the thought-to-be uninhabitable forest. Emotions are high while trying to survive but the tension between Lucha and Paz grows, reaching reach new heights when the trio are ambushed by followers of the goddess and taken in; Lucha learns vital information that helps her with her decision on how to deal with El Sediento, protect her sister, and manage to have freedom.

Quickly paced, the story progresses at a rapid clip, moving from action point to action point; while most of the major questions raised throughout are answered to some degree there’s still a lingering sense of absence of deeper development of both character and plot beyond more surface-level changes, especially with the long time that Lucha spent locked away that was glossed over rather quickly. The world and the social structure that has kept corruption and drugs at the forefront to manipulate its people is well-portrayed but the role of the acolytes of the goddess within the world and how they became a discouraged group didn’t come across overly well or organically and neither did Lucha’s mystical creature hunting role feel adequately contextualized, apart from serving as an indicator of her strength and independence. Using the concept of a “chosen one” through Lucha, it was refreshing to have a perspective on it that emphasized the importance of an individual’s will and choice in influencing events as they unfold and that if it weren’t through Lucha then the events would come to pass through someone else in time.

Overall, I’d give it a 3 out of 5 stars.

*I received a copy of the book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was very excited to read this book as I love good, rich world building (there's even a foreword in the book about the importance of worldbuilding to a fantasy novel). But, unfortunately, I found the setting and characters just kind of fell flat for me. I found Lucha really cold and aloof, her sister very immature, and Paz's character was almost "too good" to be believable. The romance between Lucha and Paz was also kind of strained, I felt. There was a big "woe is me" subtext that Lucha seemed to carry throughout that was fairly off-putting.

I also thought that the setting of the forest could have been developed better, seeing as it was a major part of the story; but I never got a very clear picture as to what being in/around the forest would have been like. Overall, the book had a cool concept and premise but it was poorly executed, making it hard to read and engage with.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. I’ve read several of Tehlor Kay Mejia’s books, especially the Paola Santiago books and have enjoyed them. I was looking forward to another great read from this author but for me, this book was hard to get into. It felt like the story was coming together towards the end of this book.

“Life was made of choices. Destiny was a myth.”

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

just. go pick it up. right now. well i guess preorder it because it doesn’t come out until march. this was an excellent fantasy novel. the magic isn’t *too complex* the situations are relatable, the characters have DEPTH. it’s a dystopian novel with an oldest daughter complex as the trope and it’s got friends to enemies and A MAGIC FOREST and oh man.

I feel like Lucha was able to learn a lot about herself throughout this story, and I’m not sure if this is the first in a series, but I think I would be interested to see where it goes if it is. It is fast paced, but I think maybe a little is lost in that pacing, but again, that would make sense if this is the first in a series.

All in all, five stars all day. The cover is beautiful, the writing is wonderful, and you feel for literally all the characters. Even the Bad Guy.

There is something about Tehlor's prose that makes me want to swallow it whole, and this is in full effect for Lucha Of The Night Forest. The imagery is so stunning, the world so beautifully crafted, the pain and the sorrow and the aching want seep through every word.

The desperate strength of Lucha, the care with which she holds for her sister, the magic imbued in their world, all of it completely enchanted me. Yet it's still the kind of book that twists your insides, cruelty and darkness very much present. Yet the way that Lucha claws her way forward, the way she pulls herself to her goal with pure grit, I fell in love with her. I fell in love with everything about her, and what she is trying to accomplish.

It is truly a brilliant book all the way through.

Thank you, Random House Children's, Make Me a World, for allowing me to read Lucha of the Night Forest early!

I never read anything by Tehlor Kay Mejia, but I think this was a very beautiful book, not a perfect one, still a very interesting one.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Random House Children’s for providing me with a digital arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Lucha of the Night Forest is a book I was very much looking forward to in the upcoming year–I mean, look at that cover! However, there are major issues that hindered my enjoyment of the narrative.

By the end of chapter one, I was wishing for more context within Lucha’s lifestyle and how it fit into the backdrop of the larger world around her. Little explanation was given as to what her motivations are for fighting these mystical creatures as well as how she gained training to do so. Readers sort of blindly follow in Lucha’s lead, and it doesn’t feel like Lucha has a grasp on what’s even happening herself. It is for this reason I believe the narrative would have benefitted from the 1st-person perspective rather than 3rd-person limited. There is something just removed, distant, and seemingly tongue-in-cheek about the writing. The following is an excerpt used as an example to convey what I mean: “One girl against the might of Robado’s greed and the men who protected it best. Of course she fell. Of course.” In all, I do not think this story had a cohesive plotline, which directly left me confused as to what was going on.

Of the things I liked about Lucha of the Night Forest was the author immediately dropping readers into the conflict. This made the narrative feel more paced. I also liked how Nature is personified and given character throughout the story. The strong and accurate characterizations, especially of those stultified by addiction, were heartbreaking.

This narrative just wasn’t for me, but I encourage everyone to try the book for themselves!

This book was...a mess. Let's start with the good things. The cover is beautiful and what drew my attention. The description was intriguing but really didn't describe the book at all. The writing was good with some occasional quotes I liked.

There was no goddess, Lucha had known that for a long time. No savior. There was only what you were willing to do for the people you loved. Only what you were willing to pay for their freedom.

Okay on to the rest.

I really liked Lucha, the main character, a lot at first. She reminded me of my favorite character, Katniss Everdeen, and their situations were even similar. A stronger older sister with an absent mom who is the sole provider for her little sister. Except Prim wasn't a brat :( Everything was going okay and then suddenly everything was just happening so fast. At one point, Lucha is in a cell apparently for months described in a couple of paragraphs. I had no idea she was in there that long until later when she reflected on it for like two seconds. Lucha and her love interest had maybe a total of four conversations between a couple of days before Lucha decides she loves her...but she doesn't.....but she does. The romance felt very shallow, and even by the end, it hadn't gotten any deeper. It felt like there was supposed to be a blossoming romance with the antagonist but only in weirdly worded sentences that just eluded to clouded feelings before bouncing back to hate.

Everything was just...confusing. It felt like reading four different books at once as Lucha's feelings for anyone including her own sister weren't consistent. I went into this book thinking it was the beginning of a series, which made the ending even that more disappointing. The ending fell flat and really made me feel like I had read the whole book for no reason.

This story explores some heavy topics in a beautiful way. It raises conversation around drug use and how that can tear people and their loved ones apart. As well as how governments make it easier for certain populations/demographics to get it, thus making them easier to control. It shows how easily loneliness and despair can allow someone to be influenced into making devastating choices. While simultaneously showing how the power of love- insert 80's overture- can overcome that. The prose was lovely and just detailed enough. The setting was eerie at times and also beautiful. I thought Lucha's story was compelling and thoughtful. We got to see her fully transform physically and emotionally. Watching her battle the duality of good and evil, while coming into her own was lovely. Her love for her sister drove her, but her love for herself is carrying her on. I really enjoyed the ending, even if it had me tearing up a little. I will admit I didn't find myself always excited to sit down to read this, but I did enjoy it as a whole. 3.75-4 stars for me.

The strength of Lucha, the main character is what drew me in and that's because Mejia does that right with every story she writes of a strong female lead who comes into their power in a way that empowers others. Where I was lost was the world itself and that's partly because I tend to get lost in the details and find higher fantasy harder to understand- it's through no fault of the writer of these enriching stories. So it's a not for me, not a no in general.

Either way the fight against good and evil (when there's SO MUCH EVIL) was epically written and as the story climaxes, you can't help but root for Lucha and all she must overcome.

I really enjoyed this book! This is my first book from this author so I didn’t have any expectations but I ended up liking this book more than I thought I would! I found the story and the characters compelling, fully realized and very original. A lot of time in YA fantasy a lot of stories feel like stories that you’ve already read but this book felt totally it’s own. I loved the main character Lucha and her journey kept me on the edge of my seat wanting to read more. I would definitely recommend reading this book!

I normally really love Mejia's writing, but this one just didn't click for me. I was never fully invested in the story, and I didn't care about the romance. I think my expectations may have been to high, which affected my enjoyment. I wouldn't say this is a bad book, it just wasn't for me.