Title: Unseelie
Author: Ivelisse Housman
Release Date: January 3rd, 2023
Page Count: 387
Format: Netgalley
Start Date: December 15th, 2022
Finish Date: December 30th, 2022

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

Before I start my review, I want to state that I feel that it's very important that you read the author's notes in this book. It sheds some light on this book in ways I couldn't tell you. It also gives a glimpse of who she is as a person. That said, I want to start by saying that I'm so in love with this cover. I can't remember how I came across the book. I can say that I'm glad I did. The story was amazing. I connected so well with Seelie. I have ADHD. Seelie is autistic. I never realized how many parallels there are between the two. It was so wonderful being able to read a book that represented an autistic character. I'm sure there are others out there, but this is the first one that I've personally come across. I fully recommend this book and I really can't wait to get my hands on the sequel!

Unseelie was definitely a solid debut!

Things I loved:
* The fae and changeling elements
Seelie's narration + autistic rep (I really loved this part and thought it was so well done. It was also the reason I requested an arc)
* Heist + quest vibes
* Sisterhood/ Sisterly bond
* Found family + bickering
* A house brownie disguised as a cat
* TINY dragons!!!

I did feel like it had a bit of a slow start, and I had a bit of hard time getting into the story at first but the story quickly picked up, and I found myself drawn into it later, loving all the fantasy vibes!
I especially love Seelie and her story and narration. All in all, it was an enjoyable read and I'm very much looking forward to the sequel.

This book had many wonderful aspects, including an awesome magical wagon, a house brownie, and, best of all, an autistic protagonist, Iselia (Seelie). Seelie’s character was refreshing—she was real. She fiercely loved her family, struggled to make sense of everything happening to her, and occasionally failed. Unfortunately, the story fell flat for me. I’m picky about fae stories, and this one packed a lot in.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed the characters and their arcs throughout the novel. Housman’s writing conveyed the depth and emotion of her characters, especially those of Seelie. This is an important book. I can’t remember reading a fantasy book with an autistic character, not to mention a fantasy novel with an autistic protagonist. I hope we see more books like this one. Thank you to NetGalley and Inkyard Press for the ARC!

As a girl who only has a brother, I'm a sucker for a book about sisters. My first thought was, ooh fairies, and my second thought was, neurodivergent representation!!! The plot, the pace, and the people were all engaging and enjoyable, but for me I don't think this one was a top contender for the year. I will definitely be following up on future books from this author.

After many months of diving into the romance world, I decided to read a YA book and Unseelie did not disappoint. In Unseelie, we embark on an adventure with Seelie and her twin sister Isolde. Seelie, a changeling goes through a discovery of who she is and why she is different. Seelie finds it difficult to interact with the human around her and it becomes much more difficult when her magic wakes up and she has to navigate what it means for her. With a goal to become rich and powerful Seelie and Isolde meet two new friends who have the same goal in mind. After a heist gone wrong and a powerful magician they need to stop, Seelie is thrown into a world where her normal routine of things is wiped away and she has to , along with her sister and new friends, understand the origin of who she is and where her magic came from. Unseelie is a novel that captivates the reader and leaves us wanting more after the story is done.....for now.

Two things really popped out to me during Unseelie - character development and world building. The world building was so well written. I was able to have enough information to envision the world Seelie was in while still leaving room for my imagination to fill in the blanks. In regards to characters, I really loved Seelie's character development. If I haven't mentioned before, Through everything, Seelie remained strong and really gave way to how well the story went. While we did get characters like her sister, I do wish that there was more mention or development of them that would allow the reader to also fully invest in their part of the storyline. There was somewhat of a romance budding in Seelie and Raze, but I think it wasn't developed enough to root for it. In fact, I think the story would still be great if there wasn't a romance. In regards to Seelie's origins and the exploration of that in the novel, the author did a great job in being really intentional on how this was written. That exploration was something I really enjoyed the most in the story.

I always find pace to be important in a storyline because it can make or break the interest of the reader. I enjoyed the overall pace and how the first half of the novel we were given the info needed and then in the second half we get the action and suspense that the information was building up to. The pace gave way to a descriptive world, fascinating characters and an overall immersive experience for any reader, including myself. Unseelie takes you through twists and turns, beautiful scenery and characters you can't help but hope they got the golden ticket of their story.

Unseelie was my final five-star read of 2022, and was easily one of my favorites for the whole year! As an autistic reader, there are very few books featuring protagonists that I can relate to on a neurodivergent level, and even fewer that are fantasy novels. I often use fantasy books to escape from the overwhelming real world, so to see someone like myself written into an epic fantasy was simply amazing! I am going to be thinking about this book non-stop and I am really hoping that a sequel will be coming!

Beyond my endless love for the autistic representation, Unseelie had lots of other elements that made it one of my top 2022 reads. The writing had just the perfect balance of humor and tension, both of which enhanced the reading experience for me. The pacing was excellent as well, with plenty of exciting magic and a wonderfully written bond between sisters. While I have not read many books with fae, Unseelie has convinced me that I should try to read more! I especially enjoyed the incorporation of Changelings into the story, as this is not something I’ve seen much of in fantasy novels.

My Recommendation-
Unseelie is an absolute must read for fans of young adult fantasy novels! I would especially urge any other neurodivergent readers to grab a copy, because it is just so refreshing to read from a neurodivergent perspective!

I really wanted to like this one, mainly because of the beautiful cover but I didn’t really connect to it. It didn’t stand out to me as anything special, personally. This was just really slow-paced.

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Not really
Loveable characters? Complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Trigger warnings for Unseelie include: ableism, mentions of child abuse; self harm, violence, blood, and body horror.

If I gave it more of a chance I'm sure I'd get into it more and enjoy it more than I have done. But this year I'm trying to prioritize reading the books I instantly like or the concepts are appealing to me, which this one was. But I'm also trying to allow myself to put things down that aren't keeping my interest and focus. After 35% I had no motivation to keep reading.

A good fae fantasy without all the romance that those usually have. I would recommend this to people who liked Margaret Rogerson's last two books. Good representation and a strong sister relationship. Definitely not for those who are looking for a typical teen/YA fantasy, as in my experience they are usually asking for a fantasy romance.

I am so glad that I decided to pick this book up. It was such a fun read. I loved all of the characters so much and the world was so lush and wonderful. I cannot recommend it enough!

I thoguht this was really fun take on fae story. I really like the unique elements of how austism rep was presnt. I did not feel that connected to the characters and the plot had some pacing issues but i really did like the quest eleemnt of the story!! I was fun new fae read!! I would def check out the sequel!!

I will update the review with the link to on our blog as soon as I can.

I'd like to thank the publisher Inkyard Press, Pushkin Children's Books and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review

I really appreciated the magical systems in this book, as well as the sister relationship at its heart.

I was expecting SO MUCH MORE than what I got. I'm not gonna lie here. This was not the best fantasy. It was very dry. Until the ending, of course, but by that point, I was checked out. Love the cover, the premise hooked me, but the follow-through was not all there!

Thank you so much to Inkyard Press and Netgalley for letting me read an eARC of Unseelie! Unseelie came out back in January, but it took me a little while to read it, because I had a little trouble getting into the book. As soon as I really got into the meat of the story and felt tied to what I was reading though, I was able to power through the rest of the book relatively easily!
Unseelie 3/5 Stars
Summary from Goodreads: Twin sisters, both on the run, but different as day and night. One, a professional rogue, searches for a fabled treasure; the other, a changeling, searches for the truth behind her origins, trying to find a place to fit in with the realm of fae who made her and the humans who shun her.
Iselia “Seelie” Graygrove looks just like her twin, Isolde… but as an autistic changeling trying to navigate her unpredictable magic, Seelie finds it more difficult to fit in with the humans around her. When Seelie and Isolde are caught up in a heist gone wrong and make some unexpected allies, they find themselves unraveling a larger mystery that has its roots in the history of humans and fae alike.
Both sisters soon discover that the secrets of the faeries may be more valuable than any pile of gold and jewels. But can Seelie harness her magic in time to protect her sister, and herself?
Overall, there were some really great elements to this book- I liked the relationship between Seelie and Isolde. I also really liked the idea of Isolde being a changeling- externally, she looks just like Isolde, but internally, she’s really different and that makes life difficult when they’re younger, but for the quest they’re on in this book, it ends up coming in handy. I liked our side characters and all of the cool settings throughout the world. My biggest issue and the reason I gave this book 3 stars was really just the pacing. I had a really hard time getting into the book and then throughout, there were times when I felt as though things were moving super quickly or super slowly, so I kept feeling as though I was getting whiplash. I do still think that I will read book two when it comes out, but it won’t top any of my anticipated lists.

Link to be added once post goes live

Iselia aka “Seelie” looks just like her twin sister, except she’s an autistic “changeling” left by the Fae as a replacement for Isolde, except their mother marched into the Fae’s territory and got her child back and raised both of her children. Now the two make their way pickpocketing and thieving and when they find themselves at a fancy party and in possession of a powerful artifact, they’re chased by others who want it, and not just its “owner.” This is the first book in a duology, so the story will continue.

I have mixed feelings about this one. On one hand I LOVE incorporating the idea that people used to think autistic people were changelings and that is awesome! Not the idea, but incorporating it into the story and having the main character be autistic and tell her own story, be the center of it, and not have thay character shown from the pov of other people.

On the other hand, I didn’t love the story. I’m glad the potential love interest became less of a pain and got developed as a whole person, but I didn’t like him, or the hints of the romance (prolly cuz I didn’t like him, lol), and the story was tense and stressful, though it was adventurous.

I loved the sister bond and the exploration of how Seelie’s autism/changelinness affected them as well as just growing up and apart. Overall, I wanted to love it and I didn’t but there’s still a lot of cool things about it.

Also more neurodivergent rep always and forever, please and thank you, particularly BY neurodivergent authors.

This was a great read. I loved the beautifully written complex sister relationship and the enemies-to-friends dynamic. I also really loved the autism rep, especially as someone with Sensory Processing Disorder who rarely sees well-written neurodivergent rep in fiction. I loved the world building and the unique magic system. I can't wait for the next book!

Good read but didn’t capture me as much as some. I did enjoy the diversity of this book though and that drew me in as well as the sisterly bond between the twin fmc’s . I will continue the duology though and the cover art is *chefs kiss*

Bit of some awkward pacing in the front half of the book, but it tied itself together. Overall a really cool premise that Housman followed through on! The relationship between a changeling and their mortal counterpart interests me a lot, and the twist that Housman threw in is going to be so very juicy in the sequel. Strong supporting cast---reminded me a bit of Avatar the Last Airbender, actually.

I ended up dnfing this book but I think that’s more me than the book. The representation is refreshing and much needed and I’m glad to see it! The issues and characters were just slightly too juvenile for me as an adult reader.

This was my first book with autistic representation, and it will definitely not be my last. I loved how attentive to detail the author was when it came to the interactions that the MC had with the word and people around her. The character growth was done really well, and I felt that it was decently fleshed out. The magic system was fun and i really enjoyed the writing style. Fun fast paced read that will definitely leave you with a great feeling at the end.