House of Marionne is a mix of Secret Societies, Magic, action, forbidden romance and Dark Academia. Quell learns that she possesses a deadly magic that is known as toushana, and anyone that is found to have that dark magic is subject to death so she has been on the run with her mother since she can remember. The moment comes when she meets her Grandmother, Quell discovers into her family's past. Her grandmother just happens to be the House of Marionne, an academy that teaches witches how to harness and use their powers. There's no friends here, just enemies.
Quell is loyal, sarcastic, smart and strong FMC. I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.

This is an amazing book filled with outlawed magic, family secrets, assassins, a forbidding hero and feisty heroine. It has a unique plot, and I hated to see the book end. The female lead was chased into an alternative magical world by assassins where she attended and competed at a school of magic. However, her magic was forbidden, and discovery of her talents could result in her death. It was a compelling read to see how she grew in her talents, kept her secrets, avoided her assassins and succeeded in the competitions against her peers. I highly recommend this writer and her book.

this was an entertaining and engaging book!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this book to review.

J. Elle's fantasy writing is great as usual. This blends fantasy with dystopian themes, dark academia, and a really unique magic system. I think it could have benefited from a tad more explanation about the history of the world and magic, but it is a series so I'm assuming we will learn more as we go on in the books. The characters were given a lot of depth and the suspense of Quell's mission keeps you on the edge of your seat. The pacing was great!

ARC review:
⚔️ House of Marionne ⚔️
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
.5 🌶️/5

“If this world is made of glass, I will dance with a hammer in my hand”

I was honestly surprised by the number of reviews where people said they didn’t finish the book. They missed out on a lot! Personally, I really enjoyed it and couldn’t put it down. While it’s a slow-paced read, there’s always some sort of action unfolding. The world-building is wonderful. Full of magic, diadems (that emerge in unique ways), enemies to lovers (kinda), and thrill. The ending delivers a twist you won’t see coming and leaves you on a cliffhanger!

The story centers around Quell, a 17-year-old main character who has spent most of her life living in the shadows. She and her mother are constantly on the run, hiding a darkness within Quell that she doesn’t fully understand. She knows very little about why they’re fleeing, about her toushana, or the life she was born into.

Quell has been through 14 schools in 12 years, and just three weeks before graduating from the one she’s finally settled into, everything changes. Draguns have found them. Now, without her mother, she must flee to an unknown place (well kinda)—the House Marionne, where her grandmother is the headmistress. This is where people with "light" magic train and graduate through the 3 Rites. But Quell is different—she’s fighting a darkness inside her, that she’s sure only she possesses (and knows the consequences all around her). Jordan, her mentor, who starts off their relationship in a rocky way, slowly unwinds.. and maybe she isn’t so alone in it all. Can she trust him, or will he turn on her like his job is meant to? All of the Houses (Perl, Ambrose, & even Marionne..) are filled with mysteries—people disappearing, lies, and hidden agendas. As the story unravels, Quell faces a crucial choice: will she bind herself to the light, or to the darkness she has known all her life?

My first J Elle book, and what a powerhouse!

Phenomenal world-building and a unique magic system. Truly, finding something that's so different - that feels like I haven't seen it before - is exactly what I needed.

Is it fantasy? Absolutely. Dystopian? Gut-wrenchingly so. Magical Realism? Probably. Afrofuturism? Not quite, but you could definitely argue for that. Magic school? Oh, not like anything you've imagined.

What it really is? Pulse-pounding action, angry feminist (and rightly so), and a main character who will live in my head for a long time. Seriously, Quell is amazing.

Black dahlia and oleander? The language of flowers says it all. I'm looking forward to book 2.

"I was seduced by... the allure that I could fit into a place so magnificent. That being here would tell me who the girl in the mirror is, when it's how I saw her that needed to change. I'm still figuring out who she is. But whoever that girl is - she is free."

House of Marionne is by far one of the best fantasy books I’ve read in a while. The perfect mix of Secrets Societies, Magic, and Dark Academia. This is book is freaking Awesome! Definitely Recommend!!!

This was such an interesting academy style story with a unique magic system. There were so many layers as well. Quell started the story on the run with her mother but then ended up alone and ran to where her mother was trying to keep her from.
Was very fascinated by the diadems and the different specialties. Jordan is her sponsor but they also didn’t have the best intro. They def fell in love as she learned more about the magic and then this ended on a cliffhanger.

I really struggled with this one but not at the fault of the author! The concept is fun and I did like the characters, but I think it just wasn't the best match for me personally. I do appreciate the opportunity to review it though!

A great first book. I enjoyed the storyline and world building. The magic was harder to grasp on understanding.

Quell knows she's has dangerous magic, magic that would get her killed. After finding no where to go she reaches out to her grandmother who is the headmistress of a magical academy. She manages her new world with a grumpy mentor. Twists and turns, backstabbing and secrets, Quell navigates it all.

Unfortunately this was not for me

thank you netgalley for the arc !

2/5 stars

read if you like:
♡ dark academia
♡ enemies to lovers
♡ slight bridgerton vibes

Rating: 4/5
I received an eARC for my honest opinion.

Okay, I am so happy that I had the chance to review this book and the next one. Where have these books been! I really enjoyed this book, and I can see the greatness of where the plot is going, as well as the characters.

The plot was something different from what I have read before when it came to a new magic system. I do wish we could have gotten a little more information on the history of magic, and hopefully we will get more info from the next book. I liked that the author didn’t give you an info dump in the first book and it does start off strong and it was consistent throughout the book. I found the pace to be steady throughout the book because you’re really just getting to know the characters and see where the plot is going in this book. I liked that this book was like a mystery, fantasy, romance book all wrapped into one. The world that the author created was done well, and so intriguing. I loved that it was dark academia, secret societies, that was packed with action.

The characters in this book were well done as well. You will meet the MFC Quell and learn that she possesses a deadly magic that is known as toushana, and anyone that is found to have that dark magic is subject to death so she has been on the run with her mother since she can remember. All she wants is to live a normal life without the fear of being hunted. So, when she gets the chance to learn more about magic, she comes up with the idea to learn more about the light magic and see if she can hide her darker magic away forever. I liked that she was determined to learn, but at the same time she is determined to make sure no one ever finds out about it. However, the moment she meets her grandmother she knows something is off and she can’t tell what it is until the end and let me tell you it’s a big secret. I liked that she is friendly to others and that she does care about others feelings, but she is on a mission to understand more about magic and the kind that is running through her veins then get back to her mother. She does meet a handsome young man named Jordan and even though their relationship starts off as more friendly enemies that grows into something more. I liked that he was tough and a little standoffish right away, then the more that you get to know him you will see a different side to him. He is a rule follower, but you will slowly watch him come out of his shell the more that he is hanging around Quill.

That ending though!!! Like I am so happy that I have book 2 so I know what is going on and let me tell you WOW!! You need to read this series if you love books with magic, great plot, fun characters, action and mystery.

I want to thank NetGalley and Penguin Group for the opportunity to review this book.

This book was a little confusing as there was a whole new world that was being developed there were many things that I did not understand. Also I felt like parts of the book kind of dragged on but the ending was wonderful. There were so many things that came to light in the end that I was not expecting and I am looking forward to picking up the next book to see what happens next.

DNFing at 22%. It's been three (3) weeks of reading this and I have no desire to pick it up again or any investment in the characters or plot. Which says a lot because there's an assassin's POV and I'd usually eat that up, but I just cannot find the motivation to read more because everything fell so flat.

The House of Marianne is an interesting mix of Mortal Instruments, Fourth Wing and maybe some other YA fantasy novels, but made regal? The concept of the book and the magic system were intriguing, but maybe I’m just not into these types of books anymore. I’m interested to see what other novels the author writes in the future. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

On the run and trying to stay alive, Quell ends up isolated from her mother. With nowhere to go, she runs to the only place she can think of to hide: her grandmother’s. Her grandmother just happens to be the House of Marionne, an academy that teaches witches how to harness and use their powers. The problem for Quell is that she is hiding within her a dangerous entity that everyone wants to kill…including her Grandmother.

J. Elle puts a lot into building the world of Marionne and its students. There are lots of details from the students, to the building and halls, to the world it encompasses. It is filled with intrigue, magic, and betrayals.

I think I’m going to give a spoiler here, there are no true friends here and that is what the story needs. For all of the world building, Quell is on her own. Huge stories like this do better if they have at least one do or die friend even if that friend gets killed at the end (chuckle). It’s just heavy on doom and gloom. Then it ends on a cliffhanger. I’m not a huge fan of reading over 400 pages and then not even having a “happy for right now” just blackness for the whole story. It makes me not even want to read the next book. There are people who love this type of story though so don’t take my word for it. If you love constant darkness with no light, then read this.

Quell is a great character. She is strong, smart, and a fighter. She’s loyal and sarcastic. If you are in a dark alley and trapped, you want her by your side and that’s without her magic. J. Elle has created a great character with Quell.

Angst. Action. Magic. Doomed, dark, and forbidden romance - check. If you like all of these genres, then the House of Marionne is for you.

Originally I tried to read this book AWHILE ago and it just wasn’t working for me so I put it down. Recently I decided it’s been some time, I’ll give it a whirl again. Sadly I DNF’d it again. I just couldn’t get into the story. The writing felt very choppy and inconsistent, which kept taking me right out of the story. Also I just ended up confused a lot of the time. I couldn’t tell you anything about the story. I didn’t get far enough in but also spent the whole time I was in the world, a bit confused. I’m sad about this one, it sounded perfect for me!

This was a pretty good start, but the FMC spent a lot of time in internal dialogue hashing and rehashing what she wanted vs what was actually happening and it made the book drag a little. It reminded me of that saying, Wish in one hand, xxxx in the other....and I wanted the plot to move along faster. I was intrigued with the diadem concept and Emerging, and would love to see one of those booktok videos on it! I enjoyed this enough to carry on and see what Book 2 has in store!

I love YA fantasy and this was a really good. I was entertained the whole book and I felt There was really good world building and character development. I made me want to read the second one right away!

Such a good storyline. I love the different take on magic in this book. I will have a more in depth review on my instagram and good reads. But just know I loved it and am looking forward to seeing more of Quell’s life.