"House of Marionne" by J. Elle is a captivating YA romantic fantasy that weaves together elements of magic, intrigue, forbidden love, and a hidden world of secrets. Set in a modern-day society with a touch of glamour and mystery, this novel introduces readers to a world where magic is both alluring and perilous.

Quell, the 17-year-old protagonist, has spent her life on the run, hiding a dangerous magical ability. When her secret is exposed, she is forced into a debutante society known as the Order, where she must navigate a world of social elites and magical rites. The stakes are high – if she fails, her life and her mother's will be at risk. The tension and sense of danger intensify as Quell not only battles to master her magic but also grapples with her feelings for Jordan, her mentor and an assassin in training.

Elle's writing is enchanting, drawing readers into a world filled with ballgowns, secrets, and unpredictable twists. The exploration of Quell's internal struggles and the choices she must make adds depth to the story, making her a relatable and compelling protagonist. The development of morally gray characters and the exploration of the dark side of power and privilege add complexity to the narrative.

The blend of romance, mystery, and magic creates a richly layered story that will appeal to fans of fantasy and romance alike. The author skillfully navigates themes of identity, sacrifice, and the consequences of one's choices. The world-building is immersive, creating a sense of decadence and intrigue that keeps readers engaged from start to finish.

"House of Marionne" is not only a tale of magic and mystery but also a story of personal growth and empowerment. As Quell faces challenges and uncovers the hidden truths of the Order, readers are taken on a journey of self-discovery and resilience. The novel also tackles themes of societal privilege and the ways in which power can corrupt.

In conclusion, "House of Marionne" offers an alluring blend of romance, magic, and mystery that will enthrall readers. J. Elle's vivid storytelling and intricate world-building create a compelling narrative filled with suspense and emotion. This novel is a must-read for those who enjoy stories with strong heroines, intricate magic systems, and a touch of dark academia.

House of Marionne starts out strong with our main character, Quell, on the run with her mom. They’re constantly moving around to hide from magical assassins. (Quell has a form of forbidden dark magic that makes her a target.) Quell and mom are forced to split up and Quell, not knowing where else to go, decides to take sanctuary at her grandmother’s house. She remembers she lived there as a kid, but hasn’t seen her grandmother in several years. Turns out ‘Grandmom’ is Headmistress of the House of Marionne, a magical boarding school. Quell makes the decision to enroll and try to learn to control her magic, all while keeping her secret of her dark magic from everyone. There’s cotillion balls, enemies to lovers romance, debutante culture, magic and dark academia vibes. My only complaint was I felt the magic system was a little unclear or not explained as well as it could be. I did enjoy it and the COVER is gorgeous. That ending has me excited to read the next installment! 4 stars from me! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Teen for the eARC opportunity.

A girl with a deadly magic must join an elite society in order to not only hide her magic but escape from the assassins that are hunting her down. Quell has lived her entire life on the run with her mother, all because Quell has forbidden magic that if discovered, would mean her execution. With assassins hunting her down, her only turn left is to go to her grandmother... but that means reconnecting with a family she never knew before and participating the debutante society of magical social elites, and pass thee tests in order to become a member and finally get rid of her forbidden magic... the only issue? She doesn't know a single thing about this magical world or it's rules, and to make matters more difficult the mysterious and handsome guy in charge of training her is also very suspicious of her and might discover her secret. Unfortunately for me, this one fell flat, I was so excited by the description of the book but it just did not hook me in at all. I love a good academy/secret society kind of journey, but this one didn't really spark anything in me and I just found myself getting bored with the story and the characters. Quell and Jordan didn't really make much of an impression either, and the side characters were forgettable. Sadly the romance felt forced to me and I found myself losing interest trying to just make it to the end of the book. This is the first book in a duology but I will not be reading the next unfortunately. If you enjoy young adult magical society with a bit of romance then give this a go, maybe you'll have a better time with it than I did.

*Thanks Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, Razorbill for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

The House of Marionne was intricately done, but not not well fleshed out. I love Quell. I cannot wait for the second book. The characters fell flat and the twists that happened seemingly had no lead up. I say seemingly because they did have lead up, but the lead up didn't have any meat to it. The magic was never really explained other than a very brief overview. Quell learned so much in just a few months but as a reader I felt like I had to go with the flow or I'd get stuck on questioning everything.
If I were to judge this book off of vibes alone? Easy 5 stars. However, writing and plot into account is what made me rate it the way I did. I will definitely recommend it as a book to read, but not as an introduction to fantasy. If this had been my fantasy book? I would've been very lost.
Overall, I enjoyed it but I'm left more confused than satisfied. I would like the characters, side characters and the main, to be fleshed out and the story to be less point A to D to B then C.

I was immediately captivated by this story!! I really loved it and I have so many questions after that ending!!! Can't wait to see what J Elle does next with this story.

-dark forbidden magic
-school of etiquette/debutante high society
-cool magic system (easy to understand!)
-high stakes
-romance sub plot
-dual pov (but mainly Quell's pov)
-plot twists!!

think bridgerton-esqe vibes mixed with dark academia + magic!!!

Cannot wait for the sequel!

House of Marionne to me read like a Book of Boring. I made it just past the halfway point but this is where I stop. Because I don't care what happens next. I'm not invested. I wanted to love this because the cover is pretty and the synopsis sounded up my alley. Alas, it was not meant to be.

I think a lot of the disconnect lies with my inability to connect with the characters.

We have Quell, a character whose name bothers me almost as much as America Singer. She has dark magic or something of the like, and she's been on the run all her life with her mom. Yet for some reason never thought to try to get answers from said mom. I don't care what anyone says if my mom was acting shady and cryptic after a while we would be having some words.

Next, we have our male lead Jordan. A handsome cardboard cutout that reads "Handsome Shadow Daddy". Because I think that's what we're going for. Sadly, it's falling flat for me because I haven't seen any particular charm or cute banter. Maybe that comes later and I'm too impatient but I have a lot of books to read and not enough time, so I need to make some tough calls.

Then we have Quell's grandmother, the Headmistress I imagine her as the evil fairy godmother from Shrek 2 and who I assume has some shady intentions. However, nothing has been confirmed. Those are simply the vibes I'm getting from her.

Yagrin is there sometimes. He had two POVs that I can recall, and despite being the only other POV character besides Quell he has added little to nothing to the plot as far as I could tell.

Essentially, the bare bones of this book had the makings of something interesting. The magic system and the premise were intriguing. But I simply was not interested.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book! I would say the writing and story felt like the younger end of YA, there was a bit of romance, but no spice at all.

Quell, our main character with a big magical secret, is fun to love, and it was easy to understand her thought processes as she wove herself into this magical society after being on the run with her mother for most of her life. She felt more her age than a lot of YA characters do, which I really appreciated. The romance was slow burn, and I think I need to be convinced that the love interest is worthy of Quell. I’m hoping we see more of him in the next book! I think we would really benefit from his point of view! I could maybe be convinced to love him, he feels like he could be a complex character. We’ll see!

The system of magic was so intriguing, and I wanted to know more! I liked the world building a lot, it had an urban fantasy feel, secret magical society hidden within the United States. There were phones and technology, but also regency vibes. The diadems and daggers were such a cool aspect of the magic! I love the idea of a physical manifestation of magic.

I’m looking forward to the next one, I’m interested to see what happens with Quell and her mom! I’m interested to see what happens with her magic, and Jordan, the love interest.

I absolutely devoured this book-with its dark fantasy, forbidden magic, spectacular setting...everything. I wish I could go to this school! I also feel like J Elle created a magic system that was new and different! I can't wait for more.

I definitely was a bit older than the target audience, but I still had a good time. Don't get me wrong, I love YA, but at moments it felt like it would be a good transition book from middle-grade to YA. The story was interesting but it was hard for me to connect with the characters as much as I would have liked. The formula is there though, it has all the right pieces, I just need a time machine to read this about 20 years ago.

If you like dark academia, female range, a brilliant author - then this definitely is for you. Just go into it expecting it to read a little younger as I was very surprised and it was the main thing that took away from my enjoyment. The magic and premise itself was solid.

thanks to netgallery & razorbill for the free earc in exchange for a fair and honest review!

so as a general rule, i dislike/am very, very harsh on romantasy books. this is not that, at least in my opinion. firstly: i hated the love interest from the first word he spoke. but either way, his importance to the plot was so perfectly in line with the character himself that i couldn't mind his presence too much. i was immediately sucked into the writing and the story; quell's (and every character's, at that) personality is very consistent, allowing me to watch her actions without ever questioning it. world-building is slightly subpar, although i had very little trouble figuring it out myself. definitely going to be thinking about this one for a while.

Wow. I LOVED this story. I had some guesses at the beginning about where the story was going to go, and I was wrong about almost all of them. I loved Quell and Jordan's friendship and am looking forward to seeing how that plays out more in book 2 after the bombshell dropped in House of Marionne. The magic system and how it is for the "elite" of society I found very interesting, and kept thinking "man, I want to have magic AND get to go to balls".
The only thing that I wasn't a fan of was that no characters were described very well appearance wise, so I couldn't really picture them in my head the way I normally would when reading a story.
All in all this story was enchanting, beautiful, full of twists, and everyone loves a good tiara. I can't wait for my physical copy preorder to come in the mail!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for an e-arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I really, really wanted to like House of Marionne. The premise sounds amazing. I also follow the author on social media and her excitement and pride in this book really got me hyped for it as well. Unfortunately, the reality of the book didn't meet the buzz.

First, I want to say that this has been repeatedly touted as "Game of Thrones meets Bridgerton". I do think the author should stop making this comparison. I understand that comparing your work to multiple popular ones is a common tactic for pitching and marketing, but bringing those two TV show's into this creates expectations that aren't going to be met. There is nothing of Game of Thrones nor Bridgerton to be found in this book. It could more accurately be described as an American Harry Potter with a female lead, a darker magic system, and a hyper speed school pace. I get that most wouldn't want to associate their work with HP due to that author's behavior and troubling beliefs, but it would be the more honest comparison that wouldn't confuse potential readers.

For the novel itself, I really liked the world building with the different magic schools run by different families throughout the US. I like that different families and schools specialize in different types of magic. The practice of essentially fostering a member of another school/house/family in another as a way of tying the schools together in peace while maintaining rivalries with each other also sounds very interesting. I just wish the complexity of the world was matched with a story and protagonist that were just as intriguing.

Quell, the protagonist of the story, has no personality. She has a backstory and she does things to move the story forward, but she feels like a blank slate with no life in her. Her relationships also fall flat, especially the forced "romance" with Jordan and the abrupt "friendship" with Abby. I put those words in quotes because, while we're informed that Quell cares deeply for these characters, there's no emotional development in either dynamic. The strongest relationship Quell has is with Darragh Marionne, her grandmother and the headmistress of her family's school. Darragh also comes the closest to being a fully realized character. When we get a reveal about her, I found myself wishing we were following her instead of Quell.

I'm giving this two stars instead of one mostly due to the world building and the interesting premise.

I had a really hard time getting into this one. Part of it is the fact that I am a little over Academy books and they have to be really exceptional for me to enjoy them now. But mostly I had problems with the characters. You can foul up your characters by being too mysterious and therefore stripping them of their personalities. Which happened here. Also, sadly the entire premise is based on the MC doing the one thing she was told not to do, and some stunning lack of communication.

People who are desperate for more Academy type books will probably enjoy it. And the cover is absolutely gorgeous.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin group for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

House of Marionne is about Quell who has been on the run since she was five. When her past finally catches up to her she goes to the only other place she knows, which can be where she has the most at risk. The book was really good. I liked the world building. It kept me engaged the whole time. I am looking forward to the next book.

Dark academic ✔️
Magic ✔️
Enemies to lovers ✔️
Forbidden love ✔️

The House of Marionne had it all! I always says I don’t read fantasy, but I enjoy it every time I read it 😅

This book was SO tense. I caught myself having to cover the rest of each page so I couldn’t read ahead.

Impatiently waiting for the next book in the series because that ending?! How dare! Twists and a cliffhanger and I was just not prepared!!

Can’t wait to read more!

For as long as she can remember, Quell Marionne and her mother have been on the run from a past that threatens to hunt them down. A poison lurks in Quell’s veins, and even as she accepts the need to change schools and homes frequently—often at a moment’s notice—she desperately wishes for some consistency. A few weeks before her high school graduation, the two must depart again, but this time the enemy is more visible than it has ever been before. And when Quell invokes the power of a necklace she wears and finds herself on the doorstep of her estranged grandmother, she finds herself walking into exactly the world they have been trying to escape.

This intriguing young adult adventure is a good fit for fans of Harry Potter who are ready for similar, yet more mature, storytelling. Quell’s grandmother runs a school for those with magical abilities, and the students there are all equipped with varying skills. Memorable descriptions, unique characters, and ample levels of mystery and danger enhance the forward momentum of the plot, while moments of romance and distrust add layers of intensity to the narrative. Though there are occasions where the narrative advances slowly, the overall story is intriguing enough to continue to the end. The book is told primarily through Quell’s perspective, but another character occasionally makes an appearance that gives readers a sneak peek into the true danger surrounding Quell.

Interestingly, very little time is spent in the real world as this book begins. The narrative shifts quickly to the House of Marionne which, while not providing a lot of time for the foundation to be built, gets readers settled into the meat of the story fairly early on. Since Quell guides the majority of the novel, readers are fully engaged in discovering the truth of the supposed poison in her blood and exactly why there are people out to capture her. And as Quell comes out of her shell and learns more about her magical heritage, readers are more deeply connected to her plight. This is an enjoyable novel for young adult readers, and it is a positive series starter, as well.

Really really basic to the point where I'm not really sure if I enjoyed it. Think a Harry Potter but the main character is even more spaced out than Harry somehow. It just dragged by the end of it and I wanted it to be done. The cover is pretty but that's about all that I can root for.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

House of Marionne has a beautiful cover and I was excited to dive into a YA fantasy world that promised dark academia vibes, debutante balls, and forbidden magic. The writing felt a lot more YA than I generally prefer but if I was like 14 years old, I probably would’ve really enjoyed this. The pacing was also an issue. The beginning was very fast paced, the entire middle really slow, and the end was chaotic. I’m not sure how I felt about the love interest but it wasn’t the worst romance I’ve read.

I think the biggest opportunity was that this book was just trying to do too much. It felt like a huge mash-up of successful YA fantasy reads from the 2010s. I wish there had been some fine-tuning on the plot because it had so much potential. I was also surprised that this is actually urban fantasy, and wished it hadn’t been. It didn’t add to the story and I think I would’ve enjoyed a more high fantasy setting given the stakes. I might feel differently with a stronger emphasis on worldbuilding in following books.

Overall, I think this will greatly appeal to the right demographic. I’m curious to see what happens next and if the synopsis sounds promising, I’m definitely willing to continue this story.

Magic powers, assassins and lots of adventure. Not my favorite story, but it was decent. The main character felt like she took too long to piece things together and figure out the motivations of others. I would have liked a stronger lead to make the story more believable and someone I could root for.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin group for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

~ forbidden dark magic
~ magical boarding school
~ ballgowns, high society and assassins

The blurb for the book really pushed the trope of morally gray characters, enemies to lovers, romance, and dark academia. While I think the introduction to these tropes occurred none were entirely flushed out enough to hook me and keep me reading. Being book one in a duology it felt very unfinished but I am hoping to read the next book in the series when it comes