First off I will say that any book with short chapters is an automatic win. This book says so much with few words but does it so well. The plot moves fluidly, there really isn’t any point where you’re hoping to rush through or feel like it’s moving too fast.

Now, found family? This book has got it and it’s done beautifully. Sneaky art heists as part of a bigger familial revenge story? Got it. Father son trauma? It’s all there. I absolutely loved this modernization of the Icarus myth, and quite frankly I feel like Icarus finally gets what’s owed him in this story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

This book had my heart racing and breaking page to page. I loved the character relationships, and they were written so raw and real. The story, following a teen who steals art for his father, seemed so believable and plausible yet was equally unrealistic in the best way. I can also recommend the audiobook, the narrator does a beautiful job with it.

If you’re a K. Ancrum fan, you know why she deserves a place on our March books list. Her award-winning novels are diverse and thrilling. Icarus is a queer YA reimagining of the myth and is as suspenseful and lyrical as her previous books.

I was drawn to this story because of the premise. I love retellings and this was the first one I’ve ever seen and was able to get based on the story of Icarus.

However, the story didn’t really draw me in as I hoped. I think a huge reason for that was the formatting of how the story was told. It was written in small chapter beats, ranging from a single page to at most five. It was extremely distracting to wade into a scene and start to get invested, only to be yanked out into another scene or exposition. Imagine a movie where you get one minute of a scene before it drops to another scene. Not a different camera angle, but a whole different thing and it does that for the whole movie.

I also don’t feel it worked out to make us like any of the characters beyond a surface level and even the danger and the sad abusive situation the main character lived in was dulled. I didn’t feel the urgency of breaking into someone’s home or any real emotion regarding the son’s treatment from his father. Also the whole thing about revenge seemed just petty at best, manufactured at worst.

A strange but hugely fascinating story, where K. Ancrum once again showcases their unique writing style in the most wonderful way.

A strange but fascinating story about family, art history, secrets, and friendships. Though at time it felt too intense to be a YA novel, this literary-lite fiction is sure to please audiences.

Thank you Harper Collins and K. Ancrum for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The writing style is beautifully wrote and poetic at times I can tell K. Ancrum is a very talented author.

It's a very sweet YA, with some sad moments and funny ones too. Some parts were quite emotional.

The chapters are very short and sometimes it feels like they've finished too quickly, I would have liked them a little longer.

I liked how we had representation to disabilities; particularly EDS. It isn't wrote much in books usally so it's refreshing reading about it. I did like how it was explained. We got intersex representation too, another representation I rarely see in books!

Definitely an author I would pick up again. The authors note was eye opening too, and makes you really think about what others are going through, it reminded me how fortunate we are to age and how much pressure the younger population are under in society.

A beautifully written YA that pulls its name from Greek mythology. Between the art heists, the aching romance, and lyrical writing readers will fall straight into this novel. It's the kind of story that pulls at your heart and leaves you wanting more.

I’m sure this will work for someone else. I did appreciate the short chapters as it felt like I was reading more than I was. I also liked how lyrical the writing was but I’m not sure if im going into a reading slump but I couldn’t get into this book. Will def try again soon

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher HarperTeen for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.

TW: emotional and physical abuse, death, cancer, drug addiction, violence, touch sensitivity

Seventeen year old Icarus Gallagher is the son of a famous art restorer but also a brilliant thief: he and his father have been stealing from one particular patron, Mr Black, for years, replacing his originals with perfect forgeries and selling them to the highest bidder as revenge for Mr Black’s part in the death of Icarus’ mother. He works hard to please his father and even as his commitment to the cause begins to wane, Icarus sticks to the rules he created for himself despite his popularity at school. He’s intent on making sure no one can ever get close to learn the truth, that no one will ever touch him and that he’ll never be caught. This all changes when he is, but not by Mr Black. Instead, Icarus is discovered by Mr Black’s son, Helios, who is being held in the house as punishment for bad behaviour for a year. Rather than reporting Icarus’ crimes to his father, Helios makes a deal with him: in exchange for Helios’ silence, Icarus must return and be his friend. This breaks every rule Icarus has ever created for himself and as things deepen into romance, they both become determined to escape the cages their fathers have trapped them in. However, Icarus’ father is intent on their revenge against Mr Black and soon Icarus is forced to choose between his freedom or the boy he loves.

There are aspects of this book that I loved and that I wish there’d been more of, some, in particular, being that there wasn’t enough art being stolen or enough art in general. Despite this, I did like “Icarus” a lot, it’s a light-toned, sweet YA that deals with some heavy themes in incredibly short, interconnected chapters. I wish we’d seen more scenes before Helios and Icarus met, simply because I felt like the story moved too quickly once they did. However, I loved how Icarus has been so careful with himself for years, protecting his father’s career as a forger until he begins to blossom at school in part because of his relationship with Helios. I can see why this was compared to “The Goldfinch” (one of my all-time favourite books) but ultimately I don’t think it’s fair to either work- “Icarus” is a breath of fresh air, about finding love and recovery and freedom after being trapped in the dark. I loved the scenes with Helios and Icarus sitting with the Chicago Art Institute book especially, they were beautiful. The writing style is romantic and gentle, combining a slice of life style with an exploration of abuse and the impact of long term isolation. This is pitched as a retelling of the fall of Icarus myth from Greek mythology- Helios being the name of the Sun that he flies too close towards- and I really liked how this was reimagined into modern day.

i wanted to like this book - pretty writing! sweeping romance! art thievery! - but unfortunately, there was too much going on and i didn't find any reality to ground me. i've really liked books by this author in the past for their real-feeling rendition of being a teenager, but this felt quite the opposite.

Icarus is an insightful and multi-faceted story. The retelling aspect in particular felt so beautiful and immersive talking about ambition, revenge and betrayal as this backdrop to a story about vulnerability and love. I immediately fell in love with Icarus and how he feels so isolated. His story is about opening up, the power of friends to support and cherish us. It’s also a story about love and whether it’s a source of weakness or strength. Whether our love for someone inspires us to fly or is a pressure point against us.

I will literally pick up anything K. Ancrum writes. She is such a powerhouse writer that always gives me all the feels. Her writing is beautiful. A work of art really. I ended up liking this book a bit less then The Wicker King but it still was a must read if you enjoy Ancrum's books or Greek retellings. This was quite a different take on the story of Icarus but I overall enjoyed the story. The author's note at the end of the book is worth the read alone. I wish I had even a miniscule amount of Ancrum's writing ability for this review, but I will try my best.

At it's core this is a book about friendship and the family you find within these relationships. I cannot gush enough about Luca, Celestina, Julian and Sorrel. THEY ARE the friends you want in high school. They were so real and their love and concern for Icarus was such a tangible thing. It reminded me of my own friendships in high school and how some of these relationships have developed into lifelong friendships. I would read this book again just for the parts about Icarus and these people.

Some things I didn't end up enjoying as much:

First you have to go into this book suspending some belief especially with Icarus' extracurricular activities.

The chapters were really, really short. Which usually doesn't bother me because it actually makes this kind of story flow faster. However, I don't think this type of storytelling was ideal for this book---at least when listening to the audiobook. Because each chapter had a title it felt tiresome after awhile and took me out of the story a couple times.

The other thing I felt meh about was the relationship between Helios and Icarus. I loved how Ancrum used the personification of the Sun as the character Helios. I think his and Icarus' relationship was interesting but lacking in development overall. I felt like there was more chemistry between Luca, Celestina and Icarus then Helios most of the time. While I understood the role their relationship played in the story it was just a bit underwhelming in the execution. I think more scenes with them growing closer were needed for me to really feel about these characters the way they were supposed to feel about each other. This was a big part of the story but I felt like I enjoyed the friendship interactions more. I would have also liked more scenes with Angus.


I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Icarus by K. Ancrum is a brilliant retelling of the Icarus legend that is not only a beautiful love story but is emotionally compelling, exploring trauma and grief. It is one of the most intense novels I’ve read with sparse prose and a fast paced narrative that immediately connects you with Icarus and his life. The novel drops you into Icarus’ life and shows you exactly how his life has been impacted by his father’s choices. When Helios is introduced, you see exactly how tangled their lives are.
One of the pieces of the story that I love is how the trauma is explored in this novel, both how Angus’ grief effects Icarus, not allowing Icarus to have friends or really live but we also see how damaged Helios is by his father and by his captivity in his father’s house. I love how the friendship between them is developed and how friendship allows Icarus and Helios both to open up and be more vulnerable. For Icarus, that doesn’t just happen with Helios but he opens up to other friends, other relationships, even his own father. That growth of both characters and how they react to change is beautiful and emotionally compelling.
If you love thrilling love stories that explore trauma and grief, a brilliant modern day retelling of the Icarus legend, then this novel is for you. The sparse prose, the fast pace and the emotional storyline with powerful characters are worth reading, not just for romance readers but for anyone who likes to understand other people and how choices dictate how they behave. This novel explores society, class, gender, and love in ways that are beyond description.

I adored this book! It was fast-paced and easy to read and follow for the most part. I liked the shortened chapters and though that was an interesting take. I loved Icarus as a character and enjoyed getting to see his growth with himself and with other characters as the book progressed. As someone who is disabled, I also enjoyed getting to see disability rep in the book, even if it is self-diagnosed/speculated about. I also like that there was intersex and queer rep in the book. This was my first book by K. Ancrum (though I also own Darling, and that just skyrocketed up my TBR list), and I really enjoyed her writing style and the way that she tells stories. I'm looking forward to continuing to read her works! There were so many lines in this story that really hit me hard and were so beautifully written. I can't say enough good things about this book.

This was a really lovely book! The writing was gorgeous and I adored the love story and the plot. It felt very original while also staying true to the Icarus myth. And had great queer rep too!! Overall an excellent read and a good audiobook. 4.5 rounded up.

🌈Queer rep: MM main relationship. Bi/pan main character (I think? Could have been gay), intersex male-presenting love interest.

Lovely poetic read with a great found family cast and sweet romance. Not 100% sure the short chapter style worked for me because it almost felt a little incomplete but it definitely made it a fast read. Really enjoyed this one!

This book was absolutely fascinating! The short, one-page chapters were unlike anything Ive read before and definitely kept me hooked.
The plot itself was intriguing and well-paced. The main character, Icarus, goes on such a journey throughout the book - I thought his arc was really beautiful. Helios was also a great character and love interest. The chemistry between them felt real and I love the way they help each other out.
This book is very poetic. The story is told as a curation of fragments (one-page chapters) which was a really interesting experience. I think the author showed us just enough to evoke feeling and curiosity without an excessive word-count.
I also loved that this book showed more than just romantic love. The way Icarus made friends, even without meaning to, was so sweet. I loved all the side characters and how they supported Icarus. Once he starts to open himself up. he experiences all of these new connections that he never imagined he would have.
My one criticism is that I thought the ending was quite rushed. A lot happens in a very short space of time, and this was the only point I felt more words could have been beneficial to the storytelling.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it. As always, please be aware of the trigger warnings.

Icarus is the story of two teen boys who are both isolated from their peers to varying degrees by their parents. There weren't supposed to meet, but they did, formed a friendship, and fell in love. As they plot their escape, the secrets of their parents start to come to light and there was so much more to their isolation than they knew.