Lily is a short story about a Duban girl who was born without a twin. Instead of a twin, Lily has a shadow which is a bad thing according to Dubans. It was such a dark whimsical story to read. It was really short so you can read it pretty fast. Also, it could be perfect for middle grade readers for the upcoming spooky season.

This was odd. For the most part I found this story entertaining but the end was unsatisfying and the writing left a lot to be desired.

The story started out rocky for me. The writing is a little dramatic and I'm not sure what's with the occasional narrator voice popping up to refer to the "episodes." I didn't get it.

There weren't any characters I cared about, either. I know this is a very short story about fantasy creatures but it seems like there should be something or someone to relate to. There were not. Main character Lily is the only consistent character through the whole story and she's a baby then a toddler from beginning to end.

After the first couple "episodes" I started to find this really fun. It's dark and twisted and interesting even if it's not really anything to get emotionally invested in. Things were happening. I thought yes, this is going somewhere awesome.

Then the ending happened and it retconned most of my previous enjoyment. I'm now pretty sure this is an origin story for the main character of another book, but that is not at all clear going in. I expected answers to the questions asked in the book synopsis and was disappointed to not get any.

Thank you to NetGalley for the reader copy.

Not sure if this is aimed at children or more a short story fairytale for adults. With that being said, I don’t think there was enough ‘story’ for the idea.

The premise was very cool and I think there were some crucial plot points that were missed, and also things added to the story which needed more explanation and general background.

Lily is a cute short story that left me wanting more. It's a quick, entertaining read that left me wishing it was some short backstory to another larger novel.

This was such a great short dark fantasy story. The story is about Lily, a Duban. Dubans give birth to twins, but on rare occasions, Dubans can give birth to a single child. These children have a shadow and it's a sign of bad luck. On the day of her birth, Lily was almost killed when she was unexpectedly saved. The story progresses a little quickly, but the story was so good. It gave a little bit of Christmas/Santa Claus vibes. I loved the sprinkle of Norse mythology throughout the story as well.

Such an interesting and dark little story. I loved the misfit orphan premise, the idea of this "Santa Claus" guardian, and a vibe not dissimilar from a Grimm fairy tale.

I liked how the author let us know this was a novella connected with two other stories, to which I would be interested in reading.

3.5 dark little stars.

Lily is a quick read.

Dubans are born as twins. Lily was born with a shadow instead of the twin. She was supposed to be thrown over a cliff; however, the person who was supposed to throw her over went over instead. Her father finds her and leaves for a human village to find her a twin. He finds a baby but it isn't human and he doesn't realize it until he is already back to the village. The rest of the story is about Lily being passed from village to village.

I think Lily could have been longer. There was too much squeezed into this very short story.

A quick read filled with dark folklore vibes and a sprinkling of Norse mythology. I enjoyed the premise.

I did, however, find the writing a bit simple. Although the book is marketed towards a young adult audience, I thought the writing was more appropriate for middle grade readers.

A good and quick story, but nothing that blew me away.

Lily was a sweet, quaint novella with peculiar characters and a charming plot. It somewhat gave me similar vibes as the show Over the Garden Wall. I loved the spooky, magical elements and found the narrative voice pleasantly entertaining. With just under 40 pages, the story made me feel like a child again, providing a brief escape from the real world.

This is a sweet fantasy short story about Lily, who is a duban. Dubans always give birth to twins whereas Lily was born alone and a single-born child like Lily is considered to have a shadow. And Dubans believed that shadows were bad luck so the moment she was born she was about to be thrown off a cliff but something strange happened.

I randomly found this available on netGalley and the blurb intrigued me so I picked it up right away. I finished this book in an hour and I loved it! I love the magical, spooky, mysterious feeling, and it feels like a bedtime story you get before going to bed. It's such an easy read