With this one, I definitely didn’t know what I was getting into.

When Wren discovers that she may actually have magickal powers, and may not be Mundane, she is whisked off to the Academia de la Luna for the summer after her 18th birthday, along with her friends Sam and Lee. Still unsure of whether she really has magick, since she wasn’t born under a moon sign, she questions her attendance. However, with support of her friends, as the summer continues with trials and strange happenings, she starts to question what may really be going on. What isn’t she being told? What’s her purpose?

This novel was so different! The magick system itself was one I hadn’t heard of, and I appreciate the creativity. It was fun to learn about and see how the characters progressed with their magick. I also really enjoyed the overall storyline. I was excited to see what would happen! The overarching mystery kept my attention when reading.

However, it fell just a bit flat for me. The story was great, but (trying to not give spoilers) I had trouble believing some events. It may be because of the timeline, as they were just to be at the academy for only one summer - only 2-3 months. I would have thought they’d need more time for practice and such. It all felt like it was happening quickly, for me.

But really, it was a fun, enjoyable fantasy. Definitely one to pick up if you’re looking for something different. The authors always have a way of making such unique stories!

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, received from Wednesday Publishers, P.C. Cast, and Kristin Cast through NetGalley. However, all thoughts and views reflected are strictly my own opinions.

Wren is a Mundane. Or at least that is what she thought until she turned 18, and began to glow like the sun... Now she is expected to attend the Academia de la Luna despite not being able to actually use her magic.

When you read this book, you get the same writing style that the Casts are known for. In fact, it definitely gives off House of Night vibes - especially in the beginning of the book. Overall, I enjoyed the storyline, but it did take me a little while to get through due to the pacing. It was pretty slow going for most of the book, then the last 50 pages or so were super fast paced. I also thought the side characters were a bit bland as there wasn't a ton of character development. Perhaps this will change? This is supposed to be book one of a duology, after all. I will say that this book ends on a pretty big cliffhanger, so just be aware if that's not your thing. Either way, I will definitely read book 2.

Overall rating 3.5 rounded up.

🧚🏻Thanks so much to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and authors P.C. and Kristin Cast for providing me with a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

DNF 35%

Although I DNF this book I am still giving it 3 stars. I do love YA fantasy. This reads more middle grade even though the main characters have graduated high school. The writing style reads very young and lacks the beautiful prose often found in YA fantasy. There is a cool magic system based around the moon and I think for a younger YA or middle grade reader this novel could be really enjoyable.

P.C and Kristin Cast have created a wondrous world full of magic, lies, mystery, and friendship. The authors have built this amazing world centered around moon magic, Elementals, and a magic school. The world building was amazing and was not overwhelming. It was the perfect blend of building and plot and character development. I was never bored or distracted by too much of one thing. Everything blended really well and the next book is set up to fantastic.

This book is PERFECT for middle schoolers to young adults. It it has magic, romance, and the characters are going through coming-of-age events and adventures. That age demographic would be able to relate and connect to the characters very well and would make the story more immersible than when I was reading it (I am a 20 something so obviously I'm not the target demographic).

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC. This is my honest and voluntary review.

DNF @ 30%

When she turns eighteen, Wren’s discovers she is Moonstruck, and her plans for the future change so she can attend a magical academy.

While I always to my best to not DNF books, especially this early into them, I could not get through it. The premise is interesting, where one’s magic is determined by their moon sign, and the Academia is split into four zodiac houses (Leo, Taurus, Scorpio, and Aquarius), but the prose is what did me in.

This books reads more like a young teenager’s bad fanfiction, with childish inner monologue and cringey dialogue. (I can relate because my bad fanfiction at fifteen sounded just like this.) The fact that our main characters are eighteen does not come across easily, as they often behave and speak like ten-year-olds.

I really wish I could have gotten through more of this book because it might have ended really well, but life is too short to read about adult people who sing “Grace Kelly is smelly”.

Thank you to NetGalley & Wednesday Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first PC Cast book I’ve read and I really enjoyed it. I was intrigued throughout. Would recommend and will be picking up more books by this author.

Draw Down the Moon by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast is a delightful and fast paced fantasy adventure steeped in all my favorite tropes.
I adored in particular the found family vibes and how they colored character interaction.
Fans of this mother daughter duo's previous works will have a wonderful time and those who are looking for an entry point into their work will get a great experience of what their writing has to offer.

"Draw Down the Moon" was a fast-paced enjoyable read, fans of YA Fantasy are not going to want to miss out on this one!

I think this book would be a great introduction into the Fantasy genre for young readers. It has a really cool magic system , a coming of age story , mystery and an atmospheric academia setting. The plot was easy to follow and the characters were done in a way that I believe could be very relatable for the intended audience.

I would recommend checking this book out if you enjoy any of these tropes:

-Academia/School Setting
-Chosen One
-Magic Systems (Astrology)
-Coming of Age
-Friends To More
-Found Family

Thank you P.C. Cast , Kristin Cast, Net Galley and St. Martin's Press , Wednesday Books for providing me with an ARC of this book!

(Quick shoutout: this book takes place where I live and grew up. I hail from Portland and now live in Seattle, so it felt close to home to hear them talk about the Mariners, Blazers, etc)

This book had an interesting plot, and by the end, I was intrigued. I still have questions that I'm looking forward to being answered in the second book, but there were other points where I kind of lost the story. This book utilizes first person, which is not a fav of mine, and also does a lot of telling rather than showing. There were points where I didn't feel the connection between characters, but was told they were supposed to be close. I also would love to understand more about the astrology aspect of it all.
Still, I did get into the book and found myself unable to put it down this past day. I wanted to hear the drama and what was happening. I ended up really liking the character of Wren, but I had a harder time connecting to Lee. I also really loved their friend Sam and the constant Bridgerton references. Overall, I did end up enjoying the book but because I wasn't a huge fan of the writing, I give it a 4 ⭐️

Would recommend to: fans of Zodiac Academy, Vampire Diaries, former Wattpad users
Would not recommend to: fans of Throne of Glass, Priory of the Orange Tree, etc.

First and foremost, I have to address how absolutely stunning the cover of this book is. I'm a sucker for gorgeous cover art and I absolutely love the colors and art style of this cover. I'd have picked this book up from the shelf based on the cover alone.

This was a really fast read for me and I enjoyed it though it definitely seems most suitable for a younger YA audience despite the fact that the characters are 18. What really caught my interest was the magic system being based on the moon. I thought this was an interesting approach and made the story feel unique despite a lot of familiar tropes being present.

Overall I thought the story, characters and writing were enjoyable, and I think anyone familiar with the Cast's work, especially the House of Night series, will find this equally enjoyable.

* dual pov/ first person present
* dark academia type setting
* hidden powers
* chosen one
* magical trials
* slow burn friends to lovers romance

Many thanks to P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast, St.Martins Press/Wednesday books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and share my thoughts on an eARC of this book.

Unfortunately, this just wasn't for me. I was drawn in by the cover and synopsis, but ultimately felt that the book failed to deliver on its premise. The characters simply didn't grab me. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to check this out in advance of publication!

I wanted to desperately like this book but after getting more than a third into it, my attention wasn't captured. I've tried for a month to get more into it but even getting this far into Draw Down the Moon was a struggle. I do hope to return to it at some point in the future and enjoy it then but for now it's a DNF.

Hear me out. Young teen reader: 4 stars. Adult reader: 3 stars.

This book is perfect for my middle school niece. I’d say if you’re 13-15 years old you’d probably love this book! Let’s pretend you are that young.

You’ll love the FMC who is discovering herself and her magic, discovering what happens when a boy who is your best friend turns in to something a little more, and what happens when things around you start to get a little dangerous.

My favorite parts of this book are the FMC and her 2nd best friend Sam, and the mystery they’re trying to solve while at the academy.

You have two best friends trying to solve a mystery that is turning dangerous, a boy who is hell bent on winning the trials and following the rules, thus potentially being on the opposite side of the girl he loves, and adults who are supposed to be leaders giving off suspicious vibes.

Super quick read and I’m looking forward to the 2nd book in this duology dropping. It’ll be the perfect buddy read for my niece and I.

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was expecting this to be far more exciting. The magic system’s simple but interesting and the story had a lot of potential, but it felt wasted. Wren is a good protagonist, she’s inquisitive and not annoying at all, while Lee is the total opposite. The book is written in dual pov, but while the story unraveled and Wren was going through changes and discoveries about her powers and the mysteries of the island, Lee was just pining and being the most naive person on campus (which makes no sense considering how the character’s upbringing is presented).

The whole plot felt obvious from the beginning, but I wasn’t put out by that. It was the poor and rushed execution that killed the vibe. The writing is very fluid, the pacing was good and the book has a tolerable cast of characters and a compelling narrative, but too much time was wasted on miscommunication instead of development.

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It was hard to believe the characters were 18 years old. In fact, if the characters were 12-14, the writing style wouldn't have bothered me as much as it did.

Very interesting premise, but the disconnect between the characters' ages and their actions/words/thoughts detracted from what could have been a pretty good YA novel. It was still okay.

This book did not hold my interest. From the way it was written, I think the target audience is middle grade. It’s a classic Chosen One trope - girl who thinks she is ordinary gets magical powers and goes to magic school. The characters are supposed to be 18 but read as younger to me. Not a bad book but not one I would recommend to everyone.

I went into this book blind and am so glad I did! I adored it immensely!
So the beginning starts out with Wren and Lee spending time together and Lee is going to embark on an adventure that Wren can't go to. Lee has powers and Wren does not so when they spend Wren's birthday together kind of a last hoorah before Lee leaves Wren experiences power. Power in a way that they are not familiar with. Well, when they go back to Wren's house she is invited to attend Academia de la Luna with Lee and she goes to be with Lee.
On this adventure Lee and Wren realize what everyone around them saw immediately, they have intense feelings for one another and Wren becomes engrossed in prophecies, murder, and other dangerous mysteries!
This book is full of adventure and all sorts of kinds of intricate magical properties and I loved it! I am really excited because this thrilling adventure is just the beginning and now I am waiting for the next installment! The characters are well-developed and the plot is so good it keeps you on the edge of your seat good! Add this to your TBR for next April and you will not be disappointed! Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for the extraordinary opportunity to read and review this one!

Love, love, love this book. I can’t wait to see where it goes. Magic and mayhem and life changes. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves magic and hound adult books!

Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book. This review is my personal and honest opinion.
I was quite excited to start reading this book. I mean, the cover is gorgeous, the synopsis is intriguing, the authors are good to convince me to pick up this book, but the writing, the storyline, the characters...
It's fair to say that I couldn't even reach 5 chapters into this book. I don't think this read was for me.
It's a DNF unfortunately...

Thank you to St Martins Press and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

I will happily leave a review for this when the racist remarks by one of their employees is addressed. I want to support the author, but also want to know they don’t support this behavior.