I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Songlight is a post-apocalyptic story that deftly tackles the complex topics of Christian fundamentalism, toxic masculinity, and the profound loneliness in feeling different than everyone else. The world of Songlight is one where certain individuals, called Torches, possess the rare power of songlight, a form of telepathy, whereby they are able to send their consciousness to another place and commune with others. This power, however, is condemned by the authorities, labeling anyone who possesses this unique gift an "Unhuman," and sending them to the Chrysalid House where they are stripped of their songlight, along with all their intelligence and free will.

In the little coastal village of Northaven, we meet Elsa and Rye, two young teenagers secretly in love, and even more secretly Torches, who use their songlight to communicate with each other despite the strict regulations concerning the military regimen and "wife training" that they must individually undergo. Elsa's older brother, Piper, the star cadet of Northaven's young men, is hiding the fact that he is secretly in love with his childhood friend Rye as well, out of a sense that this is not how men are meant to be. One night however, when Elsa and Rye are talking about running away so that they can be together, Piper spots Rye and outs him as an Unhuman, whereby he is publicly beaten and mocked before being sent away to the Chrysalid House in the capitol, and Elsa, despite the difficulties, endeavors to follow him, but to no avail.

While her initial attempt at escape and following Rye fails, countless opportunities present themselves throughout the book for Elsa to escape to the place that accepts Torches, but she is frozen by a fear of the unknown, the ties that still bind her to her home, and the deep-seated prejudices still ingrained within her mind. Her story becomes one of dreaming of freedom and survival in the now.

The other main POV, and my favorite character, is Nightingale, a frail and sickly girl in the capital of Brightlinghelm and daughter of one of the inquisitors tasked with unearthing Unhumans. However, she herself is a powerful Torch capable of sending her songlight far beyond the farthest reaches of normal torches, where she finds and befriends Elsa, comforting her in her grief.

Content warning for mentions of mutilation, forced marriages, homophobia, and the dehumanizing of others

I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of YA dystopian novels and lots of introspection.

I received an ARC copy from NetGalley and am leaving my review voluntarily.

To start, this is one book that I will definitely be buying when it comes out. Usually with ARCs, I read them and then move on with my life. Even my 5 star ARC reads. But this?? I will be buying a copy. And reading again. I loved it.

The story follows many different characters and how their stories intersect. I was always kept guessing on whose story I was going to read next. And I felt like every character deserved their chapters. I know that sometimes when there are multiple POVs, it feels like some of them are unnecessary. But I loved every chance we got to hear from another character.

I think Buffini also did a great job of showing us the oppression that Torches and women have to endure. She described it in such a way that you could physically feel the pain of each group. There were so many parts of this book that I wondered why why why would they treat others like that. And I think that's what made the book even better. It's how their world was being run and it was their normal, even though we can all agree that human beings should not be treated how they were being treated.

Overall, I loved this book. I was wholly invested in it and couldn't wait to turn each page. I can't wait to see the continuation of Elsa and Rye's story as well, since it was cut so short. I hope the next book comes quickly! I highly recommend reading Songlight.

The prose in this book is immaculate, I felt every emotion and saw every description come to life.

I loved the unique take on telepathy and the dystopian world. The political intrigue, patriarchal society, and the explorations of womanhood were well done.

Where it fell apart for me was the multiple POVs, some that felt fairly irrelevant. It could be a me issue, but I find too many POVs in an initial book to be fairly overwhelming and think it detracts from the story. The plot is a bit slower and I found it hard to connect with the characters, likely due to the multi-POVs.

This series has a lot of potential and I can see these getting better as they progress.

Overall a solid debut and a good start for a series.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for sending this book (eARC) for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Brightland has been persecuting “Torches” and Elsa, Rye, and Kaira are all torches. Everyone is indoctrinated to think that songlight, the power used by torches is innately corrupt and that brightland must defeat their neighboring nation. Rye is about to be shipped off to war, Elsa is about to be married to a man she doesn’t know, and together they decide to run away to save themselves from being discovered for their songlight. As they’re about to escape, Rye is discovered as a torch and Elsa resolves to free him from his impending torture at whatever cost.

I thought the multiple POVs of this book really helped put me in the middle of the action. I do however think that too much and not enough happened at the same time; not every book needs to be a series and this could’ve very easily been a standalone novel as far as my perception of it goes right now. The character development was well done, and I think the magic system was a really interesting element, but we need way more explanation from the characters that do have knowledge.

This book was decent. I'd recommend for those who want a little bit of fantasy in their dystopia. Teens who enjoyed Hunger Games or other classic dystopia series could shift to this one nicely.

Interesting world. This book had me completely immersed since it stared, with 5 povs, we see how each one of the characters views their world . I found myself constantly rooting for our fmc, I felt so much for her character and all the struggles of this world had thrown at her. I would definitely warn that this would be a 18+ book. Even that it said is ya. But definitely great book and I cant wait to get more from this series.

Sadly, this one wasn't for me.

The author is clearly very passionate about this story and characters, and it shows! There were some interesting ideas here.

However, I personally just couldn't connect with the characters or the writing. I found some of the aspects of the world building confusing and difficult to follow, especially with the different POVs, and by the end, I'm not sure if I'd really made sense of everything.

The writing itself wasn't bad, but it was just a style of lyrical writing that I don't enjoy.

Holy cow, this book was an easy 5-stars and has left me with a huge reading hangover! Not only is this book one that feels so unique, but it also feels so relevant to any human conflict and war-torn country in our day and age. The simple cruelty of good vs evil and dehumanization of those who are deemed outside of "normal" was heartwrenching. I also loved to get a glimpse of our world being dissected as if it were ancient history, such as the fascination with a blender and the purpose it served in the Light era. I also appreciated Buffini's writing style for each character, which was sometimes a bit disarming. For instance, the stream of consciousness utilized in Piper's chapters felt strange at first, but intentionally highlighted the constant fear that Piper operates under, trying to stay within the defined bounds of "good". The world-building was also superb as I had no trouble picturing where I was in any given chapter. Moira Buffini has a way with words that will forever haunt me while simultaneously giving me hope to rejoice in. I cannot wait for the second book to come out and will be biting my fingernails until that moment. 100/10 a must-read for 2024!!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Haper Collins, Moira Buffini for allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Songlight is an example of what happens when you let fear and misinformation fuel you. The Torch’s are humans who can communicate without words. They are capable of good and evil, just like humans how are unable to communicate this way. All of the political intrigue proves this.

I enjoyed Songlight. I liked seeing the changes that are being forced by people who are not in power. The changes aren’t easy and even at the end the heroes who thought peace was close find themselves about to face a new challenge.

I will be reading book two to see how everything plays out.

I think this was a case of it's me, not the book. There's a lot to like about this one. The world building was great. The characters were interesting - even if it sometimes felt like there were too many POVs. The story felt timely and real, even though it's a fantasy. I just never really connected with any of it. I will definitely consider checking out the sequel though.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

First I would like to thank NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books | HarperCollins for providing an eARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I was drawn in by the synopsis and the cover. Unfortunately, I felt like I got a bait and switch. There was little to no romance, the friendship was awkward, and while there was plenty of brutalities explored in this novel, it felt surface level and played up to shock readers.

The political climate is very similar to A Handmaid's Tale; only men are in power, women are seen as broodmares, young boys are taken and trained as soldiers, forced to fight in a war that has been glorified and is just, when really it's grounded in fear and a grasp for power for those with more than enough. Sound familiar? Called unhumans, two of our main characters, Elsa and Rye, find love in their shared songlight abilities and dream of a future where they can be together instead of forced into war and unwanted marriage. Then Rye is caught using his songlight, and Elsa is forced to watch the man she loves be shamed and imprisoned, taken to have his songlight, his mind, his very being cut out and become what's known as a chrysalid. In her grief, she unleashes her songlight and is approached by another unhuman, Kaira, whose power in songlight is so incredibly strong that she can reach Elsa even when hundreds of miles away (though we never find out what this really means, just that Kaira has to be careful when using her power.)

The girls use codenames to communicate, and apparently these names are super special because when Elsa later meets other unhumans, she does not like them using her "innermost" name. Kaira's character was unusual in that she was obsessive over Elsa and literally fell to pieces anytime Elsa was in danger. In the beginning, it felt like big/little sister vibes, but I felt it became super awkward because of how dependent these girls were. I also despised how idiotic they are. Literally, every choice these two girls took felt contrived to move the plot forward and didn't make any sense to the actual character. You hear how author's will say that the characters took over the story and by the end, the book is completely different than what the author intended. This story felt like the author wrangled with the characters to force them on the path she wanted, despite it not making any sense to the actual character.

While I did like the little, tiny bit of romance we had in the beginning between Rye and Else, I felt like Rye' point of view was a complete waste later in the story. It didn't add anything besides exploring other sides of cruelty in this world, which was showcased many times over with the other characters. Especially Piper, Elsa's brother and the one who turned Rye in for being a telepath. Even though they were best friends, even though Piper is gay and loves Rye. (Oh yeah, being gay is bad and real men only like girls and if you're caught being gay or different in any way than dictated through society, you'll end up a chrysalid. The toxic masculinity is really played up here.)

All in all, I think that the author was overly ambitious and wanted to voice multiple social issues into this story. In the end, there were just too many moving parts and the story and characters were swept up and away in the commentary. (There are so many other things happening in this book that I didn't even touch on.) I can't say that this story is bad, because it's not. I really believe it could have been a really great story if the author had just dialed in a little. Either by focusing on Rye and Elsa's journeys, or focusing on Elsa and Kaira would have really elevated this and shown greater storytelling.

This is supposed to be a trilogy, but I won't be continuing with this series. Even with the cliffhanger, I do not feel compelled to carry on and find out what happens next.

Elsa lives in a small village in a war-torn country. She runs the local fishing boat since her father died in the war. There are three things she knows for sure. One, she is in love with her childhood friend, Rye. Two, as soon as the local men come home from war she will be given to one of the war heroes so that she can have children with him and it won’t be Rye. Three, she has songlight and she must keep it a secret or risk being killed by the government. When she meets a young woman in her songlight, they form a friendship. They are both facing terrible hardships in this war-torn land. Together they just might be able to help end the endless war.
Elsa goes through a lot of growth during the story. She is forced to confront the fact that she is young and naïve. She has to learn to work with others and slowly reach her goal. I am hoping that the author gives Elsa the chance to use what she has learned during the events of the next book. I want to be careful talking about most of the other characters because events that happen to them play a direct role in Elsa’s development. Also, Elsa’s journey isn’t where most of the big emotional moments occur. For example, her brother, Piper, makes decisions based on the propaganda from the government and those decisions directly impact Elsa in some pretty horrible ways. The city of Northaven is not a prosperous place. It appears that the government used Northaven and the other cities like it to keep men in the war. The author alludes to the fact that the men in the capital don’t get sent to war the same way as the men in Northaven. I hope the author explores that further as well. The author introduces characters from the country on the other side of the war. There also appear to be free groups of people that aren’t part of either side.
My one complaint is that I felt like there were a lot of moving parts that were sometimes difficult to keep straight. I can’t tell you how I would suggest making them clearer but I will say that by the end it was very clear how the parts fit together in the world the author created. I just get frustrated when a book is written in what I consider an uneven way making the beginning read slowly and the end read too quickly. That is a me problem not a book problem.
This is part one of the story. There is a major cliffhanger. I won’t call this a dystopian novel perse, but it might be the easiest way to categorize it. The events in this story clearly take place on Earth after humans have done something to bring on death and destruction. I will read more from this author in the future.

Eighteen-year-old Elsa and her boyfriend, Rye, live in the lovely coastal town of Northaven. But things aren't lovely for the two secret Torches, unhumans with telepathic abilities they're forced to hide for fear of extermination. After Rye's powers are discovered and he's outed by Elsa's older brother, Elsa's grief forges a connection with Nightingale, a fellow unhuman living hundreds of miles away. Once the two realize the true extent of their power, they're thrust headfirst into war and revolution.

Pairing action and political intrigue, and told from multiple perspectives, Songlight is a dystopian fantasy readers are sure to devour. This first in a planned trilogy from debut author Moira Buffini will appeal to fans of Sabaa Tahir, Rhoda Belleza, and Suzanne Collins. Highly recommended.

This was a very interesting dystopian fantasy. It had a very hand maids tale feel to it and dealt with a lot of prejudice, racism & the power of propaganda. Vivid world building and a great cast of characters all with their own demons they’re dealing with. The story was easy to follow. Interested to see where this ends up as the series progresses.

I ended up getting the audio after release, because I was crunched for time to read the ebook. So I would also like to add the multiple narrators did a great job bringing the characters to life.

A fantasy dystopian world introduced with MultiPOV throughout this story. Quite fascinating. I like the pace of the book. The execution of the story was done well. I love the gorgeous cover. A great start to a good series

Songlight by Moira Buffini is book one in the Torch Trilogy. If you like fantasy, dystopian, YA, romance, told in multiple POV’s then you will love this book!!

The story follows 2 young women who are Songlights Elsa (Lark) and Kaira (Nightingale), who can communicate telepathically. Unfortunately, they have to hide their identity because it is forbidden to be a Songlight or unhuman as they are also called, they are either enslaved or used as Sirens. Elsa is in love with Rye who is also a Songlight. Rye gets found out by Elsa’s brother Rye, but to protect her he lies and pays the price. I thought Piper was a coward! Swan was captured Kite and he is AWFUL to her. She is so strong but also broken from being held against her will.

I thought the storyline and plot were really good. I liked the world building and thought the story was different from anything I’ve read. This takes place in a dystopian world where women are expected to be married, you are not allowed to who you want to love, you are expected to hate the enemy even though they are amongst you. It’s hard to believe that this is a YA it was so good. There is so much to this book, I read it and then went and listened to the audiobook. Listening to them sing was so beautiful!! I don’t want to say too much but you should go read this book because it is so worth the read and a listen. I cannot wait for book two since this one left us on a cliffhanger. Thank you to NegGalley and Harper Collins for letting me read this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions.

This book made me feel a lot of things and I loved every minute of it. The magic of songlight is so fun and I feel like we have not even begun to learn what all can be done with songlight. There always are drawbacks to magic use and in this case, all songlight users, or Torches, are persecuted for having their powers in Brightland.

While the world reads like a separate fantasy world, it is set thousands of years in the future after the fall of The Light People (current day people), in a dystopian future. There are many POVs, with Lark and Nightingale AKA Elsa and Keira being the two prominent ones with them communicating via songlight across the land of their nation. There are a lot of secrets hidden from the people of Brightland and because of this, they remain subjugated and stuck in a cycle of war and hero worship.

The last 50 pages or so are going to gut you like a bayonet and leave you crying. At the same time the ending is so beautiful and so empowering and I am going to hate this wait until book 2 releases.

Thank you to @epicreads for sending me a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

I'm not one to actively choose a dystopian book despite having a pretty good experience with every popular genre out there. So I want to thank Netgalley and Harper Collins for doing that "read now for 72 hours" promotion, it really is my chance to dive into genres and read books I'm not usually looking for.

I really enjoyed this book and am glad that this will be a trilogy. I really liked the harbor town setting that added to the overall atmosphere, the uniqueness of songlight as a telepathic ability, the intricate politics and quite enjoyed our protagonist Elsa. This dystopian world felt familiar to other books in the genre, yet it truly stands out amongst it appears for the writing, the characters, and the overall uniqueness of the story.

I typically don’t like books set in a dystopian period but I honestly couldn’t put Songlight down. I was drawn into the bio of two people who use Songlight, a form of telepathy trapped in a society who views their power as “Unhuman” but it’s also so much more than the bio lends off. It’s how propaganda can ‘mind twist’ the common people from the truth, how certain traditions leave us trapped in the archaic lifestyles with no room for growth, how prejudices shape our views and what happens when those prejudices are faced with the true facts of the world outside of what they have been taught. These are just plot points to the prodigious world building and superb character dynamics and development. One peculiar relationship had me lapping up the development that I was sharing the progress with my fellow book friends. I found this book fast paced but also detailed. At one point I remember being at 30% complete and when I blinked I was at 60%. Once I got to 75% a lot of the story was coming to head and I didn’t stop reading till I was finished. 5/5 stars.



Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers who provided me with an eARC copy of Songlight by Moira Buffini for an honest review. I feel incredibly lucky to be given the opportunity to read this book.

I loved this book. I enjoyed the characters and the plot and the detailed world that Buffini built. I love the various points of view and the history about the book’s world and the conflicts. I was so tense reading the last 20-30% as everything reached the climax. Buffini does such a good job of making it seem like everything is happening in the moment, and there’s nothing we can do about it but watch it unfold, just like the characters. I knew it was going to end on a cliffhanger, and now, I HAVE to read book 2.
I’m very grateful for the e-book provided by Net Galley and the publisher in exchange for a review. I strongly recommend this book if you enjoy fantasy and many different types of love stories from familial to platonic to romantic.