I love them all. They're so broken and soft with spikey edges. I loved the subtle magic and the familial longing.

This book is very hard for me to categorize. I love Olivie Blake's One For My Enemy. I enjoyed Atlas Six (though not as much). This one was completely different than both of those which made it hard for me to wrap my head around for awhile. The pacing seemed...slow at times but never boring due to the voice and narration and just strange goings on in the character's lives. Despite my hesitation, I never stopped reading, totally pulled into the three siblings orbit. I wanted to know what happened to them and what was going to happen to them, even if the near-frenetic prose was off putting at first. Eventually, I fell into it and by the climax, I was crying. If you ask me if I liked it, my answer would be much like the characters. It's complicated. There were parts that were laugh out loud funny, comical scenes that somehow worked against the all too real hellscape that is our current country/workforce. (The bits and observations about Meredith and her rise in tech were so dead on. And Arthur's politics made me want to cry with how accurate and silly it felt all at the same time.) There were other parts that were slower or less compelling that I read more quickly. The magic oftentimes was not explained or did not make sense but somehow fit in the story and world that Blake created. And like I said, I cried at the end completely unexpectedly. I think if you're a fan of Blake, this is worth picking up (though its not like One for My Enemy or Atlas Six). I think if you feel tired by the hyper capitalistic world we live in, this is worth picking up. I think if you want to read about odd magic that might be related to the 12 plagues of Egypt or might be causing someone to die and revive at very inopportune times, this is worth picking up. If you identify or enjoy reading about complex sibling and family relationships, especially the offspring of the wealthy, this is definitely worth picking up. It made a very deep impression on me, even though I didn't always enjoy what I was reading. Which says a lot.

I stopped reading after chapter 2 (3%). The voice wasn’t working for me; it is definitely a departure from her prior styles. I like that Blake has been given a lot of leeway to push the bounds of her craft. Hopefully, I will enjoy the next book more.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for the ARC.

2.5 stars

While this book sounded interesting, I really struggled with it. And I never connected with her writing style. I also struggled to connect with the characters. The premise sounded interesting, but the execution fell flat. There was a lot of repetition, and characters weren't as developed as I had expected. There are some subplots that seemed unnecessary, and there was way too much complaining. I actually was a bit more impressed with some of the secondary characters than I was with some of the primary ones. Dialogue felt unnatural. I have never read any books by Blake before, and I'm not sure I will check out future books.

Full disclosure: I legitimately thought I was going to hate this book.

Why? It was a combination of the fact that I figured this was going to be about a bunch of pretentious assholes AND I know that <i>The Atlas Six</i> has some really mixed reviews.

BUT, I’m happy and completely surprised to report that I really enjoyed reading Gifted and Talented. It’s exactly what I needed in a post-Succession finale world.

SYNOPSIS: Succession but give them superpowers

I’ll start with a couple reasons to praise this book.

Olivie Blake hits the Succession/Royal Tenenbaums vibes just right without feeling like she’s completing copying either of them. The characters feel original without feeling like carbon copies or even mashups of the other characters. AND the plot manages to feel like its own things despite being very similar to <i>Succession</i>.

The characters don’t really need their superpowers to be interesting. There were times where I thought about how the powers just aren’t needed for the story to be engaging or for the characters to have a nice arc. And in some ways, I can see that being a reason to dislike the book, but I think it shows the strength of Blake’s writing in this book and that she has both a solid plot structure and character arcs.

And to add to those points before I move into the criticism, I think this book is fun. There were times that I laughed. The character arcs are emotionally satisfying. And I found myself looking forward to seeing where the plot was going.

It’s just enjoyable.

Where it lacks is that yes, it’s HELLA PRETENTIOUS. I’m a hipster so I have a high tolerance for this type of nonsense, but I can see it grating on other readers.

It’s also very word salad-y throughout the book. I feel like that often added to the pretentious charm, but I know some folks are going to be annoyed as hell when Blake doesn’t just say what she means to say.

This is my first Olivie Blake book, so I can’t really speak on how it compares to her other novels, but overall I’m very pleasantly surprised by this one.

Huge thanks to both NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the advanced copy!

It never ceases to amaze me how much I love the way Olivie portrays characters, their conflicts (internal and external) and relationships with each other, and how she writes in general. Really, she never fails to deliver a brilliant story!!

Loved this book and I can't wait to have a physical copy in my hands.

4.5☆

As a lover of Succession, magic, and Olivie Blake, I do feel like the target audience for Gifted & Talented. This was an incredibly interesting, unique read. Olivie Blake has such a talent for writing complicated, layered relationships among her characters, this book is no exception. I was fascinated by the intricacies within their familial relationships and their relationship with the world around them. I will be thinking about this book for a long time.

This is my first Olivie Blake book and I doubt it will be my last. This book is very funny as it shows three siblings, the titular gifted and talented, as they grapple with all the ways they disappointed their now-dead father as they await the distribution of his assets. One is a fraud, one is a dud, and one just wants to be loved (or do all three contain each of these multitudes?). Each sibling is an asshole, as the narrator has no trouble telling you, but there is something slightly redeemable in each of them as they work their way towards peace with a dead man and, hopefully, control over their innate magic that may bring on an apocalypse or change the brain chemistry of those around them.

AHHHH! I am the biggest Olivie Blake fan, but I say this completely without bias: I *LOVED* this book. This novel is genuinely so different from anything Olivie has written before, in my opinion, and yet it all is so completely HER in its prose and ambitious plot. Think "Succession" with some magical realism and that lyrical classiness that is Olivie Blake's style.... and that* is what GIFTED & TALENTED is. I loved all the varying POVs and the unique rawness found in each of the sibling's individual arcs (Meredith being my favorite). Highly, highly recommend for lovers of this genre, as well as to anyone looking for something new & exciting to read this year. OLIVIE BLAKE NEVER MISSES!!! Thank you again for this opportunity!

Gifted & Talented by Olivie Blake was such an interesting and thoughtful read. I never know what to expect when I start a Olivie Blake book and I honestly think that it’s the best way to go into her stories. I loved the characters, they’re very much unapologetically themselves and the relationship between each other is always such fun to read. What I always enjoy about Olivie Blake’s writing is that she trusts the reader to go along with the journey and eventually things will start to click. Overall, a very enjoyable read!

In all honesty, I was really hoping for so much more from this book. The minute I heard it compared to Succession, but with powers I was hooked! There definitely are elements of Succession in this story. Three siblings who have recently lost their overbearing, overly driven, distant father are forced to come together for the reading of the will and the announcement of who will succeed him on the throne of his magitech empire. These three siblings all have magical powers that are rarely used, and the origins are never explained. Every character is morally grey and even though I sometimes like this in books, I could not force myself to like a single character in this book. I wanted to DNF at 50%, but pushed through hoping for a turnaround in the last half that never came.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Tor Books for the eArc of Gifted & Talented in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

This was interesting! I loved the characters and the kind of tongue and cheek language between them and the narrator.

It's Succession x Fleischman fanfic + magic, but I'm not mad about it. Blake is a talented writer but nothing she writes really sticks for me - it always feel a little too gimmicky/forced.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the advanced copy of Gifted & Talented in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 stars, rounded up.

I’m not sure what I was expecting, but this wasn’t it. This was my first Olivie Blake novel, and unfortunately, her writing style just didn’t click with me.

I typically enjoy character-driven stories, even with unlikable characters, but I struggled to connect here. I found the concept intriguing — a fantasy/magical realism take on Succession — but the execution fell flat for me.

The story felt repetitive, with characters who never really evolved: the prodigy daughter no one likes, the insecure son, and the timid, slightly whiny youngest daughter. The plot meanders with little payoff; their wealthy father dies, and the siblings spend the rest of the book complaining about their difficult lives and speculating about who will inherit what. That’s… pretty much it. There's the addition of some interesting secondary characters, and a few who lift right out without consequence.

The dialogue also pulled me out of the story. It often felt stilted and unnatural, with attempts at snark that didn’t land. I typically enjoy sharp, witty banter, but it just didn’t land here.

While Olivie Blake’s work clearly has a lot of fans, this one wasn’t for me.

Paranormal family drama with incredible sibling dynamics, Olivie Blake is one of my favorite writers that always surprises me with unique stories. Her ability to create these fascinating relationships and atmosphere is astounding.

4 stars

This was everything and more than what I was expecting. I loved the sibling relationships, the drama, the fantasy/sci-fi aspects. It was very hard to put this one down. This may be my favorite book by Blake yet.

I loved reading this book! I always love Olivie Blake's books, the synopsis' are so original and so are the stories they're about. This story about the drama within this family as they dealt with their father's passing, loved it!

All these of these siblings were separate, distinct characters, who were all just a little bit broken in different ways. Their father wasn't the best person or good father, and what with his death, they have to confront that damage as they process that he's really gone.

The way that this story is told, going between the siblings, as they find out about their dad's death, and all the things that they have going on in their lives, and the flashbacks of how they got there, was such a great story, as we learned more about them and why they were the way that they were. Each of them had something going on, and I loved reading their story!

I think the narrator was my favourite part of the story! Their voice, and the way that they commented on what the Wren's were doing, was just fantastic! The way that it was a part of the story, oh, that was really well done!

This was a magnificent read and I can't wait to read more by Olivie Blake!

Olivie Blake’s magic and snark meet Succession for this paranormal family drama. The Wren family is a hot mess, but it gets hot messier when Thayer Wren, the Wren patriarch and CEO/founder of Wrenfare dies. The three Wren siblings, Meredith, Arthur, and Eilidh, come together to hear the will and carry out funeral arrangements, but the sibling rivalry gets real when it comes to who will inherit the company (and by default, win their father’s approval once and for all)?

Gifted & Talented is everything that I usually love in a book. Olivie Blake writes “gifted child to damaged adult” like nobody’s business. However, G&T just didn’t totally land for me. The magic system (magitech?) was a huge part of the book, but it was very confusing and I still don’t understand it in my reflection of the book.

There were major parts of the book that drug on and on for me. Yes, characters needed to be developed, but I think that could have happened faster. The pacing was more middling than fast.

Eilidh drove me nuts, but that’s probably the eldest sister in me coming out. I loved dear Arthur, but of course Meredith was the star of the show for me.

There was a character death that made no sense to me and it felt like a weird way to tie up that plot point. There was another character that I’m still not sure how or why they were introduced because it seemed like a lot of build up for nothing.

Overall, Gifted & Talented was fine. I probably wouldn’t read it again, but I’d recommend it for some readers, like fans of magical realism. I give it a 3.5/5 (rounded to 4). Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The novel is a complex web of ambition, sibling rivalry, and the weight of unrealized potential, making it impossible not to become emotionally invested in each character’s journey. The Wren siblings’ stories are filled with moments of profound emotional depth, and the way their special abilities tie into their personal struggles adds an extra layer of intrigue to the narrative. With sharp writing, dark humor, and emotional tension that builds with every page. It is an unforgettable exploration of what happens when the drive for success, the need for validation, and the scars of past failures collide. In short, a must-read for anyone who enjoys sci-fi books with complex family dynamics, competition, and character-driven drama.

This book is a wickedly smart and emotionally intense ride that blends family drama, supernatural abilities, and a heavy dose of sibling rivalry. The stakes are high, and it’s impossible to look away from the Wren siblings as they navigate the deadly game of family legacy. The world-building here is electric, literally. The telepathic and electrokinetic abilities of the siblings add an extra layer of intrigue and danger to their already complicated relationships. The tension between them is palpable, and as you follow their journeys, you can’t help but be drawn into their internal struggles. These characters are beautifully flawed, each one desperate to prove they’re more than just their father’s legacy. But this book isn’t just about superpowers or inheritance; it’s about how far people are willing to go to prove their worth. The weight of family expectations and unresolved rivalries twists everything, turning love, approval, and redemption into things that are almost unattainable. It’s messy, dark, and deliciously complicated, and if you love family sagas with a supernatural twist, this one is absolutely unmissable.