3.5 stars

I love Olivie Blake's work, I really do, but my god this was an absolute chore for me to get through. I think my brain is soup.

2.5/5 stars

I'm starting to think that Atlas Six (book one, not books two and three) was the exception for me in regards to Olivie Blake's books. I went into this wanting to like it way more than I did. Right off the bat, the informal writing style was not working for me. I love an unreliable narrator, so that wasn't the issue for me -- instead, I struggled with the attempts at humor and inserting "haha" (among other things) within the monologue.

I also thought I was a huge fan of unlikeable characters but each of the main three protagonists had a different part of them that just irked me the entire time. There were a few small moments of humanity/"redeemability" for all of them, but for the most part, I just hated all three -- especially at the end, when I think the reader is supposed to like them a bit more. Maybe that's the point, in which props to Olivie Blake on that note.

Also, if you're going into this book looking for fantasy, this really isn't much of a fantasy novel. It's much more focused on contemporary sibling relations and there is very little "magic." I didn't enjoy how that was done, from the infodump of how magic worked at the very beginning and then very little actual magic content throughout the book. The two main "reveals" or resolutions of the magic issues at the end of the novel didn't work for me, either.

"From the New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six comes the story of three siblings who, upon the death of their father, are forced to reckon with their long-festering rivalries, dangerous abilities, and the crushing weight of all their unrealized adolescent potential.

Where there’s a will, there’s a war.

Thayer Wren, the brilliant CEO of Wrenfare Magitech and so-called father of modern technology, is dead. Any one of his three telepathically and electrokinetically gifted children would be a plausible inheritor to the Wrenfare throne.

Or at least, so they like to think.

Meredith, textbook accomplished eldest daughter and the head of her own groundbreaking biotech company, has recently cured mental illness. You're welcome! If only her father's fortune wasn't her last hope for keeping her journalist ex-boyfriend from exposing what she really is: a total fraud.

Arthur, second-youngest congressman in history, fights the good fight every day of his life. And yet, his wife might be leaving him, and he's losing his re-election campaign. But his dead father's approval in the form of a seat on the Wrenfare throne might just turn his sinking ship around.

Eilidh, once the world's most famous ballerina, has spent the last five years as a run-of-the-mill marketing executive at her father's company after a life-altering injury put an end to her prodigious career. She might be lacking in accolades compared to her siblings, but if her father left her everything, it would finally validate her worth - by confirming she'd been his favorite all along.

On the pipeline of gifted kid to clinically depressed adult, nobody wins - but which Wren will come out on top?"

Magical Succession.

“Everything changes. Everything changes. Nothing is ever the same (affectionate). Nothing is ever the same (threat).”


Review: I devoured this book and it devoured me right back. There are points where you love every single character. Where you love every single character. Where you admire, but don’t really respect every character. I saw pieces of myself in every single character. The good, the bod, the disappointing. When I met Olivie last year she told she believed a written in book is a well loved book, and if you couldn’t tell, I loved this book. I was constantly switching between the ebook ARC and physical ARC so I didn’t have to put it down. I was adding my ebook annotations to my physical copy in the school pick up line today. This book, for being about magical people, was so honestly about being human that it took my breath away at times. This book is Olivie and her character writing at their best.

This is a lot of book, and I can’t decide how I feel about most of it. The plot never really got going, but also maybe that was the point? The magic system seemed completely unnecessary, but Lou was also incredibly compelling? These characters were insufferable, sometimes, but at least I know that was definitely part of the point. I liked it?

This definitely is the most I've enjoyed an Olivie Blake book since The Atlas Six!! I loved how complex of a story this is.

Thank you to Tor and NetGalley for this e-arc!!

If Olivie Blake writes it, I’m not only reading it, I’m eating it UP!!!

When Thayer Wren, CEO and father of three, dies unexpectedly, his family and lawyers gather to determine his will and last sentiments. Gifted & Talented follows Thayer’s children Meredith, Arthur, and Eilidh as they navigate (with a touch of magic AND madness) what it means to be orphaned in adulthood as rich (and crazy) siblings.

WOW I literally cannot believe I’ll never read this book for the first time ever again. Blake has honed her craft in creating such intricate and gripping characters while keeping her readers sat for plots otherwise unimagined. I loved AND hated all of these characters (except Arthur, my sweet idiot) at one point or another. And I love how big brained Olivie Blake is - this book was insane!!

Blake is so SMART and also SO DAMN FUNNY! I laughed out loud and I also cried (I always cry). Every twist and turn here had me on the edge of my seat. No other author makes me think so much while also always providing a good (fun, torturous, what’s going on?) time.

Also can we talk about unreliable narrator SUPREMACY - done so well here I will never not think of this book when this trope is brought up.

Gifted & Talented is chaos. It made me ponder human connection, what it means to be labeled one thing or another and to grow up (and out) of it. It made me laugh and cry and it has cold shoulder moments and also HUGELY tender scenes. I just loved every bit of this.

5 stars, definitely recommend this one!!!! Pick up 4/1 if you want a crazy ride with crazy characters!

Olivie Blake is a great writer! I have one of her other books and have not read it yet, I am excited to do so now.

I saw someone describe this as succession meets umbrella academy and that is what sold me!!!

I love a multiple POV and definitely between siblings. She created great characters mimicking real siblings that the reader can identify with. I found myself really intrigued by each sibling in different ways, as the eldest child and trying to be very put together I identified with Meredith, however Eilidh was the most fun to read for me!

Including magic and power in some way was a brilliant layer to this story and to the character development. Blake has a great way of including magical realism while not losing the reality of childhood trauma, character flaws, and hardship.

I really enjoyed this book!

Olivie Blake’s mind is truly a dark and beautiful place. She first caught my attention with Alone With You in the Ether and she’s held it ever since. Gifted & Talented was a fantastically original read! A little bit Succession, a little bit fantasy, and a lot of damaged characters trying to heal over the course of a tumultuous week. I really enjoyed everything about this story! The narrative is a bit all over the place as we follow different threads with multiple POVs and timelines but it comes together in a satisfying way. My favorite character was Lou, easily the only sane person in the whole book.

I would say if you loved Masters of Death, you’ll like this one. Audio was fantastic! Highly recommend to any lover of magical realism, complicated family dynamics, and characters to hate that you can’t help but root for.

Look, I think a lot of us were labeled gifted and talented in school only to let the pressure of it crush us in different ways. This book focuses on three rich kids whose dad sucked and now the kids are just kind of crappy adults. Really this book shows that maybe money can't buy happiness, but it sure as hell can ruin you as a person when you have pretty much no structure and no consequences.

I didn't really like this book, mostly because I'm not sympathetic to billionaires and it really seemed like maybe three therapy sessions could have solved a lot of the siblings' problems. Meredith is a self-proclaimed genius prodigy who just wants to be as good as or better than her father, Arthur just wants to be loved, and Eilidh doesn't know who she is and is very isolated. Also they all three have magical powers which is never really explained other than yes there is magic in the world. That really bugged me, there are several mentions to curses, spells, and the general occult, but they are thrown away comments. It felt like magic could have been a much bigger plot point or world-building element and it was just thrown away as a shrug.

I did like the overall themes of the book, of not feeling like you're really a part of a family and how expectations can crush you. But this really just felt like whiny rich kids who also had a bit of magic. The plot was too slow moving and I didn't really find anything in the book to be that interesting.

If you like books about family dynamics and finding yourself, you might like this book. It just wasn't it for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Another insanely woven story my Olivie Blake!
Her writing style is so unique and it brings the characters in her books so much depth. I liked all the details and divisive sibling backstories and drama, but there were times I was lost in the shuffle of what was actually being discussed.
The moments of actions kept pushing me through the story to allow us to learn all the ins and outs of why the family is who they seem to be. This is definitely a tale of how parenting can change everything for each individual child.
All in all, I enjoyed the story, but it lacked enough momentum for me at points in the story.

4.25/5⭐️

This book reminds me of a mix of Succession with a twist of The Umbrella Academy. When Thayer Wren, CEO and founder of Wrenfare Magitech, suddenly dies, he leaves behind his 3 successors who all had complicated relationships with him. Meredith, Arthur, and Eilidh must confront their past when legal complications delay the will's execution. It was the perfect mix of reality and fantasy. I really enjoyed the writing style and found the characters extremely entertaining even though they were being quite messy. I think if you're into business and family drama then this book is for you! This was my first book by Olivie Blake and I'm excited to read other works by her. You can tell that she thinks highly of herself in the writing and I find it hilarious. Really great book!!!!

Did not finish book. Stopped at 30%.
Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book as an arc.

As much as I wanted to love this book I just couldn't get into the characters. They were unlikeable and I didn't feel myself cheering them on. It might just be a timing issue and I will come back to it later.

The good parts
*Beautiful prose
*Interesting plot and theories
* Love to hate characters

If you love Olivie Blake's writing style from The Atlas Six then this book is for you but if you don't like long meandering paragraphs you might want to be cautious of the book, unfortunately.

Unfortunately, this may be my last attempt for Olivie Blake. Far too pretentious. May give it another chance at a later date but wow I felt like my brain was melting from eye rolls. I won’t publicize this review.

This book combines one of my favorite shows Umbrella Academy and my sudden love of toxic, unlikable characters that are written to be nothing other than captivating. This book follows the three Wren siblings whose father, CEO of Wrenfare Magitech, has passed away and we are going to learn which sibling takes over his company.

It's like a trainwreck that you can't look away from in the best way possible, and it was a such a fun read. Meredith is so messy and I love her. The characters are complex and have a certain charm that kept me hooked. And this book reads more like a character study on these 3 siblings than anything else, super interesting. I do wish the magic elements went a bit farther in this book, but they were interesting enough, although I don't think they added much to the story.

Thank you for the ARC in exchange for a honest review!

Olivie Blake can do no wrong in my eyes. None.
And this book was no exception.

There’s this feeling I rarely get when I start a book when I just know it’s going to be a five-star read no matter what. And that’s exactly what happened to me within the first 10% of this book.

I loved it, but also I didn’t. What I feel for this book goes beyond a simple “I loved it.” It crushed me. It made me feel exposed. At times, it made me feel raw. At others, it made me feral. It became one of my all time favorite books. But yeah, I guess you could say I loved it.

Gifted and Talented is Olivie Blake at her best. This is, hands down, one of her finest works. If you’ve read a couple of her books, you know that her stories are deeply character driven. There’s little to no plot, instead, her books offer such a fascinating character study that I can never get enough of them.

In G&T, we follow three siblings who are so deeply flawed and complex that each of their POVs feels like an entirely different reading experience. Their voices are distinct yet incredibly engaging. One minute, you’ll be rooting for them, and the next, you’ll be hating them (as you should).

I don’t think there’s a single main character I didn’t love here. I got to know each of them deeply, which made it impossible for any chapter to feel boring. But I have to admit though, Meredith??? she was my favorite (if you’ve read the book DON’T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT OK?). Meredith is such a powerful character that I could never get enough of her. I know she’s a terrible person. I know she does terrible things. I know, I promise, I know. But the moments I spent inside her head were the most fascinating of the entire book. She’s the kind of character you hate but simply can’t look away from. And honestly, if you stripped away all the other POVs and left only Meredith’s, I’d still rate this book five stars. I can’t say the same for the others characters even though I love them. But yeah, Meredith ruined me.

And don’t even get me started on the subplot between her and James. When I tell you I was FERAL over them, I’m not lying. How can anyone write "I’m sorry you have to love me. I wish I could let you love someone better." AND EXPECT ME TO BE OKAY WITH IT?! I’M NOT OKAY.

Okay, unprofessional Meredith rant over.

This book also tackles a lot of fascinating themes—, some hit me harder than others, but overall, it’s an incredibly thought-provoking read. Throughout the book, you’ll find yourself reflecting on life choices, success, the need to be loved, morality, the direction the world is heading, the state of capitalism in the modern era, and so much more. Not only did I have the best time reading this, but it also made me think a lot. And we love a book like that.

Read it.

Olivie Blake is a literal goddess, and I can always count on her to deliver a story I’ll love. This was sharp, witty, and so much fun, especially the writing. It felt like Succession meets Arrested Development in a world where magic and technology have merged. We follow the 3 Wren siblings as they gather to mourn their late father and wait to learn which of them has been been gifted (or cursed, depending on who you ask) control of his multi billion dollar biotech company. All 3 siblings were somehow simultaneously so unlikable and painfully charming. As the narrator stated several times, they’re a-holes and need major therapy asap, but I loved them so much and wanted them all to finally be happy (especially Arthur). Speaking of the narrator, I loved the casual tone of voice, it made me feel like I was sitting down with her having drinks and gossiping about the latest escapades of the emotionally stunted Wren siblings.

I’ve never read an Olivie Blake book that I didn’t completely devour, and this was no exception. I’ve always believed her greatest talent is her ability to craft such complex and realistic characters, and this is further proof of that. The real treat of Gifted and Talented was the characters themselves and their relationships with each other, their father, and with themselves.

Fans of Olivie Blake and lovers of darkly comedic family dramas will surely love this.

Endless thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing group for an early copy of this book, all comments and opinions are my own.

I own about by this author but haven’t read any. This was my first and now I’m binge reading them. The author writes so well and this story was so mysterious and captivating. A book that is so different than what’s been out there. I couldn’t put it down.

This is basically Succession, but with biotech and existential dread. Meredith, Arthur, and Eilidh Wren all think they deserve to inherit their late father’s company, but instead of a cutthroat corporate thriller, Gifted & Talented is more of a slow-burn character study about ambition, privilege, and self-destruction.

The writing is sharp—Olivie Blake knows how to get inside her characters’ heads—but the pacing is deliberate, and the story is more about psychological unraveling than actual high-stakes business drama. If you’re expecting twists or big revelations, you might get impatient. If you’re in the mood for something slow, introspective, and character-driven, though, there’s a lot to dig into.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this one!

Olivie Blake is really hit or miss for me. I loved "Masters of Death," but the Atlas series was a serious miss for me. I was hoping this one would fall under the category of "big hit." It did not.

These characters are the worst - like - truly the worst. I usually enjoy a good rich people problems book, but I need there to be something redeemable about the people. At least a few characters who, while flawed, make me root for them. All three of these siblings are self-absorbed assholes who are unkind to each other and those around them, and there's nothing redeemable or worth rooting for.

The "magic system," if you can call it that, is weak and unexplained. It's just random happenstance that nobody can control - sometimes it makes an appearance, and sometimes it doesn't. It felt very much like a forced element of the story. This is a story about the toxic family dynamic of 3 siblings of the uber rich. The magic felt unnecessary and weird.

While Blake makes some really important observations about capitalism and the uber wealthy, they are merely a garnish on an otherwise unappetizing meal, and garnish cannot save a bad meal.