I had a hard time getting into this story, but stuck it out because I loved Killjoy's other works. And I ended up enjoying the story more as it really got rolling after about a third of the way through. The story is super cozy and bingeable if you just trust the process and let the story take you on a ride. I finished wishing there was more, which is always a good sign in my opinion! The novel is the first in a planned trilogy, so I am chalking the slower pacing up to that!
The book follows Lorel, a trans girl who takes her friends place to join a witch's coven while hiding the fact that she is trans. Lorel is a really fun character that I easily related to. And no surprise that Killjoy wrote an amazing, three dimensional trans character who was the perfect mix of anxious and clever. I often struggle with fantasy characters who are too perfectly suited to their world or the plot, but Lorel felt like a real person approaching the world in a realistic way despite the otherworldly magic.
All in all I can't wait for the next book!

Lorel is a sweet and likable main character. She genuinely wants to be friends and help people. And overall I think that this is a good story about a trans girl and I would recommend it to someone looking for stories about trans girls.

I was incredibly bored though. By about 40% I still felt like not much had happened and that’s really when I considered stopping. There were also so many characters. I still didn’t have a good grasp on who was who and that made the reveals less surprising because I had no idea who it was anyway.

Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!

3.75⭐ rounded up to 4. I enjoyed this book, but I have mixed feelings about some aspects.

❤️ Worldbuilding and lore
❤️ Main character
❤️ Some fun side characters
❤️ Trans rep
❤️ Sweet romance
❌ Glossed over bullying
❌ Rushed ending and disappointing epilogue
❌ Some repetitive dialogues and internal struggles
❌ Not enough magic

Trigger warnings: violence, blood and gore, death and grief, murder, injury and injury detail, transphobia, bullying, toxic friendships, etc.

Plot:
Lorel has always dreamed of becoming a witch. There’s only one problem: only women can join a coven, and Lorel was born a boy. She finds the answer to her struggle by switching places with her best friend, who wants to become a knight. But joining the Order of the Vine is the least of Lorel’s worries: a strange plague is killing trees in the kingdom, the witches are being blamed and persecuted for it, a power-mad duchess is trying to seize the throne, and, most of all, Lorel must protect her secret at all cost or risk being kicked out of the coven… or worse.

This was a fun and easy read, with great characters and interesting worldbuilding and lore, engaging themes like trans romance, gender identity, bullying, found family, different personal strengths, and more. I was expecting more magic and witchy elements, however. I also feel like there was *too much* crammed into a 320-page novel: too many characters/motives, plotlines, villains, etc. I think some characters/relationships/events would have been more impactful with a little more direction and editing out.

Characters:
I really liked Lorel as a main character. She was nuanced, interesting, as well as very relatable and compassionate (although the epilogue ruined a bit of that). I also loved some of the secondary characters, such as the older witches, Lorel’s love interest, Lane, and the rogue knight (Aspen?). I was seriously put off, however, by how bullying was glossed over (not once, but twice!). As if being unhappy gave these characters the right to be mean or aggressive toward others… I didn’t think that was a great message to convey.

Writing:
Perhaps I would have more comments if I had read the book rather than listened to it, but here we go. The prose didn’t strike me as being out-of-this-world, or bad, but I thought it wasn’t evocative / descriptive enough. For most characters, we only have one characteristic to go with. I like to be immersed, transported—and I feel like descriptions play a key role in achieving that.

Audiobook:
I wasn’t crazy about the actor’s voice when the book started, but I got used to it at some point. It’s really just a personal preference, because they really did a great job at differentiating the various characters and adding emotions to the narrating.

Lorel wants to be a witch more than anything. The only problem is that witches are girls, and Lorel was born a boy. She doesn't let that stop her. When the witches come to take her friend, she disguises herself and takes their place. What follows is an epic fantasy story about self-discovery and acceptance steeped in rich lore and an intriguing magic system. What follows is a found-family epic adventure that dips into both mystery and political intrigue.

The powerful part of this book is when Lorel is working to understand her identity and place in the world. Those conversations and scenes where Lorel is being accepted and validated are beautiful. And the scenes where Lorel struggles with her place in this world are extremely validating.


This audiobook was such a fun experience. The narrator portrayed the emotions of the characters perfectly. I enjoyed the tone shift from description narration to dialogue. It was beneficial as a listening experience to help the listener differentiate between thought and spoken words. There were times when the descriptions felt clunky, and the scene transitions were not super clear, which caused a bit of confusion.

Overall, it is a refreshing entry into the fantasy world. I can not wait to continue this story.

Thank you, Dreamscape Media, Netgalley, and Margaret Killjoy for an advanced audiobook copy.

The Sapling Cage was a magical and cozy coming-of-age story. I loved this book and thought it was the perfect atmosphere for a fall read! I liked how the story of Laurel being trans was woven into the narrative. The author brilliantly uses emotional inner monologues to depict the thoughts of someone struggling with gender. You can tell the care and love Margaret Killjoy put into designing Laurel and I loved her as a main character. Another unique aspect of this book is the folklore aspects of traveling witches for this book. It gave a spooky aspect to the story but leant more to adventure rather than horror. This will definitely be one of my biggest recommendations for fall reading! The worldbuilding was complex enough to keep me intrigued but not overwhelming. The bigger story is still evolving and I cannot wait to see where the story goes in future books. The narration of this book by Jackie Meloche was flawless. I loved the effects and doubling that was used when the witches spoke together and casted spells. This was a wonderful audiobook experience!

i think this was a case of it's me, not the book. i am not a big fantasy fan, but i saw the words "trans witch" and my eyes glazed over and i clicked request.

this is a story about lorel, who was born a boy, but wants to be a witch. the problem? all witches are women. the coven makes its rounds claiming daughters from villages and lorel's friend is next. so lorel pretends to be her friend and let's the coven take her instead. from there, the witches start to investigate the source of a plague on forests and trees and lorel strives to hide her secret from fellow witches that may mean to do her harm and take away from her the one thing that she's always wanted.

i feel like the fantasy elements in this one were fine. frankly, i glazed over them a bit (again, not a fantasy fan). i could tell that the world was rich with lore (especially loved the reveal of another trans witch in history, as a big transphobic argument is that trans people just "started" to exist five years ago when the reality is trans people have been here all along).

the places where this book really excelled for me were the parts about lorel working through her identity, learning to understood that she had a place in this world exactly as she is, the conversations that were had about her transness, and the way this fantasy world both reflected our world, often inhospitable to trans people, and how that hatred spreads much like the blight infecting this world.

i think this will be a big hit for fans of fantasy.

What a dreamy, joyful novel about a young trans witch coming into her own. For those who feel that another magical series is no longer (and perhaps never was) for them ... perhaps this is a lite alternative. And it is lite. The older teenaged lead reads very young. Everything is overly ponderous and low stakes, at least until the battle near the end. Very little is scary at the level you might expect ... although the image my mind formed at the descriptions of the transformed witches was a little frightening. At the same time, there's enough conflict in the rights sorts of ways among the lead cast and especially the kids. Trans identities are plural and amorphic and validated. There's a lot of space for this material, for people of all ages who need it. The magical backdrop is almost secondary.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape media for the e-arc!
The cover, the promise, and the execution were all spectacular. From the moment I saw this book, I knew I was going to be absolutely obsessed. The first in a brand new trilogy, this book follows Lorel, a trans girl who's always wanted to become a witch. She decides to take her best friend's place and join the coven anyway. However, when she joins, she realizes there are dark powers at work throughout the kingdom. This story is packed full of witchcraft, magic, and identity.
I loved the story and got similar vibes to The Witch King. Both have this wonderful journey of magic and power with covens and dark magic at play. I do have to know that I ended up not loving the narration. I think I would've enjoyed it a bit more if I had read the physical or e-book, as there were definitely parts that the narrator would take me out of the story. But overall the world and characters are still really intriguing and I can't wait for the next book!

This is a paranormal fantasy with a transgender main character.

I love that the author wanted to include trans representation but I don’t feel it was successful. It was so prominent in the storyline the plot got lost to me. It was like 2 books going at a the same time. It could be more relatable to someone who is trans or in the LGBTQ community. I think people outside the community will have a hard time connecting with the main character and their situation.

Pacing was very slow. World building was strange. Narration was sub-par and i did not enjoy it. It’s possible I could have connected with the character and story better with a different narrator.

I was provided with a review copy of the audiobook and this is my honest opinion. I gave this book 2.5 stars. (If I am unable to leave partial stars, I will always round up.)

I will not be continuing the series at this time. Thank you NetGalley and Margaret Killjoy.

I enjoyed this book but I had some reservations. Chiefly I wish certain events had been described more fully rather than quickly summarized by Lorel. There was also a lot of time spent describing the world and the various factions though this was made easier to get through with Lorel being an active participant and not just a passive observer. When the plot really got going the quality of the book improved greatly and it came to a satisfying end. It was good enough that I will continue with the trilogy.

This story was interesting and I did enjoy it in the end
I really like Lorel and enjoy the way she observes the world. I also enjoyed the personalities of the various witches though there were so many I feel like I didn’t get enough time with some of them. I think this authors strength lies in human observation which is really beautiful.

I do think it reads as a YA coming of age but seeing as it’s got additional books I’ll admit it has the potential to become more adult as it goes. I also think that at several points the resolutions felt too convenient like Lorel didn’t have to work for information at all this got especially frustrating the further in I read.

The premise of The Sapling Cage is so cool a trans girl leaves her village to become a witch, but unfortunately a new kind of magical danger has appeared. Overall, I thought the story was pretty decent and will resonate with a lot of teens.

Beyond the actual story, the audiobook narration was phenomenally well done. The story has a wide cast of characters, but the style and delivery of narration makes the story far more immersive.

Actual rating: 2.5☆

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for an ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review

I'm so sad, I read the description for this book and it sounded so perfect for me and I'm truly devastated by the fact that I didn't love it.

I will start my all the things I really enjoyed. Mainly the main character, from the very beginning I was invested and rooting for Lorei, I wanted her to accomplish her dream of being a witch so badly. I think the author did a great job at quickly getting you situated and into the world and plot.

Now my complaints. There were soooooo many characters and besides Lorei I never felt like we got the time to actually develop everyone. The found family sprinkles were there but I feel like I never got to actually know anyone besides maybe some of the other welps. The plot of the book also felt very repetitive as soon as Lorei joins the witches the plot felt very cyclical it the same baseline events happening over and over. My main take is that I think the first book tried to do to much, establish the entire world building, develop a lot of characters backgrounds motives and their growth throughout the story and it still had this big bad evil that "kind of" got resolved all in 320 pages. Some aspects just were bound to not be as good as others.

Even though this book felt a lot like middle of the road I think there is potential for the next installments to improve on what already has been done, so I plan on checking the next book.

The narrator did a really good job, the spells part were horrifying in the best way

It was great, the trans representation is so refreshing to read in fantasy book !
I expected to be more "adult", with more actions and stakes BUT it's going to be a series so I'm hopeful to see that in the sequel.
With that saying, I received the audiobook version. I was disappointed with the choice for the narration, which is a male voice, except the character is a woman. As if trans women necessarily have a male voice. It is borderline transphobic but it's simply my opinion.

thank you netgalley for the copy.

Story 5/5 stars
Narration 5/5 stars

I loved this book! Lorel’s journey in her gender exploration and the acceptance and support around her was heart warming- even as a cis person some parts of it made me tear up. Lorel’s peers and community are interesting and fun. Pacing was good.

I would not call this book adult, it’s more so young adult with a coming of age theme.

Jackie was a great choice for the narration of this story and delivered the emotions perfectly.

Overall, I’m excited to read the next edition of this series and hope to hear Jackie narrate again.

Thank you to Dreamscape and Margaret Killjoy for this ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Lore for the ALC! This is out 09/24/2024!

Wow I really enjoyed this one! Kinda went into it not sure what I’d think since this isn’t the typically genre I go for.

Loved the fall vibes. Loved the queerness and transness that is in this world. The found family, the adventure, the journey of discovering who you are and your own confidence was wonderful. The world building was great and I enjoyed the scenery that was being described. I really loved getting to know these characters, especially Lorel, and I can’t wait to see where they all go in the next books. Great narration too!!

Very happy that there will be more books in this world. If you’re on the fence about picking this up, here are a few themes to help pull you in:

- forest, ponds, mist, hiking, and travels outdoors

- witches and fantasy characters who aren’t defined by gender

- found family

- Learning to have confidence in yourself and be able to rely on friends

This book was an amazing read. The premise was very intriguing and the book delivered on it. The narrator was amazing and made me enjoy the book more

This was such an enjoyable book! It doesn't say on here whether it's adult or YA, but Goodreads has it categorized as Adult and I'd disagree and say YA. It's a coming of age story, and while I thoroughly enjoyed it as an adult, I think it's well suited to a YA audience! This is the kid of book I'd love people in the actual YA age range to read. The OwnVoices author of a trans witch on a journey of self discovery and chasing her dreams, and the adventure and perils along the way was an equally moving and fun listen. I look forward to continuing the series!

The narrator, Jackie Meloche was great! The use of certain sound techniques and the heart and personality that was put into the characters was wonderful to listen to.

Thank you Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ALC!

Someone AMAB dreams of being a woman and being a witch. His best friend is a girl promised to the witches and dreams of being a night. Disguising himself in dresses and staying at his friend's house until the witches come, Laurel leaves for an education in witchcraft, a life with the witches, and hopefully a spell that will help her live as her true self. Unfortunately the witches are trying to stop a blight from taking over the land and their own covens.
I loved the concept of this book; trans character, coming of age, witches, trying to make the world a better place. Unfortunately it fell a bit flat for me. I had a hard time getting into the plot. Thankfully the MC was interesting enough to keep me going.

Thanks to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media | Dreamscape Lore and Margaret Killjoy for this ALC.

I absolutely loved the story and the main character. Lorel I enjoyed following her journey and introspection in this book was top notch. The magic system felt fresh and easy to understand. The setting and lore were nicely elaborated upon. The conflict and politics of the world we're immersed in are complex yet well explained. Overall even though it is epic fantasy this book was a lot of fun to read with the quirky dialogue and quite fast pace of the events.
The narrator Jackie Meloche in the audiobook did a great job.

I would probably not class it as Adult, but rather as YA and coming of age, but this does not take from the story, just something to keep in mind going into it.