Nocturna

Set in a Latinx-inspired world, a face-changing thief and a risk-taking prince must team up to defeat a powerful evil they accidentally unleashed. To Finn Voy, magic is two things: a knife to hold under the chin of anyone who crosses her…and a disguise she shrugs on as easily as others pull on cloaks. As a talented faceshifter, it’s been years since Finn has seen her own face, and that’s exactly how she likes it. But when Finn gets caught by a powerful mobster, she’s forced into an impossible mission: steal a legendary treasure from Castallan’s royal palace or be stripped of her magic forever. After the murder of his older brother, Prince Alfehr is first in line for the Castallan throne. But Alfie can’t help but feel that he will never live up to his brother’s legacy. Riddled with grief, Alfie is obsessed with finding a way to bring his brother back, even if it means dabbling in forbidden magic. But when Finn and Alfie’s fates collide, they accidentally unlock a terrible, ancient power—which, if not contained, will devour the world. And with Castallan’s fate in their hands, Alfie and Finn must race to vanquish what they have unleashed, even if it means facing the deepest darkness in their pasts.

Nocturna by Maya Montayne - release date May 7, 2019

Before we get into this book I'd just like to say I HAVE SOME EXCITING NEWS!!!!  I finally figured out how to have people subscribe to the blog!  So if you like our content just press that blue box on the right that says "follow" and stay up to date with all of our reviews!  THANKS GUYS!  (And don't forget to tell other book lovers about it too!)  I hope all of you will follow :-).

So Nocturna was so different from everything I've read recently.  I LOVED how the whole thing was inspired by Spanish culture.  Literally the words they use to activate magic are verbs in Spanish.  I'm in AP Spanish right now so I understood everything.  Absolutely worth checking out.

I LOVED Alfie and Finn so much.  They were both so endearing and stubborn and the tension was so thick!  Alfie has already been through so much with the loss of his brother that the last thing he needs is some thief ruining his whole life...but it turns out that is exactly what he needs.  Finn has spent her entire life running from who she is by using her propio (basically a soul magic unique to each person) to shapeshift her face into something else.  She's also on the run from her SUPER MESSED UP wackadoo "father" Ignacio, who wins the award for "most messed up" for this novel.  Finn never would have guessed in a million years that she'd become friends with this sweetheart prince who's emotions are as easy to read as a book.  And of course there is the comic relief/best friend of Alfie's, Luka.  I love that kid; he just wants what's best for Alfie (and also adventure).

I'm kind of sad that more wasn't done in this book.  About halfway through I was like there is NO way they are going to have all of this fixed by the end of the book but then I remembered that it's supposed to be a trilogy so I have to wait minimum two more years before reading the final ending.

For specifics, I loved the entire concepts of moving shadows and how the characters' shadows would react to their emotions.  I also really liked how there was chapter titles because that is something I don't really see anymore for some reason I don't really know?  Chapter titles are cool.  I also LOVE the cover and wish my ARC had the final cover on it (it just looks red).  For dislikes, not for me specifically but just in general if you don't like reading things that are a little bit more on the gory side, then maybe you might want to skim through a few parts of this book.  There were a few sections were I was cringing a lot through second-hand character pain because OUCH!  It was also kind of long (took double the time to read than usual) but it was still very enjoyable.

4 out of 5 stars.  This one is a MUST READ if you're interested in anything with Spanish culture and/or everything cool about magic (and if you like slow burns).  Took me 8 days to read, & I hope that if you're reading this you'll hit the follow button!! :-)!

-Taylor

Reviewed on April 8, 2019