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Thursday, November 5, 2015

The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey (Review) @meligrey @RandomHouseCA



Genre:
Young Adult, Paranormal
Publication Date:April 28, 2015
Pages:357
Published By:  Delacorte Press
WebsiteMelissa Grey Website

My review copy:Copy for review from publisher
Buy it: 
Amazon ~ B&N ~ Chapters

Synopsis

Beneath the streets of New York City live the Avicen, an ancient race of people with feathers for hair and magic running through their veins. Age-old enchantments keep them hidden from humans. All but one. Echo is a runaway pickpocket who survives by selling stolen treasures on the black market, and the Avicen are the only family she's ever known.

Echo is clever and daring, and at times she can be brash, but above all else she's fiercely loyal. So when a centuries-old war crests on the borders of her home, she decides it's time to act.

Legend has it that there is a way to end the conflict once and for all: find the Firebird, a mythical entity believed to possess power the likes of which the world has never seen. It will be no easy task, though if life as a thief has taught Echo anything, it's how to hunt down what she wants . . . and how to take it.

But some jobs aren't as straightforward as they seem. And this one might just set the world on fire. 

Quotes

  The girl.  As though Echo weren't standing right in front of him.  No matter how long she lived among the Avicen, Altair would always see her as other.  As lesser.  She pushed in front of the Ala, wrapping her resolve around herself, donning it like a suit of armor.
  Akrasia, she thought.  The state of acting against one's better judgement.  She had a feeling that the next three words out of her mouth were the most important words she would ever speak.
  "Yes," she said.  "I do."
  "You can take your chances with me," Caius said, "or you can stay and find out what the Dragon Prince has in store for you.  All our fates rest with you."  He extended his hand to Echo.  "Well?"
  "War is like a drug," he said.  "You spend so long chasing victory that you become blind to the fact that you'll never find it.  It had never occurred to me that peace was possible, not until..."

My Thoughts

 The Girl at Midnight was a magical and engaging read that had me devouring the pages.  Melissa Grey delivered a beautifully written and well spun story that could have the pickiest of readers addicted.  There are feelings and images that still stick with me, and I can imagine will stay with me until the moment I get the next book in my hands.  I'm going to try not to give anything away, or gush over just how amazing this book was to me.

  Admittedly I did find the start a little slow, but I could also chalk that up to the fact that I was in a bit of a slump.  I had read so much paranormal that I needed a quick change, because when I came back to this book it was all I could do to put it down.  I loved the voices of each character, and how Grey developed some secondary characters by giving them their own voice/point of view as the book developed.  These developments were brought on with perfect timing, and each one as needed as to not overwhelm the reader.  I marvelled in how the author was able to make each voice so clear, and how the plot was made more intriguing as each was added.  This also helped with the pace, as you wanted to hear the next voice, and knew that the next chapter would hold something different.  There was also a beautifully done world development.  Though the majority of it is our world, it is the way in which things are described that made it enchanting.  Each place described through the eyes of the characters and their feeling are what made it so fantastic. Beyond a hiccup where the romance was concerned(very minimal), I would say that this book was flawless to me.

  I cannot even express all of the ways that I loved Echo.  She was easy to like right from the start and my feelings just got stronger as I read.  As far as heroines go she had a little bit of everything, and reflecting upon her I can't think of one thing that I could honestly complain about.  Echo was strong, loyal, snarky but cared in all of the right ways.  Her quick wit and sarcasm had me smiling often, and her ability to adapt to a situation was phenomenal.  This being said her background (or lack of really), is what allowed her to grow and become everything that she did from start to finish.  Honestly, I don't want to say too much in fear of ruining something because when it comes down to it Echo is a character you need to experience.

  The secondary characters were so important with this read, and became front line just over half way through the book.  Caius had his own voice from the start, but the others developed theirs and I loved every minute of it.  Caius is different from those he is supposed to rule over, wanting peace and the end of war with the enemies he has known all of his life.  Though he did not have a lot of growth throughout the book, he was a strong and established character.  You then have Ivy and Dorian.  Ivy being important to Echo and Dorian to Caius.  They are kind of the same side of a different coin, each holding a grudge against the other but kindness and loyalty are strong attributes for both.   I would love to provide more information but with the risk of spoiling the characters and the story, I will just have to say that you don't want to miss these original characters.

  The Girl at Midnight is a read I will not soon forget and reminded me of how I felt while reading The Daughter of Smoke and Bone books.  The pages just hold a magical world, with defined characters and beautiful writing.  Book two (The Shadow Hour) cannot come soon enough, and I would give a lot to have it in my hands to continue this adventure.  This book is a must read for fans of The Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy and lovers of a paranormal with a great adventure, and fantastic writing.  Basically this book is an instant favorite.  

Posted by Tiffany

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