#Draw Down the Moon

[afterblossom]

Book cover illustration for Draw Down the Moon by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast

Graphic Designer: Kerri Resnick

[mspaintpuppy]

draw down the moon

gift :3

[rachaellawrites]

Another ARC I got to read this year. It was... well, you'll get to hear me rant a lot :)

I also have a written review of this book, which is much less chaotic than the video.

[ARC Reviews | Essays and Reviews | Ko-fi]

[bookishlyvintage]

The ARCs currently on my TBR cart ~

[elliepassmore]

Draw Down the Moon review

3.5/5 stars Recommended if you like: younger YA, magic schools, chosen one, childhood friends to lovers

Big thanks to Netgalley, the authors, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

So...this book reads very young. And like it was written by someone in middle school. I could go on and on about how young the characters read and how they interact with each other the way no human being interacts with other people, but I'll keep this brief. These characters are all supposed to be 18, yet almost every single one of them reads like they're 12. I had to put the book down several times because of how absolutely ridiculous some of the things they said were. They also 100% do not dress like high schoolers. No high schooler is going to be caught dead in the kind of 'funny' slogan t-shirts these kids wear on the regular.

Another thing that made me put the book down was the fact that there's a Japanese character who...randomly responds in Japanese to people who don't speak Japanese. That IS NOT HOW CODE SWITCHING WORKS!!! Also, Cast gets some of the Japanese wrong, particularly in regards to respect registers, though that's of course hard to fit in when the character 'speaking' Japanese only ever uses one word at a time.

Moving on, the premise of the book rests on the 'chosen one' trope, and Wren is extra special since her powers don't quite fit the traditional categories. For most of the book Wren reads like a middle schooler, which I think she should've been and then the whole book could've been MG instead of YA, but whatever. However, there are certain points in which she acts more mature and behaves like one would expect an 18-year-old to. I'm...not really sure what her character arc is. She's very loyal to her friends, and she wants to solve the mystery of what's going on, but that's about it. While there's not really any character development going on with her, she does have a lot going on and her I'm-actually-12-in-an-18-year-old-body behavior/attitude does make her POV interesting to read.

Lee actually has a more solid character foundation, imo. He wants to uphold his family's high expectations while also honoring his sister's memory. This, naturally, leads him to do things that he thinks his sister would've done, regardless of it's something he wants. These familial expectations have, apparently, turned him from a mischief-maker like Wren into a rule-follower. His blind obedience to the rules gets kind of annoying when it's obvious there's something wrong going on at the academy. Instead, he's just like la-di-da, we should tell an authority figure (even though they're acting suspiciously). At least that's in character for him though, so I can't fault it too much even if it's annoying. That being said, while I think Lee is a stronger character, he's rather boring, and he actually acts incel-y for a portion of the book. He thinks Wren is telling him to date someone else and since she doesn't return his (unspoken) feelings, he decides to ghost her. And then somehow everyone thinks this is her fault.

Sam is really the only other character who gets enough page time for us to know. Luke, Lily, and Ruby are just kind of...there. Sam is Wren's other BFF and also has that weird mix of immature and normal-18yo. Her entrance is literally her belting the opening song from Beauty and the Beast in front of a crowd of people she just met, solely in order to say 'hi' to Wren. Luckily, Sam has smarts to her and that mostly makes up for her entrance. She's able to help Wren with the mystery and is good at making leaps that help. She's also fiercely protective of Wren.

Probably my biggest issue with this novel aside from the immaturity of the characters, is the fact that the dialogue is exposition. It's literally the embodiment of that Tumblr post talking about bad exposition "morning sis, remember how our parents are dead," is basically how things work in this novel. There are moments when things are explained through showing, so I'm not sure why so much of it is told unnecessarily through dialogue.

The ending also did not wow me. The whole book is spent building up to this moment and then after some action, things just fizzle out. Wren I think gets a magical transformation into a 20-year-old (??) and also a hair dye job (??). Somehow Wren leaves the school and I'm just very confused about the whole thing. I think Cast could've easily made this a standalone and wrapped everything up in this book, particularly if the exposition was delivered a little more smoothly.

[chapterswelove]

April Anticipated Releases (2024)

Hello book besties, I’m back to share of my most anticipated releases for the month Of April and I can’t wait to get to them soon. Let me know if any of these made your list. If you have any mystery/thrillers recommendations, please let me know in the comments. Happy Release Day! I’m hoping to get to most of these soon it all depends on my library, but Finger crossed I get lucky LOL Happy…

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 1/5

Book Blurb: New York Times bestsellers P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast return with Draw Down the Moon, the first book in a new duology set in a dark and magickal world filled with incredible danger and irresistible romance.

A mystical school. A mysterious death. A magickal romance. Wren Nightingale isn’t supposed to have any elemental powers. Born of magickal parents but not under one of the four fated astrological full moons, she is destined for life as a Mundane—right up until she starts glowing on her eighteenth birthday. In a heartbeat, Wren’s life is turned upside down, and she’s suddenly leaving her home for the mystical Academia de la Luna—a secret magickal school on a hidden island off the Seattle coast.

Lee Young has always known about his future at the academy. He has three goals: pass the trials, impress the Moon Council, and uphold his family’s reputation. But he wasn’t expecting to be attending alongside the girl he’s been secretly in love with for as long as he can remember.

As Wren and Lee are thrown into the academy’s grueling trials, they quickly learn there’s something different—and dangerous—about the school this year. Wren will have to navigate a web of secrets, prophecies . . . and murder. And Lee will have to decide what to protect: his family’s legacy, or the girl he loves.

Review:

A girl who suddenly awakens her magical powers finds herself being sent to a magic school on her 18th birthday with the one boy who has been secretly in love with her for as long as he can remember. Magical school, romance, and mysteries to unpack. In a world where there are zodiac/moon magic and the difference between Magical vs Mundanes, Wren Nightingale always thought she was going to be a Mundane... until her 18th birthday where she begins to glow and her magic awakens. Now she has to go to the magic school called Academia de la Luna, where she'll learn to train her powers. Lee Young is her best friend who has secretly been in love with her for as long as he can remember. He has magic and was going to the school, but now that Wren is coming with him, everything is going to change. The school they'll be attending has its own grueling trials and dangers, and they'll have to navigate deadly secrets within the school and murder! Lee will have to decide whether to follow his family's path or follow the girl he is in love with. Wren will have to find a way to understand her new magic and who she is now. This book felt like it was about 13-14 year olds rather than actual 18 year olds, it read as very young and juvenile and honestly, I found myself wanting to DNF this book so many times but kept pushing myself to finish just to finish the book. This book hits all the classic 2010s YA tropes: magic school, chosen one girl, Hunger-Games esque trials, She's so quirky and not like other girls, and unfortunately the found family trope in this one did not work for me at all. I really did not care for the romance and the actual "cliffhanger ending" just had me going "ughh". I will not be reading the next book and honestly this one just felt like a complete miss. The cover is the most stunning thing ever however the actual plot and characters just did not live up to what I was hoping it would be. I think if you are on the younger end of YA I feel like this would be perfect for you, as for me, it just didn't work out. I feel like younger YA readers would enjoy this one.

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[daeyumi]

⚫️ Ominous 🌑🩸

[jolieeason]

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Had Very Strong Emotions About

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Every Tuesday, a new topic is assigned from the schedule below. Then, you take that topic and fly free with it. You can do as little or as much as you want to (I have…

[tanyasreading]

Draw Down The Moon by P.C. Cast, Kristen Cast

Book StatsStars: DNF@25%Start Date:03/ 22/24Ending Date: 03/22/24Genre: YA Fantasy RomanceForm: E-Arc/ALCPage Count: 336Publishing Date: 04/02/24Point of View: Dual 1st PersonSetting: Seattle, WA Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6365609889StoryGraph:https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/1e06e5e5-c3dd-48d8-9b24-515728c10606 Thank you Netgalley and MacMillan Audio for the E-Arc and…

[itty-bitty-sunshine]

Needed an excuse to draw sun in his natural habitat (unpaid babysitter).

[lurking-loaf]

Some quick dca doodles because I’ve been feeling antsy lately.

[starrspice]

Have an art crumb

[bookishlyvintage]

• April •

In April I got to spend time with family, I revamped some of my all white furniture, and I got to participate in Indie Bookstore Day! I also played some fun games and enjoyed the Fallout show on Amazon.

Not a great reading month, but a fun month overall :)

— LOVED —

Heartless Hunter 🦉

– LIKED –

Given Our History 📱🎁

Exception to the Rule 📱

‐ Meh ‐

Final Curse of Ophelia Cray 🎁

Draw Down the Moon 🎁

Did not finish: Immortal Longings (my CR)

Top game played: Yoshi Crafted World

-> Side note: Jane Lawrence was read in March, I didn't realize until I was typing this out. I like the photos though, so she stays

[Journal shown is @owlcrate reading journal from one of their 2023 boxes]

—

I've got a BIG thing happening in May, so I look forward to a great month!

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[crabsnpersimmons]

He can play any trick with a cork Or a spoon and a bit of fish paste If you look for a knife or a fork And you think it is merely misplaced You have seen it one moment and then it is gone But you'll find it next week lying out on the lawn! /lyrics to "Magical Mister Mistoffelees"

(slowly cleaning out all the art i drafted but never posted) i was watching the Mr. Mistoffelees performance from the 1998 recording of Cats, and all i could think about was moon dancing about like misto with his signature light-up jacket.

[tagidearte]

My tablet's pen broke so I broke out the watercolours and... I guess he went on a Lost and Found haul. For reasons.