#quell marionne

[jessread-s]

Thanks to @penguinteen for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review

✩👗🗡️Review:

Elle’s dark academia novel dazzles!

“House of Marionne” follows 17-year-old Quell who has been cursed with forbidden magic flowing through her veins. In hopes of keeping her mother safe and ridding herself of her deadly magic completely, she inducts into a magical debutante society called the Order. But passing the three rites of membership proves to be a difficult task and the more she discovers about the Order, the harder it is to turn her back on the dark magic she’s grown to embrace.

Elle’s intricate world-building blew me away! The level of detail she provides surrounding each house, the magic specialties that exist, the Dragun brotherhood, and the induction process is astounding. I also thought it was cool concept for each inductee to manifest either a crown or a mask that reflected their strength and power.

The amount of information Elle packs into her novel is intentionally overwhelming at first, closely aligning with Quell’s feelings towards the world she is spontaneously thrust into. I enjoyed reading from her point-of-view and learning about the inner workings of the Order at the same time she does. Quell’s perspective is also unique in that it allows the reader to experience how magic—both light and dark—feels through descriptive language.

Additionally, chapters written from Yagrin’s point-of-view create a layer of intrigue that propel the story forward. I enjoyed trying to piece together his role in Quell’s journey of self-discovery and the reveal at the end did not leave me disappointed!

My only qualm with this book is the pacing. Despite “House of Marionne” being 400 pages, the pacing felt off. The speed and ease with which Quell masters her magic and makes it through each stage of the induction made the whole narrative feel unrealistic. The pacing also accelerates Quell and Jordan’s relationship development, creating a whirlwind romance. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, fans of the slow burn trope, like myself, will be left wanting.

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[ash-and-books]

Rating: 1/5

Book Blurb: BURY YOUR SECRET OR DIE FOR IT.

17 year-old Quell has lived her entire life on the run. She and her mother have fled from city to city, in order to hide the deadly magic that flows through Quell’s veins. 

Until someone discovers her dark secret.

To hide from the assassin hunting her, and keep her mother out of harm’s way, Quell reluctantly inducts into a debutante society of magical social elites called the Order that she never knew existed. If she can pass their three rites of membership, mastering their proper form of magic, she’ll be able to secretly bury her forbidden magic forever. 

If caught, she will be killed.

But becoming the perfect debutante is a lot harder than Quell imagined, especially when there’s more than tutoring happening with Jordan, her brooding mentor and— assassin in training. 

When Quell uncovers the deadly lengths the Order will go to defend its wealth and power, she’s forced to choose: embrace the dark magic she’s been running from her entire life or risk losing everything, and everyone, she’s grown to love.

Still, she fears the most formidable monster she’ll have to face is the one inside.

Brimming with ballgowns and betrayal, magic and mystery, decadence and darkness, House of Marionne is perfect for readers who crave morally gray characters, irresistible romance, dark academia, and a deeply intoxicating and original world.

Review:

A girl with a deadly magic must join an elite society in order to not only hide her magic but escape from the assassins that are hunting her down. Quell has lived her entire life on the run with her mother, all because Quell has forbidden magic that if discovered, would mean her execution. With assassins hunting her down, her only turn left is to go to her grandmother... but that means reconnecting with a family she never knew before and participating the debutante society of magical social elites, and pass thee tests in order to become a member and finally get rid of her forbidden magic... the only issue? She doesn't know a single thing about this magical world or it's rules, and to make matters more difficult the mysterious and handsome guy in charge of training her is also very suspicious of her and might discover her secret. Unfortunately for me, this one fell flat, I was so excited by the description of the book but it just did not hook me in at all. I love a good academy/secret society kind of journey, but this one didn't really spark anything in me and I just found myself getting bored with the story and the characters. Quell and Jordan didn't really make much of an impression either, and the side characters were forgettable. Sadly the romance felt forced to me and I found myself losing interest trying to just make it to the end of the book. This is the first book in a duology but I will not be reading the next unfortunately. If you enjoy young adult magical society with a bit of romance then give this a go, maybe you'll have a better time with it than I did.

*Thanks Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, Razorbill for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[pipperoni32-blog]

Shadows of Perl

by J. Elle / 4 stars

I regret that I didn't give myself time to reread House of Marionne before jumping back into this one, because it started pretty fast! Mostly I was confused about Red - had I met her before? She was the blank spot, though I remembered the luncheon with Nore. Quell had such a journey and growth before, that coming back to find her so sure of her Toushana, and her bond with her magic was a great starting point.

I really enjoyed the magic system the first time around, and that got built on so well. The way the Draguns - the enforcers, tracked with keeping any dark wielders from endangering their people, as well as keeping magic a secret from the unmarked - worked as a force, the inside of their ranking system. What they knew about the damage to the orb, and where their priorities lay. How Quell could learn from an ex-Dragun, and eventually where her journey in learning as much as she can about her magic and her search for her mother leads her to place herself in the hands of another House.

The house systems as they've been known are faltering, and those with power will do their best to hold onto it. With the cracks in the orb - and the danger of all magic disappearing if it empties completely - everyone has their own agenda. Alliances are tenuously formed and broken.

I felt the sequel moved at a faster pace than the first book, and the different points of view provided important glimpses to keep things moving in tandem. Romance is definitely a low priority, so if you were hoping for a quick reconciliation between characters, be prepared for a bit more of a wait.

I am so excited to see how everything concludes, though I will definitely be doing a refreshing re-read of these two before diving in. These would definitely benefit from being fresh in the mind before the final outcome.

Thank you to the publishers through NetGalley for the eARC!

[muatyland]

House of Marionne - Casa Marionne | J. Elle

La diciassettenne Quell ha trascorso la propria vita spostandosi di città in città per nascondere la magia oscura che scorre nelle sue vene. Finché qualcuno non ha scoperto il suo segreto. Per sfuggire all’assassino che le dà la caccia e proteggere sua madre, Quell entra a malincuore in una società di debuttanti, un’élite magica chiamata “Ordine”. Se riuscirà a superare i Tre riti di ammissione,…

[valorrath]

Read along with me: House of Marionne by J. Elle, Chapters 21-23

I’m guessing from the way her diadem responds to the toushana and how beautiful she describes it being that Quell is going to have to embrace that part of herself to survive .

I knew when Quell got partnered with Jordan as her mentor for etiquette class that J. Elle was going to make them dance together.

I worry a little that Jordan wants to start fresh and all that because of his conversation with his Aunt Beaulah. What is she after? What does he know?

[eggcatsreads]

I do think that if you really loved book 1 then some parts of book 2 might not hit so well here, tho tbh. I didn't really vibe with a lot of the high society lessons and the instant-attraction romance in House of Marionne, but if you did - I'm 68% through Shadows of Perl and neither really are in this book. It's a LOT more on Quell being on the run and trying to learn her magic and find her missing mother, and finding (and being betrayed by) allies the entire time.

HOWEVER I will say I really like Jordan's and Quell's interaction once they met again, and NOW can see their romance and root for it.

I still have the last 30% to read but tbh right now this is looking like a 5⭐️ read for me!

I'm only about 50% through, and I'm LOVING IT so far! I am INVESTED and need to finish this tonight 1000%

[valorrath]

Read along with me: House of Marionne by J. Elle, Part Two

Something more is happening with Dexler, I think? Or something is going to happen with her? I don’t have a solid theory.

“I should be able to manage eating ‘properly’ even if it does involve way too many spoons.” I admire that, Quell. I would have no such confidence.

The knives on the chair to keep them from slouching, oh my word—that’s too much.

I don’t believe anyone in the world actually says ‘hotties’. That’s not a real thing.

So is her diadem at risk of turning black again at random if she uses her toushana? That’s a lot of pressure. That seems really dangerous.

[pipperoni32-blog]

House of Marionne

by J. Elle / 4 stars

Toushana. The poison that lurks in Quell's blood. The reason she's been on the run for years, her mom always uprooting them at a moment's notice. Until now. Now, after running into one of the Dragun, hunters and assassins after those who wield Toushana, her mom has sent her away. To a crumbling safe house. Quell's last shot at safety is returning to the Grandmom they fled from years ago.

Her grandmom's estate is not a family home. It's a school, to train the most powerful of magic users and induct them into society. Over the course of 3 tasks, each student learns to call upon their magic, learn to fit into their society that dwells on the edges of modern society, and bond with their preferred magical gift. It's said that the more you use a certain type of magic, the harder others are to call upon. Could this be the answer, after all these years? A way to rid herself of Toushana, to blend in and not be hunted anymore. To be part of a society, welcome and involved, not forever on the edges.

This was my first induction into J. Elle's books, and her way of describing magic, and how it's used, was one that I found myself enthralled with. The tiaras and masks made little sense at first, and I'll admit I wasn't drawn in by the first few chapters. However, by page 150 I was already needing a sequel, and couldn't help myself from telling others to watch out for this book, to keep their eyes open for when it came out!

I feel like I can't really go into more detail without giving away parts of the book that are better left revealing themselves. At the moment, the best book recommendations I can think of to compare this to are Onyx and Ivory duology by Mindee Arnett, and possibly Fire and Graceling by Kristin Cashore. Possibly if you squint, that might make sense. xD