The Blurb On The Back:

This Cinderella doesn’t crave love. She only wants revenge …


Suzume is a shadow weaver. Her illusions allow her to be anyone she wants – a fabulous gift for a girl desperate to escape her past. But who is she really? A heartbroken girl of noble birth? A drudge scraping by in a great house’s kitchens? Or Yue, the most beautiful courtesan in the Moonlit Lands? Whatever her true identity, she is determined to capture the heart of a prince – and use his power to destroy those who murdered her family. Nothing will stop her. Not even love.


The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Zoë Marriott’s YA fantasy standalone reimagining of Cinderella transforms the fairy tale’s key elements into an intelligent revenge tale set in a quasi-Japanese society that takes in issues of self-harm and although the romance element didn’t quite work for me, the fantasy elements made for an enjoyable read that kept me turning the pages until the end. Marriott does particularly well with depicting Suzume’s emotional journey in the book – I believed in the reasons for her self-harm, her guilt and her suppressed rage and desire for revenge and her relationships with her mother, Terayama, Youta, Otieno and Akira all feed into her character and shape her development. I wished that there had been more depth to the romance with Otieno who is a character with a lot of potential – instead it’s too much of an insta love thing with little real contract to justify the bond – but Akira does make up for that as she certainly has the more interesting backstory and a great twist that I really enjoyed. Also interesting is Suzume’s mother – a flawed woman driven by her own ambition, need and also jealousy and uncertainty – and I wished that Terayama had some of the same depth. The shadow weaving elements are integrated effectively into the story and the world building is solid and interesting. All in all this is a good, page-turning read and I will check out Marriott’s other work.

Thanks to Walker Books for the review copy of this book.
The Blurb On The Back:

When fifteen-year-old Mio steals the katana – her grandfather’s priceless sword – she just wants to liven up a fancy-dress costume. But the katana is more than some dusty heirloom, and her actions unleash an ancient evil onto the streets of modern-day London. Mio is soon stalked by the terrors of mythical Japan and it is only the appearance of a mysterious warrior that saves her life. If Mio cannot learn to control the katana’s legendary powers, she will lose not only her own life … but the love of a lifetime.

The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Zoe Marriott’s YA fantasy novel (the first in a trilogy) draws on Japanese mythology in an original and interesting way that offsets the more cliché obligatory teenage romance. Mio and her best friend Jack are believable teenagers and I loved the fact that Jack is an out and proud lesbian and that this is not a problem for any of their contemporaries. The plot rolls along at a fast pace and I particularly enjoyed the scenes involving the Kitsune and the ambiguous Harbringer but I was left disappointed by the ending, which leaves open a fairly big question relating to Mio’s parents that I would have preferred to have answered here. That said, it’s a solid opener and I will definitely read on.

THE NIGHT ITSELF was released in the United Kingdom on 4th July 2013. Thanks to Walker Books for the ARC of this book.

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