“For her sixteenth birthday, Louise le Blanc’s mother gave her three things:
A sacrificial altar,
A ritual knife
And a wicked scar.”
In my opinion, very few things in life compare to the feeling of reading a book that completely lives up to its hype. Putting aside the buzz generated by early reviewers and publicists, as soon as I read the synopsis of this book I had incredibly high expectations and I can safely say that I was not left disappointed!
‘Serpent & Dove’ is a fantasy novel in which we are dropped right into the middle of the action and the magic system and plot are revealed layer by layer as you go. In some cases this can be problematic, there's a risk of a lot of information dumping, underwhelming or confusing world building and just general chaos, but Shelby Mahurin owns her craft and delivers to us a compelling and intricate world which is easy to absorb and comprehend whilst also withholding just enough to stir a need to just keep reading.
Alongside this masterful world building, we are introduced not only to incredibly loveable and funny main characters, but a host of amazing secondary characters. If anybody hurts my baby Ansel, in any lifetime, instalment or imagination... run. The romance is an enemies-to-lover, slow burn and I am here for it. It is written brilliantly and drags you through the complicated range of emotions right alongside our hilarious protagonist Lou as she experiences them. And when our naïve baby Reid comes out of his shell and gets cocky, confident and teasing? SWOON.
How on Earth a book can be over 500 pages and yet not long enough I'll never be able to explain, but ‘Serpent & Dove’ deserves every bit of credit, praise and hype that it has had heaped upon it and I will be waiting very impatiently for the sequel!
‘A witch and a witch hunter bound in holy matrimony. There was only one way such a story could end- a stake and a match.’
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