Review: Luminous

Title: Luminous

Author: Mara Rutherford

Release Date: October 5th, 2021

Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

Find it here: Goodreads

Synopsis from Goodreads: Liora has spent her life in hiding, knowing discovery could mean falling prey to the king's warlock, Darius, who uses mages' magic to grow his own power. But when her worst nightmare comes to pass, Darius doesn't take her. Instead, he demands that her younger sister return to the capital with him. To make matters worse, Evran, Liora's childhood friend and the only one who knows her secret, goes missing following Darius's visit, leaving her without anyone to turn to.

To find Evran and to save her sister, Liora must embrace the power she has always feared. But the greatest danger she'll face is yet to come, for Darius has plans in motion that will cause the world to fall into chaos--and Liora and Evran may be the only ones who can stop him.

My Review: This book had some cool things going for it and I was really excited to read it but it just didn't quite live up to what I was expecting. I loved Rutherford's previous duology and was hoping for the same for this one but it just fell short. The magic system was really well done and I enjoyed learning about that. The world and atmosphere were also fantastic. I felt like there was a bit too much telling rather than showing in this book. I also didn't really connect with the characters. I will definitely look forward to more books by this author but this was a miss for me.

*I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher. All opinions are my own.*