Nightbirds
Feb 2023 · Penguin
4.5star
2 reviewsreport
Ebook
480
Pages
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About this ebook
AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • In a dazzling new fantasy world full of whispered secrets and political intrigue, the magic of women is outlawed but four girls with unusual powers have the chance to change it all.
Magic is illegal in Simta, but for the right price, the wealthy can always partake. They need only procure a visit with a Nightbird, girls who can gift their rare powers with a kiss. Usually a tight-knit group, this Season’s Nightbirds couldn’t be more different. Matilde, the group’s veteran, relishes the feeling of power and freedom she thinks her Nightbird status affords, but rebels against her family’s growing expectation that she finally choose a suitor and pass her magic on to the next generation; fiery orphan Sayer, resigned to this life as a means to support herself, resents each transaction and the world Matilde so reveres; and novice Æsa, fears her own magic and thinks her very existence is a sin.
But when the Nightbirds find themselves at the heart of a deadly political scheme that shakes the world as they know it, they must put their differences aside and band together to fend off those who would exploit them. In doing so, they discover their magic is more powerful than they could have ever imagined, and they see the Nightbirds system for what it is: a gilded cage. United, they are a potent force that could upend the patriarchal system that would hunt them as witches. But wielding their power could cost them more than they are prepared to lose. They must make a choice: to remain kept birds or take control, remaking the city that dared to clip their wings.
Fiercely feminist and set in a thrilling, intoxicating world evoking the Jazz Age—full of speakeasies with magic cocktails, sharp-edged, duplicitous glamour, and handsome rogue alchemists—Nightbirds is an exciting debut fantasy that dazzles as powerful girls emerge from the shadows to determine their own fates.
Magic is illegal in Simta, but for the right price, the wealthy can always partake. They need only procure a visit with a Nightbird, girls who can gift their rare powers with a kiss. Usually a tight-knit group, this Season’s Nightbirds couldn’t be more different. Matilde, the group’s veteran, relishes the feeling of power and freedom she thinks her Nightbird status affords, but rebels against her family’s growing expectation that she finally choose a suitor and pass her magic on to the next generation; fiery orphan Sayer, resigned to this life as a means to support herself, resents each transaction and the world Matilde so reveres; and novice Æsa, fears her own magic and thinks her very existence is a sin.
But when the Nightbirds find themselves at the heart of a deadly political scheme that shakes the world as they know it, they must put their differences aside and band together to fend off those who would exploit them. In doing so, they discover their magic is more powerful than they could have ever imagined, and they see the Nightbirds system for what it is: a gilded cage. United, they are a potent force that could upend the patriarchal system that would hunt them as witches. But wielding their power could cost them more than they are prepared to lose. They must make a choice: to remain kept birds or take control, remaking the city that dared to clip their wings.
Fiercely feminist and set in a thrilling, intoxicating world evoking the Jazz Age—full of speakeasies with magic cocktails, sharp-edged, duplicitous glamour, and handsome rogue alchemists—Nightbirds is an exciting debut fantasy that dazzles as powerful girls emerge from the shadows to determine their own fates.
Ratings and reviews
4.5
2 reviews
Danielle Hammelef
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February 28, 2023
This young adult fantasy has unique and lush worldbuilding that I enjoyed very much; in fact, this was my favorite part of this novel. The world felt so real and I could taste, smell, feel, hear, and see everything that was happening. I haven't found another book yet that offered such distinctly unique magic system that made complete sense to me at all times. The point of view characters were well done, and although it took me a few chapters to understand their roles, I grew to love every singl
Katherine Bickmore
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April 10, 2023
I really enjoyed reading this book! I knew I would because the cover is gorgeous (yes, I do tend to judge books by their cover) and I love to read books that have magic in them. They are so much more interesting than the real world. Even if there are many issues in the fictional world, of which this one has so many. Magic is illegal and hunted down by the church but the rich get to have the Nightbirds who bestow magic with a kiss. There is much more to this though, secrets galore in fact!
About the author
Kate J. Armstrong has always had a fondness for adventure. After graduating college, she left her home state of Virginia and has never really looked back. She’s explored many places and vocations, working as a high school English teacher and a nonfiction writer and editor for publishers such as National Geographic. In 2018 she started The Exploress, a women’s history podcast with a cult following and over half a million downloads. She is also the co-host of Pub Dates, a podcast that takes readers backstage to join her on the journey to publication for the book you’re holding in your hands right now. When she’s not writing or recording, you will find Kate hiking mountains, trying out cocktails, finding excuses to dress up in historical attire, or reading way past her bedtime. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her husband and their noble greyhound, Galahad.
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