Such an incredible book!! I read it in 24 hours but I feel that Olivia will stay with me a lot longer than that. The perfect blend of creepy and intriguing and fantastical. The Secret Garden meets Crimson Peak indeed, all wrapped up in the fabulous, vivid character of Olivia. Loved it!

Olivia Prior is a curious child. She is smart, brave, calculative, and cunning. She knows when to fight and when to "wait." She sees things that no child sees and has many unique abilities in the book. The story is set initially at the Merilance School for Independent Girls ("Merilance"), where she was left to "fend" for herself early on. She hardly interacts with anyone and enjoys being left alone - in her silence. She loves to draw and is quite good at it. Then one day, a mysterious letter from a long-lost relative arrives at Merilance, summoning her to Gallant, where her family has supposedly been looking for her. This letter becomes the pivotal instrument that will change Olivia forever. Written from a third-person POV, Gallant is full of diary-like/journal entries with intriguing illustrations interlaced in each chapter. Some of these illustrations would repeat in later chapters as a tool to emphasize their importance. These repeated illustrations will make readers keep viewing the ink drawings that hide the real implications of its ties with Olivia and Gallant. The author's phenomenal world-building is one I looked forward to in her books. She takes readers into an in-depth exploration through fantastic yet contrasting views of Gallant (the house) and shows us the dichotomy of everything - "day" versus "night." Vivid yet sometimes whimsical imagery, the author's "famous signature," provides rich scenes that were impossible to leave behind. It is never a surprise to see the author's unique technique of conveying character narratives. Her proses were hauntingly eerie and, at the same time, beautiful. From the written warnings in Olivia's mother's journal to another character's whispered gestures, readers will be in awe of the rhythm and flow, then get hit by the cunningly placed mysterious messages in them. These captivating quotes from various Priors will surely leave a long and lingering impression that will make you reread it repeatedly - inking itself into our hearts and minds. Given the lavish details provided in Gallant, my most anticipated element has to be the characters! I appreciate a book that gives life and love to all the characters involved - big or small, wherein even the villains (or are they considered as much) in the story grew on me into a new understanding. These characters grow beyond what any reader can expect, and thus, Gallant delivers characters that readers want to know more beyond the pages - into their individual histories and personalities. Olivia's character is a refreshing take on an older character conjured by the author. She is different from the author's other books, i.e. Cassidy (Cassidy Blake), wherein the former's inquisitive mind seems a lot more mature than the latter. Olivia has a lot of thoughts sealed up inside her that may be to her advantage that people underestimate her. She is brave, clever, and determined. Olivia is the 2022 version of the young heroine that anyone (young or old) would want to read into and imitate or have as a role model. Given her situation, she is a more complex character who had to mature quickly. Olivia echoes the dichotomy of humanity, wherein humans have both "light" and "dark" sides to our personalities. I love characters who make us want to become more and beyond our initial perception of "good enough." Lastly, the chill factor was perfect! There were many times that I felt the ghouls that Olivia was talking about in the book (with my hyper imagination running all full throttle) when I was reading the book alone at night. It may send chills to one's spine, and thus I also recommend reading the book during "daylight" as the book's ending scenes got a bit "hairy" for Olivia. Overall, Gallant is an unexpected yet pleasantly enlightening read. I constantly reminded myself that this is a YA novel targeted to a different audience than the author's most recent, more famous works like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Thus, the message is timeless and impressionable, yet delivered in a tidy approach at the end. The nuances are old and new at the same time. The book echoes the messages and intentions as the author's books on empowered young FMCs "called" forth to bring justice and "balance." Themes: familial love, honor and duty, purpose and belonging, the cycle of life and death, strong protagonists, sacrifices, dark gothic, haunting, enigmatic, self-sacrifices, self-worth

She stared into the flames, the letter gone, taking her dreams of Gallant with it. She looks to her suitcase, then to the door. Where is she supposed to go?’ Olivia Prior grows up without a voice, raised in an orphanage and clinging to the remnants of her mothers journal that seem to be the ramblings of a madwoman. A letter arrives for her from her Uncle Arthur, inviting her to Gallant, the family home. Only once she gets there she discovers Arthur has been dead a year. Olivia has so many questions but no voice to make herself heard, it’s up to her to work out what secrets are being hidden at Gallant. I loved this story, the absence of Olivia’s voice cuts down a lot of the dialogue and makes you look outside of the characters for answers. It is fairly slow paced, the whole story takes place over a matter of days. Schwab’s writing style is so descriptive and builds such a vivid picture of the world and atmosphere that it doesn’t really matter that the plot is slower as there’s still so much to gain from the book. This felt like a really well fleshed out short story, it was a straightforward enough plot but there was such time and dedication spent building up the world that I wanted to read more even when the plot was wrapped up. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and I think if I read it again I’d gain even more from the story! Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy!

Thank you so much to Titan for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. As I’m sure many of you know, Addie Larue is my favourite book ever and I was so excited and honoured to receive a proof copy of this book! I was a little hesitant going into this one as the next book after Addie Larue, but I’ve read a few Schwab books since and I’ve definitely enjoyed them all for different reasons. Schwab does an incredible job of writing such different plots but including the same feel and atmosphere in the writing itself. I can always feel when I’m reading a Schwab book, if that makes sense. Gallant is a YA story following Olivia, an orphan who only has a journal left of her mother. She then receives a letter from her uncle, inviting her to his estate, Gallant. When she arrives, she finds her uncle has died and the house is occupied by her cousin and the servants of the house. She remains at the estate, but is warned not cross the wall on the outskirts of the estate. This book is kind of a mystery, kind of a horror, kind of a paranormal. It is a beautiful mixture of genres and I loved the atmosphere. It creeped me out in ways that I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I was reading it, and I definitely had chills. It also reads kind of like a fairytale, and was reminiscent of The Secret Garden with darker undertones. This book was very character driven and has a slow plot, but I still found it very quick and easy to read. It’s full of illustrations and extracts from Olivia’s mother’s journal, which I loved and were so beautifully complimentary to the story. I really loved this book and I’m so glad I had the opportunity to read it, and my only complaint is I wanted more. This book just didn’t feel long enough to me in places, and I wanted more detail, more emotional connection to the characters and more of the book overall. Although I don’t think anything will beat Addie Larue, or will be difficult to beat, I did still really enjoy this one. ★★★★★ 4.5 out of 5 stars -Beth May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

A lovely book with intermittent beautiful illustrations. It is a book that a would loan but I would want it returned. A wonderful story with an amazing heroine. Any more would ruin a fantastic read.