Thank you netgalley for this arc. I think this might be my perfect book everything about it feels so perfect for what I want! I love a quest, I love an interesting magic, I love a bit of intrigue, I love love!!!! What a book! One of the greatest quest books of all time??? An absolute banger a million stars a million hearts

Curtis has done it again! I think she's became one of my favourite authors after all these successes. Idolfire is her first foray into a more traditional format and is a great success. We follow two characters, Kirby & Aleya. Kirby comes from a ruined village, their god stolen years ago by what is essentially a fantasy Roman empire. Her brother was preparing to save her before becoming distracted despite their home withering away. Aleya is an heir to the throne in her city and needs to go through a process known as 'The Calling' to secure her place as the successor to the crown. Two unlikely characters find one another in an epic fantasy roadtrip. They encounter many obstacles along the way, rampant gods, war, mercenary parties, cultists, a commander with a vendetta and betrayals. They also find unlikely friends, uncover secrets and love. This story was masterfully crafted and reads so well, I highly recommend people pick this one up! Thanks to Netgalley & Hodderscape for this arc.

I bought this as one of three by the author, not knowing what to expect. My usual fare is crime and thrillers. I found this to be quite absorbing and enjoyed the read.Kudos to the author.

12-year old Caspia and her parents are spending a few months in Brooklyn over the summer, and Caspia is not excited. On her first day there, she finds 10 letters from Rosalind to her sister Minna, who lived in the apartment they're staying at. Rosalind was traveling with her father, and would send riddles to her sister describing various plants. This means - of course - that Caspia spends her summer solving the plant riddles, making great friends along the way, while her mum tries to come up with new recipes to go with every plant she identifies. I haven't read anything by Cornelia Funke since I aged out of the target audience about 15 years ago. I do have clear memories of my dad 'borrowing' the inkheart books after I'd gone to bed and spending several days waiting for him to stop reading so I could start. Infuriating back then, but after reading 'The Green Kingdom' I completely get it - I'd probably steal this off a child too

Curtis has smashed it out of the park again with this one! I am a big fan of Frontier and Floating Hotel and am so delighted that Curtis has another new work for us, a fantasy epic following two women from opposite ends of the earth (which is round, by the way), working together to get to the evil heart of an empire. What I love about Curtis’ writing style is the sparse and exacting nature of the prose, not a word is wasted. This does not match up with my usual fantasy reading experience, loaded with flowery language and long winding descriptions. I was overjoyed to find that Curtis’ take on fantasy was like a breath of fresh air! The story flowed at a liquid pace and I found myself staying up late just to get another chapter in. Her poetic writing style was the exact right amount to flesh out the world and our characters without overworking the reader. Never sacrificing on beauty and heartfelt moments. Several moments had me laughing out loud and others close to tears. The magic system is exciting and intricate without being overwhelming. The romance was delightful, the characters real, the world intriguing...this has definitely set the bar high for what I’m looking for in my next fantasy read! Big thank you to the publishers for sending me an advanced reader copy.