Bright Ruined Things by Samantha Cohoe ARC Review

 

Title: Bright Ruined Things
Author: Samantha Cohoe
Publish Date: February 15th, 2022
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC for review!

The only life Mae has ever known is on the island, living on the charity of the wealthy Prosper family who control the magic on the island and the spirits who inhabit it. Mae longs for magic of her own and to have a place among the Prosper family, where her best friend, Coco, will see her as an equal, and her crush, Miles, will finally see her. Now that she’s eighteen, Mae knows her time with the Prospers may soon come to an end.

But tonight is First Night, when the Prospers and their high-society friends return to the island to celebrate the night Lord Prosper first harnessed the island’s magic and started producing aether – a magical fuel source that has revolutionized the world. With everyone returning to the island, Mae finally has the chance to go after what she’s always wanted.

When the spirits start inexplicably dying, Mae starts to realize that things aren’t what they seem. And Ivo, the reclusive, mysterious heir to the Prosper magic, may hold all the answers – including a secret about Mae’s past that she doesn’t remember. As Mae and her friends begin to unravel the mysteries of the island, and the Prospers’ magic, Mae starts to question the truth of what her world was built on.

Forbidden magic, a family secret, and a night to reveal it all...

Penelope's Review

This is the first book I'm reading by Samantha Cohoe (A Golden Fury is angrily staring at me from my TBR shelf right now lol) and I really enjoyed it! Got off to a bit of a slow start, but then, kind of like a snowball rolling down a hill, it picked up speed right until the end. At first I wasn't sure if I loved how the book ended, given that it's a standalone but honestly, the more I think about it, the more I think the ending was absolutely perfect for the story. 

So our main female lead is Mae, who is living on an island that has magic controlled by the Prosper family. Her father helped the Prospers gain control of the magic and take over the island, which is why Mae is allowed to live there until she comes of age. Mae has some pretty good character growth in this book - she starts out pretty meek and subservient but develops into a more confident, driven individual. I liked the person she became by the end. Miles was ok... kind of annoying at times but overall a nice addition to the story. I wasn't sure how I felt about Ivo at first, but I ended up loving him by the end - honestly I wish he had been more present in the book lol, I would have liked to read about him more than Miles or Coco! But it was all pretty well done;.

Given that I am a HUGE romance fan, I was a little but disappointed at the lack of an epic love story but I am also aware that it wasn't meant to be that kind of story. It worked well the way it was written and I ended up being satisfied! I also really enjoyed the writing style! Overall, this book surprised me with how much I ended up enjoying it. I will be moving A Golden Fury up on my TBR pile and keeping an eye out for this author's next projects!

Rating: 4/5 Devils!