Early Review – The Luminaries (The Luminaries, Book 1) by Susan Dennard (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy
Length: 304 pages
Publisher: Tor Teen
Release Date: November 1, 2022
ASIN: B09RHZD6FD
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the Luminaries series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley for review
Rating: 5/5 stars
“Hemlock Falls isn’t like other towns. You won’t find it on a map, your phone won’t work here, and the forest outside town might just kill you.
Winnie Wednesday wants nothing more than to join the Luminaries, the ancient order that protects Winnie’s town—and the rest of humanity—from the monsters and nightmares that rise in the forest of Hemlock Falls every night.
Ever since her father was exposed as a witch and a traitor, Winnie and her family have been shunned. But on her sixteenth birthday, she can take the deadly Luminary hunter trials and prove herself true and loyal—and restore her family’s good name. Or die trying.
But in order to survive, Winnie enlists the help of the one person who can help her train: Jay Friday, resident bad boy and Winnie’s ex-best friend. While Jay might be the most promising new hunter in Hemlock Falls, he also seems to know more about the nightmares of the forest than he should. Together, he and Winnie will discover a danger lurking in the forest no one in Hemlock Falls is prepared for.
Not all monsters can be slain, and not all nightmares are confined to the dark.”
Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the Luminaries series. I got an eGalley of this book from NetGalley for review.
Thoughts: Previous to reading this I had read all of Dennard’s “Something Strange and Deadly” series which I loved and the first couple books in her “Witchlands” series which I just never got in to. I was hoping that this book was more in the darker vein of her “Something Strange and Deadly” series and boy was it ever. I pretty much couldn’t put this book down. I love the idea of monster hunters protecting the rest of the world from ancient sleeping spirits. I also really enjoyed Winnie and Jay and the rest of the town of Hemlock falls.
Winnie’s family is part of the ancient order of the Luminaries, who protect the rest of humanity from the monsters a sleeping spirit of the forest generates. At least this is true until her father is found to be a traitor and her family is banished from the Luminaries. This left her family without a father, her mother (the former top monster hunter) working at a diner, and her brother stuck working as a lacky for other Luminaries. Then Winnie decides that she is going to take the hunter trials on her own and try to win her way back into Luminary society.
This was an excellent book and was a fun and fast-paced read. I loved the history and world-building around the Luminaries and how they protect humanity. I loved all the creepy vicious monsters and the monster hunting. I loved Winnie and her family and the other strange and secretive folks of Hemlock Falls.
This book has some excellent action and a great mystery. There is a smaller plot that is tied up in this book but also a larger plot that will carry on into the next book; my favorite type of format for a series! The writing flowed beautifully and was easy to read. This was just a joy to read and I couldn’t put it down.
My Summary (5/5): Overall I really enjoyed everything about this; from the premise, to the characters and the plot. This was a fun diversion with some rich monster history and a wonderful cast of characters. I am eagerly looking forward to the next book in this series! I would recommend to those who enjoy creepy YA monster hunting reads.
