An Amulet of Stars and Fire
by J. L. Casten
Publication Date: April 26. 2022
★★★☆☆
Lorali is a bright and ambitious girl on the cusp of adulthood. After graduating high school early, she joins her parents and brother in their annual visit to an ancestral castle in Scotland - and the family who lives in it.
This trip is different.
Secrets held for years spill forth and Lorali and her family find themselves in a tight spot. Will the truth set them free? Or are they destined to crumble?
I was excited to pick up an ARC of this novel after finding it on TikTok, promoted by Nightshade Publishing LLC and their acquisition editors. Witches? Yes please. Scotland? Tell me more. Ancestral Secrets? I'm intrigued!
It'll be hard to talk about this book without spoilers, so I'll start with this:
Outlander meets Merlin in this contemporary fantasy. This is a coming-of-age story filled with secrets, deception, magic and romance - dare I say, a love triangle? It's a bit of a slow start as the world unfolds around the characters, but leaves you with more questions than answers, making you ask "when is book two coming?" Pick this book up if you're a fan of ancestral connections, Scottish castles, elemental magic and teases of a vast adventure to be continued after an unexpected cliffhanger.
Now, without further ado: SPOILER ALERT!
First, let's talk about the theme. This book gave me heavy Outlander vibes, complete with time travel and surly Scottish men from the past. That being said, there's enough taste of the modern world (circa 2018) mixed with elemental magic that it doesn't feel like an overused trope. It's a solid coming-of-age story, as Lorali dives into the secrets that have been held, hiding the massive amount of responsibilities and power for her future self. It definitely carries clear "chosen one" themes, mixed with the love triangle and family tension pieces too.
The characters themselves are fairly relatable. Some are flat, without much development carried through their habits. Part of me got a bit confused as to the full intention of Lorali's parents keeping such huge secrets hidden, and there were a few inconsistencies with their reasoning. Otherwise, Lorali herself is a dynamic individual who discovers more of herself and the whys and hows of her experiences during high school and day-to-day life before this fateful family vacation.
The beginning of the book gets the reader hooked in order to understand why the existence of a future child needs to be hidden. With the teasing of the Scottish highlands, I was definitely intrigued to continue. The story starts fairly slowly - the author works to establish the world and circumstances around the reader. I was hoping it would pick up fairly early in the book - I usually hope for the first quarter or less of the book for worldbuilding - but the discoveries of the social and physical world extended past the halfway point, which could dissuade readers who have trouble in prose without clear action or tension. Even as it picked up into more tense issues, I didn't see a clear climax. I think the idea of the story was great, but the flow and pacing felt very off-kilter.
I do adore the magic system. As a person who practices pagan and magic ritual, it was very intriguing to see the use of elemental magic, as well as the essences of spirit powers (ie astral plane, dreamwalking). I'm excited to see how Lorali's abilities unfold in the next book. One thing I wish there was more of - and I think many fantasy authors fall into this trap often - is to see the character who finds their power struggle with controlling/producing it. All too often we see the natural mastering of strong magical abilities that seem a bit intangible or misaligned from what would be the reality of the situation.
There are small aspects of romance through this book - but seriously, what's a fantasy book without a bit of romantic drama with broody men? Short sell: Love triangle with two brothers - veeeery Vampire Diaries (and I'm honestly here for it!). I am a fan of love triangles, and this book definitely started down that path. It has the potential of turning into a very spicy series, but the type of romance in this book is definitely low-key and something that would be appropriate for younger readers.
All things said, I think this is a very promising start to a series - a debut series at that! I still have yet to pick up the prequel novel Phoenix Rising, but I'm very intrigued to hear about some of the other characters.
Trigger Warnings provided by the author:
Please be advised that some aspects of this work may be upsetting to some.
Themes in this story include, but are not limited to, neglect, abuse, manipulation,
sexual themes and situations, self-harm, loss, and violence.
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