In a city covered in ice and ruin, a group of magicians face off in a daring game of magical feats to find the next headliner of the Conquering Circus, only to find themselves under the threat of an unseen danger striking behind the scenes.
As each act becomes more and more risky and the number of missing magicians piles up, three are forced to reckon with their secrets before the darkness comes for them next.
The Star: Kallia, a powerful showgirl out to prove she’s the best no matter the cost
The Master: Jack, the enigmatic keeper of the club, and more than one lie told
The Magician: Demarco, the brooding judge with a dark past he can no longer hide
Where Dreams Descend is the startling and romantic first book in Janella Angeles’ debut Kingdom of Cards fantasy duology where magic is both celebrated and feared, and no heart is left unscathed.
(We received an e-ARC of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. We were also asked if we wanted to be a part of the Where Dreams Descend blog tour. Thank you to Wednesday Books and Janella Angeles for providing this opportunity.)
I’ve decided I want to more free-form this review instead of having a strict structure to it. What really caught me most about Where Dreams Descend was the atmosphere and the almost uncanniness of it all, especially the settings. (Is that a word?) The book starts off in a small stretch of land surrounded by a forest of trees. For all intents and purposes, we’re in the middle of the woods. And it feels like home, yet it doesn’t at the same time. Kallia wants to escape the house, so she finds her way to a city offering a competition for magicians.
And the city is, well, kind of eerie to put it lightly. When reading, it seems fine, but when you stop and dwell on it things just get uncanny. The book does a great job of showing the history of the city and the stark contrast of what it is today. The atmosphere of the book extends into the competition and the conquering circus. Much of it is shrouded in mystery. We, the readers, are experiencing a sleight of hands. As the song goes, “Everything is not as it seems.”
But also, it was pretty fun reading a book about magicians. Yes, yes, the “Character has real magic” trope has been done before. Yet Kallia adds something fresh. She’s there to escape her past that seems to follow her like a reflection. She knows she has magic, and dammit she’s gonna win this competition. (The competition aspect reminded me a bit of Elizabeth Lim’s Spin the Dawn if you like that element.) Of course, there’s something budding between her and Demarco, one of the judges.
Throughout most of the book, it’s a relatively slow burn relationship. If I had to point out one thing I wasn’t too keen on, though, it’d be that I still felt the initial kiss was too sudden. I almost wish the entire book had been the buildup in terms of a relationship. Then again, perhaps it was. Demarco’s dark past comes to light. So throughout the book, it’s a question of “Are they in love? Is one using the other for personal gain?”
While we’re here, I also wish some of the named members of the conquering circus had been a bit more fleshed out, but we have more books for that to happen, so it’s not too big of a deal.
Overall, this was a fun book with strong characters, a dual (with a third from time to time) perspective, and good prose. The imagery and atmosphere were on point. Other than that my favorite aspect was the relationships and rivalries. The theme of friendship runs strong in this book, and I loved that. There’s so much more to discover, so I’d suggest giving it a shot.
(Where Dreams Decend is currently available to purchase.)
