Have you ever read a book solely because of how beautiful the cover looks? The cover of Draw Down the Moon completely captured me. I went into the book entirely blind. Well, almost entirely. I didn’t even read the blurb! Facebook promoted an ad to me for the book, and I immediately knew I needed to read it.

Amazon / Goodreads

Synopsis:

New York Times bestsellers P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast return with a new duology set in a dark and magickal world filled with incredible danger and irresistible romance.

Wren Nightingale isn’t supposed to have any powers. Born of magickal parents but not under a moon sign, she was destined for life as a Mundane—right up until she starts glowing on her eighteenth birthday. In a heartbeat, Wren’s life is turned upside down, and she’s suddenly leaving her home for the mystical Academia de la Luna—a secret magickal school on a hidden island off the Seattle coast.

Lee Young has always known about his future at the Academia. He has one goal: pass the trials, impress the Moon Council, and uphold his family’s reputation. But he wasn’t expecting to be attending alongside the girl he’s been secretly in love with for as long as he can remember.

As Wren and Lee are thrown into the Academie’s gruelling trials, they quickly learn there’s something different–and dangerous–about the school this year. Wren will have to navigate a web of secrets, prophecies–and murder. And Lee will have to decide who to protect–his family’s legacy, or the girl he loves.

Review:

Do you love urban fantasy? Magical school settings? How about a chosen one trope? A potentially evil school leader? Draw Down the Moon has all that and more. This combination of tropes is like catnip for me. Sure, it sounds a lot like Harry Potter. And, yes, it’s not exactly groundbreaking material. But Draw Down the Moon is fun and full of hijinks, friendship, and magic, and that’s what I love in my young adult fantasy.

The main thing in Draw Down the Moon that didn’t work for me was the romance. The love interest’s POV was dramatic and extremely focused on the main character. I’m sure I’ll age myself with this reference, but the best comparison I can think of is Dawson from Dawson’s Creek. If you would choose Dawson over Pacey, then you absolutely need to read Draw Down the Moon. There’s no love triangle in this book, but I was so over Lee’s POV chapters by the end of the book. I do give bonus points to the authors for doing great things with anxiety representation with Lee. That part of his character was extremely well done.

I’m hoping I like Lee a little more in the next installment because this is a series I want to continue! I enjoyed the magic system and the magical school setting immensely. The main character is delightful, and her POV is clear and well-written. I listened to Draw Down the Moon by audiobook, and the dual narration was great. The narrator for Wren was excellent and made the book a great listen.

Rating: 3.75 Stars. I would have rated Draw Down the Moon higher had I enjoyed Lee’s point of view and internal dialogue more. 

Thanks to Macmillan Audio for providing me with an arc of the book!