Nocturna

!!!Spoiler Warning!!! If you haven’t read this book yet, I give away some key spoilers!

Nocturna

by Maya Motayne

I liked this book quite a bit more than I thought I was going to. It was really good!
I loved the way everything turned out, and the writing style was clear and easy to read.
All in all, a roaring success. I will definitely be waiting on the sequel.

Don’t think that because I love you, I won’t hurt you. I can do both.

The story follows our two main characters through a latinx inspired world as they try to put an ancient evil to rest. Obviously, there’s a lot more to it than that though.
Finn is a thief. She has the magical ability to change her appearance, and that of others, at will. She hardly ever wears the same face twice. Her story is a really interesting one. She’s basically on the run from her past, and of course that catches up to her, and it’s about her learning to put the past behind her and move forward without being mired down with guilt.
Then there’s Alfie. He’s a prince who’s turned to drink to cope with the grief of losing his brother. He starts off a little swaggering and reckless, but quickly falls back into his royal self again. His story is one of responsibility and acceptance.
Both characters compliment each other well, and the extremely slow burning romance is appreciated.

What kind of person was she if, underneath it all, she was someone else?

An evil magic has been released upon the kingdom, and it’s tearing through the capital killing people in its wake. The thief and the prince make unlikely partners, but they must team together to stop it.
It’s a pretty basic plot, but it’s the characters and the dialogue that make this book stand out from others. That and the super dark horror scenes interlaced throughout. Seriously, just when you’re enjoying a bit of witty banter, or a well timed joke, along comes a torture scene, or a horde of not-quite-zombies, or a gruesomely detailed murder. It’s unexpected in such a light fantasy, but it works phenomenally. It’s great!

The man screamed in agony as his body burned from the inside out, filling with a power meant for a god that must instead settle for a man.

There’s some good representation in this book, too. There are two major supporting characters who are both revealed to gay, and it’s handled perfectly. Nobody raises an eyebrow, it’s just an accepted part of society, which it should be. I loved that they were included, though.
The latinx element was also great to read, although I wish there’d been more. I enjoyed the language and descriptions that I wouldn’t normally find in a book, but I did find Finn using the word maldito a little too often for me. She does manage to encompass sassy in any language, though!

Everyone needs a troublemaker in their life.

So, to conclude—I loved the humor, the plot, the characters and the dark scenes. I really can’t fault it too much, except to say it was pretty obvious. I mean, there weren’t any great twists that I didn’t see coming a mile off. The book wraps itself up nicely, but it also leaves itself open for the sequel, which I’m looking forward to. This works happily as a stand alone, though, if that’s more your thing.

Freedom, she was coming to understand, could be found in a person instead of a place.

Villain Rating

So, there’s this great evil called Sombra, who intends to bring about a never ending night called Nocturna, but the only problem it, he never makes an appearance! The most we see of him is his arms! Instead, I have to go with Ignacio as the main villain of this book, which feels a little like winning a booby prize at the fair.

Ignacio is a pretty good villain in his own rights, though. He’s cruel, abusive and controlling, and worse of all, he does it all in the name of love. He says that he loves Finn, but refuses to let her build bonds with anyone else. He even goes so far as to control her body and have her kill people she gets close to. It transpires that he killed her parent in order to claim her as him own, too! He’s got some pretty cool dialogue, too. In the world of villainy, the only thing he’s missing is charm and charisma. 7/10

Happy Reading,

Claire