02/06/2023
Feuding magical families take center stage in this fascinating but convoluted fantasy from Blake (The Atlas Six). When Baba Yaga, the matriarch of a gifted family of witches, refuses to marry Koschei the Deathless, the patriarch of the most fearsome magical crime ring in Manhattan, she inadvertently starts a cold war. Baba Yaga raises her first daughter, Marya Antonova, to be a lethal and loyal weapon, while Koschei does the same with his own heir, Dimtri Federov. The tension between the families grows for 12 years until the Federovs make the first move, prompting a deadly response from the Antonovas. But when the neglected youngest adult children from each family, Sasha and Lev, meet and fall in love, their family loyalties are tested as they search for a way to end the cycle of vengeance. The Romeo and Juliet–esque romance is emotional and well done, and the familial relationships carry real weight, but the expansive cast—who all go by multiple nicknames—can be difficult to keep straight, and the characters’ many motivations feel underexplored in myriad subplots that go nowhere. Blake’s poetic language (“Roman had a spine like lightning, footfall like thunder”) occasionally further obscures the action. It’s a solid premise, but the execution is lacking. (Apr.)
"The witty dialogue, exciting twists, and excellent pacing make this a witchy, mob-inspired adventure that will excite fans of V.E. Schwab and Leigh Bardugo.”—Booklist
"Thrilling and reminiscent of Romeo & Juliet, One for My Enemy is a whirlwind of fantasy and romantic suspense!”—Barnes & Noble
“Olivie Blake, master of writing extremely sexy and dangerous women, is back . . . One for My Enemy is exquisitely written and immersive; you’ll feel like you just destroyed a box of chocolate truffles by the end of it. Do you feel devastated? Yes. Was it absolutely worth it? Also yes.”—Tor.com
PRAISE FOR THE ATLAS TRILOGY
"The Atlas Six introduces six of the most devious, talented, and flawed characters to ever find themselves in a magical library, and then sets them against one another in a series of stunning betrayals and reversals. As much a delicious contest of wit, will, and passion as it is of magic, this book is half mystery, half puzzle, and wholly a delight."—Holly Black, New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Night
"Lethally smart. Filled with a cast of brilliantly realized characters, each entangled with one another in torturously delicious ways, The Atlas Six will grip you by the throat and refuse to let go. Olivie Blake is a mind-blowing talent."—Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights
"Compelling, entertaining, and addictive. The Atlas Six is academic Darwinism: survival of the smartest with a healthy dose of magic."—T.L. Huchu, author of The Library of The Dead
"This chilling story of ambition and magic will make you question your own morals as you grow to love (and hate) its fascinating, ruthless cast of characters. I utterly devoured this book."—Amanda Foody, New York Times bestselling author of All of Us Villains
Two households of powerful witches, equal in their ruthlessness and guile, square off to take control of a highly stylized magical New York City. Bringing a self-assured, intelligent manner to this dark mixture of urban fantasy, romance, Russian folklore, and Shakespearean storytelling, narrator Ferdelle Capistrano has a fine time giving voice to the seven beautiful but cunning Antonova sisters and the three equally cunning Fedorov brothers--all of whom are well versed in the dark arts. Capistrano is at her most entertaining when she's slipping a little vocal fry and a tough but tender tone into the dialogues between the modern-day Romeos and Juliets who must risk all for their desires. Designer intoxicants, overbearing parents, betrayal, and doom. Can young love survive? B.P. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Two households of powerful witches, equal in their ruthlessness and guile, square off to take control of a highly stylized magical New York City. Bringing a self-assured, intelligent manner to this dark mixture of urban fantasy, romance, Russian folklore, and Shakespearean storytelling, narrator Ferdelle Capistrano has a fine time giving voice to the seven beautiful but cunning Antonova sisters and the three equally cunning Fedorov brothers--all of whom are well versed in the dark arts. Capistrano is at her most entertaining when she's slipping a little vocal fry and a tough but tender tone into the dialogues between the modern-day Romeos and Juliets who must risk all for their desires. Designer intoxicants, overbearing parents, betrayal, and doom. Can young love survive? B.P. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
2023-04-25
A feud between two powerful witch families heats up, thanks to two pairs of star-crossed lovers and an ambitious middle son, in this stand-alone by the author of The Atlas Six (2022).
In New York City, Lazar Fedorov, aka Koschei the Deathless, trades in illicit magical items, fantastical creatures, and expensive favors extended to the desperate. His three sons—Dimitri, Roman, and Lev—aid him in his dealings. Meanwhile, Marya Antonova, aka Baba Yaga, and her seven daughters sell high-end beauty products and illegal magical hallucinogens. As Yaga prepares to extend her drug sales to nonmagical buyers and her eldest daughter, Marya, also called Masha, discovers that the Fedorovs are interfering with their business, both sides plot to finish off their rivals. Matters head toward a tragic direction as Masha and Dimitri reignite the embers of their long-ago love, Masha’s youngest sister, Sasha, becomes romantically entangled with Lev, and Roman makes his own violent plans to gain his father’s approval. What appears to be an unholy magical cross between The Godfather and Romeo and Juliet leads to an expected high body count—and that’s only halfway through the book. Since this is a fantasy novel, Blake throws in a twist that initially feels like a shocking swerve, but we’re soon headed in a similar, but potentially even more destructive, direction. Several characters exhibit deep and interesting emotional growth (some based on a clever use of magic drawn straight from the Russian fairy tales the book references), but others are never fully fleshed out. In addition, the plot unfortunately coalesces predictably (and not nearly as intricately as the scheming characters, and probably the author, imagine it does), and the denouement seems less inevitably tragic than sadly pointless. Meanwhile, many opportunities for intriguing worldbuilding (how magic works, how witches govern themselves to hide their magic from nonwitches, where magical creatures come from, what non–New York witch societies are like) are never picked up.
Reasonably involving while you’re reading it but ultimately disappointing and incomplete feeling.
