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The Court of Miracles

(A Court of Miracles #1)

Kester Grant (Goodreads Author)

3.72 · Rating details · 4,101 ratings · 1,524 reviews

In the violent urban jungle of an alternate 1828 Paris, the French Revolution has failed and the city is divided between merciless royalty and nine underworld criminal guilds, known as the Court of Miracles. Eponine (Nina) Thénardier is a talented cat burglar and member of the Thieves Guild. Nina's life is midnight robberies, avoiding her father's fists, and watching over ...more

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Hardcover, 464 pages

Published June 2nd 2020 by Knopf Children's

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Oct 21, 2020 Jesse (JesseTheReader) added it · review of another edition

I enjoyed this quite a bit and I can definitely see potential in where this series could be heading. I know that a lot of people go into this book thinking they're going to get Six of Crows, but you're going to be disappointed if you do. Sure there are similarities, but it's quite different in terms of tone and characters. I wasn't huge on the romance, but no surprise there. I did love the setting though and the overall direction of the story has me intrigued as to where things could go. I can't ...more

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Jan 17, 2020 amy ☂︎ marked it as to-read

me: i won't fall for books that have 'for fans of six of crows' in their description anymore
this book: hey
me:

...more

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Jun 24, 2020 jessica rated it liked it

i originally had this at a 4 because its a fun story, easy to read, and was an overall enjoyable reading experience; but after a day or two of thinking, some things are bothering me.

in hindsight, nothing about this feels original. its as if KG took different components from different sources (les mis - character names, the bone season - plot, history - world building) and then put them into one book. i dont see anything unique on these pages.

also, im not very knowledgable about history, which ...more

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Mar 27, 2019 megs_bookrack rated it liked it

Shelves: arcs-read

Set in 1828-Paris, hot on the heels of the failed revolution, the city is divided between the royal court and nine criminal guilds.

Our protagonist, Nina Thénardier, is a young member of the Thieves Guild.

Nina has spent her life flying under the radar. A skill that comes in handy as a thief.

After her abusive father sells her older sister to the Master of Flesh, known as the Tiger, Nina desperately wants to save her, but never gets the opportunity.

While living on the streets, Nina gains a new lit ...more

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Jun 04, 2020 NReads marked it as to-read

what's up with courts in ya lately? ...more

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Aug 28, 2017 ☙ nemo ❧ (pagesandprozac) rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley, historical-fiction, retellings, 3-star, heists-and-escapes, minority-ethnic-leads, young-adult, action-thriller-suspense, let-them-eat-brioche, alt-hist

and lo, i am disappointed once more. what a cold, hard world we live in.

it wasn't bad, it's just okay, and somehow that's worse. if it was bad i could take the piss out of it with wild glee. but i can't.

there were a lot of timeskips that seemed jerky and uncoordinated, like me after a few wines, and especially in the first half the narrative didn't seem to flow very well. nina was a good character, pretty well-rounded, but she seemed to get out of scrapes and conflict a bit too easily for my t ...more

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Mar 13, 2020 Helena of Eretz ✰ rated it it was ok

Shelves: young-adult, arcs, historical

I received this complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

I don't know what I expected going into this, but it wasn't this. While the synopsis referenced la Revolution Française being unsuccessful, I still thought that it'd be a Les Misérables retelling from how it was pitched. That's not really what this was. Rather, it was an alternate historical book with multiple inaccuracies. I didn't find it particularly compelling either way, nor did it ...more

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Mar 18, 2019 - ̗̀ jess ̖́- rated it did not like it

Shelves: historical-fiction, young-adult, diverse-books

Oh, I genuinely don't think I've ever been more disappointed in my life. For reference, I'm a huge, huge fan of Les Miserables--own five copies of the book, four different translations, have watched several adaptations, know every word of the musical, and was heavily into the fandom c. 2013, am planning to get a tattoo in Victor Hugo's handwriting, etc, etc. And I was so interested in the premise--Six of Crows is the other thing I'm obsessed with. This book ... ain't it. This book is the opposit Oh, I genuinely don't think I've ever been more disappointed in my life. For reference, I'm a huge, huge fan of Les Miserables--own five copies of the book, four different translations, have watched several adaptations, know every word of the musical, and was heavily into the fandom c. 2013, am planning to get a tattoo in Victor Hugo's handwriting, etc, etc. And I was so interested in the premise--Six of Crows is the other thing I'm obsessed with. This book ... ain't it. This book is the opposite of what I wanted from a Les Mis retelling. This book suffers from over-romanticizing Eponine's character arc while ignoring everything else about Les Miserables, and it worked out very poorly.

My biggest problem was with the characters. This book utterly annihilates the character of anyone who isn't Nina while raising Nina to an impossible prodigy, involved in everything, and whom everyone loves. Nina is an incredible thief, she's not pretty but she has THREE love interests, the dauphin of France is okay with her stealing a crown jewel off of him ... Moreover, for a book that claims to be a retelling of the plot of Les Mis, which it is, barely, it doesn't even get some of the characters right! Marius, who is so important as to HAVE THE THIRD BOOK NAMED AFTER HIM, is nowhere to be seen, which utterly baffled me until I read the acknowledgements and found out the author hates Marius. Which. Okay. Each to her own, I guess, but I think that it was a very poor decision that takes a lot of skeleton of Les Miserables away--like, it feels very disingenuous to cut out an entire character who interacts most with Eponine out? MARIUS HAS VALUE, PEOPLE. This also ricochets to Cosette's character, Ettie. Ettie (Cosette) was also destroyed--turned from a strong, kind young woman to a whiny, timid child who cannot exist on her own and needs Nina to protect her at all times. Gavroche, existed, but he wasn't Eponine's brother for some reason, which is another utterly baffling thing to me, and I can't see a reason why?

Minor characters were even more one-dimensional than they usually are, which, believe me, is saying something. Grantaire (my fave) was reduced to the Drunk One, Montparnasse the Stabby One, St. Juste the Revolutionary One. I wouldn't have minded the Valjean and Javert thing going on in the background, but Valjean was completely mischaracterized as well. Javert is a woman, which is cool and all, but it just seems to be to show that Javert and Valjean were romantically involved at some point in the past, and I'm cool and all with Valvert, but it just seems ... SUUUUUPER off-base to make Javert a woman FOR THAT REASON. Like, either omit the Valvert thing, which clearly wasn't a Thing in the Brick so would change nothing, or just ... don't ... do That. Honestly, I'd be happier if most of these characters were simply omitted, or if they were original characters, because the characterization is that off-base.

Perhaps my greatest frustration was the forced romantic interest between St. Juste (Enjolras) and Nina. Everybody comments on it. EVERYBODY. And it's so shoved in the reader's face. Ettie constantly brings up how handsome St. Juste is and how he's in love with Nina, and how they'd be so cute together, but they don't have any chemistry??? I also think it's worth mentioning that Enjolras, who St. Juste is based off of, is very commonly read as gay. I don't want to discredit other interpretations, but combined with genderbending Javert for a past relationship with Valjean, it leaves a very bad taste in my mouth. It is 2020. Let gay people exist??

The worldbuilding had me confused--it's interesting lore, set after the French Revolution failed, but it's not very well explained how it did and the alternate history seems very flimsy. In addition, the underworld of Paris, while interesting, just had me lost on how it tied in with the alternate history. I also found it very difficult to follow the thread of the plot, because it time skips so much, and when we pick up the thread again it's so incredibly jarring.

Also, one of my greatest pet peeves in Les Mis retellings (and frankly, fanfiction) is when the authors quote the musical. There is a scene where St. Juste sings "A Little Fall of Rain". Really.

For a book that claims to be a retelling of Les Miserables, it has a very poor grasp on all of the characters, and the Eponine worship very, very much shows, as Eponine is glorified to the detriment of the plot, the other characters, and the integrity of the original novel. If y'all are looking for a fun YA retelling of Les Miserables, I'd highly recommend Sky Without Stars by Jessica Brody and Joanne Rendell, which despite being set in space and has a completely different plot feels a lot more accurate to the original story. ~~or go read world ain't ready on ao3~~ ...more

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Feb 20, 2020 Dannii Elle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantastic-fabrications

I was intrigued to see just how this Les Miserable meets The Jungle Book meets Six of Crows meets Throne of Glass mash up was going to work, but, you know what, I think it pulled it off!

Below the surface of the polished streets of France lies a seething underbelly of crooks, thieves, beggars, and murderers. Despite the anarchic pastimes of those who reside there, guilds organise and lord rules, regulations are abided by, and harsh punishments enacted on those who break their codes of lawless hon I was intrigued to see just how this Les Miserable meets The Jungle Book meets Six of Crows meets Throne of Glass mash up was going to work, but, you know what, I think it pulled it off!

Below the surface of the polished streets of France lies a seething underbelly of crooks, thieves, beggars, and murderers. Despite the anarchic pastimes of those who reside there, guilds organise and lord rules, regulations are abided by, and harsh punishments enacted on those who break their codes of lawless honour. These are inconsequential to Nina, the Little Cat burglar and one of the most renowned weapon in the Thieves' Guild's arsenal. Her lifelong goal has been to save her long-lost sister from a life of enforced prostitution, and now, to save a new sister who may soon succumb to the very same fate.

This was such an extraordinarily complex story-line that brought in many of my favourite fantasy tropes and was reminiscent of so many beloved works of fiction, and yet still maintained it's own sense of unique brilliance. Aspects occurred early on in the novel that had me unable to conceive how the remainder would play out, and scenes of actions were littered throughout to ensure there was never a pause in the pacing or a stall in the tension that dominated all events.

There was so much to explore, both in the forefront and backdrop of the scenes, and I longed to linger in every hidden cranny that this city kept hidden from its upper-class inhabitants. The world below was just as rich and diverse as the streets above and Grant kept me enraptured with her vivid depictions of the two.

Whilst the Parisian setting felt rich and textured, the ongoing revolution created tragic scenery that complicated and dissected the expected format of the novel. It was interesting to see how this historical occurrence impacted these fictional characters and interplay of history and fantasy was endlessly fascinating to explore.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Kester Grant, and the publisher, Harper Voyager, for this opportunity. ...more

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Jun 23, 2020 Becca & The Books rated it really liked it

My favourite part of this book was The Court of Miracles itself, a criminal underworld thriving in 19th Century Paris amidst the June Rebellion. I found the political structure of the Court fascinating and enjoyed the exploration of the individual guilds we saw throughout the course of this novel, my favourite of course, being the assassin's guild.

I thought that the atmosphere was also well done, I enjoyed the glitz and glamour of the court alongside the more seedy and grimy elements of the unde ...more

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Jul 23, 2020 Joel Rochester rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: two-stars, read-2020, reading-rush-2020

I might read the sequel, but I was expecting so much from this book and I'm sad that it didn't live up to the hype. ...more

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May 04, 2017 Anka marked it as to-read

*sees book that looks interesting*

*sees it's compared to Lies of Locke Lamora and Six of Crows*

*sees it's compared to Throne of Glass*

...more

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Jun 30, 2019 Faith M ✨ marked it as potentials

Shelves: upcoming-release

"A diverse fantasy reimagining of Les Misérables and The Jungle Book."

"A Court of Miracles"

...is it a Hunchback retelling also?

And based on the synopsis...where exactly does the Jungle Book come in? ...more

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Jul 09, 2020 Lucy Langford rated it really liked it · review of another edition

”We are of one blood, thou and I, my sister,
Bound by pack and Law the same,
When hunger or sickness or war shall take you,
I will sing the death song in your name.”

4****

This was incredibly fast paced and a page turner. Set in the times of the a failed revolution along the streets of Paris, this story follows Nina as she goes head to head with the leaders of the criminal underworld in order to protect her sisters.

In the time of a failed revolution, those of the Wretched gather into guilds: thieves ...more

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Apr 04, 2020 charlotte, (½ of readsrainbow) rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: aoc-et-al, historical-fiction, ya-or-mg-lit, 1-star, not-another-fucking-love-triangle, uk-and-ireland, review-copies, retellings-or-adaptations, black-or-african-characters, non-white-characters

On my blog.

Rep: French-Algerian mc, Black side characters

CWs: prostitution, violence, self-harm

Galley provided by publisher

Step one if you want to read this book goes thus: ignore what it comps to. It is not like Les Mis (in fact, if you pretend like it isn’t attempting to be a retelling, you’ll probably have a better time of it than I did). It is most definitely not like Six of Crows (if someone could tell me where this comp came from, it would clear a lot up). And the whole Jungle Book asp ...more

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May 18, 2020 Bookphenomena (Micky) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: retelling, arc-read, favourites-2020, heroine-love, 2020-read, historical-fantasy, historical

Damn but it feels good to have read a book that was 5 star from beginning to end. THE COURT OF MIRACLES was a page-turner and a half and I am truly sad it is over. I’ve heard all the rumours of Les Miserables and Jungle Book in the same breath as this release and in my opinion, it sits well with these ideas in the background. The execution of this kind of retelling was superb in every way.

Eponine (Nina) but mostly referred to as ‘Black Cat’ was a young novice of the Parisian underworld. She was Damn but it feels good to have read a book that was 5 star from beginning to end. THE COURT OF MIRACLES was a page-turner and a half and I am truly sad it is over. I’ve heard all the rumours of Les Miserables and Jungle Book in the same breath as this release and in my opinion, it sits well with these ideas in the background. The execution of this kind of retelling was superb in every way.

Eponine (Nina) but mostly referred to as ‘Black Cat’ was a young novice of the Parisian underworld. She was equipped with the kind of foolish courage you see in someone young but that nerve and intuition moulded her into a thief admired by seasoned Masters of the Court. This was a world that was easy to understand despite the complexities that were apparent, I never once felt lost in the world building. This court of different ‘tribes’ of the city’s underworld had so many great characters to cheer for. I adored the ghosts, the thieves, the assassins and the people of the pen.

I’m the Black Cat of the Thieves Guild and these are the things I have done.

Life was tough for Nina, but she staunchly fought for her two sisters, she was loyal and sneaky and unrelenting; I adored her. I also enjoyed the humble ignorance she had for those three young men that admired from a distance (this is not a romance, by the way). Her little sister was annoying and fun, her big sister was tragic. What I admired most about Nina was that she brough the different guilds together in a way they never had before; she sparked loyalty in the senior people because of her courage and ingenuity.

The best thing about this book was the not knowing where-the-heck the plot was headed, what would happen around any turn and the pacing alongside the excitement. It was a tale told over years and so also, there was no rushing. Kester Grant is a name to watch and an author to anticipate more from.

THE COURT OF MIRACLES was a stand out read for me this year (so far). I have that itching desire to pick it up again, maybe I’ll wait for my precious hardcover to arrive.

Thank you to Harper Voyager for the early review copy.

This review can be found on A Take From Two Cities Blog.

...more

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Jun 06, 2020 Renaissance Kate rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2020, historical, books-i-own, fantasy-reads, arc, retellings, kindle

Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like they’ve added a surge of YA novels inspired by one of the French revolutions to their tbr lately? With this book, I was immediately intrigued when its description called it a Les Mis retelling.

Éponine “Nina” Thénardier witnesses her greedy father sell her beloved elder sister, Azelma, to a cruel brothel owner in exchange for a few gold coins. To save Nina from the same fate, Azelma arranges for her to be rescued from their father and swept into the my Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like they’ve added a surge of YA novels inspired by one of the French revolutions to their tbr lately? With this book, I was immediately intrigued when its description called it a Les Mis retelling.

Éponine “Nina” Thénardier witnesses her greedy father sell her beloved elder sister, Azelma, to a cruel brothel owner in exchange for a few gold coins. To save Nina from the same fate, Azelma arranges for her to be rescued from their father and swept into the mysterious Court of Miracles in the underworld of Paris. Made up of nine Guilds, the Court is a dark kingdom with political rivalries and ruthless rules of its own. Nina enthusiastically joins the Thieves Guild and becomes known as “The Black Cat” for her stealth and ability to sneak into any building. She soon discovers that the very man who bought her sister is none other than The Tiger, Lord of the Guild of Flesh, and Nina vows rescue Azelma. But when Thénardier adopts the beautiful Cosette “Ettie”, and she attracts The Tiger’s eye, Nina must concoct a plan to keep both her sisters safe.

This description, for me, is the true essence of this novel; a tale of sisterly love in a high-stakes, ominous world. It kept me on the edge of my seat as I wondered how Nina and Ettie would manage to escape the men trying to keep them caged. So why then, you might ask, is this a Les Mis retelling, aside from the characters’ names? If so, you’re asking the very question I found myself repeating throughout the book.

Yes, this book includes many other beloved Les Mis characters (Valjean, Javert, Enjolras and the Friends of the ABC, Gavroche. No Marius, surprisingly). Yes, one of the subplots involves the student-led June Rebellion and the battles at the barricade. But for a retelling, the Les Mis factor of it all is very underwhelming and left me wondering why it was even necessary. I wasn’t hyped on feelings of revolution and justice (Vive la France!), but rather felt invested in Nina’s life-or-death struggle to outwit the brotherhood she once vowed to uphold. If this book had solely relied on the fantastical, sinister world of the Court and its cast of compelling side characters (Orso, Femi, Tomasis, Lady Corday, The Tiger, etc.), it would have been just as successful, if not even more so.

That being said, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a fast-paced read; I couldn’t stop turning the pages as I followed Nina through the streets of Paris, from the royal palace to the sewers below. Kester Grant does an incredible job setting the scene and making you feel, smell, and hear everything Nina does, as though you’re sneaking along right beside her. I absolutely loved Nina’s sweet relationship with Ettie, as the bond the adopted sisters shared outdid all the other relationships in the book.

Additionally, you might enjoy this book if you like stories with light romance. Romance isn’t central to the plot, but rather it’s peppered throughout the book and takes a backseat to the rest of the action. However, it just didn't work for me. The flirting in which Nina partakes with not one, but three men is not only sparse – it also lacks chemistry. And don’t get me started on the scene where she surprise kisses Le Dauphin… I know it was to throw him off guard, but surprise kisses are not romantic.

The timeline of Nina’s story spans several years, however these time jumps are not well established. Despite the year being indicated at the beginning of each section, I still had a difficult time discerning how old Nina was supposed to be. At one point I stopped picturing her as a child and started imagining her as a teenager, but this was a choice I made based on the plot (read: romance) rather than clear cues indicated in the text. Also, the various animal fables at the beginning of each act didn’t add anything to the story for me – I think they were meant to enrich the plot, but I simply skipped most of them (I’m generally not a fan of this technique, though).

Overall, this was a good debut. I was surprised to learn it will be a series, as I think this book could easily succeed as a standalone novel. With the conflict resolved by the end, I’m interested to see what the second book will entail. I haven’t decided whether I’ll continue with the series, and I think I’ll wait to decide until I read the description of the sequel.

Thank you to Random House Children's via Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. ...more

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Aug 05, 2020 Krystal rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: french-fever, owned, utter-trash, frustration-nation, historical-fiction, ya, myths-legends-and-retellings, assassins-and-thieves

This book is basically about one small, insignificant girl having all the hot/powerful people at her beck and call. It's freaking ridiculous.

I've not read Les Miserables, but I do know that it's over 1000 pages long, so if this book is supposed to be a retelling of it - with its mere 400 pages - that would explain why it feels so cluttered and chaotic. There are so many characters and plots etc that it leaves no time for actual tension or - most importantly - character development.

Nina has to be ...more

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May 01, 2020 Kimberly (Deity of Books) rated it did not like it

Shelves: 2020-reads, arcs, review-on-blog, reviewed

Les Misérables, The Jungle Book, and Six of Crows. Sounds promising, but it was so disappointing.

The first Les Misérables retelling I read was Sky Without Stars and I loved it. I was not expecting to love it as much as I did and was very excited to read more Les Misérables retellings, even though I haven't read the original (I googled a summary, sorry). So when I first heard of The Court of Miracles, I was elated.

This is a reimagining of France with a failed French Revolution. Eponine or Nina, o ...more

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May 18, 2020 nuin giliath rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, historical, retellings, arc

"Les Misérables meets Six of Crows meets The Jungle Book."

Oof. That's quite a bizarre yet intriguing combination that has captured the attention of many people. Since so much of the hype around this book is based on these claims, I thought it might be beneficial for potential readers to know a bit more about each of these comparisons. Hopefully that will help with any confusion about what to realistically expect before picking this up.

Les Misérables
Even though it's not an exact retelling, I thin ...more

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May 05, 2020 Chelsea Humphrey marked it as dnf-lost-interest

Recommended to Chelsea by: Irina Humphrey

Shelves: from-publisher, buddy-reads, netgalley

Les Mis meets Six of Crows, so let's give it a go. Buddy read with my sis Irina!

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy. ...more

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Jun 20, 2020 Sara rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, young-adult, arc, fantasy

ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars.

There's been a lot of hype surrounding The Court of Miracles. I've seen it advertised for weeks on Twitter and the publishers website - and when this hype was combined with a beautiful, shiny cover and promises of seedy criminal underworlds in a Les Miserables retelling I knew I had to get my greedy little mitts on it.

I will say from the off that this is a loose retelling of Les Miserables, set against the backdrop of a failed French Revo ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars.

There's been a lot of hype surrounding The Court of Miracles. I've seen it advertised for weeks on Twitter and the publishers website - and when this hype was combined with a beautiful, shiny cover and promises of seedy criminal underworlds in a Les Miserables retelling I knew I had to get my greedy little mitts on it.

I will say from the off that this is a loose retelling of Les Miserables, set against the backdrop of a failed French Revolution and the destruction the might of the nobility have left in their wake. Our protagonist is Eponine, known as Nina, the daughter of the Master of the Thieves guild - one of several guilds among the Court of Miracles, a forum created to gather together and control those that linger in the shadows. The assassins, the smugglers and those who deal in flesh. The forgotten children of the streets. All are welcomed as family at the court, where deals and alliances are easily traded and no-one can be trusted.

The court itself is the shining star of the novel, often taking on a life of its own with its own history, politics and backstory. The various guilds are fascinating (although woefully underused) as each takes on a personality of its own with its own cast of secondary characters and characteristics. The descriptions of the city and its despair are also well done, with rich discriptions of an affluent city that hides it's true colours of famine, death and disease beneath a veneer of gold. The atmosphere feels dirty and threatening.

The plot is also pretty decent, fast paced and well written - although I will say that this is a very loose retelling at times, taking a number of liberties with the original story, to the point where I often felt that this should have just been an original story, dropping some of the more obvious references to Les Miserables. We also get a lot of time skips throughout the book, jumping months and sometimes years into the future. This lessened some of the emotional connections between the characters, as well as make Nina's development a little less impactful as I wanted to see her plans come to fruition rather than merely be told how she teaches a certain conclusion.

Speaking of Nina, I did find her to be quite stereotypical of the YA genre heroine. She's that girl who seems to be able to do the impossible without much explanation as to how or why she has the skills that no-one else has. She's also the girl that has that one weakness that everyone knows about and exploits to their own advantage. That said, I thought she had a decent enough backstory and development to carry the story and I found her entertaining. Especially in her conversations with the other Guild Lords.

In terms of the other characters, referencing back to my earlier comment about dropping a lot of the Les Miserables references...a lot of the more obvious characters such as Javert just seemed a bit superfluous and didn't add anything to the main story. I found myself a lot more interested in the Tiger, the assassins and the Ghosts than I ever did about Jean Valjean and Javert. Even Ettie (Cosette) doesn't really get a decent enough backstory (she just randomly appears at the tavern as a ward one day) for me to care enough, and I didn't really find Nina's attachment to her all that believable - although their relationship does improve a lot towards the end. The Dauphin unfortunately didn't really appear enough for me to form a definitive opinion of him - although I do find his infatuation with Nina quite endearing.

I loved the Guilds and atmopshere of this world, and the strong writing and fast paced story are enough to keep me interested and entertained in the sequel. I'm really excited to see where the story will go now it's not restricted to the boundaries of its retelling. Fun, fast fantasy fiction. ...more

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Apr 02, 2020 Ari rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020-reads, favorites, netgalley-arc

Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Amazon | Waterstones

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf Books for Young Readers for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are mine.

"You must make your enemies your allies.
And if you can't do that, then destroy them.
Them, and all who follow them,
so that fear doesn't come for you when you sleep."

Yes, this, right here! This book is what I crave in fiction: a story full of characters that are neck-deep in troubles, that are wonderfully flawed, that are sometimes absolutely t ...more

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Jul 08, 2020 ✩ Yaz ✩ rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, 2020-releases, retellings, historical-fiction

2 - ⭐️⭐️

The Court of Miracles was one of my most anticipated 2020 releases and I am sad to say that it’s been a disappointment.

• From the very first page I was not hooked. I was waiting for anything that would just click for me but it didn’t. The writing was mediocre and despite some of descriptive words the author used it still felt underwhelming. The pacing was unstable and it felt like there were many time skips that made everything disjointed.

• All along I was asking this question What is th ...more

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Apr 03, 2020 Alaina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020-ng, fantasy, historical-fiction, retellings, 2020-arcs, fiction, young-adult, favorites

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Holy cannoli guys. I remember the first time I ever watched Les Misérables on Broadway. It was completely magical and I loved every second of it. Then I dove into the movie, and loved that all over again. Now I get this wonderful and magical book, boy was I hooked from the very beginning. YES, it took me two days to devour it but I fully blame work. For some reason, it kept cutting into my damn reading time.. which I'm not ...more

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Mar 27, 2019 Kester Grant added it · (Review from the author) · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, ya, hist-fiction, ya-classical-retellings, historical-fantasy, historical-fiction, retellings

INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY!

To celebrate TCOM debuting at #3 on the Sunday Times Bestsellers list I’m giving away:

3 gorgeous Waterstones limited edition gold foiled, sprayed edge UK hardbacks of TCOM.
+ my favourite passages underlined in gold,
+ a signed bookplate
+ an exclusive handwritten author letter full of Miracle Court secrets and hints about the sequel!

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ENTER:
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GOOD HUNTING BROTHERS
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Jan 11, 2021 Charlotte May marked it as own-tbr

Ordered online because books make me happy 😊

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May 14, 2020 Elle rated it liked it

Shelves: 2020, netgalley

I’m not sure what this had set out to be, but I don’t think it got there in the end. There was so much clunky plot, all linked together with just the barest whisper of continuity, that I had a hard time taking anything that was happening seriously.

Which is really a disservice to the setting because there’s so much that’s supposed to be taken seriously. There’s sex trafficking and child abuse and death—plenty of the nastier side from Revolutionary France, but the stakes didn’t feel real. Everyth I’m not sure what this had set out to be, but I don’t think it got there in the end. There was so much clunky plot, all linked together with just the barest whisper of continuity, that I had a hard time taking anything that was happening seriously.

Which is really a disservice to the setting because there’s so much that’s supposed to be taken seriously. There’s sex trafficking and child abuse and death—plenty of the nastier side from Revolutionary France, but the stakes didn’t feel real. Everything was clipped. The author jumps from one huge plot point to another with no real explanation or breathing room. There’s fast-paced, and then there’s The Court of Miracles. Too much happened too soon.

I liked the dynamic between the characters and there was a lot of potential, but where it reaaaaally dropped the ball was with the world-building. Maybe 80% of the dialogue was exposition? And there was no tension that wasn’t contrived. The initial conflict, Nina’s sister being sold into prostitution, is skipped over quickly, and I guess now she’s older and trying to protect some random girl? That she planned to do the same thing (sell into sex slavery) to, only to get cold feet at the last possible second? It’s a premise so flimsy it’s almost goofy, which is not how I wanted to feel reading about such a grave subject.

What caught me the most off-guard was how much Grant seemed to really want to emulate a handful of other books. When the description said ”Les Miserables meets Six of Crows“, I didn’t think it would be those two stories literally smashed together. I actually had to stop reading at one point and double check this wasn’t a retelling or fanficton or something like that. Turns out, it kind of is? But I didn’t see that detail mentioned anywhere except in user reviews. And other than the time, place and assorted character names, I struggle to see how this would be classified as a ‘retelling’.

I’m curious to see what others think as the reviews keep trickling in, but there’s still some buzz around this one and I can understand why. The marketing is beautiful and the blurb is attention-grabbing, and I actually really like her writing style. But I went into this wanting to love it, to be swept away in a new fantasy series, and I don’t think that’s going to happen at this point.

*Thanks to Random House Children’s & Netgalley for an advance copy! ...more

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Mar 27, 2020 Abbie | nerdyabbie rated it really liked it

Brutal. Full of flawed, fascinating characters. A wild, eventful ride from start to finish.

"In the violent urban jungle of an alternate 1828 Paris, the French Revolution has failed and the city is divided between merciless royalty and nine underworld criminal guilds, known as the Court of Miracles.

Eponine (Nina) Thénardier is a talented cat burglar and member of the Thieves Guild. Nina's life is midnight robberies, avoiding her father's fists, and watching over her naïve adopted sister, Cosette ...more

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Nov 25, 2020 NAT.orious reads ☾ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favourites

4.5 STARS ★★★★✬

This book is for you if… new books inspired by old classics are not automatically second-class-citizens to you. This book is full of love, action, sneakiness and wit. Do give it a try, please! TW: forced drug addiction, kidnapping, violence, implied r*pe.

⤐ Overall.
I remember seeing The Court of Miracles on NetGalley probably sometime earlier this year. I hopped over to Goodreads to check the ratings - which were lousy. Consequently, I never requested it.

Illumicrate sent i ...more

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Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Goodreads Librari...: Book has 3 Goldsboro editions created	4	315	Aug 06, 2020 11:54AM
Illumicrate Group: Day eight: Chapters 35- End	15	60	Jul 23, 2020 02:22AM
Illumicrate Group: Day seven: Chapters 30-34 included	14	44	Jul 23, 2020 12:41AM
Illumicrate Group: Day six: Chapters 25-29 included	13	40	Jul 22, 2020 03:07PM
Illumicrate Group: Day five: Chapters 20-24 included	17	47	Jul 22, 2020 02:08PM
Illumicrate Group: Day four: Chapters 15-19 included	13	38	Jul 22, 2020 12:29AM

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About Kester Grant

Kester Grant

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Kester Grant is a British-Mauritian writer of color. She was born in London, grew up between the UK, Democratic Republic of Congo, and the tropical island paradise of Mauritius. As a wanton nomad she and her husband are unsure which country they currently reside in but they can generally be found surrounded by their fiendish pack of cats and dogs.

Kes can be found lurking with intent on kestergran ...more