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The Midnight Lie
(The Midnight Lie #1)
by
Where Nirrim lives, crime abounds, a harsh tribunal rules, and society’s pleasures are reserved for the High Kith. Life in the Ward is grim and punishing. People of her low status are forbidden from sampling sweets or wearing colors. You either follow the rules, or pay a tithe and suffer the consequences.
Nirrim keeps her head down and a dangerous secret close to her chest. ...more
Nirrim keeps her head down and a dangerous secret close to her chest. ...more
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Hardcover, 358 pages
Published
March 3rd 2020
by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
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The Midnight Lie (The Midnight Lie, #1)
by
Release
date: May 11, 2021
We're giving away 15 paperbacks of THE MIDNIGHT LIE by Marie Rutkoski, author of the New York Times–bestselling Winner’s Trilogy. Enter now!
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Format: Print book
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Availability: 15 copies available, 4808 people requesting
Giveaway dates: Apr 05 - Apr 19, 2021
Countries available: U.S.
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Start your review of The Midnight Lie (The Midnight Lie, #1)
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“ It is what it is .” With such a simple yet foreboding line, Rutkoski paints a vivid portrait of an intriguing, deadly world in the first installment of The Midnight Lie series. A world that lays itself open for only one faction: the High Kith. The High Kith wear their wealth as comfortably as the expensive leather that is forbidden in the Ward. They drip with perfume and are corrupt from soft living, and the best our protagonist, Nirrim, can hope f ...more
“ It is what it is .” With such a simple yet foreboding line, Rutkoski paints a vivid portrait of an intriguing, deadly world in the first installment of The Midnight Lie series. A world that lays itself open for only one faction: the High Kith. The High Kith wear their wealth as comfortably as the expensive leather that is forbidden in the Ward. They drip with perfume and are corrupt from soft living, and the best our protagonist, Nirrim, can hope f ...more
So you tell me what would make a good, quiet girl get herself in trouble, especially when she had so much to lose. Tell me.
Ohhh. That is one seriously cruel and delicious ending. Marie Rutkoski, you are EVIL. In a good way.
I haven’t felt this enthusiastic about the beginning of a YA fantasy series in... well, probably about two years. And people, I'm not gonna lie, it's the romance. Yes, I find so many YA fantasy romances annoying, but when a book gets it just right - just the right amount o ...more
well... you win some, you lose some. while one highly anticipated release absolutely knocked it out of the park, this one… not so much.
im so sad i didnt love this, but it all comes down to my complete and total lack of connection to any of the characters. not one. thats never happened to me before. i just couldnt care about any of them. its quite a sobering feeling, because then why even bother finishing the book?
its because MR has some of the most delightful writing known to man (which is why ...more
im so sad i didnt love this, but it all comes down to my complete and total lack of connection to any of the characters. not one. thats never happened to me before. i just couldnt care about any of them. its quite a sobering feeling, because then why even bother finishing the book?
its because MR has some of the most delightful writing known to man (which is why ...more
4.5
“Nirrim, I can’t be good to you.”
“Then be bad.”
“Nirrim, I can’t be good to you.”
“Then be bad.”
Need. Now.
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The Winner's Trilogy is probably one of my favorite YA fantasy series out there, apart from Holly Black's Folk of the Air, so when I found out that Marie Rutkoski was planning a totally different fantasy series, set in a totally different universe, featuring an LGBT romance, I was hopeful, skeptical, and excited, all at once. When an author is that wildly successful, I think the pressure is really on high for them to do it again, and it ...more
Mar 08, 2020
anna (½ of readsrainbow)
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
1-fantasy,
2-sapphic,
favourites,
2-protags-of-color,
soft,
comfort-reads,
2-lgbt,
5-young-adult,
first-person-pov,
pub-2020
rep: poc lesbian mc, lesbian li, wlw & mlm side characters
tw: physical and emotional abuse
the lesbianism of it all!!!!
a giant fan of how this book handles abuse & comphet. anyway, i'm dead and i cannot wait for book two to kill me even more ...more
tw: physical and emotional abuse
the lesbianism of it all!!!!
a giant fan of how this book handles abuse & comphet. anyway, i'm dead and i cannot wait for book two to kill me even more ...more
Apr 27, 2020
may ➹
rated it
liked it
Shelves:
read-2020,
audiobook,
rep-lgbtqiap,
pov-1st,
important-messages,
3-star,
buddy-reads,
rep-bipoc,
pov-female,
young-adult
oh my god they were cellmates
- follows Nirrim, a lesser-privileged half Kith, and Sid, a flirty high Kith traveler, as they discover the history of this fantasy city! magic, mystery, and lesbians kissing ensue
- I liked the characters and the romance a lot! both Nirrim and Sid were compelling characters to me, and that one part that went “I can’t be good to you” “then be bad” really took me OUT
- however, it was a little hard for me to really care for the characters. though I liked them, I felt di ...more
- follows Nirrim, a lesser-privileged half Kith, and Sid, a flirty high Kith traveler, as they discover the history of this fantasy city! magic, mystery, and lesbians kissing ensue
- I liked the characters and the romance a lot! both Nirrim and Sid were compelling characters to me, and that one part that went “I can’t be good to you” “then be bad” really took me OUT
- however, it was a little hard for me to really care for the characters. though I liked them, I felt di ...more
It’s a midnight lie... a kind of lie told for someone else’s sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning.
The Midnight Lie follows Nirrim, a lower-caste girl living in the home of her middle-caste adoptive mother, Raven. In her world, the Half-Kith, or lower-class, have to pay tithes for any crimes—tithes of body, meant to go to the upper-class High Kith. When she’s arrested for catching & returning a red bird, Nirrim meet ...more
1st read: *grabby hands* ANOTHER
2nd read: it seems I forgot how much that ending hurts
2nd read: it seems I forgot how much that ending hurts
Actual rating: 3.5 stars“It’s a midnight lie... a kind of lie told for someone else’s sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning.”
The Midnight Lie is a beautiful and haunting story. I am in love with Marie Rutkoski's writing and will never stop praising her for the magic she brings with her every word.
However, there were a couple of things that stopped me from giving this book a higher rating. And the most relevant of those reason
cellmates to lovers trope outsold 😌✋
i’m honestly at a loss for words, i can’t think of anything coherent. every single great thing about this book just pops into my mind at once. i could list a hundred quotes that i’ve bookmarked. i don’t remember the last time i paused an audiobook so much just so i could scream into my pillow because of something so tender and sweet.
sid and nirrim have a special place in my heart now and i know it’s going to take me forever to get over that ending i just Know ...more
i’m honestly at a loss for words, i can’t think of anything coherent. every single great thing about this book just pops into my mind at once. i could list a hundred quotes that i’ve bookmarked. i don’t remember the last time i paused an audiobook so much just so i could scream into my pillow because of something so tender and sweet.
sid and nirrim have a special place in my heart now and i know it’s going to take me forever to get over that ending i just Know ...more
D u d e.
That was my reaction at the close of this book. I had no words, really, beyond being stunned and shocked and so desperate for book two.
THE MIDNIGHT LIE was nothing I ever expected. Knowing this was connected to The Winner's Trilogy doesn't give you any insight into the story or themes or plot and honestly? I kind of liked that. This, as all my reviews tend to be, will be spoiler free in an effort to retain some of the mystery, that uncertainty, but even knowing how this book begins? You ...more
That was my reaction at the close of this book. I had no words, really, beyond being stunned and shocked and so desperate for book two.
THE MIDNIGHT LIE was nothing I ever expected. Knowing this was connected to The Winner's Trilogy doesn't give you any insight into the story or themes or plot and honestly? I kind of liked that. This, as all my reviews tend to be, will be spoiler free in an effort to retain some of the mystery, that uncertainty, but even knowing how this book begins? You ...more
3.5**** rounded up! After That ending I truly need to find out what happens next!
This was an interesting world built on oppression. Those who are half-kith are not allowed colour, or sweets and are kept behind a wall with no means to escape. Consequences in this ward require paying a tithe. It is a place where “it is as it is” is a rule and no questions are allowed.
This had a f/f romance and the book was about the relationship building as a main focus. However it also shows an oppressive world ...more
This was an interesting world built on oppression. Those who are half-kith are not allowed colour, or sweets and are kept behind a wall with no means to escape. Consequences in this ward require paying a tithe. It is a place where “it is as it is” is a rule and no questions are allowed.
This had a f/f romance and the book was about the relationship building as a main focus. However it also shows an oppressive world ...more
Mar 04, 2017
Simona B
marked it as wishlist
The moment I read "Untitled -Marie Rutkoski"? There's no word in any language able to describe what I felt. Try "elated" raised to googolplex and maybe then you'll be getting close to it.
...more
...more
Me: h-
Marie Rutkoski: and YOU get no rights
(4.5 stars)
FUCK!!!!!! the romance!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAIMGAYAAAAA!!!!!
______
There's something that makes me extremely emo (in a good way) about authors whose previously pretty straight books I loved coming up with casual sapphic content. Anyway I'm so here for this!!! ...more
Marie Rutkoski: and YOU get no rights
(4.5 stars)
FUCK!!!!!! the romance!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAIMGAYAAAAA!!!!!
______
There's something that makes me extremely emo (in a good way) about authors whose previously pretty straight books I loved coming up with casual sapphic content. Anyway I'm so here for this!!! ...more
3.5 stars
I feel about The Midnight Lie the way I felt about The Winner's Curse. I can copy my review of it, and it will work just as well here.
The Midnight Lie is the kind of fantasy that doesn't really have much fantasy or world building in it. It's mostly a personal journey with a ton of romancing. And again, I am totally reminded of Cashore's fantasy work, especially Bitterblue (NOT my fave) in the way it deals with memory and erased history.
The story is set in a very vaguely sketched world ...more
I feel about The Midnight Lie the way I felt about The Winner's Curse. I can copy my review of it, and it will work just as well here.
The Midnight Lie is the kind of fantasy that doesn't really have much fantasy or world building in it. It's mostly a personal journey with a ton of romancing. And again, I am totally reminded of Cashore's fantasy work, especially Bitterblue (NOT my fave) in the way it deals with memory and erased history.
The story is set in a very vaguely sketched world ...more
I'm rereading The Winner's Trilogy and I need this like I need air.
Marie's writing and fantastical worlds are a goddamn dream! ...more
Marie's writing and fantastical worlds are a goddamn dream! ...more
I received this complimentary ARC from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.
WE HAVE A COVER!!! THE YA SNAKES LIVE TO SEE ANOTHER DAY!!!
WE HAVE A COVER!!! THE YA SNAKES LIVE TO SEE ANOTHER DAY!!!
Oct 25, 2019
Candace Robinson
added it
Honestly I wish this wouldn’t have been a spinoff and instead just a whole new series. I’m confused where the magic came from because the Winner’s Trilogy worked so perfect without it. So I feel like magic should have been left out. However, I did really like Sid!
Sep 15, 2020
Party Poison
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
not-owned,
ships-i-would-literally-die-for
And before I start on my emotional rant, please note that this review gives absolutely no insight into the qualities of the book. This is simply me screaming about the ending and regretting my life decisions. Also note that if I was saying this review out loud, it would be while I screamed and cried. Just thought that was important.
I hate this book.
I hate this book so much that I'm giving it 5 stars.
Never have a regretted anything as much as I regret reading this book. I regret all the decisio ...more
Feb 16, 2020
Emma
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
via-publisher,
fantasybookreview
Nerrim lives in the Ward. It's a district of limitations, of danger and drudgery. Hers is a near colourless existence made bearable by her found family and the secret work she performs to help other Half Kith live free. When the Elysium bird appears one day, it brings change with it, triggering a series of events that transforms Nerrim’s life. The world around her is made uncertain, it’s a place full of lies.
So you tell me what would make a good, quiet girl get herself in trouble, especially whe ...more
So you tell me what would make a good, quiet girl get herself in trouble, especially whe ...more
Star Rating: —> 4.5 Stars
“So you tell me what would make a good, quiet girl get herself in trouble, especially when she had so much to lose.
Tell me.”
“I see this story perfectly, its moments cut crystal in my mind. I remember how this story, like a great, sheer bowl, bore a sea of emotion — my guilt, my loneliness, my longing. I remember little rivulets of delight, the warmth of love.”
So- I didn’t just love this book; I fell absolutely head over heels IN love with this wonderfully eleg ...more
“So you tell me what would make a good, quiet girl get herself in trouble, especially when she had so much to lose.
Tell me.”
“I see this story perfectly, its moments cut crystal in my mind. I remember how this story, like a great, sheer bowl, bore a sea of emotion — my guilt, my loneliness, my longing. I remember little rivulets of delight, the warmth of love.”
So- I didn’t just love this book; I fell absolutely head over heels IN love with this wonderfully eleg ...more
This book is for you if… slightly prose-like narratives that carry secrets that are just out of touch - you'll be basically flirting right along with the characters.
⤐ Overall.
Marie likes two things, judging by the books of her I’ve read so far - untruths and secrets -, and while both make for great stories, they also make for a barrier between the reader and the text. Looking at Marie's writing, her academic background in literature definitely shows, but I've always felt like authors who ha ...more
Marie Rutkoski knew EXACTLY what the lesbians were thirsting for and gave it to them tenfold
Thanks to Edelweiss, Macmillan, and Farrar, Straus, and Giroux (BYR) for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
4.5/5
CW: abandonment, bloodletting (for magic), forgery, caste system, homophobia, and sexism
I literally didn't expect to love this book so much but here we are!
It follows Nirrim, who lives in the Ward (lower caste) where there's lots of crime and overcrowding. Only the High Kith (high class) get any pleasure and it usually is whatever they want it to be, no matter if it hurts someone ...more
4.5/5
CW: abandonment, bloodletting (for magic), forgery, caste system, homophobia, and sexism
I literally didn't expect to love this book so much but here we are!
It follows Nirrim, who lives in the Ward (lower caste) where there's lots of crime and overcrowding. Only the High Kith (high class) get any pleasure and it usually is whatever they want it to be, no matter if it hurts someone ...more
Nov 05, 2020
✨ jamieson ✨
rated it
liked it
Shelves:
f-f,
fantasy,
lesbian-mc,
young-adult,
2020-reads,
audiobook,
lgbtqiap,
series,
owned-books,
romance
and they were CELLMATES (oh my god they were cellmates)
So a lot of people hyped this one up for me. I don't know if I didn't like it more because audiobook/reading slump/wasn't my thing idk but I didn't love it as much as I hoped? that said I did still like it. I LOVED Sid, and I loved Sid and Nirrim's relationship. Thematic ...more
“It’s a midnight lie... a kind of lie told for someone else’s sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning.”
So a lot of people hyped this one up for me. I don't know if I didn't like it more because audiobook/reading slump/wasn't my thing idk but I didn't love it as much as I hoped? that said I did still like it. I LOVED Sid, and I loved Sid and Nirrim's relationship. Thematic ...more
Five years ago I read this author's YA trilogy starting with The Winner's Curse and that series really got better with each subsequent book. So I had high hopes for this new series! Unfortunately it didn't meet my (perhaps too high) expectations, BUT it was pretty good for YA (a genre I almost never read now). I am now hoping that this new series will follow the same trajectory of getting better with each new book, so I'll definitely still pick up the next one when it comes out.
...more
Mar 09, 2020
AnnaLuce
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
ebooks-overdrive,
lgbtqia,
favourite-romances,
my-feelings,
5-good-reads,
2020-reviews,
sapphic
★★★★✰ 4 stars
Having loved and agonised over Marie Rutkoski's 'The Winner's Trilogy', I had quite high hopes for The Midnight Lie. Set in the same universe as her previous trilogy, this book is narrated by Nirrim who lives on an island divided by strict socia ...more
“It was hard for me to tell what was real. Lies made it worse. It is a midnight lie, she said. A kind of lie told for someone else's sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning. ”
Having loved and agonised over Marie Rutkoski's 'The Winner's Trilogy', I had quite high hopes for The Midnight Lie. Set in the same universe as her previous trilogy, this book is narrated by Nirrim who lives on an island divided by strict socia ...more
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| Challenge Corner: The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski -> Starting May 9th, 2020 | 15 | 5 | May 22, 2020 08:18AM | |
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| Lost Between The ...: APRIL YA BOTM | 1 | 13 | Mar 29, 2020 10:00AM |
Readers also enjoyed
Marie Rutkoski is the New York Times bestselling author of The Winner's Trilogy, which begins with The Winner's Curse. She also wrote the YA novel The Shadow Society and the children's fantasy series The Kronos Chronicles, including The Cabinet of Wonders. Her next project is a YA duology set in the same world as The Winner's Curse. The first in this duology is called The Midnight Lie and will be
...more
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“It’s a midnight lie... a kind of lie told for someone else’s sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning.”
—
34 likes
“Nirrim, I can't be good to you."
"Then be bad.”
—
22 likes
More quotes…
"Then be bad.”
