White Cat (Curse Workers, #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Nov 18, 2021 Vanessa Gayle ⚔️ Fangirl Faction rated it really liked it

Shelves: broke-my-heart-once-or-twice, mystery, tortured-hero-or-heroine, dark-themes, wish-list-physical, abuse-or-past-abuse, fantasy, young-adult-read, dark, diverse-reads

When I first read the synopsis for this book I knew I was going to read it. The premise was so interesting that I couldn't resist. Magic mobsters? Yes, please!

The entire idea behind this series was so intriguing. The different elements combined were just perfect and so clever. The plot of this story was so suspenseful. I really love the way that the story was mapped out and executed. The world-building in this book was slow-moving but satisfying. The author gives the reader just enough informati When I first read the synopsis for this book I knew I was going to read it. The premise was so interesting that I couldn't resist. Magic mobsters? Yes, please!

The entire idea behind this series was so intriguing. The different elements combined were just perfect and so clever. The plot of this story was so suspenseful. I really love the way that the story was mapped out and executed. The world-building in this book was slow-moving but satisfying. The author gives the reader just enough information and slowly builds on it as the story progresses. I thought that the alternate universe that the author created was unique and well-developed. I have always adored Black's writing style and this book read very much the same in that respect. Even though this book was a bit different from some of the other books that I have read by her, it still had the distinct feel of a Holly Black book.

I really loved Cassel, the main character. He was kind of an outsider, even within his own family. He was smart, intuitive, and compassionate. Despite coming from a family of criminals, he managed to stand apart. Cassel had some really great character development in the story and I was very pleased with his character arc. I liked that the other characters in the story were vastly different from each other and had their own personalities. There were some characters in the story that I just loathed (not because they were badly written but because they were just evil =P) and some that I would have loved to see more of. I felt that Cassel's school friends could have used more page time.

The romance in this book was very sparse but there is an underlying romance in the story. From the ending, I can tell that more will develop in the romance department in the next book.

Overall, I was so delighted with this book. I loved the original premise and the way that the author created this world. This book has an exciting and mysterious plot, a main character that you can easily connect with, and a unique world that will fascinate you. I definitely recommend picking this one up!

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Mar 16, 2012 Purple rated it it was ok

Shelves: young-adult, uf, series, action

It's unusual to compare books of different genre but I find myself doing so. I thought Angelfall was spectacular, Fifty Shades of Grey, engrossing, and now this..White Cat, interesting. After reading the first two books mentioned, I know I would be disappointed with the third book I would pick 'coz three consecutive intense books read just don't happen. I haven't come down from the drug-like high of Angelfall and Fifty Shades..so this book almost feel like a let down. I think its a wrong book re ...more

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Jul 18, 2015 Monica rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, fantasy, audio, urban-fantasy, 2015-yearly-challenge, cammp-cabin-4-challenge, mmp-500-member-book-party

I didn't know what to expect when I borrowed this book from Overdrive. I decided to read the book because I am participating in a Bingo game and needed a book for my free space and this book fit the criteria for the game.

Cassel is the main character of this story. He comes from a family of magic who are also conmen. It is interesting as I was listening to the story about how Cassel feels he is losing his memory and dreaming of a white cat. The story held my interest.

Cassel knows something bad i ...more

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Jan 16, 2011 Charlotte (Buried in Books) rated it it was ok

Shelves: urban-fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Dec 30, 2011 Nairabell rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star, read-in-2012, teen-ya-urban-fantasy

Cassel is cursed. He comes from a family of magic workers and lives in a world where magic was banned decades ago, but Cassel can't work magic. His family hate him for being the only non-worker...and because they helped cover up a murder he committed as a child. But when Cassel finds himself being haunted by a white cat, and his dreams are leading him to sleepwalk to increasingly bizarre places, he is forced to turn to his family to discover the secrets hidden in his past.

This is the first book Cassel is cursed. He comes from a family of magic workers and lives in a world where magic was banned decades ago, but Cassel can't work magic. His family hate him for being the only non-worker...and because they helped cover up a murder he committed as a child. But when Cassel finds himself being haunted by a white cat, and his dreams are leading him to sleepwalk to increasingly bizarre places, he is forced to turn to his family to discover the secrets hidden in his past.

This is the first book in the Curse Workers series and the first book by Holly Black I've read and it blew me away. Finding young adult urban fantasy can be near impossible, but this is an incredible example of just how good it can be. Holly Black has reshaped our world by pushing curse workers out of the closet in 1929 and now in the present day their existence is banned so they are forced to hide their identities. One thing I love is that in this world, magic comes at a cost, so whatever you do will rebound on you in a somewhat karmic way.

The plot is brilliantly written and packed with twists and turns. There is an incredible depth of storyline and the world of the curse workers is fully fleshed out. Workers are divided into different groups (death workers that can kill with a touch, memory workers who can rewrite your life) and exist as an underground society since the ban, with most working as con artists or for organized gangs. There are even worker equality groups in the non-worker community. The idea of a con is woven throughout the storyline as it is a skill Cassel learnt at his mother's knee.

Cassel is a great lead character. As the normal guy in a family of workers, he is able to introduce us to their world without info-dumping and also plays the black sheep incredibly well which helps him in his quest to find out why he's being haunted by the white cat. His roommate Sam ends up as his best friend almost by accident and I loved how their friendship grew over the course of the book. Daneca the pro-worker supporter adds some comic relief to the book with her determintion to win Cassel to her side.

Cassel's family on the other hand was a different story. I didn't really like either of his brothers or his jailbird mother, but I adored his death worker grandfather Desi. He brought a new dimension to the story and quickly became a favourite character.

All in all, this was a great read and I'm looking forward to Red Glove.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Cover: 9/10

Overall: 49/50 ...more

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May 18, 2012 A book away from an episode of hoarders rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pnr-uf-fantasy, first-in-series, judged-by-its-cover, read-in-2012, dropped-series

I tried reading this book when I got it from the library but I just put it down and did not pick it up again until it was time to return it.

However, I needed to read it for a challenge on Goodreads so I got the audible version to listen to during my commute.

Not that this was a bad story by any means but for me, the narrator seriously made all the difference in the world. Our main character, and his family, were severely flawed but the portrayal in the audio version made him likeable and human. ...more

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