Its not vary often that a book surprises me. This book surprised me in ways I truly wasn’t expecting. A sign of a great author I think is when a book presents a plot that you think will end one way but it ends up taking twists and turns that lead you to a completely different conclusion than the one you were expecting. That is what Alyssa Whees debut novel has done for me. But it’s more than just a brilliant mystery, its also a beautiful dark fantastical twisty fairy tale that relies as much on prose and atmosphere as it does on character development.

Rhea is a young girl who almost all of her live has be plagued by visions, vision of her death and a dark twisty forest that really isn’t there but she sees as almost another reality. One night in the darkness of her bedroom, she sees, or rather hears a boy, a boy seemingly made of darkness. She tries to discover the identity of this mysterious stranger while also trying to work out the source of her visions. Instead he challenges her to a game, a game whose outcome will not only clear up the mystery of his identity, but will also define her identity in the most brilliant beautiful and surprising ways.

Meanwhile in the dark twisty forest of Rhea’s visions The Witch of Wishes dwells. In her palace of bone, tree trunks and gnarled branches she sits on a throne carved of a canine tooth. Here she dwells day and night, with her pet foxes to keep her company. Waiting for dreaming children to wander into her realm so she can grant them their hearts desire with a petal plucked from the rose within her heart. One night, a stranger arrives and asks her the one question she never thought to ask, what is her deepest wish? The answer, it turns out, leads her and Rhea’s paths to cross in the most surprising of ways and on a journey that will forever change her. So begins a dark twisted ride, that leads readers in to a fantastical world where wishes can become reality, darkness has a voice, power exists in more than one form, and love wins in the end.

The language is lyrical, strange, atmospheric and intoxicating. The imagery is dark, gnarled, and vivid. The characters are so beautifully flawed, and the story brings strong ideas of acceptance, family, and love to the forefront. I cannot wait for readers to enjoy this beautiful dark richly told fairy tale. Please put on your to read list if you haven’t already. I flew through this in 5 days! Alyssa Whees is definitely one to watch! Thank you to eideilweiss @weiss_squad and Delcorte press for a DRC for review!