Updating after making this my FIRST reread in at least FOUR years in preparation for Fyrebirds:

Beautiful, glittering, daring...this is the book embodiment of velvet scarlet curtains blocking a seedy underground, and feathered masks hiding whispered secrets and lies.

Simta is a town with a secret-- each season, beautiful women in gowns and masks hide behind doors and with a kiss can grant you the gift of their magic for a short while-- perhaps you need some extra charm, or maybe the ability to fade into the shadows. Come from the right Great House, know the right people, and pay the (substantial) fee, and it can all be yours. But the Nightbirds must keep their identities a secret because magic is illegal, especially the intrinsic magic of women (because, Kate J. Armstrong of course added some alchemical magic to the mix just for some added intrigue and depth), and the religious sects who are growing in popularity and power would quite literally destroy them in a moment. This year's birds are as different as their monikers, for each is known to her clients only by their bird sigil. Matilde was raised to be a part of the world of glitter and ballgowns and has no doubt of her place in the upper echelons of society , but will her recklessness be their downfall? Sayer has joined only to get a leg up in life, because she's from the wrong side of the canal but she's leaving behind a gang leader who's earned a very special place in her heart. Gentle Aesa is terrified that her magic may be a sin, but is desperate for the advantages being a Nightbird can bring for her family. But this season is different. This season someone (everyone?) is after the Nightbirds, there's a massive government conspiracy at play as well as a fiery religious uprising, and now they must band together because they're all being lied to. About everything.

This might technically be a YA book, but the themes and writing make this one utterly transcendent for adult audiences. The writing itself is sharp and vivid but lush at the same time...readers get to indulge in the glitter of the 1920's Gatsby-esque parties but also slink about in seedy watery underground secret hideouts. The brilliance of taking prohibition and making magic the illegal element, and then giving it a Salem witch hunt twist by lessening the potency of the alchemical magic and making some women have magical literally run through their veins, particularly in the current political climate (sharing their power through a kiss that can only be given by choice had me cheering), was nothing short of genius. But it doesn't feel like a dark feminist rant, with joy and beauty and levity sparkling throughout, and it isn't one of those "all women are good and all men are bad" situations either. Don't just go around trusting ANYONE in this book; everything about this book feels sensual, so the relationships are just sparking from the word go, but the love triangle twists in particular (one especially) had me gasping at the end. Was I suspicious? Sure, but only because I'd stopped trusting EVERYONE but our birds by then. And our birds themselves are dynamic and completely unique, so much so that they were real enough for me to guess some of their initial snap reactions when major events occured in the book, and yet they each still showed growth as the book let them spread their wings (I'm so sorry).

My only criticism is that about three hundred pages in there is a scene that seemed to get out from underneath the author; it was unwieldy, in terms of general scale, number of characters, ground covered (quite literally), and the magical feats the characters had to accomplish; even after reading it twice it was a little difficult to follow-- the silky smooth writing filled with quotable lovely turns of phrase and easy ways of putting impossibly large challenges and complications of the human existence definitely fell out entirely for a while until the author found her voice again, and indeed seemed a little lacking for the last quarter of the book. It seems that, like the magic of the Nightbirds themselves, the book itself is stronger when our girls are united and not fleeing in every direction. But if my only complaint is one scene wasn't as perfectly written as the rest of the book and I didn't run entirely out of sticky tabs marking quotes by the end of the book...coming from me, this is a RAVE review. And Kate J. Armstrong pulls it back just in time for some beautiful imagery, bittersweet moments, and you can literally feel the book inhale in preparation to leave you hanging breathless for the sequel.

In short: The writing? Beautiful. The concepts? No lack of depth and symbolism and feminist rage to stir (and hopefully be satisfied in book 2). It was memorable and delicious and atmospheric, filled with everything I want. Don't skip this one, its got the ballrooms and hidden cities and betrayals and friendships and heartache and moments of self-discovery that are at the heart of every GREAT fantasy.

It should come with a warning: This book WILL make you want to buy a mask and very possibly a ballgown. Or start a revolution. Or both.

Also note: Nightbirds is a book I will NOT shut up about because it DESERVES to have a fandom shouting about it. Why this didn't take off, I have no idea, but it should have become a Booktube/BookTok/Bookstagram darling and I am PERSONALLY crushed that it did not. Go read this book. You don't even have to wait for the sequel.

And thank you to Netgalley/Nancy Paulson Books/PenguinTeen for letting me scour the eARC when the new cover came out in fear the book had been totally changed too. It hadn't, thank goodness. Love, a crazy fan who absolutely did do a close-read/reread comparison. And then went out and brought the matching cover anyway.