I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the BEYOND THE RUBY VEIL by Mara
Fitzgerald Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the
giveaway!
Author: Mara Fitzgerald
Release Date: October 6, 2020
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Pages: 40
Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org
A dark, queer YA fantasy that's perfect for fans of the Three
Dark Crowns series and Wicked Saints. After Emanuela Ragno
kills the one person in Occhia who can create water, she must find a way to
save her city from dying of thirst.
Emanuela Ragno always gets what she wants. With her daring mind and socialite
schemes, she refuses to be the demure young lady everyone wants her to be. In
her most ambitious move yet, she's about to marry Alessandro Morandi, her
childhood best friend and the heir to the wealthiest house in Occhia. Emanuela
doesn't care that she and her groom are both gay, because she doesn't want a
love match. She wants power, and through Ale, she'll have it all.
But Emanuela has a secret that could shatter her plans. In the city of Occhia,
the only source of water is the watercrea, a mysterious being who uses magic to
make water from blood. When their first bruise-like omen appears on their skin,
all Occhians must surrender themselves to the watercrea to be drained of life.
Everyone throughout history has given themselves up for the greater good.
Everyone except Emanuela. She's kept the tiny omen on her hip out of sight for
years.
When the watercrea exposes Emanuela during her wedding ceremony and takes her
to be sacrificed, Emanuela fights back...and kills her. Now Occhia has no one
to make their water and no idea how to get more. In a race against time,
Emanuela and Ale must travel through the mysterious, blood-red veil that
surrounds their city to uncover the secrets of the watercrea's magic and find a
way to save their people-no matter what it takes.
Praise:
"Perfect for fans of Holly Black's The Cruel Prince and Emily A. Duncan's Wicked Saints...a must-purchase for YA collections."—School Library Journal
"A fast-paced debut that reaches spectacularly bloody heights."—Kirkus
"Fitzgerald populates her story
with fierce women who rule cities and seek glory."—Booklist
Beyond the Ruby Veil was an amazing surprise for me! The description made it sound really intriguing and I was excited to read it, but it turned out to be so much better than I could've hoped for! I absolutely loved this book - every single thing about it was fantastic. I'll admit that I've been in a really bad reading slump - more like a drought - for months now. This book sucked me in from the very first paragraph and I didn't stop reading until I had finished the entire thing (which ended up only being a few hours because I literally couldn't put it down). This is one of the rare books that you love so much and nothing you say will come close to explaining how awesome it is, so you end up rambling on and on. I don't come across novels like this very often, so when I do I feel like I might explode if I don't get all my thoughts and feelings out.
The main character, Emanuela, was nothing short of fabulous. She's not your typical heroine - more of an antihero - but she's so freaking awesome. Right from the beginning we see that she doesn't take crap from anyone and whatever she wants, she gets - no matter the cost. She's feisty, smart, determined, power hungry, egocentric, and cunning. But she's also a loving daughter, a fierce and loyal friend, and someone who's not afraid of having to do what seems impossible. She's a serious force of nature and I absolutely loved getting to know her throughout the story.
A major aspect for me is always writing style, as it can literally make or break a book for me. If you read my reviews, you know I almost always prefer the first person point of view because it allows the reader to have a deeper connection to the narrator than any other style. You have no idea how elated I was when I saw that this story is written in the first person POV from Emanuela's perspective. After a couple paragraphs, I knew I was going to really connect with her and the story. I don't think I would've had this much love for the book if it had been written in another style, but it wasn't so it doesn't matter.
Lastly, I want to mention the world building. The author does a phenomenal job of bringing Occhia to life right in front of you. There were so many detailed descriptions and vivid imagery that I could easily close my eyes and see it all as if I were there right beside Emanuela as everything happened. It's not an easy thing to slip into an imaginary world but I found myself in Occhia by the end of the first page of the book. Everything was so vivid - down to the smallest detail that I felt like I was literally there watching it all happen.
This is an amazing book that managed to get me out of my reading slump when nothing else could, which is a feat in and of itself. I loved this story so much more than I ever could have hoped or imagined. I'm ridiculously excited that this is just the first book in a series because I need more of Emanuela and Occhia. It just sucks that now I have to wait for what feels like a lifetime before the next book is released. I very highly recommend this book for fans of YA, fantasy, romance, diverse characters, LGBTQ+ stories, and novels with stunning world building and a kickass female lead.
Mara Fitzgerald writes YA fantasy about unlikable female
characters who ruin everything. She is a biologist by day and spends entirely
too much time looking at insects under a microscope. She was born near Disney
World and now lives near Graceland, which is almost as good. Beyond the Ruby
Veil is her debut novel.
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Order the book and get some awesome swag!
HOW TO ENTER:
- Order Beyond the Ruby
Veil from any retailer
- For a signed and personalized copy, order
from Square
Books before October 13th, 2020
- Other option: request that your local
library purchase the book
- Fill out this form with your information
YOU WILL RECEIVE:
- One signed bookplate
- Art prints drawn by Audrey Estok with matte
velvet-touch finish
- At least 1 random sticker of eyeballs
RULES:
- Entries accepted through October 31st,
2020
- The book can have been ordered at any
time as long as the entry is in by October 31st
- International accepted, but please make sure your country does not have suspended post from the USA
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
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10/5/2020 |
Interview |
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10/6/2020 |
Review |
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10/7/2020 |
Review |
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10/8/2020 |
Review |
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10/9/2020 |
Review |
Week Two:
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10/12/2020 |
Review |
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10/13/2020 |
Review |
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10/14/2020 |
Review |
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10/15/2020 |
Review |
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10/16/2020 |
Review |
The cover is absolutely gorgeous! This is one of my most anticipated books this fall and I can't wait to read it
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