Name: Madison Altares's review of The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo
Item: The Familiar
Rating: 4
Author: Madison Altares

Leigh Bardugo

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Leigh Bardugo comes a spellbinding novel set in the Spanish Golden Age.

In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to improve the family's social position.

What begins as simple amusement for the nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain's king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England's heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king's favor.

Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the lines between magic, science, and fraud are never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition's wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santángel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.

The Familiar

Cole Stoots

She saw no futures in the patterns of spilled salt. If she had, she would have known to leave the bread untouched, and that it was far better to endure the discomfort of Doña Valentina’s anger than the peril of her interest.

Madison Altares

I really loved the world and the writing and the romance was very sweet, this reminded me vaguely of a language of thorns’ writing style which I liked while at the same time a departure from the grishaverse that I feel like her writing needed. I do think the romance, while very sweet, could’ve been more convincing in its beginning stages before the lifelong devotion, and I wish the magic and its rules were given more time. I liked it though and I would absolutely read more of this style from bardugo!

fris🐝

Leigh Bardugo’s writing is amazing now always will be, I think I did this book and injustice by reading it when I didn’t want to read a lot, and I just couldn’t connect with the characters.

Scarlett 

Bardugo’s writing style is fantastic as always.  Paired with the turmoil of the Spanish Inquisition, Bardugo builds a complex world of magic and miracles which creates so many questions for the reader and gives only satisfying answers. The Familiar is a rather compelling read and is one that i recommend for anyone looking for an interesting, standalone novel. 

Might be my best book of 2024. Has a little bit of Circe energy.

Abby

From the New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House, Hell Bent, and creator of the Grishaverse series comes a highly anticipated historical fantasy set during the Spanish Golden Age. / / / In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to better the family's social position. . . What begins as simple amusement for the bored nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain's king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England's heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king's favor. . . Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the lines between magic, science, and fraud are never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition's wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santangel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.

Riley

Jackelyn

When Luzia, a servant in the household of a Spanish nobleman reveals a talent for domestic magic, her social-climbing mistress demands she use her gifts to win over the royal court. But what begins as simple amusement turns dangerous, as the king seeks any edge in his ongoing war with England. Overmatched and at risk of revealing herself as a heretic, Luzia will have to use every bit of her wit and resilience to survive-even if that means enlisting the help of an embittered (and rather dashing) immortal familiar.

Madison Altares &
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

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Madison Altares &The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

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Madison Altares &
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo