Amanda Foody

Coming of age within the smoldering borders of the Gomorrah Festival's traveling carnival of fantasy, Sorina uses her rare illusion-creating talents to create family members that she believes do not really exist, until one of them is murdered.

Daughter of the Burning City

Jasmine

4 Stars
I love the uniqueness of this story and the character so much! I preorder this book when it first came out because the cover and premise were so alluring. Also, I love any book that has the main setting is a circus/carnival. There is something truly magical and otherworldly about it. Give me a creative storyline and an eerie atmosphere and I'm drawn in every time! It took me a while to finally pick this book up but I'm glad I finally did because this was the perfect standalone fantasy for me. My favorite thing about it was the dark atmosphere of Gammorah, I really lived for some of those descriptions. Sorina was also a great main character she had both a great deal of strength and childlike innocence, both lent themselves really well to this story. The mystery was a strong enough storyline that it managed to keep me interested the whole way through, and the little bit of romance was enjoyable. Overall, I thought this was a really strong debut, both creative and unique. I will definitely be checking out any new books Amanda Foody comes up with next!

Elisa Bieg

I quite enjoyed this magical, quirky, dark read.

The world building is inventive and detailed; the characters original, unlike any of the other magical creatures I have met in other YA fantasy, but still relatable in the way they are portrayed; the plot is intriguing — albeit at times perhaps slightly predictable, but more of a guess than an actual “I solved the mystery!” sort of situation.

The pace slows a bit towards the middle, but then picks up again.

The writing was nothing to write home about, but nor was it bad; that may have normally spoiled it for me, but the world was so immersive that it did the job.

It wasn’t perfect, but I found it a very satisfying read, so I’m going to round it up to 4 STARS and place this gorgeous cover in my “keepers” shelf!

courtney garrison

** spoiler alert **
           My book club choose this book this month and I’m so glad I read it. Daughter of the burning city is so magical and creative. The writing was astounding and vivid. I loved every minute of this book. I went into it not knowing much about the book other than it revolved around a show, similar to a circus or carnival. I was so amazed by everything in the novel and completely blown away with how good it was.

Your MC Sorina who is an illusion worker, she can create real-life puppets, but they have there own personality and can make their own choices. When something strange starts happening, you see Sorinas illusions cant die, but one by one they are being found murdered. Sorina is desperate to find answers to what or who is killing her family.

Gomorrah Festival is home to many magical things. Sorina puts on a freak show with her illusions. Her father is the Proprietor, head of Gomorrah. Sorina hopes he can find who is murdering her family. When she comes across Luca, who helps her start putting together the pieces and soon they are thrown into complete chaos. You see Sorina and Luca go through hell to find out who is behind it all.

I don’t think I can do this book justice in this review, it was that good. It does have a bunch of diversity, which I thought was fantastic to incorporate into the novel. I genuinely had no idea what was happening the entire time through the novel, until they finally came out and said it. I was so shocked by the ending of the novel, you never truly see it coming.

Overall this is easily in my top 5 favorites this year. The writing was amazing, the creativity and imagery were just mind-blowing. It sort of had the AHS Season 4 vibes to it, but with way more magic to it. I went into this book not expecting to like it or love it, but I’m so glad I read it. I also recommend reading along the audiobook in it as well. The narrator is amazing with all the voices.

Ingrid 

3 stars

Overall a good book, but nothing amazing. It had a lot of potensial that I don't feel it reached. 

Dislikes: 
- I could tell who the bad people were pretty early on
- The story did not grip me and I had to force myself to read sometimes
- Didn't really get to know the characters until the end, which honestly made me not care who died
- Not a fan of the romance

Likes:
- The main character was overall good (a little annoying but oh well) 
- The world was very interesting

Leah Patton

This was a 4.5 for me. Almost absolutely perfect! My review on theleafd.com will be up on Monday :)

I find myself with somewhat mixed feelings about this book.

On the one hand, I loved the magic system in this book. It was super interesting and I loved seeing Sorina learn more about what she was capable of as the mystery unraveled. I thought Sorina was an interesting protagonist and I liked her story.

On the other, the side characters weren't super well-developed and it gave the mystery less urgency because the family that she's created has no real depth so it was hard to care all that much when they died. I just wanted to see more of her family as individuals separate from her.

My biggest issue with the book is related to the asexuality rep (which is why I heard about this book in the first place). The love interest, Luca, is demisexual and I was totally cool with the way he was represented until (view spoiler)[we found out he was another of her illusions and it was implied that his demisexuality was somehow part of the "freakishness" that all of her illusions manifest. Unlike the other illusions, he doesn't have any obvious physical abnormalities. He doesn't have nails in the place of hair, or two heads, or a body structure so rubbery he can flatten himself like an egg. Arguably his magic his his "freakishness" because he can't die. But because Sorina created him to be a romantic partner for her, there was the implication that his demisexuality was his abnormality instead because it would be a cruel twist of fate if the person she created to be a romantic partner wasn't actually interested. And that just didn't sit well with me at all. It just felt like asexuality was being presented as this weird unnatural thing that was supposed to be a punishment of price of some kind and that's just not what asexuality is. (hide spoiler)]

Overall, a reasonably entertaining book, but had some issues that prevented me from really enjoying it.

Whitley Gladwell

The synopsis of this story had me highly anticipating this read! A travelling circus, a murder mystery of "imaginary" people, and romance! Color me intrigued. This book was so unique and it hooked me pretty quickly. I am a sucker for a whodunit and I enjoyed exploring this new world and gaining clues along with Sorina and trying to solve the mystery along side of her and her band of illusions. I fell in love with these characters and the relationships (not only romantic, but platonic as well) in this story. I also loved that we had such a diverse set of characters. The magic system and the world building was a little confusing at times but for a debut novel, I think it was fantastic. The story had me asking so many questions and most of them were satisfyingly answered by the end. There were also quite a few twists that I definitely did not see coming. 
Overall, I really enjoyed my time reading it and would recommend it!

deity author

The only thing that the story impacted me is where she could create illusions of her family. What a dream

Erin Russell

Very vivid imagery throughout, its here in abundance. The pacing was a little slow for my taste but thats probably just me and others might disagree. The plot was okay, some characters I really liked, others were meh. Overall I think this book was a worthwhile read just not for my particular palate.

p.s. THAT COVER THOUGH?? To die for.

Inês Santos

*4.5
This book surprised me a lot to be honest. I am not a big fan of murder/mystery types of stories, but this one was very intriguing and compelling. I had low expectations for it as it's not my type of story and ended up pleasantly surprised. 
The thing I loved the most about this book were the characters. I think they were so well designed and written, and believable that made the story even more enjoyable to read. 
I still had some questions that were left unanswered. that being the main reason I won't give this book a solid 5 stars, but overall this book was surprising and different both in a positive way. It was an amazing story to get into!

Aleena Korell

This... was just not what I hoped for.

A couple things done right-- there seemed to be a conscious effort to defy tropes, most of those having to do with the romance aspect of the story. And there were certainly some imaginative types of characters. I just wish those characters were delved into deeper than just what primarily set them apart. And I could go without all the awkward pining and crush analyzing that Sorina obsessively does, especially (view spoiler)[in the wake of her deep losses (hide spoiler)]. 

I have a deep and actual need for a sweeping magical carnival tale and this just wasn't quite it. I'm craving it and can't keep reading The Night Circus and Caraval over and over again.

Tânia Borges

So, first things first: solid 4 stars. Could've been better, could've been worse, but definitely leaning towards the better part. I got a lot of Night Circus vibes from this book. I think that the mystery aspect surrounding the murders adds a lot to the story itself, and the writing was also nice. The world was fascinating to witness, but the characters... not so much. So this is the only reason why I didn't give this book the whole 5 stars: Sorina. Stars, I didn't connect with her. At all. Believe me, I tried, and I honestly don't get why I couldn't. I just feel like her point of view doesn't give the story the justice it deserves. I reckon I would've enjoyed it a lot more if the story was told throught Luca's eyes. Sorina was such a plain character. The world and the magic in it got so confusing at times, I literally had to go back and read some sections again. And why? Because Sorina literally didn't care about anything: she didn't make an effort to connect with other people, she didn't care about the others literally living in the same city/comunity as she and her family were, and like... she was so self-centered. The whole story was just about me, me, my family, me, my family, me, me, my family. That's all she cared about. 100% not protagonist material, in my opinion.
However, the other characters saved the book. I adored Luca and the rest of Sorina's family. The diversity and representation are reeeeeaaaaalllll, y'all. Name me one YA fantasy book that has one demiromantic asexual character, another one bisexual, another one homosexual, and lots and lots of not only sexual orientation, but cultural diversity representation, all on one book. Go on, I'll wait.

Mayra Melo

2.5 stars.

Kind of boring, sometimes slow, weak world-building, ending was somewhat good, but there were major flaws.
Especially:
(view spoiler)[If Agatha, the lowly local charm-worker can make a living voodoo doll connected to her daughter, who dies if the doll is destroyed, why in the world did Villiam (which is a stupid name; in my head it always sounded like Dracula saying William) have to come up with such an outrageous, complicated mess of a plan, involving YEARS of creating illusions in a ploy to use them as voodoo people to murder important Up-mountainers? When he could have simply made a bunch of actual voodoo dolls and asked Agatha to give them life? It would literally take a day to accomplish it. He could keep them all in a closet, instead of roaming around and having human feelings, and would work just as fine, if not better, than the illusions. Instead he wastes YEARS of perfecting illusions and - which is the most important part - makes his daughter grow to love a family only to murder them. It's such an obvious thing it made me mad. Like this whole book is pointless. And the characters and world around them didn't make up for it. (hide spoiler)]

Heather Heaton

I love a good circus theme and a character cast that make up a freak show sounds right up my alley! I found the MC, Sorina's illusion work to be very interesting as she makes these people from her mind but they become their own sentient people. Each of her illusions are unique and well thought out. I think that the characters were by far my favorite part of this book and make me debate about giving this book a bit higher rating. When I think of the book as a whole though I can't help but feel as though it was average and forgettable after a few more books. (mind you I read 10-12 books a month so it is a lot to remember). I felt no emotions through the book which was frustrating to me and made me feel as though there was nothing to lose in all the action and danger. Overall it was good just not great!

laura

This book I really did enjoy the world. I loved all the various magic workers but both the pacing and the characters I struggled with. I had such a hard time becoming emotionally invested in the characters. I wanted to love them but i struggled to feel connected to them. The pacing of the book even thought it had elements of murder mystery the pacing felt off. I liked the illustrations but wanted more elements of that tied into the novel. Overall, i loved the world building but did not feel as connected to the characters as i wanted to be.

Naomi Verkleij

Moon of Pages

⭐️ 4,5/5 stars 

—

First reaction
This book really took me by surprise. It's not that I didn't have high hopes for it, because I did, but I didn't expect to love it as much as I did. This book has lots of different opinions and it seems to be a bit a 'hit or miss' type of book. For me it was totally a hit.

“Once upon a time, we were burned to the ground. But we did not die. Instead we kept burning, kept moving, kept growing. The smoke surrounds us, even if we no longer burn.”

Favorite things
✨ The overall atmosphere this book gave me
✨ The diverse cast of illusions
✨ A very strong main character
✨ A lot of action and twists and turns

🎪 What is it about?
The story follows our main character Sorina, a young girl with a special ability: illusion-work. She lives with her family, which are the illusions she created, at the Gomorrah Festival and they together perform a 'Freak Show'. Everything seemed pretty fine, until one of her illusions got murdered.

🎪 What is my opinion?
This story was very intriguing! The setting of the Gomorrah Festival was so atmospheric. It was festive and dark at the same time. The plot was very unique and unlike anything else I ever stumbled upon. Getting to know the illusions Sorina created was a very interesting part of this story and they were each very different and uncommon. I also liked the pictures included of the illusions in this book! Also, I didn't know I was able to care so much about illusions and their faith. 🤣 I did wish to see a bit more about the development of some of these illusions, I think we didn't get the chance to meet each and every one of them to the fullest. But they were very diverse and I loved them! There is also dealt with grieve, being determined to fight in hard times, being an outcast and big loss. Although this wasn't the main focus of this book, I find it very interesting to see!

🎪 What about the characters?
Sorina
I loved her so much, but I was a little freaked out about her at the beginning! I mean, a girl that has no eyes that can see and create illusions? How crazy! But I think she was very interesting and realistically written. I loved how much she cared about her family and she would literally do anything to keep them safe. She also is very brave and keeps going through hard times even when she is grieving and in a lot of emotional pain. 

Luca
This guy was so strange but also lovable at the same time? He could be so rude but I also did think he was very cute? I really did care for him and I liked his interactions with Sorina a lot.

Nicoleta
Although she didn't really have a mind-blowing talent, she was such a warm person and she took care of everyone with such a pure heart. She was very strong and I really cared for her a lot.

I liked every character in this book but if I had to talk about all of them individually I would be sitting here for another ten hours so I'm keeping it short over here 😆

🎪 Why would I recommend this book?
I would definitely recommend this book to everyone who likes to read something very unique and something that has a dark but also vivid vibe to it. It is mostly driven by the plot, but I do think the illusions, Sorina and Luca were great characters that I really cared for! The book has a lot of tension and especially the last few chapters were very mind-blowing. There were a lot of twists and turns and there was a lot of action. This is also the perfect Halloween read! I'm glad I got to finish it on the night of Halloween. 🎃

“They say pressure can turn even a grain of sand into a pearl under the right circumstances.”

Sophie Elaina 

Daughter of the Burning City follows sixteen year old protagonist Sorina and her life as part of the dark and wondrous Gomorrah Festival. Sorina is different from others in the festival though as she has a rare kind of jinx magic. She is an illusion-worker. Creating illusions is her talent. Her creations are her family, and together they make up the cast of the Festival’s Freak Show. Suddenly thing start to happen that Sorina never believed possible and she seeks help in figuring out what is going on.

"Walk the line between normal and monstrous."

To begin with I didn't really get sucked in to the story straight away as I found it rather confusing to figure out what was going on. I think this was because you are kind of thrown straight in the deep end and immersed in this wondrous world. So many things are happening straight away that it's hard to get into and keep up; but as you keep reading it's like you enter into the world yourself. I was about a hundred pages in and I was like; "Oh my god I am in love with these characters and this is so good!" It was like I had a revelation and finally realised how much I was enjoying reading the story.

"The festival comes to life in a rush of opium smoke, the blinking lights of dancers, the smell of pastries that stick to your fingers, the thundering of the fireworks."

The only word I can think of to describe Amanda Foody's writing is magical. The thing I think that I enjoyed most about this book was the fact that the more you read the more you get pulled in. It's like I was walking around Gomorrah experiencing everything for myself. The world building in my opinion was really fabulous and I found it very easy to picture everything. I've been very much enjoying books based around circus/festivals lately and this book only added to how much I enjoy the concept. I do have to say however that I didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped to. Even though it was a very enjoyable read I just felt like there was something missing. As I was reading I couldn't help but recognise how well this was written and also how well this concept was executed which made me want to love it more than I did. I think this might be one of those books that I will enjoy more the second time around. But honestly don't get me wrong this was absolutely fabulous and I can't really come up with a reason why it fell short for me. I've decided to give it four stars mainly because it took me a while to get into and the fact that I feel like there was something stopping me from becoming fully invested in the story as I was reading it.

"...I will be alone. The certainty of it weighs in my soul like a stone lodged in my throat. I cannot breathe." 

The characters the author created were very intriguing and so well developed throughout. I've never read about a main character quite like Sorina and the mystery around her was what kept me reading throughout those first few chapters. I'm very glad that I did keep going as it got better and better. I loved how Amanda Foody seamlessly weaved in so much variety into her characters. It was refreshing to read in a fantasy as i often feel the genre lacks that a lot of the time. 

Overall I highly recommend this book and am extremely excited to read more from Amanda Foody in the future. It's definitely worth the read. This whimsical, twisty tale is full of shocking plot turns that will keep you constantly on the edge of your seat.

Early digital copy received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Alexis 

Honestly for me this book was just alright. I liked it. The story felt super slow for me, especially in the middle. I also called the plot twist within the first hundred or so pages. I definitely understand why people like it, it has some really good elements as far as plot and some of the characters. Unfortunately it was just kind of meh for me.

Beatriz

Luca might just be my new Nikolai Lantsov...

(there’s also lots lgbtq+ rep which I liked, even though they never name anything)

Iween Suni

I enjoyed this for the twists and turns and the overall magic and world. I think I might have huge expectations coming into it. But otherwise, really great read!

Paige Green

Rating: 4/5

Genre: YA Fantasy/Mystery

Recommended Age: 16+ (violent deaths, sexual content, but lots of diversity)

Pages: 377

Author: Amanda Foody

Amazon

I was given an arc of this book on NetGalley then obtained my own copy. Thanks NetGalley! All opinions are my own.

In 2017 there were three major books about carnivals that came out. Why carnivals? Well, because they always have had an aura of mystery and intrigue about them. And from reading this book I think I have found out why they seem so mysterious. Mostly fantasy, but part mystery, this book centers on an eyeless girl named Sorina and her ability to create illusions. And then someone starts killing her illusions and she must work to find out why this is happening and most importantly how. I thought the characters were all very well developed and the plot was very intriguing. The book was adequately well paced as well, which made me not want to put down this enthralling read.

However, I did feel that there was some room for more world-building. Two things that are central to the plot are the politics of the Upper Mountain and Vallium and Angi’s backstories and development. While the book did excellent at surprising the reader with the “whodunit” portion of the book, it made me wonder if there were intentional clues left behind or if this revelation came out of nowhere like it appears to me right now.

Verdict: If you’re looking for a mystery fantasy stand-alone novel this is your book! It’s weird and fun and amazingly well written and it’ll keep you guessing until the very last page.

Mya Adams 

I loved this book. I decided when I started this book that the only way for me to finish this book in a month was to read the physical book and to listen to the audiobook when I couldn't be sitting reading the physical copy. It allowed me to finish just on time for the end of October. 

This book is a winner of the 5 out of 5 stars. I loved this book all the way around it and every time I try to think of anything wrong with this book I come up with Bubkis. It astounds me that this book was Amanda Foody's debut novel. She got everything right. 

She got the emotions that I feel the pain, the love, the excitement, the fear. She understood the importance of atmosphere in this book. She created the most unreal dripping festival. I wanted to try all the foods that she talked about, I wanted to sit in on the freak show performance. I loved everything about the twists and turns that you never see coming until they smack you across the face and your left stunned and horrified that you missed it yourself because while cunning the twists are they were right there the whole time but the expert way she goes around the truth and makes you feel safe only to have that safety coming crashing down at the end. She slightly builds you back up with a new sense of normal before she brings the book to a satisfying closing. 

I can't say any more about this book without just becoming Amanda Foody/Daughter of a Burning City trash. All, I can do right now is gush about this book. But for another spoiler-free review, this is all I can say for right now.

Lottie oliver

Hey Guys!!

I know what am I doing back here so soon… Reading. Muhaha. Okay so that did not sound a evil as I intended but hey, I’ll practice my scary voice. I still have orders for cute and woolly animals flowing in and its really great too see. People love the animals I make. I may have to do a post on her about it. Yes, I know. It’s not a book so its not wanted…

Any who. As you can see by the lovely title, I have been reading The Daughter of the Burning City. This is.. something else entirely. It’s magic but not as we know it. It’s tragic and scary, as well as thrilling. You have your romance that is strange but lovely at the same time. And oh my gosh do not get me started on the deceit. Here’s a little summery.

Summery: A darkly irresistible new fantasy set in the infamous Gomorrah Festival, a traveling carnival of debauchery that caters to the strangest of dreams and desires 

Sixteen-year-old Sorina has spent most of her life within the smoldering borders of the Gomorrah Festival. Yet even among the many unusual members of the traveling circus-city, Sorina stands apart as the only illusion-worker born in hundreds of years. This rare talent allows her to create illusions that others can see, feel and touch, with personalities all their own. Her creations are her family, and together they make up the cast of the Festival’s Freak Show. 

But no matter how lifelike they may seem, her illusions are still just that—illusions, and not truly real. Or so she always believed…until one of them is murdered. 

Desperate to protect her family, Sorina must track down the culprit and determine how they killed a person who doesn’t actually exist. Her search for answers leads her to the self-proclaimed gossip-worker Luca. Their investigation sends them through a haze of political turmoil and forbidden romance, and into the most sinister corners of the Festival. But as the killer continues murdering Sorina’s illusions one by one, she must unravel the horrifying truth before all her loved ones disappear.

Damn! I even love the blurb of this book. You have mystery and magic and things that should not even be possible. And its all in one book!!! *enter fan girl scream* Right now that’s out my system lets get onto the nitty gritty.

I thought this world would be a bit like Caraval, if you’ve read that you know what I mean. For those of you who haven’t, its a place of fun where anything is possible, but once its over its all reset. This is so different. The Gomorrah world is all about your deep, dark desires as well as having some innocent fun. It’s not just for adults but for children as well. But what’s also different is its a carnival city. The city moves from place to place, never properly stopping. it’s made to entertain.

Gomorrah has a very dark side to it though, filled with assassins and secrets and murder. Did I already mention deceit? Because you are in for a massive surprise. Amanda Foody, the brilliant writer who has give us this world has spared nothing in showing us the grim side of the Gomorrah world and its people. But it also shows you and in a way teaches you the outside world is more dirty with it lack of acceptance of “Freaks”. This isn’t just happening in our book but as silly as it sound, it happens in our day to day lives. People with missing limbs either from birth or accidents and we avert the eye. At the end of the day these people are just like you and I. They didn’t want a “deformity” or to be different.

Now onto lighter notes. Amanda is very good at showing you what she wants to, she will keep a few of her strings being pulled in the background of the book and you would have no idea until it has hit you square in the face with a tree. What I love is the surprise. To many books follow the same, Boy meets girl, girl has magic, boy falls for the girl. This is more. Sorina goes through 6 weeks of hell to have to go through a life time of more. The people she loves are being murdered and the people she trusts are not who she thinks. All I can say is thank you Amanda for the work and for showing us something gruesome and brilliant.

Now if I say much else I have realised I will probably spoil it and that is not something I want to do. For those of you who have read the book. Enjoy the puns.

5 Stars.

Daughter of the Burning City

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