Madeleine Nakamura

Adrien Desfourneaux, professor of magic, must survive his own failing mental health and a tenuous partnership with a dangerous ally in order to save the city of Astrum from a spreading curse.

Cursebreakers

Ellie M.

Cursebreakers is officially out on September 12, 2023! Thanks to Madeleine Nakamura and Red Hen Press for sending me an ARC through Netgalley. This doesn’t affect my review in any way. 

TWs: Chronic Bipolar Disorder, drug use, suicidal thoughts, & destructive tendencies

Adrien Desfourneaux is a professor at the Pharmakeia and a magician with a tragic past. Determined to lie low after a disastrous research experiment years ago, his life is suddenly turned upside down once more after he finds out that the massive city of Astrum is stirring, when the citizens of Pharmakeia suddenly fall into a magically induced coma. Decided to turn things around, he is suddenly thrust into a scheme of a mess brought upon by a faction of magicians along with the tyrannical and violence-fueled military. Adrien, along with his failing mental health and his friends, Malise, Casmir, and Gennady, a complex, young Vigil, are set to find out the truth and end the curse once and for all. 

This was an explosive stand-alone story built upon a complex, futuristic world of magic and politics. Though arguably, for an extremely massive world with lots of elements, it lacked a proper manner of construction, but I think this book was written really well in terms of the queer rep and expresses a great, intimate portrayal of chronic bipolar disorder and destructive tendencies in adults. This was my first time reading a story about a forty-one-year-old male MC. Nakamura’s writing has delightful prose and her plot was incredibly straight to the point. For a fantasy book, the characters presented in this story were incredibly realistic and exceptionally human as they delved into the intricacies of adult friendships. And lastly, what I enjoyed the most is that the story wasn’t focused on finding romance, but it was about surviving your own demons and presents a great conclusion.

Cursebreakers

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