Name: Isla Smith's review of The Light That Blinds Us by Andy Darcy Theo
Item: The Light That Blinds Us
Rating: 5
Author: Isla Smith

Andy Darcy Theo

'Loved it from start to finish, was hooked all the way.' 'This book deserves to be read by everyone.' 'This book is filled with amazing one liners that I would legit tattoo on my forehead!' 'Brilliant, thought provoking.' 'Literally dying for more.' Goodreads Reviews Legendborn meets Percy Jackson in this dark and thrilling debut fantasy romance. When consumed by shadow, even the faintest light can be blinding... After a childhood haunted by disturbing hallucinations of the Shadow Man, Alexis Michaels's only comfort is the blue amulet he's had since before he can remember. Now, the visions have gone, and Alexis craves a normal life. But when a trip to Stonehenge unites him with three other teens carrying similar gems, normality is abandoned when they are plunged into a hidden world of power-wielding Elementals, and told they are the chosen ones, destined to save the world from an eternal night. Trained by legends and guided by heroes, Alexis and his companions must venture on a perilous quest, facing tests of love, loss, and loyalty. But a dark past plagues Alexis as they prepare to defeat an adversary more ominous than they could imagine, and a looming secret sets to corrupt the mission, their lives, and his mind. A high-stakes, speculative romance, which masterfully weaves themes of mental health, psychosis, and found family. Perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Cassandra Clare from TikTok and BookTok star @andydarcytheo

The Light That Blinds Us

millena

Amazinggggggg there was one of my fave quotes “ what if he had been born to become the darkness just as Mortem had?”  This book had made me cry hard. 

Isla Smith

An action-packed book with the 2010's dystopia and major Percy Jackson vibes. I loved the elemental magic and the characters were okay (some of them worked on my nerve, except Alexis). This is a good start to a trilogy, but with a name like Andy Darcy Theo, how can you not write a good book?Exactly! I'm proud of the author for writing this (maybe it's bcs of the nostalgic dystopia vibes bcs that era quite literally raised me).

Long(er) review: yes this is a good book, however, there were things I unfortunately couldnt get with.

Things I didn't really like: The found family trope happened fast imo which made the friendship feel a bit forced... At the end of the book, I could see why they became so close, but at the beginning/middle it was just too fast. This book being written in past tense threw me off and made it a bit more difficult to read. On top of that, the book being in 3rd person made it harder to follow because this made me feel more removed from the story and the characters. It took me a long time to finish this book as well. Some things happened too fast to the side characters (eg: the leaders being imprinted on by Mortem), and I didn't really feel something while that was happening. I think it's because I didn't know these characters enough. There's also more telling and less showing which is unfortunate. But for the romance, it was more showing than telling.

Things I did like: the villain. Say what you want to say about him, you cannot make me hate him (yet). Tbvh, so far, I like Mortem and I also started to like the story more once Alexis gave into that darkness he felt, which was short because that's where the book ends basically. I guess I was expecting a bit more chaos. Also, the book ended on a good note to reel in readers to read the sequel, which I wasn't sure I would do, but after that ending, I kind of have to. Also because I feel like I know the charachters more, and I think more will be revealed in the second book. I absolutely adored the words at the beginning of every chapter, especially since they foreshadowed (without spoiling) what the chapter was mostly gonna be about. The plot and how things are connected is great. Even though I figured out pretty quick that Mortem & Alexis are related, it didn't feel predictable, especially because Incantus is Mortem's brother, making Incantus Alexis' uncle (loved this relation link!). Dr Dash coming back at the end was also something I loved and did not expect. Naming the friend group 'Alpha' (Alexis, Blaise, Cae, Demi) was a great idea imo. Btw, I wondered if Blaise is called Blaise bcs "blaze", his power? If so, that's genius.

By the end, I did feel a pang when what happened to Demi took place, and I grew to like Caeli. Blaise is annoyingly cocky and Alexis was a bit calm/quiet, but I understand because he has been fighting the darkness literally since childhood. I expected a bit more interaction between Mortem and Alexis, but maybe that'll happen in the second book (I really hope so) and I'm curious to see what Ezra will be like in the second book. He's kind of giving me Luke Castellan vibes.

I do like the book more than I disliked certain things, which is positive. The author note & acknowledgments were beautiful. Overall a good book and I hope it's loved by teens, because if I had this when I was a teen, I wouldnt hesitate to give this 5 stars.

Joy KBA

3.25 - Short review: 

An action-packed book with the 2010's dystopia and major Percy Jackson vibes. I loved the elemental magic and the characters were okay (some of them worked on my nerve, except Alexis). This is a good start to a trilogy, but with a name like Andy Darcy Theo, how can you not write a good book?Exactly! I'm proud of the author for writing this (maybe it's bcs of the nostalgic dystopia vibes bcs that era quite literally raised me).

Long(er) review: yes this is a good book, however, there were things I unfortunately couldnt get with.

Things I didn't really like: The found family trope happened fast imo which made the friendship feel a bit forced... At the end of the book, I could see why they became so close, but at the beginning/middle it was just too fast. This book being written in past tense threw me off and made it a bit more difficult to read. On top of that, the book being in 3rd person made it harder to follow because this made me feel more removed from the story and the characters. It took me a long time to finish this book as well. Some things happened too fast to the side characters (eg: the leaders being imprinted on by Mortem), and I didn't really feel something while that was happening. I think it's because I didn't know these characters enough. There's also more telling and less showing which is unfortunate. But for the romance, it was more showing than telling.

Things I did like: the villain. Say what you want to say about him, you cannot make me hate him (yet). Tbvh, so far, I like Mortem and I also started to like the story more once Alexis gave into that darkness he felt, which was short because that's where the book ends basically. I guess I was expecting a bit more chaos. Also, the book ended on a good note to reel in readers to read the sequel, which I wasn't sure I would do, but after that ending, I kind of have to. Also because I feel like I know the charachters more, and I think more will be revealed in the second book. I absolutely adored the words at the beginning of every chapter, especially since they foreshadowed (without spoiling) what the chapter was mostly gonna be about. The plot and how things are connected is great. Even though I figured out pretty quick that Mortem & Alexis are related, it didn't feel predictable, especially because Incantus is Mortem's brother, making Incantus Alexis' uncle (loved this relation link!). Dr Dash coming back at the end was also something I loved and did not expect. Naming the friend group 'Alpha' (Alexis, Blaise, Cae, Demi) was a great idea imo. Btw, I wondered if Blaise is called Blaise bcs "blaze", his power? If so, that's genius.

By the end, I did feel a pang when what happened to Demi took place, and I grew to like Caeli. Blaise is annoyingly cocky and Alexis was a bit calm/quiet, but I understand because he has been fighting the darkness literally since childhood. I expected a bit more interaction between Mortem and Alexis, but maybe that'll happen in the second book (I really hope so) and I'm curious to see what Ezra will be like in the second book. He's kind of giving me Luke Castellan vibes.

I do like the book more than I disliked certain things, which is positive. The author note & acknowledgments were beautiful. Overall a good book and I hope it's loved by teens, because if I had this when I was a teen, I wouldnt hesitate to give this 5 stars.

Oh, how the descent into Darkness was paved with broken promises and abandoned oaths.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 after following Andy's journey from the early days on Tiktok, and I can say that he should be incredibly proud of himself. This was an amazing debut novel and I had so much fun reading it! When he was marketing his book he said it was just like Percy Jackson meets Avatar: The Last Airbender and he was not lying, that is exactly what this was and it brought back so much nostalgia for that time in my life when books like this were all I read, and I just know that teenage Gen would've absolutely devoured this book and made it her whole personality. Even in my 30's now I can appreciate this fantastic book, I think a good YA book should be able to transcend age and that is exactly what 

Andy's experience with psychology really shone through in this story, the beautifully interwoven references to mental health and the way his characters reflected different responses to and methods of therapy were so great to read as part of a fantastical story. The messages threaded throughout this story were just perfect for impressionable YA readers to hear and the characters were all so relatable, I truly think anyone reading this would come away connected to one or more of the characters and able to take away from what the characters learned on their journey through this story. Four teenagers, all from different walks of life, coming together and working together to be stronger as a group. I just loved it. I did wish we got a bit more of the four MC's backstories though, I absolutely loved all of them and was refreshed to see how unique each character's personality was, but I did feel like we didn't get a lot of truly deep character development. I feel like I understood Alexis, but Demi, Caeli and Blaise were all just a bit more superficially described, aside from how they interacted with each other in their banter. But I am sure this will come through in the sequels.

The storyline itself was really interesting, although a little bit predictable and very reminiscent of other similar stories, it had just enough differences to it that I remained intrigued all the way through and was really absorbed in finding out what happened. The magic system was really easy to understand although at some points it felt a little bit Deus ex Machina, where the softness of this system, where it didn't have much of a defined boundary around how the magic can be used, seemed to make the victory fall into the hands of the characters too easily - but I think for the grade level this story is written at, that is more of a 'me' problem than an issue with the story or the writing. I loved the quest aspect of the story too and how it really fostered a true found family bond between the MCs. The creatures and the "bad guys" they came up against throughout were all very entertaining, and at times caused absolutely heart wrenching scenes too. I think the main word I would use to describe this book is: FUN.

Overall, a really strong start to what should be a fascinating series, one I really look forward to following and seeing how everything unfolds. I still think Andy is holding back on a lot of secret twists and betrayals that will really amp this story up emotionally, and I can't wait to see what he does with it! Definitely one for lovers of Percy Jackson, Harry Potter and other fantasy lite series such as the Grishaverse.

After a lifetime of living in the dark, he was worried that the light of day had become blinding.

Genevieve 

Oh, how the descent into Darkness was paved with broken promises and abandoned oaths.

4.5 ⭐

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 after following Andy's journey from the early days on Tiktok, and I can say that he should be incredibly proud of himself. This was an amazing debut novel and I had so much fun reading it! When he was marketing his book he said it was just like Percy Jackson meets Avatar: The Last Airbender and he was not lying, that is exactly what this was and it brought back so much nostalgia for that time in my life when books like this were all I read, and I just know that teenage Gen would've absolutely devoured this book and made it her whole personality. Even in my 30's now I can appreciate this fantastic book, I think a good YA book should be able to transcend age and that is exactly what The Light That Blinds Us did.

Andy's experience with psychology really shone through in this story, the beautifully interwoven references to mental health and the way his characters reflected different responses to and methods of therapy were so great to read as part of a fantastical story. The messages threaded throughout this story were just perfect for impressionable YA readers to hear and the characters were all so relatable, I truly think anyone reading this would come away connected to one or more of the characters and able to take away from what the characters learned on their journey through this story. Four teenagers, all from different walks of life, coming together and working together to be stronger as a group. I just loved it. I did wish we got a bit more of the four MC's backstories though, I absolutely loved all of them and was refreshed to see how unique each character's personality was, but I did feel like we didn't get a lot of truly deep character development. I feel like I understood Alexis, but Demi, Caeli and Blaise were all just a bit more superficially described, aside from how they interacted with each other in their banter. But I am sure this will come through in the sequels.

The storyline itself was really interesting, although a little bit predictable and very reminiscent of other similar stories, it had just enough differences to it that I remained intrigued all the way through and was really absorbed in finding out what happened. The magic system was really easy to understand although at some points it felt a little bit Deus ex Machina, where the softness of this system, where it didn't have much of a defined boundary around how the magic can be used, seemed to make the victory fall into the hands of the characters too easily - but I think for the grade level this story is written at, that is more of a 'me' problem than an issue with the story or the writing. I loved the quest aspect of the story too and how it really fostered a true found family bond between the MCs. The creatures and the "bad guys" they came up against throughout were all very entertaining, and at times caused absolutely heart wrenching scenes too. I think the main word I would use to describe this book is: FUN.

Overall, a really strong start to what should be a fascinating series, one I really look forward to following and seeing how everything unfolds. I still think Andy is holding back on a lot of secret twists and betrayals that will really amp this story up emotionally, and I can't wait to see what he does with it! Definitely one for lovers of Percy Jackson, Harry Potter and other fantasy lite series such as the Grishaverse.

After a lifetime of living in the dark, he was worried that the light of day had become blinding.

millena &
The Light That Blinds Us by Andy Darcy Theo

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