Thank you Rockstar Book Tours for the chance to be on the tour for Shattered Midnight! Check out my review below.
About The Book:
Title: SHATTERED MIDNIGHT (The Mirror #2)
Author: Dhonielle Clayton
Pub. Date: January 18, 2022
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook
Pages: 304
Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org
The Mirror: Shattered Midnight is the second novel in the innovative four-book fairy-tale series written by Julie C. Dao, Dhonielle Clayton, J.C. Cervantes, and L. L. McKinney, following one family over several generations, and the curse that plagues it.
Zora Broussard has arrived in New Orleans with not much more than a bag of clothes, a beautiful voice, and a pair of enchanted red shoes. Running from a tragic accident caused by her magic, Zora wants nothing more than to blend in, as well as to avoid her overbearing aunt and mean-spirited cousins. Music becomes Zora’s only means of escape, yet she wonders if she should give it all up to remove the powers that make her a target, especially as a Black woman in the South.
But when Zora gets the chance to perform in a prominent jazz club, she meets a sweet white pianist named Phillip with magic of his own, including a strange mirror that foretells their future together. Falling into a forbidden love, Zora and Phillip must keep their relationship a secret. And soon the two discover the complicated connection between their respective families, a connection that could lead to catastrophe for them both. In the era of segregation and speakeasies, Zora must change her destiny and fight for the one she loves . . . or risk losing everything.
If you want to read a story that weaves the history of 1920s New Orleans with soulful jazz music and magic that can never fully be controlled, this is the book for you.
Zora lost control back in her home of Manhattan. Her magic did something terrible and she was forced to leave her family to escape the city quickly. Leaving the city she loved behind hurt more than anything, and her aunt is nothing like her mother. Her mother supported her music, her aunt thinks jazz music is un-Christian and un-ladylike. Her aunt wants her to settle down with a suitable husband so that Zora can be off her hands and out of her house. Zora refuses to let her music die, sneaking out of her aunt’s house to perform in Jazz clubs in New Orleans. She is determined to get the full city experience as well as find a way to keep her magic under control so that she won’t have any more magical accidents.
This story truly embodies the magic of New Orleans. I fell in love with the city when I saw Princess and the Frog as a little girl, even though the movie had its flaws. I will eventually visit there! Any time this book mentioned the nighttime parades or the beignets and other delicious food or the jazz clubs in the 1920s, I fell more in love with this city. Nevertheless, the flaws of the city were definitely discussed in this book. Segregation was very prevalent there in the 20s and everyone suffered because of it. This book also touches on the struggles of being a white-passing black individual in this society. It might seem like it could make life easier to be able to get into these white-only spaces, but those who passed also lived their lives in fear if they were outed while in those spaces. It was a life of deciding whether you wanted to live life in black spaces where you would face the same adversity they faced and may not have fully been accepted, or live life in white spaces in fear of being outed and would never fully be accepted. I knew these issues existed in history but I rarely see them represented in fiction, so props to author Dhonielle Clayton for including these issues in her book.
Zora is definitely one of my favorite YA characters that I’ve read in quite a while. She was very humble but she was powerful. She took a horribly negative situation that she could have succumbed to and tried to find joy and positivity where she could. There was romance at the center of this book, a romance that could have gotten her killed if she was found out. But that never stopped the two characters, and it was sweet to see teenage romance in the face of such severe adversity. She also faced PTSD from the events that she experienced in New York, but still fought the nightmares and anxiety to continue pushing through. Definitely a good character for teens to read about!
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a new YA fantasy/historical fiction novel to enjoy.
I received a copy of this book and this is my voluntary review.
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 books.
About Dhonielle:
Dhonielle Clayton is a New York Times Bestselling author of The Belles series, the coauthor of the Tiny Pretty Things duology which debuts as a Netflix original series soon, and the author of the forthcoming MG fantasy series The Marvellers. She hails from the Washington, D.C. suburbs on the Maryland side. She taught secondary school for several years, and is a former elementary and middle school librarian. She is COO of the non-profit We Need Diverse Books, and co-founder of CAKE Literary, a creative kitchen whipping up decadent—and decidedly diverse—literary confections for middle grade, young adult, and women’s fiction readers. She’s an avid traveler, and always on the hunt for magic and mischief.
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub
Giveaway!
3 winners will receive a finished copy of SHATTERED MIDNIGHT, US Only.
a Rafflecopter giveawayRafflecopter Link:
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e2389ba21381/
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
| 1/1/2022 | YA Books Central | Excerpt |
Week Two:
| 1/2/2022 | Simplybeccamee | Review |
| 1/3/2022 | The Bookwyrm’s Den | Review |
| 1/4/2022 | Kait Plus Books | Review |
| 1/5/2022 | Emelie’s Books | Review |
| 1/6/2022 | Rajiv’s Reviews | Review |
| 1/7/2022 | More Books Please blog | Review |
| 1/8/2022 | Cocoa With Books | Review |
Week Three:
| 1/9/2022 | Bri’s Book Nook | Review |
| 1/10/2022 | @enjoyingbooksagain | Review |
| 1/11/2022 | Sometimes Leelynn Reads | Review |
| 1/12/2022 | Locks, Hooks and Books | Review |
| 1/13/2022 | @moonlight_rendezvous | Review |
| 1/14/2022 | @bookisheclectic | Review |
| 1/15/2022 | Lexijava_Bookish | Review |
Week Four:
| 1/16/2022 | @jypsylynn | Review |
| 1/17/2022 | History From A Woman’s Perspective | Review |
| 1/18/2022 | The Momma Spot | Review |
| 1/19/2022 | thecaffeinated.reader | Review |
| 1/20/2022 | onemused | Review |
| 1/21/2022 | Lifestyle of Me | Review |
| 1/22/2022 | Stuck in the Stacks | Review |
Week Five:
| 1/23/2022 | A Bookish Dream | Review |
| 1/24/2022 | @drewsim12 | Review |
| 1/25/2022 | coffeebooksandmascara | Review |
| 1/26/2022 | Fire and Ice | Review |
| 1/27/2022 | Books a Plenty Book Reviews | Review |
| 1/28/2022 | @abackwardsstory | Review |
| 1/29/2022 | BookBriefs | Review |
Week Six:
| 1/30/2022 | Momfluenster | IG Post |
| 1/31/2022 | Popthebutterfly Reads | Review |
