I thought it started off pretty rough, but by midway I was hooked and now that I’m done I feel desperate for a sequel.

The last 100 pages of this were like a hug that I didn't want to end.

I tried to read this a few years ago because one of my friends loved it and I absolutely hated it. Could not finish it. The scenes did not flow into each other well, leaving it feeling disjointed and confusing. It was so abrupt that I found it hard to follow. The pacing felt really off, like there would be excessively long dialogues where nothing happened and it wasn't terribly interesting, then more action-heavy scenes would be brief and inconsequential. I honestly don't even know if the plot was any good because I found the writing so off-putting.

A solid book, and a pretty light read. I think fantasy/satire aren't quite the correct genres (even though it is set in a fantasy world, and the narration is very snarky). I'd call it a coming of age story exploring themes like

Spoiler

parental abandonment/neglect, friendships and relationships, gender dynamics and, funnily enough, being an Outsider

. Elliot's a nuisance and a grump of a protagonist, but he's relatable in his own way and matures over the 4 years the book is set. I would have adored this book a couple years ago, but I still enjoyed it now.

Loved terrible, snarky Elliot from the moment I met him. And though I knew (or hoped?) what the end game was, it was still delightfully fun—albeit a tad anxiety-inducing—to get there.

this book was not really what I expected. I think I expected it to be more fantasy than what it was. This story was basically just a regular YA fiction novel with a somewhat stereotypical fantasy land thrown in. Which was mildly disappointing, however, my love for Elliot, the main character, really countered any negatives I felt about this book. This character has more personality than any YA character I have ever read and I loved him for it. He is annoying and rude and snarky and slightly over confident and has no respect for authority figures and he is very clearly heavily flawed and I love him to pieces for it. This book had me smiling and laughing all the time (which is rare for me when it comes to reading) and it is solely because of Elliot. I also loved seeing the very loud and clear statement this author made about misogyny not just in real life but in fantasy novels too. The reversed rolls of men and women in the elven community was very a prevalent topic throughout the entire book and I loved it. I am a staunch feminist and this book had even me questioning my own subconscious biases regarding the rolls of men and women. The way women are written in fantasy novels has been an issue for many years and it is only in the last few years that new authors have been noticing this and writing stories that change this narrative. I think anyone who wants to write fantasy novels, especially male authors, should all read this book first before publishing anything.

I found the voice and writing style hard to get into at first but before the end of Elliot's thirteenth year, I was so invested in the characters and their relationships that I couldn't put this book down. I love Elliot, he's so in-your-face and not afraid to hurt feelings and just be who he is. Serene is the perfect warrior elf maiden and I loved every second of her comments on the virtue of young men. Luke is literally so precious to me, I love a good golden boy with hidden depths. The side characters are all equally delightful. The book is a great commentary on a lot of the typical young hero destined to save the world books and the fantasy genre in general. There were so many moments where I actually laughed out loud. There's also really cute art at the beginning of each chapter/year that I loved.

"You know, you're kind of a dramatic person, Elliot," she said mildly.

"I am not! How dare you!"

"It's not a bad thing," Myra said, "but when a boy calls a girl the nightlight of his soul, other people might be forgiven for thinking he's being intentionally over the top."

Elliot Schafer, irritable resident of Earth, finds himself in a quasi-Medieval magic school. People are talking about warrior-training (UGH, says Elliot) and all of it looks a lot like child endangerment. BUT, there are elves. Specifically, there is Serene-Heart-in-the-Chaos-of-Battle, the Border Guard's first elven recruit, and Elliot falls in love at first sight. So he decides to stay despite the presence of musclehead types like that really annoying Luke Sunborn person.

Let me be clear. This is not an epic journey through the otherlands or a massive worldbuilding adventure with quests goals. This is a very personal, very emotional journey of HOW DO YOU DO RELATIONSHIPS starring Elliot Schafer, who is to conversations what machine guns are to knife-fights. Every other word out of his mouth is an insult and I am continuously amazed that people don't try to strangle him more than they actually do. Elliot is... SPIKY. He is so spiky. He is a hedgehog in human form. I love him so much that I sometimes stare at the ceiling and have feelings about Elliot trying to make sense of relationships. It's very teenage, and I usually hate that, but there's so much WANT and NEED and NEVERTHELESS YOU ARE MY FRIENDS that I am touched rather than annoyed.

The other two spokes of the trio are just as dear to me. Luke is a sweetheart of a Disney Princess who is nevertheless bound by the thought processes of his world and his life, and Serene is the most hilarious method of calling out the patriarchy that I have ever encountered. Her sincere confusion about all the sensitive human men killing people in the face and not doing manly things like embroidery never ceases to be a delight, and I'm continuously thrilled by the fact that Serene is the elven version of the too-cool-for-you Bad Boy with a Heart of Gold. Gender roles get lined up and shot at a lot, and I'm always a fan of that.

This collected and remastered version of the original The Turn of the Story features a few extra filler scenes, as well as Elliot-PoV version of Wings in the Morning, so you have new reading material even if you have the entirety of The Turn of the Story saved into your laptop like I do.

This is my favorite book so far this year. I will be buying it, and recommend it so highly.