I was so lucky to be able to beta read this and its taken me ages to write this review but that has nothing to do with the magic of this book and everything to do with my slow brain. 

Okay, where do I even start. Coup is a magical, dark, heartbreaking, and decedent start to a series. It's filled with magic that isn't easily put in a box or explained. It's got characters with pasts and complicated relationships. Characters that have made mistakes, hurt people, and who are so brilliantly real that I loved them for all their faults. This book was not what I expected. Honestly I don't expect anything going into books anymore. I try to go in blind, but this one hit me like a truck in the best ways. The relationship between Ethaniel, Calix, and Aubrey was filled with so much tension and yearning. It was filled with characters that made mistakes and set things in motion for reasons you could see and understand even if you wanted to smack them in the process. 

I love how we learn more about all the characters pasts as the plot unfold. It makes for a plot I couldn't predict. Also the weaving of cunning folk into the magic was so interesting and unique. I can't say enough how much I loved the magic. I adore magic that isn't fully understood or explained. There's always a bit of mystery to how the magic works and that makes me so intrigued. 

Needless to say this was a 5 star read for me. I was so invested in all the POV characters. I was rooting for the romance and feeling so many feelings for the characters as they navigated through everything. I am absolutely at the edge of my seat with that ending and I can't wait to read book 2 when it's ready. 

If you like sentient books, magic that has a cost, blooming relationships between three lovely and complex characters, and villains that are more like people with questionable morals and harmful ideals this is the book for you.