Shadows of Perl

SHADOWS OF PERL by J. Elle is the second House of Marionne book, and one I’ve personally been waiting to get my hands on! The story picks up after Quell has bound with her toushana, forbidden dark magic, and fled from Chateau Soleil. At the same time, Jordan, her ex-boyfriend, finds himself in a position that requires him to exterminate anyone like Quell, and he’s determined to do whatever it takes to protect magic and the sphere. To survive, Quell knows she must stay far away from Jordan. However, fate has other plans.

I still love this world so much! I’m so intrigued by each house and the people who run them, and I enjoyed getting a deeper glimpse into them with this book. I also can’t get enough of the Quell-Jordan relationship. I love when they’re together, even when they are enemies, and that’s evidenced by how much the pace of the book picks up as soon as they’re in each other’s orbit. Before that, the first third of the book is quite slow.

What would’ve helped jump into the story more is recalls from the first book so readers don’t get stuck in remembering what happened and shortening the beginning and the third POV. For instance, I love the twist with Nore, but I often found myself skimming through her section. That said, once we got further into the book, Elle hit her stride and the book took off. From there, I could not put the novel down. I had so much fun imagining the ending and am so excited for the next book.

Overall, I’d highly recommend SHADOWS OF PERL and the HOUSE OF MARIONNE series to anyone who has been craving a lush, imaginative world of magic and romance.