Lilla Glass

The Unseen is a dark fantasy novel with an immersive world(s), authentic young characters dealing with their terrible pasts and some beautiful writing.
There's a lot to like about this action packed journey story with a 'found family' carrying us from character to conflict to crisis at a fast pace as the stakes build higher through the narrative.
What I liked:
The main characters are believable, full of secrets and not necessarily 'likeable' and I loved that about them. I particularly enjoyed show more Brannon's self-aware selfishness and self-preservation. Elwyn is strong and sassy and even though she's constantly avoiding risk, the times she veers away from that personality trait really turns the narrative in different directions.
There are some beautiful original ideas in the world-building and language used. I liked the 'lightsingers', the piskies being insectile and some gorgeous similes and metaphors - pumpkin hair? Smile like 'crepe paper' - so good.
Having read a lot of YA lately, I found reading The Unseen to be refreshingly transparent when it came to the dark side of the story. Although many of the characters are young or young at heart, I think the book definitely needs the trigger warning at the beginning because it’s an adult fantasy novel (also really nicely phrased btw) because there's a bucket load of blood, gore, violence, torture and plenty of deeply abusive natures among the dark creatures mentioned. Saying that, I think these things work within the story and the evil juxtaposes nicely with the transformation going on internally within our protagonists as they wake up to the life they've been living, the things they've believed to be true, the changes they need to make.
I liked the laughs and hint of comedy provided by the introduction of Aedyn when he's outside his own environment.
Things I struggled with:
I wasn't sure about the use of the verse epigraphs for a long way into the novel, but they grew on me!
I struggled to keep up with the huge amount of characters and the bouncing between worlds and dark and light. Possibly because I didn't read the book in a big binge but dipped in and out of it.
At times I wished I could stick with one character for longer. A map of the worlds or some kind of visual would have been BIG help, also a character list.
Unfortunately, as other reviewers have pointed out there are typos or omission of words in the second half of the book, but maybe the publisher can load an edited eBook and get rid of those?
Overall, I'd recommend The Unseen to readers seeking a quest story with overtly dark themes and a complex world, or those wanting determined characters that refuse to be cheesy or predictable. Thanks for an enjoyable read! show less

Months have passed since the mortal world and the Faerie realms combined. Elwyn is a former thief who is now working with the Seelie to protect mortals from the Unseelie who prey on them. Brannon, the former assassin, is also struggling to find his way in this new world. Prince of the Fae, Aedyn wants to redeem himself for the part he played in allowing the worlds to collide. Together, with a fae warrior and a mortal witch they embark on a mission in the land of the Unseelie in the hope of show more averting a war and further bloodshed.
I appreciated the world building in this book, which is the second of a series. I would recommend reading the first of the series before this one, as the story, and all the different characters, could be confusing. The author has a fresh take of the Fae and mortal and Fae worlds. The characters are interesting with complicated pasts and we learn more about them in this book. The characters also learn, grow and change in the course of the story. There are many characters and the author switches points of view from one character to another throughout the book. This slows down the action somewhat and can make the book a bit hard to get engrossed in. However, I did become invested in these characters and curious to know what was going to happen next. There is some rather grim, violent and scary content which might not be suitable for younger readers. A little gentle romance.
Recommended for readers who enjoy fantasy with elaborate world building and a different take on Faerie. show less

"The Unseen" by Lilla Glass introduces readers to Elwyn, a thief who values her remarkably unremarkable life, preferring to navigate the world unnoticed. However, her unremarkability is put to the test when she absconds to the tiny town of Amblewick in pursuit of a quiet existence. Glass weaves a tale that blends intrigue, magic, and unlikely alliances as Elwyn catches the attention of two feuding tricksters seeking the perfect pawn.

The narrative takes an unexpected turn when Elwyn finds show more herself entangled with a cutthroat assassin, a wayward prince, and a mysterious little girl. The diverse cast of characters, each with their own quirks and secrets, promises a riveting journey filled with both tension and camaraderie. Glass skillfully develops the dynamics among this ragtag group of individuals, setting the stage for a plot that could potentially save multiple worlds—assuming they don't end up killing each other first.

"The Unseen" invites readers into a world where the mundane meets the magical, and where Elwyn's unremarkable life takes a thrilling turn. Glass creates a narrative rich in character development and unexpected twists, making it a must-read for those who appreciate tales of unlikely alliances, mysterious forces, and the potential for saving worlds in the most unexpected ways. Get ready for an adventure where the unremarkable becomes extraordinary. show less

Not often that I say a book is too complex, especially for a YA fantasy. There was simply too much going on, too rushed and not enough detail given to the plot, backstory and explanations. I'm fairly sure the author had a complete mental picture of the story she was telling, but this didn't translate to the words on the page, and so the reader was frequently just left hanging as details were skipped through. It started out ok, but then got more and more rushed, rather than the possibly show more intended fast paced.

4 elven realms long since sundered from the mortal plane. Fae can travel between them but the mortal plane less so. Two mortals get entangled with the fae when they're chasing each other and a prince of Fae (introduced quite late to the storyline) decides to relieve his boredom by interfering. Tyhen tey all discover that a changeling fae means the end of the world as they know it, but before they can do anything about it they have to sit through a trial of the Prince for breaking some obscure fae law not previously mentioned.

Muddled. show less