Neverthorn was a fun ride with a lot of heart and some really intriguing setup for the rest of the series.

The worldbuilding was one of the highlights for me - Neverthorn Academy and the larger magical system had real depth, with layers of magical politics, history, and secrets that kept me curious the whole way through. There’s definitely more to explore in future books, and I’ll be picking them up to get those answers.

Harlow, our magic school dropout and reluctant Chosen One, was a refreshing change of pace as a nearly-30 heroine. I loved seeing an older female lead in a genre that’s often packed with teens. That said, there were times when her behaviour felt more high school than adult, and it occasionally pulled me out of the story. Still, I appreciated that she wasn’t perfect and had a lot of growth to work through.

Her bond with Opie and the rest of the classmates gave the book a solid found family vibe that I really enjoyed. And of course, Bandit the raccoon completely stole the show - funny, chaotic, and just plain adorable.

A couple things didn’t quite hit for me:
- The swearing ban throughout the book was more distracting than charming. It felt like it was trying to be quirky but instead just made me wonder who the target audience was.
- Minimal romance, which isn’t a bad thing, but there were certain scenes that were super anticlimactic and the vibes definitely hinted at some slow-burn or potential love triangle in future instalments - so I’m holding out hope.

All in all, this was a promising start to a new fantasy series with strong magic academy and dark academia vibes. It wasn’t perfect, but it was entertaining, mysterious, and left me wanting more - especially answers to some of the big plot questions still lingering.

Will I be reading the sequel? 100% yes.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the ARC 🖤

I loved Neverthorn….this is book 1 in the Of Quirks and Curses series.

I had only read two chapters before I jumped to Waterstones and pre ordered their special edition.

Harlow Daygon had previously attended Neverthorn as a 16 year old but left suddenly after the death of her mother and being hurt by Typhon Moreno.

Since leaving Neverthorn she has lived as a thief and learned to create and use her own runes, which she couldn’t master while at Neverthorn.

Now she is 29 and being forced to re-enrol by Typhon after being told they had already enrolled her sister Ophelia (Opie), who was abandoned by her family for not having magic. If she enrols and helps them defeat Nocta, they will ensure Opie is safe.

I love the Harry Potter vibes, with how they are placed into the different houses.

We have Witches, Wizards, Dims (non magical humans) and one of my favourite characters, Bandit, a talking raccoon.

After the ending, I can’t wait for book 2.

I have seen so many mixed reviews from ARC readers on this one but I loved it. I was pretty hooked form the start and didn’t want to put it down as I needed to know what was going on.

Returning to Neverthorn was not an option for Harlow, until the person she loved the very most signed her contract, binding her to the place that Harlow did everything to keep her away from!

I loved the way that this instantly drew you in to thinking about so many things! I asked myself so many questions (Why did she leave? Why does she not want to return? What was so bad about it?). This was a chaotic story with so many elements that you needed to really set the scene of what was happening. There was so much tension between Harlow and Typhon that I needed the ‘slow burn’ to politely disappear 😂.

When I thought I’d made my mind up about Typhon, something happened to question that.

I loved that Harlow found a family and solid group of friends upon her return to Neverthorn, she deserves some sort of happiness o help her endure the day to day.

I cannot wait for the next one in the series! This definitely because a favourite fantasy read for me.

It gives off fourth wing / Harry Potter type vibes so if you enjoyed them then this is perfect for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Michael Joseph for a copy of this ARC. I thoroughly enjoyed this book - I liked the magic system, the camaraderie between characters and the romance development. It reminded me a lot of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts so you’ll probably enjoy this if you liked them. Looking forward to the sequel!

This started off really well, I was hooked early on and really interested to see where this went.
However less than halfway through I was forcing myself to get through this purely because I thought it would pick back up.

I would say this is a very YA book so maybe if that’s your preference you may enjoy it more, however for me I can’t say I massively enjoyed this.

Really enjoyed this one, I enjoyed Harlows character development and the subplot of the romance aswell.
Magic system
World building
Great characters
Faced paced book xx
Great cliff hanger- I'm looking forward to the next one.
Wasn't the best written book I've read but it is a good time.

Unbelievable this was my first Shannon Meyer book, but it will definitely not be the last.

I really enjoyed this story. I was hooked from the beginning. The world building and magic systems were amazing. This was a fast paced adventure with twists you do wont see coming.

I loved Harlow, as an older FMC with so much sass she was so easy to connect with and route for. The dynamic of her having to go back to school as an adult was a fun twist. As for the romance it is a real slowwww burn with a possible love triangle? Interested to see how that develops in the next book! I would highly recommend this book.

Thank you to @michaeljbooks & @netgalley for a copy of the E-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Harry Potter meets dark academia, with romance, tension and plenty of twists & turns. Oh and a raccoon that’ll be your favourite character - seriously, I love him.

Harlow is almost 30 year old and forced to return to the school she abandoned as a teen because it was too traumatic. Forced back into uniform and classes, where her old tormentors are her new teachers and told she’s needed to stop evil and save the world.

I loved Harlow’s character development throughout this - as the story unfurled she developed so much. I really liked her character, strong and protective of the ones she cares about - putting them above all else. She was so likeable as well!!

The romance subplot was also a highlight. The tension she has with Typhon and how they interact in this book was so good!! The way he tries to balance being her teacher and his warring feelings - they’re just so complicated. I also liked the mystery of Liam - I hope his character is explored more in the next book.

My favourite is element of the book was the found family with her new housemates. I love how their friendship developed throughout the book and how they became a team. I cannot wait to see how this progresses in the next instalment.

Such a cliffhanger of an ending - this will keep me up at night and I need the next book immediately.

ARC copy provided by Michael Joseph & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Harlow & Typhon
Enemies to lovers
Magical school
Found Family
Chosen One

This book is so good!!!

Harlow is a 29 year old magic school drop out, living in a non magic world. Until shes found by Typhon, her old classmate, and forced to return back to magic school in order to complete her training!

This book is giving Harry Potter vibes for sure, and I'm so here for it!!

I love all of the mystery in this one and uncovering new things!!

I do wish we had more from the romance side in this, but it's just the first book so we've got time for that in the later books!

I need book 2 now!!!

Neverthorn was a real mixed bag: promising setup, wholesome found-family moments, but the pacing issues were hard to ignore. It starts slow and stagnant, with early chapters dragging on while keeping the world-building vague and mysterious. The biggest issue, though, is that well past the halfway point, it still feels like nothing substantial has happened. The plot takes a backseat to relationships and character bonding in a way that feels detached from the main story (whatever the main story is, since the central plot remains a mystery for far too long).
While the friendships have charm and plenty of wholesome moments, they lack the kind of integration you’d typically see in a plot-driven fantasy. It’s as if we’re constantly pausing the story to check in on these side dynamics.
Despite the MC being 29 and having spent years in the “non-magical” world, her backstory feels largely disconnected, as if nothing emotionally meaningful happened in all that time. When she returns, it’s like she’s still frozen in her teenage heartbreak era.
To its credit, the book does redeem itself near the end. The pacing finally picks up, and for a brief moment, we get a glimpse of what this book could have been all along. That sudden late development was enough to bump my rating up to 3 stars, but it’s also a shame, because if I’d given up earlier, I never would’ve seen it. I’m still not quite sure how I feel, somewhere between intrigued and frustrated? The ending left me wanting more, but also wondering why everything leading up to it felt like extended setup, rather than a complete and fulfilling story in itself.

Overall, Neverthorn had real potential, but its slow pacing and lack of resolution made it feel more like a prologue than a complete story.

- ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) provided by NetGalley -

The setting and premise of this book had intrigued me - a band of magical misfits and a dropout being recalled to magic school as a last-ditch resort to fulfill a prophecy and save the world, but not all may be as it appears...

In practice though, the pacing of this story really let me down, with things slowing to a crawl and the character development and plot moving independently from each other, rather than in tandem, meaning large chunks of the story would pass by with little being revealed to the reader. The pacing was salvaged in the last quarter, with some nice character moments, intrigue, adventure and action, which did somewhat save the book for me.

I was so excited to read this book; however, the main thing that let it down was the writing execution. I couldn't wrap my head around it, and while the plot had all the elements to deliver, it unfortunately did not.

3.75 stars

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the early copy of this book. I did like the concept of this book, it had potential but it wasn't my type of book.

Neverthorn was an absolutely spellbinding read that had me hooked from the very first page! Harlow’s cynicism was a joy to read – watching her navigate new (and old) relationships with an air of suspicion made uncovering people’s true intentions so much fun. The found family was beautiful, and I had a great time watching them slowly learn to trust each other and work together. I also loved the tension between Harlow and Typhon, it had me literally kicking my feet and giggling at times! I cannot wait for book two!

4.5 Stars

I was hooked from the very first chapter. The magic system is refreshingly easy to understand and cleverly woven into a real-world setting—think everyday life meets magical chaos. It’s definitely a bit odd seeing someone nearly thirty heading back to school… but let’s be honest, I’d go back too if someone was offering spell lessons.

The story has major Hunger Games meets Triwizard Tournament vibes, and I was so here for it. It’s packed with danger, trials, and a sense of unpredictability that kept me turning the pages. There are loads of interwoven subplots—some clearer than others—and at times it felt chaotic not knowing where everything was going… but somehow, by the end, it all pulls together.

Special shoutout to the swearing rune—its impact on the story had me giggling out loud more than once. Such a brilliant and unexpected detail.

It’s also very much a slowburn (romance readers, take note), and while there’s tension, things move slowly. And I mean slowly. But that ending? Completely unexpected and left me desperate for book two.

Also… I want a Bandit. And I might be Team Typhon.

If you’re after something twisty, magical, and a little chaotic—but in a way that makes sense by the end—this is absolutely worth the read.

This was a great read. Imagine having to go back to a school you left when you were a teenager as an adult. Your bully is your teacher and the guy that tried to kill you in school is also a teacher and hot.

The magic system is unique, the big evil is curious and layered and the school setting is excellent. Usually fantasy academia is young characters to having adults as the students in the same setting was refreshing and funny at times.

It’s a mix of the real world and the fantasy world but if you dont like that it doesn’t infringe too much on the other.

The story is well written, it’s all single point of view and it reveals histories and expands on the story at all the right bits that keep you reading well into the night.

I don’t know if it this is a trilogy or not but it leads onto the next book excellently without it being a massive cliffhanger which is great.

4 stars because I feel like it can’t decide if it’s YA or adult, I think it would have been better as an adult book.

This book had so much potential, which makes it even more disappointing.

The first third had me hooked and I was really excited for a high-energy magical story. Sadly, it then fell victim to such slow pacing that every page became a struggle.

Nothing seemed to happen for such a long time. Then loads happened but the end still fell flat.

Harlow could have been a great character but I could not believe that she was meant to be 29. For someone who apparently had to look after herself from the age of 16, she was so immature it really annoyed me.

It looked liked we'd get a brooding romance or a love triangle but neither of those came to fruition. Never mind that the main romance focus didn't really make sense and the lack of character development had the one vaguely spicy moment falling flat.

This is my most disappointing read of the year. I wanted to love it but instead I ended up not wanting to pick it up while wishing I could just get to the end quickly.

Oohhh. Give me book 2 now!!!

I was hooked from page one.

This is very much like an adult Harry Potter, but with more badassery.

My favourite bit = the magic that took away the ability to swear (haha, genius) I chuckled all through the book. I might have to start saying sheet now.

I was so invested in this, and am rooting big time for House Phoenix. Where is Zeed though? He'd better be okay, or I won't be.

Honestly, this was a good time read. Highly recommend.

Fast paced - yes, definitely, but in some places too fast to really catch everything that was going on.
I found the main characters annoying for most of the book to the point I was close to DNFing in a few places, however I did make it to the end and there is one he** of a cliffhanger - but will I read the next one, I dont know

This truely is a five star read. The world building is amazing, the characters capture you. It is fast paced with twists you do not see coming. I would highly recommend this book.