ARC Review Book Review

ARC Book Review | Fable by Adrienne Young

Title: Fable
Author: Adrienne Young 
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Published On: September 1, 2020
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: ebook
Pages: 368

Synopsis:

Welcome to a world made dangerous by the sea and by those who wish to profit from it. Where a young girl must find her place and her family while trying to survive in a world built for men.

As the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home seventeen-year-old Fable has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father.

But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him and Fable soon finds that West isn’t who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they’re going to stay alive. 

My thoughts

(Spoiler free)

Drenching with adventure on the high seas, Fable is layered with mysteries that the reader will have to wait to uncover—but won’t mind being patient. It’s the journey that makes this story so rewarding.

“Like light cast over the morning water, it became new. Every moment that lay ahead, like an uncharted sea.”

Adrienne Young, Fable

I haven’t had much luck with the last few young adult fantasy releases I’ve read by new-to-me authors. I was even starting to think maybe I’d grown beyond young adult fantasy. But within a few paragraphs of Fable, I knew I’d finally found the young adult fantasy I’d been searching for. This is my first book by Adrienne Young, and it won’t be my last. I loved every word and every character. Especially our heroine, Fable. She’s wily—fully capable of taking care of herself—but yearning for a place in her world, leaving her heart open even after life has been so cruel to her, which makes her rather unique among the heroines of the genre.

I picked up Fable coming down from the high of a major book hangover, so it took me longer than usual to commit. And while it did take me a few chapters to get all the characters straight and understand this new world, once I had it down, I didn’t want to stop reading. When I finished the book, I flipped back to the beginning so I could reread the first few chapters and what I hadn’t fully understood the first time around. 

Young does a splendid job of establishing the characters and the dangerous world they encompass so quickly and flawlessly. I slipped right into the story with ease, and with each new term, the author introduced things in a way that wasn’t telling but revealing, cohesive with the story. But she only revealed what was necessary, keeping a few secrets to be answered in the next book, Namesake, which has promptly shot up to the top of my TBR for 2021! And with such gorgeous covers, I’ll be picking up physical copies to enjoy on my shelves. 🙂

Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.

My Rating:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Indiebound | Bookshop

About the Author

Adrienne Young
Adrienne Young

Adrienne Young is a born and bred Texan turned California girl. She is a foodie with a deep love of history and travel and a shameless addiction to coffee. When she’s not writing, you can find her on her yoga mat, scouring antique fairs for old books, sipping wine over long dinners, or disappearing into her favorite art museums. She lives with her documentary filmmaker husband and their four little wildlings beneath the West Coast sun.

A Song For A Book

On Bookstagram I created a hashtag for when I include a song that reminds me of the book I’m sharing, #ASongForABook, I thought I’d make it a regular feature on my reviews, too.

I was happy to discover Adrienne Young has a playlist for both books in the Fable Duology available on Spotify. I’ve chosen to spotlight “Cry No More” by Vaults. It has the perfect sound for Fable. I’ll also include the full Spotify Playlist below.

In heavy air I feel it creep
And our eyes can’t meet
A poison word that you chose
And the distance grows

View this post on Instagram

? Wow. I finished FABLE by @adrienneyoungbooks today and I can’t stop thinking about it. It was perfect to me. And I don’t say that about many YA Fantasy books. Now I desperately need NAMESAKE! ? My full review will be up on my blog asap. (Link in my bio) Thanks to the publisher @wednesdaybooks and @netgalley for the early review copy! ❤️ • Here’s the synopsis from Goodreads: As the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home seventeen-year-old Fable has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father. But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him and Fable soon finds that West isn't who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they're going to stay alive. • #fable #newbook #currentlyreading #ya #fantasy #newfaveauthor #bookblogger #bookreview

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Have you read Fable? Did you add it to your tbr? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Wandering!

8 thoughts on “ARC Book Review | Fable by Adrienne Young”

  1. I’m so thrilled that you loved this book! I haven’t read a lot of YA fantasy the past couple of years, but something about Fable sounds so charming. I have a copy pre-ordered, and I can’t wait to read it! Lovely review, Dedra! 🙂

  2. I love your A Song For A Book! So unique. 😀 And it has me all the more curious. I’ve got this ARC, but I know nothing about it really other than it was written by Adrienne Young, which was enough for me. Now you’ve got me so eager to read it! This sounds fantastic, and I can’t wait!

  3. This was my first book by AY as well and I’m definitely a fan! I totally agree with everything you said here. It took a while to get into but then when I did, I didn’t want to put it down for a second! Loved the world building and characters. I had no idea she had a playlist but I’m listening to it now and I’m digging it ? Cry No More is perfect for it! Fab review!

    1. It was so good, right?? Yes! I didn’t discover the playlist until I was writing my post. I wish I would have looked for it before I started reading. It’s always such a fun way to discover new music. Crossing my fingers we get ARCs of Namesake! 😉

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