First Impression Friday – Ruthless Magic

Welcome to another First Impression Friday. In case this is your first time, here’s the rundown:

• Based on this sampling of your current read, give a few impressions and predict what you’ll think by the end.
• Did you think you’d love and ended up hating it? Or did you think you’d hate it and wound up loving it? Or were you exactly right?
• Link back to Storeys of Stories so I can enjoy reading all the First Impression Fridays out there!

Now that the rules are out of the way, time to break them! I’m only breaking them a little, mainly due to a lack of reading time over the past week. Instead of the book I just started reading, I’m going to talk about a book of which I haven’t read a single word! Also, because of how quickly I decided I wanted to read it.

Most of us are familiar with NetGalley, right? If you’ve been living under a rock (or a George RR Martin book) it’s a website where book reviewers of all kinds can sign up and request digital ARCs. I overdosed on this site at the end of last year. Got approved for WAY more books than I thought I would, and I’m still trying to get out from under the pile. So I said no more digital ARCs until I’m done with all the current ones. Another rule broken…

NetGalley doesn’t just allow you to browse books, they also email you occasionally and say, “HEY! LOOK AT THIS BOOK! WANT TO READ IT?!?!?!”

I got one of these emails for a book called Ruthless Magic. Okay, fine. Decent title, I was intrigued, but not to dying to know more. Then, there’s this tagline in bold font: HARRY POTTER MEETS HUNGER GAMES! Okay, now I’m dying.

I didn’t read any more of that email. I was too busy clicking everything that looked like a download button, which resulted in several viruses, making a few agreements with Nigerian princes, voting on a survey claiming I heard “Yanni”, and a request for the book. And I’m happy to say I was promptly approved.

My prediction: No idea. I’m REALLY looking forward to it, though. Should be starting in the next day or so.

Fun fact about this post: I STILL haven’t read what the book is about. Harry Potter meets Hunger Games. All I needed to hear