I'd go with 3.5 stars, but that's not an option...
I liked this, it was entertaining, and although the faeries were like faeries everywhere (well, everywhere meaning in every book of course), the consequences of their existence was original enough (if a little HP). I've never been a fan of faeries, but they didn't bother me too much here. Probably because the story is mainly about the humans with faerie blood, who fortunately do not lack empathy the way the faeries do.
The magic seems to have rules, but they were never that clear, which I thought was a pity. ( )

Solid, rich story (unsurprisingly, it's a Marie Brennan). Fascinating backstory leading to the current crisis - magic came back... Mid-twentieth century? Not sure. It was a hard shift, but in the now of the story the rules have been codified and systems set up to handle things - the protagonist is going to college to study divination, though her parents would prefer she follow them and study ceremonial magic. And then things start to shift, and the why of the original return of magic gets clarified... into a looming crisis. They do handle things stupidly a few times (jump in, feet-first, without consulting adults let alone experts), but that's accurate for college students. The book ends with... the crisis is happening, but they do have tools that will let them handle it. Probably. I need to read the next book.
There's also a prequel (Welcome to Welton), snippets showing how the main characters got to where they are at the beginning of this book - fun to read afterward, possibly useful before. ( )

I received this book as part of LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers Program (which doesn’t influence the outcome of my reviews), and it was the sole request I made that month, because I KNEW a book written by Marie Brennan would be a winner.

It’s difficult to talk about this book without spoiling something, because finding out the revelations as they unfold is half of the fun. While we start with the everyday worries of Kim, a divination major who is enrolling in classes that may be over her head, the conflict builds up to awesome proportions. As the year goes on, it becomes increasingly obvious that her friend Julian is in trouble, and she and their roommates are drawn into the chaos of trying to save him (and themselves…and the world).

Brennan’s writing is amazing, and the main characters are likable and interesting. What I think really stood out though, was how interesting the world was. It takes place in the near future, when people suddenly began to exhibit psychic gifts, and takes place at a university of psychic sciences. The descriptions of their classes in things like Ceremonial Magic and Psychokinesis are great, and the little details like the iron locks on the doors were fascinating, and I could have honestly read an entire novel just about those things. It can be hard, in fantasy to get a really nicely developed world like that, without feeling like you’ve been beaten over the head with all of this information, it works perfectly here.

The plot was really compelling, and I wasn’t able to put this book down until I finished. I really hope there’s a sequel to this in the future, because there is so much potential in this world and with these characters. ( )

The veils between worlds are thinning and soon the world as we know it and the Other world will be one once again. A suspense filled fantasy combined with a coming of age love story. This is an absolutely fantastic book! ( )

I am still ruminating over this. I may change my rating after I've had more time to think about it (higher, not lower). I am not sure that getting the illustrated edition was necessarily worth it, but for only a dollar more, it was interesting to have them. I've just contradicted myself, I know. It ended up a major cliffhanger, which I have a hard time with. On the other hand, the reason I read it was because I won a copy of Chains of Memory from Early Reviewers, so once I've read that, I may feel more resolved. I enjoyed the whole idea of the college of magic, the different schools, the idea of the wilders, and especially Julian being the only one there and the questions as to why. I liked Kim and the secondary characters of Julian and Kim's roommates, and Professor Grayson was also an interesting character. I'm looking forward to reading Chains of Memory ( )