The Familiar: A Novel

I've read most of Ms. Bardugo's books and I've enjoyed all of them. She knows how to write and weave a good story.

I felt this book diverged a little from her usual, seeing as she gave it a historical background, that being the reign of the Catholic Monarchs and the Spanish inquisition. She did a great job inserting her fantasy world into the real world.

She mentioned that her ancestors had fled or were exiled from Spain at this time, and I can fully relate, as I too had ancestors who were driven out of Spain because they weren't Catholics, as I'm sure is the case of thousands others.

Anyway, excellent book, I wholeheartedly recommend.

𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂: Luzia is a scullion in a lowly, unfashionable house in 16th century Madrid. Accustomed to misery and drudgery, she sings little magic proverbs to make her life a tiny bit easier—phrases to unburn bread, to fix a tear in a skirt, to multiply one egg into two. When her mistress gets a whiff of Luzia’s magical talents, she sees Luzia’s gifts as a ticket to higher social status and forces Luzia to perform for her guests.

When word of Luzia’s little miracles circulate Madrid, Don Víctor de Paredes becomes Luzia’s patron, outfitting her in lavish gowns and placing her under the tutelage of his mysterious servant, Santángel. Known as El Alacrán, The Scorpion, Santángel is said to have made a deal with the Devil himself.

They prepare Luzia to enter a magical competition where the victor will be the King’s holy champion. But in the eyes of The Inquisition, there is a fine line between miracles and witchcraft, and Luzia’s secret Jewish heritage and the source of her power could mean her death.

𝓣𝓻𝓸𝓹𝓮𝓼: ✨Historical Fantasy ✨Magic Competition ✨Forbidden Romance ✨Politics

𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀: The characters in this book were so real and raw, and the setting was so vibrant and a character in itself. I loved the Spanish and amalgamations of other languages and cultures layered in. Luzia’s constant fear of The Inquisition—I think I was nervous for half the book—and her desperation and longing for better circumstances was palpable. It was also interesting to see Luzia discover who she is, instead of who she’s supposed to be. The moments of romance, happiness, and true human connection made my heart ache.

There were many twists and turns, and I had no idea how this was going to end, but there was masterful foreshadowing throughout. It was beautifully written. 🖤

𝓠𝓾𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓼: Language creates possibility. Sometimes by being used. Sometimes by being kept secret.

“Do you know any real magic? Grand magic? The kind in stories?”

He took her hand, pressed his lips to her knuckles, then he rested their clasped palms against his heart. “Only this,” he said as morning drew near. “Only this.”

I just finished The Familiar today and loved it. The story is gorgeous, with lush settings, sumptuous descriptions of clothing and intelligent characters who are passionate. Bardugo takes her characters and places them in Spain in the late 16th century along with actual people such as the prophetic dreamer Lucrecia de Leon and King Phillip of Spain, whose navy armada was defeated by Queen Elizabeth I. I loved the magic, which Leigh connected with actual illusionary acts of people in that century. A beautiful love story takes place as well. That all being said, I was startled out of the flow of reading when the author inserts the f word for no reason. I really doubt that the people at the time used that kind of language. Is the use of foul language for contemporary readers or for the publishers? It interrupts the flow of words on the page. Otherwise, loved the book.

I was going to give this book a 3 because the writing style is so slow but the story and ending are so good that I had to give it a 4. It took a good 100 pages for the story to get going and for me to really start to like the female lead who in the end I liked more than most female leads I've read. Luiza Cotado was a great character. I enjoyed the slow romance too. Really it's a great story, it just feels slow going for a while.

Victor is the villain you will LOVE to HATE.

I promise you.

Because this book is still so new, I don't want to give any spoilers in this review. Let me state that the jacket-flap copy gives a good synopsis of the story of our main character Luzia using her magic to attempt to improve her station is good...and oversimplified. The idea of Luzia using her lyrics/refrains to augment her magic is wonderful. The concept of language's importance is threaded nicely through this book and I DIG THAT. (I went into that a bit in my review on my booktube channel...I just found it important and lovely that Leigh Bardugo had these random mentions of language and its vital, freaking importance to absolute life and magic...just brilliant. Example: "Because it [Castilian] is a language that spends its power in command and conquest. But you were wrong when you said you didn't need the words. You do need them. Just as God did when He set thos whole miserable clockwork running. Language creates possibility. Sometimes by being used. Sometimes by being kept secret..."--pg78-79)

Let me know if you got Hunger Games vibes by the time you get to page 97! Of course, I'm not drawing a total parallel to the Hunger Games, but the story takes Luzia and three other persons whom we believe can perform little miracles/magics to a tournament that sort of pits them against one another to be chosen to "work" for the king. It puts Luzia's story in the suspense category for me at times.

There is some spice in the book, but it's "cleanly" handled and not overdone. It's easy to stay in the story despite the unnecessary sexy times.

Now. The villain. I didn't get emotionally invested in any of the characters except Victor; I stayed in the book for the story and to see "okay, how will this end." But I truly despised Victor. I wanted to jump into the book and murder him. I wanted to tie him to the stake and set it on fire. Myself. Me. I wanted to set him on fire. Kudos to Leigh Bardugo for creating such a despicable, fabulously hate-able villain!

4.25⭐️ 1🌶

The Familiar showcases Leigh Bardugo's exquisite writing, world-setting, and character development. While the first 1/3 of the book was a bit slow-moving, what seem to be innocuous events unravel, resulting in dangerous turns of events for Luzia and the entire household she serves. Readers are brought on a journey of keeping secrets, fighting the horrific Inquisition, finding love and friendship, honoring one's identity and heritage, and holding onto one's power.

I loved every character in this story. Everyone has specific complexities; fears, backstories, and motivations. Everyone is connected, every event has an impact and ripple effect throughout the story. It was intriguing and exciting to read through their various points of view. Especially for Hualit and Luzia, understanding just how much they've lost and stand to lose, should they take a single misstep.

The romance in this book builds slowly, naturally flowing between Luzia and Santángel as their forced proximity shines light on their truest selves. They're each something more than mortal, but their connection couldn't have felt more human in its sincerity. Love love love.

The Familiar is a standalone historical fantasy for when you're looking for something with depth, high stakes, magic, and a bit of romance.

Marvelous! There is a lull in the middle but then it picks back up again. LB’s writing style suits a historical fiction so well. I was impressed by how grounded the novel is written. It seems a lot of YA authors can’t write adult fiction well, it just comes across as YA with more adult themes. But LB crosses genres spectacularly.

I usually avoid all fantasy books with modern religions but this was well done and woven through with magic (and orange blossoms).

I would have liked to learn more about Luzia’s magic and to see her use it more often.

Luzia is a servant in the time of the Spanish Inquisition. She can perform magic, and she is Jewish. These are both dangerous things during this time period in The Familiar, a historical fiction, fantasy book. Seeking a better life, Luzia lets people witness her abilities, and soon she is in a competition for performing miracles. However, Luzia is walking a fine line between miracle worker and heretic.

This is another book that I wanted to love, but it was just meh. It's the first book by Leigh Bardugo that I didn't love. The whole concept sounded very interesting, and I was intrigued for a while. However, part way through the competition, I started to lose interest. The writing was good, so maybe it was just too much historical fiction and not enough fantasy. It's a 3 star for me.