My Honest Quicksilver Book Review

I’m not as big a fan of the fantasy romance subgenre as I am of epic and/or dark academia, but now and then I like to read something a little more light-hearted and fun with some swoon-worthy romance. I heard that Quicksilver by Callie Hart was one such fantasy book, and seeing as it is availble on Kindle Unlimited, it seemed like a good time to pick it up!

Did it live up to the hype? Well, it depends on what you’re looking for in a book. Read on for my honest Quicksilver book review.

Book Overview

3.5 Stars

Book one in the Fae & Alchemy series

Subgenre – Adult Romantasy

Read if you like

• Fae romance

• SJM-style stories

• Fiesty FMCs

Pass if you don’t like

• Some spice (I would give it 2/5 chili peppers)

• Tropes and characters that are heavily ACOTAR-inspired

• Predictability

My Review

Judging a Book by its Cover

I am starting a new segment in my reviews where I give my first impressions before reading it. Because even though the adage is that we should never judge a book by its cover, let’s be honest, we all do it. And the cover is an important part of shelf-aesthetic, so even though it has nothing to do with the author (in fact, I heard that authors sometimes get very little say as to the cover for traditionally published books), it is worthy of being discussed.

And in this case, the cover almost made me want to not read it. It’s not that the artwork is bad – the artist is obviously very talented.

But the broody fae warrior crying silver while delicate purple butterflies land on him? It is a bit cringy. Not to mention I don’t think there is a single scene in the book where buddy is crying silver. The character does have Quicksilver in one eye but that’s not the same thing. I’m not a huge fan of character art for covers in the first place, but I feel like I would be embarrassed to be caught reading this in public.

Fortunately, I didn’t read it in public, I read it at home on my Kindle.

But still.

Plot

Saeris Fane has never had it easy, living in the slums of a city ruled by a tyrannical undying Queen, where water is scarce and prospects for the future are bleak. When she and her brother get caught picking the wrong pocket, Saeris is fairly certain her life is over.

But as she’s fighting for her life, she accidentally opens a gateway between worlds, she is swept away to the land of the fae by Death incarnate.

Otherwise known as Kingfisher, a broody fae warrior with a sketchy past and salty attitude. Saeris learns she has strange powers and is an Alchemist, one with the rare ability to manipulate Quicksilver metals. It turns out, this skill is vital to the survival of the fae against a centuries long conflict with the vampire king and his army of undead zombie vampires.

A bargain is struck, and adventure and romance ensue.

It’s an engaging story with an interesting new take on fae and vampires and enough political intrigue that the story stands on its own without having to lean too heavily on the romance aspect. However, if you have read ACOTAR/Throne of Glass, you will come across terms that sound familiar such as:

• Handsome fae warrior “shadow daddy” who is as old as time as the love interest (*cough* Rhysand! *cough*)

• Adorable animal sidekicks

• Fated mates

• Fae bargains resulting in forced proximity

Honestly some of these tropes are a little tired for me, particularly the male love interest being over a thousand years old. But at least Saeris is 24 instead of 19. (Side note, we need more fantasy books where the FMC is 30+!)

There were a couple of things I was not expecting but overall the story played out fairly predictably.

So if you’re looking for something that’s going to keep you guessing or slap you in the face with a plot twist, this book is not that.

World-Building

Hart does a good job building both Saeris’s and Kingfisher’s worlds – one being a barren desert, the other being a kingdom among the frozen mountains. The worlds feel vast and you can tell Hart is setting up for future books.

The unique magic system in this book is known as Alchemy. It’s an interesting concept where those with Alchemy magic – known as Alchemists – can manipulate Quicksilver metals and turn them into magical items, like magical relics and weapons. The Quicksilver appears to be sentient, which makes manipulating it more difficult than simply having the skill. I liked that Fane had to negotiate with it to get it to turn into what she was trying to forge.

Characters

The main characters in this book are pretty fun. I always enjoy the dynamic of a feisty FMC paired with a broody, shadow-powered warrior. If you are an ACOTAR fan, then Kingfisher will definitely remind you of Rhysand, with his shadow magic and mysterious motives. Fisher is a bit grumpier though, and the dynamic between him and Saeris reminds me more of Nesta and Cassian.

It’s not as much of a slow-burn as it could have been, but the chemistry between the characters is strong, with enough dry humor banter

There are a few other memorable characters, like Carrion Swift, the slum smuggler with a sarcastic attitude, and Ren, Fisher’s longtime friend and fellow fae warrior. There is definitely more to Carrion’s story then we get to see in this book, and I would be surprised if he is much more involved in

Writing Style

Callie Hart is a strong writer, with a flowing, easy-to-follow style that lets you get wrapped up in the story. That said, there is a higher-than-average incidence of swearing to the point of being distracting. The story is also told in from a single POV in first-person narrative, which is not my favorite, but it is done well without coming off as too YA.

Hart does a great job keeping the pace hopping, and 600+ pages flew by extremely quickly! There are a couple scenes near the beginning that are a bit slow (the library scenes, in particular, could probably have used tighter editing) but other than that it’s very fast-paced. She also proves she’s as strong at writing action as she is romance, which is refreshing.

Audio Book vs Kindle Unlimited

I didn’t get the audible audio book, but I thought it worth mentioning here because I have heard a lot of people prefer it to the print version, particularly because of the duet narration between Saeris and Kingfisher. For me it just made more sense to get the ebook since it’s on Kindle Unlimited.

Final Thoughts and Rating

Overall, my review of Quicksilver amounts to 3.5 stars.

Will I be continuing this series? True to my honest book review, I am compelled to say that I am on the fence. It was thoroughly entertaining, I wouldn’t say it’s one of my favorite fantasy reads of the year. It doesn’t really bring anything new or original to the romantasy genre. Then again, many fantasy series get much better after the first book. (Just look at ACOTAR!)

So in truth, I haven’t committed either way.

But if you’re in the mood for a fae romance with ACOTAR vibes, you will most certainly find this to be a fun read.

FAQ