And So The Ivy Grows by Mira Peregud3/22/2023 Review by Ezaan Kuai Between a corrupt government and a morally grey rebellion, which side would you pick? With a desire for change but a lack of experience, Amara tries her best to fight for her cause while discovering new things about herself and the world. From the many characters to the exploration of governance, And So, The Ivy Growsis an ambitious standalone fantasy novel that hits the mark. The bulk of the story focuses on Amara’s attempts to address the injustice in her society - initially with the Ivies, and then with the resistance. Overall, I find the story delightfully riveting. A lot is jam-packed into one book, and there is simply no dull moment. Particularly, I love the moment the Ivies fall apart - seeing a protagonist fail to such a great degree is refreshingly realistic, and her subsequent withdrawal is definitely something many can relate to. Additionally, the ethical dilemma of which side is better (the government vs the rebellion) is not black and white, with each side having its own merits. Everyone has different beliefs on how to best govern their society, and the opposing perspectives are thought-provoking. Admittedly, I do not like the twist of Nico being Amara’s twin sister. The twist feels ridiculous, though the author does her best to support it with breadcrumbs before the reveal. Albeit, I may just find the ‘long lost family’ troupe a little too overused.
Hands down my favourite part of the book has to be the characters. The book revolves around the Ivies - Amara, Cedric, Rue, and Jem. Throughout the book, Amara struggles to balance her conviction with her abilities. While she initially makes many mistakes, her subsequent growth and maturation is gratifying. Additionally, her complicated relationship with Nico is really compelling, though I would have loved it if there was more time to explore it. A nitpick I do have with Amara is that she seemingly forgets about her (adopted) parents partway through the book. Especially after the introduction where they get attacked by rebels, I thought that her parents would play a greater role than being mentioned a couple of times. Each of the other Ivies has their own diverse backstories that impact their actions and beliefs. Despite the lower page time, everyone still stands out in their own way. (Frankly, I did find Rue and Jem pretty forgettable during the first half of the book, but by the end that is not the case.) Together, all 4 of them make a lovable group that is easy to root for. Their unconditional love and support for each other is heartwarming, making their interactions delightful to read. Another minor nitpick I do have is how often the Ivies will reference something that occurs off-screen as if we already know about it, such as Rue and Amara’s habit of going to each other’s room when one of them cannot sleep. While nothing is inherently wrong with this, it happens commonly enough for me to notice. There is some romance in the book, albeit minor. I find both relationships charming but not exceptional. The book doesn’t give enough time for either relationship to really grow, making it hard to properly root for them. Talking about the romantic relationships, I have to applaud the author for her diverse representation. From the same-sex romances to the casual mentions of transgender characters, the author has done a great job of weaving representation seamlessly into the story. Moving on to the setting, I find Maiad and the Academy enchanting. It is in this aspect that the author’s penchant for writing truly gets showcased and brings the town to life. However, the magic system is left pretty vague, and new aspects of magic seemingly get introduced whenever convenient. In this regard, I wish more time had been given to world-building. Despite the minor issues I have with And So, The Ivy Grows, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. From the compelling characters to the enthralling plot, I absolutely will recommend this book to others. Review by Carmella Rocco “I am no child. I am the dandelion greens pushing through a crack in the concrete, the moss growing on the most desolate of mountain tops. I will stay, and I will grow.” (Peregud, 47) Amara- a 16-year-old halving elf and human- has lived upon a peaceful island for what she can remember of her life... to be truthful, she was adopted by a foster family and holds no memory of her childhood- her very past erased. But, after an acceptance letter arrives, she is whisked away from all she’s ever known to become a student at The Academy- a magical school in The Federation, her world's capital city. Yet, while her new life is filled with new friends and magic, she sees there is more to her world, a brokenness, a darkness. A feared and dangerous rebellion creaks at the edges, islands and their people lay burned and helpless, an uncaring and deaf council rules their world. With her friends' hands in hers, Amara must confront her world, confront her past, and, most importantly, confront her own bravery. The question is not, how do you restore a broken world? It is, how do you hold the courage to start? “And So, The Ivy Grows” is masterfully vivid, letting a magical world- both beautifully and tragically- bloom. We are introduced to a world of beauty: Schools of magic and connection carved into trees; Growth and blooming cityscapes; A cultural blending of Elves, Magicians, and more. But, it is this same world that is trying to hide the parts of itself it’s abandoned: The ashed, killed islands; The terrified silenced citizens its leaders have chosen to ignore; The horrid inequality and repression; The rebellion painted a monster but truly only fighting to be free. There is a dark, fearful to change part of the world, and there is a mystical fairytale aspect. The worldbuilding is intricate, but not too overloading; sprinkled onto the reader in just the right amount. It is able to show the beauty and the horror of the world. The fantasy of being accepted into a new place and exploring it, only to find another layer beneath its magical exterior- a rotting core. One that needs to be changed. It is Amara- a brave and beautiful yet insecure protagonist- who is able to see this need. Who, despite her fears and uncertainty of herself, is certain of what she needs to do. The plot sets forth: Amara- is willing to make the change necessary in the world. As is wanted and satisfyingly found for young adult fantasy readers, she finds she is not alone; her group- a small rebellion of four friends- is recognized by others who feel the injustice of the world.... Their voice begins to grow. It begins meaning not a matter of speaking up for what is right but being willing to give your life to do so. The main characters all contribute beautifully to this cause as they offer vastly different perspectives. Ideological, cultural, and status is painted extraordinarily due to the geography of small but plentiful islands filling the world- all coming together in The Academy. There is Amara, the leader with her words and amnesiac blank in her history; Cedric with his optimistic jokes and hidden past; Ruth with her wisdom, her caution; Jem with his kindness and reason. They are a group of four- only children- that choose to hold as much bravery as their world's leaders hold cruelty. Together, they are able to sort through what is right, and what can be forgiven; finding themselves and realizing how much more capable they truly are. This is what is truly shining in the novel; it is able to stand beautifully in the way it is an intricate commentary on bravery in a world grown cowardly over power. Disguised as an academic island fantasy, our novel follows our group of characters into the lion's den (or perhaps dragon's den, which would be a better metaphor. After all it is a fantasy)- and though they hold fear, they do not let it hold them back. They do not give up. At one point in the novel, it is Amara who says, “I’m seventeen. I’m an adopted, amnesiac halfling from a farming island in the Outer Ring. I have social anxiety and a god complex. Do you think anyone should put their trust in my ideas?” (Peregud, 140). That’s what’s special about the novel: through love, forgiveness and courage, these children, these friends, are able to stand together and stand taller than any adult authorities in their world; They are able to take the steps needed, one at a time, to bring good, real change to the world. To end, I would recommend “And So, The Ivy Grows” to lovers of fantasy and found family, ages 13+. For reference, the novel is similar to the “Keeper of the Lost Cities” series (by Shannon Messenger), and “Renegades” (by Marrisa Meyer) Review by Alina And So, The Ivy Grows is a fantasy novel by Mira Peregud about Amara, a 16 year-old halfling—half elf, half human—who leaves her small forgotten town for a prestigious academy that she has been accepted into. As she discovers layers of the government and the rebellion against it, she has to find her stance in this political chaos, all while ensuring her friends’ safety. I found this novel to be incredibly well done in terms of the writing. Beautiful and unique imagery full of metaphors and similes aids to paint a vivid picture of the surroundings and setting of the novel. A remarkable one of my favourites was “the ghost of a love that’s run out of hope” in a character’s eyes, just how beautiful is that! The feeling of fear is explored and described so, so well. Along with the setting, the worldbuilding of the novel is well thought out, and despite the brutal happenings, cosy. The countries and politics of the novel all reflect the real world in a consistent way. However, a weakness of worldbuilding for me was the concept of races as elves, humans and halflings. I found this to be unnecessary for the work, especially as the author did not show prominent instances that showed the differences in treatment of the races, except a few short discussion paragraphs. Peregud shows no distinct cultures belonging to the different groups, so the entire novel feels like it is about one race only. In the same way, the magic system is sloppy, and negatively stands out combined wit the great worldbuilding. Many of the concepts of magic felt superficial, and there was very little exploration of limitations and types of magic. However, a theme done well is the grey area that politics as a whole is. Peregud created a work that fully explores the confinements, but also the endless possibilities in it to create a good world for everyone. As Peregud herself defines fantasy, she created a world that provides escapism and whimsy. The writing, as mentioned, is good. However, I could not see many of the characters as vividly as the setting. Along with the main characters, many others are described as “a man”, “a young woman”, etc. I would have liked to see more of the people, as the narrative perspective is usually focused on one character’s POV, and people usually pay attention to others’ facial features. In a similar way, I found the narrative perspective that occasionally switches to side characters to disrupt the work’s flow, and therefore slow down the reading experience. It felt like a way of providing needed information through telling and not showing. When it comes to the characters, I found all of them likeable. They each had their strengths and flaws, and the characterisations worked well for the work’s perspective. Along with Amara, Cedric, Jem and Rue all grasped my positive attention. However, I had a hard time seeing why they cared about each other. I think this was because in many instances, Peregud only uses perspectives of side characters to give information, so they serve no other purpose than briefly explaining relationships between characters. One of the couples made no sense to me, as only three or four paragraphs aren’t enough for me to see why they like each other. However, if Amara actually witnessed their interactions, the reader would root for them from the first third of the book. Another way to show this could have been multiple POVs in the work to give these side characters a more prominent space. In many instances, I saw talks about karaoke nights, fun in class, etc that makes the characters inseparable, yet never got to read any scenes containing that. I wished the book was longer so we could have more of these. When it comes to the plot, I liked the overall structure, yet along with some scenes we should have seen, I think some things came too easily for Amara. For example, in her first ever speech to a big crowd, despite her social anxiety, she manages to convince people who were not persuaded by authorities. If we were shown a scene where she practises this in front of a small group, this would have been a much more convincing scene. In the same way, the foreshadowing about a *potential* betrayal in the beginning was a little unnecessary. I think seeing the small hints that Amara notices build up into the realisation would have worked much, much better. This would have built tension, and keep the reader guessing throughout. Despite small flaws, And So, The Ivy Grows is a very enjoyable YA novel that brings a lot of important discussions about politics, human nature and friendship. Amara is a very enjoyable main character to read about, which is why I was disappointed every time her POV was interrupted. I also adored the conversations about teenagers letting academia be their entire life, and how much it just is not worth your mental health. Talks about mental health, journaling, balance between social and school life are very important for young adults, and as a young author herself, Peregud really succeeded in this. Especially as they were through the words of Amara’s friends, they felt like a warm hug! As an overachieving student myself, I found comfort in such lines, and as an avid fantasy reader, in this entire novel.
1 Comment
Mira
3/29/2023 04:03:41 pm
Hi! Thank you so much for these reviews, they have been insightful and motivating! And a big thank you to TYWI for all its services!
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