Where do I begin with this wonderful book? Mad Sisters of Esi is a fever dream in the most beautiful way possible. It envelops you in the deepest hug while pushing you into a world of unknowns, trusting that you will make your way back to center as the story unfolds.

The characters will stay with me for the rest of my life. Each of them feels so different, but somehow all incredibly relatable. I found myself in each one as they went through absolute highs and devastating lows.

The setting and writing style are my favorite aspects of this book by far. Each new place is an awe-inspiring walk through cosmic dreams. And the way we are constantly flipping from one POV to the next, from diaries to academic journals, you're constantly kept on your toes in the best way possible.

I wanted to stay with the mad sisters and never leave them. This book demands to be read at a steady pace, to ensure you are fully taking it in. But I never wanted to finish because it meant having to say goodbye. Mehta has written a novel truly out of this world and I can't wait to return home to it.

I don't know if it's because I've been out of the genre for so long, but this is exactly what I mean when I say I love to read fantasy romance! For my first Victoria Aveyard book, I really couldn't have asked for a better introduction. Tempest feels like a pirate adventure, historical fantasy, political drama, and slow-burn romance all smashed together, and somehow it works ridiculously well. I just can't begin to describe how much I needed this.

The atmosphere alone had me totally absorbed and fully immersed. Aveyard writes details so well and I genuinely felt like I could be a part of this world. I loved reading about all the sights, sounds, and smells so much. This is a world that I could envision so well. It helped that it has such strong Pirates of the Caribbean vibes, but with a much more complicated story underneath it. Aveyard also does a fantastic job bringing in commentary about class, colonialism, power, women's roles, and the ways people justify their choices when survival is on the line. I also really appreciated that this isn't just go, go go with pirate battles and action-packed scenes. There's a lot of character-driven moments to push the story forward.

The dual timeline structure was one of my favourite things about the book. Every chapter gives you another little piece of the puzzle, slowly revealing how Cat became the person we meet in the present and what happened to all these relationships along the way. It made me constantly question what I thought I knew, and the gaps between the timelines created so much tension. I was especially desperate to find out exactly what happened between Cat and Val and what deal Cat made with Jasper. I'm such a sucker for dual timeline and I think this is my first time reading it in a fantasy romance book? LOVED! Need more, in fact.

I listened to the audiobook and I did enjoy my time with it, however, I wish it was a duet. The narrator could not do male voices very well and all the men sounded the same which was pretentious. It was difficult to tell who was speaking.

Honestly, I loved this book. The writing is gorgeous and the world is incredibly immersive so there's nothing more I could ask for, except less use of certain phrases ("tempest," I'm thinking about you). Anwyay, I'm so, so excited for the next book!

*Many thanks to Harper Voyager for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.