Nightbirds

AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • In a dazzling new fantasy world full of whispered secrets and political intrigue, the magic of women is outlawed but four girls with unusual powers have the chance to change it all. Now in paperback. The Nightbirds are Simta’s best-kept secret: Girls with a unique and powerful magic they can gift with just a kiss. Some would kill to possess them; the church would kill them outright. But protected by the Great Houses, the Nightbirds are well-guarded treasures. As this Season’s Nightbirds, Matilde, Æsa, and Sayer will spend their nights bestowing their gifts to well-paying clients. Once their season is through, they’re each expected to marry a Great House lord and become mothers to the next generation of Nightbirds before their powers fade away. But as they find themselves at the heart of a political scheme that threatens not only their secrets, but their very lives, their future suddenly becomes uncertain. When they discover that there are other girls like them and that their magic is far more than they were told, they see the Nightbird system for what it is: a gilded cage. Now they must make a choice--to remain kept birds or take control, remaking the city that dared to clip their wings.

Autorentext
Kate J. Armstrong has always had a fondness for adventure. After graduating college, she left her home state of Virginia and has never really looked back. She’s explored many places and vocations, working as a high school English teacher and a nonfiction writer and editor for publishers such as National Geographic. In 2018 she started The Exploress, a women’s history podcast with a cult following and over half a million downloads. She is also the co-host of Pub Dates, a podcast that takes readers backstage to join her on the journey to publication. When she’s not writing or recording, you will find Kate hiking mountains, trying out cocktails, finding excuses to dress up in historical attire, or reading way past her bedtime. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her husband.

Zusammenfassung
Praise for Nightbirds:

**A 2024 Rise: Feminist Book Project YA Pick!

In this sumptuous fantasy, the magic wielded by girls is outlawed, but the Nightbirds share it secretly through kissing. A lush adventure*. People*

Lush settings, careful worldbuilding, and taut exposition [make for] . . . an electrifying, high-stakes series opener grounded in feminist themes. Kirkus Reviews, starred review

In this dazzling, fiercely feminist novel . . . debut author Armstrong uses lush, seamlessly incorporated worldbuilding, kaleidoscopic third-person-present narration told via realistically rendered characters, and fraught queer and straight romantic subplots to explore issues of classism and misogyny. With a pace that never flags and a harrowing, high-stakes plot, this distinguished read boasts texture, heft, and heart." Publishers Weekly, starred review

Armstrong s intricate debut novel . . . is packed with memorable characters . . . [and a] riveting plot. Booklist, starred review

"The plot is full of secrets, betrayals, and twists that will make readers reluctant to set the book down for any length of time. The characters are all believable and relatable, with strengths and weaknesses to boot, and the story is laced with just enough romance. With refreshingly original characters and lush language, this debut fantasy will leave readers clamoring for the sequel. School Library Journal

This richly developed world with Prohibition-era flair and a fast-paced, character-driven narrative make for a strong showing from debut author Armstrong, and the layered plot offers readers plenty of action, intrigues, romance, and betrayal. . . Give this book to readers who enjoy Leigh Bardugo or Maggie Tokuda-Hall s The Mermaid, the Witch, & the Sea The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

A luscious, sumptuously woven, and totally addictive fantasy. It s like Gatsby with magic and sky-high stakes, layer upon layer of incredible worldbuilding peeling back as we slowly uncover the spider s web of stories and secrets our characters are hoarding. From the gritty docks to the glitzy ballrooms to the magical speakeasy through the back of a wardrobe, I d kill to have written this myself. Amie Kaufman, New York Times bestselling author of Illuminae and Aurora Rising

"A glamour-soaked, glittering jewel of a book. Nightbirds will whirl you through a world full of dark secrets, forbidden magics and fierce girls, leaving you giddy and breathless. Lili Wilkinson, author of A Hunger of Thorns

With writing as beautiful as its magic and a story that packs as much of a punch as its intrepid heroines, Nightbirds is a soaring debut you won t want to miss! Ryan Graudin, award winning author of Wolf by Wolf

Leseprobe
CHAPTER 1
Jewel, Star, and Sea

Matilde is a thousand layers of secrets. ****Some sit against her skin, there for anyone who knows how to read them. Others are tucked into a rarefied language only a few girls can speak. Still others have wings, and they are hidden inside her.

She smiles to herself behind her mask.

As Matilde descends the stairs into the ballroom, heads swivel. This is precisely why she made her family wait for over an hour before leaving for Leta s Season-opening ball. Grand entrances, she finds, are the only kind worth making. Especially during the summer season, when Simta floods with people from all over the Eudean Republic, come to make matches, deals, and fortunes in the City of Tides.

The room is full of finely dressed people, talking and swaying to a tasteful string quartet. It s clear that many of them have been to Simta s best trickster tailors, who have outdone themselves enchanting their outfits for the evening. The seed pearls at one girl s neckline unfurl into flowers. A boy s evening coat sparks every time someone touches it. Masks smoke, lapels bloom, gloves glow. Matilde is sure there are alchemical potions she can t see, hidden inside watch fobs and hollowed-out canes. Leta s added some to her candles so they flame cerulean and emerald and black, her House colors.

Standing here, you would never know that magic is illegal. In the circles Matilde swims in, such laws barely apply.

Her brother, Samson, gazes longingly at Æsa, their pretty housemate, but she is busy staring wide-eyed at the room. After a sidelong glance to make sure their dame isn t watching, Samson snags a few drinks from a passing waiter and holds one out to her. Æsa shakes her head the newest Nightbird seems too nervous to enjoy her first proper Great House party. Matilde will have to work on that.

I wish you had worn what I laid out for you, Matilde, her dame says.

A dress with frothy skirts, like Æsa s, and a far-too-tight bodice. The one that made Matilde look like a present wrapped for someone else.

Really? Matilde does a twirl. I m rather pleased with my choice.

Her gown is a columnar sheath, with beaded jewelflowers shimmering darkly against wine-red velvet, gathered up at one hip with a golden clasp. She likes how it s somehow both loose fitting and suggestive. It s her gran s from when she was a Nightbird, made over in the newest style. Perhaps that s why her dame doesn t like it she thinks it s something Gran should have given her instead, just like her Nightbird gift. Intrinsic magic runs through most of the Great House bloodlines, passed down from woman to woman, but sometimes it skips a generation. Matilde doesn t think her dame has ever gotten over it.

Dame purses her lips. It s just the cut is rather . . .

Matilde smiles. Rather ravishing?

I was thinking more alo…