Midnight at the Houdini by Delilah S. Dawson | Blog tour

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Publisher: Delacorte Press (an imprint of Random House Children’s Books)

Publishing Date: September 5, 2023

Synopsis:

A girl discovers a surreal hotel where no one ever leaves. When the clock strikes midnight she’ll be trapped there forever unless she’s able to breakfree from magic that in turn breaks all her rules. Perfect for fans of Caraval and The Starless Sea!

The night is perfect and glorious and sparkling, too beautiful to be real. Like magic.

Anna may have grown up in glitzy Las Vegas, but she’s determined that no one will ever call her shallow. While her older sister Emily is the star of the family, Anna is the diligent stage manager, making sure that both their lives go perfectly to plan. But when Emily reveals a startling betrayal, Anna flees in the middle of a raging storm and takes shelter in a boutique establishment she’s never seen before: The Houdini.

Inside, Anna discovers a magic hotel . . . and a magical boy. Earnest, curious Max has lived his entire life inside the Houdini. Over the course of one surreal evening, he becomes Anna’s guide to the curious building. For the first time in her life, Anna is center stage, in a place that anticipates her every desire, with a boy who only has eyes for her.

But that’s because the Houdini has no other guests. No one ever enters the Houdini . . . and no one ever leaves. When the clock strikes midnight, Anna will be trapped in the Houdini forever. If Anna’s ever going to find out who she is on her own in the real world, she’ll first have to make an impossible escape. But will she be able to do it if it means leaving Max behind?

My Review:

I started loving this book right from the first chapter, where Anna was a ten-year-old girl stunned by a magician’s magic yet kept telling herself it was just a trick. On the other side of the world, Max, a ten-year-old boy, grows up believing only in magic.

This book’s unique plot grabbed my attention right from the beginning. Now a teenager, Anna got stuck in a hotel, Houdini, which was functioning by magic. Anna’s character seemed so natural that it made the story more alive.

Max and Anna’s interactions were so beautiful, even in such a tragic situation. Max was so sweet and cared for Anna so much. It might seem unusual, considering they had met only a few hours earlier, but it felt entirely natural as I read their story.

I love the fact that Houdini has a mind of its own. It played songs for communicating and opened secret doors to help Max and Anna. I loved how gradually Anna got used to Houdini. That’s the best thing about this book; everything was so gradual even though the whole timeline of the book is one day.

This book kept me captivated right until the end with all its mysteries. It gives The Night Circus vibes. So, whoever loves The Night Circus should definitely try this one. The climax was so satisfying, and I wish this book never ended.

Midnight at the Houdini is a perfect magical realism YA urban fantasy with many mysteries (both in the hotel and the plot). It’s impossible not to love it to the fullest.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you TBR and Beyond Tours for providing me with the arc of this book.

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Book links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

Mood board:

About the author:

Delilah S. Dawson is the New York Times-bestselling author of Star Wars: Phasma, Black Spire: Galaxy’s Edge, and The Perfect Weapon. With Kevin Hearne, she writes the Tales of Pell. As Lila Bowen, she writes the Shadow series, beginning with Wake of Vultures. Her other books include the Blud series, the Hit series, and Servants of the Storm.

She’s written comics in the worlds of Marvel Action: Spider-Man, Lore’s Wellington, Star Wars Adventures, Star Wars Forces of Destiny, The X-Files Case Files, Adventure Time, Rick and Morty, and her creator-owned comics include Star Pig, Ladycastle, and Sparrowhawk.