Cursed Debts

Cursed Debts by Claire Castellan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Gosh, this book was filled with unexpected twists and turns, oodles of world building, and chaotic bad luck.

Mads has been cursed with bad luck all her life, protected mostly by some very cursory magic and a charm bracelet from her mother. Said mother is locked away in a mental hospital, leaving her to her own devices early on. This, of course, goes badly, resulting in her owing a debt to the fae that are even scarier than bad humans. In this world, she is in the know about the magical community, though lives on the fringes. She works as a courier, same as her roommate, and agrees to take on one of his assignments which spirals out of control.

The other part I haven’t touched on is the Wild Hunt, and its leader, Dara. As this book was largely world building, action, and chaos, we learn a lot all at once. Dara ends up following Mads on one of her terrible idea journeys, rescuing her from certain death with the promise of partnership - for a little while at least. There’s no smut to be found here, so don’t get your hopes up - it is a slow sizzle at most, with some distracting other boys thrown in for good measure. I can’t even begin to explain the convoluted quest we end up on, but there’s layers of reveal and betrayal stacked one on top of another until I can’t tell what’s real and what’s a lie anymore. As book 1, it definitely sets up another book in rapid succession - here’s hoping for more answers and more sizzle!

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