Threadneedle by Cari Thomas

Happy Friday, readers! Today I'm a stop on the Random Things tour for Threadneedle!

Anna has grown up with a magic she isn't allowed to use. 

Raised by her Aunt, Anna has been drilled endlessly on the danger of magic. It's why, when she's sixteen, she's to be bound to the Binders. In their eyes, magic is a sin. 

But Anna longs for more! And when Selene brings Effie and Attis on her next visit, Anna finally has her chance. 

Introduced to the wider world of the magic around her, Anna begins to finally come into her power. But the further she becomes drawn into magic, the more clear it becomes that there is something dark in her past. 

Threadneedle is great witchy fantasy fun!

First, the world building in Threadneedle is fabulous! The atmosphere of Anna's London is so imbued with magic through Thomas's words, but it's woven very subtly into the story.

Anna is a stubborn teen. She's lost her mother and her father and has been raised by an aunt who isn't affectionate or seemingly caring at all. One of the things Anna wants most is to practice real magic, but her aunt keeps her under such tight constraints that she knows it's likely never to happen. 

But then her mother's friend Selene arrives and Anna finally experiences a bit of freedom. More than that, she meets others who definitely don't feel the same way about magic as her aunt. 

The magic system in Threadneedle is a really cool one! In fact, it was probably my favorite thing about the book. And again, Thomas's descriptions were fabulous here!

Threadneedle is the first in the Language of Magic trilogy. It'll be really interesting to see what happens in the next installment.