Cruel Illusions: the deliciously dark and addictive magical fantasy

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Taken in as their apprentice, and beguiled by the young man Xander, she agrees to join them at the competition of magicians that year and hopes to earn the chance to become part of the trope to learn more about her mother and take revenge on the vampires who killed her. Lots of people ask questions they already know the answer to. It's much easier than asking something you don't know and having to guess if you'll like the answer or not” This is an easy, predictable, digestible, vampire read with a creative magic system that focuses on magic shows as creating true magic.

Cruel Illusions | Margie Fuston | 9781399711364 | NetGalley Cruel Illusions | Margie Fuston | 9781399711364 | NetGalley

The plot is fast paced which really suits this story. I loved all the characters that we meet throughout the story and felt that they were well developed throughout. I did find the book to be on the longer side and felt the start was a little slow but I did enjoy this book. Cruel Illusion was the perfect Halloween read! In this book there is everything from vampires, a majestic circus, a thousand shows and a lot of magic! The magicians reveal they’re part of an ancient secret society with true magic, and Ava has the same power in her blood that they do. If she joins them, they promise to teach her the skills she needs to hunt vampires and avenge her mother. But there’s a catch: if she wants to keep the power they offer, she needs to prove she’s worthy of it. And to do so, she must put on the performance of her life in a sinister and dangerous competition where illusion and reality blur, and the stakes are deadly. I LOATH love triangles, and while this technically has one, it didn’t bother me? 🤯 (wtf is happening?)I adored the side characters. I was genuinely surprised with Stacie’s arc. I was appreciative of getting to know all the side characters, especially my beautiful lesbian couple, Reina and Diantha. Anyone who says they didn’t care about them didn’t read the book properly. Their stories were very interesting and kept me motivated to continue the story. I appreciated their badass moments, especially with the woman on the date and in some of the very end chapters. This was a story of two halves for me. The first half was a four star read and I really enjoyed it and loved the characters and the plot. Then the second half came and it lost its steam. I lost interest in the characters and just didn't care much in the end. Ava has been through a lot of heart ache but I think she wants to trust and love freely but can’t seem to let down her guard, in walks the good looking boy who I think your supposed to like but he annoyed me from the start! There are a lot more diverse characters but I don’t want to spoil anything. .

Cruel Illusions by Margie Fuston - Utopia State of Mind Review: Cruel Illusions by Margie Fuston - Utopia State of Mind

The story focuses on the cutthroat competition as it turns out that anyone who doesn’t bring a suitable apprentice to the competition doesn’t just have their troupe dissolved into other troupes, but forcibly removed, maybe even have their memories removed liked the failed apprentices, and the apprentices realize that they are all fighting for only one spot against each other. The competitions are often being dropped in the middle of illusions and blindly guessing what they need to do, with a few actual performances in the middle where only one of them is eliminated. Second, I saw a lot of people felt the side characters weren’t likable or that there wasn’t enough supporting evidence that we should care about them. I strongly disagree with that point, as I felt like I got to know the side characters well enough to consider their well being and thoughts throughout the book. I felt like I found that I cared about their stories, especially Diantha and Reina. I felt they had a lot to offer the story and had some pretty badass moments, too. Aristelle was a bitch but that’s her character in a nutshell. Cruel Illusions is deliciously dark. I was immediately swept up into the sinister world of The Society of True Magicians and found myself questioning what was real and what was illusion alongside Ava. The competition is dangerous, grim, and a little macabre, yet I dare you to tear your eyes away for even a second.” Her imperfect character and the potential intriguing me. Her emotions struggles and actions seem real. I love to see that sometime new skills is hard to earned and the process is overwhelmed. She makes mistakes, alot and she always tried do her best at each bad conditions.La storia parla di Ava, una giovane donna che ha trascorso gli ultimi anni in famiglie affidatarie dopo che sua madre è stata uccisa dai vampiri, anche se solo lei lo crede. A diciassette anni, viene accolta da una famiglia in cui suo fratello si adatta perfettamente, e si imbatte in uno spettacolo di magia che sembra troppo bello per essere reale. Infatti quella magia è reale! I wanted to.” Deb’s smile stretches like a worn-out sweater. She smiles too much, and I don’t trust it. While I enjoyed most of the book and despite its unique concept, I still felt the story was too predictable at times. Broken Masquerade: Zig-zagged. Vampires came out to the world a decade ago in televised appearances to try for peace with humanity. They went into hiding again soon after coming out, after one of their kind killed a child. In the present, the fact the vampires have been gone so long mixed with the fact they disappeared so soon after making their presence known has meant a lot of people have now written them off as an elaborate hoax.

CRUEL ILLUSIONS | Kirkus Reviews CRUEL ILLUSIONS | Kirkus Reviews

The magicians reveal they're part of an ancient secret society with true magic, and Ava has the same power in her blood that they do. If she joins them, they promise to teach her the skills she needs to hunt vampires and avenge her mother. But there's a catch: if she wants to keep the power they offer, she needs to prove she's worthy of it. And to do so, she must put on the performance of her life in a sinister and dangerous competition where illusion and reality blur, and the stakes are deadly. Cruel Illusions is a standalone paranormal debut I adore so much. The world give us interesting blended atmosphere between secret magic society, deadly magic competition and vampires hunting. The story it self following young orphan Ava who struggles to fit into each foster homes for years. Ava determined to get revenge to Vampire who killed her mother and personal closures. When a magician's troupe offered answer of her life mystery with bloody magic competition, she finally found her place. Between these competitions is where character growth is. Where we get the twists and betrayals. Where the love triangle grows, and I’m sure it’s a serviceable love triangle. My love-hating teenage self would have hated it with the all the power of a thousand suns, and my older self, that can like romances, appreciated that it had thematic relevance while also hating it with the passion of a thousand suns. I used to try stuff like that a lot as a kid, especially after Mom died, when I needed a little magic that wasn’t pretend. I don’t know why I still do it. Cruel Illusions is a thrilling YA Novel full of mystery and magic. The plot was fast paced and full of twists and turns which I love as it keeps you guessing.Luke, I Am Your Father: Lucius, the leader of the Society and a major villain in the novel, is revealed to be the father of heroine Ava Perry. I drag my plate over the mark and grimace as Parker shovels lukewarm spaghetti into his mouth. He hangs his jaw open so the noodles drip down his chin and lets out a low death gurgle. After, we had a trailer, and we moved around even more, and Mom was a little bit different, like a fancy dress missing the sequins it once had. She didn’t talk about Dad very much.

Cruel Illusions: the deliciously dark and addictive magical Cruel Illusions: the deliciously dark and addictive magical

I deepen my gouge, then smooth my finger over the gash, suddenly wishing I could magic it away. But scars don’t work like that. Cruel Illusions is one of those books which consistently surprises you. There’s vampires and magic, family secrets and revenge. The magic was fascinating to me because it merges illusion magic with this idea of receiving our magic from the applause of others. People almost ‘feed’ our magic. This becomes a very interesting juxtaposition with the vampires. They obviously feed off the blood of others. Immediately, Cruel Illusions begins to complicate this dynamic. Cruel Illusions takes many familiar elements but mixes them in a way that offers something a little different. Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review this in advance of publication. Vampiric Draining: The Society possess a garden with special vines where their failed applicants are drained of blood, kept healthy and fed and in stasis all the while. The blood draining is required to feed the immortality spell that keeps the members of the Society running.Ever since a vampire murdered her mother, Ava has been determined to get revenge. This all-encompassing drive has given her the fuel she needed to survive foster home after foster home.