Corinne Greene's safe, secure world is spiraling out of control. Her brother Daniel is apparently responsible for causing some kind of disaster, her mother's terminally ill ex-husband just made a miraculous recovery overnight, and exotic animals keep showing up in her suburban backyard. Since her relatives will not admit that anything strange is going on, she starts searching for answers on her own. When she uncovers a death certificate for her very-much-alive Uncle Jonas, the mystery only deepens.
Plot
This book does a great job of building suspense and intrigue from the first page. The odd things happening around Corinne and her family continue to pile up until they reach a satisfying breaking point. However, I did feel as though the build-up went on too long at the beginning of the book. At a certain point, I felt that it was obvious what was going on but still had to watch Corinne struggle to piece things together. It may have been a more satisfying plot if Corinne needed fewer hints before the initial plot twist.
Characters
Corinne was an easy protagonist to follow throughout the series. She wasn’t too obtrusive to the narrative, but she also didn’t stand out as particularly remarkable. However, she did have great chemistry with her love interest in the story. I enjoyed the scenes where they were able to interact and looked forward to seeing them on the page together.
Setting
The world and magic system the FM Isaacs sets up is the biggest draw in this book for me. The author takes a step beyond typical fairytale retellings and creates something new. I enjoyed discovering the magic of the story through Corinne and learning about the surprising fairytales she becomes tied up in.
My Recommendation
Family of the Fox is the first book in FM Isaacs’ Young Adult Fantasy series. While the plot moved a bit slow at the beginning, the book does have some fun twists and the chemistry between the main character and her love interest definitely caught my attention. However, the most exciting part of the book is the unique world and magic that the author has created. I’ll definitely be reading the next book in this series and looking forward to the conclusion, coming out soon!
