The Hunting Moon: 2 (The Luminaries)

The first book grabbed me, and this one dragged me in the Forest and kept me there, part of the action, of every tense moment, painful scene, and captivating development! Susan Dennard's writing is witty, vibrant, and exactly like her personality! Having had the pleasure of meeting this wonderful artist in person, I could almost hear the characters' voices in her tone and and I was moulded by her words!!!I can not wait for the finale to come out!!!

‘The Hunting Moon’ is Book Two in Susan Dennard’s Luminaries Trilogy. I combined reading with its unabridged audiobook edition, narrated by Caitlin Davies.We once again return to the creepy town of Hemlock Falls to continue the story of Winona (Winnie) Wednesday as she continues her fight against the monstrous nightmares that arise in the forest outside the town.As this is part of a trilogy and so a continuous story, the books should be read in order. I won’t say more about the plot in ‘The Hunting Moon’ in order to avoid giving details of events that took place in ‘The Luminaries’ for those who have yet to read it.As I observed in my review of ‘The Illuminaries’, this trilogy is intended for a Teen/YA readership and does read quite young. Even though I wasn’t particularly invested in the novel’s romantic themes, I didn’t find these overly cloying.With respect to the audiobook edition, Caitlin Davies is again serving as its narrator. She is an award winning voice actor with over 200 audiobook titles to her credit, including many in the Teen/YA category. She has quite a light voice, which works well for titles with younger characters though she is able to shift smoothly into a more mature timbre when the novel’s older characters have dialogue.‘The Hunting Moon’ is beautifully presented with striking cover art by Micaela Alcaino, a map of Hemlock Falls, and a scattering of illustrations by Kerby Rosanes that depict more creatures from the Luminary compendium.Overall, I found ‘The Hunting Moon’ an engaging second volume that progressed the overall plot and character development. I was pleased that Susan Dennard provided more background on the unique society of Hemlock Falls, the Dianas, and the nature of the Nightmares. I look forward to reading Book 3 in due course.

This was one of my most anticipated released of the year and it definitely didn't disappoint.In The Hunting Moon, Winnie Wednesday has everything she thought she wanted at the start of Luminaries, so why isn't she happier? Why can't she shake the strange, clawing, panicking darkness that makes her feel cut off from the rest of the luminaries, who can face unspeakable terrors and danger, then party the night away as if nothing happened? She's also struggling to move past her history with Jay, who is still keeping secrets, and she's worried the fragile happiness she's bought to her mum and brother could be shattered by secrets from their past.As with book one, I couldn't put this down. The world is so intriguing, and there were so many questions and twists as the novel progressed that I couldn't look away. Winnie's mixed emotions worked really well to add tension, and despite the extraordinary circumstances she was facing, she felt like a real teenager.I LOVED returning to Winnie, Jay and the world of the Luminaries. Everything about this series is brilliant - from the fantasy system to the character development. And that ending!? I can't wait to find out what happens next.

This is very much a slow moving fantasy story but I really enjoy it.The magic system and world building is very different and incredibly clever.There’s a lot of complex characters who are immediately likable but are perhaps relatable.I liked that we found out more of the mysteries this world holds in this book and a few questions were answered, I’m looking forward to book 3.Regarding the book quality and amazons fulfilment: I preorder and the book arrived promptly and on release day, it was in pristine condition and well packaged

The Hunting Moon had surprises and expected elements. It maintained that lighter feel than some YA fantasy and I appreciated that. I still maintain it gives something of a vampire academy vibe in terms of atmosphere.I really liked the houses (days), their different purposes and I understood it more in this second book. The plot centred to some degree on werewolves (guessed who) and nightmares. A bit of party atmosphere ensued alongside the serious stuff that sometimes felt a little out of sync but I went with it.Winnie is an incredibly likeable character and she spent this book evolving uncomfortably into her new found status while chasing answers from her father. Winnie's mother was hard to work out as were some of the other characters.Overall, a solid installment that I liked but not as much as book one.Thank you Daphne Press for the review copy.

Once again, Susan Dennard doesn't disappoint. The mysteries get deeper, the characters get cooler, and the romance starts to SERIOUSLY heat up. I love how easy it was to get lost in the story, and how good the suspense was. The atmosphere was absolutely perfect, and totally aligned with it being autumn in the Northern Hemisphere.The forest made me actually long for Winnie to return to it, again and again. Jay was right - do you trust the forest, or not? I'm starting to think it's not what it seems, and that you're almost safer inside its bounds than you are among the other Luminaries.And that ending! Oh, that ending. I can't wait to see how everything unfolds in book 3.I couldn't read this book fast enough. Just like with the Witchlands series, I'm going to have to read this book twice to pick up all the tiny details Dennard leaves behind.May you gobble this book up as quickly as I did!

It started off slow but progressively got better. I enjoyed the ending and getting the answers to some of my questions, though some are still unanswered.

I loved the second book so much. I've enjoyed the story in a way that's challenging to describe. The teenage angst is perfect and the monsters/lore are so much fun. Can't wait for the third book!