Path of the Crescent Moon ignites the soul

This thought-provoking, lose yourself in the decadent prose, witchy tale is unmissable. Do yourself a favor and purchase this dark-cottage debut by Isa Ottoni that enters our world officially on May 19th. Read my 4-star review below:

Bea escapes her tyrannical husband with her 2-year-old, sick daughter. With nowhere to go, Bea decides to follow the Crescent Moon into a world of magic. She learns she has untapped power but must be taught how to tame that power and her rage. To save her daughter. To save herself. To defy Fate...

Can a book be fraught with danger but hopeful, witchy yet huggable? Yes, if it is written by Isa Ottoni. Gifted with a warm soul, this tale lifts or seizes your heart. A bittersweet melancholy permeates the prose as it sings with rich, lyrical notes, an elegance to its rhythm. Whimsy of magic colors the narrative while lively, companionable descriptions plant us firmly in this world. Alongside a spellbinding mythology, this book emanates a slow, quiet mightiness, in the course of being infused with Grimm fairy tale vibes.

The 1st person POV is intimate, honest, making us feel as if we have entered Bea's psyche, the pain, the worry, the desire to be more. Her inner emotional tempest whirling us around with it. I enjoyed her flares of temper and the thoughts that followed, and when she acted on them. We accompany her on the path to knowledge, of gorgeous simplicity on the surface, but so much brewing underneath. There is a lot of internal dialogue saturated with pondering and musing, scenes that seem to linger in sometimes wordy length. I did wish we were shown more of her lessons and perhaps a more detailed explanation of the structure embodying this magical world and its rules. When the magic is explained, when awe and love and anger are triggered, the book shines.

There are so many delicious themes to dive into in this engrossing story. There is the eternality of a mother's love, misogyny plus sexism, and the very core of prejudice. About surviving and surpassing trauma. Questioning power and making us think about how it should be used. Can we hurt even if we are in the right? Vengeance burns; should we let it?

A love letter to all women and their beautiful complexities, admitting to the existence of our thorns, as we bloom. This is a mission to save a loved one; an invaluable journey to acknowledge and seize the force that exists within.