Book Review: Immortal Game, Allison Saft
Chess masters, Irish fairies, and sapphic love… what more could you need?
A huge thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books for sharing an advanced readers copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Shea, our main character, is on a quest to save her sister from the fae portal world where she’s been stolen to. Thankfully, the Iron Veil that separates Otherworld from our world is lifting temporarily for a chess tournament—and thank goodness, Shea has been mastering this game since she was a child. The winner of the tournament may ask the High King of Otherworld to grant one wish, so if Shea wins she will finally rescue her sister. Given that chess is a solitary game, Shea didn’t expect the partnerships she’s fostered along the way.
💕A swoony slow burn YA Romance
One of my favorite things about YA Romance is that it can’t rely on the physical/sexual pull between two people but rather has to be a love between the characters that stems from a mental and emotional attraction. In Immortal Game, our love interests have a mutual obsession of chess, but that’s not all that bonds them. While their actual upbringing is different (fae world vs human world, and royalty vs general population), the love interests find connection in the way that chess was a pivotal part of their childhood and their current motivations.
♟️Chess as a backdrop
Even though I personally have not the slightest idea as to how to play chess, this is my second book I’ve read with chess as a backdrop. And every single time I read about this game, I love the book! I think it’s because to be good at the game of chess it requires a certain level of intelligence, dedication, and strategy that I’m enamored with.
⌛️I’m going to complain about pacing again
When writing is good, the vibes and characters hit with me, and the setting feels like I can escape, then lately I find myself only ever really complaining about the pacing. There were times within this book that nothing happened forever and ever, but then a fairy who’d been holding a grudge for literally centuries suddenly decides that maybe they’re not too mad anymore and will back off in less than a page. Moments that felt big and important happened quickly, and scenes that contained essentially “nothing” lasted way too long.
In conclusion…
I’d recommend this book to those who enjoy fantastical books with intellectual, high stakes plot lines that include Irish fairy mythology and lots of talk about chess.
