ARC REVIEW | Once & Future by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy

Title: ONCE & FUTURE

Author: AMY ROSE CAPETTA & CORI MCCARTHY

Released: 26TH MARCH 2019 by ROCK THE BOAT (UK); (JIMMY PATTERSON – US)

Genre: TEENS + YA/FANTASY SCI-FI

Rep: LGBT+, POC | TWs: SLAVERY, ANIMAL DEATH, ABANDONMENT, RAPE MENTION, DEATH, SUICIDE, WAR THEMES, GENOCIDE.

OH MY GOODNIGHT, I LOVED THIS STORY SO MUCH MORE THAN I EXPECTED I WOULD! I AM CURRENTLY A PILE OF MUSH AND FEELING AND LOVE OVERFLOWING!

Ok, now that I’ve gotten that out of the way… HAPPY PUBLICATION, ARI, KAY, LAM, VAL, GWEN, MERLIN, JORDAN, AND MORGANA! I LOVE YOU ALL. And authors and publishing houses, of course! Thank you for giving us this book. You’re amazing.

The novel was written so well. The pace, plot, and characters were perfect for me. The story moved along at a nice speed, keeping me interested in what comes next without feeling overwhelmed by details and everything happening at once. Ari’s quest to defeat the greatest evil in the universe is so fun! Obviously, there is a lot going on at any given point, but the authors balance it all so well. The characters were each unique and complex. Their relationships with each other added that much more depth to the story.

So, Ari is the 42nd reincarnation of King Arthur, which she discovers once she pulls Excalibur from a tree, and she has to work with Merlin (who has aged backwards into a teenager) and her knights to bring peace to humankind. She goes through so much on this quest (and this is only the first book), but she stays strong the whole way through. She is lost and betrayed, yet handles it all with wit and grace (mostly). Also, can I just say Morgana is so well-written in this story. I loved their interpretation of the villainous enchantress.

One of my favourite parts of the story is when Merlin assumes one characters gender and it becomes a conversation about how he’s from a world where gender was assumed based on physical markers and how, in this futuristic world, you should ask someones pronouns because it’s the accepted thing to do. And clearly a much better way of living life. It’s important to allow people a voice to tell you their pronouns. Honestly, this book opens up a lot of really necessary dialogues and I would recommend everyone read it when they get a chance.

Truly, this was a unique novel. A genderbent Arthurian space odyssey is exactly what I never knew I needed. I love that this was ownvoices and I enjoyed learning more about different perspectives, such as fluidity and ace (among others). It’s really interesting to see those perspectives and try to understand more about them. This represented a wide spectrum of the sexuality/gender spectrum and it was awesome!

This was a FIVE STAR read for me and easily one of my favourite books of the year.

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King Arthur as you’ve never imagined! This bold, sizzling YA retells the popular legend with the Once and Future King as a teenage girl — and she has a universe to save.

I’ve been chased my whole life. As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I’ve always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur.

Now I’m done hiding.

My name is Ari Helix. I have a magic sword, a cranky wizard, and a revolution to start.

When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind.

No pressure.

Thank you so much to Rock the Boat (as well as Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy) for the ARC.