Review: Woven from Clay: A Novel by Jenny Birch

Woven from Clay: A Novel by Jennifer Birch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was provided an ALC and an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

What a unique premise!!!  This follows Terra, a normal if not overachieving high school senior who just wants to have a great year.  Enter Thorne, a mysterious new kid, who wants nothing more than to get in Terra's way and keeps spouting off weird nonsense that she doesn't understand.  She also can't understand why there is mud everywhere she goes either and why Thorne is so interested in Mr. Quill the nice old guy in town that is like everyone's grandpa.  Thorne opens Terra's eyes to the world of magic and exposes himself and Mr. Quill as warlocks.  Turns out Mr. Quill is kind of like everyone's grandpa as he created golems, hence the mud, for all of the families in town under the guise of adoption.  Terra quickly comes to understand that some of her feelings around being adopted are warranted, but not because she was abandoned by her birth parents, but because she was created.  Thorne was sent on a mission from his guild, but Terra changes that mission  so she can save herself, Mr. Quill, and those like her.  She has to work with Thorne to prove that she can control magic and is a force for good.  In doing so she uncovers a vengeance plot within the guild that Terra and Thorn have to stop if they want to save the other golems.

This had some really great commentary about adoption, loneliness, inadequacy, friendship, abandonment, and finding your place in the world.  I didn't know this was a YA book when I picked it up, and I thoroughly enjoyed it as an adult.  I also think this would be great for middle grade and YA readers as well.  The magic system was well explained, there is no graphic content (there is some kissing), it has diverse characters, the pacing is great, and the plot was entertaining.

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