Publisher’s Description of Where Dreams Descend
In a city covered in ice and ruin, a group of magicians face off in a daring game of magical feats to find the next headliner of the Conquering Circus, only to find themselves under the threat of an unseen danger striking behind the scenes.
As each act becomes more and more risky and the number of missing magicians piles up, three are forced to reckon with their secrets before the darkness comes for them next.
The Star: Kallia, a powerful showgirl out to prove she’s the best no matter the cost.
The Master: Jack, the enigmatic keeper of the club, and more than one lie told.
The Magician: Demarco, the brooding judge with a dark past he can no longer hide
Where Dreams Descend is the startling and romantic first book in Janella Angeles’ debut Kingdom of Cards fantasy duology where magic is both celebrated and feared, and no heart is left unscathed.
Rebecca’s Thoughts on Where Dreams Descend
The first thing that drew me into this story was the rich magical world. Kallia performs in a club, descending from above the stage masked and sitting on a crystal chandelier as depicted on the book’s cover. She controls the entire space—lights, music, and atmosphere with her magic, drawing every eye.
But Kallia seeks a bigger stage and freedom from Jack whom she has reason to mistrust.
Running to the icy, almost forgotten city of Glorian, she seeks to prove she’s the best magician to headline the Conquering Circus even though here, men perform stage magic and women do menial labor magic. Kallia’s drive to prove that she’s the magician to beat in this competition was the second thing that drew me into the story.
The third thing that drew me in was the mystery. Why are the competitors disappearing, who will be the next to go, and what will Kallia need to sacrifice to end the danger?
Where Dreams Descend is great for readers who love Caraval.
I received an advanced reader copy of Where Dreams Descend in exchange for an honest review.
Interview with Janella Angeles, Author of Where Dreams Descend
Where did your inspiration for Where Dreams Descend book come from?
All of my comps have been huge inspirations, but for as long as I could remember, I had always wanted to write a Phantom-esque story, as well as a story featuring magicians and circuses. It didn’t hit me that I could actually mash up all those concepts into one story until much later, which was when I also happened upon the idea to swap music for magic, and envisioned a main character descending on a chandelier who was born from the question: “What would happen if Christine—beautiful, talented yet timid Christine—was not timid at all, but was ambitious and actually owned her star power? What would that story look like?”
How did you develop your magic system?
Where Dreams Descend takes place in a world where magicians are actually magical, but there are two types: those who are born with magic, and those who “acquire” magic by being taught and trained to wield it from the air after a legendary event in the book where magic poured into the world long ago. However, born magic is said to be more powerful, for their power is more raw and innate and natural. I dug into this system by looking at something that’s always fascinated me with regards to the arts and creativity—we have those artists with wildly natural talent vs. those who must study their craft really hard. And because art and creativity feel like magic themselves, it was fascinating to look at these schools of thought as a jumping off point for actual magic.
If the magic in Where Dreams Descend actually existed, what power would you have and what would you use it for?
I would love to have the power to infuse memories into instruments and make them come to life so they could play whatever song I wanted. I’m such a huge fan of instrumental covers, which are on all of my story playlists so this would be as much an indulgent power as a writing one!
Thanks to Janella for being on The Winged Pen today! Where Dreams Descend is being released today, August 25th. You can check it out on Goodreads, or pre-order via Indiebound, Barnes & Noble, or Amazon.
If Where Dreams Descend sounds like a book you’d like, you might be interested in other young adult speculative fiction books we’ve reviewed on the Winged Pen:
DeV1AT3 by Jay Kristoff
AURORA RISING by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
The CYBILS Award YA Speculative Fiction Short List – A Wrap-up
