The Summer War by Naomi Novik

Ooh, Naomi Novik, you crafty little devil of a writer, you!

I’m always so impressed when an author sets the reader up to intensely dislike a character, only for that same character to eventually and successfully capture our hearts later on. And I get it, there were a ton of mitigating factors for why our heroine Celia would curse her older brother Argent in such a breathtakingly awful way. She’s a kid, she doesn’t get what she’s saying, she doesn’t know it’s not just words… but still, the underlying cruelty made it really hard for me to want the best for her as this novella progresses.

So it’s nice that as she gets older, she also grows up. I loved how she forged a bond with her other brother Roric and how that would eventually come into play as their family was forced to reckon with the Summer War that their land had been engaging in for years. Essentially, Celia is the daughter of a hedge knight who fought his way to become a powerful landowner by beating back the fae Summerlings on their border. She and her brothers each have different mothers, all dead now, and as a child she adores Argent for being the handsome, chivalrous knight who’s always shown her nothing but affection.

One night, she overhears a charged conversation between Argent and their father Veris, where Argent announces that he’s leaving for good. Bereft at this perceived abandonment of her personally, pre-teen Celia curses him to a lonely, loveless life of wandering, not realizing that she’s actually casting a magical curse instead of just having a childish tantrum. As the years pass, she and Roric work to undo the curse, even as Veris begins to neglect his duties out of grief. And then the king comes knocking, demanding her hand in marriage for the prince.

Saying anything more would spoil this clever, poignant tale of breaking generational cycles, learning how to accept love and wield power, and cleverly figuring your way out of desperate situations. I really wanted to read more at the end, and have to shamefully admit that this was actually my very first read of Ms Novik’s. I definitely need to make more time to read her stuff in future, but (insert my perpetual lamentation regarding my lack thereof.) I essentially only got to read it because I’m trying to be better about my Hugo Awards reading and voting this year, and I’m so glad I did. As of now, it’s vying with Cinder House for the top of my novella slate. I only have one left to read, so we’ll see how it all shakes out after!

The Summer War by Naomi Novik was published September 16 2025 by Del Ray and is available from all good booksellers, including