The only life Mae has ever known is on the island, living on the charity of the wealthy Prosper family who control the magic on the island and the spirits who inhabit it. Mae longs for magic of her own and to have a place among the Prosper family, where her best friend, Coco, will see her as an equal, and her crush, Miles, will finally see her. Now that she’s eighteen, Mae knows her time with the Prospers may soon come to an end.
But tonight is First Night, when the Prospers and their high-society friends return to the island to celebrate the night Lord Prosper first harnessed the island’s magic and started producing aether – a magical fuel source that has revolutionized the world. With everyone returning to the island, Mae finally has the chance to go after what she’s always wanted.
When the spirits start inexplicably dying, Mae starts to realize that things aren’t what they seem. And Ivo, the reclusive, mysterious heir to the Prosper magic, may hold all the answers – including a secret about Mae’s past that she doesn’t remember. As Mae and her friends begin to unravel the mysteries of the island, and the Prospers’ magic, Mae starts to question the truth of what her world was built on.
A lot can happen in a day, and BRIGHT RUINED THINGS perfectly portrays that.
The story of Mae and the Prosper family is something of a found family, she wants so badly to be apart of this magical family, hell she already loves one of the grandsons. Unfortunately, things aren’t always as they seem and the First Night, typically a celebratory event, takes a turn for the worst and it’s up to Mae and the Prosper kids to figure out the family secrets.
The story itself has a great ending and an interesting concept. While it isn’t new, the way the story is told makes it feel refreshed and innovative. Mae comes into her own by the end of the story which I love to see. I see it done so often in YA that it’s gets predictable but truthfully Cohoe did it in a way that makes the reader root for the character even when we know she might not be making the most moral decisions.
The supporting character, the Prosper family, while while developed and interesting lacked any sort of characteristic that formed an emotional attachment with me. I obviously liked Ivo but I wish I knew more about him before the First Night. I didn’t Miles, but was I being too rash because, again, it’s only one night? That’s how I felt about all of the other characters truly. In the end even Coco I wasn’t attached to. Sure, I wanted the best for her but beyond that I really didn’t care. Perhaps it’s because I think that the Prosper family is just toxic and should stay far away from Mae like I’m protecting her in my head? I don’t quite know.
This story is based on Shakespeare’s Tempest so if you know and enjoy that story you will find yourself lost in this one, with some similarities to Tempest but with enough twists to make it it’s own work. It was action packed, especially the last about third of the story. The beginning laid the scene for lots of mystery and questions to be posed.
Overall it was a fun story and I LOVED the very end, it leaves the world open for the reader to imagine a little last piece of happiness but the book seemed chaotic at times as well as overwhelming in the span of one evening.
Rating: 3.75/5
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