Nightcurse by Emma Hinds

The quick cut: A teen stuck at 17 years old as a revenant finds his infinite days changed when a new revenant arrives, along with plenty of chaos by a shapeshifter. 

A real review: 

Thank you to Wednesday Books for providing the arc for an honest review. 

 Many people dream about the possibility of living forever. No rush to accomplish anything. No worries about your heart giving out or a disease killing you. Just plenty of time to focus on what makes them happy and doing what it takes to slowly get to those goals. For Emrys, that dream is not as simple as it looks when you're living it stuck at 17 years old. 

 Emrys has been 17 years old for 157 years now. He died and came back as a revenant also known as nightcursed. He'll never be old enough to drink or smoke. Not old enough to do anything accomplished. All he's allowed to do is work as a volunteer as an undead librarian at the NeverEnd library. When a new revenant arrives, Emrys hopes to use the opportunity to elevate his status and convince them to let him teach the new revenant. Instead, his enemy Aubrey Vale shows up and takes the role - giving Emrys a chance to collaborate if he agrees to help Aubrey with his research. Will their partnership work out and get everyone what they wanted? Or lead to chaos and confusion instead? 

 Oh Emrys. I feel for him because I would also hate to be stuck at 17 years old. All the best moments of my life happened AFTER that age. Dying before you've had a chance to be an adult, live on your own, and decide your own path definitively sucks. He's been trying to find a way to elevate himself ever since he died and came back for a reason. 

 Emrys goes on a journey around his sexuality and it's enlightening to see him slowly figure out exactly how he connects with others. Connecting with other people is something I struggle with in a very different way from Emrys but seeing him go through his own version of that made me relate to him. Feeling like you're missing some element within yourself can make you feel less than a lot. If you've also struggled with feelings like that about yourself, you'll connect with Emrys too. 

 While I enjoyed the worldbuilding and the characters, I found myself zoning out a lot in the end. It just didn't feel as satisfying to me as I anticipated.

 A fun, cute, cozy feeling fantasy. 

My rating: 3.75 out of 5