Title: By The Orchid and The Owl
Author: Mariah Montoya
Published: February 24, 2026
Format: Audiobook ARC
My Rating: 3.5 stars/5
Synopsis: On the island of Eshol, a ruling council gifts magic to all its citizens — whether they want it or not.
Eighteen-year-old Rayna Drey should be excited for her Branding, when the island’s Good Council will infuse her blood with one of five sanctioned magics: the ability to wield elements, summon objects, shift forms, talk to wildlife, or manipulate minds. The Good Council is good. The Branding doesn’t hurt. And the institution she must attend afterward, to learn how to control her new gift, is only a little dangerous.
Or, at least, that’s what Rayna has always heard. As soon as she arrives at the Esholian Institute, however, a peer-pressured dare makes her explode with a power as deadly as it is forbidden. Worse yet, the only one who can teach her how to hide it from the Good Council is Coen Steeler, a much-too-handsome fifth-year who can manipulate minds as easily as he breathes. He alone understands Rayna’s forbidden power…because he has the same one.
With their secret in each other’s hands, Rayna soon uncovers other dark secrets that threaten the very foundation of the island itself. And the worst of them? If the Good Council finds out what lurks in her and Coen’s blood, they’ll both face a fate beyond obedience — and a punishment worse than death.
My thoughts from the Vault
Disclaimer: I received an audiobook ARC of this book. I chose to review it and this in no way impacts my opinion of it.
I was very excited to be granted an audiobook copy of By The Orchid and The Owl on Netgalley and so I started listening to it right away. I thought the narrator of this book was pretty good but she has a very average “plain Jane” voice which could be boring to some however, she is very easily understood.
While I enjoyed this novel, it did lack that very special something to really hook me and make me LOVE it. I will say that it did get quite good at the end and I am excited to read book two which will hopefully help push me over the edge to love this series.
I disliked the insta-lust that occurs in this novel and so if you also can’t stand that, this might be hard for you to get into. But the magic system is pretty cool and there’s a good mystery to it so if you can ignore the instant love, you might enjoy this novel.
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