Review: The Vermilion Emporium

Title: The Vermilion Emporium
Author: Jamie Pacton
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Publisher: Peachtree Teen
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: November 22, 2022
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

The heart-wrenching story of The Radium Girls meets the enchanting world of Howl’s Moving Castle. Jamie Pacton’s fantasy debut is a story of timeless love and deadly consequences.

It was a day for finding things . . . 
  
On the morning Twain, a lonely boy with a knack for danger, discovers a strand of starlight on the cliffs outside Severon, a mysterious curiosity shop appears in town. Meanwhile, Quinta, the ordinary daughter of an extraordinary circus performer, chases rumors of the shop, The Vermilion Emporium, desperate for a way to live up to her mother’s magical legacy. 
  
When Quinta meets Twain outside the Emporium, two things happen: One, Quinta starts to fall for this starlight boy, who uses his charm to hide his scars. Two, they enter the store and discover a book that teaches them how to weave starlight into lace. 
  
Soon, their lace catches the eye of the Casorina, the ruler of Severon. She commissions Quinta and Twain to make her a starlight dress and will reward them handsomely enough to make their dreams come true. However, they can’t sew a dress without more material, and the secret to starlight’s origins has been lost for centuries. As Quinta and Twain search the Emporium for answers, though, they discover the secret might not have been lost—but destroyed. And likely, for good reason.

Review:

On the morning that The Vermilion Emporium appeared, Twain found a strand of starlight. While searching for the shop, Quinta finds Twain waiting outside of it. They enter it together and discover the secrets of how to weave the starlight into lace. However, no one knows how to find more starlight. They take on a job to create a starlight gown for the ruler of Severon, even though it seems like an impossible task. Quinta and Twain have to search for the way to find starlight, but it could have deadly consequences. 

This was a fabulous fantasy debut! Quinta and Twain were lovable characters who had overcome many struggles in their young lives. There was a lot of mystery that kept me guessing, but everything was explained at the end. I loved the way everything came together at the end. 

I thought the ending would be sad with the way it was going, but there was a happy ending. This story was inspired by The Radium Girls, which I didn’t know anything about before reading this one, but is a heartbreaking story. I was happy with how this story ended though. 

I highly recommend The Vermilion Emporium!

Thank you Peachtree Teen for providing a digital copy of this book.

What to read next:

Have you read The Vermilion Emporium? What did you think of it?