Did Someone Say: Shadow Daddy?

Quicksilver

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Do not touch the sword. Do not turn the key. Do not open the gate.

Twenty-four-year-old Saeris Fane is good at keeping secrets. No one knows about the strange powers she possesses, or the fact that she has been picking pockets and stealing from the Undying Queen’s reservoirs for as long as she can remember. In the land of the unforgiving desert, there isn’t much a girl wouldn’t do for a glass of water. But a secret is like a knot. Sooner or later, it is bound to come undone.

When Saeris comes face-to-face with Death himself, she inadvertently reopens a gateway between realms and is transported to a land of ice and snow. The Fae have always been the stuff of myth, of legend, of nightmares…but it turns out they’re real, and Saeris has landed right in the middle of a centuries-long conflict that might just get her killed.

The first of her kind to tread the frozen mountains of Yvelia in over a thousand years, Saeris mistakenly binds herself to Kingfisher, a handsome Fae warrior, who has secrets and nefarious agendas of his own. He will use her Alchemist’s magic to protect his people, no matter what it costs him… or her. Death has a name. It is Kingfisher of the Ajun Gate. His past is murky. His attitude stinks. And he’s the only way Saeris is going to make it home.

Quicksilver is the kind of story that doesn’t just pull you in. It drags you through all the emotions. This book had me hooked from the first chapter to the last. Every twist hit, every emotional beat landed, and every character felt like I would fight a horde of feeders for them. After deep diving through Yvelia chapter by chapter, screaming, theorizing, and losing my mind in the best possible way, it’s no surprise that Quicksilver earned perfect 10s across the board. This CAWPILE review is the culmination of that journey. This review is a love letter to a story that checks all the boxes.

Characters 10/10

Saeris, Fisher, Carrion, Lorreth, Renfis, the secondary characters, even the villains — every single one of them has taken up permanent residence in my heart. This cast is spectacularly layered, each character carrying emotional wounds that feel raw and lived‑in, each one shaped by choices, trauma, and destiny in ways that make them impossible to forget. Their potential futures feel just as compelling as their pasts, and it’s been a long time since I’ve read a book where I was this deeply invested in discovering where everyone ends up. This is character work at its absolute peak.

Atmosphere (10/10)

The atmosphere in Quicksilver is immersive, cinematic, and original. This story transports you, body and soul, into worlds that feel textured, dangerous, and alive. Callie Hart has an incredible gift for differentiating each realm with its own tone, magic, color palette, and emotional weight. You always know exactly where you are, not because she tells you, but because the air changes, the rules shift, and the characters themselves respond differently to the world around them. Every landscape I came across felt inhabited, purposeful, and distinct.

What makes it even more powerful is how the characters fit into their environments. Fisher, Carrion, Lorreth - they feel like they were carved from the very bones of their worlds. And then there’s Saeris. When she’s thrown into a realm that isn’t hers, she stands out. Her presence disrupts the landscape, challenges the rules, and highlights just how carefully crafted each world truly is.

Writing (10/10)

I truly cannot stop singing Callie Hart’s praises. Where I would describe V.E. Schwab’s writing as lyrical, Hart’s prose is something entirely different. It’s conversational (I don’t even know if that’s really a thing) in the most refreshing way. Her characters speak to each other like real people, with rhythms, pauses, humor, and emotional honesty that feel lived‑in rather than scripted. The writing isn’t overly descriptive, yet somehow she sets the perfect tone every single time. She knows exactly when to be sharp, when to be soft, when to let brutality land, and when to let tenderness breathe. She balances humor with heartbreak, lore with emotion, violence with vulnerability. You don’t simply read this book. You fall straight into it, carried by a voice that feels intimate, immediate, and impossible to pull away from.

Plot (10/10)

This story is a relentless chain of revelations, betrayals, and emotional gut punches (I even cried a couple of times). Every twist land with intention, every secret matters, and the pacing never loosens its grip. The stakes are enormous from the very beginning, and somehow they keep rising until the finale snaps everything into place. I went back and forth on whether to give this category a 9 or a 10. Many of the events were predictable. Instead of feeling annoyed when my predictions came true, I found myself excited, almost proud, because the groundwork had been laid so well. And just when I thought I had the story figured out, it blindsided me with moments I never saw coming. That balance between expectation and surprise is incredibly hard to pull off, and Quicksilver does it beautifully. Add in my soft spot for found family and destined/fated mates tropes, and the emotional resonance of the plot becomes undeniable. In the end, the 10 was well earned.

Intrigue (10/10)

I was theorizing nonstop. Every single chapter deepened the mystery, expanded the lore, or shattered something I thought I understood. This book had me in a chokehold! At one point, I was genuinely annoyed that I needed food and sleep because it meant closing the book. Quicksilver keeps you hungry for answers, dangling revelations just out of reach, and rewarding every ounce of attention you give it.

Logic (10/10)

This is one of the reasons I love fantasy so much. The worlds are built entirely in the author’s mind, which means anything can happen, but the moment something doesn’t make sense, the spell breaks. In Quicksilver, the internal logic is absolutely airtight. The magic system, the politics, the religion, the history - everything connects with deliberate precision. Every rule has weight, every consequence feels earned, and every reveal retroactively strengthens the story rather than contradicting it. You can feel how carefully the world was constructed, how each thread ties into the next, and how the lore supports the emotional and narrative stakes. Nothing is random.

Enjoyment (10/10)

This book consumed me. I screamed, I theorized, I spiraled, I mourned, I cheered, and I immediately wanted more.

Final CAWPILE Score: 10/10 (Masterpiece)

When you look at all the CAWPILE categories together, it becomes clear why Quicksilver earned perfect 10s across the board. The characters are unforgettable, the atmosphere is immersive, the writing is intimate and razor‑sharp, and the plot delivers twist after twist with precision and heart. The intrigue is addictive, the internal logic is seamless, and the sheer enjoyment of reading this book is undeniable. This story consumed me and breaking it down only made me love it more. If you want to experience every gasp, theory, emotional spiral, and revelation right alongside me, the full deep dive -from chapter one to the finale-is waiting for you on the blog. Come fall into Yvelia with me here.

PS: Callie Hart's website is amazing! Check it out here.