In a world of magic doors to escape your world and scribing spells that can kill, Maeve has quietly lived by a false name and without her parents for almost half of her life. Never staying in one place for very long became a way of survival — if people found out who her father was, she too would be killed. Maeve’s father was a scriptomancer, specially trained in the art of magical messages to be couriered to other worlds. While most believe he unleashed a vine that poisons on contact and decimated most in his society, including himself, Maeve knows her father would not use his magic in dark ways. Her life’s mission is to clear his name, and her path to do so involves becoming a scriptomancer, too. Emily Taylor’s world-building is divine, with descriptive details that enhance the pace. Maeve is wickedly smart, which pairs well with her sarcastically supportive crush of a boy, Tristan. Got readers who say they don’t like fantasy? Give them this!

This book is set in Paris for the debutante ball, La Danse des Débutantes. This ball is only interested high society and elite status individuals; and as the title alludes, the guest list is by invitation only. The only new face to this year’s ball is Piper Woo Collins, a middle-class science whiz who is trying to hold tight to her Columbia acceptance. Piper is put in direct competition with Hollywood legacy Chapin Buckingham – who was born and raised to want for nothing. Only right now, Chapin desperately wants to win “Deb. of the Year” but fears naive Piper may win over the title just by being herself.

This book is full of scheming, back-stabbing, and superficial relationships, but I didn’t find much substance in the writing. There are a number of teens who may enjoy reading it, for the drama, scandal and pop-culture references. I did enjoy the depiction of the relationships between the characters and their parents – these were more complex than the other relationships depicted in the book.

This novel is told from two alternating teenage protagonist voices: Zinnia in 2024; and her birth mother, Tuesday, from 2006.

Immediately after her birth, Zinnia is adopted by a white couple and raised lovingly with all needs and wants provided. Zinnia is smart, loves to read, and is determined to attend Harvard after high school, just like both of her parents; she knows nothing about her birth parents nor has she been very curious about them. This all changes for Zinnia when her best friend gifts her a book that seems to be describing Zinnia’s life story.

Tuesday – upon becoming pregnant knows that she is unable to care for her child in the way she wants to; nor does she have the support of her family – in fact she has the opposite and worries that her mother and the baby’s biological father’s family would cause harm if they were in the baby’s life. She has no choice but to give the baby up for adoption. Tuesday is a writer and has journaled about the details of Zinnia’s birth and circumstances surrounding those decisions. This journal end up in the hands of a writer who eventually steals the story to claim as her own.

Once this story gets into Zinnia’s hands, she begins a quest to find her birth mother.

The characterization of Zinnia and Tuesday is strong; however, the supporting characters lack the substance I wanted to really connect fully with the story. I do appreciate the themes of found family, adoption, and nature vs. nurture that arise. I think teen readers will resonate with the parts of the novel that show the protagonists having to make tough decisions for themselves amidst strong familial opinions – do we do what feels right, or do we do what others think we should?