‘Quicksilver’ by Callie Hart: The Most Overrated Big-Name Fantasy Read

Quicksilver by Callie Hart is the first book in the Fae & Alchemy romantasy series revolving around FMC Saeris Fane. A human girl, Saeris finds herself transported to a Fae realm, similarly to other popular fantasy series such as Sarah J. Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses. Saeris must navigate the ongoing conflicts of war while learning about her own magical powers as an Alchemist.

Before picking up this book, I had extremely high hopes. Many of my friends with similar taste in literature spoke highly of it and the reviews online generally backed this up. All I knew going into the series was that it was enemies-to-lovers and took place in a poverty-stricken desert. This desert, Zilvaren, was the setting of the novel throughout the first few chapters and I was hooked. I loved the idea of a fantasy novel taking place in a desert. It was so fresh and unique compared to most fantasy worlds. We learn a bit about how Saeris grew up and we see her relationship with her brother Hayden and how important he is to her. We also meet Carrion Swift who has been previously involved with Saeris.

After getting caught stealing from a guard, Saeris is taken to Queen Madra’s palace. She is escorted by the captain of Madra’s guards, Harron, and I felt more chemistry between him and Saeris than I did with any other pairing throughout the story. During her time in Madra’s palace, Saeris almost dies but is saved by what she describes as Death.

“Blackness crept in, rolling before my eyes like a midnight fog. Only it wasn’t a fog. It was something else. It was… Death. The bastard had come to claim me in person. Emerging from the silver, the huge figure rose up from the pool as if ascending from the very depths of hell itself,” (Hart, 65).

This was the point where things started going downhill for me. The man she described as Death turns out to be her love interest, Kingfisher. He escorts her to Yvelia, a snowy Fae realm, where she recovers from her injuries. Saeris is also introduced to Kingfisher’s half-sister Everlayne and close friend Renfis. Renfis becomes more of a significant part of the story than Everlayne does, which is a shame. There was so much potential for a powerful female friendship, but Everlayne is not mentioned much after Saeris begins to get settled in Yvelia until Everlayne is taken hostage and needs saving. The only other female characters we see somewhat frequently are Danya, a warrior who is written as hostile, aggressive, and resentful, and Te Léna, a healer who Saeris views as a threat to her relationship with Kingfisher even though she has shown no interest in him.

While Saeris can definitely hold her own in a fight, she accepts disrespect from the male characters, specifically Kingfisher, and does not see it as such. She continues falling for and being aroused by him.

“‘Pants and a shirt,’ I say dryly. ‘And a pair of boots with really good soles. Do you have any idea what those boots cost me?’ ‘Let me guess. Your virginity.’ ‘Fuck you, Fisher.’ ‘Sure.’ He smirked. ‘But I’m afraid I don’t have any new boots to trade you for your time.’” (Hart, 169).

“‘Maybe the issue is that you asked me a question about my cock like a hungry little bitch in heat and didn’t ask me something that mattered.’ Gods, but he kept surprising me… ‘Fuck—you—’ ‘There you go again. Hungry, needy little bitch in heat, begging to be fucked…’ he taunted. "‘Let. Go!’” (Hart, 148).

Hart’s depiction of female characters, the way male characters treat them, and the relationships between women unfortunately mirror the internalized misogyny that is seen throughout J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter.

Another important character besides Everlayne who I wish we saw more of was Hayden. In the beginning of the novel, he was the most important thing to Saeris. Their parents both passed away prior to the events of the story, and Hayden is the only living relative she has left. When Saeris first gets to Yvelia, all she cares about is making sure Hayden is alive and getting him back, whether that means her going back to Zilvaren to him or bringing him to the Fae realm. But over time, Saeris thinks of him less and less, until she decides she wants to stay with Kingfisher instead of going back for Hayden. This was extremely disappointing for two reasons. For one, I wanted to see more worldbuilding with Zilvaren, but also, his importance was stressed so much in the beginning of the book for their relationship dynamic to just be discarded.

Saeris’s relationship with Kingfisher escalated far too quickly to truly be considered an enemies-to-lovers. Despite this novel being the first of an unfinished series and having 627 pages in Quicksilver alone, Saeris and Kingfisher shared their first kiss on page 179. I was not sold on their chemistry and I can’t say I love their relationship. The potential was there had it been more of a slow burn and had we seen more character development from both of them, specifically Kingfisher. Initially depicted as dangerous, intense, and intimidating, he opens up far too soon and far too easily to Saeris. This made these moments where he lets his walls down seem fake and uninteresting, and I often found myself rolling my eyes. A Court of Thorns and Roses’s Rhysand is who Kingfisher thinks he is. (He’s not.)

On the opposite end, I will say that Carrion was a positive surprise for me. I didn’t care for him much at first, but he turned out to be a more prevalent character than I was expecting. He was a breath of fresh air compared to some of the other characters and he brought a lot of humor which I appreciated.

Overall, the writing seemed sloppy and a bit awkward. The magic system was not thought out and it seemed as though their magic had no limits as long as it helped the plot move along. Hart’s writing gave the impression of someone who learned all the key elements of a fantasy novel from TikTok and threw them together without much planning. I feel her writing style would be more suited to an audience of Emily Henry readers versus those of Sarah J. Maas. However, the premise of Quicksilver is interesting. The idea for the plot, the world, and the relationships are all there, but unfortunately the execution fell short. Had this novel gone through a few more rewrites, I think it could have been great.

*I have not yet read the sequel, Brimstone, so this review is based on my thoughts on Quicksilver alone.