Review: The Familiars by Adam Jay Epstein & Andrew Jacobson

Title: The Familiars
Series: The Familars #1
Authors: Adam Jay Epstein & Andrew Jacobson
Available: Now
Reading Level: Middle Grade (Adults & teens will love it too!)


5 out of 5 Stars








Description from Goodreads:


After three young wizard apprentices are kidnapped by the evil queen of a distant land, it is up to their familiars, their magical animal companions -- a street smart alley cat, a precocious blue jay, and a bumbling tree frog -- to save them.


My thoughts:


Aldwyn the alley cat, finds himself hiding in a shop of wizard’s familiars while trying to escape the bounty hunter chasing him. Much to his surprise he is chosen by young wizard Jack to be his familiar. He is taken to Jack’s home, where he meets two other young wizards along with their familiars. A blue jay named Skylar, and a tree frog named Gilbert. When their loyals are captured, it is up to the three animals to rescue them. 


This book was so much fun! A fabulous cast of characters. I think Gilbert might be my favorite. We have a tree frog who visits us in our back yard who I’m now calling Gilbert. Unfortunately, I don’t think he has the ability to receive puddle visions. Yes, puddle visions. That is just a taste of the magical goodness this book contains. Aldwyn was so noble, and I couldnt help but to think of my own kitty who had the misfortune of losing a corner of his ear when he decided to sneak out a few months ago. Aldwyn relied heavily on the street smarts he had gained growing up as an orphan. Much to his surprise life as an alley cat turned out to be an advantage with obstacles they faced on their journey. Know it all, Skylar the blue jay, rounds out the trio nicely. Her knowledge and common sense helps to keep them out of trouble. The places the characters visit, and the dangers they encountered were so imaginative. The bad guys were beyond creative, and like nothing I’ve seen in other novels. This is fantasy done right!


Fans of magic and fantasy will fall in love with this book. I know I did. Even my husband who isn’t a reader couldn’t help but show an interest in this one. The cover, in all it’s adorableness, definitely attracts attention. An inventive and captivating read. I’d highly recommend The Familiars to fantasy lovers of all ages! 

Adam & Andrew on the web:

Website | Blog | Twitter

Source: Publisher

Guest Post: Adam Jay Epstein & Andrew Jacobson authors of “The Familiars"

“A Bunch of Random Things We’ve Learned Since Becoming Authors”

ADAM JAY EPSTEIN spent his childhood in Great Neck, New York, while ANDREW JACOBSON grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but the two met in a parking garage out in Los Angeles. They have been writing for film and television together ever since. The Familiars  is their first book.

One day, Adam asked Andrew, “Are you familiar with what a familiar is?” And from that simple question, Vastia was born, a fantastical world filled with the authors’ shared love of animals and magic. They wrote every word, sentence, and page together, sitting opposite each other.

Adam Jay Epstein lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Jane, their daughters, Penny and Olive, and a black-and-white alley cat who hangs out in their backyard. Andrew Jacobson lives with his wife, Ashley, and their dog, Elvis, four traffic lights away.

THE FAMILIARS will be produced for film by Sam Raimi and Sony Animation.

It turns out “The Familiars” is not a YA book like we first thought.

It’s actually an MG book, or middle grade. We didn’t even know there was such a thing. But yes, tween and teen lit are sub-divided into picture books, MG, and YA.

We learned what those Amazon sales rankings actually mean.

And #479,505 is not good.

Naperville, Illinois has a pretty dope hotel.

While on our pre-pub tour we stayed at Naperville’s very own Hotel Arista, an ultra-modern, eco-friendly hotel. The rooms were gorgeous, there was a TV in the bathroom mirror, and there was an incredible restaurant downstairs. It would have been even better if the two of us didn’t have to share that bed (jk).

There is a difference between an MS, a galley, and an ARC.

What that is exactly we still don’t know.

They will let you speak on the airplane intercom if you ask nicely.

At least they will on Southwest Airlines. You can watch Adam doing just this at our blog thefamiliars.blogspot.com.

We learned what “stacked words,” “orphan words,” and “widow words” are in copy editing.

They all have to do with setting the type in the final book so that there isn’t an imbalance on the page. It’s kind of like feng shuing your novel.

You can learn more about “The Familiars” at www.thefamiliars.com

The Familiars Book Trailer:

Meet the authors:

The Familiars releases on September 7th!

Thanks Adam and Andrew for visiting The Fiction Enthusiast! Best of luck with your debut novel!