Blogtober | Review: Magic for Liars (#gifted)

Magic for Liars
Sarah Gailey
⭐⭐⭐⭐
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UK Publisher | Tor Books
UK Release Date | July 1st, 2019
Format | Hardback
Page Count | 368
RRP | £19.99
DISCLAIMER: I received this book from the publisher for free. All views and opinions remain my own. 

Ivy Gamble has never wanted to be magic. She is perfectly happy with her life - she has an almost-sustainable career as a private investigator, and an empty apartment, and a slight drinking problem. It's a great life and she doesn't wish she was like her estranged sister, the magically gifted professor Tabitha. 
But when Ivy is hired to investigate the gruesome murder of a faculty member at Tabitha's private academy, the stalwart detective starts to lose herself in the case, the life she could have had, and the answer to the mystery that seems out of her reach.

Content Warning for gore and abortion.
My one-sentence pitch for this book would be: Jessica Jones meets high-school Harry Potter. 
I received this book in a goodie bag at MCM Comic-Con and knew next to nothing about it. I had heard of Sarah Gailey's novella series, had no real interest in it. This one gave me conspiracy vibes, with an electric, neon cover that compelled me to flip open the dust jacket and check out the synopsis with an immediate effect. 
Magic for Liars is hard to pin down a genre on because it's not quite contemporary fantasy, nor does it quite fit the label of a gritty noir thriller and then throw in a high-school setting? The combination of these things don't work in my mind, yet, Gailey balances a combination of both with great effect. 
I really enjoyed the push and pull of Ivy's character as she is forced to confront the aftermath of her mother's death and the way she and her twin were caused to separate. Personally, I greatly identified with the relationship between Ivy and Tabitha. Especially in the scenes where both had to be emotionally vulnerable and break down this wall they had both built.  It was incredibly raw and realistic in its portrayal of the breakdown of a family relationship.