Book 30 for my 2025 goal of 30 books for the year — I MADE MY GOAL! Now I’ll probably read a couple of additional books by the end of the year to get ahead and prep for my 36 book goal for 2026.

This book I was only able to find available through Amazon.

Back in October, a friend tipped me off at the last minute to the 2025 Charlotte Bookpalooza, a fun party and opportunity for local authors to share and sell their books. I immediately dashed out the door (literally last minute) to the event, and opted to pick up a few titles.

Most of the books were in genres that I don’t usually read, but that’s okay! This was an opportunity for me to support local authors and also step outside of my usual reading conventions, though I still went for books that feature something strange or unusual. The first one I opted to read is By the Hands of Fools (2025), by Grace Mathis.

By the Hands of Fools is a young adult fantasy romance — like I said, not exactly my usual thing, but the premise intrigued me enough to give it a read, and I enjoyed it immensely. It is also a “caper” story, featuring a gang of rogues attempting to pull off a seemingly impossible job.

The book begins by introducing us to Kyra Clearkeep, an apothecary and secret purveyor of poisons as she sneaks into the king’s prison to talk to her incarcerated brother Korin. Kyra has recently lost access to her supplier of raw materials, and Korin is the only one who can provide her information on an alternate source. But their conversation is interrupted by the arrival of other unauthorized personnel: members of The Fools, an infamous gang of rogues, thieves and criminals. The Fools capture Kyra and take her to their leader, Flynn, who demands her help. They need her special skills to accomplish their most dangerous job yet: breaking into the royal palace before the coronation of the new king to overthrow him. The rationale? The previous King Reeve supposedly died of natural causes, by Flynn knows he was murdered by Thorne, the man who plans to usurp the throne. Kyra isn’t given much choice in the matter, though she is promised the freedom of her brother if she agrees to help.

Time is of the essence, and The Fools will have to infiltrate the palace during the coronation ball, when it is swarming with guards on high alert. But there are many factors at play, and the best laid plans never go well…

By the Hands of Fools is a surprisingly long novel — some 460 pages — but it is also fast-paced. The chapters roughly alternate between the perspectives of Kyra and Flynn, and the individual chapters tend to be only a few pages long. This makes the book somewhat ideal as a read-a-couple-of-quick-chapters-before-bed book, but also meant it took me longer to finish because I always ended up reading less than I usually do when reading a book with fewer stopping points! Kyra and Flynn have their own secrets and perspectives on the events as they unfold, and it is fun to see their different reactions to events.

The book jumps into the action pretty much immediately and rarely stops, the momentum carrying it through to the end. There are enough twists and turns along the way to keep the reader entertained, and a wide variety of characters — primarily the different Fools with their different specialties — to make things unpredictable.

This is Mathis’ first book, and I would say it is an excellent first outing! I personally feel like the story could’ve been tightened up a little bit here and there, but it is a small quibble with a tale that I enjoyed a lot.

Mathis has clearly put a lot of thought into her fantasy world, and the book includes a map of the Kingdom of Kaltoa where the adventure is set and its system of magic — yes, magic ends up playing a pivotal role — is well-laid out.

Overall, I enjoyed By the Hands of Fools a lot, and look forward to seeing what else Mathis has in store for us in her writing in the future!