Autumn has arrived with the changing of the leaves, colder days and darker nights that is perfect for cosying up with a book and diving straight into another adventure. September has been a month of daring archaeological mishaps across Rome with a 1930s explorer who turned to stone only to wake up in the 21st century, a historical romance with giant squids and a coven of witches, and finished off with the sound of sleigh bells as Christmas comes early. I’m very close to achieving my reading goal for 2024, this year I aimed to read 40 books and this month marks 33 books. Once again, thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing an ARC of some this month’s reads in exchange for an honest review. *This post may contain spoilers*
Review
Hex and Hexability by Kate Johnson follows Lady Tiffany in Regency London where chalk drawings dance on the walls and giant squids emerge in the Thames. When the dashing and untrained in Regency etiquette of the Ton, Santiago inherits the title of Duke he must find a way to integrate into society, protect his ships from destruction and not get hexed by witches.
I loved the mix of historical fiction with fantasy and is very reminiscent of Bridgerton Season 1 with the Duke and Daphne. Santiago was a really interesting character with a complicated back story and I enjoyed the scenes where he tries to integrate into polite society that is contrasted by him brawling or at the docks. In contrast, I thought Tiffany was forgettable and often created drama out of nothing such as the conflict with Santiago in the tower. I didn’t feel her backstory or character was fleshed out as much as Santiago. The romance between Tiffany and Santiago lacked chemistry.
At times, I was confused with the fantasy world building and how magic and witch related things worked. It was often brushed over how Tiffany controlled her powers when she couldn’t at the beginning of the book. I really enjoyed Aunt Esme and Billy and the other cast of side characters that were well developed. In terms of plot, there were some really fun and well thought out scenes such as the giant squid in the Thames and reanimating the statue of Father Thames, but that appeared to fall to the side line quite quickly and then dragged back to the forefront at the end. I would have liked more of a mystery of Santiago, Tiffany and Esme actually investigating this plot. There were several threads of plots that never really entwined as much as I hoped. The writing was sometimes a little confusing with POV jumps starting with dialogue or without much description to ease the reader into the scene. This is also the case with the pacing in parts that has no real direction in terms of plot.
Overall, it was fun and light read with a dash of fantasy and included all the historical elements that helped build the story and characters.
Us in Ruins by Rachel Moore is a YA adventure that follows Margot Rhodes on a quest to discover a vase that many believe is just a myth and fruitless in its search. However, Margot has a secret to finding the vase – the journal from 1932 by Van Keane, who according to his findings discovered the vase before tragically vanishing. With his notes in hand, a school trip to Pompeii and a lot of luck Margot finds more than she bargains for… the man who isn’t quite like his words portray.
I adore the cover for this book and knew I wanted to read Us in Ruins when I saw the cover reveal on Instagram. There is something so nostalgic in these types of simple covers and after reading the book the cover echoes an important and emotional scene. I think this book will be enjoyed by the middle range of young adults rather than on the older side / crossover. Margot is immature and makes irrational decisions and in some places is unbelievable given her age, so I think ageing her up to be around 17 or 18 would have helped give the story more freedom, especially as she just leaves on a quest away from her school group and supervisor, which is implausible. Margot and Van avoid arrest on multiple occasions despite the mass damage they create in public, museums and historical sites. The writing style was easy to read with short chapters but felt too structured and lost that sense of mystery and impending danger. When Margot meets Van the story picks up and I enjoyed the tension between Van’s focus on finding the shards of vase to discover the gold he was hunting all those years ago, and then Margot’s need to prove herself. I would have liked a chapter from Van’s perspective to break up Margot’s narrative. There were moments were Margot is over sensitive and has emotional scenes but this was too often and lost meaning or impact. But I think the author carefully constructed Margot’s emotions to feel relatable.
The villain was predictable but also unexpected, I thought Dr Hunt would be devious and want the vase for herself so I was very surprised at Astrid’s backstory and her intent to reinvigorate her family’s name and legacy as archaeologists. I did feel her evil plan at the end fell flat and she was easily redeemed without any punishment for planning to turn either Van or Margot to stone. Overall, an enjoyable read that young adults will really connect with and maybe I wasn’t the target audience. I would love to read this as an adult book that dives deeper behind the characters. I love reading any book that combines the fantasy and adventure of The Mummy with Italy – a perfect match.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Finally, The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore (pub date 10 oct). When Kira North buys a run down Christmas Tree Farm she is determined to do something on her own for once without any help. But when Jeanie’s brother, Bennett Ellis visits for Christmas, he is incapable of not offering to help Kira get her business functioning and fix her boiler! From the moment these two meet there is friction between Kira’s grumpy persona and Ben’s cheeriness and a friendship begins to unfold. Despite their best efforts to avoid each other and their growing attraction, fate has other plans and a snow storm brings their feelings for each other to the surface.
This series just keeps getting better and better! It has all the cosy vibes of a Christmas romance that makes a light-hearted read. I love the exploration of Dream Harbour that each book expands on and how characters from previous books are included like Jeanie, Logan, Noah and Hazel, etc. The story is simple with a growing attraction between Bennett and Kira, but the book delivers all the elements that I love in romance books. The setting of the Christmas Tree Farm was fun and the festival creates the perfect atmosphere for these characters to fall in love. The mystery of what was buried on the farm grounds could have been entwined more within the main story and the novel’s conflict could have had more impact. This being said I still enjoyed reading and was an easy read that kept me hooked all the way through. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.
Read my full book Review of The Pumpkin Spice Cafe, The Cinnamon Bun Book Store, and, The Christmas Tree Farm.
Final thoughts
September was a month of cosy reads that are perfect to escape from the dreary autumn weather from hunting giant squids, saving a run down Christmas tree farm and discovering a man turned to stone from 1930. Romance is always at the heart of my reads combined with a dash of adventure and September has certainly taken me on a roller coaster of emotions.
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Amy is a writer and reviewer and is currently querying literary agents with her Pirates of the Caribbean X Bridgerton debut Adult fantasy novel. For more content click here to read book reviews, short stories and updates on Amy’s writing journey.
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