Reviews with content warning for Death - Manners and Monsters

I liked this book very much even though it was a book about monsters it was quite a cozy read. I definitely recommend this book and really want to read the other books of this series.

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pages_with_panda's review

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

The premise for this story was…interesting: a face paint used by mostly women ends up almost killing the women in a British town ….”Almost” because they don’t die, they turn into zombies?

Now, no one wants to admit they’re zombies…So they all hide it under veils, gloves, masks, and eat “cauliflower” via secret food delivery company.

It’s set in historical period, with a main character who is constantly telling us that’s she’s destined to be a spinster because she’ll never marry and who dresses up as a man to help her father solve gruesome murders, because no fine lady would ever do such a thing.

The main character was so boring and 2D dimensional and all her dialogue was very “I’m not like all the other vain delicate girls out there and I’m fine being single-“ only for her to be forced into proximity with a man she hates. Oh no.

The forced pairing between the main character and the man who’s rude to everyone was so unbearable.

The story felt kinda slow and was a little confusing. The premise took me such a long time to get over because it seemed so silly, but the way the world was built around it was interesting. It almost felt thought out but the “mystery” really fell flat for me.

It also tried to be humorous but honestly it just came off as annoying.

I won’t be reading the second book.

(Received as an audiobook via Storygraph giveaway.)

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racheyreads's review

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adventurous funny mysterious relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Firstly I would like to thank whatever Deity of Luck I pleased to win a copy of this book in Audio from the Storygraph give-aways.

This book was simply divine! From start to finish I enjoyed the story, the characters and the writing. The narrator was fabulous and her telling of the story was wonderful.

It was also very easy to listen to and I found myself so relaxed when it was playing, it was hardly a challenge at all to want to keep going. The ending perfectly set up the series for ongoing books and I'm certain I'll be purchasing all of them in Audio form as soon as I've finished writing this review.

Personally I cannot find any fault with this Audiobook and I am thoroughly looking forward to reading the rest of Hannah's adventures.

Actually... one fault... Hannah didn't get her puppy!!

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danif1979_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This story is set in England, 1816. Hannah Miles lives with her parents. Her father being a well known surgeon and her mother England’s most powerful mage.

But England isn’t the only country with mages. During the war with France a French mage came up with a terrible curse to (try and) turn the war in their favor.

A powder was being shipped and was meant for most of the upperclass. Luckily this was discovered, but not completely in time…

The people who got infected with it died. But… not really! Only their hearts stopped beating. So they became the walking dead aka the Afflicted.

Sadly Hanna’s mother is one of them. Hannah is helping her parents with research to find a way to reverse the curse, using both science & magic.

The Afflicted need a special diet, to stay “alive”, called pickled cauliflower. Which actually is a nickname for brains.

But then people get murdered and their brains are missing… is there a murderous Afflicted on the loose?

Together with the Viscount Wycliff she starts an investigation to find the killer, before more innocent people turn up dead…

Really enjoyed this historical fiction! I mean… Zombies & ladies? Who could resist that combination? This is apparently the first book of a series and I feel a little love story will be on the side… Love it!

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clarabooksit's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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