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jasper_is_atypical's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Honestly was very disappointing. For characters that were supposed to be smart, they did a lot of stupid shit (fair in some circumstances, slightly mind-boggling in others.) It felt like most of what they did was so the plot could go the way the author wanted it to and not because it made much sense. Felt cramped and not at all exciting like promised. Instead of rooting for the main romance I was rooting for Esme to leave Sybil and their frankly unhealthy relationship behind. She is obviously uncomfortable and unhappy, only going along because she cares about Sybil and feels an obligation to protect her. Now I don't really see this as a spoiler, but I'll hide it anyways...
The reason they need to do the job is because they are poor and behind on rent. The only reason they are behind is because Sybil, who came from a rich background, gets too bored at her jobs to keep them for long. Literally stated.
For this reason and for the way she treats Esme as a whole Sybil is extremely unlikable and comes off as snobbish and uncaring about others. She chases her own excitement at Esme's cost, which is made even more appalling by the fact that Esme took her in off the streets and is doing everything in her power to take care of her as a charity case. Just. No.
I wanted this to be good so bad. The idea of a heist in fae with a sapphic romance sounds wonderful, but the execution left me wanting.
For this reason and for the way she treats Esme as a whole Sybil is extremely unlikable and comes off as snobbish and uncaring about others. She chases her own excitement at Esme's cost, which is made even more appalling by the fact that Esme took her in off the streets and is doing everything in her power to take care of her as a charity case. Just. No.
I wanted this to be good so bad. The idea of a heist in fae with a sapphic romance sounds wonderful, but the execution left me wanting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Toxic friendship, Classism, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, and Abandonment
Moderate: Cursing, Self harm, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, and Death of parent
princegene95's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse, Death of parent, and Confinement
yuri_rum_raisin's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Death of parent
grownmoss's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Death of parent
ezwolf's review against another edition
My first problem is that I don’t like Sybil. Just something about her character has rubbed me the wrong way.
That combined with the fact that I’ve felt just…bored? I’m not invested in either girl or their relationship and I’ve finally go to the explanation of their heist and I don’t really care if I find out what happens or not. So I’m going to stop.
Maybe I’ll return to this someday. I really wish I liked it enough to continue, the cover is gorgeous and I was really excited to read it.
That combined with the fact that I’ve felt just…bored? I’m not invested in either girl or their relationship and I’ve finally go to the explanation of their heist and I don’t really care if I find out what happens or not. So I’m going to stop.
Maybe I’ll return to this someday. I really wish I liked it enough to continue, the cover is gorgeous and I was really excited to read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Grief and Classism
eleanor029's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This was a very sweet and entertaining read. I know an absinthe fairy in my life (though she is not Fae), so I was immediately intrigued.
The story was a bit more geared towards teens than I would've liked, which came through in how young Sybil and Esme seemed through their dialogue.
Still, I will now carry the beautiful images and places from this story in my mind, which is lovely.
The story was a bit more geared towards teens than I would've liked, which came through in how young Sybil and Esme seemed through their dialogue.
Still, I will now carry the beautiful images and places from this story in my mind, which is lovely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
Moderate: Police brutality, Self harm, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Drug use
Minor: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Violence
cozyscones's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism and Alcohol
Moderate: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
Minor: Confinement
scarlettereads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨✨ 3.75 stars
Thank you to Jamie Pacton, Peachtree Teen, and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Jamie Pacton, Peachtree Teen, and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
"A willow, a word, a slip into the night. Your blood is a map to find your way home, little spite . . ."
The Absinthe Underground follows the story of Sybil Clarion—an adventurous seventeen year old who left her life of luxury to find the freedom she'd never had under her father's care—and Esme Rimbaud—a part-time waitress and mother of many cats, who's content to spend her free time tinkering with the cogs and gears of clocks—as they struggle to make ends meet in the busy city of Severon.
Roommates who share a tiny attic apartment in a clock tower, Sybil and Esme could not be more different. Sybil longs to sample every decadence the Belle Époque has to offer, where as all Esme wants is to have a quiet, cozy life. The one thing the girls do have in common is that they're both secretly, hopelessly in love with one another. And neither girl wants to risk telling the other their feelings in case they don't reciprocate, thus ruining their friendship. Talk about sapphic drama!
Sybil can't commit to job for long without getting bored, so when rent is due she plans to do what she does best to make a quick buck: steal rare posters from around Severon and sell them off to collectors who are willing to pay a hefty price. But Esme, who wants nothing more than to protect the girl she's in love with from herself, insists on tagging along on this particular night. Poster stealing isn't safe for anyone, and Esme is not about to let her best friend get into more trouble.
After a successful night of poster stealing, the girls take their haul to one of Severon's biggest collectors, and just as they're about to make a deal on a new poster for The Absinthe Underground, one of Severon's most exclusive clubs, the club's enchanting owner Maeve waltzes in. Rather than reprimand them, Maeve offers the girls a job thieving for her—the reward enough money for the girls to live comfortably for the rest of their lives without having to work or steal ever again. All they have to do is meet Maeve at the club later than night to hash out the details.
The Absinthe Underground is a club beyond Sybil and Esme's wildest dreams. Glamour all but drips from the marbled walls, floor, and opera boxes. People of all genders and orientations waltz and kiss, women in fabulous dresses perform on stage for all to enjoy (think Moulin Rouge), and everybody drinks to their hearts content.
Syb and Ez, being too poor to afford suitable garments for such a venue, are whisked away to Maeve's private dressing room to choose outfits from her personal collection, and once they're appropriately attired the woman of the hour appears to ply them with the famed Green Fairy drink that the establishment is named for before divesting her plans for the girls. Before getting into the details Maeve tells the girls some truths about their world that they might not be ready to hear or believe: not only is the world of Fae real, but Maeve herself is a faerie—a green faerie—who is stuck in the human world, and can only return home to Fae if Sybil and Esme steal Queen Mab's crown jewels and bring them to Maeve, and they have to do it on the equinox, which is in two days. All they need to complete the task are a few special items—one of which is the key Sybil wears around her neck, which she's never told Esme the origins of. Curious.
Though something about Maeve seems a little off, especially after she revealed her true appearance to the girls, Sybil and Esme are short on rent and short on time to come up with the money. This job for Maeve is their best chance not only making rent but a better life in full. They're not really in any position to turn it down. And so their adventure begins.
While The Absinthe Underground is well written, imaginative, cozy, and dazzling, and while the Pacton's writing is atmospheric,—whether the girls are in the clock tower, hiding in the collector's wardrobe, at Chloe's cottage, trying to survive Lucien's trap ridden house, in Queen Mab's palace or at The Absinthe Underground itself—the highlight of the book for me was definitely the relationship between Esme and Sybil. Despite Sybil knowing everything there is to know about Esme, Esme knows little of Sybil's life before they met each other, yet she still trusts and loves Sybil completely. The girls' love for each other is so sincere and pure that it's truly lovely to read.
Pacton perfectly encapsulates the very special relationship between two sapphic teens that toes the line between between best friends and something more. She writes yearning so wonderfully that it almost felt like Sybil and Esme invented yearning themselves. If yearning were a paid job the girls wouldn't have had to take Maeve's job. They would have been out of that shabby apartment within a week of meeting.
The Absinthe Underground is incredibly romantic and made my heart flutter just reading about Sybil and Esme's feeling for each other. It's a testament to the love between women throughout history.
I hope that in any further books Ez and Syb get to live the life they planned together, full of painting, reading, drinking tea, sharing pastries, snuggly kitties and have adventures when the time is right. And I hope that they go back to Fae to bring Chloe back to the human world.
"What do you want to do tonight?" Esme asked, looking at Sybil. "Perhaps find an adventure somewhere in the city?"
Sybil took a long sip of her tea and gripped the key around her neck. "You know," she said, looking around their apartment. A smile flitter across her lips. "I think I've had enough adventure at least for a little while. Can we stay in tonight?"
Esme raised her teacup and clicked it against Sybil's. "I'd like nothing better."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Abandonment and Alcoholism
Minor: Child abuse and Death of parent
heytherekaity's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Grief
kimschouwenaar's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eArc in exchange for an honest review.
In The Absinthe Underground, Jamie Pacton combines historical France with magic and queer culture. It follows best friends Sybil and Esme who are close to admitting to each other they want to be more than friends. Sybil is a 'professional' thief and Esme a server and parttime clock repairer, but they have trouble paying rent and Sybil coaxes Esme into helping her steal posters to sell to collectors. As they are selling a stolen poster, they meet Maeve, who happens to be the person on the mentioned poster and owner of the club in Severon named The Absinthe Underground. But Maeve is not who she seems; she is an exiled Fae and needs Sybil and Esme to steal the Crown Jewels from faerie.
Pacton has a really compelling writing style, approachable for people of all ages. With regards to the land of the Fae, it doesn't do anything new and reminded me a lot of The Cruel Prince, but that is okay. I enjoyed their time in the land of faerie. I did find the world building lacking, mainly of Severon, which is where the majority of the story takes place. Pacton added some notes in the back of the book, but I would have loved to see this covered within the story.
Usually, I am a fan of the friends-to-lovers trope (controversial opinion, I am aware). It's something about the mutual pining and the angst in not knowing if the other will ever return their feelings. The mutual pining is there, but it is not as believable as I hoped it would be. Esme would say something that clearly insinuates she has romantic feelings for Sybil, which Sybil understands and then kind of forgets about. The one aspect I loved about this queer romance is that it entirely skips the coming out phase. So many queer stories linger there, and there is a lack of wholesome romances that look further than the initial oh gods, I am gay. The Absinthe Underground eludes this awkward part and immediately dives into the romance aspect queer people deserve just as much as straight people.
Generally speaking, I enjoyed reading the book. I expected more, but that by no means implies I did not like it. It comes out February 6!
In The Absinthe Underground, Jamie Pacton combines historical France with magic and queer culture. It follows best friends Sybil and Esme who are close to admitting to each other they want to be more than friends. Sybil is a 'professional' thief and Esme a server and parttime clock repairer, but they have trouble paying rent and Sybil coaxes Esme into helping her steal posters to sell to collectors. As they are selling a stolen poster, they meet Maeve, who happens to be the person on the mentioned poster and owner of the club in Severon named The Absinthe Underground. But Maeve is not who she seems; she is an exiled Fae and needs Sybil and Esme to steal the Crown Jewels from faerie.
Pacton has a really compelling writing style, approachable for people of all ages. With regards to the land of the Fae, it doesn't do anything new and reminded me a lot of The Cruel Prince, but that is okay. I enjoyed their time in the land of faerie. I did find the world building lacking, mainly of Severon, which is where the majority of the story takes place. Pacton added some notes in the back of the book, but I would have loved to see this covered within the story.
Usually, I am a fan of the friends-to-lovers trope (controversial opinion, I am aware). It's something about the mutual pining and the angst in not knowing if the other will ever return their feelings. The mutual pining is there, but it is not as believable as I hoped it would be. Esme would say something that clearly insinuates she has romantic feelings for Sybil, which Sybil understands and then kind of forgets about. The one aspect I loved about this queer romance is that it entirely skips the coming out phase. So many queer stories linger there, and there is a lack of wholesome romances that look further than the initial oh gods, I am gay. The Absinthe Underground eludes this awkward part and immediately dives into the romance aspect queer people deserve just as much as straight people.
Generally speaking, I enjoyed reading the book. I expected more, but that by no means implies I did not like it. It comes out February 6!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail