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brontesauruses's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
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
4.0
Thank you to the publisher and Edelweiss+ for letting me get at this one early in exchange for an honest review!
Ok, so before I start the actual review: please take a minute to look at the cover. It's so pink, I love it. đź’•
Did you look at it? Ok good.
As for the book itself, it's so much fun. It's queer and silly and told in a way that I ended up really enjoying. Our omniscient narrator is a character in their own right: Puck (aka Robin Goodfellow aka Stanley Tucci* in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)), who has been kicked out by Oberon, and now has to find a way to, you know, pay for food. The tone is very chatty. At times it felt like the chattiness was at the expense of pushing the story along, and it took me a couple chapters to get into it (it might even have been worse towards the beginning), but in the end I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much if it had been told differently.
IfPuck Hall wants to write more books like this, I want to read them.
Idk that I have any readalikes per se, but I do think that if you like Emily Wilde you might like this one (and vice versa). Very different flavors of Faerie Nonsense, but yeah. Divine Rivals also maybe.
One quick bit of content warning: the Old Gods are still there causing problems, so there are three whole animal sacrifices in this one, each one more...well-described than the last. Lots of blood.
Also, there was a bit of virulent transphobia that was immediately challenged by the narrative and one of the main characters. OOF, though. Very jarring.
*I'm sure the audiobook narrator is very good, but as I was reading, I couldn't help wishing that they'd gotten my man Stanley in on this.
Ok, so before I start the actual review: please take a minute to look at the cover. It's so pink, I love it. đź’•
Did you look at it? Ok good.
As for the book itself, it's so much fun. It's queer and silly and told in a way that I ended up really enjoying. Our omniscient narrator is a character in their own right: Puck (aka Robin Goodfellow aka Stanley Tucci* in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)), who has been kicked out by Oberon, and now has to find a way to, you know, pay for food. The tone is very chatty. At times it felt like the chattiness was at the expense of pushing the story along, and it took me a couple chapters to get into it (it might even have been worse towards the beginning), but in the end I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much if it had been told differently.
If
Idk that I have any readalikes per se, but I do think that if you like Emily Wilde you might like this one (and vice versa). Very different flavors of Faerie Nonsense, but yeah. Divine Rivals also maybe.
One quick bit of content warning: the Old Gods are still there causing problems, so there are three whole animal sacrifices in this one, each one more...well-described than the last. Lots of blood.
Also, there was a bit of virulent transphobia that was immediately challenged by the narrative and one of the main characters. OOF, though. Very jarring.
*I'm sure the audiobook narrator is very good, but as I was reading, I couldn't help wishing that they'd gotten my man Stanley in on this.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Medical content, Transphobia, and Violence
Minor: Death, Abandonment, Death of parent, Racism, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, and Slavery
karissabubble's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Mortal Follies was a complicated read, I considered DNFing it, but I was intrigued by the story. This was my first time reading one of Alexis Hall’s Books. I was initially excited to read this sapphic romance, filled with curses, fairies, and dieties! I will admit that I had high expectations for Miss Mitchelmore and Lady Georgiana, a supposed murderess.
Overall it was hard for me to stay focused on the romance aspect of the story. The narrator, who is based on Puck from Midsummer Nights Dream, is very invasive, as that’s how they are, being the storyteller and narrator. However they are so into the story that they are distracting (on purpose) and don’t allow you to get into the story and have thoughts of your own. Yes, they are funny and entertaining at times, but at that point they mind as well be the main character. The narrator is too funny for me to take the storytelling seriously, and it made me question how reliable the narrator was, being extremely biased, and considering their constant need for validation from the reader, constantly addressing and calling out the reader. I don’t understand why this character had to be the narrator and not just an active character, we also don’t know why they were charged with this task to begin with.
It is less about Miss Mitchelmore and Lady Georgiana. Instead it was a story about a fairy watching over them for their own source of entertainment and judged critiques.
I did enjoy Lady Georgiana and the naive behavior of Miss Mitchelmore, along with her friend Miss Bickle and cousin Mr.Caesar. However I think a lot of things are lacking especially when this was a dire curse situation and the plot hole’s regarding Mr.Caesar and Tabitha.
I have a 50/50 view of this story, as I like it but I also feel like my enjoyment was overtaken by the narrator, who should honestly just have their own book.
I will probably still get a physical copy of the book, since the cover is stunning, and I appreciate Lady Georgiana’s response and care towards Miss Mitchelmore’s initial traumatic experience.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC read!
Overall it was hard for me to stay focused on the romance aspect of the story. The narrator, who is based on Puck from Midsummer Nights Dream, is very invasive, as that’s how they are, being the storyteller and narrator. However they are so into the story that they are distracting (on purpose) and don’t allow you to get into the story and have thoughts of your own. Yes, they are funny and entertaining at times, but at that point they mind as well be the main character. The narrator is too funny for me to take the storytelling seriously, and it made me question how reliable the narrator was, being extremely biased, and considering their constant need for validation from the reader, constantly addressing and calling out the reader. I don’t understand why this character had to be the narrator and not just an active character, we also don’t know why they were charged with this task to begin with.
It is less about Miss Mitchelmore and Lady Georgiana. Instead it was a story about a fairy watching over them for their own source of entertainment and judged critiques.
I did enjoy Lady Georgiana and the naive behavior of Miss Mitchelmore, along with her friend Miss Bickle and cousin Mr.Caesar. However I think a lot of things are lacking especially when this was a dire curse situation and the plot hole’s regarding Mr.Caesar and Tabitha.
I have a 50/50 view of this story, as I like it but I also feel like my enjoyment was overtaken by the narrator, who should honestly just have their own book.
I will probably still get a physical copy of the book, since the cover is stunning, and I appreciate Lady Georgiana’s response and care towards Miss Mitchelmore’s initial traumatic experience.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Sexism
Moderate: Violence and Murder
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