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Enjoyment/Appreciation Level: Kind of disliked. At least on the lower end of middle-of-the-road.
Summary:
Destitute after her husband's death, Thora Grieve finds hope studying botany at a university. There, she's drawn to Olea, a mysterious young woman who tends the private garden each night, confined by an illness. Thora befriends Olea through the garden gate, and their intense connection blossoms. Obsessed, Thora dedicates herself to finding a cure for Olea, questioning if her feelings are love or lust. Thora has found freedom, but at what price?
Themes:
Toxic love. Obsession. Hunger. Desire.
TL;DR:
Not the book for me. The first half just felt like a standard historical fiction, in tone. Finally got to the gothic fantasy atmospheric vibes but it wasn't quite enough for me, and the plot felt tedious and very repetitive. And hated the way it ended.
Writing:
I was fully expecting this to feel gothic from the get-go, but it did not at all. The first half or so was just, historical fiction in tone.
Even when we got to the more gothic fantasy vibes, the writing just wasn't quite ENOUGH for me. It probably didn't help that I have recently read two Johanna Van Veen books and her writing is peak gothic horror for me personally.
I see a lot of people feeling like this writing is very lush and gothic, but it just didn't hit for me.
Characters:
I kind of hated Thora. She was such a nasty person, right from the beginning. Just snapping at people who are being nothing but nice to her (Leo) and being really irrational... Idk, she rubbed me the wrong way.
I also didn't buy the romance - it just felt like they were obsessed with each other simply due to the fantastical elements and circumstance, rather than from actual emotional connection and feeling.
Plot/Pacing:
I found myself irritated with how often Thora came to realizations... and then the same realizations later... and then one more time the same realization. Like with realizing she should have listened to Leo... she says that at least twice... and then realizing that our villainous character doesn't have her best interests and/or is using her and doesn't care about her really... SEVERAL times she was like, "Oh wow, they don't care about me at all!!!" Like girl... what?! I'd be fine with it if there was some REASON she couldn't remember things.... but that was not the case. It just felt like the author forgot that she had already had this character realize this thing.
Thora and Olea also kept having cyclical conversations and at one point one of them even SAID this out loud. "We can't keep having the same conversation." And I was like... YEAH PLEASE STOP.
I truly hated the ending, as well. It was a ridiculous cliffhanger with no real conclusions.
Summary:
Destitute after her husband's death, Thora Grieve finds hope studying botany at a university. There, she's drawn to Olea, a mysterious young woman who tends the private garden each night, confined by an illness. Thora befriends Olea through the garden gate, and their intense connection blossoms. Obsessed, Thora dedicates herself to finding a cure for Olea, questioning if her feelings are love or lust. Thora has found freedom, but at what price?
Themes:
Toxic love. Obsession. Hunger. Desire.
TL;DR:
Not the book for me. The first half just felt like a standard historical fiction, in tone. Finally got to the gothic fantasy atmospheric vibes but it wasn't quite enough for me, and the plot felt tedious and very repetitive. And hated the way it ended.
Writing:
I was fully expecting this to feel gothic from the get-go, but it did not at all. The first half or so was just, historical fiction in tone.
Even when we got to the more gothic fantasy vibes, the writing just wasn't quite ENOUGH for me. It probably didn't help that I have recently read two Johanna Van Veen books and her writing is peak gothic horror for me personally.
I see a lot of people feeling like this writing is very lush and gothic, but it just didn't hit for me.
Characters:
I kind of hated Thora. She was such a nasty person, right from the beginning. Just snapping at people who are being nothing but nice to her (Leo) and being really irrational... Idk, she rubbed me the wrong way.
I also didn't buy the romance - it just felt like they were obsessed with each other simply due to the fantastical elements and circumstance, rather than from actual emotional connection and feeling.
Plot/Pacing:
I found myself irritated with how often Thora came to realizations... and then the same realizations later... and then one more time the same realization. Like with realizing she should have listened to Leo... she says that at least twice... and then realizing that our villainous character doesn't have her best interests and/or is using her and doesn't care about her really... SEVERAL times she was like, "Oh wow, they don't care about me at all!!!" Like girl... what?! I'd be fine with it if there was some REASON she couldn't remember things.... but that was not the case. It just felt like the author forgot that she had already had this character realize this thing.
Thora and Olea also kept having cyclical conversations and at one point one of them even SAID this out loud. "We can't keep having the same conversation." And I was like... YEAH PLEASE STOP.
I truly hated the ending, as well. It was a ridiculous cliffhanger with no real conclusions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Sexism, Terminal illness, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Blood
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An intoxicatingly gothic, dark academia fantasy exploring desire and the toxicity of obsession— I genuinely didn’t want to put this put down!
Firstly, I just have to say I loved Francesca May’s debut, Wild and Wicked Things so was beyond excited for the chance to read her newest release. And I’m glad to say it’s just as deliciously gothic and atmospheric! With a sapphic, Rappacini’s Daughter-edge to May’s haunting prose that burrowed under my skin and had me desperate to know how things ended.
The dark academia setting was a gothic feast for the senses too, and I was fascinated by forbidden longing, poisonous double standards and cloying sense of oppression that pervades soo much of our protagonist, Thora’s life.
A recently widowed woman, whose longing to study botany has outlasted both her father, and her husband. Thora was a complex and incredibly compelling character to explore, though not necessarily likeable in the way most MCs are.
Fuelled by her new freedoms and mentorship with the eccentric Dr. Petaccia (the only female botanist on staff and an expert in her field), Thora’s studies have given her a new sense of confidence and purpose.
But it’s her unrelenting hunger and desire for more (knowledge, power, emotional connection) and infatuation with the mysterious Olea that really got me turning the pages.
And with not one but two morally grey characters; Petaccia, the demanding, yet aloof professor, and Olea, the beautifully alluring woman bound to an unusual garden (locked from the outside)— I honestly felt like all my christmasses had come at once!
I will say, it is more of a slow burn read (so do take that into consideration), but with the prose, visceral imagery and immersive setting it’s definitely a book you’ll want to experience in all its decadent glory.
Overall, a poisonously addictive tale of ambition, desire, beauty and obsession that all gothic fantasy lovers need to consider adding to their TBRs this autumn!
Also thanks to Nazia and Orbit UK for the stunning finished copy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Self harm, Blood
Moderate: Animal death, Vomit, Death of parent
Minor: Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read the blurb and knew this was a book I needed to read. Unfortunately it fell so flat for me that I almost DNFed it at different points. I wanted more of a gothic horror and emphasis on the "feminist" aspect, but neither of those were really prominent. It was mostly just boring and I found myself having my mind wander while reading it rather than focusing on the story itself. It seemed like there was an interesting story within, but that there just wasn't the execution to get there.
The ending build up was the only interesting part of this book and it was cut way too short for my liking. It was almost like it was trying to do too much and none of it ended up being successful. I am very disappointed that I didn't end up liking this one more than I did since it had such good blurb and premise potential.
The writing could have been stronger to really cement the tone of unsettling and realistic magic as it had hints of this but it wasn't present throughout the entire novel.
I wasn't a huge fan of the characters either - I thought they could have been much more developed and enticing for the reader to9 want to even try to connect with them. I didn't enjoy being in the head of Thora since it felt like she wasn't a solid character at all. There seemed to be a disconnect between what Thora was thinking and feeling and what she was doing with no other purpose than to advance the plot. And the other characters just felt way too one-dimensional to me.
This was a swing and a miss for me, unfortunately!!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy courtesy of Orbit Books and chose to review it. This in no way impacts my opinion.
The ending build up was the only interesting part of this book and it was cut way too short for my liking. It was almost like it was trying to do too much and none of it ended up being successful. I am very disappointed that I didn't end up liking this one more than I did since it had such good blurb and premise potential.
The writing could have been stronger to really cement the tone of unsettling and realistic magic as it had hints of this but it wasn't present throughout the entire novel.
I wasn't a huge fan of the characters either - I thought they could have been much more developed and enticing for the reader to9 want to even try to connect with them. I didn't enjoy being in the head of Thora since it felt like she wasn't a solid character at all. There seemed to be a disconnect between what Thora was thinking and feeling and what she was doing with no other purpose than to advance the plot. And the other characters just felt way too one-dimensional to me.
This was a swing and a miss for me, unfortunately!!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy courtesy of Orbit Books and chose to review it. This in no way impacts my opinion.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Toxic friendship
Minor: Body horror, Death, Sexism, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail