Whitney
I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Graydon House for this ARC!
I have adored Hester Fox's previous works of Gothic romance, and am absolutely thrilled to report that she also soars in her first foray into historical fantasy! This brilliant, gender-bent retelling of The Little Mermaid, set in the Golden Age of the Dutch Republic was beautifully written and chilling to behold.
I loved the fact that the mermaid in this story was a man, Maurits. I was a big fan of Maurits from the beginning, even when he was making poor decisions. The object of his desires, Clara, took me a bit longer to warm to, but in the end I was a big fan, huge. Their love story seemed to be a fast starter, but there was definitely a dance to it that made it very intriguing. A large part of this was due to Clara needing to grow up and broaden her horizons. I am always here for a good “finding yourself” kind of story, and this book certainly delivered in that regard.
The setting was beautifully written, which was of no surprise. I loved getting to learn more about the Dutch Republic of the 1600s. I could truly see myself walking those cobblestone streets, and strolling along the canals. But, the true beauty was the world under the ocean that Fox created. It was cold, frightening, and breath-taking. I have always been afraid of the deep ocean, and this book certainly captured that fear. It also helped me to see that not all that lies beneath the surface is terrifying.
The Dutch folklore that played a large role in this book was fascinating. I loved getting to step into a fantastical world that felt quite new to me. Combining it with a familiar tale like The Little Mermaid was brilliantly done.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book. I found the world to be vibrant and gorgeously realized, the folklore and retelling elements to be brilliantly done, and the characters to be realistic.
Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
*I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Vintage for this ARC!
This fourth installment of the Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney mystery series was fun, in that it took place in the city. Each of the previous books took place in the countryside, generally at a large estate. This book taking place in London during the Season made for some fun obstacles for our amateur sleuths to overcome.
I enjoyed that this book centered around the characters from Mansfield Park, one of Austen's lesser loved novels. I feel that Claudia Gray does a fantastic job of characterizing each person from Mansfield Park just as I would imagine them in the aftermath of their story from the original source material. It was fun to see the villains, The Crawfords, Maria (Bertram) Rushworth, and Mrs. Norris back in their full glory. I also liked that we got to see more of Susan Price in this novel. She is a fun character, and I hope we get to see more of her in future installments.
Mr. Darcy and Miss Tilney continue to be precious and couple goals. I liked getting to see Jonathan become more serious about Juliet, to the point of considering going against his parents' wishes, which is great character growth for him. I also really liked getting to see more of Catherine (Morland) Tilney in this novel. She is such an under-appreciated Austen heroine, and I enjoyed seeing her in the role of mother this go around.
The murder mystery was fun, and proved to keep me guessing until the very end. I had my mind made up on who I thought the murderer was, and they pulled the rug out from under me. I always appreciate when a mystery can truly surprise me.
If you are a fan of Austen, and enjoy a good retelling, make sure you pick up this series! Start from the beginning, and you will be glad you did!
Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I gave The Rushworth Family Plot 4 STARS.
www.whitreadslit.com
I really loved the storyline of a woman finding herself after the death of her mother, her best friend and who she found her identity within. I loved the magical realism part of the book. I had to knock this down a whole star rating for the cheating. It would have been totally fine without it, and it just made me angry.
3.5 Stars
