I really loved Kate's first book, 'The Psychology of Time Travel' so I was really thrilled to see that she had written another one. This book seemed to transcend all genres and was a fantastic mix of romance, crime and magic.

The plot was seamless and interesting throughout, but the characters were what made this book fantastic for me. They were really well-developed, clever and I enjoyed this read immensely!

I absolutely loved The Psychology of Time Travel, and Kate Mascarenhas definitely hasn't disappointed with her follow-up. The world of The Thief on the Winged Horse has a fascinating, rich lore and its characters feel so true to life I expected to see them carry on with their day once I turned the last page. I would recommend this for anyone who enjoyed Mascarenhas' first novel, or anyone who loves to lose themself in a world just a few steps from our own...

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was very different from my expectations. I was expecting a magical fantasy, but the magic in this book exists more at the periphery, a backdrop for the portrait of familial strife that characterizes the eyot near Oxford on which the story takes places.

The novel follows a large family of doll makers, who have the ability to create dolls that imbue the holders with certain emotions. The business is currently controlled by a capricious man named Conrad and his manipulative housekeeper Hedwig. The rules of the business are very strict: no outsiders are allowed to learn the craft that imbues the dolls with magic, and women are kept out of the sorcery process. The story jumps between a few primary perspectives: a girl named Persephone, Conrad's niece and the daughter of his detested twin brother, a boy named Larkin who is an outsider seeking access the business, and Conrad's housekeeper Hedwig who is scheming to make money off of Conrad.

Though not much really "happens" in this book, it still managed to keep me interested, which is a point in its favor. It made compelling points about feminism and the role of women in patriarchal societies. It also, unexpectedly, had some very frank discussions about sex and virginity and societal expectations that you don't often see in literature, especially with a nineteen year old female protagonist. I found Persephone to be very human and frequently relatable.

My biggest gripe was, though, that other than Persephone I couldn't bring myself to like any of the other characters. Hedwig was conniving and obnoxious, Larkin was often an opportunistic dick, and most of the other side characters reflected a host of negative qualities with few redeeming aspects. It just disheartens me thoroughly to read a book where I don't enjoy the people in it, which is most of the reason this book lost stars for me. I also was confused by the world: the novel often seemed like it could have taken place in some late 19th century version of England, with people riding carriages and using old-fashioned elevators, and then I would turn a page and read a line about a character taking a picture with their phone. I understand the intention to blend the old with the new, but at best the world felt disjointed. Also I'm just going to be disinclined to like a book where the mean patriarch is implied to be mean because he's a bitter closeted gay man. Just saying.

The Thief on the Winged Horse certainly was a great mix of crime, romance, magic, and myth and one that I savoured every word of. The prose was delightful and meant for reading pleasure. The strong characters, the skilful plot, and the twists and turns of this doll making story has me enthralled. Add in a touch of superstition, and old family that holds all the secrets of sorcery and I was hooked.

The characters in this story came to life on the page. The strong females Hedwig and Persephone, the male counterparts Larkin, Conrad, and not forgetting Briar paved the way for a story that not only intrigued but pulled at the heartstrings too. Persephone was my favourite character. She was strong willed and determined to become a sorcerer no matter what the men said.

The creation of dolls and the laying of enchantments was mysterious and magical in itself and I longed to own one of the dolls myself. Just a touch and you would feel whatever enchantment had been lain upon.

Larkin was a character I had mixed feelings about as his story interweaved with Persephone's and the people of the Eyot.

If you're looking for a captivating tale that weaves magic, folklore, crime, and romance then The Thief on the Winged Horse won't disappoint. It has everything including a strong female willing to fight for the right of women to be treated as equals.

All in all, a mesmerising read that will stay with me for quite some time.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Head of Zeus for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.

A delightful read. I never thought I would adore a book full of dolls but this is so clever, and magical and full of fantastic character studies and subtle, wonderful moments that I fell head over heels for it. I adored Persephone and Hedwig. They are written brilliantly. I loved the mix of modern with magical. Such a clever story. I am looking forward to reading more by Kate Mascarennas.

This had some promise to it overall but it was just a bit lacking for me. I thought that certain elements would play a different part given the synopsis of this. I was underwhelmed by this but i liked the writing style and that is what got me through the book.

The Thief on the Winged Horse is about the Kendrick family who are famous for their doll making since the 1800s, when four sisters learned how to enchant the dolls with emotions. When their most valuable doll is stolen, it is clear only someone who has magical knowledge would be able to touch it, which suggests only someone inside the family could have done it.

This was certainly an interesting story. I initially expected there to be more of a focus on the historical side because of the cover- with emphasis on the four sisters themselves rather than their descendants. I really enjoyed the juxtaposition of a mundane family business entwined with the magical elements. Fans of the magical realism genre will likely enjoy this. Most of the characters were interesting, unique and well-developed. The mystery of the thief was fairly intriguing until it was revealed that it was exactly who expected it to be.

The Thief on the Winged Horse is a solidly enjoyable story, however I felt it did not deliver the same level of excitement and mystery as The Psychology of Time Travel.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

The Thief on the Winged Horse is a beautifully crafted novel, full of everything that makes a novel good. An original plot, easy to connect with characters, a bit of romance, a bit of drama, mystery and suspense. Absolutely well worth a read, as it would be very hard not to fall in love with this novel.

This was magical, dark and clever. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The character of Persephone was perfectly endearing without much in the way of charm and I've never read a character like that before, brilliant.

~ ARC received in exchange for an honest review ~

Written by Kate Mascarenhas, 'The Thief on the Winged Horse' tells the story of the Kendrick family who are famous for being the makers of magical dolls since the early 1800s. The theft of their most valuable doll is especially a mystery since only someone who has magical knowledge would be able to touch it, which suggests it was an inside job.

It's a great idea for a story, however I didn't enjoy the way it was written. I found all of the components to be too vague to really get a handle on the setting, the time period, the characters or what the main plot was supposed to be since there was a few different things going on at once - the descriptions were lacking.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this title.

Kate Mascarenhas previous book ,’The Psychology of Time Travel’, was my favourite book of 2018 and was excited to get my hands on an advanced reading copy of her new book.

Set in Oxford it deals with the magical world of doll making amongst a tight knit family who fear outsiders taking their secrets. Like ‘Psychology of Time Travel’ there is a mystery at the heart of this story which even though set in present day feels timeless and made it slightly difficult to get a handle on the look and feel of the world.

Not as compelling as ‘Psychology of Time Travel’ but still a book I would recommend to anyone who last year enjoyed ‘The Binding’.

DNF at p. 105
This book was provided to me by publisher on NetGalley in return for my honest review.

The plot summary sounds great! I loved the mystery this book promised, but unfortunately, I was somehow not able to get into it.

First of all, I found the writing style had to crack. It was not written in the way I would enjoy and I feel bad for it because this is possibly a great storyline. Second of all, the character physical descriptions were in my opinion very vague. I got to page 105 and I still don't really know what the main character looks like. What colour hair does he have? How old is he? I don't know... When Persephone was introduced at the begging of the book I imagined she was an old lady just to find out much much later that she is 17! I can't really tell you why this happened, maybe it was my fault? Maybe I was not paying enough attention? Maybe it was the writing style or maybe her age was not mentioned at the beginning at all.

The setting was well done and characters had various different personalities which I really enjoyed. The plot was outlined really well, and I want to know what happens at the end, but I just really struggle to get thought the pages.

Overall I think this is a good book, just not for me.

The book was so good till the identification of 'The Thief'. After that everything kinda felt flat. There were so many unanswered questions. The unraveling of mystery and ending could've been better. I badly want the ending to be better/different and to be able to love this book till the last page coz the book had so much potential.

This book had an interesting premise, and I thought the language was beautiful, however the characters fell a little flat for me.
I thought the concept of dolls being able to hold emotions was fascinating and I enjoyed reading about the complex family politics, especially the gender dynamics.
However. I thought the romance storyline was introduced too late in the book to carry any weight, and therefore didn’t interest me that much.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, but just wish it had given me a little more in terms of characters.

I came to this book with high expectations, having loved The Psychology of Time Travel. I'm glad to say I wasn't disappointed. I flew through it in four or five sittings too: it was a lovely book to sink into, given the current real-world situation.

It's an instantly intriguing setup: the Kendrick family (and its sub-branches) business is making dolls that have 'enchantments' to make you feel certain emotions when you touch them. A stranger claiming to be descended from the same line turns up and... well, it's no surprise that trouble ensues.

One theme from The Psychology of Time Travel has been flipped: in that book, women were very clearly in charge. In this book, they've been sidelined: even though the original founders of the doll factory were sisters, nowadays it's the men who are its 'sorcerers' and who control the secrets of enchanting the dolls. How this gets overturned is a key part of the plot.

I enjoyed Persephone, the main character, for her grumpiness and extreme social awkwardness and her... not-fitting-in-ness right through to the point where she's driving change at the factory. Hedwig too, who plays a big role in the plot. The men are... not quite so enjoyable. Vanity, foolishness, arrogance, defensiveness and more. The comeuppances are all the more rewarding.

I liked the way the magic is woven throughout the book without ever being the sole driving force: that's very much the people instead. In places the book reminded me of Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield and in others of Andrew Caldecott's Rotherweird series (fine company in both cases!) with their tight-knit communities.

The ending seemed to come very quickly: a few of my questions were left unresolved, and I wished there could have been a proper confrontation with one character. Other things that are left open - the Thief himself - might be better that way. Maybe not wrapping everything up neatly is a plus point! It does leave open possibilities for more stories from this world: I don't know if that's Mascarenhas' plan, but if she does return to Paxton's Eyot, I'll definitely be reading.

I couldn't guess the thief! And I thought myself clever! But there is some unanswered questions that left me with a little bit disappointment and the story could have been folded more neatly. Anyway, I would recommend this book , it has a perfect balance of mystery , reality and fantasy.

I have not read this author before but I shall be looking for any back catalogue. This is a very good book, full of great characters, well described and with depth and meaning to the story. The plot is intriguing and imaginative and it's quite a compelling read. I loved it, but reduced the rating to four because of the, to me, unneccasary language in the hotel scene. Up to then it could have been suitable for almost any age but that spoiled the enchantment for me. With thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review and e-ARC of this book.

I read the psychology of time travel last year and absolutely loved it, so jumped at the chance to read this novel before its release.

I was not disappointed.

All of the characters felt like real people. Every one of the main characters was given time and detail into why they behaved the way they did and even though it is brief, the reader is given proper insight into their history.

I loved the juxtaposition of fairytale and real life. The novel is largely set on the “eyot” but there are references to Oxford and London. The main premise is magical dolls, and hexes. Hexes that are photographed with a phone, skills that have been learned at university. It’s so well written, that the reader is given the true feel of how cut off the characters are from everything else, that something like a mobile phone seems out of place. I felt like I was so engrossed in the world the writer laid out for us that I kept forgetting this was not actually a fantasy novel set in a different world.

There were a few unanswered questions at the end of the novel and I felt like I needed more of this book.

However, I ultimately loved the direction the writer took to concluding the novel. I thought that Seph would end up with Larkin and have their happy ending. And at first it was actually upsetting that he was such a dick in the end. I thought there would be some kind of reconciliation. But giving Seph something else - a better relationship with her father and realising that she had people around her who loved her was a brilliant way to conclude it. I felt some of my subconscious learned misogyny rising to the surface wanting Seph and Larkin to get back together, since he was such a bad person and she definitely deserved better: this novel really challenged how I perceive happy endings.

Genuinely, from reading her other novel, I believe Kate Mascarenhas to be such a master with suspense. I had absolutely no idea who had stolen the doll. It was almost written as though everyone or no one was guilty.

I loved it.

I found the book absolutely fascinating. The whole set up is amazing and I loved how the author created this magical world but made it fascinatingly mundane by going into business details, just as it would be if magic was part of everyday life. The characters were great and I was just fascinated by their behavior and how they developed through the book.

The Thief on the Winged Horse is magical!
Any story that can take you to such an incredible imaginative world is a sure winner! Strong characters and a plot you will not forgot.

5/5