Beautiful, chilling, and poignant. This story was amazingly immersive — it feels like you’re right there in the thick of things with with Alter, Frankie, and Raizel in Chicago. I have a feeling this story is going to linger with me for a while. There are some really heavy topics in this book, but I’m so impressed by the author’s ability to still show how loving and resilient these characters are in an extremely flawed and often brutal world. Adding Aden Polydoros to my must-read list!

THE CITY BEAUTIFUL was one of those books that snuck up on me. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did and didn't expect the impact it would have on me when I read it. To be clear, THE CITY BEAUTIFUL is a book that doesn't merely have entertainment value. I mean it does, but it is also a blisteringly furious and impactful tale of anti-Semitism in 1893 America that will not be easy to read, but is one you should read nonetheless. It also tackles themes such as nativism, gilded age greed and corruption, and so much more. It is how powerful this story is and how important that I gave it the rating I have given it.. One thing I really loved seeing in our mc Alter was how good the Jewish representation was with him. His relationship with his identity and his religion really plays a central part of who he is and his story is just so compelling. I found myself really enjoying watching Alter as he finds himself in the midst of a terrifying murder mystery that is entangled in an insidious plot that could affect every Jew in Chicago. Polydoros also has created really interesting and multi-dimensional side characters in Frankie and Raizel. World-building wise, Poydoros has done an excellent job in depicting late nineteenth century Chicago during the World's Fair with a great attention to detail that you can tell it was meticulously researched. The plot of this story just kept charging forward until its heartpounding end and I was hooked from beginning to end and I loved seeing a side of Jewish folklore incorportated here with the dybbuk that I have never heard of before. I will say that I listened to the audiobook in tandem with the ARC and I really enjoyed the narrator's performance. There's a lot of depth and meat in this novel that will not be captured in this review, but it was a particularly impactful choice the author made in setting this story of a young Jewish man with the background of the world's fair and all of the nativism that the fair itself did represent. It has a powerful resonance today as we see those beliefs and attitudes surfacing again, although they really have never left. THE CITY BEAUTIFUL is a masterpiece in historical fantasy in the vein of SJTR and was a welcome surprise for me.

A killer stalks the streets of Chicago in the shadow of the 1893 World's Fair, targeting young Jewish immigrants. Alter Rosen, who recently immigrated from Romania, is working hard to make a living while also saving money to bring his family to America. But when his best friend and roommate Yakov becomes the latest victim of the killer, he becomes entangled in a dark plot as Yakov's dybbuk possesses him and begins to completely control him. Alter's only chance of escaping alive is to complete the task for which the dybbuk is lingering, and turning to a friend from a past he left behind may be the only way to do so.

With each passing day, the dybbuk threatens to take over, and the two boys are in a race against time to find the killer before any more murders occur. The historical setting of the World's Fair in Chicago provided an ideal setting for this mystery. It was fascinating to read a book with a Jewish main character who was unrelated to WWII, and the author shed light on the fact that Jewish persecution was not limited to the Holocaust. This is a time period I'm not familiar with, but the way it was depicted felt very real, from the exploitation of immigrant workers to some pretty extreme and horrifying anti-Semitism. Some parts of the story definitely felt like it was dragging its heels until the next reveal came along, and there were a lot of unnecessary threads that diverted the attention from the main story to the extent that it takes nearly half the book for the information that we, as readers, know from the synopsis to show up on page and be confirmed.

The cast of characters was interesting and likeable, and I enjoyed following the arcs of Alter, Frankie, and Raizel. The storey was told from Alter's point of view, and the character development for both him and Frankie was excellent, though I would have liked to have seen more of Raizel's storey. Despite the fact that the mystery is at the heart of the storey, there is so much else going on that multiple points of view could have added a lot.

However, I believe that this book could have been a little shorter. Some parts of the storey definitely felt like they were dragging their feet until the next reveal, and there were a lot of unnecessary threads that diverted the attention away from the main narrative to the point where it was distracting.

The ending was a fitting and satisfying conclusion, and while I didn’t spot the clues ahead of time, I think that’s a good sign in this case, because I was so caught up in the story that I barely looked for them. If you decide to read this book, do take a moment to look over the content warnings, because this was much darker than I initially expected given the synopsis. Overall, this was an engrossing read, if a heavier one, and I would definitely recommend it!

Find this review and others like it at https://aravenclawlibraryx.wordpress.com

tw: death, death of a parent, illness, extreme poverty, child death, anti Semitism, murder, drugging, mentions of rape, homophobia

I am a huge Aden Polydoros fan. I can’t quite remember how I found him. I think it was through Entangled Teen publishing. I believe they had an ARC for Project Pandora. I fell in love with the book so hard and I wrote a glowing review. Ever since then, I have been Aden’s biggest fan, as I like to call myself. He’s a great guy and his work is amazing. There is one character that completely sealed the deal for me and the Assassin Fall series and that was Hades. I will forever adore Hades and I’m still in pain over one particular scene in the book of the series. If you’ve read the book, you will know which one I’m talking about.

So when Aden reached out to me about reading his newest book, I knew I had to jump at the opportunity. When I say that I was excited, that is an understatement. I had been going through a loss and he reached out to me at the perfect time. And let me tell you, friends, Aden didn’t disappoint with this one. While it's a little slower paced than his Assassin Fall series, I still loved it very much.

And I’ve found another fictional boy to love along with Hades and his name is Alter, a gay Jewish boy. I will protect him with my life. Everything about him was amazing. I loved how family orientated he was. I appreciated how much he cared about his friends and loved ones. He wasn’t afraid to show his emotions. We need more men like that. He was my absolute favorite part of this story and this story had a demon in it. Y’all know I love a good demon story.

I liked all of the Jewish aspects of this book. I felt like I was learning a lot about the Jewish religion, which was cool for me because I have an ancestor that was Jewish. He came to America during World War II to get away from Nazism in Germany. As far as I know, my ancestor (I’m sorry, I can’t remember his name) decided to not practice Judaism once he came to America. I’m getting off topic. Anyway, there was even a glossary in the back of the book, which was super helpful because I didn’t know a lot of the words and phrases that were used by Alter and his friends. It was also so great to see a gay Jewish MC. I don’t even know of any books that have that. I just couldn’t get enough of it.

Overall, Aden has done it again! I just loved this book in case that wasn’t obvious. Alter forever has my heart and I can’t wait for this book to be released so I can buy my copy and display it with my other Aden Polydoros books! Be sure to check this book out when it’s released!

This story, set in Chicago, during the World's Fair of 1893 checks all my boxes. This isn't traditional horror- but make no mistake it's dark, historical, and hauntingly atmospheric. You feel like you are there and if you were - you'd be terrified. It is on my shortlist for Bookish Society YA Fall 2022.

I first want to thank NetGalley and Inkyard Press for giving me free access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was hooked and felt fully invested in Alter and his story by the end of chapter one. Polydoros does a phenomenal job of developing the characters in this book. And while the book was sometimes hard to read because of the racism and blatant hate many of the characters were confronted with, I nevertheless found this book incredibly hard to put down. I felt so fully drawn into the world and didn't want to leave at the end of the book.

Having read Erik Larson's "The Devil in the White City," I was so fascinated to read this book that looked at everything from such a different perspective. And for that, I am so grateful to Polydoros for writing this book.

I hope Polydoros continues to write amazing novels and that more novels with such amazing Jewish characters get published.

As a Jewish person, I loved how much emphasis this put on Judaism and our culture. The terms and phrases peppered throughout really brought me back to growing up around my Yiddish speaking grandmother. I love how I was able to connect so much to Alter and this book because of that.

As for the plot! The story of Alter’s possession and was really intriguing. I loved his and Frankie’s character arcs and thought they were just too sweet!!!

I got an ARC of this book.

I have been done with this book for about a week, but I am still not sure what to say.
The writing was gorgeous. The plot was fantastic. The characters were real. It was so Jewish. I have never read a book like this before.

The book is in your face and undeniably Jewish. It has a different feel than any other horror novel I have read. It doesn’t follow the typical formula. The closest books I can match this to are books like The Only Good Indians. Both are books steeped in lore that is older and less explored in the mainstream. Both are seemingly normal, but the more thought that goes into them the more horrific them become. There are just so many layers.

The queer content was eh. I didn’t need this to be a queer book to love it. The queer aspects didn’t really blend seamlessly to me. While I was glad there were queer characters, it only ever seemed to come up as the plot of “gay is a sin!” and then things moved on again. It just didn’t get explored as much as the other plots did so it felt like it was lacking compared to the rest of the book. That being said, it is so rare that I see Jewish queers that I ate up every second and wanted more. I needed more.

I am not normally someone who enjoys the mystery aspects of anything. I didn’t really care who was doing the killing. I was still invested in the characters and their feelings around the killings. The actual finding of the killer was irrelevant to me. I was a bit annoyed at just how perfectly things lined up with time and locations. That a teen was able to track down someone across multiple countries and everything. Felt like a bit much.

Overall, I loved this book. Every time I picked it up, I had to be forced to put it down. I didn’t want to stop. It was just a book I needed.

Set in Chicago during the 1893 World's Fair, Jewish immigrant Alter Rosen is focused on saving money to bring his mother and sisters from Romania but when his roommate (and secret crush) Yakov is found killed- and Yakov isn't the only young Jewish man who's been found dead recently, Alter becomes possessed by Yakov's dybbuk in a deliberately paced thriller that moves easily between the young men's past and present. Help comes from Frankie, dangerous and compelling, who aided Alter when he first arrived in Chicago, and from Raizel, a dedicated anarchist and reporter as they face antisemitism, abuse, and corruption. Great characters, immersive setting, well structured to a steadily built propulsive ending.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. the premise and concept of the book was intriguing. I loved the characters, Jewish folklore, Chicago history and the love story. I just feel the pacing draged and there were times I wasn't fully engaged. I feel like the story was a bit long and it could have been shorter. I will recommend this title to patrons, but I will only suggest it to those who enjoy a slow burn. Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

In 1893 Alter Rosen is 17 years old and lives in Chicago. He works as an apprentice typesetter to have enough money to bring his mother and sister to the United States from Romania. Jewish teenaged boys are disappearing. When family and/or friends report this to police. They don’t take it seriously. Chicago is enjoying having the World Fair. Yakov is Alter’s roommate and secret crush. Yakov is found dead and the police consider it an accident with no interest in finding out what caused the accident. As Alter is assisting in the ritual cleansing of Yakov’s body, something happens. Alter feels Yakov’s soul merging with his soul and passes out. He becomes convinced that Yakov was murdered and wants to know why. With help from a newspaper reporter, he tracks down leads about Yakov and the other missing boys. His search reconnects him with Frankie, a criminal he knew in his early days in Chicago. Working together, the three uncover crimes, corruption and hatred. Does Alter find out why Yakov was murdered?

This summary of the story I’ve written makes me hope I didn’t tell too much of the story as I do think it’s a book that is excellent in its writing. The author has written a mystery with some Jewish folklore in this historical novel. The World’s Fair depiction is superficial as it only gives the atmosphere of it. The working conditions of meat industry is terrible, the rapid increase of socialist and workers’ movements and the time of Jewish immigrants is a reminder of the history of that era. It is a detailed historical landscape combined with the supernatural dybbuk from ancient Jewish folklore. I was fascinated by Alter fighting antisemitism and the supernatural in this novel. It is a novel that is amazing!

Thank you so much, NetGalley and Inkyard Press, for the chance to read and review this book in exchange of an honest review.

TW: xenophobia, murder, violence, rape (mentioned)

Alter Rosen lives in Chicago, in 1893, hoping to make enough money to bring his mother and sisters to live with him from Romania, but his quiet life is turned upside down when his best friend and roomate, Yakov, is found dead. Refusing to believe it was an accident, since many young Jews are disappearing and dying, Alter decides to find the truth. Helped by a friend from the past (and maybe something more), while the city is celebrating the World's Fair, Alter have to face a dangerous reality: he's possessed by Yakov's dybbuk and he will be free only finding out what happened. Alter and his friend have to do everything in their power to free Alter from the dybbuk, tracking down and stopping the killer, before he kills someone else.

The city beautiful is a brilliant, queer Jewish historical thriller about a boy and his dreams and the dark reality surrounding him, violence and a past and an underground full of shadows and dangers and what it takes to live and survive. Aden Polydoros mixes a murder mystery, Jewish folklore, socioeconomical differences and a haunting fantasy, set in a world full of dangers, queer love and family's bonds.
The story is told by Alter's POV and he's an unique and brilliant main character, struggling with dreams and reality, hopes and money, his own feelings and what he was told it was right and his beliefs.
The author underlines his struggle between his faith, feelings and love and who he is, what he thinks he have to hack away to become a "worthy American", the immigrants' struggles and difficulties against prejudices, hate crimes and anti-Semitism.
Aden Polydoros wrote a book with a Jewish main character, set during the World's Fair, in a time where many Jews were escaping the anti-semitism in Europe and its violence, highlightining how they were treated in America. Between unhealthy living conditions, unsafe working enviroments and hate crimes, the author explored the socioeconomical divides, politics, beliefs, mixing these with fantasy, folklore and an haunting thrilling and murder investigation.

The characterization is brilliant, the descriptions are evocative and realistic and the plot is intense and engaging, truly immersing the reader in the story. Besides Alter, Frankie and Raizel are amazing characters, very relatable in their struggles, dreams and hopes, with their pasts and traumas, their ideas and stubborness. Raizel, with her ideas about politcs and struggles, Frankie with his beliefs and cynicism, they are intricate and well written. I love the bond between Alter and Frankie, how life brought them to do, act and believe in certain things and how they trust, help and love one other.
The author doesn't shy away from describing violence and prejudices, in a story full of shadows and dark moments, side by side with hopes and dreams, loyalty and love, family and friendships. The reader follow Alter who is looking for the truth and to avenge his friend, between myths and politcs, racism and new bonds. The queer love is beautifully written, with slow burn and sweet and intense moments and I love the bond between Alter and Frankie and how their love is skillfully written in such a complex and layered story, without losing depth or being overlooked. They are truly wonderful, supporting, understanding, helping and loving one other.

The city beautiful is a wonderful and intense YA historical book, mixing queer love, murder investigation and mystery, family bonds and Jewish folklore and myths.

I will say I am not a huge fan of historical fiction..

until i started reading the likes of KJ Charles, Sally Malcolm, and the likes.. now I think Polydoros fits right into this genre with this brilliant book. The characters were lively and jumping off the page. Such a great debut, the only negative thing is that this is not a series.

The infamous Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 seems like the perfect backdrop for Historical Fantasy, and yet the setting always feels underused when it shows up, even if the bones of the story are good, as is the case here.

Alter Rosen, a young member of Chicago’s Jewish immigrant community just before the turn of the century, is trying to create a life for himself and earn enough money to help his mother and sisters come to America from their native Romania. The basics here are the same as in most immigrant stories from this era, though I was pleased to see a focus on the Jewish community this time around.

The fantasy element of this is fairly minor in terms of how much space it takes up in the atmosphere of the book, more of an undercurrent shaping Alter’s actions than an alternate form of reality.

Generally, the book was a lot thinner on atmosphere than I would have preferred. There’s nothing really all that magical about the magical system in terms of feel and ambiance, and the fair is barely a factor. Descriptively, we don’t get much. I forgot periodically that this was set in Chicago rather than New York (the usual setting for books like this) because there wasn’t much reminding me otherwise.

Character development was also an undercooked element of the book. Alter and Raisel are likable and keep your attention, but most of the others (both the villains and the heroes) mostly felt like archetypes.

I did really appreciate the focus on the Jewish community and the emphasis on the very real issue of antisemitism, which I think is particularly important to see in YA fiction at the moment.

I wish the book had been a LOT more atmospheric and driven by setting and I probably could have done without the magical elements entirely, but the historical aspects were very well-done, and the story is intriguing and meaningful.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC to review! I really enjoyed this story. At first I had to look up several terms to be sure I was envisioning the correct things. The glossary is a welcome addition to the book! I very much appreciated a story about Jewish immigrants that took place outside of WWII. I love the World’s Fair as a setting and it was used very well by the author! The descriptions were rich in sensory details. The plot kept me guessing and I really felt for the main character and his numerous struggles. His gay identity was important to the story and it was handled well, in my opinion. The Jewish religious practices were very important to the story but we’re explained well for those that don’t have a working knowledge of them. There are sensitive topics involved in the story including CSA and anti Semitism. The words said by villains may be triggering to some. Much, though not all, of the adversity is overcome by the end of the book. It provides a wonderful insight into the life of immigrants at the turn of the century and is an enthralling murder mystery as well. I highly recommend it!

“The body cannot sustain two souls….” A young Jewish immigrant is possessed by the dybbuk of his murdered friend in Aden Polydoros’s debut YA novel The City Beautiful. I’ve been eagerly awaiting this book since Aden first announced his book deal several years ago! As a Jewish teen growing up, I rarely got to see my culture reflected in anything other than “issue books” about the Holocaust, so I’ve been delighted by the recent uptick of Jewish-inspired YA fantasy with books like Spinning Silver and The Sisters of the Winter Wood. But The City Beautiful is the first book I’ve encountered that really reaches into the deep well of Jewish folklore and draws up its horror elements. The City Beautiful comes out tomorrow, October 5.

When the World Fair comes to Chicago in 1893, it brings a ton of excitement and attention to this bustling city full of immigrants. But all Alter wants to do is keep his head down and work hard until he has enough money to bring his mother and sisters over from Romania. Then Alter’s roommate Yakov is found dead on the fairgrounds. The police call it an accident, but Yakov is only one in a string of young Jewish boys who have gone missing or turned up dead in the last few weeks. After helping to prepare Yakov’s body, Alter finds himself possessed by a dybbuk—Yakov’s soul has latched onto his own, sharing warnings and snippets of memories while slowly gaining more control over Alter’s body. Can Alter use these glimpses into Yakov’s life to solve the mystery of who murdered him? He’ll need to work fast if he’s going to catch the murderer before his soul is consumed by his dead friend’s—and before the murderer catches him first. Luckily, Alter has help in the form of an outspoken anarchist named Raizel and Frankie, the charming young man Alter had left behind when he turned his back on a life of crime.

I touched on dybbuks briefly in a very early post here on Dark Tales from Jewish Folklore. Though initially introduced to pop culture through Yiddish theater and film, the dybbuk has lately been largely misunderstood as various writers and paranormal investigators make up stories that remove this being from its Jewish cultural context. Aden Polydoros returns the dybbuk to its roots by setting his story within Chicago’s Yiddish-speaking community of Jewish immigrants at the turn of the twentieth century. A dybbuk is not necessarily inherently evil—in fact, many stories involve people being possessed by recently deceased loved ones. But as much as Alter appreciates getting a final few moments with his closest friend (who he maybe wishes could have been something more), his body struggles under the strain of holding two souls at once. Alter begins to waste away, becoming exhausted and pale with shadows under his eyes. Yakov’s presence shows through in his voice and mannerisms, and soon the boundaries between his own mind and Yakov’s memories begin to blur. Though this type of possession is very visceral, and at times terrifying, the dybbuk is not the villain of this story. Yakov is a victim as much as any of the other murdered boys. And as with many hauntings, his spirit lingers on due to unfinished business. Alter is determined to finish out that business so that he can put Yakov’s soul to rest.

Another element of this story that is both supremely Gothic and supremely Jewish is the treatment of Alter’s name. Names are very important in Jewish mysticism, and in some ways it is believed that one’s name can influence one’s fate. Alter’s name comes from the Yiddish word for “old.” His parents gave him the name as a talisman after he suffered from serious illness as an infant. The name is meant to deflect the attentions of the Angel of Death by tricking the angel into thinking Alter is an old man and not a vulnerable child. But though intended as a form of protection, Alter views his name as a curse. It’s true that Alter has survived a number of deadly situations, but it seems that the talisman of his name deflects death directly onto those around him. Those closest to Alter die while Alter survives—a childhood friend who drowned while ice-skating, Alter’s father on the voyage across the Atlantic, and now Alter’s best friend and roommate. Alter feels immense survivor’s guilt, believing that each of these losses was caused by a debt that he owes for evading his own fate. So, is Alter’s name really a blessing or a curse? Is it even supernatural at all? You’ll have to decide for yourself as you read.

The City Beautiful is part murder mystery/crime thriller and part gorgeous historical fantasy that explores a culture we rarely see represented in these genres. If this review has piqued your interest, you can find The City Beautiful on shelves tomorrow at your favorite local retailer, or preorder it online and support The Gothic Library in the process using this Bookshop.org affiliate link. Once you’ve read it, come back and let me know what you think in the comments!

I loved this book so much!! It did a great job at having lots of representation. The characters were lovable and the plot was perfect. I'd absolutely recommend reading this book!

This is a fascinating story. As someone who is not Jewish, I learned so much about the history of the Jewish community in Chicago and appreciated such an intimate look at the religion and their way of life. Alter lived a complex yet simple life. He came to America on the belief that his father had created a successful business and was going to set his family up with wealth and standing. What he found instead was an incredibly ill father and mountains of debt. All he wants is to make enough money to bring his mother and sisters over from Romania and provide a comfortable life for them. But along with that familial duty, Alter is facing his own inner conflicts over his attraction to other men. Trying to reconcile his true feelings with societal expectations is incredibly difficult. What I really loved, were Frankie’s explanations of how their relationship was completely fine in the eyes of their religion and gave evidence from their religious text. I completely understand that is probably only new information to me, but I hope that it also helps provide comfort for anyone else who may find themselves in Alter’s position.

Polydoros provides such vivid detail of the fair and Alter’s neighborhood that it made you feel like you were walking through the exhibits with Alter. You could feel the wonder that everyone felt at the technical and engineering advancements being created, but that was also balanced against the racism and degradation of many of the exhibits. This is a wonderfully written and well-researched novel that will keep any reader completely engrossed from start to finish.

Highly, highly recommend.
Thank you to Netgalley and Inkyard Press for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

Beautifully written. Perfect mix of mystery with historical recommended for all readers loved that this was a book with a jewish character who was not in the holocaust

The representation and importance of this book is truly amazing. I thank Polydoros for creating such enjoyable characters and overall story. Will definitely be recommending to my audience.