This was a charming read, but I did find it a struggle to finish. The idea was great but at times it didn’t hold my interest.

"The House of Marvellous Books" by Fiona Vigo Marshall is a charming and imaginative literary journey with both merits and drawbacks.
One of the book's notable strengths is its enchanting setting. Marshall's portrayal of the titular "House of Marvellous Books" is vivid and delightful, evoking a sense of wonder and nostalgia for any book lover. The rich descriptions make it easy to become immersed in this captivating world of books.
The story's unique premise, revolving around a magical library that brings stories to life, is a definite pro. It sparks the reader's imagination and sets the stage for a series of whimsical adventures. The narrative is well-crafted, with engaging subplots that add depth to the overall story.
The pacing of the book can be inconsistent, with some sections feeling slower and less captivating. Additionally, character development is somewhat lacking, leaving readers wanting a deeper connection with the protagonists.
While it excels in world-building and storytelling, this book may leave some readers craving more character depth and a more consistent pacing. If you're looking for a whimsical escape into the world of books, this novel is worth a read, but it falls short in a few key areas.

This was so cute! Quirky and just a fun read. I think I smiled a lot. reading it. Many thanks to publisher and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I thought I would love this book – it’s about books and publishing… what’s not to love?!

Sadly though, I found it to be rather meandering and pointless. I was reminded of Adrian Mole or John Kirkbride as the clueless diary-writer narrator, Mortimer, misses the obvious and struggles with understanding his friends and colleagues, but this book was lacking some of the charm and humour of those predecessors.

I did enjoy the insight into the inner workings of a small publishing house, but it was a bit of a depressing insight too, as little actual publishing appears to happen in the titular House and those books that do make it out of the door don’t seem to attract much attention from readers… with good reason!

It was a little startling towards the end when some of the most memorable characters suddenly started getting killed, off-page, in quick succession. This unexpected cull is followed by a speedy librus ex machina, before the book abruptly ends.

There was definitely some charm and humour to be found in the book in places, but it was just very difficult to keep following the story when there is little overarching, connecting thread to events and lots of Mortimer wittering on about Hugo, cake, photocopies, and every minor interaction he has with his colleagues.

If you imagine The Office but with less humour, or a low-budget soap opera but with less drama, then you wouldn’t be far from my impression of this book. But there are books in it and I love the cover and the title, so it’s not all bad.

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

Die Charaktere waren genial und ich mochte den Plot so sehr. Es hat alles gestimmt und ich fand auch den Schreibstil absolut toll.

The House of Marvellous Books was an entertaining, whimsical read and I enjoyed the writing style and story. I would recommend.

I loved this book, so much so that it might became my book G the yearly its to in my top 5 books, set in a publishing house with pronominal characters there was very little not to love. I urge anyone who likes reading to give this book a go you won't be disappointed

Unusual and thoroughly enjoyable. The House of Marvelous Books is a recommended purchase for most collections.

Not for me unfortunately. I started it but struggled to get into it and never went back and finished it as a result so unable to review properly

I wanted to love this book but I just could not get in to it. I tried three separate times and it never resonated with me. I'm sure it has its audience, but it was not for me, sadly.

The humorous plot in this novel absolutely won my heart. <3 I loved how unusual and quirky the story was. The plotline about saving a publishing house warmed my house. The characters were charming in their own ways, and I was laughing all throughout the way because of that!

I just could not get into this one, the writing was not up to par for the concept. Would not recommend

I loved this hilarious, a bit eccentric, and witty book. It's populated by quirky and fleshed out characters, and there's plenty of literary references.
A book wrote in diary format that I loved.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Not a personal favourite in the recently expanding genre of books featuring books. Not easy to pull off by any means. Enjoyable enough, perhaps not particularly memorable.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very strange book. If you're a big fan of eccentric books, then you will love this book.

I couldn't wait to finish this book - it was a real slog. The premise for this book had a lot of promise, but really didn't deliver on any of it. I really wanted to know more about the Daybreak Manuscript. I really wanted to know more about Gerard and his business decisions. I really wanted to know more about Calling Crane and how they were being shady. But those would all be plots, and this book had no plot. I think that was the point? I typically like character-driven novels, but Mortimer had no growth throughout. He wasn't very introspective, wasn't too concerned with overcoming some sort of difficulty or resigning himself to it, and did not seem to have any vision for himself what life would look like in 10 years.

One part that I found particularly curious was the frequent religious references. They seemed to belong to a really different London than the one Mortimer was living in.

A story of a bookshop which sounded like it came out of the archives, a host of quirky characters and the'
impossibility of maintaining and upkeeping the place with the lot in charge.

There is a legendary book, which if found can save the library and its people, but it has been looked for
for decades and never been found. However, the employees here (at least some of them) believe that it is around
it is only a matter of following obscure clues and pouncing on the manuscript.

Nice, quirky, eccentric characters who all developed as time went by, and humourously told this made for an
entertaining read.

This was a wonderfully quirky and unusual read with some great characters and lots of humour. The House of Marvellous Books is a publishing house facing ruin unless the current inhabitants can save the day.

I love reading books about books so I'm not surprised that The House Of Marvellous Books sucked me right in. It did take some times diving into the story but once I got used to the writing style and settled into the world, I really enjoyed the adventure it took me on!

The characters are quite eccentric and they kind of remind me of Wes Anderson characters with their oddities and quirks. At first I was a bit thrown off and wasn't sure what to make of their peculiarities but found myself laughing out loud once I was deep in the book.

Overall, The House of Marvellous Books is a light and easy read and full of charm! Thank you NetGalley and Fairlight Books for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

The House of Marvellous books is a publishing house on the brink of financial disaster. The staff are disorganised, the author's AWOL, even the roof is caving in. It's last hope is finding a legendary manuscript rumoured to be priceless and hidden somewhere within the publisher's walls.

Being an avid reader I am drawn towards stories set in bookstores and libraries, so naturally I was interested in reading The House of Marvellous books that is set in a publishing house.

This book was not bad but it was not marvellous either. What I liked were the quirky characters and their interactions with each other which genuinely had me laughing out loud. The novel is narrated through journal entries logged over the year by the main character Mortimer Blakeley-Smith which was unique but also got monotonous after a certain time. As a result the middle felt boring and dragged on even though the premise was interesting.

With so many characters the novel could have been narrated in multiple PoVs which would have done wonders to hold my interest a little longer. Also the book was a bit long at over 300 pages and with an absence of a plot it felt like a chore to finish.

It certainly is an unusual read, although some parts were enjoyable and might appeal to readers who are into character driven-narratives.

Many thanks to @netgalley and @fairlightbooks for providing me with a digital advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.