This book contained a wonderful love story and was beautifully written; however, it had a very hard time grabbing my attention in the beginning and, when it finally did, it struggled to hold it. I struggled with the narration coming from the fairy in which we are witnessing this love story through, I would have preferred to hear this love story from the two women experiencing it so that I could feel all of the emotions, highs, and lows that our main characters are feeling instead of getting them second hand from an observer.

Overall I like the story, but the narration from a third party made it feel less than it could have been.

3.75!

in a world of fairies, hobgoblins, witches, goddesses, etc. a noblewoman named Maelys and a suspected witch named Georgiana have to team up to break a curse that has been cast on Maelys, and despite their initial disdain for each other, the forced proximity of this search for a curse breaker may end up being a blessing of something more romantic.

there were a few points in this book that kept it from being a 4 star for me. first, the narrator being a fairy that is once removed from the main characters left the characters feeling a bit distant from your perspective, and really dampened any chance of building a deeper understanding of their feelings and emotions. i feel like i would just start getting absorbed into the story and then the fairy’s dialogue would pull me back out of it. second, the writing itself is a bit too wordy at times, like the author used a thesaurus to find the biggest word to use for every situation, and while i love big words, when there are so many artful and complex words, it’s harder to have a steady stream of reading because of all these speed bumps of mouthfuls of words. and lastly, i felt like most of the conversations between our MC’s felt very repetitive, like they were having the same argument over and over, and i would’ve loved to see their relationship have a bigger transformation over the course of the book.

other than these qualms, this book has a very entertaining plot, clever and entertaining dialogue between characters, charmingly vulgar conversations, and cute characters. i would recommend this book, it’s a very fun and cute read, but it’s not quite a perfect book for me! worth the read but could’ve been improved in the areas i have said. thank you to netgalley for an e-arc of this book in return for a review!

I liked parts of this book but it had issues. I think the problem in the story got resolved too quickly. Everything after the resolution should have happened before the problem got resolved. It would have made the story flow better. I loved the narrator and Miss Bickle though! Super funny.

Mortal Follies is a cross between Bridgerton, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and a fantasy novel written with Alexis Hall's beautiful writing style. This book was fun, imaginative, and definitely unexpected with the lovely swoony moments. The book has Alexis's signature wit and witty banter and contained his unique writing, insight, and wonderful, intriguing characters. I really enjoyed the fantasy elements sprinkled into the Regency world. I love how everyone is free t be themselves and how accepting the world is of them.

I loved having Puck as the narrator, as I loved him in A Midsummer Night's Dream. He was definitely snarky and so much fun. It was a fun journey watching Maelys Nitchelmore and Lady Georgiana Landrake (Duke of Annadale) grow to care for each other.

I truly loved this book and definitely recommend it! The cover art is absolutely gorgeous!

ARC received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 10% I did not like the way this story was told, which was 3d person, like fly-on-the-wall but with so many characters and no true connection to anyone because of them, I just kept getting confused, and having to reread sentences as well. I think the writing style was not for me either. I really wanted to like this because the synopsis is that of a book that was tailor made for me.

Absolutely loved it! Alexis Hall can do no wrong

Thanks you to netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy

This book is maybe 150 pages longer than it needed to be. And it is something that I have felt from other books by them. Once the mystery of why she was cursed is solved, that felt like a more natural end of the story. However adding that the other main character is also from a cursed home multiple chapters after felt like repetition that was not needed. Some of the walks and chats also didn't really add to the narrative and didn't add to the love story that this was supposed to be. The narrator, hobgoblin-Robin, who I was calling Bobgoblin in my head, and Miss Bikle were great characters. I think I liked them more than the main characters, they added comedic relief to a story that might not have been funny if not for them. Overall, I don't think this story was for me, but I can see how people would enjoy it.

This was my introduction to Alexis Hall and I can say - I will be devouring more. In an attempt not to spoil anything - I think the story follows a very relatable love story although the narrator POV is something, I believe I am still trying to process and maybe that is because It is new to me. This will definitely be a re-read once I process a bit more but I have tossed this out to many of my fellow book lovers and the consensus has been consistent!

I love the playfulness of this charming comedic Regency fantasy romance. It is quite literally a fairy tale, as the story is told by none other than Robin Goodfellow, whom you might recall as Oberon’s mischievous jester. It took me a bit to adjust to Robin’s opinionated narrative style and helpful asides, but I soon fell in love with this whimsical tale.

Miss Maelys Mitchelmore falls under a curse and must rely upon the assistance of the wicked Lady Georgiana Landrake, aka The Duke of Annadale, who rumor suggests may have used magic to murder her family. Maelys and Georgiana must fight their complicated feelings for each other, society’s aspersions, and multiple curses and magical attacks on their way to a happy ending.

I loved all of the mythology and folklore weaved into this story, and all of the quirky characters were a delight. This was a lot of fun, and I recommend it to fans of queer romance, historical rom-coms, and fairy tales.

I was provided an ARC through NetGalley, and I volunteered to provide an honest review.

Mortal Follies is such a delightfully weird and cozy love story that follows Miss Mitchelmore and her penchant for attracting curses, as well as the woman determined to save her.

Narrated by a hobgoblin, the story is punctuated with interesting tidbits about faerie-kind, as well as the general shenanigans of said narrator. At moments distracting, it’s ultimately charming, and lends a distinct humor and light-heartedness to the narrative. It’s a unique choice and Alexis Hall does it well.

Hall also does characters well, giving us gems such as Miss Bickle, who I imagine as a fae-obsessed, regency era Phoebe Buffay. I loved every second of her ridiculousness. Of course, the stars of the story—Maelys and Georgiana—were also wonderful. They had immaculate on-page chemistry, when allowing themselves to be vulnerable (I just wish they had been vulnerable a bit more often).

And while I wouldn’t quite call this reimagined England queernormative (there are still stigmas for going against heteronormativity), everyone in the main characters life is accepting and even unbothered by queerness. It made it easy to just enjoy the story. (There is, however, some early transphobia, but it is challenged in text by one of the main cast.)

This book was a lot of fun, and I’m sure I’ll gladly return to it. In fact, I really want more of these characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

So this is my second foray into the work of Alexis Hall, and my second of his Regency-inspired romances. And I can now definitively say that Alexis Hall was <i>born</i> to write Regency romance. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me to learn at this point that Alexis is actually Robin Goodfellow himself in the flesh 😂

I’m picky about my historical romances. Austen, Brontë, Burney, Radcliffe - that’s what I cut my teeth on as a teen. So there’s precious little tolerance from me for anachronisms, cheesiness, etc in a serious historical romance. But what I <b>loved</b> about <i>Mortal Follies</i> is its ability to preserve the spirit, wit, and voice of an authentic regency satire - while staying self-aware and poking fun at its own tropiness. The meta allusions are utterly delightful…from the setting in Bath, to the mythological/folklore references, to Miss Bickle’s assumptions that the world works like the plot of a gothic novel 😂

And as always Alexis does a phenomenal job of telling diverse and inclusive stories, and exploring queer emotions and relationships, in a sensitive and nuanced way.

Can I also say I LOVE Robin and his narrative commentary?! I hope to the gods that this is first in a series because I need more of his tales!

Many thanks to Netgalley, Del Rey and Alexis himself for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts 😊

For whom would you defy the gods? What started as what could be perceived as simple faerie mischief unfolded into a tale of mythical creatures, curses, gods, and sacrifices all with an English countryside backdrop. When Maelys Mitchelmore's dress begins to unravel seemingly by magic at a ball, she has no idea who is behind this affliction, or why. But unfortunate event after unfortunate event led her closer to a fellow society outcast, and possible suspect, Lady Georgiana Landrake, the unofficial Duke of Annadale. She must find the source of the curse or else be sucked into its spell.

Mortal Follies is so many genres at once, it's hard to pin it down. I would call this a Fantasy, Historical, Adventure, Sapphic Regency Romance. There is so much packed into this novel all told artfully by an unreliable narrator from the court of Oberon. The episodic nature of Maelys's adventures makes the book well paced and allows the reader to enjoy the book in small chunks, or all at once. At the heart of it all is a the burgeoning romance between Maelys and Georgiana. For fans of Gentleman Jack, Georgiana hits that sweet spot of not wishing to corrupt the object of her affections yet endlessly pursuing her.

The only reason this isn't a five star for me is the narrative style. The third party narrator telling the story almost entirely in third person except for when they wish to break the fourth wall and interject their personal thoughts or describe what they disguised themselves as to better observe the story was a bit jarring for me, but that should not deter readers, especially if that type of talking directly to the reader is a style they enjoy.

This is the first book I've read by this author, so I had no expectations. The mix of historical sapphic romance with magical fantasy elements was a true delight. The atory kept a smile on my face.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

This Sapphic romance is narrated by a fae who has been cast out of favor. They follow Miss Maelys Mitchelmore as her introduction to high society is hindered by a curse. The only person able to help Maelys is the notorious Duke of Annadale, Lady Georgiana Landrake and so we begin the journey of trying to find out who cursed Maelys and how to end it. The world building in this historical fantasy was great but I struggled to connect with Maelys and Georgiana. Their relationship progressed quickly in the last 20% of the book but it seemed forced. I thoroughly enjoyed the narrator but many times they detracted from the story - this probably would have been better for me if I listened to it instead of reading it. Overall this was a decent start to a series and I’m curious as to who the next couple will be.

All hail Alexis Hall! Alexis Hall can do no wrong in my opinion and this book was everything and more! I loved everything about this book. I felt like I was reading a sapphic Shakespeare play and I loved every last second of this book. I could sit here and write sentences upon sentences about how much I loved this book. Instead I will just say go read this book! Seriously go do it right now!

I loved this magical sapphic romance by Alexis Hall. It was unique and captivating and the characters were delightful.

mortal follies follows maelys mitchelmoore who has been cursed. when her dress slowly unravels at a high profile ball, she is rescued by the duke of annadale, miss georgiana landrake. as time progresses, the curse gets more dangerous and her savior becomes the greatest suspect. as miss mitchelmoore and her rag tag group of friends investigate they are sucked into a dangerous world of gods and goddesses, faeries, and many other deadly, magical creatures. time is running out for maelys before the curse will claim her life, and the only person who can help is georgiana. as they spend more time together, maelys finds herself drawn to the grumpy, brooding. suspected murderess.

mortal follies was just magical from start to finish. the way alexis hall combined the dangerous mystical world with that of the sweeping, dramatic regency era had me swept up quite easily. i loved the fact that the narrator was themselves a magical, omniscient, trickster with a proclivity for humor. there were some pacing issues that took me out of the story a bit after the 50% mark but i was still quite invested in mae’s story. the sapphic romance between mae and georgiana was beautiful and i just loved the will they won’t they mixed with georgiana’s angsty, i hate myself and i’m not good enough for you personality.

over all, this was a fun, magical historical romantasy that i definitely recommend if you are into whimsical fantasy romance books.

DNF @ 23%

I really wanted to love this book and I was SO excited for it, however, this really just didn’t work for me.

I loved A Lady for a Duke and I know that Hall usually writes slower paced books but this moved at such a slow pace that I feel absolutely nothing at all had been accomplished in the 23% of the book I read. The writing while good, is overly descriptive which added to the pacing issue.

Another issue I had is that I couldn’t tell what this book wanted to be. Is it a fantasy, a romance, a mystery? It has elements of all but unfortunately didn’t execute any of them well enough to keep me invested or to know where this story was going.

I found the narrator here to be very distracting. I think a third party narrator can be done well but unfortunately I don’t think it was executed well here. Robin was too involved and jumped in with his thoughts and opinions too often and I found it distracting. It also made it hard to actually connect with the characters the story is meant to be about.

In regard to the characters, I didn’t care for any of them. I didn’t particularly like our narrator, Robin, and as for the rest I had a hard time connecting due to the narration style. I couldn’t tell you a single thing about any of their personalities. I also feel that there were way too many characters introduced in the beginning and it was hard to keep track of who was who.

As for the plot, I didn’t find it compelling. The curse our main character is trying to solve is pretty mundane and she and her friends/family make essentially no progress at all in the 23% of the book I read. I was really interested in learning about the love interest as I found her to be the most interesting character in the book but she’s barely present.

Overall, there were a lot of interesting elements here and I was so excited for this but I don’t think it was executed well and I was not enjoying the book at all so I decided to DNF instead of trying to push through another 77%. I don’t think it’s a bad book, and someone else might really enjoy it, it just didn’t work for me personally.

Thank you so much to Random Publishing House and NetGalley for providing me with this eARC!

DNF @21% - I’m really sad to report this was a DNF for me. Like, the cover is so beautiful, and the synopsis sounded so much fun. However, I’m not even a quarter way in and I can already tell that no matter what this is never going to be anything higher than a three star. This book is just so exhausting to read. So many words are used to say so little, the dialogue seems a bit pretentious and feels forced, and then I haven’t talked about the extremely annoying narrator yet. God, this just isn’t working for me. Maybe, I should just start to accept that Alexis Hall is not the author for me no matter how interesting the synopsis sounds.

DNF a little over halfway but really just indefinite pause and I still have current thoughts

I’m sort of liking this, but it’s also not the kid of book I can read RIGHT NOW because of the historical aspects. This isn’t a DNF so much as a hiatus as I like it and plan on returning.