Wonderful characters and a unique setting make this a must-have for all romance and adventure readers alike. What a breath of fresh air this was and I highly look forward to the sequel.

I read this book months ago, and I still think about it all the time! After reading Together We Burn by Isabel Ibañez, I suspected I would enjoy anything she wrote, and that suspicion was confirmed when I read What the River Knows.

I was captivated from the start of the book! While I normally take extensive notes while reading, I wrote one thing down before I completely fell into the story. I loved the fact that Inez’s story is motivated by loss. Her grief is intertwined with her story without overtaking it; she doesn’t let it stop her from living her life and finding answers.

Similarly, I appreciated the fact that Ibañez chose to write Inez’s story in particular. We get to see the way her family’s money gives her privilege, while her gender in the time period she lived creates obstacles for her. Despite those hardships, Inez is determined to forge her way in life.

Additionally, although I typically enjoy romance novels despite the romance, I actually loved this one largely because of the romance. Inez and Whit’s relationship was full of suspense and angst. The sections from his perspective added a lot of depth to the story.

AND THAT ENDING?!?! I audibly gasped when I read the end! Talk about a cliffhanger! I desperately need the sequel ASAP!

I bought the OwlCrate edition of What the River Knows (which is stunning, by the way), and I’m praying OwlCrate does the sequel because I need it in my life!

Rating:5/5 Stars

LOVED THIS! Such a good historical mystery!

If you grew up loving Egyptology, Egyptian mythology or even dare I say, The Mummy - this is for you. What the River Knows follows Inez Olivera as she travels from Argentina to Egypt to search for her parents who have been presumed dead.

Set in turn of the century Cairo, this part historical romance, part historical magical realism novel follows as Inez and her supporting characters as they search for the find of the century and as Inez explores the dark side of her parent’s lives that she didn’t know existed.

I really adored this - it is YA so set your expectations accordingly - and I couldn’t put it down. It was beautifully written and the descriptions of Egypt are accurate and inclusive - which is missing in a lot of the books written about this time period / portion of history. I can’t wait for the next installment due out later this year.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Isabel Ibañez and NetGalley for the copy of the book in exchange for my honest review!

Inez has spent a lifetime being left behind as her parents travel between their home in Argentina and their passion for archeological exploration in Egypt. When she receives news her parents have died in The Egyptian dessert she finally makes the journey to Egypt in order to learn more about their fates.

Inez is a loveable heroine with her determination and dislikes for the rules. With strong female characters and a touch of magic this book was a good fit for me.

This was a good YA novel, with interesting characters and plot!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez is a stunning historical fantasy romance novel. Isabel Ibanez is a favorite author of mine and this one was my favorite yet! It is set in Egypt and has a lot of historical aspects and you can tell how much research and passion the author put into this book. I enjoyed how action-packed this was and the ending had me jumping up and down with my jaw on the floor. I loved how headstrong the female main character Inez was. I also found the love interest Whit to be very intriguing and I cannot wait to find out more about him in the second book. The romance was a smaller subplot in this book but I can see it becoming coming to the forefront in book 2. I loved the romance crumbs! There were twists and turns at every corner and I loved all the plot twists. I am eagerly anticipating the second book in this duology and I could not recommend this book enough!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for a review!

This story takes you on a ride! I loved the characters and cannot wait to see them grow in the sequel! Also that ending…my heart hurts!

I loved the romance and while the building of the plot felt a little slow at times, the payoff was great.

Inez is strong, naive, and brave and I hope she will continue to grow within the sequel. Whit is witty, guarded, but also loving and caring. I hope his walls continue to fall down in the sequel. This book was amazing! I hope everyone else gets a chance to go on the same wild ride I did.

What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez is a fantasy novel set in the unusual location of 19th century Egypt. Our main character, Inez, is a strong-willed and resourceful young lady, determined to solve the mystery of her missing parents. Along the way she learns who she can and cannot trust, including within her own family. She joins archeological expeditions and uncovers astounding treachery, all while falling for a young man who may be the most treacherous of them all.

This first book in the Secrets of the Nile duology cannot be read solely on its own. The cliff-hanger means we are waiting for @isabelwriter09 ‘s next book: Where the Library Hides.

I forgot to leave a review for this, but I really enjoyed it! It's been out for ages, so I won't say much more than I need to for my star rating. <3

This book was so good! After so many books that felt wishy washy this was a breath of fresh air. I loved the setting - the Egyptian backdrop was breathtaking (I am a bit biased though because I LOVE books that take place around this area! I just love the culture and history). And the character Inez was such witty and fun to read about. I like the weaving of mythology and the flashback of Cleopatra's memories as well.

There were parts of this book that missed the mark in my opinion. I felt that more representation of actual Egyptian characters would have been nice and more care taken in writing about the artifacts. These are points that I hope the author can take a look back on and decide to do better about.

Overall as an entertaining read, I am going to give it four stars. On a level of skill and writing style a 3-3.5. I hope to see Ibanez expand on this book and develop its characters a little more thoroughly.

Absolutely amazing! I loved everything about this book. The characters were engaging, the mystery kept me on my toes, and the romance was intriguing. Plus all the lush Egyptian descriptions were amazing. I am eagerly waiting for book 2 because that epilogue destroyed me.

This was my favorite book of 2023! I was thoroughly impressed with the plot, characters and writing style. I admit I was not the biggest fan of Isabel’s previous work, but this completely changed my mind. I loved it and can’t wait for the next one!

I have enjoyed Isabel Ibanez's writing style of history and a little bit of fantasy. The characters are interesting, well-developed and the journey you take is wonderfully surprising. I think the love story that isn't too over the top and the family dynamics definitely hold your attention.

I enjoyed this book for the most part, I really liked how it was a bit different and took place in Egypt with Egyptian culture and mythology. I also liked that it touched on a lot of the issues with colonialism. I do think the magic system could have been more developed though and I don't know that it was entirely necessary to the story, there were times I forgot there even was magic and it became a bit jarring to see it again. There were a few parts of the plot that felt unnecessary, while at the same time I kept hoping I would see more from Whit's perspective rather than the short snippets that were given.

I heard a lot about the worldbuilding in this one, but I kept wondering why a book set in Egypt about safekeeping Egyptian cultural heritage didn’t centre any Egyptian people? That people of another culture from the other side of the world were getting in there to “save” the Egyptian artifacts? It left me feeling a wee bit squinty.
There were also plot elements that I struggled with. How did the MC discover letters in a room thoroughly searched by others before her? How could the villain be so cartoonishly evil? And the love pairing… I dunno. Not sold. I disliked the ending, the way a sympathetic character arrived just to be killed for Drama, the cliffhanger-esque final chapter. Not for me. 2.5 stars

Loved this one!! The Egyptian backdrop was so lush the setting of this book and the descriptive prose were my favorite parts. The miscommunication between many of the characters annoyed me a bit but I can see how it was necessary to set up the betrayal. I loved Cleopatras memories. I can’t wait to read the next book I already pre-ordered! Whit better not be a bad guy!

I received an e-arc of What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I tried listening to the audio for this and the narrator's voice for Whit gave me the worst ick, so DNFed @ 21% - would not recommend the audiobook for this.
I picked this up again, reading physically this time and ate it up. I'm here for InezWhit, their banter, the Egyptian atmosphere, and what was that ending?? I have the next book preordered.
4 stars.

I absolutely loved this title. The book drew me in from the first page with its brilliant descriptions of magic and enchantment. It enhanced the setting of an Egyptian excavation site to seem actually magical. I felt that I could picture the setting around me with the immersive writing.
The characters seemed as if they were real people. Inez was a sympathetic character from the start, and I enjoyed following her as she pressed forward in her quest to find out what happened to her parents, despite being told she could not. Inez and Whit make a fantastic team on the page, and I look forward to reading more in this series when the next book is released.
The suspense was perfectly paced, not too intense but still enough to grab attention and make the reader want to know more. Some moments felt like they were on screen in front of me, like an old-fashioned adventure movie. I was strongly reminded of The Mummy. Excellent book!

Purchased for my high school library! A very enjoyable read. Adventure and mystery will make a great suggestion for fans of The Kane Chronicles, or the Indiana Jones or Mummy movies.

I really enjoyed a lot about this - the setting in colonial Egypt a few years after the seige of Alexandria, the archeology and magic, the tension between Inez and Whit, shifting alliances, the mystery surrounding Inez's parents disappearance and presumed deaths, and a seriously good plot twist - but also struggled with other elements. The pacing felt especially uneven to me, almost languid for the first 25-30% or so then a rushed, frenetic ending and Inez, our main character and the POV for the majority of this book, had a tendency to be kind of infuriatingly clueless. I spent a lot of this book wanting to reach through the screen to shake her.

But overall despite these flaws on the balance I ended up really enjoying this and am excited to see what comes next - the cliffhanger on this book is next level!!