✨ PRINCEMAN REVIEW ✨

📝 Nineteen year old Inez Olivera lives in Buenos Aires with her aunt and cousins while her parents are archeologists in Cairo, Egypt. They are trying to discover the final resting place of Cleopatra, when something goes horribly wrong. Alerted of their death, Inez knows she must find out what happened to them. But being in the nineteenth century isn't always kind to headstrong females who want to experience life outside of society. Her uncle is less than pleased to see her, and his assistant. Whit, is handsomely insufferable. Inez quickly learns that dangers exist, and she might be in way over her head.

What I 🤍:
🕰️ Historical Fantasy
⚰️ Ancient Egyptian Setting
🚢 Adventure and Mystery
🤫 Secrets and Lies
🪄 Magical Objects
🌀 Creative Plot Idea
💕 Forbidden Romance

I'll start out by saying this is the most creative story idea as far as fantasy, that I've read in a long time! I loved how we had a strong, passionate FMC who's set to avenge her parents in the Egyptian setting. Traveling through Cairo, The Nile River and the tombs of ancient civilization was fascinating. But, that's where the story was at its best.

Honestly, I REALLY struggled with the pacing of this book. In fact, I ended up downloading it on audiobook and grabbing a physical to help me move along more quickly. (I was hooked enough to see what happens to not DNF it...and FYI the audio is TERRIBLE) The reason why the plot moved so slowly is because the plot has some holes. For starters, some ancient artifacts have magical properties that allow you to see images from the past. I wish that had been fleshed out more. Additionally, too much detail was spent on Inez's journey to the dig site rather than focusing on the mystery in itself. I also felt the romance was unnecessary and unbelievable since it was an insta-love yet we bicker 24/7 sort of situation. I didn't feel moved by their love story. Finally, some story elements were very predicable, which takes away some of the fun.

Prince's Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Passion: 🔥🔥 (Kissing/'Touching')
Read If ➡️: You love adventure mysteries, archeology
Read 📅: Anytime!
CW ⚠️: GRAPHIC Death, Women being Taken Advantage Of

If you love Indiana Jones or even National Treasure, it's worth giving this book a read! Be warned though, while it is categorized as YA, I felt it was more 'New Adult' due to some very graphic moments. Book 2 comes out in November, and I'll be skimming it just to see how this duology ends.

My review will be posted soon to my Instagram Page (@LifeWithPrinceMan).

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for access to the eARC. I severely disliked this book and i'll summarize my main issues in a few bullet points
• the plot: extremely uneven pacing and im not exaggerating when i say you can read 60% of this book and have had nothing happen. then when something does happen, it is extremely convenient and unbelievable. left off on a very cheap cliffhanger

• the characters: very shallow and one dimensional. Inez was childish and naive, and never once considered that maybe while she's in a foreign country she should listen to those who've actually spent time there. Whit was the stereotypical broody male love interest with a mysterious past and that's about all he had going for him (even then not well executed). Oh and his brawniness. if i have to read about his brawny chest one more time while he leans against a door frame i swear I'll jump into a crocodile invested nile.

• the romance: terrible. i don't know what either character saw in each other. no chemistry, horrible attempt at banter, "innocent girl x experienced man" will always give me the ick

• the writing: okay. decent at least. she knows how to form a sentence and have it make sense. however the writing is extremely unengaging and lacks any sense of personality. some of the descriptions of egypt and the tombs read like was reading one of my college archeology textbooks.

3.5/5 Stars What the River Knows captured my attention because of its comparison to The Mummy. It definitely had similar vibes in that it took place in Egypt, there was a flirtatious male main character and an intelligent main female character, and there were magic elements.

I liked how adventurous Inez was- always willing to sneak out and find the truth. Whit is straight out of a romance novel- with all his doorway leans and teasing phrases. They played off of one another well, but it did start to get a bit frustrating especially because their relationship would seemingly progress and then go backwards a great deal several times.

The setting was impeccable- Isabel Ibañez’s description of the cities and buildings and natural world were beautiful. I felt like I was there. If you’re wanting a swashbuckling romance, filled with a good amount of Egyptian history mixed with a coming of age story, this is the book for you.

Though it did not captivate me like I’d hoped, I can see why others enjoy it so much and I look forward to reading book two. The epilogue REALLY piqued my interest with that twist!

What a fun book!!!! I ended up listening to the audiobook but it was a perfect mix of magic, history, romance, and adventure. 10/10 will read this author again!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

This was a beautifully crafted story, A blend of historical fiction with some magical realism. A bit of drama, deceit and mystery along with some angst and a slow burn romance. There is distrust, doubt and grief as well as hope and excitement. It truly has a bit of everything.

Inez Olivera has traveled from Argentina to Egypt in the hope of discovering what happened to her parents. Her uncle is there and she is sure he must know what led to their deaths and she needs to know for closure. What she discovers when she gets there is that her uncle doesn't want her to stay and tries to send her back immediately. In addition, her parents deaths seem more and more suspicious. As time goes on, she finds herself with more questions than answers and isn't sure who she can trust.

Unfortunately, her uncle's "right hand man," Whitford Hayes, draws her attention. He makes it clear that they aren't going to be together but yet his body language says other things and Inez can't help but feel drawn to him. Yet, she also suspects she can't trust him either but she really wants to.

This was such a fun read. It's emotional and moving. The descriptions are rich and inviting. I was drawn into it like it was another world being painted for me. A definitely piece of art.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

This is the first book I have read by Isabel Ibañez and I will say I am not disappointed.
If you are looking for a historical romance with some fantasy elements, adventurous and mysterious with a hint of slow burn. THIS IS IT.
God I just fell in love with the characters, the tension, the chemistry, the banter between Inez and Whit was *chef’s kiss* loved it and I miss them
Loved every second of their journey and I cannot wait for the second book.
I also loved the writing style, Isabel did an amazing job of getting me immersed into this world.

I was excited to get this NetGalley ARC and thought that Isabel Ibanez did a fantastic job creating the world for the characters, had me wanting more from every scene and wrote a story that gave me all the feels. I look forward to reading more from her in the future.

Thank you to the netgalley and the publisher!

I absolutely LOVED this book. The setting of Ancient Egypt was fantastic. I also liked our main character. There were times when I started to get frustrated with her but when you put it in the context of a teenage girl going through what she was going through her actions were actually quite understandable. Our story starts off with Inez losing both of her parents and running away from her aunt's house to travel to Egypt by herself to find her Uncle and investigate her parents death so you could say she was going through a lot haha.

And then we have Whit. He was so great and brooding and a bit mysterious. I also loved the banter between Inez and Whit. Give me more please!

There were a few twists that I saw coming but that didn't make them any less enjoyable because those twists just worked for the story.

The character, the setting, the character dynamics, they were all fantastic. Honestly rivals/enemies to lovers set in ancient Egypt was all you needed to say to sell me on this and I truly enjoyed myself.

And that ending! Left me screaming. The sequel can't come soon enough. I need answers.

Beautiful story of love, family, and magic. Lots of drama and suspense. I really enjoyed reading this book.

Nothing like Ancient Egyptian magic tied to a ring, from a dead parent, passing on bottomless funds, in the care of a just introduced uncle, on his way to Cairo, chasing the legendary tomb of Cleopatra, all landing on the person of a bossy girl living in Buenos Aires in the 1880's to get my attention, folks!

Inez Olivera gets all of that and a trip to Cairo, River Nile tours, threats on her life, and a hunky on-again-off-again ally with special attractions. Cleopatra is involved, and a family reunion, and at the end. . . .a cliff hanger. . .this is #1, and one is definitely left wanting #2. Which I am.

*A sincere thank you to Isabel Ibañez, St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and independently review.* #WhattheRiverKnows #NetGalley

This book captivated me from the start. Although this was a slow burn, Ibañez’s descriptive story telling kept me hooked until the very end.

I absolutely adored Inez! She’s exactly what I’d expect out of a young Latina lead — witty, stubborn, curious and fueled by fire. I equally loved Whit, too. His darkness and mystery kept me wanting to find out more about him and his past. I loved their banter and enjoyed watching their relationship grow.

There’s a little bit of magic, Egyptian history, love, mystery, some twists I did see coming and a bunch more I didn’t! This book is the first in a series, so I cannot wait to find out how Inez’s story plays out, because that ending…

What the River Knows is a historical fantasy set in Egypt. Say no more, I'm in! Inez Olivera is the daughter of Egypt enthusiasts who are tragically reported dead on their last trip. Suspecting that there may be more to the story, Inez decides to go to Egypt by herself to find out what she can about their deaths. Upon her arrival, she meets a dashingly annoying boy who works for her uncle. She ends up teaming up with him to find out what really happened to her family and solve questions that have plagued archeologists for centuries.

I was soooo excited for this book!! As a former child who got very into Ancient Egypt once upon a time, I was excited to see a book that incorporated Ancient Egypt, magic, and archaeology. I definitely had super high expectations leading up to this book, which I think did me a disservice. I thought this book was just okay. This hurts me to say because I wanted to love it!

First, we have the main characters. They were both very prickly. I somewhat get it because of enemies to lovers/both of them had difficult pasts, but it didn't make for super fun reading. I also thought that the magic system could have been explained/incorporated a bit more. It doesn't come into play too much, so I kept getting surprised when someone used a magical item, like "oh yeah there IS magic in this world." I think that this was a missed opportunity because it's such a cool idea!! I would have just wanted more magic or none and have it be more of a straight historical fiction book.

Generally, there is more violence than I expected in this book. There is a moment at the end of the book that I thought was unnecessarily brutal and cruel. It really made me think about whether I wanted to keep reading and/or read the sequel. I would take this into consideration if this is something that might bother you.

Overall, I thought this book was okay. It wasn't really what I wanted it to be! I recommend it if you are super into Egypt or historical adventure novels. 3 stars from me. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC of this book, my thoughts are my own!

What the River Knows is a historical fantasy that was marketed to me because I am an archaeologist and anthropologist. And to get it out of the way quickly, I think this book did a good job of saying "stealing is bad, taking historical artifacts out of the country where they belong is wrong, and grave robbing is really wrong."
My favourite part of this book by far is the point where the Tumblr text post "mummies are rare because we ate them" was referenced /j. I greatly enjoyed the descriptions of the tombs, ruins, and temples, as well as the geographical exploration. I really liked the swearing that came up, it always felt very realistic. Teenagers and young adults swear all the time, even historical teenagers and young adults. I liked the romance between Witt and Inez. I liked the mystery, even though I was mostly confused for the whole book. One of the only things I didn't enjoy was the writing style for physical movement descriptions. Something just felt off there. But the prose and dialogue were lovely. I think this might have been about 200 pages too long, unfortunately. The first 40% reaaaaally dragged. And the last 15% was faster than a bullet... And if you want happy endings, this isn't the book for you. Overall I would give this a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

*shakes fist at sky* damn you, surprise series openers! Getting me all excited and then making me wait

Okay, I really did like this a lot, I just hate when I'm tricked into reading something that's not actually finished!

Where to start with this book…
I love the historical fiction aspect of it! The Mummy-esque setting was lovely!
Inez was obnoxious at first. Okay, she was obnoxious the whole time, but I got used to her. 😅 Whit was lovable and endearing. I loved their little crew, all of the side characters.
I’m looking forward to the second book to find out what happens next!

I LOVED this book! As a huge fan of The Mummy and Indiana Jones, I just knew I had to pick this up, and, wow, it did not disappoint! I love Inez - I love her spirit, her energy, and her stubborn nature. I love the immense amount of research the author clearly put into her worldbuilding. I loved this so much I bought a copy for a friend!

Rating: 3-3.5
I picked this up, like many, because of it's comparisons to The Mummy. When I started reading this I LOVED IT! But sadly as I got further into the story some things started to irk me and and I ended up liking it less and less. However, that is not to say this was a bad book by any means. It was hard to understand what this book was trying to be. Was it fantasy or historical fiction or romance or mystery or all of the above? At times it read very YA and other times very adult. I will say I want to know how this story ends and will pick up the next book---so it did it's job of keeping my attention.

Things I enjoyed (for the most part)
Setting- I will literally read anything that takes place in Egypt and a bonus for anything about Egyptology.
Enemies to lovers? Check---well maybe...more on that later.
Inez- I honestly really liked our main character (well at first anyways) She seemed like a head strong female lead, maybe a bit shelter but curious and seemingly smart.
Reminded me of one of my favorite series ever--The Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters.

Things that irked me by the end:
The magic. - What magic system you may ask? Exactly. While the magical aspect was super interesting at first it was so under-developed and just used as a plot device to move the story where needed and ignored it the rest of the time.
There were many characters that were introduced and seemed important to the plot but then just disappeared and reappeared randomly? Can we get more Isadora please!?!
Inez- not a compelling main character- her personality seems to do a nose dive when she sees an attractive man. She makes the worst decisions and given how paranoid she is--she is the worst judge of character. I'm not sure if that was initially and the next book we'll see a whole new Inez (I hope so)
The plot is repetitive- We get it Inez is clever at escaping (while I mean she thinks she is anyways) It wasn't until halfway through the book that the plot finally picks up. But sadly that is where it lost me.
There were a lot of reveals in this story---which isn't a bad thing---but I think the author took it too far at the end. The way a certain character was treated made no sense to the story other than as a plot device to push Inez over the edge---which wasn't necessary given all the other events of betrayal she encounters in the story, which was more than enough to carry the conflict over to the next book.

I read another book by this author a couple years ago that I really enjoyed. When I saw her name on this one and the comp titles of The Mummy and Death on the Nile, I had high expectations. They were absolutely met.

I loved the nineteenth century Egyptian setting as a backdrop for this adventurous story filled with magic, mythology, and mystery. At times I felt like I was watching an Indiana Jones movie. Inez was raised in the upper society of Buenos Aires, but don’t expect her to conform their expectations. She’s headstrong, impulsive, and curious, three traits that lead her into one perilous situation after another. I immediately liked her. When she receives word from her uncle about her parents’ deaths, Inez leaves a note for her aunt (who’s serving as her guardian while her parents are working in Egypt) and travels to Cairo – without a chaperone. Which is unheard of during this time and also dangerous, but Inez is determined to discover what happened to her parents.

Upon arriving in Cairo, she meets Whit, her uncle’s assistant. He’s charming, infuriating, morally gray, and isn’t entirely forthcoming about his past. He’s also been instructed to send Inez back to Buenos Aires and is shocked when she outwits and outmaneuvers him and stays in Cairo. Whit is probably my favorite character.

This story is filled with twists and turns, secrets, betrayals, Egyptian artifacts and mythology. Like Inez, I wasn’t sure who to trust. The banter between her and Whit is fun and a little snarky at times, and their chemistry is evident from their first meeting. And that ending! Wow – I didn’t see it coming. I had to reread it a couple times, and the next book can’t get here soon enough.

At over four hundred pages, this novel is a bit long and started slowly for my tastes, but quickly picked up. It’s classified as young adult, but is easily a crossover so don’t let the genre deter you. Recommended for readers who enjoy an engaging mystery, well-crafted characters, and an adventure filled with unpredictable twists.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A 3.5, but I hate to say that I had to round this one down. I love the concepts in this novel. Magic? Egypt? Archaeology? Love it! I even mostly enjoy Inez as a character, and I’m interested in her dynamic and romance with Whit moving into the next book. Without spoilers, I also love a few big moments that happened in the last few chapters that will leave lasting consequences. It takes guts to stick to that and I think it’s great. I particularly enjoy Ibanez’s knack for writing complicated family dynamics.

My problem is… the first 70% of this novel, which unfortunately is way too long for it to drag like this. It took soooo long to get to the tombs. So long!!! So much of this novel is Inez whining about getting the truth out of her uncle, trying to escape whatever room she’s confined to, run off and cause more problems. Nothing really happens except her trying to make stuff happen and it’s not all that exciting. The last 30%? Great! I wish that we had spent more time on the archeology digs instead of getting to said digs. It would have had more exciting action, more interesting conversations. It just felt really slow until we got to Cleopatra’s tomb, and then that went by too quickly.

The prose itself is really good, and I’m invested enough to pick up the second one – in fact, there’s a lot I’m excited to discover – I just wish the good parts of the book hadn’t been stuffed into the backend.