I love it when I fall back in love with fantasy 🤍

The Hexologists follow Isolde and Warren Wilby, a married couple that are sent on an investigation at the behest of the King to find out who is blackmailing him. Antics ensue of various magical varieties - inclusive of a magical carpet bag and a well-read dragon.

I have been in dire need of an adventure fantasy with a great sense of humor and wit. As a reader, you never get bored of how the plot develops since the worldbuilding expands gradually as you go on. The worldbuilding itself is part steampunk, part Howl’s Moving Castle, and part Treasure Planet. Its all in all a lovely setting that just hit the spot with me.

The casual romance that is sprinkled into the plot also really touched me - the intimacy of a marriage that is genuinely enjoyed by the couple is something I personally don’t see enough in fiction (probably because it doesn’t make for a good story 😂) and I really appreciated it. The characters themselves have amazing banter and great chemistry, and that truly is why I’m giving it five stars.

Such a great romp - cannot recommend this enough!

Married partners Iz and Warren Wilby rid their world of crimes committed by ghosts, incubi, wraiths and assortment of other supernatural creatures with the help of hexes and magical artifacts. They work for the citizens and have made it a rule never to help nobility.

Until the king’s secretary approaches them with a puzzle too good to ignore. The king, going a little mad, wants to bake himself into a cake. Why? After the king receives a blackmail letter, a royal secret buried 40 years ago might come to light. The Wilby’s must rely on their skills and a handful of friends to solve the mystery before it destroys the nation.

If you’ve read Bancroft’s Books of Babel series and you loved his imagination and world building, I’m here to say he’s done it again! Hands down the magical world building was my favorite part of this book.

In a world where necromancers and wizards have been criminalized, alchemists are the only magical group left that hold any level of prestige as they help acquire the fuel this world needs to power almost everything.

Hexologists, once a powerful force, are humored but mostly ignored as technology and science has improved healthcare, introduced electricity and caused many other advances that used to require hexes. No longer do citizens need the assistance of hexologists when technology can do that for them.

This reminded me so much of how there is something almost magical that is lost and cannot be duplicated or replaced when AI take over jobs from humans.

Iz and Warren make a funny and endearing team. Bancroft excels with his dry, witty dialogue between the two. It’s refreshing to have a couple already in love for years who know each other very well and are still deeply passionate toward each other.

There was also a great cast of side characters, including a dragon residing in carpet bag with a never-ending need to eat. He was my favorite character!

For me, the mystery was the weakest part of this novel. If you are an avid mystery reader, I’m not sure you’ll find the mystery that compelling. At times I found it a bit tedious and uninteresting.

But this is the first book in the series, and the characters and magical world more than held my attention and left me very excited to see what happens next in this series!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the digital arc. All opinions are my own.

The Hexologists was a fun and whimsical fantasy with characters I really enjoyed reading from. Both Iz and Warren are well developed and intriguing characters and I loved the dynamic between them.

For me though, I found little desire to pick this back up once I put it down. The story and mystery itself were just okay. I almost wish that this had started with some of their past adventures as this felt a bit like a middle book in a series. There were also some points that felt repetitive, going from one place then back to their home to another place and back again.

Overall, this was a fun and fresh fantasy that I did enjoy just not as much as I was hoping.

Thank you to netgally and the publisher for the e-arc.

**Please see content/trigger warnings at the end of this review**

I had fun with this one.

Isolde and Warren are a married couple who run a P.I. business in a multi-magical, alternate steampunk-like England, who investigate magical problems for the common folk. Isolde uses her hex magic to help, and Warren is along for the ride (sometimes providing muscle, and sometimes baked goods). They get pulled into a case involving the king (against Isolde's inclinations) and the plots within plots are vast. Also, there's a dragon!

My favorite part of this book was honestly the relationship between Isolde and Warren. They're a supportive and loving couple who are also really funny. I also found the world really interesting, and I am hoping that as the series goes on we get more explanation about it.

There were some rough transitions throughout the book where it just skips time from one paragraph to the next and I could have used a slightly better explanation on some of the world building, but nothing that ruined it for me.

Content/trigger warnings: Violence, death, mention of child abuse (in past)

While I don't regret the time I spent reading this book, it was still a strangely long time, given its pagelength. There were definitely times that made it a slog, and if you ask me if I'd pick up the next, I'd say that only time will tell. This is a book I'd recommend to a very particular kind of reader, one that won't mind winding narration and loves side quests as much as the main one. In the right reader's hands, I suspect this will be a big hit. If the warmth and whimsy makes you curious, give it a shot.

Full review to come

TL;DR

The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft is a wonderful opening to a new fantasy series. These magical detectives will take you to imaginative places. Highly recommended.

Disclaimer: The publisher provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Any and all opinions that follow are mine alone.

Review: The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft

The first time I picked up Senlin Ascends, I didn’t put it down. It was an odd book that I couldn’t stop reading and thinking about. It had an interesting setting and interesting characters. Overall, I really enjoyed it. (One day I’ll finish the whole series.) Unfortunately, I picked it up right as the final book was set to be published. It hasn’t been part of my reviews because I was so late to the party. I enjoyed the book so much though that I was on the lookout for whatever he did next. Thanks to the generous people at Orbit Books, I got to find out. The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft is the first novel in a new series. It features a married couple investigating royal secrets. All the things I loved about Senlin Ascends were here, and the book had much more to love.

Despite their anti-royalist sentiments, the Wilbies undertake an investigation for the king. Isolde Wilby is the brains of the duo. She’s thin and bad at reading people. She also employs a type of magic known as hexology. Warren Wilby (née Offalman) is a large man. He’s the muscle, and he’s also the charmer. Warren is a man filled with charisma and empathy. Together, they make a wonderful set of detectives. They’ve solved tough cases despite what people read in the Berbiton media. Most importantly, they’re a very happily married couple with an active sex life. (Is that relevant to the book? No. Is it relevant to this review? Yes.) Someone is claiming to be an unrecognized heir of the king. At the current moment in Berbiton society, the royal succession is tenuous but holding the status quo. A long-lost heir would throw the court into chaos. So, the royal secretary employs the Wilbies to find out who is blackmailing the king and is their claim legitimate. The Wilbies investigation will take them into secrets and plots that will threaten the stability of their society. With the help of Grandad, their magical bag of holding, the Wilbies set out to uncover the truth and encounter powerful enemies.

The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft is a third person novel featuring Isolde and Warren as point of view characters. The book is set in an alternate world that resembles the London of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories. The book has a faster pace than other of Bancroft’s work. All of the wonderful things about Bancroft’s writing are here, and the characters have a much more active role in this first book than Thomas Senlin had in Senlin Ascends. This was a fun read filled with magic, monsters, and intrigue.

Fantasy Sherlock Holmes and John Watson

Isolde and Warren Wilby are a version of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson with magic that is just wonderful. To be clear, they’re not exact copies, but they each fit the archetypes. Isolde is a woman of the mind, and Warren is a man of the body. Together they work well with Isolde as the detective supplying Warren with the answers. They exist in Berbiton which is a clear analogue for London. Their time is one of industrial change. They are private investigators with a larger than life reputation that the broadsheets glorify and vilify at the same time.

However, the relationship – both personal and working – between the Wilbies far surpasses that of Holmes and Watson. They are more integrated as a team than Holmes and Watson. It takes both of them to solve the mystery, and each plays a role in the solution. Their working as a team creates an interesting dynamic for certain action sequences in the book. I would really love to see this adapted to the screen. (HBO get on this.)

Marriage and Fantasy

Marriage is an easy source of drama for fiction. Troubled marriages are ripe for tension between characters. Bancroft has gone the other way. He’s given the Wilbies a happy marriage, and it comes through on the page. It’s refreshing to see a happy marriage, a working marriage, dare I even say it, a healthy marriage. Isolde and Warren work as a team, and the foundation of that team is their marriage. Warren is infatuated with Isolde, and she loves him with all her being. The tension in their marriage isn’t problems between them; no, the tension is because they’re putting themselves constantly at risk. Isolde’s need to know, need to solve the puzzle, involves some reckless decisions; yet Warren doesn’t get mad at her for them. He supports her through them. It’s lovely to see this on the page.

The Wilbies have a healthy sex life. It’s mentioned a lot. It’s not gratuitous, and it definitely happens off stage. It’s simply a part of their marriage, and it’s another reminder of their love for each other. Depictions of sex in the fantasy genre varies depending on what you’re reading, naturally. But I can’t think of a novel that I’ve read recently that features a married couple with an active, healthy sex life. I’m glad that Bancroft added this aspect to their marriage. It made them an even cuter couple.

Bancroft's Magic System

There are four major systems of magic in The Hexologists: necromancy, wizardry, alchemy, and hexology. Of the four, necromancy and wizardry are outlawed. Alchemy and hexegy are part and parcel of Berbiton society. Each has a different way of conducting the magic. Hexegy is done through art. Isolde carries chalk around with her to work her art. Bancroft’s systems are interesting, and I hope we learn more in future installments of the series.

Alchemy has been employed in the industrialization of Berbiton society. It creates the fuel that Berbiton’s cars run on. It also creates the constant pollution that falls all around them.

Conclusion

Josiah Bancroft’s The Hexologists is a wonderful first novel in a new series. It has all the hallmarks of a Bancroft novel – wonderful names, imaginative settings, and a lot of movement – that will appeal to fans of the Books of Babel series. The Wilbies were a surprisingly lovely addition to the lineup of fantasy detectives, and they joined the ranks of Harry Dresden and Sam Vimes in their awesomeness. This is a book for fans of mystery stories that enjoy fantasy settings. I loved this book and am eagerly awaiting the next in the series. Highly recommended.

Josiah Bancroft was perhaps the first breakout star of the Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off (SPFBO), parlaying Senlin Ascends into a four-book deal with Orbit to complete Senlin’s story in The Books of Babel. Given that I consider The Books of Babel some of the best and most creative fantasy of the last few years, his next book was always going to be one of my most anticipated of the year. Well, The Hexologists is finally here, and it’s a good one.

The Hexologists follow a married couple, Warren and Isolde Wilby, who use Isolde’s skills with hexing and the vast cache of magical artifacts left after her father’s death in their work as freelance detectives. So when the king tries to climb into a lit oven following the receipt of a letter from someone claiming to be his bastard son, the crown’s obvious course of action is to seek help from the Wilbys.

What follows is something of a traditional fantasy mystery, written in an aggressively whimsical style that calls to mind the classics much more than the more colloquial narration of contemporary speculative fiction. If it’s even vaguely magical—ghouls, dragons, portals, magic swords, even an eldritch abomination—it has a place in the world, and life-or-death struggles are often interrupted by any anecdote from the character’s past with even a shred of relevance to said dire straits.

This will all be familiar to readers of The Books of Babel, which were written with a similar throwback prose style and were riddled with narrative asides and general whimsy—though the Tower of Babel setting leaned a bit more to the Kafkaesque. It worked beautifully there, and it’s just as much a pleasure to read here. And while the leads are very much different than the rigid schoolmaster Thomas Senlin, War and Iz make for an entertaining pair to place at the heart of the story, and it’s refreshing to see a relationship that provides lots of support and minimal drama.

I’m far from a connoisseur of mystery novels—in fact, I’m vocally a little bit tired of them—but Bancroft lays out the pieces very nicely as the book progresses. So many speculative mysteries hold back clues until the final reveal and make it impossible for the reader to truly follow along, but The Hexologists puts them all on display and dares the reader to take a break from the amusing interjections and put them together. The inevitable feints always leave a final piece out-of-place, making it all the more satisfying when the final solution pulls it all together.

But even though the mystery comes together nicely, and even though the individual scenes were lots of fun, it was still a novel that left me with the feeling that something was missing. Though I can muster several half-criticisms, it’s hard to put my finger on exactly what it lacked. Perhaps it’s just the comparison to The Books of Babel, an astoundingly high bar to expect a new release to clear. Perhaps it’s a book that had so much fun with individual scenes and interjections that it made it easy to miss the forest for the trees. The overarching plot was still there, but there were times where I struggled as a reader to zoom back out of the small-scale happenings and place them in the larger context. If this is all that’s bothering me, it should result in a book that’s even better on reread than it was initially—provided I can ever find time to reread it. But perhaps it wasn’t that at all, and my issue was the Wilbys having a magical artifact for seemingly every occasion, making it hard to really worry when they found themselves in mortal peril. Or having an ending that left potential antagonists to deal with in future installments. Neither would be especially unusual among magical mystery novels, but it may be more of an issue for me reading outside my usual subgenre than it would for regular readers of fantasy mysteries.

But whatever my complaints, The Hexologists still made for a really good book that was a lot of fun to read. The characters were endearing, the mystery came together nicely, and the storytelling was a delight. It doesn’t quite hit my “favorite books of the year” list, but it’s unusual to see a fantasy mystery hitting those heights; for readers who enjoy speculative mysteries but aren’t tied to a noir style or 21st century urban fantasy trappings, The Hexologists could well be a new favorite.

Recommended if you like: fantasy mysteries, throwback prose with plenty of asides, general whimsy.

Overall rating: 16 of Tar Vol’s 20. Four stars on Goodreads.

Unfortunately, I think this will be my last Bancroft.

The premise and story here are good, and I think I liked the characters - but they are all buried under an absurd, abnormal, incredibly distracting amount of descriptions, adjectives, puns, and tangents. This book felt like it would be a novella worth of story from another author, just bogged down endlessly by words, words, words.

Somewhere between Indiana Jones and Sherlock Holmes, The Hexologists is a delightful start to a new fantasy series. I love the quirky main characters, Iz and Warren Wilby, a married couple who solve mysteries with hexes (magic) and a bag of magical relics that also the home of a dragon. The dialogue is hilarious and the world gets more interesting with every chapter. I am looking forward to reading the next in the series.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the magic that took place and the world was absolutely beautiful! Iz and Warren were my favorites! It great twists and the ending….. BOMB!
Thank you NetGalley and orbit for the opportunity to read this!

5 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2023/09/25/the-hexologists-by-josiah-bancroft/
My Five Word TL:DR Review : This was an Absolute Delight

I kid you not, this book is just wonderful. It took me on the strangest journey and I fell in love with Bancroft’s prose. I still haven’t read Babel (I know! And, yes, I am quite utterly ashamed of myself) – but, I always planned to read it and perhaps this little taste of his writing style will give me the kick in the pants that I need.

Where do I even start with this? We have a Victorian inspired world bursting with invention but at the same time still playing host to some wonderfully fantastical creatures. The imagination at play is superb and the writing – I am speechless. This is a book for lovers of intricate and exquisite writing. The detail is almost decadent and the style has clever flourishes and little snippets that make you want to wallow around and reread the page you’ve just read. I couldn’t tear my eyes away. It’s heartwarmingly cosy in parts, fiendishly clever in others and full of wonderful concepts that lovers of fantasy will be able to soak themselves in. That’s perhaps enough gushing. Lets see what’s what.

The story is a mystery potentially involving a royal scandal – and therefore there is more than one party either trying to cover facts up or release them to cause a scandal. Events get off to an immediate start when the King’s secretary visits our MCs – Iz and Warr with a perplexing case of potential blackmail and the news that the King wishes to be baked into a cake, no less. Anyway, Iz and Warr don’t usually deal with royalty, they’re private investigators who deal with anything from ghosts to chimney wraiths but they reluctantly decide to take on the case. Of course, this is a cold case, the events that took place have had 40 years to cool off and cover their tracks, but Iz, our formidable hexologist, has a piece of chalk (with which to draw her hexes) and a stubborn streak a mile wide so no piddling 40 years is going to put her off. Armed with a bag of artefacts – that is effectively a magical portal to an unknown warehouse filled with magical items (and a bookish dragon) – her trusty husband, who seems able to charm himself into just about any situation, and a few brief facts our pair set off in search of answers.

So, what did I love about this.

The writing – enough about that above. It’s just too good.

The two main characters are a wonderful couple. They’re intelligent, loving, well matched in a totally crazy way, funny and determined. I want more from this couple and from this world.

The imagination is just captivating. I never fail to be surprised with the creativity of some of the authors out there and this book definitely took me by surprise. I mean, on the one hand, I expected this to be good, this is an author who seems beloved by fantasy readers and authors alike, but, I’m not sure that I expected to love it this much.

I would say, and perhaps take this with a pinch of salt, but this reminds me of a new Holmes and Watson, with Iz being the enthusiastic detective relentlessly going over the facts and reaching wild assumptions whilst Warr is the assistant, tagging along, carrying his wife’s bag, endlessly good natured and basically oiling the wheels to keep everything running smoothly. Plus the time period suits not to mention the style and dialogue.

Stunning, clever, stylish, filled with creativity and misdirection. I can’t wait to see where this takes us next.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

WAKE UP BABE, A NEW JOSIAH BANCROFT JUST DROPPED

Iz and Warren Wilby are Hexologists who are always on the case. One day a royal secretary knocks on their door, concerned that the King wants to bake himself into a cake. The madness and mystery continues as they look into what could be causing the King to react the way he is.

The Hexologists is weird, twisty and fun! It’s a little bit of a murder mystery, little bit of royal drama and a whole lot of magical adventure. There’s even a dragon who lives in a bag, it’s great.

I am a big fan of Senlin Ascends and am so grateful to have another Bancroft world to dive into! This is the type of fantasy I always find myself falling for, the kind that makes you laugh, has great characters, but also at the heart of it all, is just a great story. I could see this being a wonderful, well drawn out series!

I accepted an ARC copy of The Hexologists from NetGalley in exchange for consideration of an honest review. Everything in this review is my own personal thoughts.
I absolutely loved this book! I enjoyed every minute of it. My initial rating after just finishing it was 5 stars. This was such a wild fun ride with zaney characters, an unimaginable storyline told in an imaginable way and a vocabulary that will have you reaching for your thesaurus. I MIGHT just like this one even more than The Books of Babel, and that is one of my favorite fantasy series!
CAWPILE breakdown:
Characters: 10 - All of these characters were amazing, fanciful, and dynamic - even when I thought a character wasn't as dynamic as others, Bancroft twisted the plot so that they became dynamic.
Atmosphere/Setting: 8 - Another outlandish setting from Bancroft.
Writing Style: 8.5 - I love Bancroft's writing; he is one of my favorite writers. But it takes a lot of thought and concentration - in my opinion - and sometimes while reading this book, I didn't quite have as much as I needed.
Plot: 9 - Bancroft always keeps you on your toes and he did exactly that with The Hexologists. The plot evolved with the characters and it felt like it was always changing - even when it wasn't.
Intrigue: 8.5 - There was a lot of intrigue in this book. Even when I thought I had things figured out, Bancroft dragged it out just long enough that I was second guessing myself.
Logic/Relationships: 9 - In a book like this, I think you have to suspend your logical thoughts -to a certain extent. And yet, everything really made sense in the end, even as crazy as it all was. The relationships were so well done in this book, and surprising. The friendship between Warren and Felivox was my favorite.
Entertainment: 10 - There was not a moment that I wasn't entertained while reading The Hexologists.
Final Score - 63/7 = 9 = 5 stars!

What a fun read. I may have pretty much been the target audience. I like character driven stories and my second favorite genre after sci-fi and fantasy is cozy mysteries so any light fantasy mystery is tight up my alley. This book wrapped up well without leaving anything too pressing dangling for the next book. I liked the two lead characters and will be happy to read more of them. There is a little blood but not too horrific. I almost woke my husband laughing over one death reading this too late at night. I look forward to their next case!

The Hexologists is book 1 in The Hexologists series by Josiah Bancroft.
Oh my goodness! I think I’m in love!
If you are looking for an enthralling fantasy series, this needs to be on your radar.
The world-building doesn’t get any better than this guys. Like woah, Josiah Bancroft is so damn good at it.
The Hexologists was freaking phenomenal and I can’t wait for them to return in book two!

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Orbit for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Bancroft is working his way up to becoming an all time favorite author. I had soooo much fun with this book!! I loved both Iz and War and how cozy this book was. I absolutely cannot wait for more and need the next book asap. I think a re-read once the physical copy comes is definitely in order and that it might even bump my rating up to a 5 star.

NetGalley and Orbit Books provided me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Isolde and Warren, married hexologists, are enlisted by the Crown to solve the mystery of an anonymous letter sent by someone claiming to be the king's heir. Iz and War set off an various adventures with their magical satchel, affectionately known as Grandad, to find this supposed heir and unravel the many secrets surrounding this case.

I had a difficult time at the beginning getting into the book. I kind of felt like we were dropped into a confusing world and not provided enough descriptors to make sense of what's up and what's down. The first few adventures felt a little meh. Not super exciting. Once the book started picking up though, I started enjoying the twists and turns that were thrown in. There were times we'd get tangents that I feel didn’t add to the story, like with the reporter, and some of the storylines seemed to drag on and on. However, the latter half of the book, with all the action and all the twists and turns had me silently yelling "WHAT" numerous times, and really had me hooked on the book. I wasn't able to put the book down until I finished it. I can't wait to see how this story continues, especially with all the revelations and crazy arrangements that were made. I really enjoyed the main characters and some of the supporting characters, and especially the magic system and monsters.

I definitely recommend this book. It's funny, has some great similes (analogies? I can't think of the term), and I loved all the obscure (to me) words the author uses throughout.

I have a variety of feelings about this book, both good and not so great.

I’d like to start by saying Bancroft’s Books of Babel series is in my top favorites of all time. I loved that journey we got to go on and am a big fan of his writing style. This book is more of the same extravagant writing that I have come to expect from the author. But I don’t think it serves this story as well. A lot of the book is taken up by the writing style and while charming, I felt it took some space away from other areas, like the characters. We have rough outlines of who our characters are, but not much in the way of depth. They are a cute, silly means of moving through the world and plot.

But all that to say, I knew fairly early that this was not my type of book. It’s more focused on the creatures and magic and mystery/fantasy action plot than on characters. This reminded me a bit in style and story of Even Though I Knew The End, which I read this year and wasn’t a big fan of. But a lot of people LOVED that book, so if that is you, please give this one a read. Bancroft’s writing deserves some love and this book definitely will have an audience.

I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve not read Bancroft’s Senlin series, so I picked this up largely from the excitement of several friends. So while I did overall enjoy the story and the characters, the overall whimsy of the narrative voice was a little too much for me.

The Hexologists follows detectives extraordinaire, Isobel (Iz) and Warren (War) Wilby, as they’ve reluctantly accepted a case from the crown to determine why their king is attempting to bake himself into a cake. This adventure follows them through various parts of the city, and to other planes, as they slowly uncover a case of possible hidden lineages and forgotten histories.

For me, the stars of this show are the characters. Iz and War are grown adults, seasoned in their profession and confident in their abilities to tackle on the challenges they throw themselves into. They each have their quirks and their disagreements, but Bancroft depicts the love of their relationship so strongly that you know they’ll stick together despite the secrets that come up. I love competent characters and Bancroft delivers exactly that with The Hexologists.

On the other hand, what made me struggle with this book was the whimsical tone. The writing is fun and superfluous that delightfully Victorian way, but I found it sometimes interfered with my ability to actually read the book. What I dislike more is that I found the whimsy slowly leaking into the plot itself, where when a character gets caught in a pinch, some fun new object or idea would get pulled out a hat (or in this case, carpetbag) and the situation would be fixed. It took me a good 50% of the book to actually feel invested in the story and characters because of this, but I think the second half was really really strong.

Overall, I rate this book a 3.5/5. The characters are phenomenal, the plot was fun, but I felt like the strong whimsical tone detracted from the overall story. The setup for the sequel sounds extremely fun, so I’m certainly excited for book 2.

I had every intention of finishing this book. I enjoyed Senlin Ascends and though I haven’t continued with that series, I expected this book to be even better. But as I approached the 50% mark it got harder and harder to continue and I decided that sticking with it wasn’t worth the bother. So I employed my skimming technique—read dialogue and only enough description to understand what’s going on—and flew to the end so I could get a clearer picture for this review. I have to admit, I’m glad I didn’t read every word.

I’ll get to my main issue in a sec, but first, the story. It is a mystery involving secret identities and…that’s about it. Everything goes toward answering the question of: did the king have an illegitimate child, yes or no. The two leads then proceed to visit a bunch of locations in pursuit of answering that question. That’s all well and dandy, except it feels like a tour of unique locations instead of necessary pit stops. It also doesn’t help that I don’t care if the king had a kid or not because the Wilbies (and I) aren’t exactly monarchists, so, like, why does it matter? Maybe the answer is given in the part I read, but it clearly wasn’t convincing. A simple case of Who’s-your-Daddy? isn’t enough material to carry this book, and because of that, it’s made needlessly complicated to pad out the length.

But perhaps I would’ve enjoyed the story more, except…

Iz and Warren. I appreciate a married couple being the center of the story and that couple working together in harmony. But I did not believe their marriage for a second. If you remove the mentions of sex and the lovey-dovey banter, what you have is a hexologist and her assistant. That’s all Warren is. He doesn’t do any hexes and his purpose can be distilled to: muscle and asking questions to make Iz look smart. She’s clearly the one in charge (I’m a traditionalist, so that’s a big turn-off for me) and even when Warren is the narrator, he doesn’t feel important; it’s still very much Iz’s book. I would bet big money that in the initial draft they weren’t married, and the cutesy love-talk was added in much later, not realizing that it doesn’t jive with what’s being shown. I think if you remove what I said, not only does the story work better, it makes more sense, and, frankly, you wouldn’t even notice. And that bums me out because I really wanted to see a couple doing detective work and neither being seen as the obvious superior because they are both intelligent and capable. But all Warren is is the big, affable idiot.

As characters though, I still don’t care about them. Iz is the slightly cold, detached one that isn’t overly emotional and is all about finding answers because no mystery should be left unsolved and whatever. Just whatever. I’ve seen that before and while some attempts were made to make Iz distinct and quirky, especially with her clothes, it didn’t matter. Nothing she said made me view her as different and interesting.

Warren overcorrects on every point. He jumps at shadows and cowers in the face of challenges (again supporting my assistant theory) and is always seeking safety and practically begging Iz not to take any risks in the service of her job. He’s a wuss. A poor substitute for Watson. (Warren? Watson? The assistant theory strengthens.)

As for the rest of the cast…I don’t give a rat’s left buttock about any of them. Zero impact on all fronts. They technically have personalities, but boy oh boy, did I feel nothing. They are a rolodex of faces and backstories and my reaction is “Uh-huh. Yeah. Sure.”

The author clearly loves description and with good reason: he’s very good at it. It’s unique, evocative and smart. Warren putting sandwiches in his mouth like they’re letters being posted, is a great image. However, I love dialogue, and when a book is more about the surroundings—even compelling ones—and less about the talking, it can get a little tiring. There’s so much description, it took me no time to skim to the end because the majority of the book is Setting. The Setting’s description is explicit and loud and erudite to the point of excluding most readers; it overshadows the story, the characters, and the dialogue. It’s everything and it bogged me down until I only wanted to escape.

The dialogue has potential and I like the influences of 1930’s England. Unfortunately there’s just not enough of it.

Ultimately, this book is a large, nicely wrapped present. After you rip away the fanciful, expensive paper, you find a plain box. And inside that box is another box, and then another box, and ANOTHER BOX, until you finally find…a $25 gift card. What a disappointment.



SPOILERS
Shouldn’t Iz, as a (supposedly) bonafide detective, have asked the secretary if he thinks he’s the king’s son, given the ring disappearing 25 years ago and the secretary being approximately 25 years old? Where’s her suspicion? Her brains? The whole book hinges on her being gullible and blind. Not a great look.