Mild Spoilers:
I don't know how to feel about this book. On one hand I loved the story and enjoyed the semi-gothic ambience rolled into a queer paranormal romance/horror. On the other hand, some things felt very predictable. Let's not pretend the moon and wolves on the cover are not a dead give away for the big "twist" that they are monsters. Second, the uncle is so obviously the bad guy. To be frank, I was actually more surprised by the twist that Henri is a real love interest. He is a royal jerk at the beginning of the book and there is just not enough going on for him to full earn a redemption arc. Bram feels less like a full fleshed out character and more an underwhelming plot point. I wanted to love this book. It had everything I want in a book, but unfortunately, this missed the mark for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Gothic vibeLGBTQ+? What sounded like a story about Werewolves? Sign me up! I enjoyed this author's writting style although it took a chapter or so for it to click with me. I actually don't read near enought books by male authors so that may be why I was caught off guard by it a bit. I will start by saying I look forward to reading more from David Ferraro. The books starts off with our main character Emile who has a very nasty aunt he lives with. She is insisting he marry a woman and is just a general homophobic witch. Then he finds himself thrust into life as a servent where he finds himself in the midst of some strangeness and intrigue. All of that was just amazing and right up my alley. Where I am deducting a star is in the love triangle. That whole idea is overdone and needs to be tossed out of the novel troupes list. I also thought one of the love interests wasn't very fleshed out and the other, who we seemed to spend more time with, was just a not very nice person who sort of walked all over Emile. Still the book was an enjoyable time and worth reading.

I mean, i Was soooo excited to read this book and when my request was accepted I was thrilled. The representative that this book talks about is marvelous. Congratulations author.

I would have loved to listen to this one as I am a big fan of werewolf and vampire books. Sadly it was archived not long after I got it and I didn’t have the chance to download it. So I can’t give a review for this except that I love the cover.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. The narrator was great and the bones of the story where there but the pacing was off for me. There was too much build up for a too obvious reveal and the main character kept making bad decisions. The relationship also felt much too "insta-love' for me.

****SPOILER in last paragraph.****

Okay! Let me start by saying that I am a FAN of a love triangle when it’s done right and the main character is into them both! And The Alchemy of Moonlight had that and more!

Emile has both Henri and Bram who WANT him. I want in on this action! Henri is the nephew of a Count and Bram’s family are Doctors. That is a sandwich I’d happily be a part of. At different times of the book, he is into them both, but in very different ways. I love the journey we got to go on with him as he navigated the rollercoaster that is courtship.

This is a gothic romance/horror, so the setting and time period were what really gave us the mood for the whole story. It’s set in the 1800’s and we travel between an old manor and a castle. A CASTLE!!!!!! There is nothing more gothic than an old haunted castle, am I right?

I tried to go in without too much info, because I wanted the surprise to be EPIC. Did I know that there would be werewolves? Absolutely not! Looking at the synopsis afterwards, I would have definitely had that clue, but not knowing was even better. I tried to figure out what they were as I went along with the book, but the reveal was 👨🏻‍🍳🤌🏼💋!!!

Also, I need more poly rep in YA!! I now have 2 books that I know about, but I can’t even talk about this one, because that’s a spoiler for the ending. I love that they all end up together. It made me so happy! 😍

I got about 1/4 of the way through this one and I just did not like the characters and couldn’t bring myself to continue reading.

I’m not particularly a fan of love triangles, gothic or horror stories, but I loved all these aspects in The Alchemy of Moonlight!

Let me sum up some great things about this book:
That cover is gorgeous! It made me a little anxious because what if I judged this book too much by its cover? But I shouldn’t have worried!

The love interests are fantastic. I loved both Bram (so sweet) and Henri (so energetic), and I understood so well why it was hard for Emile to choose between those boys and the animosity Bram and Henri felt toward each other.

This story is kind of insta love (or more like insta physical attraction), but the romance part is so sweet that I didn’t care at all. Some people might think there’s cheating involved, but both Henri and Bram knew Emile liked them both. So well, is it or is it not cheating?

The atmosphere is amazing and so subtle. I’m not much of a horror reader, but I devour books like these easily. For people with arachnophobia, be aware there are lots of spiders in this story!

I really loved the first half, and I liked the ending, but I had wanted to have some more time with Bram. In the second half of the book, when the family moved up to Udolpho Castle, he disappeared for a long time from the story, and I wanted him back so badly. He was the cinnamon roll in this book.

___________
When Emile's aunt declares he must marry or be disowned for being gay, he runs away to hide as a servant in Count Montoni's mansion. In their service, Emile tends to the family who all suffer a strange affliction on the full moon. And after overhearing suspicious family arguments, he finds a body on the estate, drawing the attention of a handsome doctor as well as the count's charismatic nephew, Henri. Before Emile can sort out his affections or unravel the growing Montoni family mystery, his identity is revealed and his aunt comes to collect him. When she arrives, Count Montoni forces everyone to depart to the remote Udolpho Castle where there are no witnesses and no chance for escape. There, Emile realizes that he will have to risk his life to find the love he deserves and survive the Montoni family.

Loved the cover and the concept but I really disliked the characters. I’ve made several attempts to finish this but I really could not continue dealing with character choices. DNF at 30%

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book for a fair and honest review

I don't want to spoil anything but the queer representation here is *chef's kiss*. This fulfilled all my childhood dreams of what I wished Twilight had been (sorry, but it's hard not to make the comparison when we have a love triangle and werewolves as key points in the story). The atmosphere was perfectly gothic and the writing was so good, plus the characters felt realistically flawed in a way that made me root for their growth and redemption. And of course, I adored the ending. I'm dying for a sequel focusing on Blanche's love life with a peek into how Emile navigates his new relationship.

P.S. Give this narrator all the awards. So, so good.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an audiobook in exchange for a review.
It was one adventurous ride. The writing was amazing and the narrator did an excellent job. Painting a vivid image of the scenes. Still, there were a few instances where the book was rather uneventful, and a few things could be changed in the plot to make it more interesting and to make the ending more fitting. So, I'm giving it 4 stars. Other than that, it was a great one.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ALC.
I very much enjoyed this YA Gothic horror romance novel. Love this take on a love triangle, marriage of convenience, supernatural romantasy.
I think there's a bit of toxic relationship that never is fully addressed, but I am very happy with the ending, it's what I was hoping for all along honestly.
The narrator did a phenomenal job. Highly recommend.

This was awful. I didn't like how they just throw you into the story without any knowledge of who or where you are, and who these characters are. It was awful. I have also heard from others that the book doesn't get better either. DNF.

Wow, I had a much better time with this than I was expecting! The Alchemy of Moonlight was, predominantly, a cover request. The artwork immediately drew me in and I couldn’t get it out of my head.

This story is action packed from the very beginning - it features one of the most effective cold opens that I’ve read in a while and it kept me intrigued until the very end. Even if I didn’t understand, I couldn’t help but want to learn more to figure out the mystery alongside Emile. The characters were great (even if Emile annoyed me a bit lol), but Annette, Bram, and Henri were extremely well developed and interesting.

This was very well written - the dynamics between the characters never felt overdone and the horror elements were visceral and disgusting. There’s also a love triangle that I surprisingly didn’t hate (and was rooting for towards the end - like what? That’s magic).

This is definitely a book that I’ll be recommending to my friends and audience. It’s campy and everything I want in a paranormal horror fantasy!

Thank you NetGalley and author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

4.25 ⭐

I heard about this book at work when the author emailed in to promote his book. As soon as I saw cover, I knew I wanted to read it! That I wasn't expecting was this beautiful, brilliant story filled with queer characters, dark and gothic vibes, and a love triangle that I was actually okay with.

If there was anything I would have changed is maybe having the book be a little shorter. There were times when the reveal dragged on for a bit too long. I did like that this book had werewolves though, its harder to find a good werewolf book than a vampire book these days.

The Alchemy of Moonlight by David Ferraro
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
(A Spoiler-Free Review)

Regency. Gothic.Queer. Romance. Fantasy. Mystery. Just a bit of horror. This story has a little something for everyone. We follow Emile - a marquis passing as a servant after running away from his Aunt after she threatened to have him committed for deviance after finding out he's gay. As if keeping his own secrets safe isn't enough, it seems that Emile has a knack for stumbling into other people's secrets as well, putting him in several precarious positions along his journey.

The second I saw that cover I was ready for this love triangle, and it did not disappoint. We have the obvious choice of Bram, who is a doctor by trade and an extremely kind person. He plays a perfect contrast to Henri, the Count of the family Emile works for, and an absolute entitled jerk to start. We do see a lot of improvement as he grows closer to Emile but honestly? It feels too little, too late after all the early red flags.

When there isn't a debate over who Emile likes more at any given moment, there's the matter of mysterious disappearances that are almost certainly murders and a curious illness that overcomes Henri's family once a month overnight.

When Emile learns the truth, will he be able to stay alive long enough to do something about it? And how much are Henri and Bram willing to risk to help him?

There were a few things that kept this from 5 stars for me. This story has a lot going on at times. It was difficult to decide which plot points were truly important to focus on with so many loose ends piling up along the way. I also wish we got a little more of Annette and Blanche - they always seemed to bring a great energy to a scene!!

But overall it was a story I enjoyed losing myself in for a little while and I'm glad I got the chance to pick this one up!

(Thanks to NetGalley and Page Street Publishing for my ARC audiobook! All opinions are my own. )

It took a bit to get through this one, but the payoff was worth it. The plot was hard to follow at times, but the mix of the lifestyle of royalty mixed with the supernatural element of werewolves kept me intrigued. Emile is a lovely main character, stuck in a love triangle that throughout the book I didn’t for see the outcome of. Henri is portrayed as an asshole at first, but turns out to the the sweetest boy 🥹 while the supernatural side of things became a bit convoluted and hard to follow, the human side was fun and made for a great read

The queer representation in this book is fantastic. I enjoyed the characters and how they grew to know each other.

Along with being cute and queer the book is also full of supernatural whimsy and plot twists that will leave you wondering what is going to happen. Although I didn't love everything this book had to offer such as some of the pressures put on the MC and the dramatic setting shifts, overall I enjoyed the story and would recommend it to specific friends.

The tension over the love triangle in this book is superb and I don't usually enjoy love triangles.

The Alchemy of Moonlight by David Ferraro is One of my favorite stories of the year. It has spooky dark aesthetics, gay werewolves, a gothic castle, and so much subterfuge and intrigue! I absolutely loved the characters and although Emile, Henri, and Bram are all sexy and mysterious, my heart was stolen by Henri's sister, Blanche. I truly hope there is a sequel with more of her story. But back to Emile! He is a sweet character if not a bit naive and he definitely compliments the grumpy hard-headed Henri and the curious strong Bram. I love how they are. Story begins with a love triangle but seems to move towards polyamory at the end. The supernatural aspects of the story are well done with lots of intrigue and mystery. I liked the werewolf aspect even though it was pretty obvious but it is definitely a fun element. The villainous Count and Emile's aunt were both perfectly terrible and I was so happy with how their stories ended. If you like supernatural gothic romances with queer characters and slightly sexy scenes this is a great read for you!

Pressured to marry a woman or be disowned, Emile runs away disguised as a servant until he comes of age and can claim his inheritance as his own. All Emile needs to do is bide his time, but stumbles upon a high stakes mystery when he finds a mangled corpse the same night an argument breaks out with the family he’s serving. The family also suffers from an unknown affliction every full moon, one requiring full sedation. On top of that, Emile has caught the eye of a handsome doctor, Bram, and the nephew of the count he’s serving, Henri.

Dead bodies, werewolves, love triangles, oh my! 🐺

Talk about a spooky read! I really enjoyed this easy, fast paced read that absolutely delivered creepy, scary, and grotesque feelings throughout. I was actually surprised how far they took some things, given it’s labeled as YA, but in the best way possible. I also loved the lore behind it all so much and through it was very clever.

I can’t remember the last time I read a story with a love triangle. The push and pull in both directions….so good! The way this ended…PERFECTION!