This was so good!!! I am not a big fantasy reader so I was a little intimidated by this book at first. But wow it sucked me in immediately! The writing and worldbuilding and character development and plot were all so well done. I was expecting more romance since this has been marketed as a romantasy, but I still really enjoyed. I look forward to what happens next.

I'm so in love with this book! It was great start to what I hope will be an amazingly popular series. I still cannot get it out of my head.

This book is a Gothic Romantasy with amazing characters, unique magic system and has an amazing MFC. Edira is an amazing character. She is strong, stubborn, and incredibly loving (sometimes too much).

This was a great first book in the duology and I cannot wait for the sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC

I had an excellent time reading House of Blight!
The tense, eerie, alluring atmosphere bursts onto the scene and I relished every single moment in it. Heightening the tension is the magic system at play. This is one of intrigue, possessing a uniqueness all of its own. From its emergence my fascination of it continuously grew. I so easily immersed myself in this tale, the narrative keeping my attention captive to the very end. The magic fed into the world-building marvelously. It also jumpstarted the plot brilliantly. Then there's the romance-- a romance full of surprise, twists, and turns. 4.5

Simply stated: I'm all in for this spectacular tale unfolding.

Our heroine Edira is a wonderful lead to follow. I matched her every step in her journey, I rooted for her heartily all the time, and admittedly wanted to shake some sense into at other times. I cried every time she used her magic, knowing what she is sacrificing. The narrative does not shy away at all over what is at stake, and that includes Edira's very life hanging in the balance. As much as I loved Edira, I did become exasperated by her one too many times. For a character as intelligent and aware as she, it became overly frustrating to see her continuously harbor mistrust and hate towards the one character who was rather overtly trying to help her. While on one hand I do understand her stance, on the other hand it's a stance unevenly dealt, as she eases her tension towards other characters who arguably deserve the same level (if not more) of spite. Nevertheless, I will always appreciate a lead who is not without flaws. It's easy to root for Edira regardless of shortcomings, because she remains at her heart a character willing to learn, to try, and to make the right choices (even if some choices must be course corrected). She's a heroine I'm so very happy to follow to the very end.

The romance was one of my favorite facets of the narrative! If you read the synopsis, there is definitely a certain level of expectation heading into this tale. At least I certainly felt it. But from the onset something never quick connected the way as anticipated. In fact, I think the narrative sways the reader away from that initial expectation subtly yet cleverly. And it directs the eyes onto another, and once they land on him-- they won't be so easily turned. The less I say the better, because this is a narrative choice I wholly embraced and what I will be most eagerly anticipating as the journey continues!

Overall, House of Blight is setting up something very special. Already in this first book I have found much to delight in, from its tantalizing magic system, its spine-chilling setting, its slowly burning romance, and its clever plot. I'm seated for that sequel, consider me first in line for that release!

Thank you to The Nerd Fam, Avon, Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for this advanced complimentary copy, I leave this honest review voluntarily.

House of Blight by Maxym M. Martineau
⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Gothic romantasy that ate and left NO crumbs

Y'all. Y'ALL. I'm still processing what this book did to my emotions!

Imagine a world where healing magic comes with the ULTIMATE price tag - your own life force. That's what our girl Edira is dealing with as a threadmender, and honestly? The magical system in this book is chef's kiss BRILLIANT. No convenient magic here - just delicious consequences.

When Edira's brothers catch the blight (which is exactly as disgusting and terrifying as it sounds), she ends up making a deal with the enigmatic Orin Fernglove that screams "this is a terrible idea but I'm going to do it anyway." And I was HERE FOR IT.

The vibes we're tracking:
🖤 Gothic manor with secrets in EVERY corner
🪡 Life-thread magic with actual stakes
🐛 Insect-based powers that are equal parts beautiful and horrifying
🔥 Slow burn tension that had me SCREAMING
👑 Family drama that puts the "fun" in dysfunctional

Let's talk about the Ferngloves. This family? CHAOS. Some with wings, some with horns, all with agendas that had me suspicious of EVERYONE. The sibling rivalry between Orin and Rorik? Deliciously toxic.

The atmosphere Martineau creates is absolutely immersive - I felt like I was wandering those creepy hallways alongside Edira, jumping at every shadow. The way the manor itself becomes almost a character? Gothic perfection.

Fair warning: this book ends on a note that had me clutching my pearls, and the fact that it's only book one of a duology means I'm now in a state of emotional distress until the next one drops.

If you're into gothic vibes, magical consequences, and a slow burn romance that will have you throwing the book across the room (in the best way possible) - this needs to be your next read! Also, definitely snag the audiobook if that's your jam - perfect for getting those eerie manor vibes while you're driving or cleaning!

Huge thanks to Harper Voyager for the ARC and finished copy! This one's going on my favorites shelf, no question.

4.5⭐

Thank you Maxym M. Martineau, Harper Voyager US and NetGalley for the ARC!

I was absolutely immersed into House of Blight when I picked it up from the very first pages . . . especially the haunting proplgiue. It's the first installment in the duology and surprisingly does not end in a cliffhanger.

The writing style had me immersed into the world and the haunting and detailed descriptions made the narrative atmospheric to read about. There is plenty of secrets hidden in the walls of the story and twists and turns will have your jaw dropped at the end of the confessions.

The Immersive and gothic world building was very well developed and intriguing to read about. The magic system was unique, and Threadmending is a concept that I don't think I've ever heard about. The 'Evers' are essentially fae with their own twists and tweaks.

Edira, the FMC constantly questions the motives of the Ferngloves. She's a very dynamic character, full of sass and doesn't take any of their shit with an animal companion Ywena. Fernglove family are so entertaining. The imagery is immersive and beautiful but absolutely disgusting.

Overall, i enjoyed reading this book. The banter and love triangles was something i did not expect to love at all. The ending had me intriguing to what would come next and I can't wait for the next installment!

4.5!

House of Blight was a ride! It has everything we love from our romantasy reads yet was all its own. The premise was unique and the characters were intriguing.

Edira was a fun FMC and I had a good time learning her power and going in this journey with her to save her family and come into her power even more. While she was a bit naive I think it made sense for her character and I liked that she wasn't without fault and even admitted to that fault. She went through the typical strength training of a FMC of a romantasy but I liked that the author didn't have her just automatically become stronger and better with her power in the matter of weeks.

The story was engaging and interesting. The setting was well described and the plot was well written. While it had a slower start I was engaged the whole time. It had some predictable twists, yet it happened differently than I predicted, and some not so predictable.

I truly can't say too much more without spoilers so if you like romantasy but are wanting something a little different and darker this is the book for you! I'm really looking forward to the next book in this duology and see what happens in this world next!

Thank you to the author, publisher, The Nerd Fam, & NetGalley for the ARC!

Instant 5⭐️ read, already know it’s going to be one of my favorites of the year.

The Gothic vibes are immaculate.

There’s a disgusting and vile sickness plaguing the city with vivid descriptions and incredible imagery.

Our FMC, Edira, is strong-willed, fierce and resilient despite having her whole world crumble before her.

Two MMCs, brothers Rorik and Orin, who are incredibly mysterious and obvs hot as fuck. One kind and generous, the other brooding and menacing….a little bit of a love triangle-ish?? The romance and plot are balanced beautifully with a hint of spice!

There’s a cast of side characters that add depth and interest to the story and an adorable magical moth-like companion named Ywena 😍

Oh, and did I mention there’s beast forms and elemental magic? And Edira is a threadmender and can heal people?

AHHH I can’t explain how immaculate the vibes are- I NEED the next book in my hands right now!!

If you love books like One Dark Window, Phantasma, Belladonna or Starling House- you’ll probably vibe with this one too. If you like reading gothic fantasy during spooky season, this one would be perfect!

Thank you SO MUCH to Avon and Harper Voyager for the e-ARC of this book, I’m so grateful and it was amazing!!

Thank you to Net Galley and Harper Voyager for the E-Arc of House of Blight in exchange for an honest review.


"The only pain I'd ever intentionally inflict on you is the agony of making you wait to feel the pleasure of release."


House of Blight is a story all on its own, and fantasy lovers will go crazy for it. You get pulled in right at the dedication. Our story starts with Edira, our threadmender, whose power to heal the sick makes her a target. There's only one sickness she can't cure, and that's the blight. One day, her brother ends up contracting it, and Edira makes a deal with Orin Fernglove. He promises to help her train her powers in exchange for helping him get rid of the blight. We all know you shouldn't make bargains with fairy-like creatures; something sinister lurks in Fernglove Manor, and not everything is what it seems.

This is a fairly quick and easy read. The book very much gives ACOTAR and a sprinkle of Crimson Peak. If life hadn't gotten in the way, this definitely could have been read in one sitting; that's how engrossed I was. You can't help but root for Edira to figure out her powers and hopefully succeed.

I give this book a 4.5, and that's only because I wanted to know more about the Threadmender power and how it came about.

I think everyone should pick this book up when it comes out.

House of Blight is a gothic romantasy with a feisty FMC just trying to save what’s left of her family. Edira is a human hiding her true nature, a thread mender who can heal others by spending her own life force. Edira has spent her whole life hiding her abilities so her she isn’t exploited by immortal beings called the Evers. One day tragedy strikes and Edira’s twin brothers catch Blight, an immediately deadly plague in that land. As Edira tries to save her brothers’ lives, an Ever appears and offers her a bargain: he can halt the Blight by putting her brothers in a coma-like state if she comes to work for him and cure the Blight using his resources. Edira agrees and is thrown into the world of the Evers. The ensuing events are full of mystery, magic, bickering family dynamics, insect daddies, and pretty dresses.

Honestly, I enjoyed this book a lot. I was able to predict some of what was coming, but there were still some twists at the end that I appreciated! I really liked Edira’s character and am excited to see where her journey goes in the next book.

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
SPICE: 🌶️🌶️

This is the first book in The Threadmender Chronicles.

House of Blight started a little slow and took me a minute, but once I was immersed in the story I couldn’t put it down!

Edira has grown up being told to keep her threadmending powers hidden at all cost, especially since time she uses them it shortens her life! But when her brothers, her only remaining family, life’s are in jeopardy from the Blight there is nothing she wouldn’t do to save them, including sacrifice herself. She finds herself in a magical bargain where she must help find the cure for the blight. But what she doesn’t know is the Ferngloves, the magical immortal family, is hiding secrets at every turn. When she thinks she learns one thing she finds is another secret.

There is so much to unpack in this book from the world building to the crazy family dynamic. I can’t wait for book two!

Thank you Maxym M. Martineau, Harper Collins Publishing and The Nerd Fam for the gifted eARC!

Tropes:
🩷Gothic Romantasy
🩷Slow Burn Romance
🩷Female Rage
🩷Forced Proximity
🩷Magical Vows
🩷Threadmending
🩷Beast Form

"The House of Blight" is a unique gothic romance fantasy centered around Edira, a threadmender with the ability to stitch the threads of life. The Fernglove family wants her to stay with them in the hopes of curing the creeping blight disease. However, once Edira arrives at the Everglove manor, she discovers that nothing is as it seems, and she learns this the hard way. She is there to protect her family, but with a love triangle, immortal family secrets, and hidden agendas, Edira is faced with many dangerous situations. She must make quick decisions due to the secrets she uncovers along the way.

There is so much happening and so much to learn in this fantasy world. The House of Blight is very interesting and, at times, suspenseful. The story is filled with tension, a touch of romance, a dash of spice, magic, ghosts, mystery, and an abundance of gardens, all blended with dark cottagecore vibes.

If you're looking for a unique and beautifully written gothic fantasy, this is the one to read!

Thank you to @nerdfam and @maxymmckay for the digital copy. I enjoyed reading this book! It was unputdownable and a fantastic read!

From the moment I read the prologue I knew this book was going to sink its claws into me.

Edira lives a quiet life and is forced to hide one of the most unique traits she possesses. She is a threadmender, a rare type of healer who can help save people, but each healing cuts her own life short. When her brothers are infected by the incurable “blight,” she will do whatever it takes to heal them - even swearing allegiance with the one family she swore she never would.

While House of Blight does have the hallmarks of other romantasy novels, I really enjoyed the “blight” concept and found the magic system interesting while still being easy to understand. I’m rather new to this genre and think if you’re looking to dip your toes in this is a great place to start. Edira may have made some questionable decisions along the way, but I still found her a really captivating main character. She was easy to root for and I did feel like she grew as the story progressed.

And that ending! I really hope we will be blessed with book two sooner rather than later 🙏

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for a review copy.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the ARC of this book.

Yes I know the following review is the world’s vaguest and most censored ever but the twists and turns and gasps can’t be revealed by accident. This was an amazing 5 star read for me; all the gothic romantasy vibes as promised, a yummy book boyfriend and a badass FMC that isn’t afraid to risk it all for her family.

Then there was when ****** did the thing that made me go WTF and then ****** made me swoon when they ****** . Not to mention when Edina ****** !!!!!!!!!!! Finally that ending had me flipping back and forth in the last page going no … wait … what …. Ugh book two doesn’t come out until when?

In short if you like gothic romantasy you will probably like this so give it a go.

3.5 ⭐️ thank you HarperCollins and NetGalley for the gifted arc! I’ll be completely honest—I struggled with this book for the first 60% or so and contemplated dnf’ing multiple times. But once it actually picked up I couldn’t put it down and the ending was crazy. So that’s the main reason for the lower rating. But everything is not as it seems with this book.
The romance between Edira and Orin wasn’t doing it for me, and it was the focus of a big chunk of the book. The whole family is honestly nuts, but I’m glad some turned out okay in the end. I am looking forward to seeing how the romance develops in the next book
This book has SUCH a unique magic system, which is the main reason I kept reading. I was more interested in Edira’s research with magic and the blight more than anything.
The writing style was wonderful and very descriptive and atmospheric. This was definitely a really unique romantasy, which I appreciate when a lot are starting to sound the same.

Starts a little slow but really gets there. Loved the main character. Gave me big ACOTAR vibes so anyone who wants more romantasy like that will find a lot to love here. Excited for the next book!

🌟 ARC Review 🌟

4⭐

If you’re into a mix of family secrets, female rage, curses, and an adorable moth companion, then House of Blight by Maxym M. Martineau might be right up your alley! This gothic fantasy has a slow burn, forced proximity, dual POVS, that reminded me of the vibes from ACOTAR while still feeling refreshingly unique.

Thoughts that may or may not have happened while reading House of Blight –

- “Oh no… I’m gunna have to yell at the author for this…”

- “SERIOUSLY??”

- “You’re kidding me right now.”

- “Don’t you do it… damn it.”

- “Son of a…”

- “Well shit….”

- “YASSSSSSSSS.”

This book had my emotions all over the place! There were moments that made me tear up and think, “Oh no…,” times I was chuckling at the characters' banter, and definitely some instances where characters had me feeling frustrated and wanting to shake sense into them LOL. But then, there were moments of triumph that had me celebrating!

From the very prologue, I could tell I was in for an adventure, and adventure it delivered! I felt completely immersed in the story, with each world being distinct yet perfectly intertwined.
Without giving too much away, I absolutely adored the FMC’s little moth companion, Ywena, who had her own little charming personality! Her interactions with the FMC brought some delightful moments of light during darker passages. Honestly, falling for a moth companion wasn’t on my bingo card for 2025, but I’m not complaining one bit!

House of Blight is filled with some intriguing twists and turns! I thought I had everything all figured out, but I was so pleasantly surprised to discover that I didn’t quite have it all down. It made the journey even more enjoyable with the direction the author took!

I absolutely loved how the karmic retribution fit for this story’s villain! I would have enjoyed seeing a bit more of their comeuppance since they truly deserved every second of it, but I was still really pleased with how it all unfolded. Compared to some recent stories I've read where the villains seemed to get off easy, this was definitely more satisfying!

This is to be a duology, and I look forward to book 2 to see how everything unravels!

Big thanks to Maxym M. Martineau, Harper Voyager US, and Avon Books for the gifted ARC!

This was such a fun read. I enjoyed the Gothic element of this book so much!

Following Edira on her journey as a threadmender was super interesting. She has always kept her magic a secret, but the Ferngloves figure out what she's been keeping hidden for so long. When her brothers are infected with the "blight" that's been killing her people with no cure-she's forced to rely on them for help. And of course that means, she's gonna fall for one of these jerks. She doesn't find Orin to be like the rest of his family, and starts to fall for him. Of course, the Fergloves don't really love this idea, and they may just be more dangerous than what she's been trying to fight.

I am so excited for this second book to release and love that I don't have to say goodbye to these characters just yet. The vibes were immaculate, and Maxym did an amazing job!

Read This Book If…you enjoyed the Spring Court vibes in ACOTAR!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
House of Blight by Maxym M. Martineau

Genre: romantasy
Series: The Threadmender Chronicles # 1
Spice Level: 3/5🌶, 1-2 open door scenes
Setting: fantasy world
POV: single, 1st person, past tense
Tropes: forced proximity, Fae-style vows, slow burn

Audiobook Thoughts: I really enjoyed the narration on this one! I read this immersively (audio + e-book) and thought it added a lot.

My Thoughts:
If you wanted Feyre to spending a little more time in Spring Court, but add in a little academia and gothic vibes, this is the book for you! There’s plenty of suspense and intrigue and angst and I loved it.

Overall, this is a slower and more predictable read, but it set up the romance and drama for book two so perfectly! I can’t wait to find out how this duology ends.

Memorable Quote: “Oh, Edira. The only pain I’d ever intentionally inflict on you is the agony of making you wait to feel the pleasure of release.”

Thank you to the publisher for my advance copy!

Unfortunately, I have decided to DNF this for now at 63% as I wasn't enjoying it. It felt very similar to ACOTAR but with blight. I didn't feel any chemistry between the characters.

Wow, this was excellent and exactly what I was in the mood for! It started a little slowly but quickly picked up and I was thinking about this book a lot when I wasn’t reading it.

This book is absolutely hearkening me back to fantasy books I read a lot (and loved) as a teenager - although this book is absolutely Adult and has some very open door scenes.

Edira is a threadmender - essentially a healer who can solve illness and injury, at the peril of her own lifespan. She keeps hidden to avoid attracting attention of the Evers, a supernatural sort of group that basically rule above the humans. But there is a mysterious disease that is blighting (lol, get it?) the land and its people and it’s a death sentence. No one can seem to heal it, and it’s not until Edira’s twin brothers get sick that she will do anything in her power to save them.

The author did a really good job to have you questioning who is telling the truth and who is hiding something from Edira, and as the reader I think you can pick up on a lot more than Edira does in the moment! I was definitely yelling at her a little bit, because I could see a bit more how things were likely to play out with Orin and Rorik.

All that to say, I definitely didn’t predict everything here and was pleasantly surprised by the choices both Edira and the author made.

I’m really excited for the next book in this series! I want to know more about blight and its history - how did it start? Why is it so infectious? What’s the root of it?

Thank you so much to HarperCollins and Maxym Martineau for this eARC!!