The House Saphir had me laughing out loud—so much fun! A goth queen and a plant nerd might not sound like a perfect match, but Mallory and Armand are chef’s kiss. Their banter and chemistry are top-tier, and Armand is an absolute cinnamon roll in the best way. The storyline is fresh and original, packed with a fantastic cast of ghosts—from murder-y ones to ancestors to straight-up hilarious haunters. I adored every minute of this and can’t wait for more tales from this wonderfully weird world! I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy.

My Thoughts

I am not a Fairy Tale Aficionado but I do enjoy both an original version and an imaginative retelling which is what the author has created with this story.

Bluebeard has long been cast as such a heinous character that it did not surprise me when Count Bastien Saphir-Monsieur Le Bleu was such a hard ghost to vanquish.

Fraud she may be but Mallory Fontaine managed to create a pretty good persona whose confidence goes a long way toward earning a living with her older sister Anaiis.

Her fascination with the gruesome and the macabre means there is nothing she likes better than solving a mystery that involves both.

Though neither sister is in any way prepared for what awaits them upon arriving at the House Saphir, a once glorious estate which has fallen prey to disrepair and has the perfect “haunted mansion” vibe.

A “vibe” that finds Mallory in over her head but determined to persevere.

This story blends reality with fantasy and by the end dots all its I’s and crosses all its T’s for me as our main characters finally finish quite an adventure.
[EArc from Netgalley]
On every book read as soon as it is done and written up for review it is posted on Goodreads and Netgalley, once released then posted on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles as well.

I have loved Marissa Meyer’s writing since I first read Cinder. She has a way of engaging readers and putting an imaginative twist on a familiar tale. The House of Saphir is going to be a perfect fall read with its ghosts and magic. The characters in this story were relatable with their flaws and imperfections, and that only had me wanting them to overcome the odds even more. This is sure to be a hit.

Thank you to NetGalley for lending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
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Marissa Meyer is absolutely one of my favorite authors because of her talent at retelling fairytales, like I think she did a phenomenal job with the Lunar Chronicles, and I also think Gilded was pretty good.

However, unfortunately, The House Saphir fell pretty flat for me, mostly because of the pacing. I felt like the pacing with this book was off.

The plot made sense; it was pretty logical. nothing happened that made me go “now why would that even happen?” BUT the pacing made me question things. Like when a certain character made a move on another character, I was like “wait, what? Why? Why now?” because I never felt a buildup in that moment for a move to occur. I didn’t feel like it was the right time either.

I also felt as if the plot would rapidly pick up at times and then rapidly slow down… like one moment, things are going super slow, and then things are super intense, then back to slow.. then back to intense.. and then the thing, next thing you know, the book is over. So, all of that just felt super off to me.

Also, speaking of plot, the foreshadowing was SOOOO obvious. I don’t know if it’s because I’m older now and I can pick up on those things more or what, but I just like instantly knew from the get-go what was happening. like it was so clear to me, honestly.

However, I will say the characters definitely make up a lot of good in this book, along with the atmosphere. When I started reading this, it was late at night, and I was reading it on my Kindle in the dark, and I got spooked out. I literally had to turn on a lamp to keep reading because it felt so eerie!

The characters are also super fun. I really liked Mallory and her sister; they were fun to read. i do wish we kind of got more moments with them lowkey?? same with her and Armand (who I adored btw). Like I wish there were a lot more character bonding moments because the pacing of relationships felt off to me the most. But I still liked them, and they definitely made the book fun.

Like I said, I adored Armand. he was reallllyyy funny at times, and he and I would react the same way to certain situations. Like bless his heart, he’s such a real character.

Overall, I had fun, but not too much fun reading this. I really wish I had enjoyed it more because I love Marissa Meyer, but it just didn’t hit the way I wanted it to.

Marissa Meyer has been one of my must read authors since I first read the Lunar Chronicles. I wouldn't say this book was on the same level as that series or Heartless, but I liked it more than Gilded and Cursed. The plot was pretty predictable in a fun (often funny), atmospheric way. The characters and their world really made the book. The ending tied things up nicely, but I would definitely be interested in reading a sequel or companion book.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

You can always count on Marissa Meyer to tell a great story and this one is no different. Fun, action-packed, with believable characters and a twisty ending. Well done!

I had read the sampler and was so excited to read the full book while it was still fresh, and it did not disappoint in any way. I thought the Bluebeard element worked well overall and that it had that storyline that I was wanting and enjoyed. It was everything that I was looking for from a fairy tale retelling and how it was used to create this story and the characters in this world. Marissa Meyer has a strong writing style and always enjoyed the feel of each books that I read from her. I loved the use of the murder mystery and the fantasy romance that blends together perfectly.

Marissa Meyer enchants once again with The House Saphir, a lush and eerie retelling of the Bluebeard tale that seamlessly blends romantic tension, ghostly intrigue, and gothic murder mystery. Mallory Fontaine is a charmingly flawed heroine who is sharp, skeptical, and just magical enough to get herself in trouble, who finds herself tangled in a centuries-old legacy of violence and secrets. With Meyer’s signature wit and immersive world building, the story drips with atmosphere, unraveling a twisty plot full of suspicious characters, haunted halls, and unexpected heat.

4.5☆

Marissa Meyer exquisitely writes a fantastical, paranormal, and unexpectedly humorous reimagining and continuation of the classic “Bluebeard” fairy tale that will have you hooked with anticipation and smiling the whole time. The sense of foreboding of what lurks in the dark, everyone’s secrets, and the threatening and fraudulent witchcraft made the entire eerie atmosphere of this dark tale. In contrast, there were charming and ridiculous interactions between the characters that lightened the mood and they will have you laughing out loud. This was such a perfect combination of dark and light, and everything from the story to the setting to the characters all contribute to a thrilling read from the very first page. “Heartless” is one of my favorite books, and she absolutely does it again.

You do not need to know the “Bluebeard” tale in order to enjoy or understand this. As someone with an extensive knowledge of fairy tales, it was fun to be able to pick up on all of the references, but it had no impact on the story.

RELATIONSHIPS & CHARACTERS -
Mallory - A witch who has lost her original powers and can now only see and speak to ghosts, Mallory needs to find a way to maintain her witchy reputation and make money to survive with her sister. To do this, she conducts midnight tours of the haunted house where Monsieur Le Bleu killed his first three wives. She is quite a theatrical tour guide and these scenes are honestly so well–written, it feels like you are on the tour with them. But, as a true con-artist, she cannot resist the offer to rid the real ghost of Monsieur Le Bleu for more money than she would know what to do with, and she maintains quite the act. Mallory is headstrong, annoyed with everyone, and such a wonderful main character to read from.

Armand - I adored him. So much. He is clueless, charming, sweet, and oblivious. He is a wonderful contrary character to Mallory, and he adds much of the humor and change of tone to the story.

Triphine (and the wives) - They were all established characters with their own personalities and quirks. They were a necessary part of the story and quite enjoyable to read about with their harmless mischief and with their rightful ending. They certainly added to the comedic side of the story.

The relationship was developed well, if a bit out of nowhere, but I was giggling the whole time. I wish I had a more sophisticated and formal review for this, but I was just so giddy and loving every second.

ENGAGEMENT & ENJOYMENT -
I, as mentioned a few times already, loved this story. The accuracy of the original “Bluebeard” tales is evident, and this is not just a retelling, but a new continuation, which is a genre that I would love to continue to read about, especially if it is Marissa Meyer writing it. While there is one overarching goal and storyline, there are several mysteries that need to be addressed to get there, and it created a solidly engaging read. The shift between suspenseful and lighthearted moods made sure that nothing ever was boring and it broke up the story appropriately. The darker parts were obviously my favorite, and the anticipation of what was going to happen made this strange, creepy, ghostly read gripping. Again, as a fairy tale enthusiast, I had a fantastic time and could not wait to get back to reading this.

ATMOSPHERE & SETTING -
What an atmosphere! Haunted houses at midnight, ghosts, happenings that you do not know if they are real or illusions - everything! I especially enjoyed the way the house was used and the concept of reality. When the haunting and ominous ambiance was there, there were unique descriptions done so well that you could smell and feel all of them as well. While they were not quite horror-leaning, they could be enough to spook you. These same elements were also done comedically, and I enjoyed the satirization of witchcraft and how it added to the story. Atmospheric writing and details is a strong suit for Marissa Meyer, and it evidently shines again in this book.

DEVELOPMENT & PLOT -
The pacing of the story was great and there was never a point where I felt bored or wanted things to move along. I do think that toward the end, I kept waiting for all of the anticipation from the horrific elements to lead to something bigger and scarier, but it was not a disappointment when it really did not. Similarly, I felt the conclusion to the problem to be a little too simple and lackluster, but with everything that led up to that point, it is not enough to diminish the overall love of this book.

Making comparisons is not typically my thing, but this reminded me of “Masters of Death” by Olivie Blake, which I loved. I loved both of these books.

Thank you Marissa Meyer, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my thoughts and review!

Very creepy Bluebeard retelling. Felt stand alone, but also with room for more story with these characters. I would read more if Meyer writes more.

The House Saphir is a YA fantasy murder mystery that blends haunted house vibes, ghostly magic, and a loose Bluebeard retelling. The story follows Mallory Fontaine, a con artist who can speak to the dead, as she's pulled into a supernatural mystery involving the heir to the Saphir estate, dangerous rituals, and a string of past and present murders.

The novel unfolds with strong atmosphere and gradual reveals, building tension through well-placed foreshadowing. Mallory is a sharp, snarky, and ultimately heroic protagonist whose growth is both believable and rewarding. The supporting cast—particularly Armand, the sunshine-y heir—adds charm, though some side characters felt underdeveloped. The mystery itself leans more toward fantasy than whodunit, and while the twist is somewhat predictable for genre veterans, it’s still well executed.

A minor gripe is the resolution of Mallory’s magic, which feels a bit too easy, but it doesn’t detract much from an otherwise compelling story. With solid pacing, great banter, and a satisfying standalone arc, this is a great pick for readers who enjoy ghostly mysteries, magical rituals, and character-driven fantasy.

3.5 stars. Two sisters barely scraping by pretending to be witches get the chance to make some substantial money helping a hot (but potentially untrustworthy?) count with a ghost problem. I enjoyed seeing Bluebeard reimagined as a sort of dark-sorcerer, not just a randomly cruel man. The story started strong with likable characters, gothic haunted house vibes, murders, and ghosts. The center got a little lost for me plot-wise because it was mostly Mallory pretending to know how to do magic, which I found kind of boring and frustrating. It picked up when we started to get more of Mallory’s backstory. And while I did guess some of the plot twists in the middle, the ending had a few more twists I didn’t see coming. Fitcher and Constantino didn’t get enough screen time which made it difficult to feel invested in them. This could be in part because they were so abruptly introduced early on but then there was a huge gap in time before they were reintroduced to the story. It almost felt like a setup for a spin off because we found out a bunch of random stuff about them but never got their full backstory.

The House Saphir is a retelling of the Bluebeard fairytale. Mallory Fontaine and her sister Anais are struggling to make ends meet. Mallory can see ghosts and she makes money by running tours about Count Bastien Saphir, an evil noble and sorcerer who murdered three of his wives. He has a run down house in Morant where she leads ghost tours and sells fraudulent items. Armand Saphir, only heir of the Saphir family, asks Mallory to help remove the evil ghost of Bastian from his family’s estate. He has been told that the Fontaine sisters are powerful witches and he will pay them well if they use their powers to free the estate from the ghost and the strange monsters that have appeared. The sisters don't have the power to exorcise this ghost but they go anyway because they need the money and investigators are after them. After they arrive, they encounter the terrifying ghost of Bastian Saphir, fight monsters and discover a horrible murder linked to the deaths of his three wives. How do they free the estate from this evil and what link do Mallory and Anais have to Bastian? There is a romance subplot involving Mallory and Armand in the middle of the other happenings, as well as two side characters that become important later on in the story.

Sisters Mallory and Anaiis are con artists trading in on their mother’s reputation as a witch even though they don’t have her gifts. They make a living by guiding rigged haunted house tours, selling phony artifacts, and giving fake card readings. Just when their luck is about to run out Armand, the true heir to House Saphir, hires them to exorcise the ghost of Bastien Saphir, an ancestor who murdered his wives. While Mallory can see and communicate with ghosts, she has no idea how to do an exorcism. As she tries to bluff her way through, she realizes that Bastien's ghost is far more dangerous than she expected. Faced with real supernatural threats and dark secrets in the estate, Mallory must rely on her wit and cunning to survive and not lose her heart to the heir’s charm in the process.

I enjoyed this quite a bit. The supernatural aspects were fantastic. I liked the whole glossary worth of monsters introduced, and the two monster hunters were so fun (adored Constantino). I also loved the ghosts of the wives, especially Triphine and her hypochondriac tendencies.

I liked Mallory and her snark, she was a bit annoying here and there but not enough for me to dislike her. Armand was sweet and charming, if a bit naive. Their romance was ok, definitely not my favorite aspect of the book and felt too easy at the end.

The story was a good pace if somewhat predictable. Overall The House Saphir was a very entertaining read! Perfect for fall if you want spooky fantasy vibes with a little romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a 3.5 rounded up for me.
I have to say I didn't love this as much as I did Gilded, it felt a little light in development for me, more of a well rounded retelling, but didn't get the gritty more interesting character development or story.

Mallory Fontaine has been scamming people for years, and its finally catching up with her, her ability to see and speak to ghosts, her sister blessed by the God of Death, hates her petty magic but is a decent fortune teller, using her family tarot card, posing as a witch.
Utilizing the infamous Saphir Townhouse- former house of a serial killing Count, who killed three of wives and tried for more in an effort to do dark magic she's been holding tours and selling replicas of the infamous engagement jewelry, sometimes aided by the ghost of his first wife. His infamous ghost is still said to haunt his far off estate with that of his other two wives. His fourth wife created her own luck and escaped becoming a victim.

She finds herself hired by Le Bleu's current living descendent hoping she can rid him of his ghosts and end his family curse once and for all.
But Le Bleu still has other plans, and continuing his lifelong plans, even in death, if Mallory can pull off a miracle or rob him of enough silver and run- she's still deciding the trajectory, she may be able to save to day or save her and her sister from a lengthy jail sentence.

I liked Mallory and the spirits of the murdered wives, but Armand didn't feel well enough developed and a little generic.
But if you like a well rounded Bluebeard retelling, you may enjoy this.

Thank you so much for this gifted copy in exchange for an honest review. Marissa is a favorite author of mine and this book was so well done! Mallory was a fantastic FMC without magical abilities. Armond was fantastically broody and I absolutely loved this one

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

Love the typical Marissa Meyer writing. The houses were were a bit confusing, but once I got into it, I enjoyed the story.

Classic Marissa Meyer magic. The House Saphir is imaginative, romantic, and full of twists that kept me on my toes. The worldbuilding is lush, the story moves fast, and the characters? Instantly loveable. I had so much fun with this

You know you've played a board game too much when every book that takes place in a creepy mansion feels like a Betrayal haunt or a Mansions of Madness scenario. (Seriously, though, I felt like I was attempting knowledge rolls for rituals and fending off creatures by resolving horror checks.)

The House Saphir is a retelling of the tale of Bluebeard in the form of a YA fantasy murder mystery featuring a grumpy wish and a sunshine heir. I know very little of the original Bluebeard lore aside from what I read on Wikipedia, so I don't know how faithful it is to the source material. Disregarding the retelling aspect, I enjoyed the story and, as I do with most murder mysteries, spent half the book hyperfixating on a detail that didn't end up being relevant. I believe this is a standalone, which I think was probably the best choice given how the plot and character arcs resolve. I could see the author expanding on this world more in the future, but I think I like this on its own.

Mallory Fontaine is a conwoman, surviving by tricking tourists into false tours of a mansion known for the death of the first of the Saphir wives. She can also see the dead, which comes in handy when the heir to the Saphir legacy appears on one of her tours and requests her assistance in removing the ghost of Le Bleu from the family estate. However, when murder strikes once more, Mallory is drawn into an investigation that may be more than she can handle, and her past only serves to further complicate the situation. Though the murder mystery aspect of the story doesn't come into play until later in the story, the first section feels very ghost-hunter-y in the sense that the protagonists are dealing with all sorts of other magical creatures. I enjoyed the second half of the book more when the murder mystery actually became relevant, though I do admit I don't think it was as much mystery as it was fantasy rituals. I guessed the plot twist/killer relatively early on (mostly because of prior experience with the genre; I still think it was an enjoyable twist, and I was almost convinced that I was wrong), but I did like that there was a bit more tension/action following the reveal. I have mixed feelings about the ending (a part of me thinks it was a bit anticlimactic), but I was overall satisfied with the conclusion. The pacing fell in the middle for me; I didn't find it too fast or too slow, and I think the reason it took me longer to finish than I wanted was due to life circumstances and not because I didn't want to read the book. As far as fantasy mysteries go, I enjoyed this book and its haunted mansion vibes.

I do wish the cast of characters had been just a bit wider for the sake of the mystery elements, but I still liked their dynamics. I've seen some complaints about Mallory as the FMC, but I liked her. I found her snark compelling and thought her curiosity and bravery made for an enjoyable protagonist. I didn't like Anaïs as much at first, but I grew to like her. Their sisterhood dynamics weren't super complex, though I understand that their relationship wasn't the focal point of the story. This is a weird comparison, but for some reason they reminded me of the Able Sisters from Animal Crossing... I really liked Armand, and everyone calling him a bit of a himbo is absolutely right, but we love him for it. Even though he did feel a bit flat compared to Mallory (I wish there was more time spent on his backstory), I still liked him and his dynamics with Mallory because they were so sweet. I don't have much of an opinion on the two monster hunters because they weren't as relevant as I was expecting, but I did think they were interesting and wouldn't be surprised if a spin-off book were to focus on them. Otherwise, I had beef with Julie for literally no reason, and I wanted to see more of Triphine. I also wish Le Bleu was a bit less of a caricature, but that didn't affect my enjoyment of the story.

The House Saphir is a YA fantasy/mystery standalone for readers who love haunted mansions, witchcraft, ghosts, and loose retellings, or who just enjoy fun banter and satisfying standalones.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the free e-ARC!

4/5

Also, a quick note: I am now seeing that this is being partially marketed as a romantasy, and let me be clear that I disagree completely. As far as my understanding of romantasy goes, the romance must be an integral part of the plot, either equally weighted with or more relevant than the fantasy aspects of the plot. The romance in this novel does NOT occupy enough of the plot for it to be considered a romantasy in the sense of its apparent comp titles on the publisher's website (Divine Rivals and Fourth Wing).
If you go into this expecting a romantasy to the degree of either of these comps, you are going to be disappointed. This is a fantasy mystery with minor romantic elements; we don't need to label everything as a romantasy because it's the pop word and we think it will sell more. Enjoy this for what it is: an enticing fantasy murder mystery with hints of romance.