This was a fast, fun, easy read. Camilla and Nico enter into an arranged marriage. Camilla needs this to save her family's railroad empire from bankruptcy. Nico needs help with keeping the crime in his city under control. These rivals form and alliance that's supposed to be for business.
Slowly, but surely pleasure starts to enter the equation.
The setting of this book is post industrial age with Peaky Blinders gaslamp vibes. We have a strong FMC that plays no games and also a bad ass MMC with morally grey tendencies, but is also a cinnamon roll serving touch her and die vibes.
The plot was well paced and easy to follow with lovable male and female protagonists. Slow burn, lies, secrets, rivaling mafia-esque families, found family, found magic, interesting magic system.
This ends on a cliffhanger and Ilook forward to reading the next book in this series.
Thank you #NetGalley and #SecondSkyForeverBooks for a free audio arc of #HouseOfBaneAndBlood

The only Peaky Blinderish about this is the guys' clothing but mostly it is a mafia family type drama but with magic. The strength here lies in the two main characters. Nico and Camilla are very good leads, but they are not served well by the "everything everywhere all at once" chaos of the story.

Really original fantasy romance. It’s giving mafia vibes even though it’s not(?) It’s dark, it has rival families, with areas of the city controlled by each of them, and their respective businesses.
The magic system is really interesting and original but I feel like we could have delved a little bit more into the houses, it’s still a bit unclear to me how it works I think it was only described once.

Loved the characters of Camilla and Nicolai, both are well-developed, have a backstory, they have a lot of chemistry and banter and for once it’s not an enemies to lovers they are from rival families but like each other since the beginning which was refreshing! I’m honestly surprised this is not more well known on booktok!
The ending though??? Brutal cliffhanger

Tropes
- arranged marriage
- who did this to you
- where is my wife
- tending to wounds
- rivals-to-lovers
- political intrigue

3 ⭐

I went into House of Bane and Blood with the promise of Peaky Blinders vibes, rivals/enemies to love and a unique story. And it felt like I absolutely got that!

By the end of the third chapter I was super excited for the rest of the story.

I really enjoyed both Camila's and Nicolai's characters, I've always enjoyed a marriage of convenience romance and this one delivered it so well!

I would have given House of Bane and Blood 4 ⭐, however, I really struggled with the repeated use of the word Daddy throughout the book. It popped up multiple times and each time it unfortunately took me right out of the story and it made it really hard to reconnect with the story afterwards.

Overall, I really enjoyed House of Bane and Blood, but a few personal hang-ups kept it from being a complete hit for me.
I’d still absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for something a little different in their fantasy romance.

I would like to thank NetGalley for an ARC for an honest review!

This was a darker Romantasy with steampunk elements mixed with gods-blessed remnant magic. The relationship development for a marriage of convenience was perfect, they both equally rescued the other and though they had their secrets to keep they were willing to work with one another. I loved the tension and the twists in the relationship balances at the end. It ended on a pretty big cliffhanger, but with some hope left; I’m glad I can go straight to book two.

4.5 ⭐️ So beyond happy to see this being traditionally published, it deserves all the love and more 🤍

A big thank you to NetGalley, Second Sky Books and Alexis L. Menard for the approved eARC.

If you’re someone interested in a Peaky Blinders feeling fantasy romance, this book is the one for you!

The vibes throughout the book were immaculate, and the reveals kept me on the edge of my seat. The marriage of convenience between Nico and Milla was absolutely delicious as they navigated their family tensions and the slow, gradual feelings they developed for each other. The overarching storyline was also super intriguing as you learn more about the bending abilities.

Highly recommend this one.

Peaky Blinders vibes x marriage of convenience + magic … hell yeah

Excuse me while I never stop screaming about my book husband, Nico Attano. From the very first time our MCs interact, we can see the chemistry and I squealed when he showed up at Cam’s house (iykyk).

For me, Romantasy has to be the perfect balance of plot and spice, and House of Bane and Blood delivered.

Do yourself a favour and dive into this completed duology. It’s def now a fav. OK now time for a reread.

Review posted to Goodreads, Indigo and Amazon.ca

House of Bane and Blood by Alexis L. Menard is a dark, thrilling fantasy where magic and mafia politics collide. Camilla, heir to her struggling railway empire, is forced into a marriage with Nicolai Attano, a powerful rival with elemental magic, to protect her family. As they navigate danger, political intrigue, and a series of kidnappings, sparks fly between them in a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance. The story is packed with tension, vivid world-building, and intense chemistry, making it an exciting, immersive read for anyone who loves dark romance with magic and high stakes.

This was a really unique read that put a different spin on your average fantasy books with a steampunk / Peaky Blinders vibe

We have an arranged marriage between rival families and the tension between Camilla and Nicolai was *chefs kiss* 🤌🏼🤌🏼 the loathing and the banter was everything you’d want out of rivals forced to marry to protect their families, and when the spicy scenes inevitably came they were so so satisfying 🥵🥵

Nicolai is a GREAT book boyfriend, he’s morally grey & will do anything to protect the ones he loves. He’s sexy and seductive and witty and I just neeeeeddd more

I will say the rivals to lovers aspect of this book felt like bit of a flip of a switch. It didn’t really take away from my enjoyment of the book because there was so much else going on, but I wish there was a more definable moment that set them down that path and that it wasn’t just an all of a sudden instance

The plot twists in this book were SO WELL DONE! The ending had my JAW ON THE FLOOR! I suspected something, but it didn’t play out like I thought it did and I LOVE being taken by surprise

Thank you Second Sky and Alexis L. Menard for the review copy of this book. House of Bane & Blood is being republished on September 9th with a GORGEOUS new cover you’ll absolutely want on your bookshelf

I first read House of Bane and Blood in November of 2023 when it was indie published, and it was just as fun and entertaining this time around ahead of its trad publishing date.

In a city split between those with remnants (read: powers/abilities) and those without, HOBAB follows two rival families who come together in a shaky alliance, while both sides hold their secrets close to their chests. Camilla is the heir to the railway company on one side of the river, while Nico’s family rules the other. In addition to their marriage of convenience and subsequent payments by Nico’s family to cover the railway’s debts, Camilla agrees to help Nico try and uncover who is kidnapping those with powers on his side of the river. As Nico and Camilla work together, they find that keeping their feelings in check for what is supposed to be short term agreement is harder than they expected.

The magic system in this book is easy to understand and interesting, and Menard does a good job of explaining it in a way that doesn’t take away from the plot. Camilla is such a spitfire - especially to Nico - and I love both her stubbornness, but also how far she’s willing to go to protect those she cares about, even if they don’t necessarily deserve it.

Nico is so complex, and also is doing his best to protect his family, and by extension, Camilla after he suffered considerably as a teenager. Of course, those struggles manifest in HOBAB as secrets that he’s desperate to keep hidden, not only for his sake, but to keep others safe as well.

This book has some of my favorite tropes (marriage of convenience, he falls first, secret powers revealed at the most inopportune time) and ends on a cliffhanger that will hurt and also leave you desperate to read the sequel.

I’m so excited that one of my favorite romantasy series is being trad published and would recommend this book to everyone who enjoys the above tropes, plus a whole lot of mayhem.

Thank you to NetGalley, Second Sky, and Alexis Menard for the opportunity to read this book (again) ahead of its publishing date in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Arc Review!!

Tropes: peaky blinders vibes, marriage of convenience, grishaverse magic, enemies to lovers

That ending will haunt me for the rest of the month omg! This book is the perfect mixture between steampunk peaky blinder vibes and a magic system that resembles the grishaverse. You follow both of the main characters as they navigate a marriage of convenience while working together to find a criminal threatening the city called The Collector. Can they hunt down this killer before its too late?

Thank you so much NetGalley for the e-ARC!!

I really enjoyed this book! The world was dark and full of danger, and the tension between Milla and Nico kept me hooked from start to finish.

Milla is strong and stubborn, but Nico… wow. He’s dangerous, protective, and absolutely delicious. Milla is a lucky lady. Their banter and chemistry was perfect!

Overall it was a fun and addictive read. I’ll definitely be picking up the next one.

3.5 🌟 thank you to netgalley for giving me an early Arc. This was a fun ride into a mafia family with lots of drama and then a mmc who can't let the fmc go. I am intrigued for book 2

I will start off by saying this had some of the BEST tension and banter I have read in a book. I was giggling and kicking my feet at the interactions between Nico and Milla. Their chemistry was sizzling! Everyone says this book reminds them of Peaky Blinders, which I have not seen, but feel like I need to start after enjoying this book so much. I was a bit confused at times with some of the world building, but I could not get enough of Nico and Milla. This was a super quick binge for me, and I can't wait to read book 2. I highly recommend!

I really enjoyed this mafia family take on romantasy. From the get go you are fully absorbed in the FMC & MC love story, which is the main focus of the plot. There are several sub plots, some which tie in together and others that don't, but still have their place. I do wish that the relationships between the FMC and her brothers was explained in more detail in this book. It did feel like things happened with them just for the sake of the plot development. Where as if they'd been given a deeper background or connection, I think they'd have held up to the reader scrutiny. The book has been left quite open ended, with a few "what the heck" and "huhhhhh" moments, and I'm quite excited to read the second. This book came through as an ARC from netgalley, but both this and its sequel are already published, so I'm a tad confused as to why it's an ARC. I absolutely will jump into book 2 and I would recommend this to any mafia/romantasy fan!

Dual pov
Enemies to lovers
Marriage of convenience\duty

This is a great story with a completely new new kind of magic system. Even though it couls have been elaborated a bit more I was still able to grasp the different abilities. The chemistry between Nico and Milla is sizzling and the banter is awesome. It is a real enemies to lovers where they dont even kiss until more than half of the book. This was one of the biggest surprise reads of this year. The pacing is perfect, plot is well-developed and the characters a relatable and have a strong background story. The cliffhanger at the end was wild. A ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for sure!!

This was such a good time! House of Bane and Blood ticked so many boxes of what I liked: an arranged marriage with banter that’s bantering, rival families where scheming is their second nature, action and twists that kept me turning the pages and some curious magic.

I adored the two MCs together - their chemistry was undeniable and delicious. Camilla has big boss energy and a sharp tongue that made me laugh out loud with her come backs :D While they were all tough and sarcastic i also enjoyed seeing their vulnerable sides because that made the characters and their actions believable to me.

The atmosphere of this book is supposed to be like peaky blinders (which I haven’t watched) so I don’t know how accurate that is, BUT from excerpts I did see I can say it does check out regarding atmosphere, clothing etc.

The pacing made this such an easy, unputdownable read and while I did see some of the twists coming others

Wow! I knew within two chapters that this was going to be a 5star read!

It felt so original compared to your ‘normal’ romantasy.
Mafia, peaky blinders, the magic through bloodlines just all amazing. This book is one of the rare books that has both an incredible plot and a brilliant slow burn romance! The tension and yearning!🥵

I will be reading book two immediately!

Camilla (Milla) Machese is an heiress to the most notorious family in Lynchaven. Nicolai (Nico) Attano is the leader of a rival family, blessed (or burdened) with remnant magic. When Nico proposes a marriage between the two, Milla has a plan brewing.

I loved rereading this, as I originally read an arc of the self-published version and I loved it just as much on my reread!!

This is for you if you love:

✨ marriage of convenience
✨ foul-mouthed morally grey MMC
✨ peaky blinders
✨ grishaverse type magic
✨ rivals to lovers
✨ spicy romance

I LOVE the setting of this one! Post-industrial age, with a wonderful magic system that I feel was pretty unique despite being inspired by others.

Milla is a really great protagonist to read from. She is strong-willed but is actually very reasonable and open to learning, especially learning more about her betrothed's family. I enjoy that she has her own agency and is very much in control of her own destiny (when possible). In fact, I think Nico is the damsel in distress for the most part and Milla has to save him - several times.

Nico is just AHHHHHHH. The art of him is also fantastic. He is very "Where is my wife?" and I think that is perfect. His backstory hurts and I just want him to be happy.

I really enjoyed that there is more to the plot than just their romance as well. There's trouble brewing in the background and Milla is at the centre of it.

Thank you to Second Sky for an advanced copy of this one, all opinions are my own!

First off I have never seen Peaky Blinders and nor am I very familiar with a mafia romance genre. I do love a good fantasy, but I feel like many of them start to feel the same. I love the idea of this fantasy romance, mixed mafia, and I think it was executed so well. The vibes were immaculate. I loved our FMC Camilla and our MMC Nikolai, their tension and banter was spot on and I was interested in what was about to happen next the entire book. Obsessed! I am excited to read book 2.