I was very excited to read this new book by Diane Setterfield. I absolutely loved her first book, The Thirteenth Tale, and was disappointed by her second, Bellman and Black. So I was really curious about this one.

I really enjoyed this book. The setting was great, very atmospheric. The time period of 1887-1888 fits perfectly with the story. I was drawn in from the very beginning and the plot kept me intrigued throughout. Setterfield's writing is superb. There was just enough supernatural to pique my interest, but not so much that it would be considered fantasy.

This was a wonderfully-woven tale and I highly recommend it for all fans of "The Thirteenth Tale".

#onceuponariver #netgalley

I’m must confess that I almost abandoned this book before finishing. One hint is to not get invested in memorizing the characters early on. There is an over abundance of introduction of characters and it does not seem to make any sense initially. The story finally came together in a way that I could see the loose threads making sense. It is an interesting tale and to say anymore would give away too much.

'Once Upon a River' is one of those rare books that you want to read slowly, to savor the story and reread those perfect sentences. It is magical, beautiful, funny and haunting storytelling. I simply loved it.

A stranger turns up at the door of an inn on the bank of the Thames with a dead child in his arms. Mysteriously, perhaps magically, the child comes back to life. Who is she? Where did she come from? Several families from the surrounding villages all lay a claim to her, but does she really belong to one of them? And what are their motives in claiming her?

This book weaves the themes of storytelling, magic, family, and love with the current of the river running throughout. Like the river, it is at times slow and meandering, at other times swift and breathtaking.

A powerful story that will stay with me for a long time. Highly recommended.

My normal read is a mystery or thriller with an occasional flurry of chick lit thrown in as a change. This fabulous novel is none of those. It is the story of three little girls who disappeared from their lives. Then one winter’s night a barely surviving man brings what appears to be a dead child into an pub near the River. When the child begins to warm up, she appears to come to life again. The time is the later part of the nineteenth century. The people present in the pub are mostly locals who are there for the story telling. And what a set of stories this becomes. The protagonists are plentiful and varied, the plots twisted and absorbing. Reader’s will become as involved as the townsfolk. Thanks to Net Galley and Atria for an ARC for an honest review.

Awesome read!
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Trying to gather my thoughts for this review is difficult. This author has such a gift with writing and storytelling that many times I just found myself lost in her gift of prose.

The author is telling a story within a story where you get glimpses of folklore, combined with mystery, history, and even a touch of romance. Her imagination and ability to weave this remarkable story together is really quite amazing. In fact, reading my notes I made as I read, I used the word “amazing” three separate times!

A child. A mysterious child is what brings the small village together and yet can easily tear it apart in a blink of an eye. Interesting characters that have richly detailed lives are laid out for us page by page. The author writes in such a way that you are also experiencing the story instead of just reading it. Much like the River…

If you are ready to take a step back in time to when life was simple to fully experience this highly addictive novel, make sure to set aside time so that you don’t miss one single word. I promise you Once Upon a River will stay with you long after you close the cover.

What a story!

Once upon a time, when I was a young blogger, I received a GORGEOUS ARC with an artfully arranged stack of books on the cover and a premise that sounded like a book lovers dream.

That book was The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. And it was true love. There are books that come into your life and you just know it was written for you. You know what I mean? This book was written for me (and maybe you, have you read it? You should.) It was magic and love and comfort and warmth and home.

When Bellman and Black came out, I couldn’t wait to read it. I don’t know if it was me and my expectations, my timing, or the book or what, but I never clicked with it. And I was so sad. So, when Once Upon a River crossed my path, I opened it with trepidation.

It was magic. It was love. It was comfort and warmth and home. In short, I loved it. Diane Setterfield is back (for me).

The book begins on a dark, cold, wet night. Villagers are assembled in a cozy inn, sharing food, drink, and stories, when the door bursts open. There stands a man, frozen and dripping wet, clutching a small child.

By all appearances she is dead. Yet, hours later, she stirs, her heart tentatively beating, her breath tentatively coming in and out.

Who is she? How did she? What happened?

That’s the question of the novel. And I enjoyed the ride so very very much. Highly recommended, especially for this season.

I was reading The Thirteenth Tale on audio last month and serendipitously snagged an ARC of 'Once Upon a River'. I tried to hold off reading it until closer to the publication date, Dec. 4th, but, well . . . I couldn't help myself.

The story is a magical mystery, full of folklore and fantasy. Setterfield once again crafts a story that draws you into every detail and subplot. I was easily transported to the banks of the Thames alongside a memorable cast of characters that includes tavern keepers, farmers, townspeople and nefarious crooks . Oh- and the young girl who inexplicably washes ashore one dark, stormy evening.

4.5/5 stars. It was excellent.

I really liked it. I am not sure if I loved it though... For me, this one fell a little short of the glorious storytelling of The Thirteenth Tale - although I found it an infinitely more enjoyable tale than Bellman and Black. With this book, Setterfield appears to have again found her voice, and her metier is - without a doubt - lush stories with gloriously complex and artfully-crafted characters who are always more than they seem. The setting was wholly original and marvelously constructed also; this is one of my favorite created worlds in recent fiction.

Yet for all of those gushing compliments, something is holding me back just a bit from calling it a five-star story...

I don't know what that something is, honestly - I've been thinking it through since I finished and just can't put my finger on it. I would read it again. I would read whatever else she wrote. I would love to see her revisit this world. But there were a handful of times where the story felt a bit too riverine - meandering and twisting back on itself but with no purpose other than the meander... When I first read The Thirteenth Tale, I literally couldn't put it down until I finished it. This book opened in such a fashion - I was sure I would be hooked from the opening lines. There was a beautiful simple tragedy to it all, and knowing Setterfield's previous books, I knew that simplicity would mask a slew of fabulous tricksy details that would lead me down the primrose path and then, mercifully and eventually, back home again. It did, on both accounts, but with a few sideways trips where I found myself pausing to grab a cup of coffee or heading out to check the mail. The willingness to walk away doesn't indicate a failing in the story - it really is lovely and I did thoroughly enjoy it - but it did surprise me, both at the time and in the consideration I've made since finishing.

Still, no one tells a tale quite like Setterfield, such that I'm more than willing to overlook a few inconsistencies in pacing in exchange for the glory of the tale as a whole - particularly when, as I've said, I can't point to exactly what was inconsistent beyond a feeling that it was almost (but not quite) perfect...

This is the most long winded book I think I've ever read. It's been a long time since a book has given me feelings of dread every time I picked it up.

Although I've never read a book by this author, I was nonetheless excited to dive into this one based on the rave reviews for not only this book but for Setterfield's The Thirteenth Tale. Not every author and/or book is for everybody and this one was certainly not my glass of chocolate milk.

While the prose is without a doubt prolific, the story crawled at an excruciating pace with pages and pages of descriptive text. Some have commented that the prolonged details are necessary in the telling of the story, I humbly disagree. There are a ton of characters in this story and while they are all fleshed out to the nth degree, I didn't care about or relate to any of them.

There is a lot of magic, as well religious undertones in this story, both of which turned me off immediately as I tend to steer clear of those subjects.

I realize that I am in the tiniest of minority of people that feel this book fell way short of expectations while most every other reviewer fell in love with this book. I do not discourage readers from picking this one up for that reason alone.

2 Stars for the writing ⭐⭐


I was provided an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

When Diane Setterfield's The Thirteenth Tale came out, I was mesmerized by it. I wanted another book from her immediately. Time passed and everytime I cleaned off my shelves, that book never got tossed into the giveaway pile. It's still on my shelves. When I saw Once Upon a River, I knew I had to read it! I devoured this book. It took me maybe 2 days to read it. I just couldn't stop reading. This tale sucks you in until you're drowning in the story. I am still in awe of Setterfield's talent for weaving an amazing tale. I highly recommend Once Upon a River!

A beautiful work of story telling. It started off slow paced, but picked up and had several different stories that became woven together throughout the rest of the book.

*Once Upon a River* by Diane Setterfield is a hauntingly beautiful mysterious book. This is a tale about a river, an inn known as the Swan, and a young girl who dies and comes back to life. The girl is thought to be one girl and then another, she is claimed by more than one person. Who is this little girl of only four, and who does she really belong to? One family claims it is their daughter kidnapped two years ago, another the daughter of his wife who disappeared, and yet another her younger sister. Who the child is and where she came from is the focal point of this story, but so are stories themselves, the mysteries of rivers, as well as love and loss.

This is a book you won't be able to tear yourself away from. I liked that the river itself was a character. There is a touch of the magical in this story as well. It is one you will reflect on for time to come. It is a story that stays with you long after the last page. I highly recommend this book.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

A magical story by Diane Setterfield about a found child and families. Will be reading this one again. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley.

Wow. Ms Setterfield is definitely a masterful storyteller! I devoured every word, every page, every chapter of this novel.

Be prepared to be transported to a whole new different world - a world of folklore and science, and magic and myth, all in one breathtaking novel. It's slow but beautiful. I loved how dreamy and magical the story was, yet at the same time it brought forth real and relatable subjects such as life and death, the living and the death, and love and hope.

The story was well paced and plotted, and the characters so well developed! I loved everything about it.

I'm definitely going to be checking out other books written by her.

Highly recommended!

A full review will be posted on my blog, Twitter and Goodreads closer to publication day.

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are of my own.

Consistently a four star author for me, and thanks to Net Galley for the opportunity to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I might have to do a re-read of The Thirteenth Tale, because my recollection is that it was not quite as mysterious as her next book, Bellman & Black, or this current outing. The style of the last two...maybe the better term is a motif or refrain seems to stand out more. Anyway, it was engaging and mysterious, tons of lovely characters and intertwined stories revealing themselves bit by bit, and truly villainous villains that encourage to you to believe, at least for bit, in grown up fairy tales.

In case you didn't know, Diane Setterfield is one of my must read, never disappointing authors. I recommend The Thirteenth Tale first and often to people looking for something new. I keep waiting for the honeymoon to be over, but Once Upon a River is keeping the love alive! It took me a bit to fall into the rhythm of this novel, how Setterfield set the pace and teased out the plot. The setting is hugely important here, the river and the homes of the main characters play an integral part in the story.

By the time I was about three quarters of the way done, I found myself reading faster and faster. All those threads started to come together, all the foreshadowing and the seemingly throw away occurrences were masterfully melded to make for an exciting conclusion. I was surprised, saddened and satisfied all at once. No spoilers, I wouldn't want to ruin if for you, but everyone manages to get what's coming to them in one way or another. The beautiful writing pulls you in, the characters keep you invested, and the story itself will haunt you. Another must read to recommend.

This is a book to be savored slowly, to enjoy the depths of each character. There are many elements to this story including some mystery and suspense. It is magical, and I highly recommend it! Thanks to Atria Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I knew I was going to love this book within the first 5 pages. It's a book about story telling, set in an old world. I don't usually read this genre, but I was captivated by the book cover. It is all about the lives (and deaths) of people living along the Thames river. And love and loss. It has a little bit of everything in it and all of the characters are diverse. It represents a lot of family values, and was a peaceful read. I shall head back out to the bookstore and see what else she has written.

I was so excited to read this! I love the author's other books and had high hopes. Sadly, my expectations were not met. Although well fleshed out characters, I found most of them to be unlikable and had a hard time finishing the book! I've loved her others - this one was just meh to me.

*I would like to thank the author/publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review*

This was a very descriptive story that meandered like a river. There were so many stories going on in this book that I had a hard time keeping everything straight. I felt confused most of the time.
It was a good story but way too wordy