I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2021 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2021/02/2021-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

This third volume in the “Diabolist” series focuses on a family of diabolists – magic workers who draw their power from pact-bound demons. There is, of course, always a catch and always a price. To minimize the danger, diabloists through the centuries have kept meticulous notes on the names, temperaments, and histories of the known demons. Nancy Blackwood is one of a lineage of librarians guarding these and other critical documents. While her sister, Edith, engages in the larger world (in this case, the end of World War II), Nancy lives in a remote British village, along with her Hollywood-obsessed daughter, Jane, and her ward, Jewish refugee Miriam, both student diabolists about to embark upon the “Test” that will lead to full privileges and their own demons. After passing their Tests, each embarks upon perilous paths in violation of the rules: Jane, eager to hide that she has in reality failed her Test, creates a familiar by placing a demonic spirit into her pet cat, but lacks the experience to truly bind it to obedience; and Miriam goes searching for her parents, captives of the Nazis, by taking over the bodies of animals and then people, at a terrible cost to her own spiritual self. What could possibly go wrong?

Tanzer perfectly captures life in a secluded, rambling house in a small British village toward the end of the Second World War, weaving in a story of brash youth, tested friendships, treacherous demons, and consequences. If this is truly the last of the series, I will be sad to see it end.

Quick confession- I did not realize this was Book # 3 of the Diabolist’s Library series when I requested it however I do not think the story was heavily reliant on its predecessors so we can just chalk it up to me having a slight “blonde” moment in my arc- requesting.

That being said, Creatures of Charm and Hunger was definitely different. Two young girls, envious of each other, forced apart by the deviously dangerous secrets they keep in their journey towards becoming a Diabolist in the renowned societe.

The relationship of Jane and Miriam was brilliantly written by Molly Tanzer as she gave us everything- the good, the bad, the ugly and I love when writers bring new dynamics to the writing game. Sure any writer can give us two jealous girls, but Molly gave us envy mixed with love, fear mixed with bravado, lust vs. love, narcissism vs. humility and the harsh realities of religious and cultural segregation.

While I loved these characters, creatures of charm and hunger was a LOT to digest. The world of Societe was intricate and descriptive to the point of confusion. I appreciate a well built bookverse as much as the next bookist but this was a plot within a plot within a plot within a plot and oh mama, it was a lot to keep track of. I also found certain areas were exaggerated such as the issue of diabolist vs witchcraft and the decisions made by the girls but other pinnacle areas were given a quick rush through. I know we are setting the stage for the next book in the series but leaving some issues flat without justification isn’t really that great either.

Creatures of charm and hunger was definitely different from other paranormal stories out there and would appeal to those looking for new paranormal worlds, secret societies and historical fiction from WWII era.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Mariner Books and Molly Tanzer for a providing me with an arc for review.

Check out the full review posted on my blog here: https://jessicareadsit.wordpress.com/2020/08/05/creatures-of-charm-and-hunger-by-molly-tanzer/

This book had a unique plot and a fascinating premise. The conflict was good, but the ending could have been a bit more of a surprise. Characters were relatively well developed and world building was realistic.

I want to start off by saying that I had no idea this was the third book in a series. But that’s okay, because I felt like I was able to grasp most things that were discussed and described. This is a series that takes historical fiction and magic and mixes them together to make an interesting concoction. This novel follows two teens (and a Nazi hunter) as they use their satanist powers to discover more about their families and themselves. One thing I do not enjoy are Several different perspectives, so it took a little while to find the narrative I felt most connected to. There was also one POV who basically disappeared in the middle of the novel, which confused me. However, I enjoyed the difference between the two teen perspectives and the ways magic was portrayed. I also appreciated how real world issues were weaves throughout the story in a subtle way.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Molly Tanzer, and John Joseph Adams/Mariner Books for a chance to review this book. I was given this book for free in exchange for my fair and honest opinion. I have not felt compelled, in any way, by the author, the publisher, or NetGalley to alter my sincerest thoughts on this book. Every word of this review is solely and completely mine.
This is the third book in a series. I don’t know that I missed anything in reading this book without having the proper context that I might have had if I would have read the previous books. Still and all this is a book about two young women: Jane Blackwood and Miriam Cantor -- who have been raised as sisters on the precipice of becoming full-fledged diabolists. World War II England is the setting of this story. Consequently, I got the sense that there would be a direct involvement with the war.
Tanzer weaves a story that is both horrific and whimsical with characters that are memorable and believable. Suspense is built with feelings of dread prevalent throughout the latter third of the book. If there is a complaint, I would say that it would be the first third of the book. It seemed a little slow, especially for a book that is the last of a trilogy. Maybe had I read the previous books I would have understood contextually if she were tying up loose ends from the previous books. All in all, I liked what I read, felt that the story merited my time and attention, and I would read this author again.

Not quite what I expected, but good nonetheless! The third book in a series of urban/historical fantasies about magic, this novel follows two teens (and a Nazi hunter) as they use their satanist powers to discover more about their families and themselves. Because there were so many perspectives, it took a little while to find the narrative thrust here and one POV disappeared somewhat jarringly in the middle. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the difference between the two teen perspectives and the ways magic was portrayed. I loved the magic world, and the undercurrents of world events.

Unfortunately, although I really wanted to, I just couldn't get into this book. I felt the pacing was very, very slow. I finished about 75% thinking that it would get better but it did not. I would read another book by this author, because I did feel like her writing was very good.

I liked this mix of fantasy and historical fiction as it's gripping and entertaining.
The world building is interesting and I liked how it mixes historical elements with fantasy, the characters are well thought and I liked them.
The plot is enthralling and well crafted and it kept me hooked till the end.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Creatures of Charm and Hunger is about two young diabolists, Jane and Miriam, raised like sisters, whose paths veer away from each other, set during World War II. I didn't realize this is the last book in a trilogy, but as a story it stands apart. I like the concept, and really enjoyed Miriam's story in particular. As half-Jewish German refugee Miriam seeks to learn what happened to her parents and in her own rogue way assist the war effort, her methods, emotions, and the WWII backdrop all tie together neatly, and the side story of Jane's aunt Edith complements it. All of this is so high stakes, that it makes it almost impossible to care about Jane, who occasionally seems immature and selfish even for a 16-year-old. Her relationship with her mother and Miriam are challenging, and these tensions are central to the book, but I also found them to be the most mundane sections, and least specific to the time in history. The story leaves far too many questions unanswered for the final book in a trilogy. It has its moments, but could have been so much better.

Sometimes, often in the first book of a series, it seems like there's a definite temptation for an author to stick in just a little more plot than that book can handle - if there's one thing to say about Creatures of Charm and Hunger, it's that it's one of those books.

The basic premise is that our main characters, Jane and Miriam, are teenage girls who are both studying to become diabolists - to use a form of magic that involves binding demons and then using their essence to support a pact made between demon and diabolist. There's also something going on here about plants being involved but that kind of didn't quite stick in my mind while I was reading this, so I'm not 100% clear how it works. Anyway, both are about to take their Test (hey, you know it's serious when random capital letters are involved), to see if they're good enough to be allowed to make a Pact with a demon or not. At one point, they happen to discover that if they don't pass, they might be used as materia themselves, so better pass I guess?

This is all going on with a backdrop of the later stages of World War 2, which is where the slight overload of stuff going on starts to happen. There's a raid spearheaded by Jane's aunt Edith, which goes spectacularly wrong and doesn't seem to have all that clear a reasoning behind it in the first place, and also Miriam uses forbidden magic to try and discover the fate of her parents. Meanwhile, Jane has failed her Test and is also dabbling with powers beyond her control and sets off a disastrous chain of events in the family home.

There's also quite a lot of exposition, which means the pace of Creatures of Charm and Hunger drags at times. There's a lot going on here that's interesting, especially the stuff around Jane's choice of very stereotypical witch behaviour (enchanting a broomstick, cackling etc.) but the denouement around what happens to Jane's mother falls quite flat. Jane herself seems to just shrug and walk away, which is convenient for the continuation of the series but didn't ring true. So, all in all, an interesting enough book but not one where I'll be looking that hard to read any further.

On an unrelated note, I wish the author would stop giving her books very similar titles - this is the third book with 'Creatures of [something] and [something]' and they're not really a series as such as far as I can tell.

I was a little surprised I was approved for this ARC a week after the book came out and to be honest I forgot I even requested it. I was intrigued by the synopsis but this book really didn’t work for me and I honestly stopped reading by the 30% mark. I just didn’t find the characters particularly engaging though I did enjoy the author’s writing. Also the timeline and the subject matter is just not something I want to be reading at then present time.

I always like a witchy read personally, but they don't get checked out much by our readers. I think this one may be a little too dark for our collection, but I enjoyed it!

There’s a trope about how the Nazis might have won the war if they’d been able to create the atomic bomb or another similar weapon, but I’ve never seen it deployed the way Molly Tanzer uses it in Creatures of Charm and Hunger. This novel inhabits the world Tanzer created in Creatures of Will and Temper, then expanded in Creatures of Want and Ruin. The magic continues in what I think might be the best book of the trilogy. Tanzer takes that trope, blends it with the stories of two teenaged girls who are desperate to grow up—only to realize that the price is higher than they want to pay.

Creatures of Charm and Hunger begins near the end of World War II. This world still has diabolists—people who make pacts with supernatural creatures for power. Jane and Miriam are apprentices, both working towards being fully-fledged masters but for different reasons. Jane hopes that mastery will let her literally fly around the world and explore. Miriam believes that more power will help her find out if her parents (the family is Jewish) are safe. Meanwhile, Jane’s mother, Nancy, does her best to apply the brakes to the girls’ too-rapid progress while Jane’s aunt, Edith, does her best to use her diabolist powers to thwart the Nazis.

One might think that the aunt’s diabolical spying would be the focal point of Creatures of Charm and Hunger. I certainly thought so. I was even annoyed a bit, initially, at the early parts of the book that described Jane and Miriam’s schooling. But the novel quickly won me over. Before too long, I was hooked on Miriam’s incredible efforts to try and find her parents and Jane’s equally gutsy attempts to fly. The stakes kept rising and the girl’s ingenuity matched it and the conclusion to this book completely blew me away.

What made me love this book was the way that it showed different sides of sacrifice. Edith’s sacrifice—literally fighting Nazis to keep them from fulfilling their plans—is easy to understand. There’s no question that she’s doing the right thing, even though she’s risking her life. Nancy’s sacrifice is more subtle; it’s also less complete than her sisters. On the one hand, motherhood is a sacrifice. On the other, Nancy has set things up so that she lives exactly the kind of life she wants as she raises her daughter and shelters Miriam. Sacrifice is still present in Jane and Miriam’s stories but, because we’re in the midst of their stories, it’s harder to see if the girls are really making sacrifices—or if they’re paying a really big price to get what they wanted in the first place. It’s only when we get to the end of the book that we see them make their decisions.

The books in this series have gotten better and better. I thought Creatures of Will and Temper was a little bit slow, although I loved the ideas in it. The plot in the second book, Creatures of Will and Ruin, was anything but slow. It was a fantastic adventure. Creatures of Charm and Hunger moves at the perfect pace. There’s adventure and emotional depth. I really did love this book.

An original concept that really intrigued me. I didn't really find the writing style to be my thing, and overall I thought that the writing quality could have benefited from a little more rigorous editing, especially when it came to dialogue. Overall I found it to be pretty entertaining, but I don't think it's the right fit for my library. It's hard enough to sell our adult patrons on fantasy, and this comes across as very borderline young adult in my opinion, which always turns our adult patrons off. I'll be interested to see what else this author does in the future.

Really enjoyed this. Half historical fiction (WWII), half paranormal mystery. The characters were well drawn. I loved the world building. The structure was a little off for me and I feel conflicted by the ending. That said, I enjoyed this enough to track down the previous two books in the loosely connected series - the books can all be read as standalones since they are all set in a different period of history.

Creatures of Charm and Hunger is the third and apparently final book in Molly Tanzer's "The Diabolist's Library" fantasy series, after Creatures of Will and Temper and Creatures of Want and Ruin. Each of the first two books in the series has been a novel taking place in a different historical period - book 1 took place in Victorian London; book 2 took place in prohibition-era Long Island - with the fantasy twist being the characters discovering that strange phenomena were occurring around them due to characters summoning and channeling demons. In this universe, demons can be channeled for either good or evil purposes, and since both prior novels were stand-alone, a good part of each was dedicated to the characters discovering that fact and figuring out what to do with it. In the end, I found both novels fascinating at the least, often taking directions I wouldn't have expected, and dealing with some modern day issues in the process. So I was really curious to see where the third novel in the series would take things.

And Creatures of Charm and Hunger takes things in very different directions, even as it moves up its historical setting to that of World War 2 - an era in which fiction about the occult and the summoning of demons is hardly uncommon. It dives straight into its diabolist setting from the start, with the protagonists learning how to use demon-channeling abilities from the start in pursuit of their own objectives, and never has the series been so directly colored by the supernatural. The book still focuses on real world issues as well, of race and discrimination, of the costs of desire, of the value and cost of sacrifice, but its more supernatural nature makes it stand out from its predecessors in ways that I'm....still unsure work. Regardless, the result is a far less tight plot, with more willingness to leave things unresolved, but one that certainly captivates the mind for its duration.

I should note that again, this book is entirely stand alone and no knowledge of the prior two books is needed to read it - the first book's plot gets a quick reference at one point, but otherwise there are no references that I even spotted to the prior novels.
--------------------------------------------------Plot Summary-------------------------------------------------------

In the closing days of World War 2, it appears the Nazi terror will soon be over. But French Diabolist Edith Blackwood - and her demon Mercurialis - knows that the worst is not yet over, with a pair of Nazi Diabolists doing horrific experiments in search of a deadly new war weapon. But before her and her allies can act to try and stop them, she has some personal business to attend to: going to England to surprise her sister Nancy's two apprentices - her niece Jane Blackwood and Nancy's ward, Jewish exile Miriam Cantor - as they take the test for fitness for becoming full time Diabolists.



Before Edith leaves back to France, she leaves Jane and Miriam with two pieces of secret information: for Jane, Edith tells Jane of Jane's secret father, the enforcer for the Society that governs Diabolists. For Miriam, Edith tells Miriam that Miriam's parents, diabolists left behind in Germany, have been suspected of being traitors collaborating with the Nazis.



What Edith doesn't realize is that these secrets will inflame the passions of both Miriam and Jane to the point of dangerous desperation. To prove her parents aren't traitors, Miriam will research and perform a dangerous diabolical technique that tears her soul away from her body, at potentially fatal cost. And for Jane, the test and her father's profession will drive her to prove her worth as a Diabolist more than ever before, driving her to dangerous methods that threaten not just her, but everyone she knows......

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Creatures of Charm and Hunger is.....interesting, in how it divvies up the story. There are three characters who get point of view chapters: Jane, Miriam and Edith. Yet Edith is a distant third in importance, with her chapters telling the story of one mission of her revolutionary diabolists into Nazi-controlled Europe, and really just serve to cement the setting in our minds. It works really well, with Edith's one chapter focusing on the mission itself being really well done, but it's a clear side part of this plot, and she disappears from the narrative thereafter. This book is centrally about Miriam and Jane and their stories, with the story bouncing between their perspectives for the most part.

For Miriam, this goes in a manner that isn't, well, predictable, but at least fits a formula you might expect. A book smart theorist kind of Diabolist, Miriam has always felt guilty about leaving her parents in the crosshairs of Nazi Germany, and Edith's revelation makes her desperate to do anything she can to prove they aren't traitors to the cause.* Her storyline features the closest thing to romance as well as the most direct form of racism/discrimination, as others in the town refuse to look at her as a normal person simply because she's Jewish - even though her mother was not Jewish (and Judaism treats Jewishness as coming from the maternal line). All of this drives her further into her research, which takes a dive into methods that would at best be deeply disapproved of by her mentor, and at worst be directly outlawed for the costs it puts on her....to say nothing of the ethical costs of what she's doing. It's really easy to like and root for and be pained for Miriam, and well, for readers of the prior two books, it's not hard to dread what is going to happen to her in the end from her efforts.

*Reminder that while it seems improbable to us for Jews to be seen as allying with Nazis, the Nazi massacring of Jews wasn't quite as well known at the time of the war.*

Jane is.....different. Her concerns aren't driven by worldly matters - Jane has no reason to be concerned of the events of World War 2 when they are so far away and they seem about to be over. They're not driven by romance either - Jane isn't attracted to anyone in that way. What does drive her is the idea of finally getting out in the world as a Diabolist, away from an overbearing mother who doesn't seem to support her and does support Miriam instead, and proving her worth to everyone who doubts her. When Jane's test secretly goes wrong and Jane finds out her long lost and long wondered about father is the very person who would punish her for a failed test, Jane's drive to prove herself is fueled only more.

But Jane's desire to prove herself is channeled into a strange form: seeking to do something that no one has ever done before in diabolic study, she wants to basically be a witch and to fly around on a broom. No one has ever managed to do so, only creating short term levitation tricks, as opposed to actual flight, so Jane makes it her obsession. Compared to everything else that goes on, it seems utterly frivolous, and yet Jane cannot leave it alone, even as achieving it requires Jane to go through more and more dangerous Demonic Summoning rituals, which endanger everyone. It makes it hard to know what to feel about Jane, who is doing all of this - and proving the validity of her failed test in the mean time - while such serious stuff is going on with others around her: she's not exactly a tragic figure in it all, but what is she? And as the book comes to its conclusion, and Jane and Miriam's plots intersect, she still can't let go of this obsession, leading to the book's strange conclusion.

Without spoiling, let's just say that conclusion is interesting and I'm not really sure what to think about it. It leaves a lot of strands of plot open - both in the world war 2 diabolical matters and in Jane and Miriam's* paths forward. It's an utter mess left for the imagination to solve, and it left me confused as to what to feel. It's certainly an interesting exploration of it all, and far from predictable, but huh. I can't even say if it's good or bad, even if the ride was certainly interesting to get there.

*Spoilers for the very ending in ROT13: Va gur raq, Zvevnz'f obql qvrf jvgu ure zvaq pbzovavat jvgu Anapl'f (nf Anapl'f bja zvaq jnf nobhg gb or gnxra bire ol n qrzba gunaxf gb Wnar) gb sbez n arj orvat Pbearyvn, jvgu Rqvgu qvfpbirevat guvf nf Cngevpr, gur Fbpvrgl'f Rinyhngbe (rasbepre) vf va gur fnzr ubhfr. Jvyy Pbearyvn or nyybjrq gb fheivir naq fgvyy cenpgvpr nf n Qvnobyvfg? Jub vf fur rknpgyl? Naq Zrnajuvyr, Wnar whfg syrq vg nyy ba ure oebbz jvgu ure gjb qvnobyvp snzvyvnef - fbeg bs - naq jvyy pregnvayl or xvyyrq vs fur'f sbhaq. Yvxr jung'f tbvat gb unccra sebz urer? Jr'yy arire xabj.

In short, if you liked Tanzer's earlier novels in this series, you'll probably enjoy this one, even if it takes things in very different directions. If you haven't read those prior novels, you may find this one interesting, even if the ending is kind of a weird mess. It's certainly far from boring.

The end of WWII is rapidly approaching with an Allied victory in sight.
Tucked in the Cumbrian countryside is the library that houses occult knowledge for the Société des Éclairées, a secret organization of diabolists. It’s here that Miriam Cantor has lived with her best friend Jane Blackwood and Jane’s mother Nancy, who is the Société’s librarian, since the war began.
Together Miriam and Jane are preparing for the test that will determine their future as diabolists until secrets set the girls on very different and dangerous paths.

Miriam learns there are rumors within the Société that her parents have betrayed them to the Nazis. She begins a complicated and illegal practice to discover what happened to her family and to clear their names.
Jane has always longed to know her father though Nancy has kept all information closely guarded for reasons she doesn’t understand. When her father reaches out to her, Jane is thrilled. He’s a powerful man within the Société, which makes her determined to prove herself as a diabolist. Using a forbidden practice, Jane unleashes a powerful demon that puts everyone she loves in serious danger.

Jane and Miriam have always been as close as sisters but the secrets they keep from each other are slowly dividing them. Together they must make sacrifices for the greater good: to stop the Nazis last stand and to salvage their family.

Creatures of Charm and Hunger is a unique tale of demons and secret societies set in the WWII era English countryside. I loved the atmosphere and the storyline but it was a bit slow for me. I appreciated the detailed explanations of diabolism and the inner workings of the Société but the time spent on that suppressed a lot of action that would’ve made the events feel as urgent as they were explained to be.
While the tale lacked action, it was still an intriguing read set in a fascinating world.

I recommend this book to readers who enjoy historical fiction and paranormal/fantasy.

Thanks to Mariner Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Creatures of Charm and Hunger is scheduled for release on April 21, 2020.