First things first, I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley for the purposes of a review. Unfortunately, for me, it was a pdf which I would rather not have to read. But since I had been so impressed by by Huchu's first book in the series *The Library of the Dead*, I decided to go ahead and shell out the scheckels (~$15) and buy epub a copy for myself. So that says something right there.

T. L. Huchu's *Edinburgh Nights* series revolves around a rough and ready young woman saddled with caring for her aged grandbmother and younger sister in a world that is mostly past its best-before date. A world, however, that also encompasses magic (or advanced mathematics as some style it) and speaking with ghosts—a talent young Ropa Mayo uses to make her meager living. Book two of the series opens with Ropa, having solved a mystery in the previous book that many of the ruling class would rather have swept under the carpet, trying to settle down in her new role as intern at the General Discoveries Directorate. And trying to make some money.

As previously implied, I really enjoyed the world and characters that Huchu has created. Ropa is young woman saddled with great responsibilities (of the mundane sort) and possessing great talent (of the magical sort). The plot of *Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments* is ostensibly about her attempts to find the cause of a mysterious illness, but really the whole series is about her working towards finding happiness, contentment and security in a world that has gone to ruin; and of course, money.

Huchu's Edinburgh is a fascinating place rich with geography, history and a Scottish accent, but he doesn't let his world building overpower the story; instead he slowly builds out the reality of Ropa's world and the life she she is force to live in organic snippets and hints and not a few history lessons. An experience that results in a much richer backdrop, and one that still leaves plenty of story to be told.

I absolutely loved Book one, especially the way Huchu painted the canvas with his characters and backdrop and I think he did an amazing job of following it up in this one—it's not easy to maintain that sort of rich texture and slow build-up without either falling into the trap of a big info dump or starting to add extraneous details just for the sake of it. Really, how can you not love a book that has a great setting, engaging characters and is presented with grace, finesse and whole lot of craft. I am already looking forward to Book three—hopefully the wait won't be too long.

Engaging, secrets demanding to be discovered (even if it means no sleep for me!).

Thanks to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I loved this, the second installment of TL Huchu's Edinburgh Nights series.

We are once again thrust into the world of an alternate Edinburgh, where magic and ghosts exist, known to all but practiced and mastered by a select few. The main character, a teenage girl named Ropa Moyo, is the sole financial support for her family, and she works her tail off trying to better herself, provide for her Gran and little sister, and master magic that is usually reserved to for the rich and well-connected.

The story is a grand adventure full of mystery, the tale of a secret society at a prestigious magical school, and the trouble they get themselves into. Ropa is called upon to use her less-respectable magical skills and her unparalleled street smarts to figure out what is going on and save more than one life in the process. Joined by her friends Priya (a magical healer), Jomo (a magical librarian), and River (a suspiciously intelligent fox), Ropa must face down sinister spirits, questionable leads, and the restraints of a society that views her as next-to-worthless as she fights for the truth.

I have really enjoyed this series so far. Ropa, as the first-person narrator, is the cheekiest, snarkiest, most precocious and clever character I've met in a long time. She makes me laugh and she exemplifies the hardscrabble charm of the underdog. I just can't help rooting for her to win. I hope we get to read many more of her adventures before the series is finished.

I love this so much more than The Library of the Dead because it fully embraces what place Ropa has in the dark academia. I love how intimately familiar the author is with different kinds of libraries, and these nuances and their political, historical, and cultural underpinnings shape much of the discourse that Ropa embodies.

In terms of writing, the pacing of the plot and information reveal is tighter and less clunky than it was in the first book, leading to more informed guesswork and a more satisfying conclusion.

DNF at 84%

I really liked the first one. But I just could care less about this one. I don’t know why I’m not into the story the same way I was for the first book.

Wonderful follow-on to Ropa’s story as a young ghostalker trying to support her family. Picks up her story where Library of the Dead left off (so, I don’t really recommend reading this stand-alone) and keeps all the best of Ropa and the side characters. We get lots more time in the library, which has even more cool creepiness than Book 1, and to learn more about the magic Society as well. Really hoping Huchu continues this series, as I’m not ready to be done with this world.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an ARC through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I’m sad I did not enjoy this as much as the first one. this felt more like a filler book and I wasn’t particularly invested

Absolutely loved the first book by T L Huchu was worried this one wouldnt live up to it but omg it was amazing. Following on from the first book we see our great lead character Ropa back at it again and she's still the fiesty, smart and kind girl from the first book of this stunning series and we also get to learn more about the library of the dead, which is always a bonus!

After losing her ghost talking business, Ropa thinks she’s got it made when she earns a coveted internship with the Society of Sceptical Enquirers as well as a freelance job looking into the cause of a teenager’s supernatural coma. When payment for both of these gigs falls through, she keeps at it anyway and becomes ensnared in a complex mystery involving a fraternity, astral travel, and centuries of political and financial machinations. In this second installment of the Edinburgh Nights series, T. L. Huchu expands on the characters and world of the first book, The Library of the Dead, and gives us an entertaining story of dark magic and the quirky, scrappy heroes who fend it off.

The Library of the Dead was a surprise 5 star read last year, so of course I was excited to check out the sequel. I love the titles for these books- this one especially stands out from the crowd. It leaves the potential reader wondering who or what Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments might be. As with the Library of the Dead, the titular location is important, but perhaps not so much as you might expect.
Ropa Moya's ghost talking business suffered after the events of the previous book and she's desperate to get her hands on some paying work. Things seem like they're looking up when she has an interview for a sought after paid apprenticeship with Sir Callender…. Up until Ropa botches a spell and is only given an unpaid internship. Then her pal Priyanka calls her up with an offer- find out why this private magic school lad is in a coma and burning with fever and his parents will pay handsomely. The book turns into a chaotic series of misadventures where Ropa is trying to work at least three different jobs at once and not massively fail. Quite frankly it was stressful, but still entertaining.
I enjoy Ropa, Priyanka, and Jomo a great deal - it's a good representation of friendship, as not all 3 of them always agree with one another, they get a bit mad, apologize, and continue on better than ever. They get into crazy, dangerous stuff, and honestly at times it was almost tough to keep up! I'm really loving the expansion on the world we get this time around, but there are still so many unanswered questions and vagaries that I hope we get more explanation on as the series goes.
Overall, another highly enjoyable installment! The absolute chaos and so, so many interwoven plot threads were handled well, but I did feel a little overwhelmed at times but boy, did it serve to put the reader in Ropa's shoes. She never sits still!

Thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments by T. L. Huchu is the second book in the adult fantasy Edinburgh Night series. The story revolves around Ropa Moyo, who is a ghostalker, a medium-like entity who charges people money to hear their dead relative's messages. She is coming off the high of successfully solving the case in the first book. Unfortunately, although she has magic potential, her local magical society has relegated her to an unpaid internship at the secret society she joins. What can she do to pay the bills in the meantime? Can she take on another few cases on the side?

Here is a magical excerpt from Chapter 1, which shows off Ropa's Scottish dialect:

"So, I'm skint again. 'Nothing new here, Ropa,' I hear you say. Well, up yours.
This time though, a lass is in luck - Sir missing kid for one of my spectral clients. Have to admit, I was pretty good at it, but it took up a bit of my time, and so I couldn't do my core job. The spectral community got miffed and I lost a ton of customers. Sigh. It ain't been easy building the business back up again. But you know what they say, one door closes and all that kind of jazz. This thign Callander's lined up for me is some next-level sh**. Formal employment- who'd have thought a fifteen-year-old lass from Hermiston Slum without no school certificates or nothing like that would get ajob with them suit and tie folks? My future's so bright I might swap these plastic shades I'm wearing for a welding visor."

Overall, Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments is an amazingly original fantasy that will appeal to fans of The Magicians or Sarah Gailey's Magic for Liars. One highlight of this book is the stunning world-building. I love how the author made a world that is so unique with its own intricate magical systems. I really enjoy books like this that drop you in the middle of an original fantasy world. If I had to complain about 1 thing, I would say that the narrator's Scottish dialect and various magical jargons made it difficult at first to get into this book, but I soon became hooked into the story. Another highlight of this book is the mystery, case-solving elements, which made this story more than just a typical fantasy. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of magical mysteries, I highly recommend that you check out this book, which is available now!

When I learned this was book 2 in a series and I hadnt heard of the author or read the previous book, I thought ugh and oh no! Fortunately for me there were plenty of references to it, but nothing that kept me from enjoying this 2nd book. I also will admit straight away, I did choose the book based on the front cover and title.

The prose of Huchu's book is amazing. This is how you do a unique and absolutely recognizable first person point of view. Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments features Ropa Moya, a fifteen year old girl of living in a near-future Edinburgh in the wake of a cataclysm that has changed society. She is smart, feisty, and funny. You just can't help but root for her success.

Brief synopsis of the book: Ropa is taken on as an intern to the secretary Sir Ian Callander. When this new job doesnt come with a large enough salary to take care of her family, she accepts another. A young boy is comatose in the hospital and the healers cannot figure out what is wrong with him. Ropa must decipher what he was up to in the days before his sickness to solve the mystery.

There’s a lot going on in this story, and it made for a fast read because I simply couldn’t put it down. I was always wondering what would happen next, and how everything tied together. And no matter how hard I tried, I was always surprised by the next plot twist, which I never successfully predicted. There’s a lot of Scottish slang involved in the story, and while I had to stop and look up a few words, I was mostly able to figure it out through context.
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Overall, Huchu has created an inventive, engaging read, a book with great heart and passion and which is, above all, FUN from first page to last.

Many thanks to Netgalley, T.L. Huchu and Tor Books for this ARC. You have sucked me into your world and now I need to read Huchu's first book of this amazing series.

I love a detective story, and I love a good fantasy setting. Huchu gives me both. Ropa continues to be a take no prisoners, badass main character, even if she's also definitely a softy. This installment sees her a little more confident in the larger magical world of Edinburgh, knowing how she fits in a bit more. There is an interesting mystery to solve, and Ropa is going to do it with her normal lack of grace and full heart. This series continues to be fun and engaging. The detective twists and turns make sense, and we can all happily be along for the ride.

This is a great new series and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in a combination of paranormal and libraries.

3,5 stars

Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments is the sequel to The Library of the Dead and continues on in much of the same tune.

Ropa is taken on as an intern to the secretary Sir Ian Callander. Unfortunately it is not exactly as paid as was promised and so she is on the look out for a new paying job. Which comes in the form of a mystery. A young boy is comatose in the hospital and the healers cannot figure out what is wrong with him. Up to Ropa to figure out what he was up to in the days before his sickness.

As much as I enjoyed reading this in the moment I had similar problems with this book as I did with the first. A lot of the idea is interesting and the magical world buidling is great. But when it comes to building up the world to where we are now, like the great incident/catastrophe, we are not getting much. And by the end of a second book in a series I feel like we should be getting that now.

Again the title of the book would make one feel like there would be more room for the hospital Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments. But our characters only spend a little time there. Instead we get some explanations about The Library of the Dead that had seemed more fitting for the first book so that this book could perhaps give some focus on the hospital and the healers.

Despite those issues I had with this book, I did enjoy reading it for the moment. I enjoy the trio of Ropa, Jomo and Priya with the addition of the fox. They bring heart and humor to Ropa's story. A bit of hope for the future I think.

When I tell you I struggled…
Pick a book any book and it didn’t even get interesting until 70-some odd percent into the book.
There’s no real character detail.
The world building is OK at best.
The story is a mediocre day to day of a girl who can talk to ghosts and sometimes uses magic.

Thanks to @netgalley and @torbooks for the OLOMA ARC

The second in this series, Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments is a fun novel exploring a near contemporary alternative Edinburgh in which magical workers are everyday professionals. There is a helpful list of places, characters and organisations at the beginning, although I'd recommend reading the first book in the series before this as I'm sure I missed some of the context. 3stars from me, fun and a nice quick read.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing the e-arc to me. I read The Library of the Dead last year and enjoyed it!

Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments picks up just a few months after book one. Here we get to see Ropa explore more magic and land a position within the society. While I felt like book one encountered more paranormal interactions, this book brings magic and the secret society to the forefront. I did find myself missing some of those paranormal interactions that we got to see in book one and I thought the predecessor’s mystery was more intriguing. However, this one really opened up to new things and expanded the world and history. It also continues the great family dynamics. I’m curious to see where the series will go next.

3.5

Loved this book, the characters are very compelling, Edinburgh makes a great backdrop for this kind of story. As a lover of urban fantasy this book is exactly the kind of book I'm always hoping to come across. Well written, i will be looking for more from this author and from this series,

4/5 stars. I really enjoyed this sequel! Ropa goes beyond just the mystery of the Library of the Dead and yet manages to still straddle the two worlds of her ancestral ghost-whispering magic and the high-brow magic of the Society. It's also super interesting to see how her friends Priya and Jomo come into the narrative to support Ropa in her investigation.