3.5 stars
First of all this cover is amazing and it fits the story well.

Let’s start with the things I liked…
Gothic, atmospheric and queer, yes please! Gloomy mysterious mansions are really my favorite vibes.
I also enjoyed the werewolves and the lore surrounding them.
The supporting characters were so fun and for once I didn’t mind the love triangle but that could be that it turned into much more and I finished the book very hopeful for the trio.

What I didn’t like…
Emile..I know I know but I wanted something different, he was a little flat sometimes.
The pacing was weird in some parts. Maybe it could have been shorter and that would help with the pacing.

Overall, I think this was a fun story and I would recommend it to those who love a gothic queer story.

Jumping, screaming, crying, laughing. This book had everything I needed and wanted all wrapped up nicely within its pages. It's sweet, simple, and so perfect for the way it was described!

This is a book I'll be rereading in the next few months, because every time I read it I discover something new that makes me love the characters, the setting, and the story that much more. David does a beautiful job at creating this Gothic scene and characters that you can't help but fall in love with almost immediately. Right from the get-go I was enchanted by the story telling and the characters who you as a reader can't help but fall in love with.

It's just one of those books that made me smile and cry all at the same time. It was the perfect mix of gothic, French style, and Bridgerton, wrapped up into one. Definitely one of my favourite reads of the year!

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Gothic and gay -- my two favourite adjectives. This was action-packed and romantic and a wonderful homage to The Mysteries of Udolpho.

DNF 25%

I tried. I really tried getting through this book, but I've hit a point where I wasn't really enjoying myself or the story and I just couldn't. I love the premise, and I was so excited when I got the ARC, but it would be an understatement to say I was disappointed. The writing in this book feels so juvenile - it reads more like a primary or middle grade book than YA. The characters are two-dimensional, to the point that they feel kind of like caricatures; the writing-style is incredibly clunky and straightforward, where everything is spelled out until there's no mystery left; the plot feels put together by a kid. I genuinely wish I could say better things about this, but there's really not much I could say that's good, so I'll end it here. The premise had so much potential - I just wish the book lived up to it.

Emile is a queer Marquis who is pretending to be a servant in order to escape his aunt who wants him to marry a woman to produce a heir and if not she will send him to an asylum, so he takes on a new identity and now finds himself in a love triangle between a count’s son named Henri and a handsome doctor named Bram. While at his new position as a servant he discovers that the Count Montoni and his family all suffer from a strange affliction every full moon that requires them to be sedated.... (we all know its clearly werewolves) and now Emile finds himself not only trying to sort out his feelings between the two men in his life but also the fact that his secret is close to being revealed and that he might be in danger if the Count think’s he might be onto the family’s secret. Emile is essentially 17 and his character definitely feels young and juvenile, I’m going to be honest, he was absolutely annoying and the story felt like it dragged on and on. For what was suppose to be an interesting queer gothic romance it definitely did not live up to it. Sadly, I found myself just wishing the book was over already. Emile is wishy washy about his feelings and can’t figure out what or who he wants while Henri is aggressive and Bram is overly sweet. In the end it has a happy ending *spoiler, they enter into a poly relationship between the three of them* but truly the entire book was just about Henri and Emile’s relationship, you never really get the relationship building with Bram yet Emile claims his heart always wants Bram while Henri just keeps pushing and pushing. Honestly this felt so juvenile, oddly placed, and just kind of a mess. Sadly this one really didn’t work for me despite how much I wish it did. It had all the elements to be something I would love, from having a queer romance, being a gothic with a dash of werewolves, and a bit of historical, all the elements to be something I would adore, yet it just missed the mark completely. If you are looking for a queer historical romance with a bit of paranormal and with a more juvenile story definitely give this a go, maybe it’ll be for you.

*Thanks Netgalley and Page Street Publishing, Page Street Kids for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Masquerading as a servant to a wealthy but mysterious family, Emile is actually in hiding from his aunt who has threatened him with institutionalization after discovering that he is attracted to men. He finds himself in something of a love triangle between a caring doctor from the nearby village and the aristocratic boy he has been hired to serve, all while he is working to find something to blackmail the family with so he can better his position. When his aunt shows up, his secret is revealed but the secrets of the family are still to be discovered.

First and foremost, this is a gothic novel. It has the atmosphere, plotline, and pacing of a gothic novel (for the most part - the pacing gets weird at the end). It's a queer gothic novel! But it absolutely does not have the same vibe as a historical fantasy/mystery which is lowkey what it's being marketed as. For what it is trying to do and what it is, it is done very well. The pacing is very good, the atmosphere is well-established, and the characters are interesting, although not particularly well fleshed out. Bram, love interest #1, is the character whose arc makes the least sense and mostly seems to be there to drive up the tension between Emile and Henri. Early on in the book, the love triangle was very annoyed but because it ended in polyamory it was, in the end, less grating than I expected. The weakest part of the book was absolutely the character interactions, which often required a mild suspension of disbelief to get through.

This is the perfect book for any reader looking for a queer gothic book with a mild paranormal element. For character driven readers or readers who read mlm books for the spice, move on - this is not the book for you

In this queer gothic romance, a young marquis caught between freedom and passion, honor and love will have to unravel a centuries-old curse to find his own happy ending.

Trapped in a world of straight expectations, queer marquis Emile longs for independence. So, when his aunt declares he must marry to produce an heir or be disowned, he runs away disguised as a servant until he can come of age and reclaim his inheritance.
The Alchemy of Moonlight
by David Ferraro
Pub Date: 30 May 2023


All Emile needs to do is keep his head down and bide his time, but he quickly stumbles into a mystery beyond his imagination. While working in the service of the intimidating Count Montoni and his family, Emile learns that they suffer from a strange affliction every full moon, which requires full sedation. And when he discovers a mangled corpse on the estate the same night as suspicious family arguments break out, he reports it. But Emile cannot guess what lengths Count Montoni is willing to go to to keep his family’s secrets safe. As Emile becomes more entangled in the household and its paranormal origins, his inquiries draw the attention of the handsome doctor, Bram, and the count’s charismatic nephew, Henri.

But how can Emile earn the esteem of the earnest doctor, while keeping his own identity and desires a secret? And how can he trust—let alone love—Henri, a man as mercurial as the ever-changing moon? To find the love he deserves and survive the Montoni family, Emile will have to risk his title as well as his life.

I really wanted to like this book, but the pacing was just too slow and it lost my interest.

The overall romance didn't work for me either, especially the love triangle the author tried to force.

This had a lot of potential, but just didn't live up to the hype for me.

I'm disappointed that I didn't really enjoy this one. It has everything I could have wanted on paper, and the cover is beautiful, but the actual book itself just missed the mark for me.

The atmosphere of the book is great, and I love the overall gothic vibe, but that's about the only plus for me. The pacing feels entirely too off kilter, sometimes it's too fast and other times it drags beyond belief. The romance felt underdeveloped, and something about the style of the writing just fell flat for me.

It feels like a book that needed another editing pass or two (well it actually fells like a book that didn't even have an initial editing pass if I'm being honest)

Overall, this let me down. The world building and the general aesthetic of the book were amazing, but everything that came along with it just didn't work for me. The ending was enjoyable, so I'll give it that. It's not the worst book I've ever read by a long shot, but my expectations were pretty high and it sadly didn't deliver what I expected it to.

David Ferraro's debut novel, The Alchemy of Moonlight, is a very gothic, very gay werewolf tale. I'll preface this by saying I generally don't read tons of horror, and this is the first gothic book I've read.

Ferraro creates such a vivid gothic world, filled with severed hands, taxidermied animals and a nope amount of spiders (that scene made my skin CRAWL). Emile is a marquis on the run and in hiding after being threatened with being sent to an asymlum if he does not "do his duty" and marry a woman to carry on the family name. In the household where he is posing as a servant, he quickly meets his two potential suitors, the count's nephew Henri, and the doctor's apprentice, Bram.

I do think one of the aspects Ferraro has done so spectacularly is mood. The book feels eerie and like something is wrong, I was constantly on edge while listening to it. The aristocratic components of the books seem jarring to modern ears but do seem appropriate given the setting of the book. Loved the love triangle, I think one of my biggest struggles was that most character arcs and changes seemed to happen off-screen. The language does sometimes feel particularly modern (especially as it comes to dialogue).

That being said, love a queer romance, Ferraro killed it with the vibe. Not exactly my genre, but enjoyed it!

The Alchemy of Moonlight by David Ferraro is a gothic and fantasy novel that follows the story of Emile, a runaway who becomes a servant at Count Montoni's mansion. The book successfully blends a love triangle with magical elements, creating an engaging and enjoyable read.

The gothic and fantasy aspects of the book are well-written, and the author has done a good job of describing the locations and characters. The dialogue between the characters is modernized, which makes it easy to follow, and the overall world-building is impressive.

The side characters, Blanche, Annette, and Ludovico, are relatable, and the reader is given good reasons to support both of Emile's love interests, Bram and Henri. However, the characters lack depth and feel one-dimensional. They are there to serve a purpose, without much development beyond that.

The villain, Count Montoni, is described as a monster with little reason behind his actions other than a desire for money. It would have been interesting to see more depth to his character, as he could have added another layer to the story.
Despite its flaws, I enjoyed The Alchemy of Moonlight and would recommend it to others. However, the book could have been shorter as some parts felt repetitive, and the payoff of the story was rushed.

Overall, David Ferraro has created an interesting world and an engaging love triangle, making The Alchemy of Moonlight an enjoyable read for those who love gothic and fantasy novels.

3.5, rounding up bc that ending was everything I wanted 😩 👌


Emile St. Aubert is the newest servant at Château le Blanc, serving as Second Man for the Montoni count and his niece and nephew. he is frankly not very good at his job; he's pleasantly nosy, he doesn't exactly know how to start a fire, and he doesn't quite hit the conversational tones servants are expected to use with nobles.

Emile's hilarious ineptitude is actually because he's a noble in disguise, hiding from his aunt (a rampaging homophobe) until he turns 18 in six months and can claim his inheritance for himself. his real name is Emile Dupont, freshly turned orphan heir.

no matter what he's there for, Emile has a terrible first week all around. he's trying to keep his head down and then bam, there's a severed human hand on the path leading straight to Château le Blanc. he reluctantly picks it up to show the Count and then runs into the head servant Grimes, who suggests that the doctor who is en route to examine the ill cook can handle the hand (lol).

said doctor arrives shortly thereafter and we are introduced to Bram Valancourt, a Black doctor's apprentice to his father. he's also smoking hot; so smoking hot that Emile fumbles their introduction and gives Bram his actual name. Bram is apparently the definition of "go with the flow" and offers not to ask any questions about it, so that is tidily swept back under the rug.

upon seeing the hand, Bram asks if Emile can accompany him into town to the local gendarmes (which are the French police fyi), since presumably they will need his statement. Grimes relents and the two head out in Bram's carriage.

when they get to the gendarmerie, surprise surprise but the cops are completely disinterested. they say they'll have someone take a look at the hand but since it's no one missing from town alas, must be a poor wandering fool who got McMurdered by a bear. Bram and Emile think this is obviously strange but there's nothing further to be done about it, so the mystery hand is abandoned at the station.

Bram invites Emile to lunch with him before riding back to Château le Blanc and Emile says yes because Bram is beautiful and kind and Emile is a giant softie at heart. Bram takes him back home afterwards, where Emile is immediately accosted with about a hundred things to do as Count Montoni's niece and nephew are back home from their travels and their rooms must be prepared!

we are introduced to the siblings finally, one Count Henri Morano and one Lady Blanche Morano. these two were by far my favorite part of the book. they were dedicated to one another but they also had a number of sniping conversations that reminded me of my own brother. they flirt with Emile before dinner so he ends up nervous around them at the meal. Henri is Emile's other love interest; suave, asshole-ish, does a lot of smirking but in a hot rich boy way so it's appealing I guess.

that night Emile finds himself in the servants' quarters unable to sleep. when he steps outside for some fresh air he sees in the distance the family mausoleum and spooky figures moving through the surrounding woods and hedge maze. because Emile lives by "curiosity killed the cat" he goes trotting out there, into a maze that is literally referred to as "labyrinthine". bless his heart.


the pacing of this book is a little odd (the Montoni family's curse reveal came far too late in my opinion; Montoni never really struck me as being evil in a scary way, just in a normal rich white dude way until the very end; and Emile's flirtations with Bram and Henri proceed in either teeny tiny steps or enormous leaps). still, I never got bored reading it and there wasn't a point where I was reluctant to pick it back up, so I'm confident giving it a solid three star rating.

I nudged my review up to four stars singularly because the ending was genuinely everything I wanted. refer to the spoilers below if you're too curious to stand it, but otherwise wait to read it yourself! I spent a lot of the last half of the book complaining and expecting this problem to resolve itself in a normal boring way but have no fear because the author really comes through for us.


overall, read it if you like;
- spooky rich people mansions
- spooky rich people hedge mazes
- greek goddesses of the moon and magic
- queer werewolves
- hand-wavy science (still fun though)
- seeing mean rich folk getting what they deserve
- a happy ending



queer rep - gay mc, achillean love interests, (view spoiler) (beginning of poly relationship at the end)
thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc ✨

Thank you NetGalley, Page Street Publishing and David Ferraro for providing me with an ARC of The Alchemy of Moonlight. I had the wonderful pleasure of being able to Hybrid-read this as an eARC and an Audio ARC.

3.75 rounded to 4. Available on 30 May 2023. Will share to socials closer to the publication date.

This cover is beautiful and the premise is wonderful. My eyes went wide when the author started describing the water fountain with the Greek mythology components and I was soooooooo keen. My Lord I was ready for some Moon Alchemy mythology realness. This key part of the lore was very interesting to me but unfortunately I felt that it wasn't explored to it's full potential. But that is probably just because I am a stan for Rick Riordan work.

Instead we get this wonderful love corner - meets love triangle - which is nicely streamy without spicy. I enjoyed it and I enjoyed the slow reveal of the natures of the relationships between each of them. Then Part Four! Honest to god this book turns into a horror story in Part Four! I am not much of horror person so maybe it was more of a Marvel Cinematic Universe Horror Story but still.

I think that the audio book acting is a very well done representation of the manner and tone of speech within the context of the story - Gothic, French, Bridgerton-esque. The issue for me though is that the this meant I was much more connected to the characters when I was reading as opposed to the fancy accents they all had on the audio. Again, this is exactly what the voice acting called for, and if you love queer period novels in that manner then you will enjoy this, but for me I was just put off by them.

TL;DR - Little bit steamy, Queer, supernatural, period story for those that love a bit of conflicting romance with a side of evil villain.

2.5* rounded up

Thank you to NetGalley and Page Street Publishing for the opportunity to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I feel like I expected a lot more out of this book than what I got. The cover drew me in because it is beautiful and I was hoping the content would stand up to that. It did not for me. The biggest issue was the level of the writing. Speaking as a writer and a reader I felt like I was reading a first draft that was never polished. Not the grammar and such, but the actual content. It could just be that I don't enjoy the authors style. It was very terse, yet also too long at the same time? There was a real issue with transitions; scenes would just bleed into each other with little explanation and time would go by in a sentence or two.

One of my biggest qualms was just how cheesy and tropey the story was. It felt like I was reading something on Wattpad rather than a published novel. I couldn't really get behind any of the characters either. I think a big part of that was that the author didn't attempt to make the story seem historical in any way other than saying it was which was very strange to read. It was like a bunch of kids playing make believe, but not doing a very good job. I get that this was a retelling, but it may have benefited by making the story modern instead.

The second half of the novel was a bit better than the first half, maybe it's because the pacing improved a little. I personally didn't like the ending though. It just felt so unsubstantiated. The love story was so cheesy and unrealistic/fast that it was hard to take seriously, so when the ending happened I was a bit shocked and confused.

I wish I had better things to say. I try to stay positive in my reviews because I know how hard it is to write a book, but seeing as this is like the fifteenth novel in Ferraro's career I would expect a bit better.

I loved the lore and overall vibes! I really fell into the gothic setting and my attention was kept the full way through by the lingering spooky romance. Definitely would recommend to any YA readers who enjoy a dark atmosphere.

DNF for me. Thank you for this ARC but I think because I was still reeling on the book I read prior… I wasn’t able to fully get into this. I do think I will try it again in the future though.

This book was super cute. I liked the romance aspect. The politics kept me intrigued. All in all a good book.

When I tell you I am upset, I AM UPSET!!! I've been wanting to read this since I heard about it, and figured it would be right up my alley. I mean for one, the cover is so gorgeous, two it's dark gothic atmosphere, and three queer characters... & while it goes give those things, but it fell a little flat for me. The pacing was all over the place, and the romance aspect of the book was a little underdeveloped. Plus the werewolf thing could and should have been introduced sooner, I'm just saying.

Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me an ARC!
.
Unfortunately I DNFed this, it just didn’t catch my attention and maybe I’ll get into it again when I’m in the perfect headspace to give this another try! So far the writing isn’t just holding my interest and Imm meticulous with writing as I get easily bored and distracted. But I would buy and recommend this to others definitely!

Love is timeless, especially when a century old curse is involved. This spooky romance will surely frighten readers while giving them the warm fuzzies when it comes to the characters searching for their happy ending.