A highly anticipated read that left me feeling a bit meh.
As someone who just adores Pride and Prejudice, and Jane Austen in general, and has read it multiple times, I should've loved this one to pieces because of its setting but I unfortunately, didn't.
It just felt so dragged on and at one point, I was just so annoyed and tired of the back and forth and back and forth between the MC and LI.
Actual rating: 3.5 stars

This was a delightful queer period romantasy, featuring a fun framing narration, a delightful protagonist, and some extremely fascinating worldbuilding. If you’re looking for something with a little suspense, a good bit of magic, and a lot of sapphic longing to brighten up your summer, I’d definitely recommend MORTAL FOLLIES. (Also: that cover. Look at how beautiful that cover is.)

this was a really charming romance set in an alternate 1800s England, where magic is acknowledged (if not commonplace) and some still worship “the old gods” of pagan Rome (or earlier). We follow Miss Maelys Mitchelmore, a young debutante, as she discovers that malicious magic seems to follow her wherever she goes — and keeps bringing her into the orbit of the mysterious, brooding Lady Georgiana, the “Duke of Annadale,” rumored to be a murderous sorceress. As Maelys and her friends try to unravel the mystery and the curse, she also finds that she’s drawn to Lady Georgiana in ways she wasn’t expecting.

In general, this was a really good read. The worldbuilding was absolutely delicious, and I’d love to read more stories set in this alternate-England. the characters, even the side ones, were fun and well-realized (I have a particular fondness for Miss Lysistrata Bickle, Maelys’ best friend). The narration was fun, though I felt it sometimes got in the way of the actual story. My biggest qualm was actually with the pacing — the “big conflict” seems to wrap up around the midway point of the novel, only for a second, bigger conflict to be introduced afterward, and I think the story would have benefited from a greater intertwining of those two narratives.

In general, though, this was a charming read, and I’d recommend it! Thanks so much to @delreybooks and @netgalley for the ARC!

I know they normally say to never judge a book by it's cover because even if the outside is ugly, the inside could be marvelous. Well, I think the reverse is true in this case. This cover is S T U N N I N G!! The inside is... lacking.

For the first 50 pages, I was invested. I thought to myself "I am going to LOVE this book"! ...and then it kept going. And it felt like we didn't have the proper build up to care about any of these characters or what outcomes befell them.

Miss Mitchelmore is a very sweet protagonist, but there is no substance to her. All we see is that she is out for the season and that she realizes she is only interested in women, not men. Great! And now she's in love with Lady Georgiana and knows instantly that she's a nice person and could never be the person casting a curse on her. Why? She just KNOWS (aka she's hot) so we just go along with it.

Lady Georgiana's character is much the same in that she's stagnant and the only real "character growth" that we see is that she also likes Miss Mitchelmore back by the end of the book.

Nothing felt high stakes until it was, and even then I was just very bored with it. Overall, just not my cup of historical fantasy romance tea.

Thank you so much to Del Rey and Netgalley for providing an advanced copy of this. All thoughts and opinions are still my own.

The greatest tragedy of my pride month: DNFing 2 Alexis Hall books 🥲

In all honesty, nothing was particularly wrong with this book. I love Alexis Hall's humor and style so much. But I NEVER wanted to pick this book up.

I felt as though the emphasis was put onto the stylistic choices & narration. Which was really unique and fun! But it meant that the characters themselves and the plot felt lacking in my opinion.

With the 3rd party narrator telling us a story, we never really got to know the characters outside what Robin observed. Which meant that I never cared much about what they were doing since we were never privy to their thoughts or motivations.

On top of that, the narrator was constantly going on tangents which made the pacing of the plot feel extremely slow.

This is a book that I may return to in the future. But for now, this one just wasn't for me. But luckily Alexis Hall has another book coming this year that I can't wait for!

Book Summary:

Miss Maelys Mitchelmore is a young noblewoman in the early 1800s. Her entry into society is already quite complicated. Throw in a pesky curse, and it's no wonder she's struggling to find a place for herself in this society.

When the curse starts to hit fatal proportions, Miss Mitchelmore will have no choice but to seek the one and only Duke of Annandale for help. That's the nickname for Lady Georgianna of Landrake, of course.

My Review:

Historical fiction meets fantasy and romance in Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall. I've been trying to step back from historical fiction for a bit – got a little burned out on it – but I couldn't resist this read. The pretty cover and LGBT+ promise certainly upped the temptation. Am I the only one that thinks this book looks like a cupcake?

That said, Mortal Follies ended up being a lot heavier than I expected. Obviously, I wasn't expecting the content to be as light and fluffy as the cover made it seem. But I was surprised by some of the content (see trigger warnings below). That made it harder for me to finish this read, so consider yourself warned.

Likewise, I wish there had been more details about the world here. I'm a big fan of worldbuilding, and it felt a little shallow here. What I saw was enough to get me curious, so I'm mentioning the wish for more.

All things said and done; Mortal Follies was a decent read. Not quite as mindblowing as I had hoped, but still worth the read.

Highlights:
Historical Fantasy
LGBTQ+
Magical Curses

Trigger Warnings:
Near Drowning
Animal Sacrifice
Transphobia (challenged)
Slavery (Discussed)
Sexual Harassment

Alexis Hall’s Mortal Follies has all the quirky humor you’d expect from the other Hall’s books.

There’s queer romance, a sprite as the narrator of the story, family curses, vengeful goddess, and fun loyal friends set in regency era. While I enjoy several of the elements, there wasn’t a super strong chemistry between the two heroines. There was a bit of mystery at the beginning but also very easy to figure out. I was t a huge fan of the pacing either because the beginning was very slow and things don’t pick up till almost halfway through.

I’d still recommend if you’re a fan of Alexis Hall’s other books, but this is not my fav.

3.5 ⭐️

Unfortunately the narrative style of this just didn't work for me. I felt so separated from the characters and just couldn't get invested in their struggles. I will continue to pick up books from this author though in the future. I've liked all of the other works I've read from him so far.

I have been a fan of Hall’s books for several years, and I have especially enjoyed his forays into the world of Regency era historical romance. If you don’t want to read any further, I will assure you that Mortal Follies is the best of several excellent books. If you do want to continue reading, I will elucidate.

First of all, this book has a rather clever and original conceit: a narrator.

But almost all books have narrators, you might say.

And then I will agree with you, but point out that very few books are narrated by Puck. No, not the outlandish cast member from The Real World: San Francisco, but rather the hobgoblin from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Robin Goodfellow. Yes, that’s the guy. The conceit is that he has been exiled from the faerie court and must suffer numerous indignities of the modern world like paying for rent. So, he has agreed to tell the tale of when he intervened into a most intriguing set of events in 1814.

As the book description suggests, our protagonist Miss Mitchelmore realizes that she has been cursed, and must figure out both the identity of the person who has cursed her and how to stop the curse. Enter love interest “The Duke of Annadale” who might be the only person who can stop the curse OR the person who set the curse in the first place. Or why not both? To quote the conclusion of an elementary school book report, “you’re going to have to read for yourself to find out what happens!”

Many of Hall’s books, both historical and contemporary, have a single narrator rather than the more common dual points of view. This works well because only knowing as much as the point of view character heightens the tension and makes big reveal much more impactful.

Having an omnipresent and (almost) omniscient narrator takes things to a delightful new level. Our gentle guide has the potential to be unreliable, but he remains steadfast in his recounting of the tale. There is plenty of snide commentary and witty observations along the way, which adds to the overall enjoyment of the narrative.

The plot itself is satisfying, with likeable characters, and a storyline that, aided by an appropriate amount of plot twists and big reveals, moves along at a steady pace.

I would absolutely recommend Mortal Follies. I want my all my books narrated by Puck. I mentioned earlier that this my favorite of Hall’s historical romances, but I would take a step further and say that this is one of my overall favorite Hall books. His books keep getting better and better, and I can’t wait to see what he is going to do next.





I received a digital ARC of this book from Random House/NetGalley

This follows Maelys Mitchelmore in 1814. As if she doesn't have enough going on with the balls and other high society events, it appears she's been cursed by a goddess. She needs to find out why she was cursed and fix it before her reputation is ruined or possibly kills her.

I enjoyed this, but it's definitely not a new fave. It's perfect to read in between chunky fantasy books. It's fast and it's fun. I liked the characters.

An extremely fun, humorous, and queer look into the hijinx of the fae, gods, and goddesses of Victorian England! We see this story unfold from the perspective of Puck, the infamous trickster himself, as he watches a curse tormenting young Maelys Mitchelmore, and how the Lady Georgiana - the Duke of Annandale - seems to always sweep in to rescue our damsel. Clever, creative, and sometimes laugh out loud funny, we watch Maelys and friends try to unravel the source of the curse…as well as the knot of her feelings for the Scandalous Lady Duke.

This was an okay read. It wasn't my favorite but it had some enjoyable elements. I love how queer society was normalized. It felt like it could have been two books in the same series almost. Overall, it was fine.

Mortal Follies is a sapphic Regency story with goddesses, fairies, and curses. Maelys Mitchelmore finds herself cursed and enlists the help of Lady Georgiana Landrake, also known as the Duke. As the two set about breaking the curse, hijinks ensure! I love a good historical fantasy and was excited to read this one!

I had a great time reading this book! I liked the characters and the story a lot. The book is narrated by one of the Fae, which adds some further whimsy to the novel. I liked how magic, mythology, and Regency vibes were put together in the same book. I think it was well balanced and was told in a light hearted fashion that I have come to love about Alexis Hall's books!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and recommend it if you enjoy historical fantasy, Regency novels, or just a fun story. 4 stars from me! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the electronic advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Oh this book! Lush historical fiction sapphic fantasy romance in a “Mid Summer Night’s Dream” filter. The narrator being a character in of themselves was so entertaining and really sold the book for me. Pacing was probably the down point for me, but overall I loved the story, setting, and characters. Just a dash of spice and mystery, but a heaping helping of beautiful prose, hilarious side characters, and a bit of pining!

Mortal Follies

Alexis Hall

⭐4⭐

“Hope is a strange thing. The last prisoner of Pandora’s box. Be careful of hoping for things, Miss Mitchelmore.”

“I am called a hobgoblin by some and, contrary to what certain people might have told you, it is not a name I like and you shall not have good luck if you repeat it in my hearing.”

“I am forced, for the first time in the millennia of my existence, to pay what I understand you mortals call rent. It is vile.”

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Sidenote; I also purchased the physical copy of this book after reading and enjoying it! I wanted to have a copy in my physical collection!

Mortal Follies is a sapphic fantasy regency romance novel set in the year 1814. The story is told from the outside perspective of a hobgoblin who goes by Robin. Robin follows Miss Maelys Mitchelmore, a woman coming of age and being presented to society in Bath. Somehow, Maelys has gotten herself tangled up in a curse with a goddess and seeks a way out. Many suspects are located but none more promising than Lady Georgianna Landrake, an accused witch and murderess nicknamed “the Duke of Annadale” after her father and brother’s all came to an untimely end. Maelys with her friend, Miss Bickle, and her cousin, Mr. Caesar, work together to find an end for this curse before it is too late.

I ADORED Miss Bickle, she made the whole book for me. I would love to see where she ended up and with whom (if she so chooses to accept a partner).

3.8

This book had me laughing out loud. I didn’t want it to end! I loved the characters but my favorite had to be the sassy hobgoblin narrator. I loved the whimsical feel of this book it was truly magical and I wish I could dive into that world again! Highly recommend this one!

Can Alexis Hall write a bad book?? I don’t think so. I really loved the historical fantasy aspect of this book. I just absolutely adore Hall’s writing and world building and romance. He has a way of creating characters that I just can’t help but love. This book is so unapologetically queer and I can’t get enough.

I usually love Alexis Hall, but this one fell flat. This supernatural historical romance is narrated by Robin (aka Puck, although never named) and the detachment of the first person observational narration means we never really get into the heads of any of the characters. I found myself not caring about the romance because we were getting arch commentary about both women instead of getting to know them. He calls both by their titles instead of their names, which is another layer of detachment. The quests and sacrifices got repetitive. I lost interest and it took me forever to finish this book.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

Alexis Hall books seem to be a hit or miss for me recently, and unfortunately this one was a hit. I wasn't a fan of the unique narrator style, and I also felt like this book didn't quite have enough substance. There were a few really funny moments that stood out, but overall the book just fell flat for me.

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author!

*4.5 Stars*

I jumped into this thinking I had ideas of what it was about but all those preconceptions were wrong somehow. I did like discovering the plot as it went on though so you're not getting a summary. HA!

This was, above all, a lot of fun. I had a great time from beginning to end. I loved the faerie as a narrator, I loved the extra little commentary from the narrator and the jokes and the breaking of the fourth wall and the commentary on our current world. I just thought it was so smartly done.
The plot also kept me on my toes and I was rooting for the main character in everything just like Robin was.
I liked the overall intrigue, I liked the relationships between the MC and her friends as well as between the MC and the love interest. I liked seeing it grow and evolve and I liked that the MC also grew as the story went on. Basically, I had a great time and I would really like more like this!!