Thank you, Random House Publishing - Ballantine and author Alexis Hall for the opportunity to read Mortal Follies prior to release!

When Maelys Mitchelmore finds herself at the hands of a vengeful, persistent curse, she finds help from her bubbly friend and her down-to-earth cousin… as well as the mysterious, brooding Lady Georgiana Landrake, AKA The Duke of Annadale. As the curse progresses, and the nuances of the curse grow from irritating to downright dangerous, the Duke of Annadale and Maelys begin to see more of one another, but the Duke remains just as mysterious. With no indication as to why she has been cursed in the first place, it’s easy for the blame to be cast onto Ms. Landrake, but the solution does not reveal itself to the party easily.

Alexis Hall weaves a tale of magic, gods, goddesses, intrigue, and adventure, written from the point of view of a puckish sprite who follows Maelys on her (mis)adventures and tells her story. I personally did find the narration style to be rather fun and witty, as it left one to guess the feelings of the characters and interpret them, and first-person narration told from the perspective as one who is not a main character of the book per say is very unique and creative. The cast of characters is entertaining as well. I particularly enjoyed the antics of Maelys and her optimistic friend Miss Bickle, but do wish Mr. Caesar’s character was explored a bit more. We didn’t learn too much about either of them other than items mentioned in passing. The romance that occurs later on in the book happens much, much later, but there are moments that lead up to this over time that are picked up on in the first half of the book.

This book has received three stars from me rather than four because there are pieces of the story that are either left hanging in the book / do not serve too much significance to the main plot. I will say that the main plot of the book actually started to unfold only after the first third of the book, which made the start a bit slow-moving, but do understand that there was a lot of build-up in order to reach the main storyline.

Mortal Follies was overall a unique take on a regency-era tale that was pleasurable to read for fans of Austen and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What can I say but "AHHHH!!!" This book was so unbelievably adorable. I mean it was CUTE and it was hilarious and witty. One aspect I really liked was the narrator, I loved the little bit of fourth wall breaking and the asides. They made me laugh quite a bit. At the same time some of that went on for a bit, and made the pacing slow of the book. By about the 60% mark I was a bit less enthralled with the book, but nonetheless still enjoyed it.

As a sapphic romance I can say this was a slow burn, and quite a charming one. It had your historical fiction regency feel, but you also had a bit of magic and mayhem.

I adored the side characters, especially Lizzie and John. I absolutely need books for the both of them at some point in the future. And of course, Mae and the Duke I also loved.

Other things that I loved about this book:

⭐ the plot. The plot was really sectioned into two parts, and while I felt the first part was stronger, the second part was also good
⭐ the friendships in this book. Lizzie and Mae for one, I loved their banter and friendliness with each other, and I love how they interacted with John.
⭐ the families. HILARIOUS. I feel like this was a bit more Julia Quinn style family regency than other such books. So -- loved that part.
⭐ how religion was tackled in this book -- I found it was done very well.

Overall, this was a great book full of romance, plot, action, swooning, mystery and magic. 100% recommend this book to EVERYONE.

oof, I didn't enjoy this. The paranormal-historical world with queer characters was fun and has a lot of room for books in a series. It would appeal to fans of [author:Olivia Waite|4710174] and [author:Olivia Atwater|20153683].

The narration quickly became monotonous, though. The narrator is a fairy creature who watched the events in real time and, in contemporary/modern day, is telling the story in this format (because he has been punished and must live as a mortal, for some unspecified crime, and he needs the money). Lit geeks may appreciate the asides, comments, and ties to similar characters in other early English literature, but they felt kind of ham-handed to me. In the narration, the fairy makes constant additions and commentary about how humans are boring, he doesn't care, human suffering is funny, etc. The first one or two are funny, but then the comments never stop-- although the humor sure does.

I loved [book:A Lady for a Duke|57007967] and was excited to read something else by this author. This is a big miss for me, and has me rethinking any tentative plans to read the author's older works. I'm heartbroken!

eARC from NetGalley.

The premise of this book was so interesting to me, especially the way the narration was set up. Robin Goodfellow / Puck is telling us this story of love and gods and curses. This allowed for many cheeky asides and ironic commentary throughout the story that I was personally a big fan of. The first half of the book is well paced and very funny. I found myself giggling at almost every page at least once, whether from our mischievous narrator, or (more than likely) from the fantastic supporting character Lysistrata.

However, I found the story fell off in the second half. It seemed listless and unfocused. Even the characters seemed frustrated with the turn of events and pace, which didn’t help matters for me. The ending especially felt far too abrupt, and we didn’t get a satisfying moment of catharsis between our romantic leads where they were able to be a truly open couple with one another without the threat of curses and gods and fairies hanging over them.

Other aspects that disappointed me are the lack of use of John Caesar and the characters he specifically introduces us to. *minor SPOILERS ahead* John is Maelys’s cousin, he’s half black, and he’s gay. He introduces the audience to the “underground” gay scene in Bath, and informs us that it’s struggling to stay afloat, then introduces us to a trans woman named Tabitha who was disowned by this scene because of her transness. All these aspects are forgotten to be of use in the story very early on. When Maelys is discovering she likes women she has the conversation with Lysistrata, who does a great job supporting and encouraging her, but without any of the grounded reality of what being gay in 1814 England means that John would have been able to provide. She doesn’t talk about it with Tabitha either, nor is the problem of the gay scene falling apart ever resolved. It’s just mentioned and then forgotten. I kept waiting for any of this to come back into the story and was sorely disappointed when Tabitha made a brief appearance for two pages again at the end of the book. There was so much more that could have been done, and it’s a shame it was wasted.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing!
Overall I have enjoyed Alexis Hall's books. While I didn't love Boyfriend Material I really enjoyed a lady for Duke, so I was really excited when I ended up liking this as well. It definitely leans more similar to A Lady for Duke in terms of writing and plot compared to Boyfriend Material. I absolutely adored the Regency setting in the romance was fantastic. I think this is probably my new favorite of Alexis Hall's books. The magic and the curse brought a fun fantasy element and I absolutely loved the main characters and getting to see the romance develop.

I want Robin the Hobgoblin to narrate my life (or I guess not, since that would mean some bad stuff is going down haha). Going into this I was expecting a recency romance but what I got instead was a funny book with curses and characters I want to adopt (looking at you Miss Bickle) with a generous side of sapphic regency romance.

I definitely recommend it and in fact have started talking it up already to anyone who will listen.

Thanks to Random House/Del Ray for the eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

For fans of A Lady for a Duke, Alexis Hall gifts us another incredible regency romp - this time with sapphic love and magic, narrated by our favorite sprite with decided opinions about mortals.

"A young noblewoman must pair up with an alleged witch to ward off a curse in this irresistible sapphic romance from the bestselling author of Boyfriend Material.

It is the year 1814, and life for a young lady of good breeding has many difficulties. There are balls to attend, fashions to follow, marriages to consider, and, of course, the tiny complication of existing in a world swarming with fairy spirits, interfering deities, and actual straight-up sorcerers.

Miss Maelys Mitchelmore finds her entry into high society hindered by an irritating curse. It begins innocuously enough with her dress slowly unmaking itself over the course of an evening at a high-profile ball, a scandal she narrowly manages to escape.

However, as the curse progresses to more fatal proportions, Miss Mitchelmore must seek out aid, even if that means mixing with undesirable company. And there are few less desirable than Lady Georgianna Landrake - a brooding, alluring young woman sardonically nicknamed "the Duke of Annadale" - who may or may not have murdered her own father and brothers to inherit their fortune. If one is to believe the gossip, she might be some kind of malign enchantress. Then again, a malign enchantress might be exactly what Miss Mitchelmore needs.

With the Duke's help, Miss Mitchelmore delves into a world of angry gods and vindictive magic, keen to unmask the perpetrator of these otherworldly attacks. But Miss Mitchelmore's reputation is not the only thing at risk in spending time with her new ally. For the reputed witch has her own secrets that may prove dangerous to Miss Mitchelmore's heart - not to mention her life."

Um, methinks this counts as Regency Magic!

I very much enjoyed reading this book. It very much reminded me of a book that Greek gods and goddesses as the narrator and that both novels were romances but that’s where the similarities between Julia Berry and Alexis Halls novel end.

The characters were very likable and entertaining. I particularly like Ms. Bickle.

The story was well put together and I found myself laughing at some parts.

I adored the story, the world building was amazing. I love meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it. The writing was also really nice. I couldn't put the book down and I can't wait for others to read and enjoy this story as well.

Austen meets A Midsummer Night's Dream in this wonderfully inventive regency era sapphic romance.

I absolutely loved the narration style, with its witty comments and disparaging opinions about 'mortals'. It's such a clever use of a narrator (I don't want to spoil anything, because I gasped with delight when I read the opening pages) and could easily be used again for future books set in different eras; I really hope it is!

The story itself is an interesting weave of regency society and magical chaos, with a realistic look at how society might be shaped if magic, ancient gods, and fairies played an active role.

The supporting characters really shine, Miss Bickle and Mr Caesar especially, and overall the book is just really good fun. I loved it!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

DNF @ 33%.

I wanted to love this book so much. The cover definitely drew my attention, because obviously. I mean, look at it. It's gorgeous! The fact that it was written by Alexis Hall was another draw, because I've seen what Hall can do, and was hoping for his best.

I was hoping for a bit of Bridgerton meets fantasy, somewhere along the lines of Olivia Atwater's Half a Soul, which beautifully merged regency romance with faeries. But this wasn't quite what I got.

Don't get me wrong, there were positives. I loved the humor that was incorporated into the story, and the beautiful descriptions. But those two things weren't enough to keep me reading.

The story is told through the POV of a faerie known as Oberon's jester. I didn't love this choice, since his perspective is often added to the story needlessly, and it takes up space that could better be put towards rounding out the main characters, who are a little flat. We don't really get to know the 3 characters that we see the most, outside of their major characteristics and the bland conversations that they have. In addition, the cushion provided by the narrator and the flatness of the characters makes it difficult to really get to know them and identify with them.

This is a very slow-moving book. I tend to like faster-paced stories, and it took a full third of the book to uncover the actual plot. By that time, I wasn't exactly interested in following up on what happened to the characters, because they all come off as so frivolous and vapid. I was hoping for more romance to show up in the story, but thus far, I've only seen hints of it, and it's especially disappointed because I was really looking forward to this.

Mortal Follies is a delightful sapphic romance, blending aspects from Bridgerton and A Midsummer Night's Dream. It was charming and laugh-out-loud funny, with the best part being Robin the Hobgoblin narrator, whose pettiness could rival even Lady Whistledown. There was a lot of cheeky romance-novel humor sprinkled throughout that made this especially funny. Unlike Bridgerton, Alexis Hall manages to be realistic about the social values of the time while still crafting a lovely story. Hall actually flips a lot of the regency romance tropes on their heads in this story - it's a ton of fun.

I didn't love the play - it felt disjointed at times and the pacing was kind of all over the place. It felt less like a novel with a clear arc and more like a collection of loosely related events. There were times when the story lagged and I struggled to stay invested, but other times when events would move so fast that I struggled to keep up.

Thanks to netgalley and random house for this arc in exchange for an honest review

I LOVED this book. Adored. My husband was very tired of hearing about it by the time I finished it. Mortal Follies is higher stakes than your typical cozy fantasy, but the pastoral regency setting gave me enough Jane Austen vibes that I didn't feel stressed or anxious reading, and was able to enjoy the plot. I was a little put off by the narrator being Puck at first, but it won me over quickly, and actually really enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek commentary. It added a lot of humor that I appreciated. I also really enjoyed how Hall kept the conventions of Regency England where it suited them but threw out the rules that didn't; it made for a really fun ride that rooted it in enough reality that the author didn't have to spend the whole time world-building. And last, but certainly not least, I enjoyed the Sapphic romance that the plot centers around. It was nice to enjoy a queer romance and imagine a world where, while dark curses and vengeful old gods may exist, homophobia doesn't. I definitely want a hard copy on my shelf.

Maelys Mitchelmore is a well-bred young woman in 1814 Bath who finds herself suddenly beset by a vicious string of focused misfortune. Her world is such a mishmash of theology, mythology, and folklore it's difficult to guess the mechanism but the malefactor seems likely to be the same woman who keeps coming to her rescue: Lady Georgiana, suspected murderess and confirmed misanthrope. Despite the reasonable arguments of her practical cousin and frivolous best friend, Mae is magnetically drawn to the ill-tempered heiress. The abrupt shift from mystery to romance at the midpoint is a shock but the emotional through-line holds true. Puck makes for an engaging narrator.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance reader's copy. I loved this book. This is my favorite book by this author. It was light and fun, but still had some darker moments. The story moved quickly and was delightful. I absolutely loved that it was a regency romance mixed with the supernatural/other natural/magical. And Pick as the narrator was superb. I will be purchasing this for myself and friends, and telling everyone I know who would enjoy it, to read it. Fantastic

A romance about a witch and noblewoman who must team up in the 1800s. I normally love Alexis Hall’s books but this was not my favorite.

DNF 30%

I am entirely sure this might just not be a book for me. The plot is fine. The characters are fine. I’m just not excited or even interested in reading.

The main reason is that we are told the story though the eyes of a hobgoblin… who has no relation to the story at all. It is told in away where everything feels… far away? We don’t have any connection to the characters because the narrator doesn’t. It’s hard to care about people if I only know how they feel through someone who is also guessing how they feel.

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

4.5 stars!

I really liked this! I sometimes struggle with romance, but I found Mortal Follies to be very funny and it gave me a lot to work with. I liked Maelys Mitchelmore and her friends and Georgianna Landrake and the whimsical nature of the novel and thought they hit their character beats quite well. Hall frames the story with a narrator based in the modern day who breaks the fourth wall, and I found that this really worked for me—I thought Robin was funny and snarky and added something, though I do think this is a YMMV situation and she will either work for you or she won't.

There's a lot going on here (this is a romance novel with some fantasy stuff going on (there's a curse! old gods!) and also a bit of a mystery) and I found that this was pretty entertaining for me, but I will say the romance simmers until about the 60% mark, which is where the curse plot line wraps up, and while I thought this was neat, it can also come across as a bit disjointed. I also think that if on-screen sex is important for you, you might have some quibbles with this since this one has sort of on screen, kind of vague non-explicit sex. I think it works for the time period and the style of the novel, and I wasn't too bothered by it, but it's still worth mentioning.

Mortal Follies is a fun and whimsical historical romantasy (romance novel with fantasy?) and while I think the plots could be woven together a little better, it was overall very enjoyable and I hope Hall explores some more in this world.

Mortal Follies is hilarious! I laughed, cried and swooned over the witty banter and steamy scenes.

Thank you NetGalley for the e-book ARC!