Loved the cover and that’s what pulled me in, however I found the story too slow for my personal taste

**The Bequest** by Joanna Margaret is a decent read that earns three stars for its atmospheric Gothic mystery and intriguing settings across Scotland, Italy, and France.

The story follows Isabel Henley, a PhD student who escapes a failed affair in Boston by moving to Scotland. Upon arrival, she faces immediate setbacks with the mysterious death of her advisor and a rival scholar threatening her dissertation topic. Isabel's luck worsens when her old friend Rose goes missing, leaving behind a cryptic message that pulls Isabel into a dangerous quest to uncover dark family secrets and a centuries-old legend involving a cursed emerald.

Margaret’s writing shines in its rich descriptions and atmospheric settings, creating a vivid backdrop for the unfolding mystery. The blend of epistolary elements and Gothic suspense adds a unique touch, appealing to fans of dark academia.

However, the plot can feel convoluted at times, with many threads to follow, which may leave some readers disoriented. The pacing also varies, occasionally dragging, which detracts from the overall suspense.

In summary, **The Bequest** is a moderately engaging literary thriller with strong atmospheric elements and an interesting premise. While it has its flaws, fans of Alex Michaelides and Donna Tartt might still find it worth a read.

I usually love gothic thrillers, especially if they have an engaging mystery, but unfortunately this one didn’t do it for me. I did however love the writing. It was intense and atmospheric, I just wish the story would have lived up to my expectations.

The premise of this book was full of promise, billed as a gothic mystery or dark academia thriller. But I’m afraid that these promises were not kept and I was left feeling disappointed.
There was an intriguing plot, but the characters and dialogue needed work. This book really feels like it could have used a couple more rounds of edits as some parts of the writing really took me out of the book. Silly things like a conversation between characters over a meal consisting of one paragraph of dialogue from a sole character yet seemingly taking place over several courses. Just a bit jarring and similar instances took me right out of the story to scratch my head at the timing.
There were also too many characters who seem to breeze in and out for all too brief appearances at times to simply dump information. None of the characters seemed particularly fully formed meaning I could never really understand their motivation or empathise with any of them.
The plot kept me reading so I could see how it all turned out but I’m afraid I won’t be recommending this one.

I love Dark Academia and this book didn't disappoint. It is twisty and mysterious and kept me guessing all the way through

⭐⭐⭐

“The Bequest” by Joanna Margaret is a gripping literary thriller that combines epistolary elements, Gothic suspense, and an atmospheric “dark academia” setting. The story follows Isabel Henley, who flees a disastrous affair in Boston and moves to Scotland to begin her PhD. However, upon arrival, she learns that her advisor has died, and another scholar is about to publish a book on her dissertation topic. As Isabel struggles to acclimate to her new home and find a new subject, she reconnects with Rose Brewster, a charismatic former classmate. When Rose suddenly goes missing, Isabel’s life is thrown into chaos. A suicide note surfaces along with a coded message indicating that Rose is alive but in danger. To save both their lives, Isabel embarks on a journey from Genoa to Florence and Paris. Along the way, she uncovers secrets, that if she can put the pieces together in time, may solve a 400-year-old mystery.

While “The Bequest” has many flaws like messy writing style, painful dialogue between characters, and lack of character development for anyone involved; it still managed to captivate me with its intriguing plotline. It proves that, even though executed poorly at times, a book can still be engrossing. On the positive side, the author impressively captured atmospheric settings and delved deep into historical aspects with thorough research.

Overall, “The Bequest” offers readers a mixed bag of thrilling suspense combined with vividly depicted settings and well-researched history.

**ARC Via NetGalley**

The story follows Isabel as she escapes to Scotland from her tumultuous life in the US to write her thesis. Upon her arrival, she finds out her thesis advisor has died in mysterious circumstances, and more mysteries unravel as the story continues.

The story itself is an interesting whodunnit filled with intrigue and plenty of twists and turns. Perfect for anyone who is a fan of campy Agatha Christie-esque thrillers.

The pacing of the story is not great, as a large portion of the beginning of the book focuses on the banality of day-to-day life as a PhD student. It also has unnecessarily large paragraphs detailing the history of the Falcone family, who both Isabel and Rose are studying. Once the mystery begins, the pace of the story quickens, however the ending feels rushed.

I think the story could have benefited from focusing on fewer characters and detailing less of the content of Isabel's historical findings, as they don't further the plot.

Isabel leaves her life in America to start a PhD in Scotland where becomes close with fellow scholar Rose, who she knew from her college back home. Suddenly Rose disappears and everyone believes that she committed suicide, but Isabel finds that Rose is actually being held prisoner to prevent her from working on her research topic. Isabel is tasked with finishing the project to save Rose and begins a journey across Europe to dig into something mysterious that happened 400 years ago.

The Bequest is a brilliantly dark and suspenseful book.

The plot was incredibly gripping and I could not have possibly guessed where it was heading, which made it really exciting. I found the pace of the book to be quite unique because a lot of the scenes moved along quickly but as a whole it went at a very steady speed.

As a reader you are given a fascinating glimpse into the life of a historian. I really enjoyed that everything is so clearly well-researched. Joanna Margaret's background and passion for the subject is evident throughout. I loved all of the settings and locations - from Scotland to Italy to France. They each had something different to offer and I could picture everything perfectly in my mind.

You will love reading this book as it makes you feel like you are part of a real adventure.

Thank you NetGalley and Aria & Aries for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Firstly I want to say I'm amazed how much research has gone into this to fuel the academia narrative and stay true to history (as much as it can). However I felt like there was a lot going on which made the pacing feel slightly off in parts so I couldn't get into the book as much as I would have liked to. Saying that, this is a really unique book and if you like dark academia I suggest checking this out for an interesting mystery.

I loved how much actual academia there was in this Dark Academia thriller, with plenty of research and intriguing historical interplay. The thriller aspects were also well done, with so many plot twists and turns that I was thoroughly entertained by. In particular, the way Margaret brings both historical and contemporary plotlines into play is fantastic.

Thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read this one. Unfortunately I had to give up about 20% in to the book. It just wasn't for me.

Isabel thinks taking a post at a prestigious Scottish university is a fresh start but what she finds is a tangled web with a historical mystery at it's heart. The Bequest is a bit of an odd book and I think that is down to the fact this is a first novel. I have always enjoyed books about writing and the process a scholar or author goes through. I also love historical fiction so this book ticked lots of boxes for me. I thought Isabel was really well drawn character: you can understand how her past led her to take the decisions she makes in this book. I also think that some of the characters we have met ourselves in daily life. Endicott and Van Kaiserling come to mind and I think we have all known someone like Rose. However, the pacing of the book was little off with a good first third of the book setting the scene rather than propelling the story forward. The twist was also signposted quite early on with one character in particular being almost a caricature of a 'secret bad guy". These are kinks that I think take experience to work through and I would definitely ready another novel by Joanna Margaret.

I received this book from Netgalley and the views here are entirely my own.

A dark academia thriller with a great setting.
I disliked the characters but I think I was supposed to. The pacing felt off at times but the last 25% was really good and I flew through this part. The book was giving Dan Brown vibes at times. If you are into dark academia and thrillers I would recommend.

This one just wasn't for me.
From early on I felt as if someone was Tring to teach me something. That's not why I picked up the book.
I picked it up, as it was for fans of the secret history.
Sadly it didn't live up to that.
I finished it, but at times it was a chore.