Release date: 10.31.2023
Review date: 1.2.2024

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own.

Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera belongs to the glittering upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires, and like the rest of the world, the town is steeped in old world magic that’s been largely left behind or forgotten. Inez has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents—who frequently leave her behind. When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in partnership with his Egyptian brother-in-law. Yearning for answers, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and an ancient golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping before he died. But upon her arrival, the old world magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parent’s disappearance than what her guardian led her to believe. With her guardian’s infuriatingly handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parent’s disappearance—or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that will kill her.

For the longest time I've wanted a book that gives me the same vibes as The Mummy from 1999 and really hoped this would be the one. Sadly this was lacking the curse element. Overall I had a decent time with this book. I enjoyed the characters and the plot in general, but as I said I needed a curse. I will say I am quite interested to continue. Would recommend.

Ibañez has created a beautiful, well-paced historical fiction novel with a believable romance and twists and turns that will leave readers guessing until the end. Perfect for fans of The Mummy, What the River Knows includes just a bit of magic as well as romance and historical adventure. It expertly dovetails into a second book with cliffhangers that will upset even the most patient readers.

This was a fantastic read, with a mix of history, magical realism, adventure, and just enough romance to help flesh out the main character without making her two dimensional and a caricature. I’m very much looking forward to the next book, and I’m the meantime will recommend this to any fantasy or adventure readers.

Isabel Ibañez's "What the River Knows" is a beautifully crafted novel that immerses readers in a world of magic and mystery. The storytelling is rich and evocative, with a captivating blend of folklore and contemporary themes. The characters are well-developed, each carrying their own depth and contributing to the tapestry of the narrative. The magical realism elements are seamlessly integrated, adding a layer of enchantment to the storyline. While the pacing occasionally fluctuates, the overall experience is engaging and memorable. Ibañez has delivered a compelling tale that explores the intricacies of family and love.

Inez Olivera abandons her home in Argentina to discover the truth about her parents’ deaths in Egypt. From the very first page, Inez immediately struck me as a savvy young woman capable of lying and deceiving in order to skirt her way around society’s strict standards in the 1800s. I admired her tenacity and courage to set out on such a journey on her own. Especially as she reaches her destination and must face her aloof and mercurial uncle. That’s why I was disappointed when these admirable qualities pretty much disappeared halfway through. Once she’d accomplished infiltrating her uncle’s archeological team, I found she became simpering and naive. Although the poor girl couldn’t seem to catch a break. She was dealt blow after blow all while not being able to do much about her circumstances, which was a little frustrating since I wanted to root for her and the love interest so badly.

I typically fall head over heels for roguish broody love interests, and I wanted to love Mr. Whitford Hayes after his very first run in with Inez on the docks. But (to me) he didn’t have that little dollop of pain that typically drives their impulsive need to love hard and protect at all costs. Or at least we haven't discovered it yet. I didn’t find that his short POVs gave us any insight into his supposedly horrid past or true motivations, except for one conversation between him and Inez. And after that short epilogue, I was left feeling more confused about him; even if he instantly became more interesting.

The pace seemed to ebb and flow like the Nile River itself. At times it was lush with adventure and excitement. While at others it focused on the slower but nuanced aspects of 1800s society. Given how the story starts off with an enchanted ring and escalates to Inez forming a super cool connection to Cleopatra, I expected there to be a touch more magic. Also, I’m a little disappointed there wasn’t at least one booby trap. There was one major turn that really shattered my heart. The consequences of which weren't really felt as the ending snuck up on me! Overall, I loved with the descriptive setting of historical Egypt, the alluring connection to their last pharaoh, and every sprinkle of magic we were given.

An absolutely wonderful read, this is the kind of historical fantasy series I love! I wasn't sure what to expect with the first few chapters but as the story unfolded the reader is taken on an expected journey with delicious glimpses of ancient Egypt as Inez discovers Egypt in her time.

What the River Knows is a perfect blend of adventure, history, magical realism, and a dash of romantic potential. Very few books are so immersive and I enjoyed visiting the markets of Cairo and her adventures on Philae with Inez and company. The cliffhanger has me ready for the next book and I can't wait!! Had to give it 5 stars because of that ending.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

This is a unique and beautifully written historical fantasy that includes many favorites in storytellling. There is romance in the form of forbidden/slow burn. You will also find magic, adventure, and a touch of mystery. Readers will enjoy this book, even if parts feel a little predictable. Overall, a fun and entertaining story.

This was a tough rating that I want to give 3.5 out 5 five stars to, but its not deserving of that considering this is a debut of a series. It had positives such as the twists and historical aspects and of course its negatives like the characters personality not being delveloped enough throughout and the magic. About a quarter in there was a lot I knew that was left to be desired because of the main characters. But I'm glad to have given this fantasy a chance despite it being some how unexpected new risks. It's a series that I have to go on with that said.

EXCUSE ME. First of all, I spent this entire book being CONVINCED this was a standalone only to reach the end and it was definitely NOT a standalone. I am now having an EXTREME reaction to this book and I can't believe I cannot find any information about the date I get to read the sequel. Anyway, I gotta go change my vote in the Goodreads Choice Awards nominations to this one because it's the new love of my life.

Y'all, I need you to all go pick up WHAT THE RIVER KNOWS by Isabel Ibañez immediately. This is a historical fantasy (allegedly YA) set in Egypt and it is so deliciously layered and brilliant and I am obsessed. I don't even really know how to fully articulate why this book is so brilliant because everything I want to scream about is a spoiler so if you HAVE already read it, please come yell about it in my DMs

Thanks so much for the chance to read this book! What a ride!

This is my first book by Isabel Ibanez and I can't wait to check out more!

This is the first book I have read that takes place in Egypt and it was a really neat experience and change of pace and scenery!

What the River Knows is a wild mystery adventure that grabs you from the beginning! You feel like you are right there in all the action! Everytime you think you have things figured out another curveball is thrown! So many twists including that cliff hanger ending! Can't wait for book two!

Pitched as The Mummy Meets Death on the Nile, What the River Knows delivers the action-packed adventure it promises. Inez travels from Buenos Aires to Cairo in search of answers about her parents’ death. Joining together with her Tío Ricardo, she enters a world of archeology, magic, and deception unlike anything she’s ever known.

Inez, a trusting albeit headstrong heiress, and Whit, the roguish yet mysterious associate of her uncle, make up the tension-fueled romantic partnership at the center of the novel. My favorite moments of the book were the volleying conversations between the two. Inez and Whit are equally matched in stubbornness and intellect as they play a dangerous game that risks both their livelihoods and their hearts. The culmination of their slow-burn romance left me eager to see where the next book takes them.

Ibañez’s emphasis on the historical dealings of artifacts and their unlawful removal from their home nations was quite striking. I feel like I learned more about Egypt and its history from these pages than I ever did in school. You can tell that Ibañez put care and research into her work and I felt fully immersed in the glorious Egyptian setting. On top of these factual accuracies, Ibañez weaves fictional twists and magical realism into one spellbinding tale.

There is still so much left to be answered by the novel’s end and the cliffhanger solidified my urgency for book two!

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It took me a little while to get into this book, but once I did, I fell in love. The writing draws you in and paints the wonder of Egypt beautifully. The mystery of what happened to Inez's parents keeps you invested and the pull between Whit and Inez kept me turning the pages. I was not aware that this was the first book in a series though so the cliffhanger ending caught me off guard. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and cannot wait for Book 2.

I think that the method of reading this book that I employed, audiobook, affected my experience. While I appreciated the authentic accent the narrator provided to the main character, her general vocal inflection made the main character read far younger and significantly more naive than I think that the author intended.
That being said, I really enjoyed the weaving together of the main character's Argentinian heritage with the exploration of Egyptian artefacts and how her own history with colonial powers affected how she viewed the actions of many Europeans and Americans in Egypt where most of the book takes place. While I would have preferred more magic than Ibañez placed in this book, I enjoyed the historical aspect and look forward to how this world will expand in the sequel.

3.5 stars

I had a lot of high hopes for this one. It sounded amazing and there are many parts I thoroughly enjoyed. On the flip side, there are a few issues I couldn't ignore.

I'm going to talk about the things I liked first:

I enjoyed the atmosphere Ibanez created. If you are into Egyptian artifacts/history then you will enjoy this. Cleopatra is the main focus and finding her tomb. Most of the setting in this book takes place in Egypt, and there are so many descriptive details, it makes you feel like you are there.

My favorite part of this book is Whit and his part in the enemies-to-lovers romance. He's so mysterious but at the same time very easy to read. At least, he's easier for us to read than Inez! I thought the romance was a slow burn but done so very well. I think the pacing for their relationship was perfect but anything but instant love is a big win for me.

Now, I want to talk about some things I didn't love:

The pacing. Wow, it was all over the place! The beginning had us going at a decent pace and then around the middle, it started to really slow down. I had a hard time wanting to go back to the book at several points. I did love the details but sometimes it was a lot. I don't need to know all the details of the outfits being worn. The worst part of the pacing was the end. The last 25% of the book is just a hot mess. There are so many plot moments that didn't make sense. A few times, there are emotional moments thrown at us but we jump right into something else, without being able to process. I do think there was something added that didn't need to be there at all. It just didn't fit with the theme of the book and was a bummer. The pacing was the biggest issue I had with this book.

Another thing I have mixed feelings about is Inez. I was so back and forth with either loving or hating her character. There are several instances when she makes the dumbest decisions without thinking things through. She throws caution to the wind and then gets frustrated when things go array?? I had a hard time following her logic. On the flip side, there are times she had amazing comebacks, and I liked how she stood her ground.

One other thing I want to point out- is the magic. I'm a bit confused by it and it wasn't executed well. It sprinkles itself throughout the book at odd times with no explanation. Where does it come from and how does it happen? I would like more of that explained in book two!

Overall, I have mixed feelings about this one. It had a lot of potential but the pacing was hard to overcome. The mythology and adventure aspect was a lot of fun. The romance was so good and the ending has me wanting to pick up book two!

Many thanks to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an e-arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really like this author and the story, would recommend. It's nice to be able to share stories from different times and places with readers.

It is the nineteenth century and Inez Olivera is part of the upper society of Buenos Aries. She has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents—who leave her in the care of her aunt and two cousins.

When Inez receives word of the death of her parents, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in Egypt. When her guardian does not provide details on her parents, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and a golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping. Upon her arrival in Egypt, the magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parent’s fate than what her guardian led her to believe.

With her guardian’s handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parent’s disappearance—or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that may kill her.

This is such a beautifully written book. It is a unique historical fiction book with elements of fantasy and is filled with magic, mystery, secrets, lies, betrayal, slow burn romance, and unexpected twists. Ibanez’s ability to immerse the reader in the setting is wonderful – I felt like I was walking through a Cairo market or an archaeological dig. I thought I had the mystery figured out about 2/3 of the way through the book, but Ibanez pulled out a cliffhanger that changed everything. My only complaint is that the story started off a bit slow, but Ibanez’s descriptive imagery and the discussion of Egypt’s history and mythology kept me interested. By the second half, the story picked up the pace, becoming more action-packed, so be patient and you will be rewarded. This book managed to feel unique as a historical fantasy read. This book is the first part of a duology, and I am very eager to read the second part.

Thanks to NetGalley, Isabel Ibanez, and St. Martin’s Press for providing a complimentary copy of this book in hopes that I will leave my unbiased review. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and the above review is simply my opinion of the book.

I was super excited to read this book when I first heard about it over the summer, and I was in the mood for a historical fantasy, so I thought I’d pick it up. I have to say I’m glad I did.

This is a very fun, adventurous story, but I do wish it had leaned into the quest aspect a little bit more. This book is separated into 4 parts. Part 1 deals with Inez traveling from Argentina to Egypt and meaning many of the characters. Part 2 is about them traveling from Cairo to Philae (the excavation site). Part 3 deals with a lot of secrets being revealed and tomb stuff. And then Part 4 is pretty much about bringing it all together. I wish the journeying had been cut down a little bit to focus more on the stuff we got in Part 3 because I thought that was the best part of the book. It was really intense and I loved all the revelations. There was a ton of intrigue regarding the historical aspects and the artifacts, and I greatly enjoyed all the treasure hunting in that section.

The world is one of the shining parts of this story. You can tell that the author really did her due diligence in researching Egypt and Egyptian history. Everything came alive when I was reading and I could so easily
picture all of the settings. I felt like I was in Buenos Aires, Alexandria, Cairo, the Nile, and Philae. Even chapters that were a little more boring than other like some of the chapters aboard the Elephantine, there was still something about the world around the main character that kept me engaged. There is so much historical research in here and nods to Ancient Egypt which I love. The writing is also very lush and immersive.

I grew to enjoy reading from Inez’s perspective a lot. I do wish we had gotten to see more from Whit as I felt that his POV was used as more of a plot device than anything else. I think most of the side characters were interesting and well-developed. Sometimes in books, I find the side characters to be really shallow, but Isabel Ibañez did a great job of fleshing them out. I do think that some characters felt a little wishy-washy just because of the way the secrets were revealed. I found myself switching alliances so fast which made certain characters come across a little blurry.

I would recommend this book to people who liked the historical fantasy aspects of The Gilded Wolves and the treasure-hunting historical aspects of Silver in the Bone. I didn’t love it as much as those two books, but I still had a great time in the setting and with the characters. The plot went a little up and down for me, but I am also confident that (with the cliffhanger we left off on) Book 2 will be a whirlwind!

Enticing and magical are two words that stick out the most when thinking about this story. I loved going on this adventure and cannot wait for more!

I am hit or miss on YA, mostly because of the repetitiveness and simpler story construction usually employed. When I can enter the book with the right mindset even these elements can be enjoyable. What the River Knows is definitely a YA read, but one that is fun and if not surprising it is satisfying. Set in the 1880s, a 19 year old (why are they always 19) Argentinian girl of wealth finds out her parents have died in Egypt. She bucks tradition and runs away to try and find out what actually happened. She meets a gorgeous morally gray man (constantly referred to as “brawny”) who reluctantly helps her. Cue intrigue, adventure, and a very obvious betrayal… all with a little magic. Sound familiar… it is. The power and pleasure in reading this book is not from the plot, but from the execution. The pacing, character development and world building are all really well done. The simplicity of certain elements works because this is a YA book in all ways, which is nice to see.

I do wonder if the last part was needed, especially as this is the first of a series. I wonder if stopping at the betrayal would have made this a more satisfying ending and leave the readers salivating for the next installment.

Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Seventeen year old Inez Olivera lives in Buenos Aires as part of the elite social circles, but all she wants is to accompany her parents on their adventures as they spend most of their time exploring and seeking magical artifacts in faraway Egypt. But when she receives the news of their deaths, Inez, now the heiress of their fortune, decides to travel to Cairo to see her uncle Ricardo, her new guardian, and get some answers. Her uncle is less than thrilled with her arrival however, and charges his infuriating assistant Whit with packing her off back to Argentina. Inez is determined to find the truth however, and her ability to sense the old magic and connect with the artifacts sends her down a path that may lead to a history archaeological discovery, earning her place on her uncle’s crew. As she delves deeper with the aid of ancient magic, she grows more and more convinced that her parents’ disappearance is intricately linked to it and she must decide who she can trust with her discoveries and if some secrets are better off left buried in the sands.

I’m finally back to writing book reviews! As you may have noticed, it’s been a little quiet here on my blog for the past couple of weeks, and that’s because I was on vacation for some time and then it took a while to get settled into my routine once I was back home.

This is not the first time I’ve come across this author, but What the River Knows is the first book of Ibañez’s that I’ve actually picked up. Netgalley kept suggesting it to me consistently for 4-5 months and while I usually try to stay focused when browsing that site (not doing so leads to more ARCs than I can handle), I was very curious about it since the author’s name was familiar and I looked it up on Goodreads

I’m rather fond of books with historical settings and Egypt in particular has always fascinated me. It’s one of the few topics I pick up non fiction books or watch documentaries on. I would give this book an A+ for world building and atmosphere – the author has woven an intricate tale with the mystique of ancient Egypt set against the backdrop of the archaeological excavations of the 19th century, a murder mystery and some magic thrown in for good measure. I loved the descriptions of the various places in Egypt the characters travelled to from the bustling Cairo, to the boat trip down the Nile and of course the island of Philae where their excavations took them. Discovering Egpyt through Inez’ eyes as she attempts to learn about the country that her parents loved so much and their lives there was one of the things I enjoyed most about the plot as the author brought the setting to life in such a beautiful and immersive manner.

On the magical side of things, the system of magical artifacts and the ancient magic itself could have had a better introduction along with a more detailed explanation of how Inez is able to see memories tied to spelled objects. I felt like it was just dropped on the reader without much context. Nonetheless, it was fascinating, along with how Inez was able to sense the presence of the magics to lead her to important discoveries.

Having not read any of her other books, I can’t compare the writing, but the narrative was well paced and didn’t drag anywhere. The alternating POVs were easy to follow and it was an enjoyable read. The mystery angle only started to pick up in the second half of the book as Inez began to learn more about the people who worked closely with her parents in Egypt, questioning their motives and trying to figure out what may have led to her parents’ disappearance and assumed demise.

Inez was a very straightforward character, likeable enough, but there wasn’t much that stood out to me about her. She was a rather naive seventeen year old who left her home and family for the first time to travel to a foreign country and it definitely shows in her actions throughout the book, from certain reckless endeavours to placing her trust in the wrong people.

Inez was pretty much an open book as far as characters go, which is not unusual for the protagonist, but literally every other character had me questioning their motives and intentions. Even Whit, who was the second POV character was really hard to get a read on and with the conclusion of this book, his motives still remained unclear. It certainly added to the mystery aspect of this story and added another layer to the story as the truth behind the fate of Inez’s parents began to unfold.

I didn’t realize this was a series right until the very last chapters and that unexpected twist in the epilogue leading to a cliffhanger ending was a shocking conclusion to this book. I’m extremely excited that this is a series as this story, world and characters were so interesting that I can’t wait to return to it all in the sequel. There are so many questions still left unanswered and the consequences of the events in those final chapters are sure to be significant.

This was such a fun read and I enjoyed it far more than I expected to. The sequel is definitely going to be one of my most anticipated reads for 2024 or whenever it’s out! This book was a mix of genres and subjects and had something that would appeal to the taste of a wide variety of readers. Highly recommended!