I think that objectively this is a great book, but there were several aspects of this book that made me lower the rating because they simply were not my cup of tea. That being said, let's start with the positives.

The prose was fantastic. It was lyrical and atmospheric which was perfect for the witchy and magical air of the book.

The setting of the book was reminiscent of a medieval fantasy setting, which is one of my favourite tropes, with some steampunk elements woven into it. There is a lot of magic present in the world which I generally enjoyed. The magic system put a twist on the classic witch hexes and jinxes as our main character could be seen using herbs and chanting rhyming verses to perform spells.

The plot of the book was alright, although slightly chaotic. We follow Oneirotheria as she attempts to uncover why she has no memories of how she ended up in Osylum and who she was before her arrival there. This made for an interesting mystery, but the plot goes into other directions later in the story. I personally had seen one of the plot twists coming from a mile away, but I still thought it was a good plot twist. The ending of the story was quite satisfying as well.

I also want to pay some attention to the characters, who I have mixed feelings about. The main character, Oneirotheria, was developed decently throughout the story, especially near the end. I did however think that a lot of the other characters could have been explored some more to add some depth to their characters.

In the end the story did leave me with multiple questions, mainly about Osylum and how everything inside (and outside) Osylum works. It may however have been the author's intention to leave some questions for the reader to ponder on, in which case this just comes down to personal taste.

Over all I think The Witch & The City is a good read and if it sounds interesting to you, give it a try once it comes out on October 24!

OH. EM. GEE!! This book. I had to read snippets to my husband, who isn’t a reader, and even he was left feeling... wow.
Honestly, in the beginning, I was like “What is this hot crap?”. I couldn’t figure out what was going on. Things were spoken in riddles. I didn’t understand what the issue or goal was. For a moment, I didn’t want to continue.
But then... a witch was born in a hut with chicken legs. And she was endearing, chaotic, annoying, brave, naïve and kind.
In this floating prison-city, the new foundling witch doesn’t know who she is but has memories of all these words. She doesn’t understand their meanings until the word becomes meaningful. As she follows her distracted curiosity to figure out what the heck is going on and how to escape, she encounters other prisoners in the prison-city. Some helpful. Some not. Some are downright dangerous.
The writing style in The Witch & The City is very lyrical. It has a similar style to Susanna Clarke’s book, Piranesi, but more action and turmoil with unique poetic prose. I felt transported into a world like the movie Pan’s Labyrinth. You know the one where Doug Jones plays the incredible Fauno AND the Pale Man with his creepy eyeballs in the palm of his hands? Google it. It’s like that.
In fact, I demand that Doug Jones play a character or two if this book ever makes it to film. It would be glorious!
If you read Piranesi and didn’t like it, please don’t read The Witch & The City and give it a bad rating because it went over your head or isn’t your vibe. This book is best for those with an unending imagination. It is for lovers of words. Words that you want to gobble up, absorb them into your bone marrow and let them simmer. It is for those who have felt the joy of love and the pain of having your entire being ripped from your center.
I’ll definitely be adding this physical copy to my shelves.

The Witch and The City was a fantastical and mysterious world, beautifully created. It was full of twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat nearly the whole book. I really love this idea, and I think that the author does a really great job of bringing it to life!

This is a book that sets itself out differently from other categorical novels. As a reader you have to really think about the plot which might make some readers balk at approaching this one understandably.

Well written prose meets interesting plot. First, thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read this novel. I am not a huge fantasy reader but this book was interesting in learning more about Oneirotheria and the city of Osylum. There was a unique magic system and the plot was written well enough that I didn't guess the twists or end. If you liked Piranesi or The Night Circus you'll enjoy this book a lot.

I haven't read a truly whimsical book in a long while and I think I've found my new favorite. This also made me look up the author and his other books sound just as interesting. Excited to read more!

Very atmospheric with a lot of hidden meanings and themes. No one is who they seem. It also is a good standalone book in an age of long series that take years to come to completion (if at all). 4/5 stars.

Despite the vivid imagination present in this story, I never felt especially connected to the characters. The entire novel is written as if from a bird's eye view, hovering outside of the emotional lives of the protagonists without ever touching down. I liked the contrast between the somewhat whimsical tone and the sometimes bloody and violent content of the world. However, the plot felt intentionally confusing in a way that wasn't rewarded by time and persistence.

For me personally, I’d stick this book at a 3.5 but I’ll round up to 4 because anything I didn’t love about the book was minor or just a “not for me” thing. This book was an interesting and fun read. I can totally see why it’s compared to Piranesi in marketing. The prose are a bit different but it did give off similar vibes. If you liked Piranesi, there is a good chance you’d like this one.

I enjoyed reading because of the character more as the book went on. But the prose are definitely the strongest aspect of the book. At times I struggled with it a little. I felt a little disconnected from what was happening because of the writing style. I don’t really dock the quality of the book though because it was still very well written.

The length of this book is also absolutely perfect. I think that’s something people often overlook when considering how much hey enjoy a book. Had this book been longer it would have lost interest but had it been shorter, there would have been too much missing.

The premise sounded very promising but I’m not quite sure I understood it. It simply wasn't the story for me I'm afraid.

I am very grateful to have received this as an ARC. It is with great pleasure I leave a 4 star review for this book.

This book is a gem. I should preference this with the fact that I am ordinarily not one to pick up a book if it leans more into poetry or prose. I felt a little overwhelmed in the beginning of this book because of it. It didn’t take long for me to be intrigued but I made sure this was not a book I read before bed! There were times I needed to backtrack a bit to understand what was happening which slowed me down especially when the story lulled a bit towards the middle. This was the only reason why I didn’t give it a full 5-star review. I binged it from around the middle on and it was fantastic. The ending sent me into a tail spin and I sat contemplating all the little details and events throughout the book.

I will be reading the this again!

I liked this book and it had some really good creepy moments of weird fiction. I did think that the characterization took a bit of a backseat to the worldbuilding though. And that's what held me back from really enjoying this story as much as I could have. Nevertheless it's a fun read and I think many will find it entertaining. A more complete review will be posted on the blog very soon.

RPG Campaign meets RenFest was my very first thought when I started reading this book. While not the writing style I would pick first as a reader, I know that a lot of people LOVE this type of narration. After the first few chapters I was able to settle into a feel for what was happening and grab ahold of the plot.
As I neared the end of the book I was sure I had it under control - plotlines were resolving and I congratulated myself on guessing something that was going to happen...and then twist after twist after unexpected ending occurred.
My jaw might have actually dropped open when I realized what was going on and I spent some time mentally reviewing all the subtle clues I had missed, but had added up to a wonderfully solved puzzle.

I think the blurb of this book is a bit misleading, or else I misunderstood it. 'For readers of Susanna Clarke’s Piranesi and Madeline Miller’s Circe, The Witch & The City introduces a lyrical and baroque fantasy world' - this sets up a pretty clear idea of what to expect, but that idea is completely wrong. The Witch & The City is strange and confusing, which I guess is a similarity to Piranesi - but it doesn't have Piranesi's almost-cosy whimsy. The main character is a witch, which is something it shares with Circe, but the deep richness of Miller's prose is missing here.

And I was hoping 'lyrical and baroque' referred to the writing style, but it doesn't seem to be so.

I don't think The Witch & The City was bad; I don't even think the prose is bad. But the strange aesthetic isn't backed by really beautiful writing, which means that you're thrust head-first into a lot of confusion with nothing to grip on to. Piranesi can be as confusing as it is because the writing is appealing and beautiful, so there's something to enjoy until we start piecing the world and plot together. The Witch & The City doesn't have that kind of writing, so all I am is confused. There's nothing to hold me while I wait for things to start making some kind of sense. Plenty of mysteries are introduced very quickly, and for some readers the desire for answers to those mysteries will be enough - and the book does move along at a good pace. There's definitely going to be people who enjoy this.

But I was hoping for something very different, so alas, a DNF from me.