rating: 3.5

this was more firmly YA than i was expecting in terms of the simplicity of the writing/story at points. there was lots of cute sapphic yearning between best friends and roommates, sybil and esme ("and they were roommates" lol). the characters are very likable and have decent development.

the beginning had lots of beautiful descriptions that really puts you into the belle epoque setting of 1890-1910s Paris nightlife, very romantic. the absinthe underground was clearly very inspired by moulin rouge, one of my favorite movies. however, much of the book isn't set in this which was a bit disappointing for me bc the cover is what drew me in to read this.

the rest of the story plays out more like a fairy tale, which was cute but a bit simple for my taste.

overall, i think this is a good book for younger readers who like some low / portal fantasy. it was a cute story, but i think i'm older than its target demographic.

If you're in the market for sapphic heists in Fae courts, this will mostly whet your appetite. The potential is great and it's clear that Pacton has a good concept and characters, but while it was an enjoyable read, I was left wanting more basically the entire way through.

The setting is the first piece of this, clearly trying to evoke Paris and going so far as to name-drop Mucha and Tolouse as some of the poster artists, but when you're almost entirely on board with not-Paris, swerves into some detail that feels out of place enough to shift your whole perception. Then we're in Faerie, and this may be a side effect of not having read Pacton's previous book (from which there are some cameos) which likely went into more detail about the magic system, but even beyond the scenes in Faerie feeling short and rushed, the whole set up of the courts shallow.

Then there's the heist, or I guess I should say the suggestions of a heist. For all that there are four items to steal, most of them don't take more than a couple pages to obtain, which makes one wonder why there needed to be four items - if we needed a pre-Faerie-heist, pick just Lucien's journal. It all just again felt shallow, like the idea was there, but either the energy or time or length allowance just wasn't. As a consequence, each of them feels too easy and low-stakes

So we're left with the characters, who are at least all vibrant and fun to read about. But again, I wanted to know more - we get a bare taste of Sybil and Esme's past, both with and without each other and what led them to be so devoted to each other

There's a lot that is fun here though - the imagery of the setting, the idea of absinthe as being made from Fae gems, the doors between worlds, I just wish more had been done with it all.

Despite trying to enjoy this book, I honestly found it incredibly boring and hard to get through. It wasn’t any issue of anything in particular, just nothing in this book stood out and thus reading it felt like wadding through sludge.

Thank you to Peachtree Teen for the ARC!

1.5 stars

In the fantasy Belle Epoque-style city of Severon, two young women try to make ends meet while hiding their true feelings for one another. When a job stealing posters goes awry, they are thrown into a world of faeries and magic.

While the premise and cover were enticing and downright magical, this book unfortunately didn't deliver. With overly simplified writing, disjointed storytelling, and flat characters, I couldn't get into this at all. I am an avid teen/YA book reader and have been for years, and I feel like this book tried to straddle New Adult and Young Adult but fell flat.

Sybil and Esme have a preestablished relationship that would have been fun to learn about from their meeting, rather than jumping in the middle of their crushes. Their dynamics felt forced, unnatural, and weirdly sexualized at many points that detracted from any actual romance.

I was also confused the entire time by the initial need to steal...posters. Of all objects, why posters? Why are the posters needed? What makes them so profitable? If they're so special, why would they be left out in the open where anyone can see and grab them, and wouldn't they need a frame to prevent rain damage?

This book has all the promise of a good cozy-style sapphic romance, but gets bogged down with a need to fill an aesthetic that the story fumbles. I would love to read someone else's interpretation and thoughts, though.
#TheAbsintheUnderground #NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I want to say first, that this was a charming little standalone fantasy. I am always happy to see sapphic representation in fantasy, and best friends to lovers pining is even better! This story follows Sylvie and Esme as they go on a heist adventure for a club owner, actually green fairy, with the promise of never needing to work or earn money ever again. My biggest reason for struggling with this book was the pacing. I felt like the second half of the book had such a large amount of action happen so quickly, and I would have liked to explore those areas of the book more thoroughly. Nonetheless I did enjoy myself and the characters were very sweet. This was a very sweet, quick read. :)

Darkly playful, fast paced, filled with sapphic tension (and so many cats!), this is a 'just one more chapter' kind of novel. Cast with characters who exist within the realm of fantasy, but whose inner voices resonate with familiar longings, fears, and dreams, it takes no time at all to fall for these characters, and believe their world. This is a book I wish I could have given my queer teenage self, and I'm so glad exists for us now.

This was such a cute, cozy sapphic fantasy with such an interesting and fun concept. It feels strange to call it cozy when there were some pretty high stakes and it revolved around a dangerous heist, but I felt comfortable reading it. This is such a quick read and felt engaging the entire way through, but for those who like higher-stakes stories, I think the resolutions of the conflicts may feel a little too convenient.
 
I loved following Sybil and Esme, and I'm glad we got both of their points of view alternating throughout the story. I do think their relationship was a little underdeveloped. I will say that friends to lovers isn't my favorite trope, so this could be a me thing. By the end it was done well, but I almost wish there was more to their relationship than just pining for each other in the beginning half of the book.

Hopefully there will be a sequel, since it seems like it could be setting up for one. While it felt complete as its own novel, there were enough threads left open that I could easily see another story happening.

I think the concept of this book is very interesting! Unfortunately, the formatting for the ebook is a little messed up and makes it really hard to read the book. I stopped reading this book around 30% due to the formatting. In the future I might buy the physical book to read because I truly believe the story is interesting!

3 stars!

The Absinthe Underground is the book made for those who loves fantasy, sapphic relationships and anything fae. It was a cute read and the further I got into it, the more I didn’t want to put it down. There was the constant feeling of magic and love that was tied in with tension and worry giving me a rollercoaster of emotions.

However, it felt very disappointing. The story felt extremely rushed leaving me underwhelmed with the characters and relationships given throughout. I believe more was needed within all parts of the story, we needed to be told more things not just shown.

Overall, I recommend giving this book a try, especially if you love fast paced books that are fae and sapphic!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review

I personally found this very cute. I've never been one for the heists but this was fun. The danger levels weren’t as high as I would have like but hey that’s ok.

This is definitely a friends to lovers slow burn that is just packed with mutual pining. This quest takes a lot of steps before we reach the main event and like most stories that involve the fae folk, nothing is as it seems.

This adorable young adult novel is written in third person and alternates POVs between Sybil and Esme. I really think these girls had the best of intentions and were really just trying to survive but obviously they didn’t always make the right decisions.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this wonderful book!!

This was an anthem to all things beautiful.

Beautiful writing. Beautiful women. Beautiful clothes. Beautiful environment and aesthetics.

If you wish to be swept away into a book combining quiet cozyness with glamorous aesthetics, the absinthe underground is the book for you. The relationship is to absolutely die for -A quiet cafe worker who enjoys plants ( particularly mind), cats, and whose favourite past time is sitting in her apartment fixing clocks or reading in her nightgown X her best friend who is the complete opposite, a troublemaking thief who seeks the highest pleasures of life. Both of these girls are bound together by a protectiveness for each other, and parents neither of whom wishes to speak about - each for different reasons-.

We have SUCH a great mix of the mortal world ( with its beautifully described clock tower apartment in which I would love nothing more than to live in, nightclubs, and beautiful posters to be stolen) and the Fae one ,( with enchanting forests, castles to be robbed, and NURSERIES FOR BABY DRAGONS-).

The magic in this book is woven in such a simple yet fabulous way. The reader doesn't get too much lore of the magic system, but rather the magical elements is woven throughout the story.

The author has somehow managed to make a tale about heists so comforting to read. As other reviews have mentioned this book relies a lot more on telling rather than showing which for the most part I didn't only just not mind, but actually quite liked. This method is quite a dangerous one, as it could be proven to be tedious to read, but the author has such a talent with words that it worked out VERY well for her.Some parts could use slightly more emotion but other than that this book was excellent.

The Absinthe Underground was quite an original story. I thought I would like it more than I really did. There was just something about the characters that were quite void to me. I could not find myself attached to them or the story. The love of it all was very excitement but once again, just didnt hit it for me. I still thoroughly enjoyed the storyline and the whole idea of a magical world meets real world and secret underground clubs.

This book has potential, and I really wanted to truly fall in love with it, especially as I adore friends-to-lovers and heists and fairy worlds, but it was a ‘like’ rather than a ‘love’ for me. The plot was predictable and relatively low stakes, although consistently entertaining and something I would recommend for someone beginning to dabble in the fantasy genre. It’s a very cosy and lighthearted read - it could be finished in one or two sittings. There is a sufficient amount of sapphic pining between best friends as promised, even if I wanted more depth to their relationship as friends over time.

However, I ultimately felt no connection with the plot or any of the characters as their descriptions and personalities felt very surface level, something which was aided by a writing style that felt as if it was consistently telling rather than showing. I did not feel any of the magic or whimsy I would crave from a fantasy, and the heist itself was very simple for something which was the main dramatic moment in the plot.

I rarely take formatting into consideration for arc reviews, but something about the images included in the version I have meant that a paragraph or so at the beginnings and ends of chapters were cut off or covered up, which meant I was missing out on parts of the story and it left me feeling confused almost every time it happened.

rating: 4.5/5 (rounded down to 4)
spice: 0/5 this is a clean romance

This book is a warm and cozy little treat and I enjoyed it very much. If you're looking for a fun read to curl up with over the course of a few days, and you like art deco, fae, queer romance and a good heist book then this one is for you.

Our main characters Sybil and Esme are both sweethearts. I really enjoyed the dual POV throughout this book, getting to see how both of them were feeling. Esme really resonated with me, her fidgeting, her desire to just enjoy the little things, her love of tinkering. I feel like Jamie painted a very genuine picture with her. Sybil is just as lovable, she's got a wild past and her tendency to cause trouble leads to some fun moments.

As for plot this is very much a heist story, with some fetch quest in the middle. I liked all of the elements that came together to make their heist possible, but I do agree with some other folks that there was too much ease. They did face some obstacles that surprised me, but overall things fell into place a bit too smoothly for my personal tastes.

One aspect of this book that really shined for me was the setting, it was very much giving art deco era Paris. It is such a fun period for a fae book. Jamie did a wonderful job of describing the all of the locations, the world sounded absolutely beautiful. Everything from the Absinthe Underground itself to their cozy little apartment, to Lucien's townhouse felt well designed and described with great details.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Jamie Pacton for the opportunity to review this ARC.

Enjoyed this fun, sapphic cozy fantasy! Related very much to Esme (personality, not background) and loved the nods to THE VERMILION EMPORIUM.

Whilst I initially really enjoyed the beginning of this book, I found that the rest of it fell through as the story progressed. It's not an entirely bad thing though I thought that the plot progressions and voice leaned more Middle Grade than Young Adult; The Absinthe Underground became very predictable about a quarter way in and just a little disappointing from then on. The premise was definitely an intriguing one, and with such a stunning cover, I do believe this story will find its audience—I just don't think it was a great fit for me. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this arc!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC!

I had high hopes for The Absinthe Underground - it promises a lot of classic and favorite tropes but in a setting that feels fresh and interesting. However, while the premise is solid, something about the execution (whether it's the pacing, the lack of depth to the writing, or the ‘tell don’t show’ vibes) falls short of fully realizing its potential. The narrative, while engaging at times, lacked the consistent momentum to keep me engaged every step of the way. It was an easy and predictable read that ultimately felt lacking. 2.5 rounded up.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Peachtree Teen for allowing me to read this early for review!

This was a super cute and short book with amazing vibes. While the plot and premise of the story are strong, the actual writing leaves you with a feeling something is missing. While I did enjoy the queer representation and the vibes of Art Nouveau posters, I ended up feeling very meh about the book.

big ups to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC 🤝🏼

it’s giving cozy! it’s giving best friends to lovers! it’s giving fae adventures! i loved every minute reading this and honestly couldn’t put it down. sure, there were some parts where i feel a little backstory would have made it work a lot better and the heist felt a little too easy? there wasn’t enough struggle or real problem solving to make it feel like this big, dangerous scheme.

but did i have a bad time reading it? not at all. i loved sybil and esme’s relationship and how they’re so in love with each other. i wish we got a little more lucien but maybe there will be a sequel? if there isn’t, i’m satisfied with a standalone.

anywho thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher! you’re a real one.

This is a cute, sapphic novella that I wish was a little more sophisticated in its plot. But that's ok, because if you're looking for something that is unapologetic in its slow-burn romance between friends, its Belle Epoque-Parisian-influenced human world and Celtic and folky fairy-tale fae world; and if the uncomplicated "good person is the actually bad person" element of the denouements doesn't bother you, then you'll love it.