This fought hard to keep my attention but it just wasn't there for me. I didn't find myself particularly attached to the characters. They and the story didn't feel tangible enough for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of this book.

This book got better as it progressed through the story. The atmosphere is very gothic and has a big theme of patriarchy throughout and shows how women were thought of by men in the early 20th century. I thought the mystery was good and liked that the environment was confined to one place.

A big thank you to RB Media and Net Galley for allowing me to listen to an advanced copy of the audio book.

All I can think is Wow!

I know that this was supposed to be a mystery but it felt more like a dark story with mysterious elements.

The women in this book were so unbelievably interesting. Anna was a complex character that just kept evolving through out the story. You start off with thinking that she is just a good wife, but there is so much more to her past. The same with Stella you think she is just an eccentric lonely drunk that does not like her husband but she was so much more.

This book gave off the same vibes as the Maidens by Alex Michaelides. Anna Seemed broken like Mariana. Anna had though she had hurt and lost someone close to her, but her memory became distorted because so many things had happened to her.

Side note: can we talk about the fact that so many people in the 1900s went to sanitoriums all the time? Like it seems to be a crazy amount, or I am just reading a lot of similar books.

The set up of the island, the influenza pandemic, and the missing girls sure did make this book have a very eerie vibe. While they were waiting to get on the boat to get to the island I was thinking of the Series of Unfortunate events movie. Everything dark and bleak, and all the characters wear dark drab colors.

The flow of the story was great. Most of it was predictable after you realized that Anna wasn't actually crazy like everyone thought she was.
It also ended. There was no open ended question, it was just an ending and a good one at that.

It is really nice to see a writer has still got it even though they have not published a book in many years.

King Nyx by Kirsten Bakis drew me in when I did not initially expect it to. We meet Anna Fort, supportive wife to quirky Charles. Charles is studying strange meteorological occurrences with supposed scientific backing. Wealthy Claude Arkel is now sponsoring the couple in an attempt to support Charles' work. While on the secluded island, Anna learns of missing girls and tries to help.

I loved how Anna began to question her sanity. Creepy and gothic, the ending was espectially wonderful. Bahni Turpin is a goddess, and her narration was spectacular. Thank you so much to @netgalley for the chance to review this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

It is 1918 Anna and her husband Charles are at the end of their rope financially when a mysterious benefactor invites them to his island for the winter so that Charles can work on his writing and hopefully be inspired by the reclusive millionaire. Anna insists on bringing her 2 favorite birds with her despite the harsh weather conditions they will face in getting there. Things start to get a bit suspicious when they arrive in the town across the water from the island. 2 women approach the couple asking them to sign a petition about the mysterious circumstances of young women on the island. Anna and Charles push through, but the spark of wariness has been lit inside Anna. She has her own past that gives her reason to be suspicious of nefarious tidings.

I did not know what to expect from this book but I was oh so pleasantly surprised. I thought that the characters were well developed and others are intentionally vague. I enjoyed the mystery and suspicion throughout the story. I would highly recommend this book for old-fashioned mystery lovers and anyone who enjoys piecing a puzzle together throughout the story.

This is one of those books that's nearly impossible for me to review. Not because I don't want to but simply because I just don't know how. It's such a strange and ... indescribable ... book that a review is nearly meaningless.

I can't tell you the things I loved about the book because they'll be spoilers, and I can't really tell you the (VERY FEW) things I didn't like about it for the same reason.

Let me just say that if you enjoy a good gothic horror/thriller, then you'll probably appreciate this book. My only real complaint with it -- without getting into too much detail -- is that the ending could have been stronger.

Still, it's easily a four-star book that I would gladly recommend to people who enjoy these kinds of things.

As for the audio component, it was great. The narrator was excellent and the pacing was perfect. Actually, I'd go so far as to say that this narrator was BORN to narrate this book. Haha. Her sweet, unassuming "Mrs. Manners" voice was perfect for narrating what turns out to be a dark and somewhat surprisingly twisted tale.

*The gothic story King Nyx offers haunting imagery, sinister mysteries, unreliable memories, resurfacing past trauma, missing persons, unexplained deaths, and a children's fairy tale gone awry.*

Anna Fort has many reservations about her husband's outlandish theories, but she dutifully assists him with his research into unexplained meteorological phenomena in the hopes that his in-progress book will eventually be publishable--and will allow them to drag themselves out of poverty. Once Charles's family's house maid, Anna knows she is the reason he gave up his inheritance and any relationship with his cruel father.

So when a reclusive, wealthy man invites Charles to spend the winter of 1918 on his remote, cold, private island writing his book, Anna is supportive and accompanies him.

But a strange feeling pervades everything on the island. Their host is absent, and while they understand being required to isolate and quarantine to prevent the spread of the deadly flu, many odd occurrences and sinister-feeling goings-on are making Anna wonder if they should ever have come--and if it's even possible to escape.

Meanwhile, flashes of her past seem to be resurfacing on this strange island, the other couple staying nearby seem to have dark secrets, the rumors they had heard on the mainland of missing young girls seem to possibly be true, someone has turned up dead--and they still haven't even seen their host.

The imagery of King Nyx is striking, with (oddly specific and elaborate) automatons, gas masks, looming, mysterious buildings, and more. The tie-in to King Nyx for Anna seems beyond possibility, and the other links to her past seem far-fetched, until she realizes that all of the events on the island seem to be the mastermind of an unhinged puppet master.

Meanwhile mysteries from Anna's experiences in the Fort household seem held together by crucial gaps in memory, and the framework is beginning to fall apart.

I found myself wishing the various aspects of the story had held together a little more cohesively, but I enjoyed the dark, gothic tale of King Nyx and each of its elements, including the caged-bird metaphors, as well as the denouement.

I listened to King Nyx as an audiobook.

I received an audiobook version of King Nyx courtesy of NetGalley and RB Media, Recorded Books.

Kirsten Bakis is also the author of Lives of the Monster Dogs, a book I'd like to read.

This was a total mess and I should have DNFed. I know this will be for someone but it wasn’t for me! I should have known as a non-thriller person, but I just couldn’t get into the style of this one and suspend my disbelief.

An unusual tale about a woman desperate to support her husband and his quirky ideas about reality for he is the one who saved her from her delusions. Set in the early 1900’s, this is the tale of a woman struggling to piece together reality when she cannot trust her herself to tell the difference between reality and delusion. It is a mystery set on a secluded private island owned by an eccentric wealthy man who runs a reformatory school for girls but that may not be his real intention. Some of the girls have gone missing.

A dark and poetic read (listen) that was both pleasant and disturbing. I particularly loved our protagonist’s passion for birds and what it means to keep them in her care.

This was my first time reading a gothic mystery and I loved it. It’s also the first read for this author and I will definitely be checking out their other book. The descriptive writing style and the narrators ability to bring the characters to life, really made me fall into this book.

This is a psychological thriller/mystery that had a good premise, but the execution of the story was just off for me. It was a lot of work to stay engaged. I felt like so many things were told in roundabout ways that I couldn’t tell what was true or what was in the main character’s imagination/memories.

The MC, Anna, is very naive. When she was a young woman that was understandable, but in her late 40s it was odd. Especially since she was also portrayed as very intelligent, but hiding it behind her “wifely duties.” And the obsession with her birds….not sure why it bothered me, but it was too much.

However, on a positive note, the descriptive writing was done really well, and the narrator was easy to listen to. For these reasons, I’m going to stay middle-of-the-road for this review and give it three stars. I’m not personally going to reread it, but if slow, gothic-style, mind-twisting thrillers with a big fem rights focus sounds appealing, then this might be for you. Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Beginning is a bit slow until I got use to the rhythm of the story. I enjoyed the Victorian gothic vibe with the modern link to women and changing gender roles in the 20th century. Interesting murder mystery similar to Agatha Christie. I enjoyed the audio production and narration.

Rich in descriptions and well-plotted, this atmospheric novel delivers a suspenseful and satisfying story. An invitation from a reclusive billionaire, an estate on a remote island, missing girls, sanitoriums, and the quasi-scientific study of the unexplained are all part of this dark and moody gothic novel set in the early 1900s.

Told from a woman’s point of view, the novel centers around the toxic behavior of men with too much power and too little accountability. How the women and girls overcome tradition, superstition, and gaslighting makes for a compelling read.

My thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the audiobook in exchange for this honest review.

This was an amazing read! I enjoyed this thoroughly. There were so many twists and turns! It gives a good portrayal of how low women were thought of in the early 1900’s. There was so much shock value, I don’t think I will forget this any time soon. The gaslighting from male characters was absolutely insane. Stella was my favorite but Anna was amazing as well. The narrator was perfect with male and female voices.

This literary fiction, and a great one at that - takes place on a remote island owned by a wealthy man. 2 couples are invited to visit him so that they can complete their work and get it published under a prominent banner name. But the island is filled with mysteries and shadows lurking in the dark. This gothic setting in a contemporary world buildup creates a mystifying feel about the story.

I enjoyed the descriptive writing style of the author which was just enough for you to capture the essence of the place but not overwhelm you by the details. The mysteries don't really point you to a single angle that keeps you pondering on the antagonist. The climax piqued my attention the most with a lot of parallel activities. The cover does give you a spooky vibe, though it is all on the psychological side. There is one element of speculative fiction in here too that added the foggy layer to the story, leaving readers usually unsure about the occurrences.

An enjoyable read, one that I would like to own too. Thank you @netgalley @recordedbooks @w.w.norton and @kirstenbakis for the ALC.
Genre: #literaryfiction #psychological
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️

This is a perfect novel to reach for when trying to rile up your feminist friends, or even your slightly sympathetic to the feminist cause friends. This story highlights the overall mental and physical health trap the early 1900s was for women in the United States. Our FMC, Anna, is generally meek and quick to please to a fault. She does make some subtle brave choices as the story evolves, but it takes a lot for her to get there. Docile is not my favorite MC personality. Mental health becomes a core concept in the book. The bulk of the interesting factors are all in the last 20% or so.

Overall, I think this is a decent, low excitement book. Narration of the audiobook was solid. The narrator does not emote excessively; it matches the low excitement effect of the book well. The writing felt well thought out. It just isn’t going to be a top recommendation from me except for specific readers.

audiobook ARC - thank you netgalley, Kirsten Bakis, and RB media

To me this was definitely a psychological thriller with some good twists and turns and finished with a nice bow at the end! The author kept you interested and wanting to know what happened next!
I listened to the audio version and the voice actress took me a minute to get used to!

King Nyx by Kirsten Bakis

Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for the audiobook of King Nyx

Narrated by Bahni Turpin
who always does a superb reading and this is done brilliantly.

A complex gothic noir with a dreamlike setting and slow burn reveals. Charles Hoy Fort, was the most famous “anomalist” of the early twentieth century.

In November 1918, Annie and her husband, Charles receives a mysterious invitation from the reclusive and eccentric millionaire, Claude Arkel, to spend the winter at his secluded island mansion in the Thousand Islands of upstate New York. There Charles can finish his book, “The Book of the Damned” while Annie keeps him company. Another couple, Frank and Stella are invited there too. The two women are to keep themselves occupied while their husbands are working. So begins this strange, creepy and mysterious read.

Who is Mr. Arkel and who are the three girls missing from the mansion and why? Shadows, dreams or hallucinations Annie intends to find the answers to all these questions.

King Nyx is a gothic mystery thriller set on an island in 1918. It's also a contemporary feminist tale with the main character a woman who works to solve the mystery of the missing girls. A very wealthy man owns the island and a huge mansion on it. He invites two couples to three island and then quarantines them in little cabins far from the main house in order to avoid anyone catching the Spanish Flu.

Target Age - adults
Cliffhanger? No
Will I read again? Maybe
Recommended for? Historical thriller lovers

Characters 4/5
I liked the main character. Anna Fort
Writing 5/5
Plot 5/5
Pacing 5/5
Unputdownability 5/5
Enjoyment 3/5 it was pretty creepy for me
Narration - 5/5 Bahni Turpin did an excellent job performing this story.

Thank you to Netgalley and RB Media for providing me with the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I picked this for the narrator. I love her.
I really loved the protagonist in this one. Ann is relatable and sweet. I really worried about her birds. I also love Charlie. I bet he would be fun to talk to.
I absolutely love the weirdness of this book. Frank and Stella are also crazy and the four of them have a whole thing there on the island.
Throughout this entire book I was unable to predict a single thing.