The Monstrous Kind has a serpentine twists and turns that with keep you engaged .
It has Great Banter with a layer of Charm and wit which off sets the dark side to the story .
If your a Fans of Jane Austen-inspired stories with a gothic romances you will like this debut novel.

For fans of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies!
In an alternate reality of regency-era London, aristocratic Merrick is the daughter of a Manor Lord - families chosen because of their immunity to the fog that surrounds the countryside and the monsters who inhabit it. Unfortunately, her father has declared her sister Essie as his heir, so it's now Merrick's job to marry and secure her future. But just as Merrick debuts in London's social circles, her father dies unexpectedly and Merrick has to return for Essie's ascension to Manor Lord. But the family estate seems besieged with bad luck and their position in the Lord's hierarchy becomes unstable.
A great historical romantasy!

“Power, I am learning, dulls the lines of good and evil until they are nothing but a blur.”

Thank you netgalley and delacorte press for the gifted arc!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✨love triangle
✨multiple villains
✨twisty plot

This book was such a surprise to me! I love a good dark fantasy, and this had such a fun twist on it! The writing is outstanding with gorgeous, poetic prose similar to Sarah A. Parker and Rachel Gillig.

I really loved this world! I really enjoyed seeing the regency setting mixed with paranormal and horror elementals. I love a book with political intrigue, so this definitely hooked me!

The plot was CRAZY! There were so many turns and secrets revealed, that only led to more questions. It was so creepy and had my heart pounding 🤭

Our FMC, Merrick, is Archdaughter of the Darling manor. She spent her life fighting for a chance at becoming heir to the manor, leading to a poor relationship with her sister. I think Merrick has a lot of depth to her character! She knows what she needs to do to survive in this world and remains cunning and sharp throughout the book. She is quite naive, but she is young so it’s expected!

“I believe your father decided a very long time ago that your sister would be his weapon, and you his jewel.”

The character depth in our side characters was so outstanding to me. There are so many secrets in this world and it feels like everyone is hiding their true self behind a mask.

I will say that I definitely don’t believe this is a romantasy. The romance is definitely a subplot, but I do think it’ll develop further as the series goes on! The little love triangle was so fun though, and had me screaming at the FMC to pick the good guy (you’ll know 😌).

“My pride is gone, Merrick; I will beg you if I must. I… I am afraid of what it will do to me, leaving you.”

I do think this had potential to be a 5 star read for me, but there were a few points I felt the plot lagged slightly and the pacing was slightly off.

I've just finished this book, and I am OBSESSED. It's not at all what I expected, and I am so glad. I definitely took "inspired by Sense and Sensibility" to mean that this would be a dark romantasy retelling of S&S. It is not. There are slight influences in that there are characters one might trace back to Elinor, Marianne, and Colonel Brandon, and that this is supposed to be Regency? but the similarities end there. Actually, in terms of vibes, I would much rather put Pride and Prejudice and Zombies as a comp, though it's maybe a decade too old to be used. This is an AU England, and I kept forgetting that it was supposed to be Regency-ish but that did not detract.

So here's how I would describe this plot: "Long ago, a deadly fog came to England, bringing death and monsters that are kind of like fog zombies? There are a few families who were immune to the fog, so they are now the manor lords of each county, to which commoners pay taxes in exchange for safety. Merrick (the Marianne character) is in London, doing her best to fulfill her role and marry well. But when her father suddenly dies and her sister Essie (the Elinor character) calls her home, she quickly learns that something is going wrong. Her father's death was weird, the zombies are invading more, and Essie is clearly afraid of something in the house. Marianne must team up with her family's sentry, Killian Brandon (obviously a Colonel Brandon character) to investigate."

This is a YA gothic novel with vibes, an innocent maiden, monsters, and a conspiracy. I was completely surprised by the big reveal, and I really hope that we're going to get a sequel so I can find out what happens next. Some of my favorite elements would be a bit too spoilery for a review of a book that hasn't come out yet, but nevertheless, this had some of my favorite fantasy elements. I just loved the mystery, and I am excited for the cosplay opportunities that can come from this. Now we can fight zombies in Regency gowns like a Bennet or a Darling.

Apparently this is a debut, which hopefully means that we will get many more wonderful fantasies from this author in the future. I will definitely buy a copy of this book and would recommend it to my friends who love reading about Regency era monsters.

Thank you to Netgalley and Randomhouse/Delacorte for an excellent e-ARC.

I enjoyed! Some of the pacing was odd. It had a strong and interesting start, but then there was a lot of world building that didnt really actually come into play and some immediate action that could have been fleshed out a little more. I enjoyed the sister dynamics and overall setting. Interested to read whats next!

The Monstrous Kind by Lydia Gregovic was a delight to read. You have a ghostly enemy that doesn’t get too much “air time”, and a female main character who is neither obnoxious or overly talented in every aspect of life.

A troubled relationship between sisters
Initial buds of romance (no spice)
No lengthy internal monologues
Beginnings of world building
Delectable ending to lead into a sequel

Thank you NetGalley, Lydia Gregovic, and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I probably shouldn't admit this but I never read "Sense & Sensibility" so any inspiration, allusion or connection to that story was lost on me when reading "The Monstrous Kind". With that being said, I thought the concept was interesting and unique. The first quarter or so was definitely intriguing with the mysterious fog, magical immunity within the lords' bloodlines and zombie-like monsters set against the backdrop of regency England. Watching a socialite focused on securing a match try to solve the mysteries plaguing her realm was exciting. The worldbuilding was engaging and easy to follow.

However, the story started to lose itself. The book started off with a rundown of the 12 manors who rule, but most of them didn't even come into play so it felt like a lot of unnecessary worldbuilding. The Phantoms, which have been threatening the lands for over a century, weren't that present within the story overall. A lot of the scenes just end and the story picks up a few hours/days later without really following through. It made the flow of the narrative feel disjointed and jumpy. And lastly, Merrick was a hard FMC to like because of all the hasty and naive decisions she made throughout the story.

While the plot was predictable overall, it didn't take away from my enjoyment. As a young adult novel, it worked. This would be a decent choice if you're looking for an easy gothic historical read!

I was looking for something to bridge my bridgerton withdraw and still have a fantasy element to it. I was not expecting a mystery as well! This book is one I will be purchasing for my shelves and looking forward to the next. I will definitely be recommending this one to friends.

Wonderfully written and really draws you in. I can see people that loved series like the selection and luxe really enjoying this as an adult. The slow burn throughout is enjoyable as well.

This was a lot of fun and very interesting.. it had the morbid gothic setting with the creepy evil borders and the competing lords. I loved the sister dynamic and the plot twist for them. I also really like both Ames and Killian they are fun characters and Killian is more unique than the typical romance interest we see. Overall i. Am excited to see how the story continues and what will happen next now that the big secret is out and that everyone is back with their families.

4.5⭐️

Anyone looking for gothic vibes, subplot romance, scheming, & political intrigue? Yes? Ok go read ‘The Monstrous Kind’ now!

I truly believe if you set out to write a gothic tale you need to have very flowery writing. I think Lydia Gregovic does an absolute fantastic job at it. For a debut book, this was well done. I think maybe the pacing could have been a tiny bit better but nothing that took away from the enjoyment of the book.

Heads down I think subplot romances always work the best. This book did just the right amount and I loved it! Be warned if you are thinking this book is a romance book, it is not.

The storyline did a great job of keeping you immersed. I’ll I could think about was how much I wanted to read it! I guessed a few of the plot twist but was pleasantly surprised by one of them! I love when a book catches me off guard.

I thought the England world with fantasy elements was set up great. I wasn’t confused and didn’t feel like there was info dumping. I would like to see more of the whole political system tho!

Overall a very satisfying book that I cannot wait to get a physical copy of!

Thank you NetGalley & Random House Children’s for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one was a really interesting mix of gothic and regency mystery. It was a bit slow in pacing but overall was really good.

While the presence of this book is incredible, I found that the writing style just wasn't for me. That doesn't mean it was bad at all, as I think this book is actually extremely well written! It's just my personal preference.

I thought this book was well written and I enjoyed the more scary/creepy aspect of it. I personally didn’t enjoy the political side of it when it started really going on about the manors and vessels. Towards the end I was ready for it to be over. I did like the unexpected twist at the end.

4/5 Stars

This book isn’t for everyone, but if it’s for you then it’s FOR YOU. In other words, there may be some who won’t enjoy this novel, but those who do will love it to the end of the earth and back. This story is a blend between Jane Austen novels, One Dark Window and zombies (yes, zombies though in this setting they’re called “phantoms”).

I won’t go in depth on my summary of the story as I believe it is better to go in blind and simply experience the storytelling that is The Monstrous Kind. I will, however, comment on the characters as I found that to be the most interesting aspect of all.

Sometimes in period retelling or even period originals, the personalities of characters fall flat. Not only do the characters all fall into the same archetypes, but I just really struggle to care about them. Fortunately, that was not the case in this novel. Nearly immediately I was drawn into Merrick’s (our FMC) world. Not only was I interested in who she would choose but in the outcome for her future as well. In fact, I cared about every character from Merrick’s sister, to her guard, to her stern mother figure in Cressida, I wanted to learn more about every character.

Not only does this author develop dimensional characters, Gregovic threads an interesting plot into a stunning world. The magic system, while not explicitly explained, was breathtaking in the sense that I would go from intrigued to overwhelmed alongside the characters. Furthermore, Gregovic utilizes beautiful language throughout this novel to illustrate every image. My one concern/possible complaint was that at times the language was too heavy. As a whole, however, I greatly enjoyed this read.

I would classify this novel as YA, with minimal spice (but such wonderful tension!). I would highly recommend to fans of One Dark Window, A Study in Drowning, and Jane Austen novels.

I love a good Sense and Sensibility retelling! It also had A Study in Drowning vibes. I enjoyed it very much. Monstrous Kind was a little slow to start but about 25-30% of the way in picked up and from there it was amazing and difficult to put down.

I was just drawn into this story and I just couldn’t get enough of it. I was so disappointed to turn the last page and I immediately wanted more. I can’t wait to see what's next from this author.

After the death of her father, Merrick is summoned to her home, Norland House. Upon arrival she finds her sister in a state unlike herself and unexpected guests as well. Alongside that, there are holes in the borders, allowing phantoms to come in, and the fires are not doing well to hold them back. When the world seems untrustworthy and against her, will Merrick be able to save Norland house and find a husband?

This was a fun read, I enjoyed it quite a bit. There were a few times Merrick annoyed me with the way she reacted to certain situations and people and the choices she made, but given her age, I suppose some of them make sense. Despite that though I still found myself shaking my head at her.

I’m glad she managed to evolve a bit at the end. She stayed pretty strong throughout the story though, I liked how well she knew how to use her weapons against the phantoms. Regardless of her decisions too, she was pretty smart and it was interesting reading along as she unraveled different truths.

If you enjoy a good story with a bit of action, discovery, monsters and a decent bit of romance, I recommend giving this book a chance!

Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the chance to read an arc of this atmospheric read.

This was a fun dark fantasy/paranormal read. The relationship between the sisters is just so heartwarming and I just loved reading about them and their dynamics. As a mainly horror reader, this was quite an interesting take on monsters and I just have to say I truly liked it. It was cool, atmospheric and felt like a fever dream. Highly recommend!

This is so unique! It’s based on Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility”, but it veers off into its own territory right from the beginning. A mist has begun to take over England, only held at bay through strategically placed lanterns, which sentries patrol nightly.

Merrick Darling is on her way back to her Manor upon learning of her father’s death. Only the Manorborn are immune to the mist’s effects—everyone else is transformed into Phantoms, killing machines driven by an insatiable hunger for human flesh.

Something’s wrong with Darling Manor. Who can be trusted? Can Merrick figure out who is a true ally in time to save the estate?

Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press. I am writing this review voluntarily.

This book was a bit of a slow start but once it hit about 30% it definitely picked up and I couldn't put it down. I loved the writing style, the descriptive language the author used was beautiful and made envisioning the scenes so much easier for me.

I love mystery books and this book was the perfect mixture of mystery and gothic fantasy. Between the setting of a creepy manor with a transforming mist surrounding it, to the monstrous Phantoms that cause terror.

Though I thought the end was bouncing a bit all over the place at times, I felt it all came together in the end. I loved Merrick, seeing her come back home and realizing not everything was as it seemed and trying to find the truth and navigating politics along the way.