House of Frank is a cozy fantasy about navigating grief, finding your place, and your worth. The characters are all quite likeable and the mystery of why the house is falling apart is interesting. That said, I’m not sure the pacing worked for me. As the story unravels, Saifa, the newcomer to Ash Gardens, learns how and why the other residents/employees came to Ash Gardens and why they stay. Given the plot of the book, it was inevitable we would learn the individual stories, and each story was lovely in their own way, but the way some were revealed felt forced. There were also times when Saifa’s insistence that her actions were right, even when those most impacted were telling her she was wrong, was frustrating. And the lack of character growth on this aspect even more so. Her growth in other ways was lovely to see and the purpose of Ash Gardens, and the way each character loved the Gardens as both their home and their place of work and as a place to create family and community was beautiful. Overall, it’s a nice read. I just wonder if it would have worked better as a series of interconnected short stories of duology where we could learn more about each character and the magic system of the world.

House of Frank by Kay Sinclaire
genre: fantasy
themes: grief, magic, queerness, healing, found family
release date: 15th October 2024

plot summary:
We follow Saika, a witch, who is on her way to plant her sisters ashes in a magical resting place „Ash Gardens“. But Saika is not ready to let go - and so she spends her time helping the host of Ash Gardens, a lovable furry creature called Frank, to keep everything together. But Saika has a secret and it lies heavy on her heart.

my opinion:
All the residents at Ash Gardens are so lovable and felt incredibly real to me. I was very immersed in the story and the writing style was very unique, as the reader sometimes gets addressed as our protagonist’s dead sister. Kay Sinclaire portrays grief like it really is: encompassing, heavy and difficult. Every character is complex and nuanced, and i enjoyed the (not always so) casual queerness completely. But it‘s great that the queer identity here is just a small part of our characters, they are much more than just gay or trans. They have a backstory, hopes and secrets. I loved this book wholeheartedly and would recommend it to everyone.

this arc was kindly gifted to me by @bindery_books and @netgalley
the above stated opinion is honest and completely my own.

I wanted to love this book. The atmosphere was great, and I could really feel the house. However, I take umbrage with the fact that a "found family" could be family if they refuse to talk to each other to this extent. The main character and love interest were so mean to each other and communicated so little in the resolution that it was hard to get behind. Frank somehow trusted no one about his memory issues. I liked the "vibes" but had difficulty connecting to the characters as it felt like most of the plot tension was built on lack of communication.

This hit a lot of hard topic involving death and grief, and yet managed to still feel like a cozy read with found family. The story is done with Saika describing events to her dead sister, so the format took a little to get used to. It is an excellent way of showing her state of mind, though, and showing the grieving she is going through. It does well at evoking emotions, and while I think there’s some things that didn’t need to be kept mysterious for. Others in the house, it was overall a good read.

Note: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t know how a book can delve into deeper topics like death, grief, Alzheimer’s and still remain super cozy and fantastical but this one nailed it.

Magic. Romance. Extremely heartfelt.

I loved this one and feel like it would be great on a reread and also on screen. Just lovely.

Thank you to netgalley and bindery books for an eARC

3.5 stars for this cozy fantasy story with grieving as a major theme throughout, and an LGBTQIA+ romance.

Saika is a music witch mourning the death of her sister. Fiona made her promise to see that her ashes were planted at the arboretum at Ash Gardens, where they will grow into something beautiful. Even after she arrives at Ash Gardens, Saika finds she is not yet ready to part with her sister's ashes, and she winds up staying on and helping out around the place. She gets to know the others employed there, including cherubs, an elf, a half-gargoyle, and a one-of-a-kind beast. It turns out they are all suffering their own losses, and develop relationships that allow them to help one another navigate through their grief.

This was nice story of love, loss, friendship, and healing. The range of characters was nice, although you only get to know a few of them beyond surface level. I wasn't really feeling the romance between our two lovebirds, personally--their interactions with one another were more irritating than anything, in my opinion, but it made for a sweet story. This is a slower-paced character driven tale, and though it takes place in a fantasy world, we are only shown this one specific part of it at Ash Gardens (with one day trip into the city). Potential readers should also know, the narration often veers into second person, as Saika addressing her departed sister. It's not like the entire book is written in second person point of view, but some people may be turned off even by a portion of it being so.

Now if I may grumble a little bit - when Saika reads that a dragon laying eggs means it's trying to start a family and explains this to others, and their response is, "I had no idea!'...what exactly was their understanding of how eggs work?! Also, this is another case of me being taken by surprise by the occasional F-word sprinkled throughout--cursing in books doesn't bother me (as long as it's not excessive), but was surprising in what otherwise seemed like such a wholesome story.

But overall this was a decent cozy, emotional yet hopeful read.

Thank you to Bindery Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

Thank you NetGalley & Ezeekat Press for this ARC in exchange for this honest review.

House of Frank is a cozy witch story...that is also a little boring. It's described as a "warm and hopeful story of a lonely witch consumed by grief who discovers a whimsical cast of characters in a magical arboretum" and I definitely think it delivers on the content. The whimsical, cozy sapphic witch story is definitely present. I don't want to be too negative because it isn't a terrible book. It's just slow, and at times the pace felt a little meandering. It didn't get truly interesting until around the last 30%. With that said, it is full of life with a diverse cast that really embraces the found family mentality, and I was very emotional at different points in the book. The author really does hit the nail on the head about grief.

I would recommend this for anyone who is into slower paced stories that are not plot centered, but more emotionally driven.

We are following a powerless witch named Saika who tried to save her dying sister by making a deal with death. Death being the trickster that he is, saved her sister from death for only 3 years and cursed Saika with hurried aging and lack of magic. Because of this, Saika's family has disowned her and forbade her from attending her sister's memorial. Knowing the will of his wife, her brother-in-law gave Saika her sister Fi's ashes and she set out to fulfill Fi's dying wish to be buried in a magical abortorium called Ash Gardens. When Saika arrives at the, she is welcomed by its owner, a mythical beast named Frank, whose deceased wife started the sanctuary. Seeing Saika struggle to let go of her sister, Frank offers her a role as one of the estate’s caretakers.

This story tackles grief, self-worth, and forgiveness beautifully inside a fantastical cozy world. A fellow reader said it perfectly. "We have found family goodness, featuring a healthy dose of cast diversity, wide and welcomed queer representation", and I am here for all of it!

This book gave me all of the feels, guaranteed 5 stars!

Thank you Netgalley, Bindery Books | Ezeekat Press, and Kay Synclaire for the ARC of this book. I am leaving my honest opinion voluntarily and without coercion.

This book starts out feeling a bit like Under the Whispering Door, which was a pleasant way to start. Main character Saika has been grieving the loss of her sister Fiona two years ago, and her magic hasn't worked properly since then. Fiona wanted to have her ashes planted at Ash Gardens, where ashes are planted and grow into colorful trees. Saika isn't as ready to let go of her sister in this way as she thought she was, and the owner of Ash Gardens, a beast named Frank, offers to let her stay until she's ready to go, with Saika helping out around the deteriorating house in the meantime.

It would have been easy for Synclaire to go the wise, all-knowing mentor approach with Frank, and I'm glad she didn't fall into that trope. As the book progresses, you realize that wouldn't really have been possible anyway. Other characters who round out the cast are two cherubs, a fairy, an architecture witch, and a nature half-witch. I loved the racial, socioeconomic, and sexual and gender diversity of these characters. I also adored the introduction of a dragon named Beelzebub, though she isn't a large part of the book.

While the storyline did keep me engaged, I didn't love it the way I was hoping I would. I wasn't as emotionally invested in the characters and their journeys as I could have been, resulting in the book feeling good but not great. There are times when Saika isn't likable, and I had a particular issue with the way she did something essentially for someone else's own good and seemed self-righteous about it, and I'm not sure she ever fully realizes that. Frank is also clearly experiencing some memory difficulties that for some reason no one comments on. There was a romance that developed between her and another character, and the initially unkind behavior of the love interest toward Saika was dismissed as "teasing." I would have liked a slower approach to the romance, and because there was a part of the book where Saika is just sort of waiting for a particular event to happen, it seems like there could have been room to develop that relationship more.

Overall, I did enjoy the novel, and I recommend it. It will probably especially resonate with readers who are dealing with grief. I will readily check out the next book that Kay Synclaire publishes because I'd like to see how she evolves as a writer. This book didn't quite live up to my expectations for it, but Synclaire shows creativity, and I'd like to see where she can take that. 3.5 stars.

This was a sweet and heartfelt story about grief and found family. To me, it lacked a bit of depth and the characters felt a little bit flat BUT it was absolutely worth the read ❤️

“I always wondered what a beast like me is destined to do… I believe I was born to love.”

Thank you to NetGalley and Bindery Books for the e-ARC of House Of Frank!

Content warnings, per the book (and thank you to Kay Synclaire for including them!): grief, death, mentions of death, the death of a child (off page), the mention of suicide (off page), minor ideation of suicide, and mental illness.

House of Frank is a cozy fantasy about grieving witches and other magical beings coming together to honor the burial requests of their loved ones and learn about healing, found family, and peace. There are a plethora of LGBTQIA+ characters including queer, trans, and aro characters, among others I may have missed. The feel of the story is reminiscent of The Whispering Door, but I found a fair amount of the dialogue and characterization underdeveloped. Still, there were wonderful, tender moments from start to finish and a plethora of enjoyable characters. I think it’s a good, if sad, found family read if you can handle the themes, and this is Synclaire’s first novel. I hope to see future work from them. It looks like more is upcoming; here’s the link to their author site showing future projects: https://www.kaysynclaire.com/bookprojects

3.5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me with an arc of this book. Wow! I went into this thinking I would like it, little did I know I would end up loving it! What a meaningful, cute, warm, and cozy read for the Fall season! This book also had a lot of depth to it and takes you through the process of grieving for many of the characters. It provides a found family, a sense of purpose, and Sapphic romance all while providing such a mystical ambiance inside the house of Frank. There's also a dragon! I really encourage everyone to pick this book up upon publication and enjoy as this book really tugged at my heart strings while also having a great time. I really look forward to reading more by this author!

A found family story about finding a way to move on after grief. Saika, a witch grieving her sister, comes to Ash Gardens to plant her sister in their magical arboretum. As she lives and works at the gardens while she builds the courage to do what she promised, she discovers that death is unavoidable and has to be reckoned with. But, she also finds a family of people when her own wasn't there when she needed them.

Here's the synopsis though it's kinda misleading

warm and hopeful story of a lonely witch consumed by grief who discovers a whimsical cast of characters in a magical arboretum—and the healing power of found family.

Powerless witch Saika is ready to enact her sister’s final to plant her remains at the famed Ash Gardens. When Saika arrives at the always-stormy sanctuary, she is welcomed by its owner, an enormous, knit-cardiganed mythical beast named Frank, who offers her a role as one of the estate’s caretakers.

Overcome with grief, Saika accepts, desperate to put off her final farewell to her sister. But the work requires a witch with intrinsic power, and Saika’s been disconnected from her magic since her sister’s death two years prior. Saika gets by at the sanctuary using a fragment of a fallen star to cast enchantments—while hiding the embarrassing truth about herself.

As Saika works harder in avoidance of her pain, she learns more about Frank, the decaying house at Ash Gardens, and the lives of the motley staff, including bickering twin cherubs, a mute ghost, a cantankerous elf, and an irritating half witch, among others. Over time, she rediscovers what it means to love and be wholly loved and how to allow her joy and grief to coexist. Warm and inventive, House of Frank is a stirring portrait of the ache of loss and the healing embrace of love.

House Of Frank combines the magic of fantasy with the overwhelming feelings of grief.

A music witch sets out to fulfill a promise made to her dying sister to bury her ashes in a magical arboretum. Upon arriving she meets a diverse cast of characters and slowly starts to get to know them and how they came to be at The House Of Frank. Along the way as she is coming to terms with the loss of her sister she finds that she is not the only one with secrets.

If you are a fan of found family, queer romance and magical beings this is the book for you.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

House of Frank by Kay Synclaire is a cozy fantasy that explores the grief through a magical arboretum where you may plant your loved ones' ashes. As someone who has recently lost someone near and dear to my heart, I was a little worried jumping into this book. However, I felt that the magic and fantasy elements of this book help balanced all the grief and loss that our cast of character were working through. I did not feel that the characters were ever so distraught or upset that I needed to step away from the book. I thought there was a good balance for the feelings these characters were working through, and the complicated choices they made due to the loss.

The characters in House of Frank were adorable. I enjoyed getting to know each of them better as the story went along, and discover how they ended up at the house. Your girl loves a found family, and this little family was just what the doctor ordered!

I ended up rating this book 4.75 stars. The primary reason for this rating was the narrators voice in the beginning of the novel. The author jumped from second person to third person in the very beginning and it threw me off. I understood what the author was trying to do with this narrative perspective, but it jarred me. I also just found the voice of the main character took a few chapters to really find the right cadence.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!

DNF @ 45%

I really, really, wanted to like this book, but unfortunately, this is just not for me.

My biggest gripes are 1) the writing style, 2) the character writing, 3) the romance and 4) the lack of cozy vibes.

1) The sentences are all very short. The length of each sentence is roughly like this. There are many sentences that could be joined together with commas, but they are not. This makes the writing feel disjointed. The flow of the narrative is also disrupted. Maybe this is not an issue for other readers, but this is a big issue for me. There are also way too many dialogue tags, enough that I kept noticing them. This book just feels very unedited overall.

2) Some of the MC's dialogue and decisions make no sense, like one moment she's all earnest and determined to do her part to help Frank! And the next moment she's avoiding her assigned work and questioning Frank's decisions. Not to mention the side characters, who range from "just there" to annoying. They also don't get any amount of depth. Maybe this changes later on in the book, but as it is, there is not enough to make me care about any of them. These characters don't seem to be particularly fond of each other either. More like roommates forced to put up with each other than any sort of found family.

3) The romance grated on my nerves. The MC's love interest picks on her constantly, even after the MC makes it clear that she does not like it (sorry I didn't realise this was a bully romance!) and it's brushed off as "oh I'm just like this to everyone". If it was not mentioned that the MC finds her attractive, I would have thought she was some sort of antagonist the MC had to overcome.

4) This book is pitched as cozy fantasy. While it is definitely fantasy, this book is NOT cozy. The house is falling into disrepair because it's constantly raining and storming and the characters are worrying about money and how to fix things. Their asses are NOT feeling cozy! The MC drinks hot tea though, so I guess that hits all the requirements to be cozy fantasy /s

Overall, a promising concept lacking in execution.

Saika finally has to fulfill the promise she made to her dying sister: to bury her in Ash Gardens, a place where the ashes of the dead aren't just layed in the ground, but bound to a tree that will grow and thrive forever. It's a beautiful resting place, and Saika has taken her sweet time with gathering up the courage to even travel to Ash Gardens. But when Frank, the magical creature who founded the place with his deceased wife, opens the door for her, she can't let go of her sister just yet, so she takes on a role at the house; as a music witch, she will play for the guests burying their loved ones. The other people living and working there are great; Frank, two more witches, a fairy, a ghosts an elf and two cherubs. But no one knows her secret and the source of her magic, and Saika desperately wants to keep these things hidden.
This was such a lovely read. The gentle way this book deals with grief and even it's ugly sides was very comforting, the characters all three-dimensional and Saikas growth through and with grief and her mistakes was lovely to witness. It reminded me a lot of Howl's Moving Castle, the whimsy and magic and love for details were absolutely heartwarming. The reveals and twists were well placed and surprising (enough) so that it felt like a suspenseful story without uprooting all the worldbuilding. I would even call this a cozy book, even with the heavy themes and character flaws. Will definitely pick up another book by Kay Synclaire.

This is what my heart was hoping for from House in the Cerulean Sea but TJ Klune is instead an anti-Indgenous weirdo.... cozy witchy whimsy found family and wholesome vibes I could just cry.

4.5
House of Frank is a cozy fantasy about grief and loss, with a cast of unique characters, all endearing in their own ways. All of that delivered with a somewhat strange type of prose that combines 1st person and 2nd person. The plot of the book is nothing special, as is the case with many cozy fantasy books out there, but it works, and the ending is a very satisfying (and emotional) one, if there's one complaint about this book it's the fact that some plot developments can feel a bit contrived and too convenient, but it's not that big of a deal for a book so focused on the characters (instead of the plot).
Not all of the characters in the ensemble are equally compelling, some of them are just comic relief, but most of them are three dimensional characters that feel like real people, with their own unique quirks and traits. the characters are definitely the main stars of the show here, which is why, the relationships in the book are also excellently done. There are a couple of different relationships here, and they're very different from each other, but all of them are so good. This book is perfect for anyone looking for a compelling character-centric fantasy that tackles themes like founs family and grief.