Emily J. Taylor’s "The Otherwhere Post" is a mesmerizing dark fantasy novel that plunges readers into a world filled with secrets, magic, and danger. The story revolves around Maeve Abenthy, a young woman living under a false identity since her father, a renowned scriptomancer, was accused of a heinous crime seven years ago. When Maeve receives a mysterious letter suggesting her father’s innocence, she embarks on a perilous journey to uncover the truth, posing as an apprentice at the enigmatic Otherwhere Post.

From the very first page, Taylor’s storytelling prowess is evident. Her world-building is both intricate and immersive, painting a vivid picture of a society where scriptomancy (magic that is wielded through writing) is both revered and feared. The Otherwhere Post, a place where letters and packages travel across dimensions and realities, serves as a fascinating backdrop for the unfolding mystery. Taylor’s detailed descriptions of this magical postal service and its operations are both imaginative and captivating, making the reader feel as though they’ve stepped into a world brimming with possibility and peril.

Maeve is a compelling protagonist, driven by a deep need to clear her father’s name and uncover the truth. Her determination and resilience make her a character that readers can root for, even as she navigates the treacherous waters of deceit and danger. Throughout the novel, Maeve’s internal struggles and growth are portrayed with nuance and depth. Her journey is not just a quest for the truth, but also a journey of self-discovery, as she grapples with her own identity and the legacy of her father’s alleged crimes.

The supporting characters in "The Otherwhere Post" are equally well-crafted. From the enigmatic and formidable Postmaster to the fellow apprentices, each character adds depth and intrigue to the story. Their interactions with Maeve highlight the complexities of trust, loyalty, and betrayal, and each character’s backstory is woven seamlessly into the narrative. Taylor excels at creating characters that are multifaceted and relatable, ensuring that readers are invested in their fates.

One of the novel’s strengths is its exploration of the moral and ethical implications of magic. Scriptomancy, the ability to manipulate reality through writing, is a powerful and dangerous tool. Taylor delves into the darker aspects of this magic, raising questions about its use and abuse. Maeve’s investigation into her father’s past reveals a web of corruption and power struggles, and the novel doesn’t shy away from the darker side of human nature. This moral complexity adds depth to the story and makes it a thought-provoking read.

The plot of "The Otherwhere Post" is tightly woven and expertly paced. Taylor balances moments of high tension and action with quieter, introspective scenes, creating a narrative that is both gripping and emotionally resonant. The mystery of Maeve’s father’s innocence is at the heart of the story, but the novel is enriched by various subplots and character arcs. Each revelation and twist is carefully crafted, keeping readers on the edge of their seats and eager to uncover the next piece of the puzzle.

Taylor’s writing is both lyrical and engaging. Her prose is filled with vivid imagery and evocative descriptions, bringing the world of the Otherwhere Post to life. The dialogue is natural and reflective of the characters’ personalities, adding authenticity to their interactions. Taylor’s ability to create atmosphere and tension is particularly noteworthy, making "The Otherwhere Post" a compelling and immersive read.

"The Otherwhere Post" by Emily J. Taylor is a masterful dark fantasy novel that combines mystery, magic, and richly developed characters. It is a story about the search for truth and the power of resilience in the face of adversity. With its intricate world-building, complex moral questions, and engaging narrative, it is a must-read for fans of fantasy and mystery alike.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Penguin Young Readers Group for a temporary e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Emily J. Taylor crafted an enchanting story in The Otherwhere Post. The fiery main character is a standout, bursting with personality and determination, making every page exciting to read. The story is beautifully written, seamlessly blending magic and mystery into a captivating tale. It really pulled me in and kept me guessing until the very end. Fans of magical adventures will love this and I would highly recommend.

➸ 5 stars

“A letter can become an extension of your soul if you will it, a trapped part of you that shakes loose whenever someone reads your words.”

— thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the advanced readers copy!

𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈: 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒉𝒆𝒄𝒚 - 𝒕𝒂𝒚𝒍𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒘𝒊𝒇𝒕

𓍢🪶 enchanted letters
𓍢🪶 dark academia vibes
𓍢🪶 autumn in edinburgh inspired setting
𓍢🪶 slow burn romance
𓍢🪶 dangerous writing magic
𓍢🪶 a university spanning 3 worlds

okay wow… I LOVED THIS BOOK!! immediately from the start i was so intrigued by the worlds and everything that happened in the past; even more intrigued by the magic! it was unlike anything i’ve seen and i loved learning about how it all works! i would’ve loved to have seen more about all the different types as well, but our fmc is trapped in a mystery herself that had me questioning everything and suspecting everyone! just when i thought i had everything figured out, no, i didnt!

“Her life often left like a violent ocean tossing her about, but writing gave her a foothold. A moment to catch her breath.”

➺ maeve abenthy - she is such a strong character given everything she went through and how she goes about her life; despite all of that, she’s determined, fierce, an sassy when she needs to! i loved her character development and seeing her slowly start to trust was amazing!

“He’d just admitted that he loved scribing once. He was obviously gifted at it. A prodigy who now tormented himself for a mistake that wasn’t his fault. Who held finally back from something that brought him joy.”

➺ tristan byrne - this man instantly became one of my favorite mmc’s! sassy men always do it for me and tristan was hilarious!! ugh i loved him. and the tortured ink-stained boy who plays piano to top it off? it added so much more to his character and i loved reading about his development with scribing again! i couldn’t get enough of him, i loved his character!

𓍢⊹ ࣪
full in-depth review is available on my goodreads!

This is such a wonderfully twisty book. I really enjoyed learning more about the magic system as the book progressed, and how the new information about how the magic works influenced my thoughts on the mystery. The magic system was so well written and really drew me into the story. I also loved the characters, watching Maeve learn how to trust her new friends was so well done. The romance was well woven into this and it was nice to see both the friendship and romance blossom together. I thought both the relationship and mystery elements were paced so well together and made the book hard to put down. All around this is a great read!

4 stars / This review will be posted on BookwormishMe.com & goodreads.com today.

The fantasy world of Leyland sounds like a fairly dreary and dismal spot. But this book set in Leyland, and its alternate world Barrow, is not. This novel dumps us in the middle of this place with a spunky heroine named Maeve who wants to hide from the worlds.

Maeve was present when her father supposedly committed the greatest crime ever - releasing a toxic vine that causes everyone to sleep. She was sent to an orphanage where she later escaped and started moving around under aliases to protect her identity. But when she receives an anonymous letter saying her father is innocent, Maeve decides it’s time to get to the bottom of the real story.

Stealing someone else’s spot as an apprentice for the Otherwhere Post, Maeve immerses herself in the world of scriptomancy to try to unearth the truth. Along the way her own life will be threatened. With her mentor and roommate by her side, can Maeve prove that her father was not guilty of mass murder?

Such a great book. For all those who love fantasy and other worlds, this one is truly fun. Maeve is a fierce protagonist who has to learn to trust others, something she’s never done. It’s a bit of a mystery to find out the truth, which makes this journey evermore enjoyable.

Wish this was a series, as I loved all the settings and characters and would be thrilled to return to the worlds of the Otherwhere Post.

This book is a nice YA fantasy/mystery set in a world that gives Scotland vibes. There are actually multiple connected worlds here, where people use scriptomancy (magic writing basically) to travel between worlds and to make other magic. The main character, Maeve, is the daughter of a mass murderer who allegedly helped destroy one of the worlds with the Aldervine - a deadly plant that grows super fast and puts people to sleep. Maeve has been going by different names and constantly moving to try to prevent anyone from finding out she's the still-surviving daughter of this dude. As I'm typing this summary I'm realizing there's a lot to unpack here. But anyway! The result was that travel between the remaining worlds was banned except for members of The Otherwhere Post, who use limited scriptomancy to deliver letters across the worlds. When Maeve receives a letter 7 years too late claiming her father is innocent, she decides to con her way into an apprenticeship with The Otherwhere Post and investigate what really happened. There she meets Tristan Byrne, the son of the head Postmaster. He is forced to be her mentor, but because of something terrible that happened he doesn't want to teach Maeve. And he realizes pretty quickly that she's not who she says she is. Ruh-roh Scoob!

The concept of the magic system in this book is pretty cool, and I did appreciate that the author didn't just do a bunch of exposition all at once at the outset. She sort of slowly unpacks the way the world works here so the reader will not understand everything that is going on right away. The mystery was mystery-ing the whole time I really was struggling to figure out the whodunit. But bonus is of course Tristan and Maeve and their relationship. So much yearning! I am a little unsatisfied with the unraveling of the mystery at the end because I feel like we don't know the ultimate source of the Aldervine but I don't want to get into too much detail because of spoilers.

4.75 ⋆˙⟡

A historical, fantasy, academia, world crossing, murder mystery, romance with a really unique story I haven’t seen before. I appreciate the character development Maeve had specifically with trust. Finally being able to open up to people and let them help her. Tristan is such a cute love interest, he reminded me of toned down Cardan and Jacks. I went into it without rereading the synopsis and found a very fun, tense plot. I highly recommend!

I really enjoyed this ARC! The world building was pretty easy to follow and the magic system was super interesting. I liked the idea of the scriptomancy and how magic was used - how it was learned and not just “you have it or you don’t”. The plot of the trial Maeve had to go through in the book in order to figure out the truth about *everything* was gripping and didn’t feel dragged out. Even the little sprinkle of romance in there was super cute and made be smile ☺️

I didn’t think I was going to fully like Maeve at the beginning of the book but she ended up really growing on me. I think it may have been her snarky comments to Nan when they first met that did me in. It was pretty funny and I could tell she’d prove herself wrong. It never felt like Maeve was just being shortsighted and missing something obvious when she was doing her investigation about Inverly and that was refreshing. I usually find myself frustrated with the MC at some point like “come on, that was obvious!”

Tristan had a lot of depth that slowlyyyyy came to light and I loved him so much. His protectiveness and how he was always somehow able to show up at the perfect time was 🥹 I loved seeing him grow and trust Maeve but really himself throughout the book.

Overall, the story and the characters were well built out and not confusing. I was very happy with how everything wrapped up in the end. A very good read!

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

The magic as described in the synopsis is what drew my interest, but as with most of the fantasy in YA space there could always be more, but that's just a preference. I really did enjoy how different the magic was and I felt that the world building was sufficient. I do think the book started out slow and was glad it picked up the pace. Maeve was a well developed character but within the archetype she resides she does not stand out amongst her peers from other books which is just an observation. After I was able to get into the book, I was happy with the genre blend of magic/fantasy and dark academia.

I thought the start of this book was a bit slow but it picked up about 30% into the book and then I couldn’t put it down. I really enjoyed seeing Maeve’s friendships grow as well as her relationship with Tristan and I loved her character development and growth

Sometimes a book really impresses me. Sometimes it doesn’t. Unfortunately, The Otherwhere Post didn’t land with me. Despite an interesting premise, there was just too much that didn’t work for me and it became clear that I am most definitely not the right reader for this book.

The trouble started early on for me. Maeve went through the effort of running, and changing her identity, and seemed absolutely convinced that everyone and their brother were out to get her. However, she was a young kid when the murders occurred. I struggled to believe that the entirety of society would be out to get her. Sure, not everyone would be particularly pleasant, but I really doubt that the families of victims would go bonkers on a teen who was clearly too young to have been involved in the crime in any way. I do understand that there needed to be some drama to drive Maeve, though. This certainly provided it.

The concept of the world is fascinating and the idea that there is magic that allows couriers to travel between worlds is incredibly cool. I wanted to see more of that explored. More detail or explanation could have elevated the magical concept, which I really rather loved. At any rate, it was very clever. In fact, I think the author’s strength was in the pictures she painted of her world. It was one I wanted to explore more of.

I wasn’t a huge fan of Maeve, who tended to feel sorry for herself and was rather prickly. I don’t need to like a character to find them interesting, however, so this wasn’t a dealbreaker for me. Her mentor/possible love interest, Tristan, was snarky and brooding, as expected. He was the “in” to the world and plot, allowing for a natural explanation of things that would otherwise become an infodump. He didn’t have much personality, but he was fine.

I thought Maeve’s roommate was delightful, though. Nan was spunky, nosy, and stubborn. Her amateur sleuthing was fun to read. In fact, I wonder if maybe the book would have been more enjoyable to me if she was the main character. At any rate, she added a level of fun that broke up the angst exhibited by Maeve.

The book itself moved along at a brisk pace. I found the identity of the mysterious letter writer to be more interesting than the final answer regarding the who and the why. That being said, the author kept the plot moving well, nothing ever dragged, and there were no hanging unsolved threads. I don’t know if this book is meant to have a sequel or not, but the author was kind enough not to leave a cliffhanger that wouldn’t have been necessary.

I had some niggles, though, and they ended up being too much for me.

On top of Maeve’s paranoia over something she was too young to have been a part of, there was some serious ridiculousness. Maeve and Tristan kept finding themselves victims of some magic or another that caused them to be almost unable to keep their hands off each other. I had the random thought that it took a curse for them to find each other attractive and, once I had that thought, I couldn’t take any of their relationship development seriously. That’s kind of a problem when they’re supposed to have a romance brewing that the reader is meant to be invested in.

And Tristan’s big, angst-ridden secret had me rolling on the floor, laughing. I can’t say why without giving away a major plot point but suffice it to say the answer to his inability to sleep did not cause the pity I think was supposed to exist for his character. It’s too bad that the book was meant to be serious as opposed to being situational comedy because the humor was there waiting to be exploited.

This wasn’t the book for me, unfortunately. If you want a fantasy with a secret and a big “will they, won’t they” vibe, The Otherwhere Post might just fit the bill.

Thank you to G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers for providing me with this book. The publisher’s generosity does not affect my opinion of the book in any way. The Otherwhere Post will be available on February 25,2025.

How does Emily write such magical books?! The words float off the pages for me and the next thing I know it’s 3am.

The magic is effortlessly written. I hate using the word lush but the vibes are literally so lush. This was easily one of the best academia books I’ve read in a long time.

Go ahead and hop into this whimsical world with Maeve to figure out what really happened in her past without everyone knowing who she really is. Go read! And then go read Hotel Magnifique!!

If you enjoy a bit of magic, mystery, and dark academia with a good slow burn this book is it

I truly enjoyed myself reading this. The world building was great I really felt like I could imagine it. The magic was different and a breath a fresh air and the twists were definitely twisting!

The characters all were 3 dimensional even the side characters felt tangible. The plot didn’t feel like it dragged or was forced along at any point.

The ending wrapped up perfectly for this to either be a standalone or I hope the beginning of a series.

This book took me a while to get through despite being very excited to read it. It is a YA, mystery, fantasy, romance with a really interesting story behind it. Maeve Abenthy has been running and changing her name for 7 years, ever since her father died and was blamed for a heinous crime. She receives an anonymous letter saying her father is innocent which prompts her to pose as an apprentice at the Otherwhere Post while she tries to find answers. The story follows her journey as she tries to stay alive, keep her secrets, and find out the truth. The beginning of the book started out strong but I lost interest around the time that she arrived at the academy (~25%) which caused me to make little progress over several months. I finally decided to finish it and became invested in the story again around the 60% mark. It ended up being a heartwarming tale of courage and perseverance with an intelligent and quick-witted heroine who redeemed herself as a likeable character by the end. I did find the concept of the magic and the world development to be unique. From an editing standpoint, there were a lot of mistakes in the latter half of the book that will hopefully get fixed before publication. Overall, interesting if you can push through the sluggish parts. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an DRC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you G. P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the eARC of The Otherwhere Post! All opinions in this review are my own.

I have been waiting for Emily J. Taylor's next release since The Hotel Magnifique! I love the worlds she creates and The Otherwhere Post is no exception!

The Otherwhere Post begins when Maeve receives an anonymous letter telling her that her father was innocent. Now, Maeve must infiltrate the Otherwhere Post and learn who sent her the letter in order to clear her father's name of the greatest tragedy to happen in her world.

Full of dark academia vibes and magic, The Otherwhere Post once again proves Taylor's craft at creating stories full of twists and her expertise in world building.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Otherwhere Post! The concept was fresh and inventive, especially the magic system of scriptomancy, where spells are crafted through writing. It added a creative and intellectual element to the story that I found captivating. The twist at the end about the source of the evil was unexpected and added depth to the plot.

The world-building was immersive and intricately detailed, drawing me into the academic setting and the mysteries of the different realms. The characters were well-developed and relatable, each contributing something unique to the story. Tristan, in particular, stood out with his patience, quiet strength, and undeniable charm—he made an excellent partner for the protagonist’s journey.

While the romance element didn’t fully click for me, the friendships and bonds of loyalty between the characters felt authentic and emotionally resonant. The balance of dark academia, inventive magic, and compelling mysteries kept me hooked from start to finish.

This was a fast-paced yet thoughtful read, with enough complexity to hint at the potential for a series—something I’d absolutely continue. If you enjoy stories with richly imagined worlds, creative magic systems, and character-driven plots, The Otherwhere Post is definitely worth picking up!

A big thank you to NetGalley, G. P. Putnam's Sons, and Penguin House for this arc!

I really enjoyed the book and would for sure give it anywhere between a 3.5 to 3.75 star rating.

This is my first Emily J. Taylor book and I really enjoyed the magic system that she created for this world. The magic of scriptomancy was incredibly interesting and the way that magic can be infused into writing was a new magic system for me and I really enjoyed it. I loved that it could be used in so many different ways from being able to track people down, bring imaginations to life to being able to move across worlds. I also loved that scriptomancy could be used both on paper and on skin, and that something like magical writing on skin was outlawed due to how dangerous it was viewed.

I did enjoy parts of the world building. I liked the idea of the the different overlapping worlds and how each world was dedicated to different types of learning, similar to how V.E. Schwabb did the different versions of London. Inverly was artistic and musically inclined, while Barrow was mathematical and engineering based, and Leyland was for scriptomancy. I also loved the connecting doors to the world and how people could cross into the worlds and how the destruction of Inverly upended the other two worlds and how devastating it was. However, at the same time I wish the worlds had been explored more. We get some insights into the worlds, but not enough to get a clear picture of what they are truly like and we definitely don't get enough insight into how the loss of Inverly really impacted Leyland and Barrow.

When it came to the characters I liked them a lot. Maeve is very wary of everyone around her and doesn't want people to know who she is, due to prior events from her childhood and knowing what her dad was accused of, but eventually finds that the people around her can be trusted and she eventually lets them in. I liked Tristan for how sassy he was and how despite acting like he didn't like people he truly couldn't stop himself from connecting with those around him. I did think his relationship with his dad was weird because he talks about how much he hates him, but we don't truly ever really see that in my opinion. Nan was a super fun character as well. I loved how easy going she was and how she refused to let Maeve keep her distance and was in her corner the entire time. I do wish we had gotten more Nan in the story as she is a pivotal secondary character. I feel she wasn't really expanded upon and I wish that her characterization had been more concrete, especially considering the role she plays as Maeve's only friend really. I also wish the author had been more purposeful in her description of Nan, she is one of two POC characters that play prominent roles in the book, but all we really know about her is that she has brown skin and black hair. So she's very much just kind of skimmed over as compared to the other descriptions of characters in the book.

Now onto the actual plot of the story. I really enjoyed the mystery element of Maeve trying to figure out what really happened that day in Inverly and whether or not her dad was truly innocent. I loved the threatening notes and how scriptomancy was used in those notes. I also loved the Aldervine and how it played into the destruction of Inverly and how the burning of the Written doors impacted everything. Though I do wonder why, at the end of the book, the Aldervine only killed the one character and put the others to sleep. I do think the ending was a little rushed and that things played out a little too easily/too perfectly, but I also understand why it was done that way, but I wish we'd gotten more mystery than what we did and more suspense that what we did. I also wish that we'd gotten to see so much more of the school and the learning behind scriptomancy.

I will also say that in my arc I did count about 35 grammatical errors throughout the book, and yes I know it's unedited, but it did seem like a lot to miss. I also know that my digital arc was only 306 pages whereas Goodreads is stating that it's to be over 400 pages so I'm curious about how different the final version will be compared to the arc.

Otherwise, I did enjoy the book and would love to see more magic like scriptomancy in other books and I'm looking forward to reading the actual finished version of the book and comparing it to the arc.

The Otherwhere Post is a book you will not want to put down from start to finish! It has mystery, slow-burning romance,unique worlds and magic system that draws you in to this story. I loved that I did not have the ending figured out! Great read for fantasy lovers!

The premise of this work was interesting, and it was executed well overall. I enjoyed the concept of magic and how it was used in this work through writing and ink. The use of mail to find people was also interesting and added much to the work. The author also included a number of small details relating to the setting and other descriptions that helped to bring the whole thing to life. The characters were fine but didn’t particularly standout.

There were a few things I didn’t prefer that are somewhat typical of YA these days. One is, of course, insta-love and a relationship that feels founded on nothing. There were also a lot of weird and unusual similes that were unnecessary and didn’t add anything positive to the text. There was also a hefty amount of info-dumping near the end of the work using letters that were written to the protagonist – I didn’t like how this wrapped things up or the amount of telling it relied on.

Overall, if you enjoy YA fantasy that has an academic setting and romance, then you may enjoy this one. My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Otherwhere Post is an ink-stained and magical dark academia YA read that is both tender and mysterious. Maeve Abenthy has lived in the shadows of her father’s crime for as long as she can remember until she receives an anonymous letter that shatters the truth of everything she thought she knew about him: her father was innocent.

On the quest to uncover the truth about her father, Maeve sneaks into her father’s old university and learns the dangerous art of scriptomancy in the hopes of finding the truth, but when a mysterious figure begins threatening her life, she must decide if the truth is worth dying for.

I loved the world-building in this book and Taylor does a remarkable job at creating a beautiful, whimsical and deeply magical story full of love and friendship. I adored Tristan and Maeve’s interactions, as well as seeing Maeve’s blossoming friendships with Nan and Shea. It was a bit difficult in the beginning to grasp some of the magical system but once you do, The Otherwhere Post was such a delightful and enjoyable YA fantasy read, especially for fans of Divine Rivals, I found myself completely immersed and invested.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Teen Canada for providing this eArc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this review are my own.