I really enjoyed this book. Right from the beginning I was hooked by how different yet familiar it felt. The story is kind of Groundhog Day-like but totally different at the same time.
The story follows a woman who is a Hound. The Hound’s are special investigators and pretty cool operatives. There are also people called Cats. They’re more like spies and sneaky.
The woman is a brand new mother, which I love because it’s so rare to hear stories with actual accounts of motherhood. She is at a party and people keep trying to get her to work because she’s go good at her job. She keeps telling them no, and she’s on leave. But then something wild happens and she is thrown into a job because the whole party keeps happening over and over.
There are these things called echos that seem like mischievous entities with ulterior motives. Kind of like fairies or demons.
The story feels unique and it also has a really cute love story woven in. It’s a love/hate relationship and it’s great!
I highly recommend this book. Also the narrator did a really great job with the voice variations.

3.5 stars. There's a time loop, multilayered realities, guilds with members who have varying magical abilities (casting illusions, pausing time), and terrifyingly powerful immortal beings. The main character, Kembrall, is a brand-new (and single) mom at a New Year's Eve party where all of the above factors combine to result in a high-stakes contest that Kembrall must disrupt or face catastrophic consequences to her own reality. The only person who can aid her in this is her longtime rival–turned love interest–turned betrayer, Rika.

I'm surprised I didn't love this when it has all these Doctor Who x Jasper Fforde vibes. It was enjoyable enough to read; it just didn't grab me more for some reason.

Kem is a single mom and Hound – an investigator n the Prime reality. Kem finally gets a day off from mom duties to attend party for Dona Marjorie. Unfortunately, this party I also the site of a competition for those from the Echo land. The Empyreans from Echo use the humans at the party as playing pieces for their game, as they drop into Echo. Then the entire party resets and the game starts all over. And the only human aware of this is Kem.

So while Kem was hoping for a relaxing night, she’s got to take on investigator duties and stop the Empyreans. And while Kem wants to charge in and take action, she is also aware of the danger she’d be putting herself in – and she’s got to protect herself for her child.

I dd have to stop this audiobook once to attend a work event, but as soon as I got back to my car I turned it back on. Oh, so good. You know I love a strong FMC, and that is exactly what Kem is. I can’t wait for more Kem adventures.

Go get it, you’ll fall in love with Kem same as I did! RECOMMEND
Thank you #NetGalley for the complimentary copy of #TheLastHourBetweenWorlds in exchange for an honest review.

This book wastes no time jumping right into the story. There isn’t a ton of world building which was exciting at times (kept you on your toes) but frustrating at other times. The only thing I realllllllllly know is that the FMC is a new mom. And I really know she’s a new mom lol. But overall an exciting, fun read

A very fast paced fantasy.  A new mother still on maternity leave must team up with her rival to defeat higher powers. I got a Day After Tomorrow vibe where things get darker and more sinister.  A very enjoyable listen. The narrator makes you feel like you are right in the room with the characters. Thank you to Hachette audio and Orbit books for the ARC.

4 stars

The humor of Gideon the Ninth meets Inception-like layers of reality-bending - not to mention some classic sapphic pining between rivals - in this exciting new series opener from Melissa Caruso. With dashes of irreverent humor, a well-grounded main character, and a uniquely complicated/nonsense world with its own wiggly and interesting rules, we’ve got a lovely self-contained mystery story (or maybe deadly trials? There’s a bit of both here) but a universe that can hold much more. This book definitely stands on its own which I can appreciate since book two is obviously not currently available.

Kembral is a very good main character: she’s implacable, she has a very good reason to not want to be involved in things, she has an equally good reason to fight tooth and nail to get herself out of things intact, she’s competent in a no-nonsense way (which invites imagination from Rika and other characters, which may or may not take our dear Kembral by surprise), and she’s got a cool party trick.

I also really liked the structure of the repeating party and moving deeper through layers of unreality as things become increasingly tense and also increasingly nonsensical. The rules don’t apply the farther you get from reality, and that keeps even a “repetitive” plot from ever getting boring.

Plus, hello, Moira Quirk narrates the audiobook.

4.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for this advanced copy! You can pick up The Last Hour Between Worlds on November 19, 2024.

This book might have the most unique world and magic system I've read all year. The concept of the Echoes, Emperyans, the Moon and Void, blink-stepping -- I could go on about all the cool and badass ways Melissa Caruso wielded magic and science in this story. There was a fantastic blend of politicking, high-stakes, murder mystery, and sapphic yearning between Kembral, our MC, and her nemesis/ex Rika.

The slow-burn second-chance romance between Kembral and Rika was expertly done. I was fully invested in their history, and the way they grew closer once again while battling deadly beings was immaculate. This book goes right for the feels, and I'll eat it up every single time.

The action scenes in this story are also some of the best I've ever read. Kembral was CONSTANTLY putting that sword to use, and her years training to blink-step clearly paid off. I've never been so impressed yet found a protagonist so relatable -- her feats weren't inhuman, but were in fact flawed, and though a recent pregnancy changed Kembral's body and her relationship with it, she grew to see it as an adjustment rather than a weakness.

All in all, a super solid fantasy with incredible time-traveling, world-hopping magic and intense character work.