4.5★

The Last Hour Between Worlds by Melissa Caruso is a witty fantasy novel with a historical ballroom atmosphere, different dimensions, and time loops.

I'm probably off, but this book gives me "Neverwhere" by Neil Gaiman vibes and I LOVE that. Instead of the mice like people in Neverwhere, they are fae like creatures instead.

I was worried with the time loop that things would feel too repetitive but the author did a great job at keeping the book pace going and keeping the reader interested in solving the mystery (even if the pace did fluctuate at times. ) The characters were in depth and had amazing lgbtq+ representation.

The narrator did a great job at using different voices for different characters.

Thank you Hachette Audio, Net galley, and Melissa Caruso for letting me listen to this amazing audio in exchange for an honest review. I can't wait until next book in the series.

Kembral Thorne is a magical bounty hunter. She has the ability to find people that fall between layers of reality called Echos. She is also a new mom. While not quite ready to return to work she is talked into attending a party for the Guild of Hounds. Things start to go wrong when the party begins to fall through Echo layers and a magical clock begins to reset time. She must rely on her nemesis Rika Nonesuch to figure out the mystery and save everyone at the party and the world from disaster.

The premise of this book seemed very fun and when I saw the audiobook narrators was one of my favorites I decided to give it a shot. What a great decision that was. I had such a good time with this book! The magic system was really interesting. I loved how the echoes worked and the different layers of the world. The mystery completely pulled me in. But above all I adored Kem and Rika! They had incredible chemistry and banter. This is the first book in a series and I am so excited to see where this one goes! Highly recommend going with the audiobook version of this book. Moira Quirk is so dang good!

Thanks you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Kembral has one night away from her newborn and spends it at a party. Everything falls apart when the guests all begin to die. She knows then that she has to get to work. She’s a Hound and has to work with her nemesis Rika to figure out why the grandfather clock keeps sending them down what’s called an Echo every time it chimes. Each time they go down an Echo, a new layer of reality takes place.

This was such a unique story, I was so hooked at times! I loved reading about something different and really enjoyed the characters. I was definitely confused at times and felt like it went on for longer than necessary but overall I really enjoyed this read!

This audiobook narrator did amazing with all of the character voices, she put on a whole performance!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Karoline Anderson, and HighBridge Audio for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review. This publishes on November 19th.

5 stars for the narrator. Moira Quirk did an excellent job on the audiobook. It was exactly how I imagined the voices sounding like.

Moira Quirk narrated The Last Hour Between Worlds beautifully.

The Last Hour Between Worlds was a bit long. 14 hours for an hour of time - even with a time bending aspect.

One thing that kept confusing me was who the target audience is for this book. Kembral is a new mother, so at least birthing age. And there’s wine at the party so drinking age. Talk of retirement is thrown in. Regardless, the plot and language strongly felt YA. The sapphic side feels very juvenile for two grown women. It almost gives friends who harbored feelings for one another for 50 years while living other lives but - again, birthing age. It’s never really clear if she’s a single mom on purpose or by circumstance. There is a lot to unpack immediately with hounds, cats, echoes. A world and life threatening game is introduced. It was a lot.

Kembral is a new mother and hasn’t had much interaction outside her home recently. She finally pushes herself and gets out to a party to have some fun, but vibes are off from the start and she’s approached by multiple people about being on alert. She is a part of the renowned Hounds and has special abilities that help her travel through realms / realities.

Kem’s rival Rika, a burglar, have to team up and use each other’s skills to save their world and unlock the secrets of the grandfather clock. The clock sends our characters through echoes (the layers of reality). The further you go, the more dangerous and different from your current reality. Kem had been 3 echoes away, but nothing as deep as this adventure will take her.

They’ll have to work together, forgive past betrayals to try and save their friends, their reality, and possible all realities in their world. A lot of characters play in this cat and mouse game to know who to trust, who to bring into their journey, etc. I also loved the secret love the two FMCs were keeping from each other.

Magical and mystical, time and reality traveling, combining mystery and fantasy, good starter fantasy - world building was up front and reminded and woven in throughout the book, nothing too complicated.

Short chapters, fast paced right from the beginning, good narration on audiobook! It felt very long and drawn out for the plot, but the pace made me not mind that as much.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Release date 11/19.

4.5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced audiobook copy to listen to.

This was GREAT. The story was so well thought out and just brilliant. And the fact that it technically all took place in one location was genius. It was so well done and there was really no boring part because you were constantly wondering what was going to happen next.

This was told from the pov of a recent mother and I LOVED that. I loved how her daughter was always at the forefront of her thoughts, making sure she would be taken care of if something happened to her. It was so realistic and I loved that.

The reason it’s not 5 stars is because I got distracted from the audiobook and because of that missed information which left me confused a little time

Would recommend this it was very good.

This book is everything I want in a fantasy! It starts off with a scenario so simple - a new mother wanting a night away, deciding to go to a party to enjoy herself, and all of a sudden, everything that can and will go wrong does. Kembral Thorne is a hound, so she's no stranger to strange magic, including echoes (different layers of reality), imperials, and demons. When people start dying at this party, she has this itch that something isn't right. But Kembral is on leave, so she's not working, or at least she tries to convince herself she isn't. That is, until the clock strikes and everything resets. The people who she saw just die are suddenly alive again, however, the estate is different. Kembral soon learns she is part of an echo murder game and is determined to find out what's going on and save not only herself but everyone else in this wicked game.
This book was so captivating and gripped me from the very beginning. I loved the whole mystery of it all, I loved the atmosphere, and I loved the characters. The writing is great as well, and the book flowed quite evenly, with a great narration. I enjoyed the relationship between Kembral and Rika and the semi- enemies to lovers feel. Great book, 5 stars, hands down!
Thank you NetGalley, Melissa Caruso, and Hachette Audio for this ARC.

The concept of this book quite intrigued me with the echoes and how if your mind wanders, you might slip down into them, lost unless a hound (like Kembral) comes looking for you. And how it gets weirder and weirder the farther you fall (like things with eyes in their teeth!). So I was very eager to get into this story, which does not take long at all for a steep dive into the odd and dangerous but also a bit whimsical. Definitely a party not to go to!

I would say it is a bit of a locked room mystery since they are all stuck in the manor and Kembral is trying to figure out how to keep everyone from being murdered (though there are few forays into the echoes for needed cures and such). And a time limit that does repeat but things get so much worse each reset and deeper drop into the echoes! Good thing Kembral is really good at her job as a hound and can blink step so easily, plus all the experience in various levels of the echoes.

With all that went on, the bits with Rika and Kembral were sweet. They were able to work through their issues and actually have some good come out of all the murder. I liked their working together to come up with solutions and fight off the immortal beings that lived before the creation and so cannot die and have awesomely horrible powers. I hope that we can get more info on them in the next book! This one does have a ending that solves the current issue but it definitely needs another book for recording what is going to happen in the newly named year! Plus more visits to the echoes (but only after Kembral finally gets to rest and take care of her daughter).

The narrator did a great job in making the characters and world come to life and I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to listen to this fun book.

This was so cool! So many moving parts in this mystery. The echos? The pacing? Top notch. Good balance between high stakes but still being light hearted.

This was so good! I have been so excited to have a sci-fi story that has a older female main characters, and this did not disappoint. Also, the bi rep?

The world building in this book is amazing. The idea that people can slip between time is so cool, but also the deadly game that is occurring throughout this book is just perfect. I really loved the relationship between Kembral and Rika is just so cute. Real rivals to lovers, and also lovers to enemies, then back again. I also love that the main character is a mom, but it isn't all she is.

Really recommend you pick this one up!

I really enjoyed this fantasy! It had a unique premise where it was possible to travel through "echoes" or layers of reality where our main character has to figure out how to fix the loop and get back to the prime reality before there is no going back. While I won't say the rules make complete sense, the characters and the action kept me guessing and I enjoyed the journey. I also appreciated that the hero of the story is a single mom still on leave after having a baby and the author captures the ways in which becoming a mom creates a fracture in her confidence and identity. In spite of this, and the fact that she must work with a rival colleague for whom she once had feelings, but then humiliated her to the woman's own advantage, solving the mystery becomes even more problematic. Are there plot holes? Surely, but I was having too much fun to care.

The audiobook adds so much to this experience. I sat and finished it in one sitting. The narrator does a great job of upping the stakes at every stage, and listening helped me to put together the repetition vs the differences as the main characters travel down the layers of reality. I always enjoy using audio and print in tandem with reading a book. This audio is well done!

Thank you to Orbit Books, Hachette Audio, and Netgalley for the chance to review this audiobook, all opinions are my own.

Going to start out by saying that this review is a bit all over the place as my thoughts on this book are a bit jumbled! Beware, there are some spoilers. Things I loved: the world (really interesting, I’m dying for more) and the characters (huge cast, I want to know more about all of them). Things that I didn’t love as much: The overall plot of this particular book, the pacing of the writing.

If you enjoy books where you slowly learn about the world and the characters as the book goes on then this is definitely a good one for you. I am totally that person that wants a whole chapter of info dumping because I get so curious about how a world works and I want to know all the little details right away! I did get a little impatient wanting to know everything about this book but I felt Caruso did a good job of explaining things as they became relevant and if I was confused about anything it was usually explained or resolved soon after.

The world itself was truly the most interesting part of this book. I want more! I want to know about the Elders and the Guilds and Echoborns and how their society actually works! We got teases of it and I think I have a good understanding of the basics but I would love to spend more time in the larger Prime world and get a little bit more political intrigue. There were so many secrets and plots being teased.

I did find myself a bit bored by the overall plot. It was very contained and started to feel repetitive. It very obvious that we were always going to end up in the 11th Echo and I did get a bit bored with Kembral always trying to do the same thing each reset. But because I was so intrigued by the world and the characters, I hung on for the ride. As I mentioned above, I really hope we get to spend more time in the world of Prime, out in society, seeing how the government and the people all interact together. With the threat of the Echoes hanging over them, obviously!

Kembral isn’t usually the kind of character I enjoy reading about, she’s a little too good and just. I prefer characters like Rika who want to do good but also know sometimes you have to go outside the lines and do a little murder. I’m very excited for more about her! I’d love a dual POV in the second book.

I do have to mention the single mom thing, only because I’m sure people will have feelings about that. I do not actively seek out books about mothers and children (not being one or having any) but it is nice to see a FMC outside of the norm. Did I wonder why this character got pregnant and then abandoned by the father of this kid? Yes I did. Did I wonder about birth control in this world? Also yes. But I support a woman’s right to choose (whether she be real or fictional)! It will be interesting to see how motherhood continues to affect Kembral’s role as a Hound and her greater responsibility as the year namer.

Audiobook review: I will listen to any audiobook read by Moira Quirk anytime! She lends voice and personality to every character (no matter how small) and I never have any issue following who is speaking. She infuses so much life into all of them. I continue to be impressed with her ability to do multiple accents, tones, and cadences. An excellent choice for this book with such a large cast!

4.5* because of Moira!

I love finding unique fantasy adventures and this one certainly fit the bill for what I was in the mood for. The magic system we encounter is fairly interesting and feels new in a creative way and I feel as though I haven't recently read a time/ realty bending book like this which was fun and engaging.

The main character is Kembral who has finally decided to venture out into society on Ne Years Eve after the birth of her newborn. Though she loves her daughter dearly, she is missing the adventurous world she previously worked in and feels the company of some of her social colleagues and coworkers will help her feel more like a person again. However, as the evening progresses and the hour reaches midnight, all hell breaks loose and Kembral finds herself one of the last few standing after a poisoning and attack.

Then something strange happens, as Kembral is drawn into an Echo of the party and the scene seems to reset into a slightly different version of what was previously happening. She seems to be the only one aware a massacre just took place. Kembral has to figure out if she is going to draw other people into this game of survival and try to save their timeline. Oh, and there's a bit of a cute cat and dog romance sort of situation going on. But you'll have to read to find out more about that. Lots of fantastic, unspoken tension.

Personally, I am looking forward to more from this author. It seems this is the first in a possible series, so lets cross our fingers we don't have to wait too long to see what may happen next.

I listened to this on a whim because I liked the title and cover. I had no idea it was a sapphic adventure story in which a new mom fights her way through increasingly more bizarre layers of reality called echoes trying to save her friends and coworkers from warring cosmic beings. Turns out that's exactly what I needed! This book was so much fun. I loved all the characters and getting to know each reality. There's a touch of steam punk aesthetic, a touch of horror, twists, turns, and fantastic world building. The narrator of the audiobook is top tier. She gives each character a unique voice, building on the brilliant characterizations by the author. I'm so excited this is going to be a series! Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC!

I describe this book as a sapphic sci-fi fantasy with a similar feel to Gideon the Ninth both in humor and writing style.

It follows a hound guild member currently on maternity leave from her day job, patrolling and protecting the city from the different layers of reality also known as echoes. While at a party, without her baby for the first time, she finds herself in a reality-bending, groundhogs day, murder mystery with a member of a rival guild.

The story is told in first person. And while I did enjoy the protagonist some, I feel like the way the character narrated and the humor took away from the severity of the situation, making it feel not so serious, which to me kind of took away from the murder mystery and world in peril aspects of the story.

I thought that the book was very well written, well thought out, and very smart but just fell flat for me.

I was a little confused by the layers of echoes, but I appreciated the complexity of the world building. The logic of it was a little hard for me to wrap my head around as the layers of reality stripped away. I just had a hard time taking the story seriously. I also didn’t enjoy the romance in the series, there just wasn’t a good enough chemistry.

My major issue with the book is more of a personal one, I’m also not a huge fan of Groundhog Day storylines so I didn’t get much enjoyment from the storyline. It did have a lot of twist and turns and an unexpected ending, which was nice.

I’d say if you’re someone that enjoys stories with a Gideon the Ninth wit and writing style, this would probably be something to dive into.

The production and narrator for the audiobook was phenomenal. I enjoyed listening to her immensely!

For me personally, I’m not sure if I will read the second book.

🕰 The rundown: New mom Kembrall Thorne attends the year-turning ball because she needs a break. No work allowed. But when the party is attacked and guests start dropping dead and time resets and reality warps and she's the only one who remembers what happened...well, she can't help trying to sniff out answers. She is a Hound, after all. What was supposed to be an evening of fun turns into a race against time and a fight against ancient Echo lords who have chosen the party as the site for their reality-bending gameboard with human lives for pieces.

🕰 Am I glad I read it? Yeah, this time loop, multiple reality fantasy was tons of fun!

Most of the story happens in the same room (where the party happens), and I’m impressed by how Caruso kept the plot momentum going and expanded the world as we dropped further and further through more and weirder echoes. (Frankly, I think over-explaining early on would have seriously undermined a time-loop story in which some repetition is inevitable.) It’s really a fascinating, inventive world that Caruso built, and I’m excited to see what else she does in it in book 2.

And I simply must talk about our heroine Kem! Such a great character! She’s not just a mom, but a new mom! She’s sleep-deprived; she needs a nap, like, yesterday; her breasts are painful with milk even as she’s saving the century! And when was the last time you read a fantasy that tackles maternity leave and the decisions birthing parents face re: returning to work? Even though Kem doesn’t do any mothering during the story, it’s such an important aspect of her character: her increasingly desperate instincts to protect her child complement and indeed overlap with her instincts to save the party-goers from death by Echo lord.

I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by the fantastic Moira Quirk. Even though I strongly suspect I would have understood the rules of the game better if I had read this with my eyeballs, I still found that I was generally able to follow along with what turned out to be a surprisingly complex story in this format. I attribute this partly to Caruso's skill at developing the world throughout the story and partly to Quirk's always engaging voice acting, namely her talent for creating wonderfully distinct voices for different characters and sounds.

🕰 Rating: 👍🏼👍🏼 (really liked)

I recently enjoyed an adult sci-fi mystery with a Groundhog Day-esque twist, filled with magic and a complicated love story. It was an incredibly entertaining read/listen that kept me engaged from start to finish. The ending was so surprising that I had to look up the author to find out if a sequel was planned, and I was relieved to discover that it was!

The world-building and character development were refreshing, and the attention to detail in the conflicts and relationships was impressive. The story continued to unfold in captivating ways, ensuring that there was never a dull moment with any filler content. The narrator, Moira Quirk, did a fantastic job of bringing life and emotion to each character.

I also appreciated the subtle sapphic storyline, which felt organic and unfolded beautifully, much like rose petals. Well done!

If you’re considering picking up this book, do yourself a favor and go for it—you won't be disappointed! I've already preordered my physical copy.

I want to thank NetGalley, Hachette Audio | Orbit, and Melissa Caruso for the audio review copy of this immersive book. I'm leaving my honest opinion voluntarily and without coercion.

WOW!

I loved this book. Fast paced and action packed right from the start. This was intense but stayed lively and fun and I loved all of the different storylines while we went through this almost time loop of reliving this same hour from the same day over and over again but each time was different and unique so it never felt boring or repetitive.

I loved Kembral and thought she was such an interesting main character. She is a badass and the best at her job as a hound, but she just embarked on her newest journey of motherhood. She is struggling with whether she wants to go back into field work or just go to a desk job with less risk. She gets night away to go to this big elaborate party for the end of the year, but what she doesn't know is that this party is just one big game for the Empyreans to see who gets to name the year (AKA be the most powerful being that determines what the next year will bring). This games brings everyone at this party through 12 different layers of reality and at the end of each round the night starts over.

Rika was another character I loved. I loved her chemistry and banter with Rika. I loved their friends to enemies to being the others persons only chance at making it out of this game alive storyline. I can't wait for more in this world because this was just such a fun and unique read.

Thank you to Orbit for sending me an advanced copy of this book

Such a unique and captivating story! I was hooked from the very beginning. I loved the murder mystery vibes and short chapters. It was fast paced from the start. Highly recommend!