This was just really… boring. It’s such a shame, I was pulled in by a fun blurb and a witty title, as well as such a beautiful cover. But this book was HARD WORK as it seemed very slow and also just really underwhelming. I also felt that the character of the necromancer was a bit much, and wildly inappropriate. She kept flirting with the MC and touching him without his consent, ignoring him every time he said no. It made me feel really uncomfortable and I didn’t find it funny at all. 

This was tough to get through. Not because it's difficult to read, but because the writing feels so rudimentary. I saw another review saying it's like reading a DnD campaign, and I entirely agree - but to me that is not a compliment. The pacing is odd and everything is explained instead of described, but worst of all is how the male characters are sexualized and objectified, battered and belittled, and it's treated like they should "stop being such a bore", or like constantly being touched or oogled despite lacking consent is some sort of compliment?! Learning to understand the necromancer is a whole plotline that could have been interesting, but I do not find it cute or funny that she REPEATEDLY snuggles up to the main character when sleeping, despite him making it clear he is uncomfortable with that. Had that been a older man and younger woman it would have been obviously wrong, but now because he's a grumpy guy it's somehow funny? Lords. No.

I liked the pieces of this book, but it didn't fit together for me. I would have liked to see more of Pie and Logan's relationship prior to the main plot kicking off (quite abruptly) because I struggled to care about their story. I liked most of the characters. Unfortunately Logan and the countess were off-putting enough for me that I chose to DNF. The world, general plot, and tone are right up my alley but I can't work past a lack of interest for the characters themselves.

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

If I'm honest, this book was a bit of a let down for me. I was attracted to the book by the amazing title and cover and by the promise of cozy fantasy. But what I got felt like a bit of a mess. The copy I bought had a myriad of typos and spelling mistakes that took me out of the story repeatedly. The characters seem one dimensional, their motivations at times unclear or illogical.

I can see what the author was going for, and there were cute moments. But I was quite miffed by the countess' continued unwanted sexual advances to all male characters. It was brushed away as some sort of comic relief, but was just plain problematic. Also everyone just kept treating Logan as an idiot one moment and then a hero the next.

As for the ending. The thruth about the monster felt like such a bad plot-twist ending that came out of nowhere. Plans by the main cast seemed made on the fly and rushed. I would have preferred the story take some time for actual plans to be made and the truth to be reveiled and actually have an impact. Also hints for the main monster being literally AN ALIEN that took over the king might have been nice.

Also the ending after the monster is defeated felt incredibly rushed. No time is taken with Logan seemingly being seriously hurt and taking a page out of Iron Man's book and being dragged along to the other side only to be pulled back. Ophelia's ending is just insane, in the worst way. Completely unsatisfying end of her arc.

Maybe my expectations for this book were too high. But this definitely isn't a cozy fantasy other than that it starts and ends in a cottage. It's such a shame cause Logan and Pie seem like characters with great potential.

I honestly enjoyed this book but you can tell its a debut novel. There's some issues with pacing with the first 80% being very slow and then suddenly everything happens. They also have some issues with really fleshing out the characters and getting the reader to genuinely care about them early on. 

But it's got good bones, and a lovely addition to the cozy fantasy genre. The story is set in a queernorm world which is always a plus and I am genuinely excited to see what the author does next

I'm SO sad this book didn't work for me - I was almost positive I would love it! 

The main disconnect for me was the humor. Things the author intended to be funny, I found to be too juvenile, or even downright uncomfortable. Take the countess for example: her constant sexual harassment of the male characters was treated as a a silly antic and reoccurring gag. I guess because it's an older woman doing it to younger men, that somehow makes it funny? Can't say I agree.

The things that did work for me worked well enough, I suppose, though I still felt like I had one foot out the door the entire time. I liked the established relationship and age diversity of the characters - very refreshing - and the overall feeling of warmth and vibrancy that radiates from the pages. Despite the problems, I think the author shows promise, so I’ll be keeping an eye out for whatever comes next.

Thank you NetGalley & Hodderscape for providing me with this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’m so sad to say I DNF’ed this one.

I was so excited to read it. A DnD-inspired fantasy with a punny title, pitched as Our Flag Means Death meets Legends & Lattes? Yes please!

But, I just couldn’t connect with the characters. It felt as if every time I was close to feeling like I understood a character’s personality and motivations, a sexual innuendo was thrown in, feeling entirely out of place and at odds with the tone of the scene. This particularly bugged me with the two main female characters: they both had the same, honestly, slightly perverted, tendencies. If it was a one-off comment, I could have ignored it — it might even have been funny at the right moments — but it was so persistent. For the first third of the book, it seemed as if they did little except leer at Logan (there’s a particularly uncomfortable scene where they watch him bathe in a lake). And when Gary showed up, they ogle him instead. It is frequently emphasised how much younger and less worldly Gary is than the other characters, and the more I think about it, the creepier it feels. If the genders were reversed, I struggle to see how it would be published. 

I reached 53% and decided to put it down. I plan to return to it one day, as I am curious about where the plot goes. Just not curious enough to deal with the discomfort right now.