One thing I love doing in my library aside reading an already open book is scouting for potential future reads. I do that a lot, as it helps me decide the book to read next getting a sneak peak of its contents. That was how I came across the book Fairydale.
I was scouting for books and came across this book. It was of a genre I loved so much but hadn't explored in a while - Gothic romance. When I read the trigger warnings and saw everything the author listed there, found out I was comfortable with them, I was intrigued. I then read the first page and realized that reading this book didn't become only a priority. It became a necessity. I was really pumped to read this book and I did. A very lengthy book, but it was worth the while.
Fairydale is a 1453 paged novel written by Veronica Lancet. Set in the year 1955, it follows the story of an orphan named Darcy. When she receives a letter that says her biological father is dead and her presence at his funeral in Fairydale is the condition for his will to be read, she agrees to it when she hears her attendance comes with a sizeable inheritance. Getting to Fairydale, everything is odd. The people, the town and even the climate. Darcy's plan is to get there, attend the funeral, receive her inheritance and leave the odd town but a different thing awaits her entirely. A glance into her past, the truth about her present and a glimpse into her future.
This is one of the best books I read this year. It was so amazing. From the romance aspect to it's fantasy aspect, I loved everything. The author managed to weave humour into dark fantasy and she did that beautifully. Imagine attending a burial of a man you never met alive and you're asked to tell the audience what's to like about him. That definitely won't turn out well. It didn't. Instead, things turned out worse and by worse, I mean the worst kind of worse. You see, Darcy can be clumsy at times and one thing led to the other, she fell. But she didn't fall on the floor. You want to know what she fell upon? Read this book.
I admire the authors writing style in this book. Considering it was set in a particular time in history but ventured into later parts, I enjoyed reading how simplistic she made everything seem. Her narrative technique also was wonderful. The book was written from Darcy's perspective and I loved it for that because it helped me (the reader) understand better. Darcy was clearly confused about her history and didn't know how to go about anything. Same goes for me. I needed answers just like Darcy did and the answers came at the end. It was a long ride but absolutely worth every second I spent on it.
Our love interest in this book is one of the greenest flags to ever exist in the history of romance books I've read. His looks aside, he was everything and more, would do everything and more, be everything and more, for Darcy. He was what you'll describe as a man consumed by love. People in my country would describe him as a finished man. I don't mean that negatively. He adored Darcy and he is that kind of demon who would worship the ground on which his lady walks on. I absolutely loved their story. It is one I would love to reread over and over again. It just made so much sense and was beautiful. It's been a while since I read a demon romance, hence my simping over this book.
I said earlier that I've been a gothic romance fan ever since and reading this book rekindled my love for the genre. it's only positive things I have to say about this novel. The way the whole story ended could have been written more extensively. It wasn't rushed but I felt it could have been done better. It ended too simply for a slowburn. Did I bother about the part that ended too simply? No. I guess you can call me the finished one where this book is concerned, lol. I was willing to overlook the only flaw I noticed and savoured the remaining few pages of the book. The good parts overshadowed the only flaw I noticed and I was satisfied with that.
I can continue ranting about how much I loved this book but there'll be nothing for you, my dear reader to look forward to anymore. So, I'll round it up here.
I'll rate this book an 8.5/10. If you're looking for a book with an amazing storyline, of the gothic romance genre and historical fantasy fiction, this would be the perfect book for you.
The #Mondaybookprompt for the week asks for a book you'll recommend to all bibliophiles. This is not really a book I'll recommend to all bibliophiles because it contains extremely dark themes but I'll recommend to those who are comfortable with it. It is a must read for those who are comfortable with it's content.
Image is mine.
Thanks for reading.