Thoughts: Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall

Source: Netgalley, so many thanks to the publisher!
TL;DR: A wonderful fantastical romp from Alexis Hall, whom I am begining to suspect is making his steady way to my favorites shelf. If you enjoy romance, absurdity, and comedy – this is the sapphic novel for you.

Plot: Absolutely ridiculous but I loved it and it made sense for all it’s madness. Very Fae in style (appropriately so).
Characters: Fun and funny, characters were not incredibly dense or detailed but the style and storytelling made up for this.
Setting: An interesting historical set in a world in which Pagan Gods and the Fae are acknowledged and worshiped, but it doesn’t overpower the setting or time.
Romance: Very much a vehicle for the plot, but it was still engaging and I was rooting for the characters the whole way through.

Thoughts:

Mortal Follies is another excellent example of how Alexis Hall’s writing range is just damn impressive to me. After reading A Lady for a Duke and expecting another somber, emotional historical I was incredibly surprised at how jovial, magical, and unique Mortal Follies is.

The story is told to us through the narration of Robin – a fairy who has fallen out of favor with the courts and is sending a story to his Lord (take a guess who he might be). We get this story told in a first person POV as Robin follows around the characters in his story, his thoughts and feelings so much that he is a character all his own and I love him. The rest of the cast are equally as fantastic, some more than others. Our main two lady lovers are interesting and I felt for them and did cheer for them, however my favorite character by far was a side-character named Lizzie. I wonder if perhaps another future book may feature her as I got the feeling that Alexis Hall also enjoyed writing her.

The style is unique and the situations absurd as well. The setting is a Regency/Victorian feeling era, but mixed with fantasy as ‘Old Gods’ (pagan gods) and the Fairy are acknowledged and chased about from time to time. In fact our plot revolves around someone placing a curse upon one of Lady Lovers and their pursuit of clearing it. That made for an interestingly tense story at times, but always undercut with the humor and absurdity that really sold this for me.

I know a lot of people don’t enjoy a lot of humor or silliness in their stories – this would be one to avoid if you are that reader. However, if you enjoy the sly and some times childish humor of Fairy narrator then this is a must read. It’s hilarious at times and keeps it’s pace throughout. A big recommendation from me.