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A review by suzreadsalot
Netherford Hall by Natania Barron
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Rating: 3.5
tldr;
Netherford Hall is a fun read and though I had some issues I will still recommend it and will continue reading the series. I’m invested in the characters individually and hope to see more interactions and growth in the coming installments!
What I loved
- The characters — all of the characters were whole and individual. They all had wonderfully different personalities and felt very real! I’m so invested in them individually that it’s the reason why I can’t rate this lower than 3 stars!
- The imagery — everything was so wonderfully described and made it so easy to feel like I was there. Could be seen as a bit flowery but not overly so in my opinion
- The setting — I adore that this took place completely in the country. Not many historical or regency tales take that route and it was very refreshing.
- The magic — the magic and magic system felt very similar to other magics but also completely unique in the way it was approached and I think as we get to see more into the magical world it will get even more interesting
What I didn’t love
- The pacing — it was very slow. I do think there were many scenes that could have been replaced with something else to help move the plot forward
- Multiple storylines — I think that this is the crux of my issues. There were simply too many stories and plot lines to be fully explored in a novel of this size. The story technically has three main characters: Edith, Poppy, and Auden (who isn’t even mentioned in the blurb but gets his own POVs and romance storyline). There are internal and external conflicts for all three to face and not enough time to expand on any of them.
- Not enough time to build the romance — at the end of the novel we are supposed to believe that three couples have fallen in love. I do not. I believe they could fall in love but I don’t believe them to be so when such confessions are made. The story was so focused on all the the internal and external conflicts of the characters that there were not nearly enough interactions between the love interests themselves in order for such strong feeling to have been formed.
spoilers, please to not read unless you’ve finished the book!