Confounding Oaths

I found this a delightful book, but I acknowledge the narrative style isn’t for everyone. Robin has a very distinct voice (and I suspect he would have started to wear on me had he not had his own part to play in this drama).

The minor characters— Anne, the Caesar parents, the Irregulars, poor Nancy who puts up with so much and of course Miss Bickle — are fantastic and a huge part of the story’s charm.

It really is Mary Ceasar’s story as much as John’s, and I really enjoyed the old-school fairytale with updated players aspect. Hall handles a few heavier subjects with a fairly light touch, and brings both of our protagonists to the point of change — Mary realizing what she wants and John who he wants to be. (And if John is changing as much for a handsome captain as his sisters … that’s not a bad catalyst). Family — what you make of it in the Irregulars at the Folly as well as the Caesars — feels like the heart of the tale and that’s something I really loved.

It took me two weeks to read Alexis Hall's latest, and during that time I finished seven (7) other books. Yes, Confounding Oaths is funny, and I liked this story's MCs more than the ones in [b:Mortal Follies 62984592 Mortal Follies Alexis Hall https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1671214280l/62984592.SY75.jpg 98814418]. But Puck's unreliable, snarky first person narration again kept me at arm's length emotionally, and I couldn't find a good enough reason to pick up the book when there were so many others calling out to me.

I didn’t love Mr. Caesar in Mortal Follies but I was still happy for the chance to get to know him as the main character Confounding Oaths. Unfortunately I’m still not his biggest fan, but even he openly admits to being a shit, so perhaps I have the right idea.

Mr. Caesar isn’t the only carryover from Mortal Follies. Several characters from the first book make an appearance, including my favorite: Miss Bickle. She’s just as ridiculous as ever, with the added bonus of having become an author of Jane Austen fanfic. Alexis Hall—excuse me, the fairy hobgoblin narrator—seems to only tell queer stories, which I both love and respect, but it really is a shame that Miss Bickle is decidedly straight because I’d really love to be told a story in which she is the main character. Fingers crossed she’s a part of the queer community after all!

As for the story, I liked that it wasn’t strictly about Mr. Caesar saving his sister Mary, but also about Mary herself. She has a full-fledged character arc that is extremely relatable and reads a bit like a fairytale. Meanwhile, unlike Mortal Follies, Mr. Caesar’s romantic relationship with the captain isn’t front and center as much as it is in the background. Saving Mary is more important and all the crazy magical hijinks are distracting. I think it works for this book because I really liked Mary and for me personally, the romance between Mr. Caesar and Captain James wasn’t as captivating as the romance in the first book.

And so, my favorite hobgoblin narrator once again did a fantastic job of observing a great story, being 100% reliable, and making me laugh. I truly can’t believe Oberon hasn’t forgiven him yet, but I’m selfishly glad because he all but promised he has more stories for us and if he were to return to Oberon’s court, he would no longer have need to publish any more books.

Confounding Oaths could probably be read as a standalone, but there are enough characters from and callbacks to Mortal Follies that I highly suggest reading it first. It’s also a fantastic book, so it’s worth it!

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Random House / Del Ray from whom I received an ARC of Confounding Oaths.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Solid 4 stars. This is great as a fantastical historical comedy that has a little romance in it! However, I don't think it works as a genre romance. So, depending on what you want this book to do, it might be a hit or a fail!

Tonally and story-wise, this felt more like a cross between The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels and Terry Pratchett's Witches books, with a tiny dash of genre Regency romance thrown in the mix, than like a true romance novel, to me. Which was great! Just not what I had expected going in!

I adored the narrative structure and writing style of this! By far the best part of the book for me. The story is told from the perspective of a snarky Fae. (Think Puck from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.) His narration is truly hilarious and brilliantly done!

And although, said snarky narrator calls out the reader for potentially not having read the first book in the series—Which was such a funny moment!—I think it works perfectly well on its own!

Overall, it felt a tad too long and the romance could have been a bit stronger, but I had an amazing time with this book until the ending. That sadly knocked it down from a low 5 stars to a middle-of-the-road 4 stars. I am kind of angry at it. I just felt that several of the things that happened were truly unnecessary and I could see parts of it being genuinely upsetting for other readers. SPOILER: On-page animal sacrifice.