Book Review: Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments by T.L. Huchu

This is a strange series…  I was immediately drawn to the construct here – and the absolutely glorious cover art. I really liked the first two-thirds of the first book. It was a marvelous concept and the characters and setting and magical constructs felt fresh and new and engaging. Then the plot twist involving the abduction occurred, and the book went a little sideways for me. It redeemed itself in the end and I was very excited for the next installment.

This one also started out very strong and drew me in straight away – then once again lost me, although this time it lost me a lot sooner. Not totally, I never considered not finishing it. But the all-encompassing immersion in the story that I felt as each book opened faltered significantly – and in this second book it faltered even sooner (which I find to be a dangerous trend mid-series).

I still think Ropa’s world is a fascinating one, and with the explanation of the nature of the true Library of the Dead late in this book, I was once again drawn back into this universe by the way things ended. But if I keep floundering in the middle I fear that eventually the series will lose me… It’s frustrating because I’m not sure exactly what it is that keeps resulting in my losing the thread. There’s nothing I can put my finger on as the issue I keep stumbling up against, but something is keeping me from totally falling in love with this series the way I want to…

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.