I’m sharing another instalment of my Mini Review Mondays, the most recent of which was last week. In case you haven’t seen any of my previous posts, I do ‘mini’ reviews of books that I’ve previously read and am now ready to share my full thoughts about.
First up, I’d like to talk about Murder Your Employer by Rupert Holmes. Thank you to Headline Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Welcome to The McMasters Conservatory for the Applied Arts – a luxurious, clandestine college dedicated to the fine art of murder where earnest students study how best to “delete” their most deserving victim.
Who hasn’t wondered for a split second what the world would be like the object of your affliction ceased to exist? But then you’ve probably never heard of The McMasters Conservatory, dedicated to the consummate execution of the homicidal arts. To gain admission, a student must have an ethical reason for erasing someone who deeply deserves a fate no worse (nor better) than death.
The campus of this “Poison Ivy League” college-its location unknown to even those who study there-is where you might find yourself the practice target of a classmate…and where one’s mandatory graduation thesis is getting away with the perfect murder of someone whose death will make the world a much better place to live.
Publication Date: 21st February
TW: murder, death, violence, suicide, sexual harassment, rape, abuse, drugging, manipulation, blood, gore
My Thoughts:
Murder Your Employer was a dark, biting and immensely enjoyable reader.
This is Dark Academia taken to its extreme. A murder school where you either graduate to complete your “thesis”, or die trying? I am completely sold.
This is a maniacal little gem of a book. I loved how Holmes really sat with the ethical considerations of our three would-be murderers and how every “thesis” must demonstrate why their target deserves to die. We encounter some depths of human depravity, with manipulation and stomach-churning behaviour. For me, this was a mystery like no other. Trying to piece together the whys and hows was fascinating, as were our central three characters. All have very different motivations and plans, but you find yourself deeply rooting for them. They have endured hardship that has changed them on every level and the perpetrators are truly monstrous people.
The textbook style narration added that extra degree of realism, like we were reading casebook examples from long ago. There is a smirky, sarcastic tone to the omniscient narration, with little moments that hit so much harder once you fully grasp everything. For me, this book thrived in its gotcha moments. When you fully realise how artificial some of the situations are, it adds an absurdly and darkly comic level of enjoyment that I have rarely found elsewhere. I went from belly laughing to being right on the edge of my seat, nearly trembling from nerves. This is a slow burn book that allows you to fall in deep, just to ramp it all up to incendiary conclusions that left me desperately wanting more.
Murder Your Employer is a fiercely intelligent and innovative book that defies genre. It is a mystery, a comedy and a revenge tragedy all in one.
Next up, I’d like to talk about Nocturne by Alyssa Wees. Thank you to Del Rey UK for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Grace has always wanted to be a ballerina, ever since she first peered through the windows of the Near North Ballet company. The elegance of the dance seemed transcendent to an immigrant child of the working poor, and so, when she is orphaned, it is to the ballet that she flees.
Years later, Grace is on the verge of becoming the company’s new prima ballerina – though she is beginning to realise that achieving her long-held dream may not be the triumph she once envisioned. Then Grace attracts the attention of the enigmatic Master La Rosa, and realises that the world may not be as small or constricted as she had come to fear.
But who is her mysterious patron, and what does he want from her? As Grace begins to unlock the Master’s secrets, she discovers that there may be another way entirely to achieve the transcendence she has always sought.
Publication Date: 21st February
TW: death, mob killing, gun violence, decay of bodies, assault, grief
My Thoughts:
Nocturne was such a lyrical book, immersed in the beauty of ballet and the transformative power of dance.
I have always loved the ballet. The poise and beauty of the ballerinas belies the athleticism and pain endured to create that effortless illusion. There is such intricacy and storytelling that I deeply admire. Wees clearly shares that same love, with dance sequences that took my breath away. Dance in this book is a transformative form of escapism, but Wees takes it to another level with some gorgeously imaginative fantastical elements. There is also an intriguing thread in the romance about finding your own strength and embracing your full self. I liked how, despite the romantic scenes being wonderful, Wees reinforced that self-belief and pursual of your own dreams as the most important factor.
The writing of this book was dazzling. I love a good, descriptive and immersive passage and Wees supplied plenty of those. It felt like being lulled into a trance and being encouraged to step out of our reality and into the lush narrative Wees has created instead. I really enjoyed Grace as a protagonist as well. She was determined and driven to follow her passion, with the first half charting her life and background. This realism perfectly sets the ground for the more fantastic elements later on, because you are already grounded in this world. Like Grace, you can see through that window into the wintery beauty of this world and becomes intrigued by the mystery of what lies beyond.
Nocturne was a Gothic and haunting fever dream of a book that will enrapture you.
Finally, I’d like to delve into Lady MacBethad by Isabelle Schuler. Thank you to Raven Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Daughter of an ousted king, descendant of ancient druids, as a child it is prophesied that one day Gruoch will be queen of Alba. When she is betrothed to Duncan, heir elect, this appears to confirm the prophecy. She leaves behind her home, her family and her close friend MacBethad, and travels to the royal seat at Scone to embrace her new position. But nothing is as Gruoch anticipates.
Duncan’s court is filled with sly words and unfriendly faces, women desperate to usurp her position, and others whose motives are shrouded in mystery. As her coronation approaches, a deadly turn of events forces Gruoch to flee Duncan and the capital, finding herself alone, vulnerable and at the mercy of an old enemy. Her hope of becoming Queen all but lost, Gruoch does what she must to survive, vowing that one day she will fulfill her destiny and take up the future owed to her.
Whatever it may take.
Publication Date: 2nd March
TW: war, sexual violence, sexual harassment, violence, murder, death, blood, gore, homophobia, parental death
My Thoughts:
Lady Macbethad was the darkly enticing, completely ensnaring retelling I needed.
Lady Macbeth has always been a figure that fascinated me, with her complexity and strength of character. She is a villain, but also one that seems to know exactly how the world works and how her position as a woman will hold her back. This book delves deep into Lady Macbeth’s historical origins, which utterly fascinated me. The way this book blends Scottish history and the nods to how Shakespeare will eventually adapt is nothing short of brilliant. Schuler does not hold back in this bloody and gritty retelling. This was a period marked by violence and that is reflected in a plotline mired in political intrigue, power plays and the murky reality of survival. Nothing is simple or clear-cut, there are a multitude of factors, but only one really matters – survival at all costs.
Gruoch was a character I did not expect to love as much as I did. Clever, fierce and determined to fulfil her perceived destiny, she sets out to thrive. Watching her navigate this thorny world full of blood and betrayal, you get a sense of how her psyche may have been shaped into what comes next. Schuler adds a detail that creates heart-breaking implications for the play and is rooted in some historical theories that I may have fallen down the rabbit hole pursuing. At the same time, she is deeply manipulative, always looking to play situations in a way that will create the best outcome for her. The ending felt just open enough for a potential follow-up, if Schuler so wishes to write it and by god, I hope she does. I would follow Gruoch all the way to the bitter end if we could.
Lady Macbethad takes everything you thought you knew and upends it in a brutally wicked retelling that pays homage to both its source, the historical realities and the numerous possibilities beyond.
A Short Book Lover 
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