I honestly think this is the most beautiful and well-written book I have ever read.
Synopsis: Suffering at college and feeling isolated being the only girl in an architecture school of all men, Effy enters a contest to travel and design the house of her recently deceased hero author. She has found solace in his writing for years, and he alone has inspired her to want to write as well, a task impossible for women. However, after being chosen and seeing the waterlogged state of the city and current home, she realizes this might be an impossible feat. On top of that, her hero might not be who she thought he was, as secrets becomes uncovered by her and Preston, an unlikely partner and scholar from her college who was sent to make a biography of this mysterious and fantastical writers life.
Plot: I honestly think that this synopsis does not do this book enough justice. The best parts of this book are in the writing 100%. It is STUNNING. Every word has a purpose and the sentences are woven together so beautiful it feels like poetry. The call backs to previous lines and plot points are also fantastic, perfectly timed, and are presented in the best way to get the greatest reaction out of readers. What a phenomenal standalone fantasty-romance. Beautiful imagery, beautiful writing, beautiful everything, I bow down. It gives dark academic, gothic, and all while making you feel truly immersed in a way I personally haven't in a long time.
Characters: To be honest, the characters were probably the weakest part of this book, still they were perfect, just a lesser degree of perfect than the rest of the book. I think they reminded me both so much of Divine Rivals and I did prefer Kit and Iris slightly. THAT BEING SAID, I still fell in love with the narrative of Effy and Preston. Effy was so nuanced that I felt I knew her, and Preston was pushing the line of dream boat. This book didn't shy away from difficult topics, but also didn't shove a message in your face. It left a lot off page for you to just think about and everything was done in such a beautiful and careful way.
I have to read whatever else this woman has written because my god can she write.
5/5 stars. Obviously.
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