4.5 stars

This book was such a delightfully surprising read. A murder mystery in a dark academia setting is what drew me in but I stayed for the characters, the intrigue and the romance.

Set in Regency England, our main character Cascabel must disguise herself as her twin brother in order to go to Oxford and get the education and freedom she dreams of. However, someone discovers her secret and tries to blackmail her. When the blackmailer is found murdered Cascabel, under the guise of her brother, is now a suspect. Balancing her two personas Cascabel sets out to discover who the actual killer is while navigating her school, work, growing feelings for a chambermaid and infiltrating the infamous Rogues Club.

The story explores queer romance and gender identity which was beautifully done. I loved the academia setting, the writing felt very immersive, and the plot was fast paced and entertaining.

Thank you Scholastic for the advanced copy

I really enjoyed this novel. I loved the author's writing style as it hooks you in from the very first page and I didn't stop reading until the end. The story has enough adventure to keep me interested with good pacing and a great cast of characters. I highly recommend it.

I wasn't sure what this book would be like, but it hooked me from the first chapter.

A big part of it was the main character, Cascabel / Pom (I'll be using neutral pronouns to refer to them, as they describe themselves as both man and woman or neither — a fellow enby!). Anyway, gender relatability aside, I loved how curious, driven and bold they were! The story revolves around their desire to study in Oxford and to be intellectually challenged. For that, Cascabel pretends to be their twin brother, Thomas (but makes the name their own by using the nickname “Pom”).

During their time in Oxford, they meet several interesting characters — Garlick (a manservant who might have discovered their identity), Mouse (a deaf glovemaker and chambermaid), William (an earl’s son and member of a group of rowdy students known as The Rogues)... Honourary mention to Treacle the cat.

Anyway, things go fairly smoothly for Cascabel / Pom until they become a suspect in another student's murder.

The investigation itself was interesting, but let me tell you (and this is rare praise), there is a queer romantic subplot that was SO sweet and had me rooting for the relationship to go well. Yea, call me a bitter fucker, but I don't tend to care about romantic relationships. They're usually just eh for me. This one, though? It worked for me. It was built on vulnerability, growing trust, learning from each other and celebrating each other's strengths.

As a final note (and the reason why I held back on rating this 5*), the ending fell a bit flat for me. It was okay but didn't hit as hard as I would have liked.

Still, I would gladly recommend this to anyone who'd enjoy a historical novel with queer characters and a mystery at its core.

Really enjoyed this, was quick paced and easy to follow even with the split character. I enjoyed the storyline and the twists and turns, the second half of the book was much more fun than the first which meant I finished it in a could have hours! Overall really great book!