Jamie Pacton

Moulin Rouge meets Holly Black in a thrilling sapphic friends-to-lovers romantasy! For Sybil Clarion, the Belle Époque city of Severon is a wild, romantic dream, filled with cafés, cabarets, and glittering nightclubs. Eager to embrace the city’s freedom after running away from home, she’s traded high-society soirées for empty pockets and barren cabinets. At least she has Esme, the girl who offered Sybil a home, and maybe—if either of them dared—something more. Ever since Esme Rimbaud brought Sybil back to her flat, the girls have been everything to each other—best friends, found family, and secret crushes. While Esme would rather spend the night tinkering with her clocks and snuggling her cats, Sybil craves excitement and needs money. She plans to get both by stealing the rare posters that crop up around town and selling them to collectors. With rent due, Esme agrees to accompany—and more importantly protect—Sybil. When they’re caught selling a poster by none other than its subject, Maeve, the glamorous girl doesn’t press charges. Rather, she invites Sybil and Esme to The Absinthe Underground, the exclusive club she co-owns, and reveals herself to be a Green Faerie, trapped in this world. She wants to hire thieves for a daring heist in Fae that would set her free, and is willing to pay enough that Sybil and Esme never have to worry about rent again. It’s too good of an offer to pass up, even if Maeve’s tragic story doesn’t quite add up, and even if Sybil’s personal ties to Fae could jeopardize everything she and Esme have so carefully built. Jamie Pacton, author of The Vermilion Emporium, dazzles in this lavish and decedent LGBTQ+ fantasy romance that will leave readers utterly enchanted!

The Absinthe Underground

the pacing of the books plot left me frustrated as it was incredibly fast paced. frequently I had to go back and refresh myself on what just happened as it would get muddled in said pacing. besides that and the delay in gratification between the two main characters, I enjoyed it. the fae world intrigued me and I wanted to know more about it too.

Brenna Stone

aleksandra

2/5

Well, that was quite a disappointment. It pains me to say this because I really wanted to love it, but I just couldn't, as I felt no connection with the plot or main characters. The book was short and initially I thought it would take me a maximum of two days to complete it, not a month. So you can see how much I liked it just from that alone.

I came here for two things: the absolutely beautiful cover and the description that said it would be a fantasy book with a Sapphic romance between two best friends. It all sounded very promising, but the book felt flat and lacked some flavor. Unfortunately, the romance was boring, the plot predictable, and the writing instead of giving me these fantasy vibes, made me tired of reading it. I wish I was joking, but I was reading one or two pages a day and had to take a break for two days. 

The book had potential and I really wanted to like it, but unfortunately it didn't work out.


Thank you Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"A person couldn't help where they came from... just where they decided to go after they left. That was what was important. What one chose, not what was chosen for them."

I was drawn to the beautiful cover for this book as soon as I saw it, I have Alphonse Mucha's "Absinthe Robette" hanging on the wall beside me as I type this review, and the blurb for this sounded so enticing. Sybil has escaped high society, an impending arranged marriage, a father who doesn't care much for her in the wake of the death of Sybil's mother, and she is in search of her brother who has fled to the city of Severon. Esme is a working class girl scraping by on tips from the restaurant she works at, she likes a quieter side of life tinkering away on clocks, when she meets Sybil and invites her to stay with her. The two form a fast friendship, and slowly develop secret romantic feelings too - so when Sybil invites Esme to join her on an adventure to steal posters they can sell for rent money, Esme would prefer to stay home in the warmth but ultimately can't refuse the girl she's falling in love with. That's just the beginning of the many adventures they will have together, from magical green fairies, to Spring Equinox balls in Fae lands and adorable companions like dragons and a cute kitten called Oliver.

I thought The Absinthe Underground was a very sweet, cosy fantasy. In the beginning the descriptions of the city in its La Belle Époque setting, the clock tower apartment filled with tea and cats and the thrilling promise of a heist from an alluring woman called Maeve drew me in and I was so excited to see where this would go and what secrets they would uncover. I thought Sybil and Esme where both very likable FMCs as we follow the story through their switching POVs, their longing for one another truly made my heart yearn for them. The story follows the same basic structure as a standard fairy tale and I can see where other people have been drawing similarities to Barbie although I did find this story to be a more on the middle grade side than YA in my opinion. I think I would've absolutely adored this story when I was a younger kid.

I did find this a little bit more juvenile than I had been expecting, the writing style was quite superficial and I struggled to really connect with the characters as much as I would've liked. The simplicity of the plot line and the heist made it predictable for me so in all I think the idea was there, that this story had real potential but the execution needed a little bit more refining. I wish this book had spent a bit more time in that "Moulin Rouge"-esque vibe that it was marketed as giving, if this story had delved deeper into describing the setting of Severon and the club, really played up that wild, drunken, slightly scary feeling you get from a crowded party where you can't tell if the patrons are human or fae, where you can't tell if what you're seeing is real or an hallucination due to the absinthe - then this story would've held my attention better. I also wish it had focused more on a deeper character development as well, we are introduced to a lot of characters in this story and I don't think they added as much to this story as they could have and most of them, and the romance, felt quite one dimensional.

Overall, I did enjoy this story, it kept me engaged and I was rooting for Sybil and Esme, and the idea was really fantastic. I think a little bit more was needed from the development of this book, or perhaps it should've been marketed at a younger age group - my slightly lower rating reflects that maybe this book wasn't for me entirely and that I am not the right demographic, but despite that I can see this would be a book many people would really enjoy. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Genevieve 

"A person couldn't help where they came from... just where they decided to go after they left. That was what was important. What one chose, not what was chosen for them."

3.5 ⭐'s

I was drawn to the beautiful cover for this book as soon as I saw it, I have Alphonse Mucha's "Absinthe Robette" hanging on the wall beside me as I type this review, and the blurb for this sounded so enticing. Sybil has escaped high society, an impending arranged marriage, a father who doesn't care much for her in the wake of the death of Sybil's mother, and she is in search of her brother who has fled to the city of Severon. Esme is a working class girl scraping by on tips from the restaurant she works at, she likes a quieter side of life tinkering away on clocks, when she meets Sybil and invites her to stay with her. The two form a fast friendship, and slowly develop secret romantic feelings too - so when Sybil invites Esme to join her on an adventure to steal posters they can sell for rent money, Esme would prefer to stay home in the warmth but ultimately can't refuse the girl she's falling in love with. That's just the beginning of the many adventures they will have together, from magical green fairies, to Spring Equinox balls in Fae lands and adorable companions like dragons and a cute kitten called Oliver.

I thought The Absinthe Underground was a very sweet, cosy fantasy. In the beginning the descriptions of the city in its La Belle Époque setting, the clock tower apartment filled with tea and cats and the thrilling promise of a heist from an alluring woman called Maeve drew me in and I was so excited to see where this would go and what secrets they would uncover. I thought Sybil and Esme where both very likable FMCs as we follow the story through their switching POVs, their longing for one another truly made my heart yearn for them. The story follows the same basic structure as a standard fairy tale and I can see where other people have been drawing similarities to Barbie although I did find this story to be a more on the middle grade side than YA in my opinion. I think I would've absolutely adored this story when I was a younger kid.

I did find this a little bit more juvenile than I had been expecting, the writing style was quite superficial and I struggled to really connect with the characters as much as I would've liked. The simplicity of the plot line and the heist made it predictable for me so in all I think the idea was there, that this story had real potential but the execution needed a little bit more refining. I wish this book had spent a bit more time in that "Moulin Rouge"-esque vibe that it was marketed as giving, if this story had delved deeper into describing the setting of Severon and the club, really played up that wild, drunken, slightly scary feeling you get from a crowded party where you can't tell if the patrons are human or fae, where you can't tell if what you're seeing is real or an hallucination due to the absinthe - then this story would've held my attention better. I also wish it had focused more on a deeper character development as well, we are introduced to a lot of characters in this story and I don't think they added as much to this story as they could have and most of them, and the romance, felt quite one dimensional.

Overall, I did enjoy this story, it kept me engaged and I was rooting for Sybil and Esme, and the idea was really fantastic. I think a little bit more was needed from the development of this book, or perhaps it should've been marketed at a younger age group - my slightly lower rating reflects that maybe this book wasn't for me entirely and that I am not the right demographic, but despite that I can see this would be a book many people would really enjoy. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

The Absinthe Underground is the book made for those who loves fantasy, sapphic relationships and anything fae. It was a cute read and the further I got into it, the more I didn’t want to put it down. There was the constant feeling of magic and love that was tied in with tension and worry giving me a rollercoaster of emotions.   

However, it felt very disappointing. The story felt extremely rushed leaving me underwhelmed with the characters and relationships given throughout. I believe more was needed within all parts of the story, we needed to be told more things not just shown.   Overall, I recommend giving this book a try, especially if you love fast paced books that are fae and sapphic!   

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review

nora

3 stars!   

The Absinthe Underground is the book made for those who loves fantasy, sapphic relationships and anything fae. It was a cute read and the further I got into it, the more I didn’t want to put it down. There was the constant feeling of magic and love that was tied in with tension and worry giving me a rollercoaster of emotions.   

However, it felt very disappointing. The story felt extremely rushed leaving me underwhelmed with the characters and relationships given throughout. I believe more was needed within all parts of the story, we needed to be told more things not just shown.   Overall, I recommend giving this book a try, especially if you love fast paced books that are fae and sapphic!   

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review

the absinthe underground is an ode to all things beautiful. if you want to read about pretty girls in pretty dresses stealing pretty paintings, or faery galas, faery princesses, and faery forests, or glittering parisian cabarets, then this is absolutely your book. i am obsessed with the world in which this takes place—i will definitely be reading the prequel soon. 

the plot and writing on the other hand. well. not to say there's no substance or plot because there is. it's just not executed very well. there's no emotion imbued in a single sentence in this book. i can't completely say i didn't care because i was hooked (mostly due to the previously mentioned faery galas and cabarets). i finished this within a one hour bus ride. so yes, it's addictive. however, it's not anything memorable or interesting—it serves its purpose as a cutesy feel-good read for when you need something on public transportation and your fingers are twitching, but not something too good in case you hit a bump and miss a page. basically heartstopper.

and maybe i'm just not the target audience right now because i would have injected this into my veins in middle school. if you like caraval or belladonna and you love gay people, this is all yours. 

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy.

The Absinthe Underground

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