A Lazy Reader's Review of "Hotel Magnifique" by Emily J. Taylor

Synopsis

    All her life, Jani has dreamed of Elsewhere. Just barely scraping by with her job at a tannery, she's resigned to a dreary life in the port town of Durc, caring for her younger sister Zosa. That is, until the Hotel Magnifique comes to town.

    The hotel is legendary not only for its whimsical enchantments, but also for its ability to travel – appearing in a different destination every morning. While Jani and Zosa can't afford the exoritant costs of a guest's stay, they can interview to join the staff, and are soon whisked away on the greatest adventure of their lives. But once inside, Jani quickly discovers their contracts are unbreakable and that beneath the marvelous glamour, the hotel is hiding dangerous secrets.

    With the vexingly handsome doorman Bel as her only ally, Jani embarks on a mission to unravel the mystery of the magic at the heart of the hotel and free Zosa – and the other staff – from the cruelty of the ruthless maître d'hôtel. To succeed, she'll have to risk everything she loves, but failure would mean a fate far worse than never returning home.

Review

    This book felt like the love child of The Night Circus and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

    The beginning started off a little bit rough. I thought that the writing felt a little juvenile. The author would add details in a way that was trying not to be just straight exposition, but I can't say that it worked out all that well. It took a while for the plot to pick up and interest me, but I kept going because I had really high hopes for this book. And I would say that I am glad I did.

    The entire middle of the book was very captivating and fun to read. I was so drawn to the way that the author described the various amusements the hotel offered to its guests such as the salons, suits, games, etc. It felt like I was there taking part in these activities. Very vivid imagery and I think it's a testament to Taylor's skill as a writer. I also adored the magic system in this world. The explanation as to why only certain people can wield magic, known as suminaires, was grounded in reality. The fact that many magic users had artéfacts that aided in stabilizing their magic was a very intriguing concept. 

    Jani, as a main character was pretty good. There were times, however, when I thought that rather than it being her driving the plot, it was her being put into situations that needed to happen in order for the plot to move along. Which, I suppose is less of a problem with her as a character and more so with the writing, but I digress. The romance between Jani and Bel was pretty good. Nothing too out of the ordinary with what we typically see in fantasy books, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I also appreciated the fact that their romance didn't fall into the "let's pause the plot so we can kiss" route that many fantasy romances tend to have.

    The ending was also a little rough and somewhat lackluster, in my opinion. I wished that there had been a better resolution regarding Alistair's fate. I wished that there was a least a conversation that was had with him. Kind of disappointing if you ask me. He was set up as such a cruel villain, but we don't even get to see what happens to him. He just gets put in a freezer and they call it a day.

    Overall, I did enjoy this book and I'm glad I picked it up as it had been on my TBR for quite a long time. As a stand alone fantasy novel, I thought it was quite well done. Though it had some significant issues, I still had a fun time with it.

Oct. 12, 2024 – Oct. 18, 2024

★★★☆☆