I was in a reading slump and DNF'd about 4 books and when I started this one I knew I finally found one that I would finish!

I LOVE old school European stories especially when monsters are involved.

Here we have a fun twist of Dracula and Sherlock Holmes.
We follow Sam Harker who is the daughter of the woman who killed Dracula, but it may have come at a cost. We also have Hel who is the daughter of Moriarty, the nemesis of Sherlock Holmes.
They must come together to find out what monster is behind the gruesome murders popping up in Paris and neighboring towns.

I love the world building and the MCs.
I do wish the relationships in the book were a little more developed and the ending left me feeling like there should have been more.

But overall I really enjoyed this read.

This book was so much better than I could have even expected from the already interesting description. The cover is absolutely stunning and the writing is just as great. I want to read more from this author in the future and definitely need to grab a physical copy! Such a lovely read. Absolutely loves the characters and story line.

Samantha Harker has a secret skill and a strong sense of smell. She uses both of these to win herself the position of partner to Dr. Helena Moriarity so that she can chase a clue that appears at the murders happening in Paris. The two must work together to solve the mystery, and there are a lot of complications--including Hel's inability to trust anyone.

The mystery-solving itself is solid. There are great twists and turns, lots of red herrings, and much breathless adventure. The motivations of all the characters involved was excellent. If this had been only a mystery novel, I'd have been happy. And, I'll probably keep reading this series because the paranormal mystery bit was good. Morris sets up an interesting overarching dynamic that I think will pay off.

But, I was promised lesbian paranormal beast hunters. I found Sam to have a distinct lack of emotional interiority beyond the singular worry of her secret. There's no pining, no will-she-won't-she, no heat at all. The clothing is described beautifully for the reader, but no one in-novel ever seems to have a reaction to all that clinging fabric except the men. There's honestly more chemistry (albeit toxic) between Van Helsing's son and Sam than any other duo. I understand that Hel has trust issues; I don't mind a slow burn. But there wasn't any smoke to signal a banked fire. A scene where Hel patches up a wounded Sam is bland and dull, and I could see the places where it could have been so much more. There wasn't even any witty banter, and that made paying attention to the intricacies of the mystery diffcult for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Inky Phoenix Press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

2.5. Dracula and Sherlock Holmes are literally my favorite classics, so a story featuring the daughters of Jonathan Harker from the former and Professor Moriarty from the latter sounded amazing. Throw in a mystery, action set in early 20th century Paris, and a little romance, and it seemed like the recipe for a perfect book. Unfortunately, the whole thing fell flat for my taste. I mean, the book isn't bad, but other than the great creative idea, I don't really have much to praise it for.

The worldbuilding is quite poor, and the reader has to figure out most of its rules. It's not really clear what the attitude towards magical monsters and creatures is in this world, or what the unit the heroines work in actually does. I won't hide the fact that not understanding why British field agents would solve a criminal case in France lowered the stakes for me.

Added to this was the rather mediocre portrayal of the characters, who seemed very one-dimensional, with their actions poorly motivated. For example, I don't understand the plot imperative of making Jakob Van Helsing a negative character. Maybe it would have worked if it had influenced the deepening of the relationship between the heroines, but unfortunately it was not the case. The chemistry between Helena and Sam was practically nil; at one point I forgot that there was supposed to be a romance between them at all, as Sam seemed much more interested in every man she met during the investigation.

Speaking of the crime mystery itself, on a plot level it was the strongest and most interesting part of the book, but unfortunately, somewhere around the middle, I was pushing myself to continue because I didn't feel any connection with the characters or the story at all.

Overall, the book is based on a great idea, but lacks a lot in terms of execution. I hope we'll see a sequel that gives readers a chance to get to know the characters, their relationships, and their actions better.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

First and foremost, the fact that this is a debut novel is astounding to me. Susan J. Morris, you are very talented indeed! Fans of slow burn romance are absolutely going to eat this up, as well as anyone that enjoys a good "whodunit" mystery! I seriously loved Sam and Hels so much, I'm seriously hoping we will see much more of them in the future. Again, kudos to the author on such interesting and fun debut novel!

Love love love love. 

The main characters were lovely, the vibe came across perfectly and the mystery kept me on my toes until the very end.

Even though there wasn't that much romance it felt real and I hope there will be a sequel to further explore the romance and Hel's story.

The story felt very real and all the problems adressed in it were handled well in my opinion. I'd really recommend this book to readers of dark fantasy or mystery books.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

thank you to netgalley for the eARC.

historical fiction is often a toss up for me. some times i really enjoy it and other times i just can’t get into it, but i really liked this one.

i normally warm up to the mysterious characters more quickly compared to their optimistic partners, but i was drawn to sam from the first page. i think her being a channel made her really interesting that had me questioning how she’d play her role while keeping it hidden from a very intelligent character whose job is a famous detective. it was really nice to see hel be met with her match even if she didn’t realize it at first.

the tone felt very sherlock holmes. not sure about dracula as i’ve never read the book, but the mystery of it all was very present throughout the whole book.

i love slow burn romances, they might be my favorite, but i think the romance was lacking. when there was a moment between them, i forgot there was meant to be a romance between them. i don’t think it harmed the story overall as it was very strong on its own, but i think the build up between sam and hel could’ve been better.

one thing i really loved was that hel’s flaws weren’t all resolved by the end. she made gradual growth and by the end, she acknowledged that she wasn’t what sam could want and needed more time to better herself. i really enjoyed that aspect since i don’t see it often.

the ending let it open for a second book, and i believe there will be one, but i actually like the ending enough for it to be the end of them. though i did really enjoy sam and hel, i’m not sure if i would want more of them. maybe i need some time to really sit with the book, but i’m unsure if i’d come back for the next.

This was good, but not great. There were so many aspects of the premise that drew me to this: the magical world, gothic atmosphere, a mystery, and sapphic romance. In the execution they were done okay, but could be better. Mainly I wanted more, I wanted it to feel atmospheric, I wanted more world building, I wanted more of a connection between the two leads. I think with a little more tweaking this could have been really great. I do think there are some people that are going to love this, and I’m definitely intrigued to see what this author will do next.

ARC provided by NetGalley

A story where the world of Dracula meets the world of Sherlock Holmes, set in Paris at the dawn of the twentieth century and make it a supernatural murder mystery? Well, yes, you got me!

Following Sam Harker and Dr. Helen Moriarty on this adventure was a wild ride through 'monster' infested Paris, hunting down in the famous catacombs all while trying to solve the puzzle of several impossible seeming murders.

I adored the way Sam and Hel had to work to find a basis and trust in their partnership and how each of them has their own gifts and how they make the perfectly imperfect team. The slow burn between them is wonderfully balanced and when they finally open up more to each other it is beautiful.
I also loved how scents played a big part in the murder mystery and how Morris described them.

What I would have liked more of was actually Sam's childhood friend and later rival Jakob Van Helsing. He was an intriguing antagonist in the scenes he was in and how dare he get such a fun design to just be almost criminally underused in the overall story?

In the end though Strange Beasts is a great book, the writing is amazing and the characters shine. Even the side characters were written well and with some of them you might wish to see more of.

Thank you to Susan J. Morris, Broken Bindery and NetGalley for this eARC!
#StrangeBeasts #NetGalley

This was EVERYTHING.

I’ve never been one for mysteries as I tend to find them too predictable and makes the overall experience… boring. Here, I completely forgot that there was something I should even be looking for! The atmosphere, the characters, the book as a whole creates it’s own pace and secrets where I found myself not wanting to solve the mistery myself but rather watch Sam and Dr. Moriarty do it.

The underlying topics like class struggle and misoginy made it all feel more real and round even tho we are talking about monsters.

I can’t wait to have it on my shelves (and make my friends buy it) when it comes out!

Strange Beasts follows Dr. Helen Moriarty, daughter of the infamous Conan Doyle's villain, and Samantha Harker, humble librarian for the Royal Society for the Study of Abnormal Phenomena. Together, they investigate on a series of murders implying werewolves and Parisian high society.

Although the story is entertaining and easy to read, I couldn't get past the characters' clichee construction : the shy librarian taking up her first challenge and struggling for self-esteem, the experienced and tough detective that reveals some cracks in her armor, the jealous and zealous ex-friend who tries everything in his power to stop their progression, the nicest chivalrous encounter that happens to hide darkest secrets.

Dracula meets Sherlock Holmes meets fierce, independent women, meets a gothic Parisian atmosphere in the early 1900s, meets Fantastic Beasts, meets murder mystery... AND it's sapphic? Yes. Sign me up. Take my money. Put my name on the roster.

I thoroughly enjoyed Strange Beasts!

The world building, though minimal, was easy to understand. This is a world where monsters and/or paranormal beings exist and are known.

I loved watching Sam and Hel's relationship blossom. To me it felt authentic, and I am very much looking forward to seeing it develop further in a sequel.

I very much want to give this five stars, however I have a small gripe: throughout the book, there is French dialogue without translation and as I don't speak French, this was mildly irritating! My choices were either Google translate it as I went or just push through and assume it wasn't super important. I went with the latter most of the time, and while I don't feel I missed a whole lot, I would have liked to know what they were saying.

This was well written, well researched, and well plotted. Highly recommend. 4.5 stars.

Strange Beasts is the story of Sam, the daughter of a vampire hunter from Dracula, and Helena (Hel) who's the daughter of Moriarty from the Sherlock Holmes novels. It explores their journey as they investigate a paranormal mystery for their work at what's essentially (as I understood) the paranormal FBI (which is basically a monster hunting team).

I loved the concept of this novel so much- I'm a Holmes lover (as is any mystery reader) and (having gone through a brief gothic classic phase) love Dracula. I was a bit shocked upon starting the novel because there really was not much worldbuilding, so readers were kind of thrown in head-first and expected to know how this new world worked. I loved the exploration of Helena's history with her dad/brother, but I do wish there was more elements of both the original Holmes books and Dracula. The mystery was quite fun, and while I did see it coming it took me a little bit with all of the false starts in the book. All in all... I think it was an amazing concept, but a little underdeveloped.

A mixture of Who Dunnit and horror/ fantasy, the concept of Strange Beasts really appealed to me. I can see this striking a chord with fans of Supernatural, but for me, the Sherlockian references felt a little half-baked, and the pacing slowed in the middle. Still, great to see a women-led crime novel, and the scent descriptions were particularly well-written. This is best for someone who likes a quieter, more character-driven fantasy. Not thrilling or scary per se, but enjoyable for the right reader.

Thank you to The Bindery team and to NetGalley for this ARC! This review contains spoilers.

FINALLY a good horror/mystery/crime book! With a good narrator! Interesting characters! And where it wasn't clear who was the villain from the start!
I really liked this book and read it in three days. The setting of Paris, the catacombs, everything weaved together was so satisfying to read. Needless to say, I need book two. I am begging. I want to know what Hel and Sam will get up to in Ireland. Will they meet Hel's family? Will they kiss again? I have to say, I didn't give the book 5 stars because to me the romance between Hel and Sam felt like it wasn't fleshed out the way it should have been. What I mean with that is that from the comments Hel makes (e.g. when she says something along the lines of Cyprien won't be able to resist her in that dress, she looks good etc.) one can clearly see that she likes her. Sam on the other hand never really mentions being attracted to her. That felt a bit off to me. I would have liked for Sam to give little indications (before the kiss) that she was indeed also interested in Hel, romantically. But ah, nevertheless, I enjoyed this story so much!

HONESTLY, THIS DELIVERED EVERYTHING WE WERE PROMISED FROM THE SYNOPSIS AND I ATE THE FUCK OUTTA IT. like good lorddd, a must read for enjoyers of horror/thrillers and lesbians 10/10.

<i>Strange Beasts</i> is everything you could want from a murder mystery. It leaves you guessing again and again, leading you to think you've figured the puzzle out, only to divert your expectations entirely. Aside from that, it immerses you in a perfectly gothic, almost whimsical world of mythical creatures and catacombs and potions. This is the type of book you forget you're even reading, because it's just that good.

Don't even get me started on the slow burn sapphic romance. That one kiss was not enough for me. Give me a second book please!!!!

I think i liked this? The description selling this as Sherlock Holmes meets fantastic beasts is definitely accurate, and as a perfume lover i loved how the elements of that were woven into the plot. However, i kept getting lost in the dialogue and losing the thread i was meant to follow. I felt the author went overboard with trying to trick us in regards to who deserved our attention. Overall a fairly quick read but the tie up at the end wasn’t as satisfying as i would have liked for it to be due to the confusion and muddling in the middle. The pacing was also pretty off-too many characters i didn’t care about and didn’t want to remember.

A truly beautiful story that takes place in a equally as beautiful world. This is a great gothic mystery that takes place a world in which all of your favorite monster stories and classic English literature characters are real. Think the Van Helsing movie, but much less campy and a little more serious. It was so atmospheric and all of the decisions--from the lore of the werewolves and various other creatures, to setting the story in early 20th-century France, to Sam's fantastical abilities--created a very beautiful and uncanny world.

I also really liked how Sam and Hel came from "famous" families and how those backgrounds created compelling personal journeys and mysteries for the two MCs. Without spoiling too much, it was really interesting to see how Morris approached the very different family lives of the two. Sam came from a family with a dark history, and while they were very loving and obviously cared deeply for Sam, they also coddled her too much, not allowing her to fully learn to control and explore her abilities, which ended up hurting her in the end. On the other hand, Hel came from a loveless family that used each other as pawns and only saw the value in each other if they were strong and intelligent. While this obviously emotionally stunted Hel, it did turn her into a very strong and independent woman. I also like how each family has their own mystery that's threaded throughout the book, but never overtakes the main plot, just enhances it. There definitely needs to be a sequel just to see how these storylines end.

My only complaint is that I just didn't really feel the romance. I do think Sam and Hel would be a great couple and compliment each other well, but throughout most of the book, it was completely platonic with almost no mention of interest on either side. There wasn't any romantic tension between the two since they were so focused on solving the case, which is obviously fine, but if I hadn't read the synopsis before reading the book, I don't think I would have even known that Sam was into women. It's a shame because the little romantic development that we did get towards the end was very well done and set the stage for a very sweet relationship.

While this was obviously a very serious story with some darker scenes, the book was also just fun. I really like when author's don't take their stories too seriously and just allow their characters to be human. This was a great read and I cannot wait to read more from Morris (especially if this ends up being a series to tie up all those loose ends).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.
Already desperate for a sequel. This book is very action-packed and you are thrown straight into it. I loved the characters and their relationships, loved how the author merged the fictional universes of Dracula and Sherlock Holmes and still added so much, loved the Belle Epoque Paris setting... I loved pretty much every single thing about this book. The fact that this is a debut is insane to me. It was so well crafted, extremely engaging, the pacing was perfect and the author nailed the slow-burn romance. The only reason why I'm not rating it 5 stars is because I found the ending predictable and knew the character was guilty (and the method they used) as soon as they were introduced.
4.75 stars