I was captivated by The Longest Autumn and enjoyed every minute of the story, which I thought was unique, and quite atmospheric. I'm surprised by some of the more negative reviews it has received and can only assume the unorthodox ending is part of what has put people off. I was engrossed the whole way through, and despite rooting for characters, only to find they weren't what they seemed, I found the mystery kept my interest, the world-building was strong and the mythology felt real and well-formed.

As someone who suffers from chronic migraines, I thought the representation was excellent, and I was fascinated to see a character who struggled day in and day out with debilitating headaches, yet rose to the very top of her profession and sustained a life around this.

This was marketed as a romance, and I would question whether that's appropriate, as it doesn't meet the usual criteria, with some kind of 'happy ever after' or 'happy for now' ending. Tirne's relationships are not the focus of the book and often are second or third in line to the main story, which is about the mirror and the gods. Having said that, they add richness, intrigue and complexity to the story, and I certainly had an interest in one particular relationship, which I had hoped would stand the test of time, and other challenges, though it was not meant to be.

Thanks to NetGalley, Solaris Books and the author for this ARC, this is my honest opinion.

I was really looking forward to this book—it had such an exciting premise and so much potential! Unfortunately, it didn’t quite meet my expectations.

The magic system alone had so much promise but felt underdeveloped on times. It could be a standout element, especially considering the foundation of it, but combined with the inconsistent pacing and underdeveloped plot it just didn't reach the potential it could.

The story often felt like it wasn’t progressing, with relationships and character arcs lacking meaningful development until it served the plot.

As I said, I felt almost sad by the end of the book. It had all the components that could lead to fantastic storytelling, but it only left me wanting and craving a little bit more.

The Longest Autumn follows Tireun, a herald for the god of Autumn, who ends up in the unfortunate circumstance of having the Mirror between worlds breaking as soon as they step through, plunging the world into the longest Autumn. There is mystery in trying to determine who was responsible for the breakage, whilst the higher ups in the Temple put the blame on Tireun., At the same time, romance is blossoming across the grounds and Autumn and Tireun have a forbidden love.

Amy Avery’s writing is solid and immersive. I really liked the initial step up for the story, the first steps of the world building and the mystery surrounding the broken mirror. I also really enjoyed the chronic illness/migraine representation as it’s not something I’ve read about before.

However, I entered the book on the premise of fantastical mystery and steamy romance, and didn’t really get either of those things. The plotting for the uncovered mystery has pacing issues and the steamy romance did a lot of fade to black. There was sexual tension but no feel romance and feeling that I felt from the two advertised love interests. Tireun ends up having three different potiental suitors, which I’m not the biggest fan in general.

I’d definitely be interested in reading more Amy Avery as there’s definitely promise to her writing, but I feel like The Longest Autumn could have used a couple more rewriting sessions.

The thing that i loved most was the seasonal magic: it felt so original! But also I loved the characters that felt so real and relatable and, for sure, i’m happy that this is a standolobe.. but I would loved learning more about the villain!

I was so excited to read this book because the premise sounded fantastic, and some storylines had a lot of potential. Unfortunately, while there were glimmers of promise, the execution didn’t work for me.

The main issue I had was that a lot seemed to happen without really moving the story forward. Some relationship based storylines lacked meaningful development until it suited the plot, and even then, much of that progress was undone in the final chapters, which left me feeling unsatisfied.

The magic system, which should have been one of the book’s standout features, didn’t receive the development it deserved. It felt underexplored, which was disappointing because it had so much potential to make the story truly special. Additionally, several plot points didn’t feel fully justified, which made the pacing and progression feel uneven.

I truly wanted to love this book—it had such a promising foundation! While it wasn’t for me, I can see where other readers will find enjoyment in it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC for review.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A standalone fantasy with seasonal magic, mysteries to solve, gods (and the religious sect that serve them), and the lengths some will go to in order to preserve the life they have carved for themselves. Read this for interesting relationship dynamics, the complexities of friendship and a whodunnit set in a temple of backstabbing acolytes, priests and consorts.

In all honesty I would have loved for this to be a duology or series so the world could be expanded on more - the climactic finale did feel slightly rushed so it would have been fantastic to stretch things out, spend more time understanding the main villain and what their motives were, as well as exploring more of the society outside the Temple. But all in all, a great romantasy!

I really wanted to love this book, the synopsis had everything and the cover is just gorgeous. Sadly, the execution fell a little flat, the characters were two dimensional, the world building was non existent and for much of the book not an awful lot happens. I felt there were so many ways that this book could have been improved, I was left with so many questions about everything and the sensation that the author had barely brushed the surface of what could have been a nuanced, rich and fascinating world.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book. A gorgeous 4 star read book from me. What an exciting plot, vivid storytelling and relatable, rich characters. I could put this book down – absolutely loved it.

This book should have been a joy to read, the premice is good and promises an interesting plot and characters. Unfortunately, it didn't work for me, I found my attention slipping away at 10%. I couldn't care about the main character, nor her dynamic with other characters, and the plot didn't felt dynamic enough.
Hopefully the book will satisfy other readers !

I loved the concept of this book and felt it really had the potential to be amazing. I’d say the first 60-70% of the book had me hooked and I really enjoyed it but I felt it kind of trailed off after that. While this was really good for a debut, it just lacked a little something and the ending kind of left me wondering what it was all for. However, not everyone will feel this way so I recommend giving it a go

It's a book with a very good idea and totally in my style, it's a shame that it got lost on some themes, particularly the interactions between the characters. It's a static book, not many things happen and there are no action scenes, everything develops around a mystery - who broke the mirror and why - and the protagonist, Tirne, is the first accused, and together with others she will work to prove her innocence, but obviously there are those who will want to betray her. I also liked the underlying mystery in its management and overall resolution, what in my opinion was missing is the author's ability to make us feel empathy for the characters, who remain more like stand-ins in their own story, with a few rare exceptions . I'm curious to read more of hers (this should be her debut book) and the author will certainly have the opportunity to develop this lack of hers, because the basis of the plot is very solid as is the worldbuilding.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC copy