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Household Gramarye #1
Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil: A Novel
Win a free print copy of this book!
23 days and 03:06:38
15 copies available
U.S. only
A hilarious and surprisingly moving cozy fantasy novel from the best-selling author of Once Upon a Tome.
This debut novel by beloved rare bookseller and memoirist Oliver Darkshire reimagines the Decameron heroine Isabella (with her creepy pot of basil) in a world of sentient animals, talking plants, and shape-shifting wizards.
In a tiny farm on the edge of the miserable village of East Grasby, Isabella Nagg is just trying to get on with her tiny, miserable existence. Dividing her time between tolerating a feckless husband, fending off snide neighbors, and cooking up “scrunge,” Isabella can’t help but think that there might be something more to life. When Mr. Nagg returns home with a spell book purloined from the local wizard, she What harm could a little magic do?
As Isabella embarks on a journey of self-discovery with a grouchy cat-like companion, Darkshire’s imagination runs wild, plunging readers into a delightfully deranged world full of enchantment and folklore—as well as goblins, capitalism, and sorcery.
This debut novel by beloved rare bookseller and memoirist Oliver Darkshire reimagines the Decameron heroine Isabella (with her creepy pot of basil) in a world of sentient animals, talking plants, and shape-shifting wizards.
In a tiny farm on the edge of the miserable village of East Grasby, Isabella Nagg is just trying to get on with her tiny, miserable existence. Dividing her time between tolerating a feckless husband, fending off snide neighbors, and cooking up “scrunge,” Isabella can’t help but think that there might be something more to life. When Mr. Nagg returns home with a spell book purloined from the local wizard, she What harm could a little magic do?
As Isabella embarks on a journey of self-discovery with a grouchy cat-like companion, Darkshire’s imagination runs wild, plunging readers into a delightfully deranged world full of enchantment and folklore—as well as goblins, capitalism, and sorcery.
254 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 13, 2025
18573 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 606 reviews
November 25, 2025
Why can't I live on a cursed mandrake farm and study my magical books together with my eldritch cat and my talking plant? Is that truly too much to ask for? But maybe I should be careful with what I wish for, because Mrs. Isabella Nagg has all of the above, but she also has to keep up with a whole lot of annoying stuff. First of all, there is her useless husband who literally can't do anything by himself, and her donkey just keeps wandering off, and at this time of year the goblins crawl out of their holes and try to sell their tempting but lethal goblin fruit to everyone, you know how it is. And then her husband decides to steal the magic book of the town wizard, and of course that's Isabella's problem now too. But well, she might as well try a spell or two, and the wizard is nowhere to be found anyway, so why not take his entire book collection and the not-cat companion that comes along with it? Her first spell results in a sentient donkey and a talking pot of basil, but she has always liked the basil more than her husband, so it surely will be fine. The story unfolds from there, but it's hardly a straightforward plotline. Isabella might be the main character (and she is great), but there are also many other POV characters, and the story is overall more about the vibes than the plot. I personally loved reading about the odd little town of East Grasby where the sun is controlled by a beetle, and where the dead sometimes rise from their graves, and where a woman really does the most to turn the annual goblin market into a profitable business even though it will doom all the villagers. You might have picked up on it from my review, but everything here is a little silly. The narrator is witty and I smiled a lot throughout the book, but that doesn't mean that only light topics are mentioned here. I wouldn't call it exactly cozy, because there is death and the story literally starts out with a beheaded body, but it's also not high stakes and mostly unserious. I actually think that this book kinda nails the tone of these somewhat weird medieval tales like they are collected in the Decameron. I know some stories, but I haven't read it in its entirety (it's 100 tales total) and I never heard about the whole pot of basil situation. The reveal related to that was a surprise for me, but I guess it will not be if you already know the original story or the Keats poem. I know that this will not be everyone's cup of tea (or pot of basil, if you will), but I have nothing negative to say about this book. It also comes with some illustrations, footnotes and abstracts from the magic books, and that made for an unique and enjoyable reading experience. I will definitely pick up a physical copy upon release and I will highly anticipate future works by Oliver Darkshire.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.
February 21, 2026
In a Nutshell: A darkish cozy fantasy. Quirky, but often feels forced in its humour. Minimal cozy vibes. Whimsical human and nonhuman characters. Mild Discworld vibes. I had to read it twice because the audio version just didn’t click with me. First of a planned series. Not a book that will work for all, but it might find a niche audience.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Plot Preview:
While requesting this book, I wasn’t aware of Oliver Darkshire or his bestselling memoir titled “Once Upon a Tome: The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller”. I took this novel mainly for its whimsical cover and title. This is the author’s debut novel, rooted in one of the short stories of the Decameron, Boccaccio’s short story collection from the 14th century. (John Keats has also written a poem on this story. You can read it HERE if you wish.) I haven’t not read the original in any form, so I have no idea whether this novel is faithful to it. But I do appreciate the unusual base source; retellings based on fairy tales and Greek mythology are getting too common!
Unfortunately, this book didn’t exactly turn out to be my pot of basil… errrmm… my cup of tea. I was quite relieved to have access to both the audio and digital versions of this cozy fantasy. When I heard the audiobook, it just didn’t work for me. So I reread the whole book from the digital copy. This turned out to be a slightly better experience, even though it meant I effectively spent about ten days on this book. 🤦🏻♀️
Bookish Yays:
🌿 Isabella as the heroine with “The Common Sense”. A fabulous character who knows her situational constraints and yet can’t stop dreaming about and trying for a better future. A great eponymous heroine.
🌿 Henric Nagg, for being so typical of the male species (for the most part). I like that he wasn’t an outright villain nor a good-hearted buffoon. His casual misogyny rings utterly true.
🌿 The non-human characters, especially the cat-like Grimalkin who helps Isabella in her magic and Bottom the Donkey who is more like Eeyore from the ‘Winnie the Pooh’ world than like Donkey from Shrek. The pot of basil also deserves mention, though I cannot elaborate on the reasons for the sake of spoilers.
Bookish Okays:
🌱 The “Household Gramarye”, the magical book that Isabella uses. It could have been an alluring grimoire because of the way it is described and its magic potential. But we barely see it in action. I wish there had been more spells explored.
🌱 The whimsical feel of the book, accentuated by modern-day words juxtaposed with historical situations. At the same time, it is not exactly ‘cosy whimsical” because there are several dark scenes.
🌱 The humour, strongly British in tone so it’s more wry and understated. This works well at the start where the humour comes in regular doses. But after a point, the humour seems to have been abandoned in favour of a mostly serious, somewhat morbid storyline.
🌱 The interlude chapters, containing journal-like details about the various creatures Isabella encounters on her new magical path. This is interesting for a while, but soon feels like interruptions to the main plot, especially as the background of these creatures barely has an connection to their present behaviour. I skipped all these chapters on my second round with the digital edition.
🌱 The convoluted multi-POV approach, with the storyline shifting characters as and when it feels like. After a few chapters, the headjumping becomes too much.
🌱 The ode to other folk tales and fairytales popping in subtly at random. I enjoyed whatever clues I could detect, but I am fairly sure I missed out on a lot of clues as they aren’t at all obvious. My favourite was the indirect homage to Hans Christian Andersen’s ‘The Tinderbox’ with its three hounds. I had read this story in my childhood and had forgotten its existence! I barely remember anything about it except for the three dogs with saucer-sized eyes. I will read it next for old times’ sake!
Bookish Nays:
🌵 Too many concocted new words. This might not have been so distracting had they been spelt the more traditional way. The audio was a terrible way of trying to figure out the words and spellings. (More on this below.)
🌵 Too many subplots. Combined with the multi-POV approach, it is tough to understand where the plot is going, until everything suddenly comes together somehow. I wish it hadn’t been so haphazard in its structuring.
🌵 Too many footnotes. They contain mostly useless facts/elaborations about random things mentioned in the story. Such a waste of time, especially as some of them run quite long! A note should stay at note length and not reach a para!!! I skipped the footnotes in the second half of the digital edition as none of them had any bearing on the plot, and I don’t think it affected my comprehension at all.
🌵 Too slow-paced.
🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 6 hrs 52 min, is narrated by the author himself. I don’t know how to describe the issue I had with his narration. His enunciation is good enough, and he does a great job voicing some of the special characters such as the donkey and the pot of basil. But somehow, I kept zoning out of the audiobook and never felt deeply involved with the content. I think one hurdle was the constant shifts in POV; it made the listening feel jumpy.
Further, some words were very tough to figure out. For instance, Gramarye (spelling learnt from the digital version) is pronounced ‘grammar’. My head was initially befuddled at how a Grammar book kept throwing up magical spells! 🙆🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
Plus, if Isabella is supposed to be the main character and most of the events happened around her, a female narrator might have made better sense.
Until I read my digital copy, I didn't even realise that the book had footnotes. So I tried out immersion reading for a few chapters. Turns out, the audio doesn't contain all the footnotes in the novel! All the unimportant ones, i.e. those that don't directly affect the plot, are left out. (Which makes me wonder why they're even included in the first place. Are they just ad-hoc additions to add further eccentricity to the narrative?) Those footnotes that help in character detailing or plot development are included in the audio, being read at the exact point where they appear in the actual narrative. This leads to a few random segues in the audio version. At no point are these indicated as being 'footnotes', nor are they read by another narrator (as the footnotes in R.F. Kuang's 'Babel' are.) Basically, unless you know that the book has footnotes, you will be blissfully unaware of their presence if you opt for the audio version.
Overall, this is not that great a cozy fantasy but a decent dark fantasy. The audio version I had wasn’t tempting enough for me to stay focussed. And the digital version had extensive yet unrelated footnotes and a terribly slow pacing. If you wish to read this, it better be through a physical edition.
Those who enjoyed this book more will be happy to learn that it is the first of a planned series of standalone stories and the next title is coming in 2026. I hope those who continue with the series find it as satisfying as they expect. I don’t think it is for me, though.
Recommended to those who enjoy Brit humour and dark fantasy. This isn't a book that takes itself too seriously, and you can do the same while reading it to enjoy it more.
2.5 stars, rounding down for the audio version.
My thanks to W. W. Norton & Company for providing the DRC and to Dreamscape Media for providing the ALC of “Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I follow the Goodreads rating policy:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Lifelong favourite!
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - I loved the book.
⭐⭐⭐ - I liked the book.
⭐⭐ - I found the book average.
⭐ - I hated the book.
The decimals indicate the degree of the in-between feelings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Facebook ||
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Plot Preview:
Isabella Nagg lives in the sad little village of East Grumsby. With an unappreciative husband, snide neighbours, and recalcitrant farm animals, Isabella has only a pot of basil to talk to (even if it doesn’t speak back) while she handles all her chores. One day, when the useless Farmer Nagg returns with a spell book he stole from the local wizard, Isabella wonders if she could use magic to ease at least a part of her life. As Isabella ventures on this new magical path with only a grouchy cat-like creature for company, she discovers that magic can indeed change the world, but not necessarily for the better. Thus begins a crazy ride filled with talking donkeys, fruit-selling goblins, heinous businesswomen, and of course, a sentient pot of basil.
The story comes to us in the third-person perspective of a multitude of characters.
While requesting this book, I wasn’t aware of Oliver Darkshire or his bestselling memoir titled “Once Upon a Tome: The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller”. I took this novel mainly for its whimsical cover and title. This is the author’s debut novel, rooted in one of the short stories of the Decameron, Boccaccio’s short story collection from the 14th century. (John Keats has also written a poem on this story. You can read it HERE if you wish.) I haven’t not read the original in any form, so I have no idea whether this novel is faithful to it. But I do appreciate the unusual base source; retellings based on fairy tales and Greek mythology are getting too common!
Unfortunately, this book didn’t exactly turn out to be my pot of basil… errrmm… my cup of tea. I was quite relieved to have access to both the audio and digital versions of this cozy fantasy. When I heard the audiobook, it just didn’t work for me. So I reread the whole book from the digital copy. This turned out to be a slightly better experience, even though it meant I effectively spent about ten days on this book. 🤦🏻♀️
Bookish Yays:
🌿 Isabella as the heroine with “The Common Sense”. A fabulous character who knows her situational constraints and yet can’t stop dreaming about and trying for a better future. A great eponymous heroine.
🌿 Henric Nagg, for being so typical of the male species (for the most part). I like that he wasn’t an outright villain nor a good-hearted buffoon. His casual misogyny rings utterly true.
🌿 The non-human characters, especially the cat-like Grimalkin who helps Isabella in her magic and Bottom the Donkey who is more like Eeyore from the ‘Winnie the Pooh’ world than like Donkey from Shrek. The pot of basil also deserves mention, though I cannot elaborate on the reasons for the sake of spoilers.
Bookish Okays:
🌱 The “Household Gramarye”, the magical book that Isabella uses. It could have been an alluring grimoire because of the way it is described and its magic potential. But we barely see it in action. I wish there had been more spells explored.
🌱 The whimsical feel of the book, accentuated by modern-day words juxtaposed with historical situations. At the same time, it is not exactly ‘cosy whimsical” because there are several dark scenes.
🌱 The humour, strongly British in tone so it’s more wry and understated. This works well at the start where the humour comes in regular doses. But after a point, the humour seems to have been abandoned in favour of a mostly serious, somewhat morbid storyline.
🌱 The interlude chapters, containing journal-like details about the various creatures Isabella encounters on her new magical path. This is interesting for a while, but soon feels like interruptions to the main plot, especially as the background of these creatures barely has an connection to their present behaviour. I skipped all these chapters on my second round with the digital edition.
🌱 The convoluted multi-POV approach, with the storyline shifting characters as and when it feels like. After a few chapters, the headjumping becomes too much.
🌱 The ode to other folk tales and fairytales popping in subtly at random. I enjoyed whatever clues I could detect, but I am fairly sure I missed out on a lot of clues as they aren’t at all obvious. My favourite was the indirect homage to Hans Christian Andersen’s ‘The Tinderbox’ with its three hounds. I had read this story in my childhood and had forgotten its existence! I barely remember anything about it except for the three dogs with saucer-sized eyes. I will read it next for old times’ sake!
Bookish Nays:
🌵 Too many concocted new words. This might not have been so distracting had they been spelt the more traditional way. The audio was a terrible way of trying to figure out the words and spellings. (More on this below.)
🌵 Too many subplots. Combined with the multi-POV approach, it is tough to understand where the plot is going, until everything suddenly comes together somehow. I wish it hadn’t been so haphazard in its structuring.
🌵 Too many footnotes. They contain mostly useless facts/elaborations about random things mentioned in the story. Such a waste of time, especially as some of them run quite long! A note should stay at note length and not reach a para!!! I skipped the footnotes in the second half of the digital edition as none of them had any bearing on the plot, and I don’t think it affected my comprehension at all.
🌵 Too slow-paced.
🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 6 hrs 52 min, is narrated by the author himself. I don’t know how to describe the issue I had with his narration. His enunciation is good enough, and he does a great job voicing some of the special characters such as the donkey and the pot of basil. But somehow, I kept zoning out of the audiobook and never felt deeply involved with the content. I think one hurdle was the constant shifts in POV; it made the listening feel jumpy.
Further, some words were very tough to figure out. For instance, Gramarye (spelling learnt from the digital version) is pronounced ‘grammar’. My head was initially befuddled at how a Grammar book kept throwing up magical spells! 🙆🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
Plus, if Isabella is supposed to be the main character and most of the events happened around her, a female narrator might have made better sense.
Until I read my digital copy, I didn't even realise that the book had footnotes. So I tried out immersion reading for a few chapters. Turns out, the audio doesn't contain all the footnotes in the novel! All the unimportant ones, i.e. those that don't directly affect the plot, are left out. (Which makes me wonder why they're even included in the first place. Are they just ad-hoc additions to add further eccentricity to the narrative?) Those footnotes that help in character detailing or plot development are included in the audio, being read at the exact point where they appear in the actual narrative. This leads to a few random segues in the audio version. At no point are these indicated as being 'footnotes', nor are they read by another narrator (as the footnotes in R.F. Kuang's 'Babel' are.) Basically, unless you know that the book has footnotes, you will be blissfully unaware of their presence if you opt for the audio version.
Overall, this is not that great a cozy fantasy but a decent dark fantasy. The audio version I had wasn’t tempting enough for me to stay focussed. And the digital version had extensive yet unrelated footnotes and a terribly slow pacing. If you wish to read this, it better be through a physical edition.
Those who enjoyed this book more will be happy to learn that it is the first of a planned series of standalone stories and the next title is coming in 2026. I hope those who continue with the series find it as satisfying as they expect. I don’t think it is for me, though.
Recommended to those who enjoy Brit humour and dark fantasy. This isn't a book that takes itself too seriously, and you can do the same while reading it to enjoy it more.
2.5 stars, rounding down for the audio version.
My thanks to W. W. Norton & Company for providing the DRC and to Dreamscape Media for providing the ALC of “Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I follow the Goodreads rating policy:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Lifelong favourite!
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - I loved the book.
⭐⭐⭐ - I liked the book.
⭐⭐ - I found the book average.
⭐ - I hated the book.
The decimals indicate the degree of the in-between feelings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Facebook ||
August 6, 2025
Quando l’ho aperto e ho visto che c’era un asino parlante di nome Culetto ho capito che leggerlo sarebbe stata una mera formalità. Le cinque stelline erano comunque assicurate.
May 13, 2025
Isabella Nagg is an unhappy homemaker with a lout of a husband and only a pot of basil for company until the day Mr. Nagg brings home a purloined volume of the Household Gramayre, a book he's stolen from the local wizard. Soon Isabella is done with cooking up scrunge, and on her way to discovering the magic of spells and incantations. As one might expect, things do not go . . . smoothly.
Oh, this was so much fun!
Darkshire rocks a strong Terry Pratchett vibe in this world he's created filled with goblins, wizards, headless avengers, and not-so-bright villagers. Drawing on snippets from classic literature (The Decameron and Goblin Market: A Tale of Two Sisters), his tale is wildly imaginative, and filled with plenty of humor
I had a rollicking good time.
I don't know if this is to be a series, but I'd certainly love to tag along with Bottom the donkey to see what adventures await that winsome soul.
Many thanks to W.W. Norton & Company for the physical ARC.
Oh, this was so much fun!
Darkshire rocks a strong Terry Pratchett vibe in this world he's created filled with goblins, wizards, headless avengers, and not-so-bright villagers. Drawing on snippets from classic literature (The Decameron and Goblin Market: A Tale of Two Sisters), his tale is wildly imaginative, and filled with plenty of humor
I had a rollicking good time.
I don't know if this is to be a series, but I'd certainly love to tag along with Bottom the donkey to see what adventures await that winsome soul.
Many thanks to W.W. Norton & Company for the physical ARC.
May 9, 2025
When Isabella Nagg’s husband steals a book of magic from a wizard, Isabella starts to experiment. Soon, there are animals that really should not be talking and Isabella has acquired a strange cat-like companion. And keep you eyes on that pot of basil. Meanwhile, Mr. Nagg is having his own difficulties with goblins.
This book was a little too whimsical for me. I did not find it hilarious, but it did make me smile a few times. The plot took a slightly darker turn near the end, but the writing still had a silliness to it. It was a short, quick read, and I would give the author another try. He also did a very good job narrating his own audiobook. 3.5 stars
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher.
This book was a little too whimsical for me. I did not find it hilarious, but it did make me smile a few times. The plot took a slightly darker turn near the end, but the writing still had a silliness to it. It was a short, quick read, and I would give the author another try. He also did a very good job narrating his own audiobook. 3.5 stars
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publisher.
June 1, 2025
I just didn’t get the point. Everything was a tangent. And everyone was so grumpy.
February 19, 2025
This very cozy folktale-inspired fantasy will need the right audience because the tone could veer on pretentious to irreverent, but I found it thoroughly entertaining. It reminded me quite a bit of Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries, complete with charming but academic footnotes, perhaps too many of them and I didn't read all of them for this reason. But many put a smile on my face.
Turns out I'm not against all folktale and fairytale retellings - I just prefer ones that don't take themselves so seriously. A lot of them are annoyingly self-referential. This one was refreshing, and it was not a retelling - it was more like an whimsical homage. And this is not a marriage in crisis romance, though I think it had a happy ending - though romance traditionalists will not consider it a HEA. But this really is a couple you hope won't stay together. It was like romance flipped on its head. I am trying not to give spoilers, but it's safe to say this isn't a romance.
Isabella Nagg lives a lonely, resentful existence in a loveless marriage taking care of the ungrateful Mr. Nagg. The couple preside over a relatively useless mandrake farm. Mr. Nagg sells the mandrake leaves every year to a wizard, who this year isn't there. Hoping to still impress his wife, he steals a book of his Gramarye and brings it to her as a gift. She is instead upset at the theft and intends to return the book to the wizard. Along the way she inherits the whole Gramarye and a newfound sense of purpose. She bestows her most trusted companion, a pot of basil, with sentience, as well as a philosophical donkey, and has a new assistant, an ugly cat with an attitude.
The town is also plagued by a goblin market. Goblin fruit is a fungus that is poisonous to humans but profoundly tempting to people like Mr. Nagg. Hijinks ensue as Isabella learns a new craft.
There were stakes and things happened here, but no grand plot with a lot of action. But I never got bored. I was charmed by the extremely whimsical tone and the characters. I was rooting for the ending, but at first you think it's going to be a marriage in crisis romance. I'm glad it wasn't. I'm also glad this didn't go the female rage route because that would have killed the tone. Isabella was a great character, more like the perpetually annoyed and put-upon middle-aged woman who's had quite enough bullshit, please and thank you. Not everything needs to be female rage. I liked seeing an attitude closer to my own. Sometimes it's rage; sometimes it's just low-grade irritation with the world.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Turns out I'm not against all folktale and fairytale retellings - I just prefer ones that don't take themselves so seriously. A lot of them are annoyingly self-referential. This one was refreshing, and it was not a retelling - it was more like an whimsical homage. And this is not a marriage in crisis romance, though I think it had a happy ending - though romance traditionalists will not consider it a HEA. But this really is a couple you hope won't stay together. It was like romance flipped on its head. I am trying not to give spoilers, but it's safe to say this isn't a romance.
Isabella Nagg lives a lonely, resentful existence in a loveless marriage taking care of the ungrateful Mr. Nagg. The couple preside over a relatively useless mandrake farm. Mr. Nagg sells the mandrake leaves every year to a wizard, who this year isn't there. Hoping to still impress his wife, he steals a book of his Gramarye and brings it to her as a gift. She is instead upset at the theft and intends to return the book to the wizard. Along the way she inherits the whole Gramarye and a newfound sense of purpose. She bestows her most trusted companion, a pot of basil, with sentience, as well as a philosophical donkey, and has a new assistant, an ugly cat with an attitude.
The town is also plagued by a goblin market. Goblin fruit is a fungus that is poisonous to humans but profoundly tempting to people like Mr. Nagg. Hijinks ensue as Isabella learns a new craft.
There were stakes and things happened here, but no grand plot with a lot of action. But I never got bored. I was charmed by the extremely whimsical tone and the characters. I was rooting for the ending, but at first you think it's going to be a marriage in crisis romance. I'm glad it wasn't. I'm also glad this didn't go the female rage route because that would have killed the tone. Isabella was a great character, more like the perpetually annoyed and put-upon middle-aged woman who's had quite enough bullshit, please and thank you. Not everything needs to be female rage. I liked seeing an attitude closer to my own. Sometimes it's rage; sometimes it's just low-grade irritation with the world.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
April 30, 2025
Oh to be a 40 year old wizard with my books and my weird cat thing (it’s hard to explain what he is, don’t worry though, he doesn’t bite) plus I get to cut the head off of not one but two men. The dream.
It’s funny I tried to pick this book up last month and I couldn’t get into it at all and then this time I picked it up and it just clicked for me. I believe books call to you at the time you need them most, almost like magic some might say. I really enjoyed the silly whimsical nature of this book, I loved the footnotes, and how everything tied together.
If I had to nit pick some things it would be these:
1. I’m not saying the Naggs didn’t both make me laugh but how did they come to be married? The book tried to explain it to be fair but it still didn’t make sense to me, personally. Also sometimes their behavior was giving boomer “I hate my spouse” humor. Like again, why are they married? Please explain it to me like I’m five, I am begging.
2. No spoilers but Isabella does something that subsequently affects her grimalkin and is like oh wow, my actions have consequences. And then does the same thing two more times. Why? Why have her realize the cost of her actions if she doesn’t care?
3. Last one is lighthearted but it would be fun if The Household Gramayre sections were actually annotated rather than told through footnotes. Guys, more books need to include annotations from other characters, idk what to tell you.
Super cozy, funny, and chock full of whimsy, I love a fantasy that doesn’t subscribe to any fantasy tropes. It makes the reading experience refreshing and original. Plus the fourth wall breaks? I love it. I LOVE IT.
Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.
It’s funny I tried to pick this book up last month and I couldn’t get into it at all and then this time I picked it up and it just clicked for me. I believe books call to you at the time you need them most, almost like magic some might say. I really enjoyed the silly whimsical nature of this book, I loved the footnotes, and how everything tied together.
If I had to nit pick some things it would be these:
1. I’m not saying the Naggs didn’t both make me laugh but how did they come to be married? The book tried to explain it to be fair but it still didn’t make sense to me, personally. Also sometimes their behavior was giving boomer “I hate my spouse” humor. Like again, why are they married? Please explain it to me like I’m five, I am begging.
2. No spoilers but Isabella does something that subsequently affects her grimalkin and is like oh wow, my actions have consequences. And then does the same thing two more times. Why? Why have her realize the cost of her actions if she doesn’t care?
3. Last one is lighthearted but it would be fun if The Household Gramayre sections were actually annotated rather than told through footnotes. Guys, more books need to include annotations from other characters, idk what to tell you.
Super cozy, funny, and chock full of whimsy, I love a fantasy that doesn’t subscribe to any fantasy tropes. It makes the reading experience refreshing and original. Plus the fourth wall breaks? I love it. I LOVE IT.
Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 14, 2025
firstly, thank you to the publisher for an alc!
ugh, i’m kicking myself for waiting this long to listen to my alc! (alas a never ending tbr will do that to you…)
isabella nagg and the pot of basil is a lowstakes, cozy fantasy novel with a tinge of grim darkness and full of satirical humor. i also love the side cast full of interesting characters: a talking cat that’s actually not a cat, a talking donkey, a talking pot of basil… many things that should not talk, have the ability to talk in this book, and they’ve got a lot to say!
if i’m not mistaken, there’s a loose retelling of christina rossetti’s the goblin market within this novel, and it was a throwback to my undergrad lit days.
this heavily reminded me of naomi novik’s scholomance series, though of course the stakes were arguably much lower; although i love that isabella escapes her loveless marriage.
as for the audio, the narrator did a fantastic job!
ugh, i’m kicking myself for waiting this long to listen to my alc! (alas a never ending tbr will do that to you…)
isabella nagg and the pot of basil is a lowstakes, cozy fantasy novel with a tinge of grim darkness and full of satirical humor. i also love the side cast full of interesting characters: a talking cat that’s actually not a cat, a talking donkey, a talking pot of basil… many things that should not talk, have the ability to talk in this book, and they’ve got a lot to say!
if i’m not mistaken, there’s a loose retelling of christina rossetti’s the goblin market within this novel, and it was a throwback to my undergrad lit days.
this heavily reminded me of naomi novik’s scholomance series, though of course the stakes were arguably much lower; although i love that isabella escapes her loveless marriage.
as for the audio, the narrator did a fantastic job!
July 28, 2025
4+
È sempre un piacere leggere un romanzo che non si prende affatto sul serio.
Un romanzo dove l’immaginazione può correre a briglia sciolta senza nessun limite, dove le leggi fisiche del mondo escono insieme per un brunch senza preoccuparsi di perdere coerenza tra un drink e l’altro e, soprattutto, un romanzo dove il lettore può respirare e farsi quattro risate sincere.
Perché, a dispetto del weird e del caos, il tutto funziona.
Isabella Nagg e il vaso di basilico è un’opera folle che mi ha ricordato la genialità di Terry Pratchett e lo fa raccontandoci in uno slice of life le disavventure della signora Nagg.
Non solo è incastrata nel piccolo villaggio di East Grasby in un matrimonio senza amore con l’insofferente signor Nagg, ma è sempre lei a sistemare i casini del suo ingrato marito. Così, quando il signor Nagg ruberà uno dei tomi dello stregone del villaggio, Isabella si ritroverà a suo malgrado a ereditare l’intero Gramaire con tanto di famiglio al seguito.
E tutti noi sappiamo che non c’è nulla di più pericoloso di una donna che legge, soprattutto se lo fa in cucina dove ci sono i coltelli.
Tra animali parlanti, piante distopiche con intenti malvagi, goblin capitalisti e incantesimi incomprensibili, Isabella inizierà un’evoluzione non da poco alla ricerca della tanto agognata libertà.
Il tutto accompagnato da una satira sottile e irriverente, pagine del Gramaire fitte di appunti, note a piè di pagine sempre apprezzate, aiutanti d’eccezione e villain iconici.
L’unico appunto critico che mi sento di fare è che la narrazione, seppur scorrevole e ironica, risulta abbastanza lineare e piatta. Certo, alla fine recupera eccome con una conclusione al cardiopalma, ma nonostante il divertimento e le frecciatine al capitalismo, avrei apprezzato qualche colpo di scena in più.
Nel suo piccolo questo romanzo si è rivelato un’esperienza fresca e unica, ideale per chi cerca qualcosa di originale e apprezza il cozy. Plus, è ispirato a una novella del Decameron, per cui…
È sempre un piacere leggere un romanzo che non si prende affatto sul serio.
Un romanzo dove l’immaginazione può correre a briglia sciolta senza nessun limite, dove le leggi fisiche del mondo escono insieme per un brunch senza preoccuparsi di perdere coerenza tra un drink e l’altro e, soprattutto, un romanzo dove il lettore può respirare e farsi quattro risate sincere.
Perché, a dispetto del weird e del caos, il tutto funziona.
Isabella Nagg e il vaso di basilico è un’opera folle che mi ha ricordato la genialità di Terry Pratchett e lo fa raccontandoci in uno slice of life le disavventure della signora Nagg.
Non solo è incastrata nel piccolo villaggio di East Grasby in un matrimonio senza amore con l’insofferente signor Nagg, ma è sempre lei a sistemare i casini del suo ingrato marito. Così, quando il signor Nagg ruberà uno dei tomi dello stregone del villaggio, Isabella si ritroverà a suo malgrado a ereditare l’intero Gramaire con tanto di famiglio al seguito.
E tutti noi sappiamo che non c’è nulla di più pericoloso di una donna che legge, soprattutto se lo fa in cucina dove ci sono i coltelli.
Tra animali parlanti, piante distopiche con intenti malvagi, goblin capitalisti e incantesimi incomprensibili, Isabella inizierà un’evoluzione non da poco alla ricerca della tanto agognata libertà.
Il tutto accompagnato da una satira sottile e irriverente, pagine del Gramaire fitte di appunti, note a piè di pagine sempre apprezzate, aiutanti d’eccezione e villain iconici.
L’unico appunto critico che mi sento di fare è che la narrazione, seppur scorrevole e ironica, risulta abbastanza lineare e piatta. Certo, alla fine recupera eccome con una conclusione al cardiopalma, ma nonostante il divertimento e le frecciatine al capitalismo, avrei apprezzato qualche colpo di scena in più.
Nel suo piccolo questo romanzo si è rivelato un’esperienza fresca e unica, ideale per chi cerca qualcosa di originale e apprezza il cozy. Plus, è ispirato a una novella del Decameron, per cui…
May 13, 2025
This one just didn’t work for me, even though I really thought it might. The description sounded like the kind of cozy fantasy I usually enjoy humor and a dash of magic, but unfortunately, I struggled to finish this one. The pacing felt slow, and while I didn’t mind the droll tone at first, the plot and characters didn’t pull me in enough to keep me invested.
Isabella and Mr. Nagg live this miserable little life, which is definitely the point, but it ended up feeling more depressing than funny. I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and Mr. Nagg in particular just grated on me. I know he’s meant to be awful in a humorous way, but instead of laughing, I just wanted to skip his scenes.
I listened to the audiobook version, and that might’ve made the experience tougher. The narration was very hard to understand, the clarity and enunciation were not great which made it garbled and hard to understand. It seemed as though the narrator didn’t have the professional vocal training needed for this sort of reading. After finishing the audiobook I found out the narration was done by the author, and while that can sometimes feel personal and intimate, here it just didn’t work and it made sense as to way the narration didn’t sound as clear as it would have with a professional voice actor. I honestly think a professional female narrator could’ve made a huge difference, especially with Isabella being the heart of the story,and very likely would have changed my feelings on the book.
Overall, I can see what this book was going for, and I think readers with a very specific sense of humor will probably love it. But for me, it missed the mark.
Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for sending this ALC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Isabella and Mr. Nagg live this miserable little life, which is definitely the point, but it ended up feeling more depressing than funny. I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and Mr. Nagg in particular just grated on me. I know he’s meant to be awful in a humorous way, but instead of laughing, I just wanted to skip his scenes.
I listened to the audiobook version, and that might’ve made the experience tougher. The narration was very hard to understand, the clarity and enunciation were not great which made it garbled and hard to understand. It seemed as though the narrator didn’t have the professional vocal training needed for this sort of reading. After finishing the audiobook I found out the narration was done by the author, and while that can sometimes feel personal and intimate, here it just didn’t work and it made sense as to way the narration didn’t sound as clear as it would have with a professional voice actor. I honestly think a professional female narrator could’ve made a huge difference, especially with Isabella being the heart of the story,and very likely would have changed my feelings on the book.
Overall, I can see what this book was going for, and I think readers with a very specific sense of humor will probably love it. But for me, it missed the mark.
Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for sending this ALC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
July 26, 2025
2.5 rounded up. Many of the parts that were supposed to be funny just felt depressing, and none of the characters were especially endearing (the donkey and the grimalkin had potential) or even well-developed. I usually enjoy footnotes but these just became so tedious, especially when the chapters were quite short. I also didn’t understand why the whole Gooch lady plot was necessary.
September 4, 2025
A rating of 3.8/5 stars (or possibly higher) would be more accurate. See addendum below. [I'm rounding up for GR]
Alright - the novel sounded interesting and who can resist a book written by someone with the surname "Darkshire"?
This is a light, humorous, small-scale fantasy novel with funny little goblins selling goblin fruit, a wizard, a feline familiar (sort of), a disgruntled farm-wife with unexpected (and accidental) aspirations to do a little magic (this is what happens when your husband steals books from the local wizard!), a pot of basil that is more than just a plant, and a world where a giant beetle rolls the sun across the sky every day. Oh... and a murder... or at least a headless corpse. But it's not a murder mystery. The author went a bit overboard with the humour, especially at the beginning, but soon settled down. I really loved Darkshire's version of goblins - it's a fascinating idea. I will never be able to look at a mushroom/fungus in the same way again! The novel is a bit rough around the edges, but I believe this is the author's first foray into fiction writing. An afternoon's diversion of frivolous fun.
Addendum: The ebook had copious footnotes, which were not co-operating. So I switched to the audiobook, where the footnotes are narrated in the appropriate location. The book might have gained a higher rating if someone other than the author had read it for the audiobook recording. He isn't the worst narrator I've come across, but he isn't that good either. I suggest finding a physical, paper copy of this novel for those wishing to read it.
Alright - the novel sounded interesting and who can resist a book written by someone with the surname "Darkshire"?
This is a light, humorous, small-scale fantasy novel with funny little goblins selling goblin fruit, a wizard, a feline familiar (sort of), a disgruntled farm-wife with unexpected (and accidental) aspirations to do a little magic (this is what happens when your husband steals books from the local wizard!), a pot of basil that is more than just a plant, and a world where a giant beetle rolls the sun across the sky every day. Oh... and a murder... or at least a headless corpse. But it's not a murder mystery. The author went a bit overboard with the humour, especially at the beginning, but soon settled down. I really loved Darkshire's version of goblins - it's a fascinating idea. I will never be able to look at a mushroom/fungus in the same way again! The novel is a bit rough around the edges, but I believe this is the author's first foray into fiction writing. An afternoon's diversion of frivolous fun.
Addendum: The ebook had copious footnotes, which were not co-operating. So I switched to the audiobook, where the footnotes are narrated in the appropriate location. The book might have gained a higher rating if someone other than the author had read it for the audiobook recording. He isn't the worst narrator I've come across, but he isn't that good either. I suggest finding a physical, paper copy of this novel for those wishing to read it.
October 17, 2025
Isabella Nagg lives in a crummy little village with her really crummy husband and her beloved basil plant. After the village wizard Bagdemagus decides to retire, Isabella tries her hand at a few "harmless" spells and soon finds her life much more exciting (not necessarily in a good way). There is a cat-like familiar (grimalkin), a talking donkey (my favorite), and fruit wielding goblins. I had high expectations for this book, it sounded funny and charming and at 248 pages, not an intimidating read. Sadly, I found that this book lacked any real feeling or enthusiasm; at least I didn't feel any of that while reading it. Personally, I'm not a fan of footnotes; it takes my eye away from what and where I was reading and again, in my opinion, disrupts the flow of a story. This book is CHOCKED FULL of footnotes, at least every third page and often every other. I don't understand what the author thought all of the footnotes brought to the story, just frickin' write it in the main text! I'm always rooting for the everyday gal coming into her own power with the help of a snarky cat, but this book didn't hit the mark for me.
July 24, 2025
Era impossibile resistere a una trama che mette in scena morti che riemergono dalle tombe per risolvere faccende lasciate in sospeso, e un vaso di basilico con un passato tragico e un carattere tutto suo. Come sempre, Mercurio riesce a rendere ogni libro irresistibile già a colpo d’occhio: la copertina è, manco a dirlo, una piccola meraviglia. La forza del romanzo sta nella sua capacità di mescolare la malinconia della vita quotidiana con l’ironia surreale delle creature soprannaturali: goblin capitalisti, animali parlanti (l'asino Culetto tra i migliori), incantesimi sbilenchi. Nonostante la premessa stramba, il tono non scivola mai nella farsa: anzi, mi sono ritrovata a ridere davvero, più volte, con gusto. Nel complesso, è un piccolo gioiello di “fantasia gentile”: una fiaba adulta, sospesa tra folklore e realtà, che ti accompagna senza fretta, e ti chiede solo di restare. In alcuni momenti ho persino desiderato io, la vita di Isabella Nagg: tra un incantesimo sbagliato, un tè fumante e una pianta di basilico che sa più cose di quanto dovrebbe.
September 1, 2025
A very sweet and charming story. While I enjoyed the read and getting to know the quirky cast of characters, there was nothing that kept me fully invested in the story. It took me much longer to read than usual, yet it was good enough that I wanted to finish it.
July 21, 2025
Mai letto un fantasy così particolare, originale, divertente, sagace e sarcastico, con una (non troppo) velata critica sociale all'animo umano e alle sue ambizioni, grandi o piccole che siano.
Questo titolo è presentato come un cozy fantasy ed effettivamente lo è, ma è anche molto di più, e sento di doverlo consigliare a prescindere a chiunque ami il fantasy e il weird, ma soprattutto a chi è cresciuto a pane e stramberie in pieno stile Terry Pratchett, perché il livello di follia e assurdità praticamente ci si avvicina tantissimo.
Parliamo di un romanzo che innanzitutto è ambientato in uno strano mondo in cui il sole viene trasportato da un maggiolino (?) quando ne ha voglia, e i morti non sono mai esattamente morti.
Questa è una fiaba un po' oscura e cruda, che ha in sé una pianta di basilico praticamente immortale, che adula e corrompe e si lamenta; dei goblin che offrono frutti proibiti, per poi venire schiavizzati in mercati particolari; veggenti che vivono in botti o come vagabondi; consigli cittadini che fanno invidia a quelli di Stars Hollow; un asino con crisi esistenziali, un libro di incantesimi che è grande tipo venti volumi, e chi più ne ha, più ne metta.
Il romanzo passa da una vicenda all'altra, tutte mosse dallo stesso filone, che i personaggi (Isabella e il marito soprattutto) affrontano ognuno a modo suo: il filone dell'esistenza umana e della voglia di evadere, di farcela, di avere di più di una vita noiosa, di scoprire cos'altro c'è nel mondo e al tempo stesso capire che quello che si ha è tutto.
Molto interessante come tematica per un weird fantasy di questo tipo, ho veramente apprezzato l'intera esperienza di lettura.
Questo titolo è presentato come un cozy fantasy ed effettivamente lo è, ma è anche molto di più, e sento di doverlo consigliare a prescindere a chiunque ami il fantasy e il weird, ma soprattutto a chi è cresciuto a pane e stramberie in pieno stile Terry Pratchett, perché il livello di follia e assurdità praticamente ci si avvicina tantissimo.
Parliamo di un romanzo che innanzitutto è ambientato in uno strano mondo in cui il sole viene trasportato da un maggiolino (?) quando ne ha voglia, e i morti non sono mai esattamente morti.
Questa è una fiaba un po' oscura e cruda, che ha in sé una pianta di basilico praticamente immortale, che adula e corrompe e si lamenta; dei goblin che offrono frutti proibiti, per poi venire schiavizzati in mercati particolari; veggenti che vivono in botti o come vagabondi; consigli cittadini che fanno invidia a quelli di Stars Hollow; un asino con crisi esistenziali, un libro di incantesimi che è grande tipo venti volumi, e chi più ne ha, più ne metta.
Il romanzo passa da una vicenda all'altra, tutte mosse dallo stesso filone, che i personaggi (Isabella e il marito soprattutto) affrontano ognuno a modo suo: il filone dell'esistenza umana e della voglia di evadere, di farcela, di avere di più di una vita noiosa, di scoprire cos'altro c'è nel mondo e al tempo stesso capire che quello che si ha è tutto.
Molto interessante come tematica per un weird fantasy di questo tipo, ho veramente apprezzato l'intera esperienza di lettura.
June 2, 2025
It’s always the husband! In this case the husband’s sticky little fingers on the spell book of a wizard. Isabella’s got it tough, but she does love her little pot of basil, she sings to it and nurtures it when she’s not cooking and running round after her husband and her strange animals. When everything seems so tough, who wouldn’t be tempted to try a little spell from a stolen book. This was a little bit too madcap for me, it was short and it definitely was funny it just missed the mark slightly. Perhaps timing.
The narration was a full performance.
Huge thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC 🎧
The narration was a full performance.
Huge thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC 🎧
November 11, 2025
È più precisamente un 4 e mezzo ☆
Mi ha davvero divertita e intrattenuta, un genere che non pensavo potesse piacermi così per direttissima, ma che alla fine ho finito per divorare.
Ci tengo a precisare che questo non è un cozy fantasy - non capisco perchè molti booktoker lo vendano per tale - è più un fantasy parodistico con della satira grossolana e sottile a seconda del necessario che la rende folkloristica e unica nel suo genere. A tratti mi ha ricordato Good Omens e la sagacia di Terry Pratchett. Ha il sapore delle vecchie fiabe dove la violenza gioca qui con il black humor, (la cattiva della storia è una capitalista che è basata letteralmente su Gwendoline Christie, non ho certezze ma nemmeno dubbi).
Non ho dato però 5 stelle piene perchè mi sono rimasti un paio di dubbi sul finire. Innanzitutto, perchè Isabella decapita il marito esattamente alla stessa maniera di Lorenzo quando ormai è consapevole che sia stato un errore madornale farlo e perchè nel condurre questo "vilipendio di cadavere" abbia pensato si potesse dare alla prima moglie di lui, la giustizia che meritava. Cioè, qual era, sempre se c'era, la valenza magica del contrappasso che le ha fatto dire, hey aspetta, facciamo così in modo che la povera anima di Edith riposi in pace. Non me lo spiego. Così come vorrei capire se il pony che ha mangiato i frutti velenosi morirà prima o poi oppure no, perchè Culetto era davvero preoccupato, ma alla fine non se ne è più parlato. Sono anche abbastanza desolata dal fatto che quest'ultimo finisca con la capitalista a lavorare, probabilmente sotto sfruttamento, conoscendola 🤧 So bene che il "cattivo" di questa storia vuole esser ben altro, però ecco, per l'asinello mi ero figurata un finale più ravvicinato a Isabella e dunque più magicamente conforme al mago che si circonda di animaletti - meglio se parlanti.
In ultimo comunque e non per importanza: ma quindi Isabella/Isaac Nagg transgender icon?? It's real!! 🐱
Mi ha davvero divertita e intrattenuta, un genere che non pensavo potesse piacermi così per direttissima, ma che alla fine ho finito per divorare.
Ci tengo a precisare che questo non è un cozy fantasy - non capisco perchè molti booktoker lo vendano per tale - è più un fantasy parodistico con della satira grossolana e sottile a seconda del necessario che la rende folkloristica e unica nel suo genere. A tratti mi ha ricordato Good Omens e la sagacia di Terry Pratchett. Ha il sapore delle vecchie fiabe dove la violenza gioca qui con il black humor, (la cattiva della storia è una capitalista che è basata letteralmente su Gwendoline Christie, non ho certezze ma nemmeno dubbi).
Non ho dato però 5 stelle piene perchè mi sono rimasti un paio di dubbi sul finire. Innanzitutto, perchè Isabella decapita il marito esattamente alla stessa maniera di Lorenzo quando ormai è consapevole che sia stato un errore madornale farlo e perchè nel condurre questo "vilipendio di cadavere" abbia pensato si potesse dare alla prima moglie di lui, la giustizia che meritava. Cioè, qual era, sempre se c'era, la valenza magica del contrappasso che le ha fatto dire, hey aspetta, facciamo così in modo che la povera anima di Edith riposi in pace. Non me lo spiego. Così come vorrei capire se il pony che ha mangiato i frutti velenosi morirà prima o poi oppure no, perchè Culetto era davvero preoccupato, ma alla fine non se ne è più parlato. Sono anche abbastanza desolata dal fatto che quest'ultimo finisca con la capitalista a lavorare, probabilmente sotto sfruttamento, conoscendola 🤧 So bene che il "cattivo" di questa storia vuole esser ben altro, però ecco, per l'asinello mi ero figurata un finale più ravvicinato a Isabella e dunque più magicamente conforme al mago che si circonda di animaletti - meglio se parlanti.
In ultimo comunque e non per importanza: ma quindi Isabella/Isaac Nagg transgender icon?? It's real!! 🐱
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 15, 2025
I received an audiobook ARC through NetGalley for an honest review.
While I'm doing my due diligence, it feels worth pointing out that when I saw the name Oliver Darkshire appear on NetGalley, I was particularly intrigued as back in the day when he was a the edgy boi of D&D5e I was a fan of his DMs Guild adventures and supplements. I did a lot of DMs Guild reviews at the time and reviewed a book of familiars or something of the like that Oliver and others worked on, which may have even included a grimalkin, that I enjoyed very much. Some bitter individual who was also publishing on DMs Guild took great exception to this book and decided that the good reviews were a conspiracy. They accused us of having an affair...presumably for food reviews?
I can firmly say that we've never had any kind of relationship, beyond being the loosest TTRPG Twitter acquaintances. Also, Oliver is a gay man and I am a trans femme disaster, so it wouldn't work anyway lmfao.
With that out of the way, let's actually talk about the book itself...
I have had a difficult relationship with cozy and/ or humorous fantasy, which is a polite way of saying I have thoroughly not had a good time dabbling in that area, so I was a little apprehensive when I read the blurb. I don't know if reading Someone You Can Build a Nest In by Josh Wiswell changed something in me or if Wiswell and Darkshire's writing is just that much better than everything I had tried and failed to enjoy, but I that and this were an absolute treat.
Frankly, this book is almost offensively charming.
The plot is a simple case of a AWOL wizard and an unhappily married woman coming into possession of the magical tomes and familiar of said absent wizard with ridiculous and disastrous effects, including a variety of talking flora and fauna, the complex economic and labour practices of goblin markets, the dead refusing to stay buried, and other magical marital misery.
I've already said this book is almost offensively charming, but it's also insidiously funny and deceptively clever. The reason I've chosen these negative adjectives that I'm applying positively is because it seems like it shouldn't work and absolutely shouldn't work as well as it does. I am confused and vaguely annoyed by just how much of a good time I had with this.
I know that I'm positively gobsmacked by the next thing I'm going to say about this book that I couldn't help thinking throughout reading...
The tone and quality, not to mention the individual Grammar asides, reminded me of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett. I was transported back to reading the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and the Nome Trilogy as a kid and then moving onto Dirk Gently and Discworld. There is just something bizarrely British and magical about this kind of nonsense (complimentary).
The other memory that kept coming back was of a professor when I was university banging on about how [That Transphobic Windbag] was incredible because of all her fantasy and mythological references in the [Boy Wizard Cop] book, which is frankly an enditement on them at the not so venerable institution I attended. Darkshire's book is actually crammed with allusions to all manner of fantasy, folk, and fairytale works and creatures throughout from the odd amusing aside to the capitalistic reimagining of Rossetti's Goblin Market. More often than not, each reference is given a fresh twist or perspective that is both thoroughly amusing and sets the fictional setting of East Gradsby firmly within a world where hobbs, Fates, goblins, and more all live...not exactly happily ever after, but at least in some bizarre perpetuity.
Darkshire reads the audiobook himself and does a cracking job fitting the tone of his writing just right.
I had a bloody good time and will have to continue watching this space and track down Once Upon a Tome.
While I'm doing my due diligence, it feels worth pointing out that when I saw the name Oliver Darkshire appear on NetGalley, I was particularly intrigued as back in the day when he was a the edgy boi of D&D5e I was a fan of his DMs Guild adventures and supplements. I did a lot of DMs Guild reviews at the time and reviewed a book of familiars or something of the like that Oliver and others worked on, which may have even included a grimalkin, that I enjoyed very much. Some bitter individual who was also publishing on DMs Guild took great exception to this book and decided that the good reviews were a conspiracy. They accused us of having an affair...presumably for food reviews?
I can firmly say that we've never had any kind of relationship, beyond being the loosest TTRPG Twitter acquaintances. Also, Oliver is a gay man and I am a trans femme disaster, so it wouldn't work anyway lmfao.
With that out of the way, let's actually talk about the book itself...
I have had a difficult relationship with cozy and/ or humorous fantasy, which is a polite way of saying I have thoroughly not had a good time dabbling in that area, so I was a little apprehensive when I read the blurb. I don't know if reading Someone You Can Build a Nest In by Josh Wiswell changed something in me or if Wiswell and Darkshire's writing is just that much better than everything I had tried and failed to enjoy, but I that and this were an absolute treat.
Frankly, this book is almost offensively charming.
The plot is a simple case of a AWOL wizard and an unhappily married woman coming into possession of the magical tomes and familiar of said absent wizard with ridiculous and disastrous effects, including a variety of talking flora and fauna, the complex economic and labour practices of goblin markets, the dead refusing to stay buried, and other magical marital misery.
I've already said this book is almost offensively charming, but it's also insidiously funny and deceptively clever. The reason I've chosen these negative adjectives that I'm applying positively is because it seems like it shouldn't work and absolutely shouldn't work as well as it does. I am confused and vaguely annoyed by just how much of a good time I had with this.
I know that I'm positively gobsmacked by the next thing I'm going to say about this book that I couldn't help thinking throughout reading...
The tone and quality, not to mention the individual Grammar asides, reminded me of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett. I was transported back to reading the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and the Nome Trilogy as a kid and then moving onto Dirk Gently and Discworld. There is just something bizarrely British and magical about this kind of nonsense (complimentary).
The other memory that kept coming back was of a professor when I was university banging on about how [That Transphobic Windbag] was incredible because of all her fantasy and mythological references in the [Boy Wizard Cop] book, which is frankly an enditement on them at the not so venerable institution I attended. Darkshire's book is actually crammed with allusions to all manner of fantasy, folk, and fairytale works and creatures throughout from the odd amusing aside to the capitalistic reimagining of Rossetti's Goblin Market. More often than not, each reference is given a fresh twist or perspective that is both thoroughly amusing and sets the fictional setting of East Gradsby firmly within a world where hobbs, Fates, goblins, and more all live...not exactly happily ever after, but at least in some bizarre perpetuity.
Darkshire reads the audiobook himself and does a cracking job fitting the tone of his writing just right.
I had a bloody good time and will have to continue watching this space and track down Once Upon a Tome.
February 13, 2025
Especially funny! This story has it all: an unappreciated woman, tired of being married to a useless lump of a man, on the precipice of purpose and freedom, a talking farm animal, and goofy, little magical creatures. I found the writing lovely and a breeze to get through, the pacing nice and steady, and the humor witty and present on nearly every other page, it seems. Rooting for our heroine was easy to do, though the real show stealers, in my opinion, were Grimalkin and Bottom. The footnote mechanic threw me off just slightly - I haven't actually read a book that implemented it - but even those were fun to read, if not a bit distracting sometimes.
While the content of this book isn't revolutionary or life-altering in any way, it is a very fun read - perfect for anyone just looking for a blast of amusement with some fantasy elements tossed in.
Thank you Netgalley and W. W. Norton and Company for this ARC! Thank you Oliver Darkshire for making me laugh out loud more than once through the duration of this novel. Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil is set to publish on May 13, 2025!
While the content of this book isn't revolutionary or life-altering in any way, it is a very fun read - perfect for anyone just looking for a blast of amusement with some fantasy elements tossed in.
Thank you Netgalley and W. W. Norton and Company for this ARC! Thank you Oliver Darkshire for making me laugh out loud more than once through the duration of this novel. Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil is set to publish on May 13, 2025!
July 2, 2025
In an odd magical town, there are many secrets. Isabella Nagg must find the truth behind many of them, while hiding her own...
Okay, so this LOOKS like a whimsical cozy fantasy. And at times it definitely feels like it is trying to be a cozy fantasy. But it actually has a LOT of dark horror themes. And (most upsettingly for me personally) it has repeated and escalating animal harm.
It is quirky magical horror, I'd say. With a side of parody. And pretty well-done in these things, so if those appeal to you, you'll probably like it!
The animal harm really upset me though and I ended up not enjoying this book very much due to that and other horror themes. If I'd realized the depth of the genre mismatch up front I would have DNFed.
Okay, so this LOOKS like a whimsical cozy fantasy. And at times it definitely feels like it is trying to be a cozy fantasy. But it actually has a LOT of dark horror themes. And (most upsettingly for me personally) it has repeated and escalating animal harm.
It is quirky magical horror, I'd say. With a side of parody. And pretty well-done in these things, so if those appeal to you, you'll probably like it!
The animal harm really upset me though and I ended up not enjoying this book very much due to that and other horror themes. If I'd realized the depth of the genre mismatch up front I would have DNFed.
November 29, 2025
Too ! Many ! Notes !!!!
If you've read and loved, as I did, Goblin market by Christina Rossetti, you'll be in familiar territory.
The good ? Well, the tribute, obviously. Then, the humour, the wit. Because the author is witty.
The bad ? Not much of a plot. And mostly, those notes, for heaven's sake !!!! They were interrupting me ! They're funny, yes, but either you remove them, either you include them in the novel, but please, please, please, no footnotes !!! It drove me crazy and made me sigh countless times. And spoiled my reading. It feels like you're running up a hill and constantly putting your foot in holes hence falling. All the time. Every page.
If you've read and loved, as I did, Goblin market by Christina Rossetti, you'll be in familiar territory.
The good ? Well, the tribute, obviously. Then, the humour, the wit. Because the author is witty.
The bad ? Not much of a plot. And mostly, those notes, for heaven's sake !!!! They were interrupting me ! They're funny, yes, but either you remove them, either you include them in the novel, but please, please, please, no footnotes !!! It drove me crazy and made me sigh countless times. And spoiled my reading. It feels like you're running up a hill and constantly putting your foot in holes hence falling. All the time. Every page.
May 30, 2025
DNF at 28%. I wanted to love this - I’ve been a fan of Oliver Darkshire for years, and adored his nonfiction book about his time as a rare bookseller. This, unfortunately, didn’t work for me at all. The humor fell flat, the footnotes added nothing to the book and were oftentimes just distracting (and when I started to skip them, that didn’t help much), and I wasn’t enjoying any of the characters or the plot as a whole. Having to be subjected to Farmer Nagg’s deeply mysoginistic POV ever few chapters was the final nail in the coffin.
July 4, 2025
2.75
This is such a cool world and has some fantastic lore. The goblins and the reason behind the goblin market is absolutely fantastic. Other than that, there were some interesting choices made in where the story went. For such vast possibilities within this fantastical world why are we going with convenience in our problem solving? And repeating solutions at that!! Also, Isabella truly became a character that I wasn't rooting for at the end of the book. Honestly, all of the humans were horrible. Meh. Dissapointed.
This is such a cool world and has some fantastic lore. The goblins and the reason behind the goblin market is absolutely fantastic. Other than that, there were some interesting choices made in where the story went. For such vast possibilities within this fantastical world why are we going with convenience in our problem solving? And repeating solutions at that!! Also, Isabella truly became a character that I wasn't rooting for at the end of the book. Honestly, all of the humans were horrible. Meh. Dissapointed.
October 13, 2025
Non so precisamente cosa non mi abbia convinta fino in fondo di questo libro, perché è stata una lettura davvero piacevole e divertente
C'è da dire che ho letto il romanzo in lingua originale, e molto probabilmente in italiano avrebbe dato tutt'altro effetto soprattutto per quanto riguarda lo stile narrativo. Per resta in tema, infatti, l'autore ha usato un linguaggio più tendente all'epoca medievale e che (almeno in inglese) in alcuni punti mi sembrava spesso distaccato, infilandoci però di tanto in tanto delle frasi così unhinged e genuinamente esilaranti che era impossibile non passare ciascun capitolo a ridere di tanto in tanto. Però non si rideva *sempre* e credo sia questo quello che mi ha un po' destabilizzata: ritrovando queste frasi in momenti abbastanza distanti tra loro aiutava a rendere il loro impatto ed effetto comico molto acuto sul momento, ma allo stesso tempo, proprio perché erano spesso distanti tra loro e non super frequenti, non rendevano l'intera esperienza di lettura ugualmente coinvolgente. Non era molto omogenea come cosa, e il "peso" dei momenti in cui la narrazione non prevedeva continue, piccole, gag, a lungo andare si faceva sentire.
Resta però comunque un bellissimo libro: pieno di insegnamenti, di frasi ad effetto (non soltanto comico) che ti rimangono, ti lasciano da pensare, e ti aiutano anche a capire l'interessante personaggio di Isabella
MA POI QUEL MINI PLOT TWIST FINALE SU COME NASCONO I MAGHI CHE ENTRANO IN POSSESSO DEL GRIMOYRE??? che figata. mi è piaciuta un sacco come rivelazione
Ma in generale anche quella pazza capitalista di Gwendolyn e IL MITICO ASINO CULETTO- questo libro aveva un sacco di perle. e un sacco di dolore. se succede qualcos'altro al Grimalkin, Darkshire verrà contattato dal mio avvocato, giuro.
Se avete letto "Nettle and Bone" della Kingfisher ADORERETE Isabella Nagg. E se invece avete adorato Isabella Nagg DOVETE. ASSOLUTAMENTE. recuperare "Nettle and Bone". Fatevi un favore
C'è da dire che ho letto il romanzo in lingua originale, e molto probabilmente in italiano avrebbe dato tutt'altro effetto soprattutto per quanto riguarda lo stile narrativo. Per resta in tema, infatti, l'autore ha usato un linguaggio più tendente all'epoca medievale e che (almeno in inglese) in alcuni punti mi sembrava spesso distaccato, infilandoci però di tanto in tanto delle frasi così unhinged e genuinamente esilaranti che era impossibile non passare ciascun capitolo a ridere di tanto in tanto. Però non si rideva *sempre* e credo sia questo quello che mi ha un po' destabilizzata: ritrovando queste frasi in momenti abbastanza distanti tra loro aiutava a rendere il loro impatto ed effetto comico molto acuto sul momento, ma allo stesso tempo, proprio perché erano spesso distanti tra loro e non super frequenti, non rendevano l'intera esperienza di lettura ugualmente coinvolgente. Non era molto omogenea come cosa, e il "peso" dei momenti in cui la narrazione non prevedeva continue, piccole, gag, a lungo andare si faceva sentire.
Resta però comunque un bellissimo libro: pieno di insegnamenti, di frasi ad effetto (non soltanto comico) che ti rimangono, ti lasciano da pensare, e ti aiutano anche a capire l'interessante personaggio di Isabella
MA POI QUEL MINI PLOT TWIST FINALE SU COME NASCONO I MAGHI CHE ENTRANO IN POSSESSO DEL GRIMOYRE??? che figata. mi è piaciuta un sacco come rivelazione
Ma in generale anche quella pazza capitalista di Gwendolyn e IL MITICO ASINO CULETTO- questo libro aveva un sacco di perle. e un sacco di dolore. se succede qualcos'altro al Grimalkin, Darkshire verrà contattato dal mio avvocato, giuro.
Se avete letto "Nettle and Bone" della Kingfisher ADORERETE Isabella Nagg. E se invece avete adorato Isabella Nagg DOVETE. ASSOLUTAMENTE. recuperare "Nettle and Bone". Fatevi un favore
June 5, 2025
Hands down the most British book I've ever read. Brilliant
June 11, 2025
Quite fun! It's in the vein of T. Kingfisher-type fantasy, with a practical, middle-aged woman getting shit done.
May 19, 2025
What an unexpected but absolutely stand out fantasy debut. This year I have been chasing uniqueness, variety and something that I just don't see often in my fantasy books and this book just took the cake. Perfect for people who want their Discworld/Terry Pratchett fix, this book is hilarious, heart-warming, action-packed and silly.
The world is so similar but also so far removed from a typical medieval setting which most European fantasy books are known for. Darkshire has balanced this book perfectly with its humour, its characters and its setting. I can confidently recommend this book as funny for those who are looking for a humourous book. I want to spend more time in this world with either new characters or fresh ones. I believe Darkshire has created something that truly can go on for years and years and remain fresh and exciting.
The journey of our main character Isabella Nagy was so well written and so incredibly satisfying and an ending that had me jumping for joy. If this is Darkshire's fiction debut I am super excited to see what he brings next!
This was sent to me by the publisher for an honest review.
The world is so similar but also so far removed from a typical medieval setting which most European fantasy books are known for. Darkshire has balanced this book perfectly with its humour, its characters and its setting. I can confidently recommend this book as funny for those who are looking for a humourous book. I want to spend more time in this world with either new characters or fresh ones. I believe Darkshire has created something that truly can go on for years and years and remain fresh and exciting.
The journey of our main character Isabella Nagy was so well written and so incredibly satisfying and an ending that had me jumping for joy. If this is Darkshire's fiction debut I am super excited to see what he brings next!
This was sent to me by the publisher for an honest review.
May 27, 2025
You will love this book if you:
- like Oliver's Bluesky
- are terminally online and recognize references to memes and lore
- are a fab of quirky fantasy with a bit of a meta narrator
- like talking animals (I have at least one friend who hates them, so...)
Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil has the best villain and the best side character (who is totally not a cat) (but likes pets on its head). it is a quirky story, much as Oliver Darkshire's whole internet presence. The fun is situational, mocking of fantasy stereotypes and human nature, sometimes meta.
Oliver does the audiobook narration himself and although his voice is very pleasant and he does bring the characters alive, his pronunciation makes understanding difficult, especially if you are not a native English speaker. I normally listen to 1,5-1,7x speed, even to people with accents, but here I had to stay at 1x to be able to understand him.
I received an ALC through Netgalley and I'm leaving a voluntary review.
- like Oliver's Bluesky
- are terminally online and recognize references to memes and lore
- are a fab of quirky fantasy with a bit of a meta narrator
- like talking animals (I have at least one friend who hates them, so...)
Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil has the best villain and the best side character (who is totally not a cat) (but likes pets on its head). it is a quirky story, much as Oliver Darkshire's whole internet presence. The fun is situational, mocking of fantasy stereotypes and human nature, sometimes meta.
Oliver does the audiobook narration himself and although his voice is very pleasant and he does bring the characters alive, his pronunciation makes understanding difficult, especially if you are not a native English speaker. I normally listen to 1,5-1,7x speed, even to people with accents, but here I had to stay at 1x to be able to understand him.
I received an ALC through Netgalley and I'm leaving a voluntary review.
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