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The Carousel of Forgotten Places
Not yet published
Expected 25 Aug 26A romantic, time travelling fantasy filled with humour and a charming cast of found family, the perfect read for those craving a whimsical, cosy romantasy in the vein of Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries.
For nearly 500 years, Ryka has lived by a few golden rules.
1. Unravel the time knots.
2. Don’t interfere with the timelines
3. Avoid at all costs being left alone with the annoyingly sexy time god, Everest.
Ryka runs a magical fair outside the space-time continuum, bound to her duties as the immortal timekeeper after she struck a deal to save her best friend’s life. She has been searching for a way back to her timeline ever since.
When the carousel at the heart of the fair begins to show signs of time rot, threatening the fabric of her world, and a mysterious woman falls out of it, Ryka must break her third golden rule and partner up with Everest to investigate. As they jump in and out of time trying to determine where the woman came from, Ryka finds Everest isn’t as overbearing as she initially thought, and 500 years of working together can make for some long-brewed feelings.
As the clock ticks, Ryka will need to embrace the family she’s built, both alive and dead, magical and not, to get to the root of the issue – even if it means abandoning her chances of ever going home.
A time travelling romantasy filled with classic tropes and takes place in an exciting new world. Perfect for those wanting to dive into the increasingly popular cosy fantasy genre!
For nearly 500 years, Ryka has lived by a few golden rules.
1. Unravel the time knots.
2. Don’t interfere with the timelines
3. Avoid at all costs being left alone with the annoyingly sexy time god, Everest.
Ryka runs a magical fair outside the space-time continuum, bound to her duties as the immortal timekeeper after she struck a deal to save her best friend’s life. She has been searching for a way back to her timeline ever since.
When the carousel at the heart of the fair begins to show signs of time rot, threatening the fabric of her world, and a mysterious woman falls out of it, Ryka must break her third golden rule and partner up with Everest to investigate. As they jump in and out of time trying to determine where the woman came from, Ryka finds Everest isn’t as overbearing as she initially thought, and 500 years of working together can make for some long-brewed feelings.
As the clock ticks, Ryka will need to embrace the family she’s built, both alive and dead, magical and not, to get to the root of the issue – even if it means abandoning her chances of ever going home.
A time travelling romantasy filled with classic tropes and takes place in an exciting new world. Perfect for those wanting to dive into the increasingly popular cosy fantasy genre!
Kindle Edition
Expected publication August 25, 2026
About the author
S. Hati
4 books99 followersS. Hati is a speculative fiction writer, currently residing in the Bay Area. She holds a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from UCLA and a master’s degree in biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University, and pretends to use them both while working in health tech. She writes about brown girls in strange worlds that straddle the line between magic and science.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I picked this up because of the original premise, but ended up being disappointed with the execution.
The protagonist and narrator is Ryka, a woman of Indian heritage brought up in the US, who has spent almost five centuries as the Timekeeper in a magical pocket dimension created by a time god, from which she undertakes expeditions to repair timelines that have somehow become corrupted (exactly how or why this happens routinely is not explored in any detail). The founding time god's brother Everest is generally around and plays an important role in the time repairs. Despite being demisexual, or perhaps because of it, she is in lust with him, but doesn't want to mess up their working relationship by doing anything about it.
Ryka is self-pitying, emotionally immature despite her 500 years, and one of those people who make sure that everyone around them shares in their bad mood, and she makes some poor decisions even though she should have both the intelligence and the experience to know better. Everest is flaky, unreliable and lacking in empathy. That was never a ship I was going to be on board with; I have to like both members of a couple to care about whether they end up together, and I didn't like either of them.
Among a good few small imperfections, the most prominent one for me was the implausible reason for the MC to understand languages. Because she has been visiting various places and times for a little less than 500 years, she has "developed fluency in most languages" (according to her). There are about 7000 languages currently spoken in our world, and of course many more (and many mutually unintelligible earlier versions) throughout history, and this book has divergent timelines too, so... well over 10,000. And she later claims it is "thousands," so the "most" is probably not intended as a rhetorical flourish, or to refer only to languages with a large number of speakers.
Clearly nobody, no matter how good their memory, could become fluent in "most" of those 10,000 languages, even in 500 years. Even if we're very generous and say it's 4000 (most of 7000), that's a language every six weeks, and we know (because we're told) that her memory isn't supernaturally perfect. It's absurd.
It would be absurd even if she was immersed in each language continuously for the whole six weeks, doing nothing but learning it by constantly interacting with native speakers. But she's not. She undertakes very short missions about once a week, each one to a random place and time and never to the same place and time on two consecutive occasions, and actively avoids engaging with anyone if she can help it. The languages claim is, honestly, less plausible than if you just say that her supernatural role as the Keeper of Time gives her fluency in all languages. Sure, she also has a magical library which can presumably produce books from which she could learn languages, but that's not the claim she's making.
If we set that nonsense aside, though, and assume that the excess hyphens and vocabulary glitches will be fixed between the pre-publication version I had via Netgalley and when the book comes out, and ignore the fact that the romance is between two people I don't much care for or about, the book is... OK. Fairly simple plot (Ryka messes up and has to fix it, and this helps her somehow to get over herself at last), interesting and whimsical world, secondary characters that are adequate for their roles.
I didn't love it. That's probably just me; other people seem to like it fine. Perhaps you will too.
The protagonist and narrator is Ryka, a woman of Indian heritage brought up in the US, who has spent almost five centuries as the Timekeeper in a magical pocket dimension created by a time god, from which she undertakes expeditions to repair timelines that have somehow become corrupted (exactly how or why this happens routinely is not explored in any detail). The founding time god's brother Everest is generally around and plays an important role in the time repairs. Despite being demisexual, or perhaps because of it, she is in lust with him, but doesn't want to mess up their working relationship by doing anything about it.
Ryka is self-pitying, emotionally immature despite her 500 years, and one of those people who make sure that everyone around them shares in their bad mood, and she makes some poor decisions even though she should have both the intelligence and the experience to know better. Everest is flaky, unreliable and lacking in empathy. That was never a ship I was going to be on board with; I have to like both members of a couple to care about whether they end up together, and I didn't like either of them.
Among a good few small imperfections, the most prominent one for me was the implausible reason for the MC to understand languages. Because she has been visiting various places and times for a little less than 500 years, she has "developed fluency in most languages" (according to her). There are about 7000 languages currently spoken in our world, and of course many more (and many mutually unintelligible earlier versions) throughout history, and this book has divergent timelines too, so... well over 10,000. And she later claims it is "thousands," so the "most" is probably not intended as a rhetorical flourish, or to refer only to languages with a large number of speakers.
Clearly nobody, no matter how good their memory, could become fluent in "most" of those 10,000 languages, even in 500 years. Even if we're very generous and say it's 4000 (most of 7000), that's a language every six weeks, and we know (because we're told) that her memory isn't supernaturally perfect. It's absurd.
It would be absurd even if she was immersed in each language continuously for the whole six weeks, doing nothing but learning it by constantly interacting with native speakers. But she's not. She undertakes very short missions about once a week, each one to a random place and time and never to the same place and time on two consecutive occasions, and actively avoids engaging with anyone if she can help it. The languages claim is, honestly, less plausible than if you just say that her supernatural role as the Keeper of Time gives her fluency in all languages. Sure, she also has a magical library which can presumably produce books from which she could learn languages, but that's not the claim she's making.
If we set that nonsense aside, though, and assume that the excess hyphens and vocabulary glitches will be fixed between the pre-publication version I had via Netgalley and when the book comes out, and ignore the fact that the romance is between two people I don't much care for or about, the book is... OK. Fairly simple plot (Ryka messes up and has to fix it, and this helps her somehow to get over herself at last), interesting and whimsical world, secondary characters that are adequate for their roles.
I didn't love it. That's probably just me; other people seem to like it fine. Perhaps you will too.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
4.25 Stars
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is a cosy, low stakes, romantic fantasy. It’s a wholesome and relatable read that deals with grief and longing in a beautiful way. It’s humorous but also heartbreaking at times.
The story is set in a sentient extradimensional fun fair, a charming setting. We have a 500 year old timekeeper who yearns to go back to her mortal life, an eccentric but kind time god, a group of ghosts that are as similar as they are different. Our characters are imperfect and their flaws are what make them so loveable.
I really liked how the MMC, Everest, actually felt like an immortal time god with his lack of understanding of mortal feelings and attachments before he spent so much time with the FMC, Ryka. He’s eccentric and behaves as you’d expect an immortal to, experiencing time differently and it showing in his actions.
Ryka goes from wanting nothing more than to go back to her mortal like even after 500 years away from it, to being conflicted about it. She’s been so hyper-focused she doesn’t realise how she’s found family with Everest and the ghosts until later on.
The relationship between our MCs if filled with restrained longing and admiration. While we’re in Ryka’s POV, it’s easy to see how much Everest cares for her, the sacrifices he would make to see her happy. Ryka is constantly exasperated with him, but it’s clear to see that she feels the same way about him that he does for her.
We have POC representation with Ryka being of Indian ethnicity, and ghosts hailing from different places before death. Ryka is also demisexual, which is something we rarely see and is much appreciated.
However, for me, this book could’ve easily become a five star read had I not been dropped straight into the plot and the world without any learning curve. It felt jarring to not have the world and backstory set up before the conflict began, and so it took a short while to get comfortable.
Other than that, I really enjoyed the plot line and the growth of our characters, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a cosy but emotional read.
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is a cosy, low stakes, romantic fantasy. It’s a wholesome and relatable read that deals with grief and longing in a beautiful way. It’s humorous but also heartbreaking at times.
The story is set in a sentient extradimensional fun fair, a charming setting. We have a 500 year old timekeeper who yearns to go back to her mortal life, an eccentric but kind time god, a group of ghosts that are as similar as they are different. Our characters are imperfect and their flaws are what make them so loveable.
I really liked how the MMC, Everest, actually felt like an immortal time god with his lack of understanding of mortal feelings and attachments before he spent so much time with the FMC, Ryka. He’s eccentric and behaves as you’d expect an immortal to, experiencing time differently and it showing in his actions.
Ryka goes from wanting nothing more than to go back to her mortal like even after 500 years away from it, to being conflicted about it. She’s been so hyper-focused she doesn’t realise how she’s found family with Everest and the ghosts until later on.
The relationship between our MCs if filled with restrained longing and admiration. While we’re in Ryka’s POV, it’s easy to see how much Everest cares for her, the sacrifices he would make to see her happy. Ryka is constantly exasperated with him, but it’s clear to see that she feels the same way about him that he does for her.
We have POC representation with Ryka being of Indian ethnicity, and ghosts hailing from different places before death. Ryka is also demisexual, which is something we rarely see and is much appreciated.
However, for me, this book could’ve easily become a five star read had I not been dropped straight into the plot and the world without any learning curve. It felt jarring to not have the world and backstory set up before the conflict began, and so it took a short while to get comfortable.
Other than that, I really enjoyed the plot line and the growth of our characters, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a cosy but emotional read.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!
The Carousel of Forgotten Places introduces us to Ryka, a once normal human who is now a 500year old immortal time keeper after making a deal to save her best friend's life. Ryka runs a magical fair that exists outside the space-time continuum with a carousel as its heart. She lives within a community of ghosts, gods and other magical entities. One day unexpectedly, the carousel appears to be deteriorating due to "time rot" and an unknown woman falls out. Ryka and the other magical fair inhabitants have to try and figure out when and where this woman is from by jumping in and out of time, as well as work out how to cure the carousel before it's too late.
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is probably one of the most unique books I've ever read, in the best way. It's such a hard book to explain because I feel like I don't do it justice and have just ended up begging people to read it when it releases. It had such a unique and fascinating take on time travel, especially the magical fair and the carousel elements. I was curious but I will admit to being a little sceptical about how all these elements could work but they did SO well and the author did a wonderful job. There were a couple of elements of the story that were a bit predictable, but honestly I was enjoying the book enough and it was done well enough that this really didn't bother me at all.
The characters were all done really well I thought. They each had their own backstories, personalities and vulnerabilities. Despite the uniqueness of Ryka's situation, I actually found her to be quite relatable in her feelings and frustrations. The other characters too, both main and side, all had the personalities and quirks that often made them memorable. Most also had a level of depth I wouldn't have expected but very much enjoyed. They also had great relationships with each other and it was fun to read the banter. The setting/location also worked really well with the story and felt like in many instances it really tied everything together well.
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is such a wonderful book that really allowed me to escape into another world. I have already recommended this book to people to keep an eye out for upon release and will continue to recommend it!
The Carousel of Forgotten Places introduces us to Ryka, a once normal human who is now a 500year old immortal time keeper after making a deal to save her best friend's life. Ryka runs a magical fair that exists outside the space-time continuum with a carousel as its heart. She lives within a community of ghosts, gods and other magical entities. One day unexpectedly, the carousel appears to be deteriorating due to "time rot" and an unknown woman falls out. Ryka and the other magical fair inhabitants have to try and figure out when and where this woman is from by jumping in and out of time, as well as work out how to cure the carousel before it's too late.
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is probably one of the most unique books I've ever read, in the best way. It's such a hard book to explain because I feel like I don't do it justice and have just ended up begging people to read it when it releases. It had such a unique and fascinating take on time travel, especially the magical fair and the carousel elements. I was curious but I will admit to being a little sceptical about how all these elements could work but they did SO well and the author did a wonderful job. There were a couple of elements of the story that were a bit predictable, but honestly I was enjoying the book enough and it was done well enough that this really didn't bother me at all.
The characters were all done really well I thought. They each had their own backstories, personalities and vulnerabilities. Despite the uniqueness of Ryka's situation, I actually found her to be quite relatable in her feelings and frustrations. The other characters too, both main and side, all had the personalities and quirks that often made them memorable. Most also had a level of depth I wouldn't have expected but very much enjoyed. They also had great relationships with each other and it was fun to read the banter. The setting/location also worked really well with the story and felt like in many instances it really tied everything together well.
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is such a wonderful book that really allowed me to escape into another world. I have already recommended this book to people to keep an eye out for upon release and will continue to recommend it!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The Carousel of Forgotten Places is the kind of romantasy that feels like stepping into a pocket of soft, humming magic — a place where time bends, ghosts gossip, and love has been quietly waiting for centuries. S. Hati gives us a world that’s whimsical without losing its emotional weight, anchored by Ryka, an immortal timekeeper who has spent 500 years tending a magical fair perched on the edge of time.
The fair itself is a delight: spectral cats, mischievous ghosts, and a found family stitched together from the odd corners of eternity. And then there’s Everest — Ryka’s infuriating, magnetic, impossible boss, a time‑god with five centuries of unresolved tension trailing behind him. Their dynamic sparkles with that delicious mix of banter, longing, and “absolutely not talking about our feelings”.
When a human quite literally falls through time and lands in their laps, the story shifts into a charming, chaotic adventure. The carousel at the heart of the fair is rotting, the timeline is fraying, and Ryka and Everest must work together to fix what’s breaking — all while trying (and failing) to ignore the feelings that have been simmering for half a millennium.
What makes this book shine is its blend of humour, heart, and gentle wonder. It’s cosy without being slight, romantic without losing its playfulness, and full of that found‑family warmth that makes you want to linger in its world just a little longer.
A whimsical, time‑tangled delight perfect for readers who love soft magic, slow‑burn immortals, and fantasy that feels like a warm hand pulling you onto the carousel for one more ride.
With thanks to S Hati, the publisher and netgalley for the ARC
The fair itself is a delight: spectral cats, mischievous ghosts, and a found family stitched together from the odd corners of eternity. And then there’s Everest — Ryka’s infuriating, magnetic, impossible boss, a time‑god with five centuries of unresolved tension trailing behind him. Their dynamic sparkles with that delicious mix of banter, longing, and “absolutely not talking about our feelings”.
When a human quite literally falls through time and lands in their laps, the story shifts into a charming, chaotic adventure. The carousel at the heart of the fair is rotting, the timeline is fraying, and Ryka and Everest must work together to fix what’s breaking — all while trying (and failing) to ignore the feelings that have been simmering for half a millennium.
What makes this book shine is its blend of humour, heart, and gentle wonder. It’s cosy without being slight, romantic without losing its playfulness, and full of that found‑family warmth that makes you want to linger in its world just a little longer.
A whimsical, time‑tangled delight perfect for readers who love soft magic, slow‑burn immortals, and fantasy that feels like a warm hand pulling you onto the carousel for one more ride.
With thanks to S Hati, the publisher and netgalley for the ARC
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
In The Carousel of Forgotten Places, Ryka is a 500-year-old Timekeeper living in a pocket dimension with a gaggle of ghosts, repairing corrupted timelines for a sentient carousel. Everest is an eccentric time god that helps where he can, when he remembers time exists.
The original premise hooked me, but the story just wasn’t what I was hoping for. At the start, I was thrown into the middle of the plot with very little info about the world or backstory. It was jarring and confusing. We never find out how or why the timelines became corrupted, nor do we get any of the carousel’s lore.
I also struggled to root for the main characters or their relationship. I was hoping for a deep story about a smart, wise woman who knows herself after 500 years and handles business like the boss she is. Instead, we get Ryka, who is self-pitying, emotionally immature, makes poor decisions, and lives in the past. Ryka spends so much time trying to leave the situation she’s in rather than appreciating the people around that care about her. It was exhausting waiting for Ryka to grow as a person and start living in the moment.
I don’t have much to say about Everest other than he was flaky, unreliable, and lacked empathy.
I might be in the minority here with my review. It wasn’t what I was expecting or hoping for. A lot of people like this story. You might like this story too.
Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for this ARC.
The original premise hooked me, but the story just wasn’t what I was hoping for. At the start, I was thrown into the middle of the plot with very little info about the world or backstory. It was jarring and confusing. We never find out how or why the timelines became corrupted, nor do we get any of the carousel’s lore.
I also struggled to root for the main characters or their relationship. I was hoping for a deep story about a smart, wise woman who knows herself after 500 years and handles business like the boss she is. Instead, we get Ryka, who is self-pitying, emotionally immature, makes poor decisions, and lives in the past. Ryka spends so much time trying to leave the situation she’s in rather than appreciating the people around that care about her. It was exhausting waiting for Ryka to grow as a person and start living in the moment.
I don’t have much to say about Everest other than he was flaky, unreliable, and lacked empathy.
I might be in the minority here with my review. It wasn’t what I was expecting or hoping for. A lot of people like this story. You might like this story too.
Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The Carousel of Forgotten Places has a wonderfully cosy, almost dreamlike quality. A magical fair existing outside the space-time continuum, a quirky found family of ghosts - even a spectral cat! S. Hati builds it all with such warmth that you feel genuinely at home there pretty quickly. The writing is easy and fluid, never bogging you down, which made it the perfect curl-up-under-a-blanket read. There's a whimsy to it that reminded me of those books that just make the world feel a little more magical while you're in them.
The slow-burn romance between Ryka and Everest is perfect. Five hundred years of unresolved tension is a premise that could easily feel overdone, but Hati earns every bit of it, the push and pull feels real and genuinely yearning rather than forced. I loved watching it unfold gradually as the plot picked up around it. If you're looking for a cosy romantasy with a big heart, a light touch, and a romance that actually makes you feel things, this one's a pre-order you won't regret.
The slow-burn romance between Ryka and Everest is perfect. Five hundred years of unresolved tension is a premise that could easily feel overdone, but Hati earns every bit of it, the push and pull feels real and genuinely yearning rather than forced. I loved watching it unfold gradually as the plot picked up around it. If you're looking for a cosy romantasy with a big heart, a light touch, and a romance that actually makes you feel things, this one's a pre-order you won't regret.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
If you are looking for a cozy, low stakes fantasy, this was an absolute gem.
What I Loved:
The Main Characters: Ryka and Everest are fantastic main characters. Their slow burn romance was beautifully paced, and their banter was so good.
A Unique Found Family: I absolutely adored the side characters. The fact that the found family trope is made up of ghosts gave the story such a unique, whimsical twist.
The Cozy Vibes: It’s a wonderfully low stakes whimsical read.
What Missed the Mark:
A Slow Start: My only real critique is the pacing at the very beginning. It definitely has a slower start, and it took a few chapters before the story really found its stride and hooked me.
Overall, it’s a beautiful, whimsical fantasy that I highly recommend it if you love witty banter and supernatural found families!
Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for the ARC.
What I Loved:
The Main Characters: Ryka and Everest are fantastic main characters. Their slow burn romance was beautifully paced, and their banter was so good.
A Unique Found Family: I absolutely adored the side characters. The fact that the found family trope is made up of ghosts gave the story such a unique, whimsical twist.
The Cozy Vibes: It’s a wonderfully low stakes whimsical read.
What Missed the Mark:
A Slow Start: My only real critique is the pacing at the very beginning. It definitely has a slower start, and it took a few chapters before the story really found its stride and hooked me.
Overall, it’s a beautiful, whimsical fantasy that I highly recommend it if you love witty banter and supernatural found families!
Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for the ARC.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I started "The Carousel of Forgotten Places" after finishing another Mafi book, "Morbid Curiosities," which has excellent pacing and doesn't quit with its plot. In contrast, "The Carousel of Forgotten Places" has the pacing of a cozy fantasy. There is a nice romance, slow burn of course, and also has a unique time travel method that is new to me. There is a found family of sorts and some humorous elements. I had some difficulty getting through the story as the pacing is a bit slower than I prefer. I would encourage anyone who likes the aforementioned elements to give this story a read. Mafi is an excellent writer regardless of the genre.
#TheCarouselofForgottenPlaces #NetGalley #AngryRobot
Thank you to Angry Robot for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
#TheCarouselofForgottenPlaces #NetGalley #AngryRobot
Thank you to Angry Robot for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
A cosy, romantic and whimsical read surrounding a magical carousel and time travelling through threads of magic. Our fmc Ryle has to work with our mmc Everest to find out why the carousel she is the timekeeper of is showing signs of time rot. I thought the idea was unique and interesting, especially the idea of a magical fair and the fact that whoever makes a deal is then the new timekeeper. I liked the banter between our main characters and seeing them navigate their feelings.
If you’re wanting a fun, quick, cosy read or are in a slump then I would recommend this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.
If you’re wanting a fun, quick, cosy read or are in a slump then I would recommend this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.
June 2, 2026
3.75 stars
This was an interesting cozy story. At times, I was having a hard time paying attention to the story. I enjoyed the group of characters from different backgrounds. I found the conversations about Ryka's sexuality to be well-explained and relatable. Overall, this was good but not great. I would recommend it if it sounds interesting to you.
Thank you to NetGalley, S. Hati, and Angry Robot for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
This was an interesting cozy story. At times, I was having a hard time paying attention to the story. I enjoyed the group of characters from different backgrounds. I found the conversations about Ryka's sexuality to be well-explained and relatable. Overall, this was good but not great. I would recommend it if it sounds interesting to you.
Thank you to NetGalley, S. Hati, and Angry Robot for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
June 16, 2026
4 .5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is a fun unique cozy quick read! I loved the premise so simple and easy and follow but also so unique and interesting.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an opportunity for the ARC I thoroughly enjoyed this!
This is a fun unique cozy quick read! I loved the premise so simple and easy and follow but also so unique and interesting.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an opportunity for the ARC I thoroughly enjoyed this!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews