This book has the most unreliable narrator I’ve read and I’m here for it. There’s something about a narrator telling you she’s lying but you still end up shocked at certain turns of events. Now that’s some storytelling!

The Cloisters had me at ‘gothic museum and garden renowned for its medieval art collection and its group of enigmatic researchers studying the history of divination’ but I’m afraid it stopped there. The book wasn’t bad, there were parts I liked, but unfortunately this was a ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ kind of situation. I think fans of dark academia will enjoy this one because it’s certainly that, but I wanted more of the gothic, sinister, and atmospheric story I was promised and feel didn’t get.

I devoured this in two days. I was absolutely captivated by S.T. Gibson’s writing and the voice of Constanta, Dracula’s first bride.

“You did not let me keep my name, so I will strip you of yours. In this world you are what I say you are, and I say you are a ghost, a long night’s fever dream that I have finally woken up from.”

– A Dowry of Blood, S.T. Gibson

I love it when books have a mix of genres. The Monsters We Defy is such a great mix of historical fiction and fantasy. Set in the 1920s in Washington DC, some characters and events in the book were actually inspired by real life. I’m not at all familiar with what happened in DC around this time, and while a fictional book isn’t the best source, learning about it was still really cool!

Before we get to the review part, here’s something fun. To get in the right mindset of the book, I made a mood board for it! The book is super cute and cozy and witchy and that’s what I tried to convey with this mood board. I loved making it, and I definitely want to make more! Let me know if that’s something you’d like to see.