Scan barcode
bree_h_reads's review against another edition
DNF 27%
I think this book has a lot of potential, but it just didn’t click with me.
I really liked the characters and their dynamics. I loved Inez’s internal monologue and how she thought of things. She was clearly intelligent and clever and strong-willed, but also had blind spots and her stubbornness could get her into trouble. The writing style was wonderful and I loved all the descriptions. I loved the vibes, especially how much it felt like The Mummy.
It just didn’t feel like anything was happening. It took until 27% into the book for actual plot to kick off and I don’t think that’s pacing that appeals to me at the moment. I might try the book again later, but waiting that long for the plot to pickup is a bit of a turn away for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Grief
Minor: Racism
picaresquedreamer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Classism, Death, Alcoholism, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Violence, Murder, and Child death
Moderate: Kidnapping, Grief, Sexism, Colonisation, War, and Blood
avidreader5678's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexism
Minor: Torture and Sexual content
l_piller's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Colonisation, Misogyny, and Sexism
amandafitz's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Misogyny, Addiction, Cultural appropriation, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Death, Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Sexism, Violence, Colonisation, Confinement, and Infidelity
andra_mihaela_s's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
From me, What the River Knows gets 4.25 stars 🥳
This is a first book in an Egyptian inspired historical fantasy duology targeted to a young adult readership that tells the story of Inez Olivera, a bolivian-argentinian young lady of the upper society of 19th century Buenos Aires, as she embarks to Egypt in hopes of finding out how her parents died and why.
CW : death of parents, grief, violent murder, mentions of drug use, alcoholism, abandonment, colonialism
This book is correctly marketed as rivals to lovers, thank God 🤭, but I didn't find this aspect of the story taking over our MC's every thought and action.( More like 30- 70 ratio for plot).
In my opinion, the author has talent in portraying such an acute feeling as abandonment, grief, denial and coming face to face with who your family is/ was. I cannot express how happy I was that Inez was constantly denying her parents forgiveness while also understanding why Egypt was soo magical to them.
The atmosphere was on point, quite nostalgic and mysterious, with an undertone of sadness.
Our characters were pretty well defined. Inez is vivid on the page, you cannot mix her up with other heroines! 🥰 While her coming to Egypt might seem a little bit too easy...let me tell you, is not impossible for something like that to have occurred! She is feisty while smart about keeping her cards close to her heart; she's suspicious of everybody but not overly so; and she's barely a young woman who's trying to grapple with her new reality. I deeply connected with her story and genuinely liked her.
The love interest, Whitford Hayes, or Whit, gave me #historicalromance book vibes from the start ☺️🤭
..and that's not a bad thing! After all...we are in that period....sort of....
He's full of secrets, charming, useful to those he deems worthy and in search of something...the end of the book left me gasping! 🤯 is he the bad guy????👀 🤔
Another 2 characters I want to mention are the uncle, Ricardo, and Elvira, the cousin. Well I liked Elvira...and that's that 🤧. As for Ricardo...I had sooo many doubts! 😤 the author really wrote a good mystery!
Sooo yes! This book is a good mystery! At least for me😂 Inez's suspicions grew and morphed as she found out more about her parents and what happened. I really enjoyed that!😌
Quick note before i forget : this book tackles colonialism and oppression in subtle ways of native people! We also discuss #artifact robbery and the morality of letting the world know about history through the specific lense of #archeology !! I really enjoyed this!
Back to the plot which is carefully mixed in with Inez's emotional journey and ancient magic 🥰🪄
Although this is a low fantasy ,the plot being based in our history with a twist , it really feeds your imagination!
In the end, the summary on Goodreads says it all, Inez needs to find out the truth , or risk becoming just a pawn in a much larger game!
So, why only 4.25??? I found the middle to be a little slow and towards the end of the book, something happened that changes Inez's course of action..and although is appropriate for a ya, logical and a bold move for the author..I still saw it coming. :( ...but don't mind me! this book is great!
I highly recommend you try this! ☺️
This is a first book in an Egyptian inspired historical fantasy duology targeted to a young adult readership that tells the story of Inez Olivera, a bolivian-argentinian young lady of the upper society of 19th century Buenos Aires, as she embarks to Egypt in hopes of finding out how her parents died and why.
CW : death of parents, grief, violent murder, mentions of drug use, alcoholism, abandonment, colonialism
This book is correctly marketed as rivals to lovers, thank God 🤭, but I didn't find this aspect of the story taking over our MC's every thought and action.( More like 30- 70 ratio for plot).
In my opinion, the author has talent in portraying such an acute feeling as abandonment, grief, denial and coming face to face with who your family is/ was. I cannot express how happy I was that Inez was constantly denying her parents forgiveness while also understanding why Egypt was soo magical to them.
The atmosphere was on point, quite nostalgic and mysterious, with an undertone of sadness.
Our characters were pretty well defined. Inez is vivid on the page, you cannot mix her up with other heroines! 🥰 While her coming to Egypt might seem a little bit too easy...let me tell you, is not impossible for something like that to have occurred! She is feisty while smart about keeping her cards close to her heart; she's suspicious of everybody but not overly so; and she's barely a young woman who's trying to grapple with her new reality. I deeply connected with her story and genuinely liked her.
The love interest, Whitford Hayes, or Whit, gave me #historicalromance book vibes from the start ☺️🤭
..and that's not a bad thing! After all...we are in that period....sort of....
He's full of secrets, charming, useful to those he deems worthy and in search of something...the end of the book left me gasping! 🤯 is he the bad guy????👀 🤔
Another 2 characters I want to mention are the uncle, Ricardo, and Elvira, the cousin. Well I liked Elvira...and that's that 🤧. As for Ricardo...I had sooo many doubts! 😤 the author really wrote a good mystery!
Sooo yes! This book is a good mystery! At least for me😂 Inez's suspicions grew and morphed as she found out more about her parents and what happened. I really enjoyed that!😌
Quick note before i forget : this book tackles colonialism and oppression in subtle ways of native people! We also discuss #artifact robbery and the morality of letting the world know about history through the specific lense of #archeology !! I really enjoyed this!
Back to the plot which is carefully mixed in with Inez's emotional journey and ancient magic 🥰🪄
Although this is a low fantasy ,the plot being based in our history with a twist , it really feeds your imagination!
In the end, the summary on Goodreads says it all, Inez needs to find out the truth , or risk becoming just a pawn in a much larger game!
So, why only 4.25??? I found the middle to be a little slow and towards the end of the book, something happened that changes Inez's course of action..and although is appropriate for a ya, logical and a bold move for the author..I still saw it coming. :( ...but don't mind me! this book is great!
I highly recommend you try this! ☺️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Grief, and Colonisation
Moderate: Racism, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Death, and Abandonment
Minor: War, Trafficking, Sexism, Drug use, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
sunny_bumblebee's review
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Alcoholism, Racism, Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Infidelity, Death, Torture, Sexism, Misogyny, Gore, and Gun violence
Moderate: Confinement and Abandonment
bibliomania_express's review
3.5
What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez is a historical fantasy steeped in 1880s Egypt. Inez is looking for answers about the death of her parents. She travels to Egypt from Buenos Aires to find out what happened, but nothing is as she expects when she arrives. Now she'll have to rely of her stubbornness and resilience to find out the truth.
I'm conflicted about this book. On one hand, I absolutely enjoyed the atmosphere and the way Ibañez weaves history, politics, and culture into the narrative to make it feel very grounded. There are so many great details about the weather, the markets, the languages, and how people get around. I liked that Inez wasn't a push-over when it came to going after what she wanted.
On the other hand, this book relies a bit too much on twists and the magic system isn't very well explained. It's a little unclear how common magical items are or how it all works. I was also annoyed at Inez for a lot of the book. While she stubbornly pushes forward, she also doesn't have great instincts and is somehow both too suspicious and too trusting. There's one major twist that became more obvious as the story went on. But the whole things relies on a bunch of people straight up refusing to communicate and I was annoyed at the lot of them.
I'm also just mad at it for the cliffhanger ending. Of course I want to know what it's all about, which means waiting for the next book in the series. But the way these things go it's definitely more for shock factor than intrinsic truth
I'm conflicted about this book. On one hand, I absolutely enjoyed the atmosphere and the way Ibañez weaves history, politics, and culture into the narrative to make it feel very grounded. There are so many great details about the weather, the markets, the languages, and how people get around. I liked that Inez wasn't a push-over when it came to going after what she wanted.
On the other hand, this book relies a bit too much on twists and the magic system isn't very well explained. It's a little unclear how common magical items are or how it all works. I was also annoyed at Inez for a lot of the book. While she stubbornly pushes forward, she also doesn't have great instincts and is somehow both too suspicious and too trusting. There's one major twist that became more obvious as the story went on. But the whole things relies on a bunch of people straight up refusing to communicate and I was annoyed at the lot of them.
I'm also just mad at it for the cliffhanger ending. Of course I want to know what it's all about, which means waiting for the next book in the series. But the way these things go it's definitely more for shock factor than intrinsic truth
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Xenophobia, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Grief, Gaslighting, Death, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Sexism, and Alcohol
lakinglaze's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
First off, thank you so much to St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book. I’m so grateful and have now bought two separate editions of my own and the audiobook because I loved it so! Isabel Ibañez did such an incredible job with this novel! 🥰
I absolutely loved everything about the story. As a trained archaeologist myself, it hits very close to my heart! Inez’s strength drew me to her side and never let go. Whit’s charisma and ‘wit’ty banter had me falling right in love with him. The story was exciting, mysterious, adventurous, fun, devastating, shocking, and left me gasping for more! November won’t arrive soon enough!
I absolutely loved everything about the story. As a trained archaeologist myself, it hits very close to my heart! Inez’s strength drew me to her side and never let go. Whit’s charisma and ‘wit’ty banter had me falling right in love with him. The story was exciting, mysterious, adventurous, fun, devastating, shocking, and left me gasping for more! November won’t arrive soon enough!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Death of parent, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Animal death, Colonisation, Gore, Grief, Vomit, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Murder, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Confinement, Sexism, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence
lizzydreadful's review
adventurous
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Murder, Sexism, Infidelity, Violence, Blood, Cursing, Colonisation, Death of parent, Misogyny, Confinement, Grief, Alcohol, Death, and Emotional abuse