Reviews with content warning for Classism - What the River Knows

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!

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skyebird16's review

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adventurous sad medium-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? Yes

3.5

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meganders22's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional informative inspiring mysterious 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

4.25

Before we begin, let me just say that ending was rude. I need book two NOW. Ranting done.

Now, here’s the rest. That was such an enjoyable ride! I absolutely loved the main character, Inez, and loved her character development across the entire book. I loved all the historical aspects of the story & the thrill of archeological discoveries! The only aspect I didn’t care for in the book was its pacing, at times it felt slow and drawn out then other times numerous things happened in span of a few paragraphs. It just felt that the two main halves of the book were a little disproportionate to each other, the front half was a tad too slow then the back half went too fast (I needed more). Overall, the book was an amazing read and I can’t wait for the next one!

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biobeetle's review against another edition

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adventurous tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.25

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finnzebelle's review

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adventurous inspiring mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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amhud1030's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional 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? Yes

3.0

The premise of this book had me excited with the setting being in Egypt and the search for Cleopatra’s tomb.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed, as the main character was severely naïve many times over. I know this is a YA book. However, her naïveté was very frustrating.

After her first encounter where she was taken advantage of, and had something stolen from her, I stopped, listening for several days to give myself a break. I should have the DNF’d at this point.

At the end of this book I do not feel she has grown and learned from her mistakes. She still too naïve and trusting.

The only reason I finished was because I wanted to see how the story ended since it got a little more exciting around the 45 to 50% mark.

How disappointed was I to realize that there is meant to be a sequel, and there was no conclusion to the story.

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yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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3.75

Finished reading: November 11th 2023

"Grief was like a memory keeper. It showed me moments I'd forgotten, and I was grateful, even as my stomach hollowed out."

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Hodderscape in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

I loved my first experience with the writing of this author when I read Woven In Moonlight back in 2020... While I somehow never picked up that particular sequel (something I hope to remedy soon), I couldn't resist adding What The River Knows to my wishlist as soon as I first heard about it. I have a weak spot for stories with a Latin American flavor, and of course I HAD to read a story that is partly set in the country I now call my home. I also love a good dose of armchair travel, and 19th century Egypt sounded like a particularly fascinating destination. And what a read What The River Knows turned out to be!

It's hard to put this story in a neat little genre box; What The River Knows is a very successful mashup of different elements and genres and the resulting cocktail works like a charm. With its late 19th century Egypt setting, the story is part historical fiction. There is also magic involved, making this story tip its toes in the fantasy genre. BUT. This first book of a new series can also be considered an adventure/quest for example with their mission to find Cleopatra's tomb. And don't forget the danger factor, plenty of lies, betrayal and a healthy dose of rival-to-lover romance. This might seem like a lot, but somehow this mix works surprisingly well.

One of the things that stands out the most is without doubt the historical Egyptian setting. There is so much attention to detail with the descriptions of the different settings and all things late 19th century Egypt, and it really made you feel like you traveled back in time to that era. True, some might feel there is a bit too much information being thrown at you at times, but I personally didn't mind as I enjoyed learning more about Egyptian culture and history. The visit to Argentina was brief and not as present, although there are plenty of Spanish words and phrases to make my inner philologist happy.

There were some minor niggles along the way though. I was surprised by the fact that the pace was quite slow at times, and it took me longer than expected to finish this story. This might have had to do with the longer descriptions and attention to detail, which in a way I also appreciated, but the fact is that the story didn't flow as well as I expected. I did enjoy the writing style itself though. One of the things I struggled the most with was probably the romance though. I just never believed in the attraction between Inez and Whit, and as a result the rival-to-lover trope fell flat for me. Did I like the initial sass and Inez standing up for herself? Yes. But especially in the second half I started to resent their growing connection.

What The River Knows has a dual POV structure and switches between Inez and Whit. I'm not sure if I liked Whit's POV all that much, and I think I would have preferred to stick with just Inez instead... They seem to be mostly in the same place anyway, and I just didn't think his thoughts were all that interesting (with a couple exceptions). That said, the plot has quite a few surprises and twists in store, and some I definitely didn't see coming. A little warning though: What The River Knows ends with a major cliffhanger, and for someone who didn't realize until recently this was actually the first book of a series this was a hard blow. Let's hope the wait for the next book won't be too long!

If you enjoy a well written historical fantasy with a dose of adventure, murder, magic and danger as well as romance, you should try traveling to Egypt with What The River Knows. The pace might be a tad slow at times, but there is no doubt that this story is rich and immersive!

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