Our sapphic book club loves Alexis Hall. Even if the books themselves aren’t our favorites, they’re always rich with topics interesting to discuss. Mortal Follies is a favorite.

In an 1814 Bath, England ripe with gods, goddesses, and faires, Miss Maelys Michelmore’s gown is actively unraveling. Barely saved from scandal by a trip to the garden, she is unhappy to discover that she’s been cursed. Sulis Minerva demands blood for insult, and Robin Goodfellow is going to narrate the whole thing. 

In my opinion, Mortal Follies is one of Hall’s best. First, the brooding goth butch x practical pink femme sapphic romance is right on the money. The world is a delightful mayhem, tittering with manners and magic, and the setting doesn’t overshadow the characters. I laughed with and ached for Michelmore and her friends, especially Miss Binkle. The framing narration is fascinating. Kicked out of fairyland until he can entertain Oberon with a good story, Robin is a poor writer who tails interesting people and writes their interesting adventures. Like in Midsummer Night’s Dream, Robin cackles at what fools these mortals be–he skips “boring” bits, definitely doesn’t help the others, and once gets stuck following the rules at balls. There’s a certain charming narrative flexibility with a sardonic narrator character like Robin, and Hall makes a treat of it.

If you read A Lady for a Duke but missed the fantastical, if you wanted a more grounded and character-driven Affair of the Mysterious Letter, if you desired a more refined Something Something, check out Mortal Follies.