I am all about my cozy fantasy era. And I wanted The Inn at the Foot of Mount Vengeance to be my next favorite. An academic? Yes please. But this one let me down. Keep reading this book review of The Inn at the Foot of Mount Vengeance for my full thoughts.
Summary
Mount Vengeance is legendary, a monumental climb with a dragon at its peak.
For most, it’s an adventure, or a quest to prove themselves worthy of fame and glory.
For Ainsworth, it’s perfect thesis material.
Ainsworth Gladsly, ambitious young scholar, research fellow and up-and-coming historian is finally ready to make his mark on the world. When his supervisor learns of a rustic inn at the foot of the legendary Mount Vengeance, she send him to be the first to to document the exploits of the bold adventurers who face the perils of the mountain – and the dragon said to inhabit it.
But the inn is far from the sophisticated city life he’s grown to love, and even as he grudgingly warms to its rustic charm – and its lovely innkeeper, Honey – the mystery of the mountain refuses to reveal itself. Worse, Ainsworth can’t find evidence that anyone has ever undertaken the climb – every adventurer comes to the inn, stays for a single night, and then returns home.
And with Ainsworth’s reputation as an academic on the line, it’s a mystery he can’t allow to remain unsolved – even if he has to push the adventurers up the mountain himself.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I wanted so badly to love The Inn at the Foot of Mount Vengeance but it just lost me. I love the idea of an academic historian main character, but Ainsworth was really slow to warm to me. And while that isn’t necessarily an issue, it’s just harder to get swept away in the story, the consequences, the risks, if you aren’t in love or intrigued by the main character. He seemed a little like a fish out of water and a bit ignorant. I do get that this was part of his character arc to figure out our misconceptions. But for me, his evolution, when I changed my mind about him, came just a bit too late. Combined with the lack of hook in the plot, I felt a bit adrift.
I wanted to love the side characters in The Inn at the Foot of Mount Vengeance, but I felt like I didn’t know them enough. Every time I saw a spark, they’d disappear off the page. I feel like part of a cozy fantasy is that you have side characters who carve out your heart. Additionally the plot pacing was not speaking to me. I know that there’s this unsaid mystery to the whole thing, but I felt like it was missing an additional hook to really get us intrigued. For me, a cozy fantasy has to have a good group dynamic, with some found family, and the charm. And while this has charm – and I like the premise on paper – it didn’t take flight for me.
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Find The Inn at the Foot of Mount Vengeance on Goodreads, Storygraph, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.