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What Wakes the Bells
Inspired by an ominous Prague legend, What Wakes the Bells is a lavish gothic fantasy by debut author Elle Tesch.
Built by long-gone Saints, the city of Vaiwyn lives and breathes and bleeds. As a Keeper, Mina knows better than most what her care of Vaiwyn’s bells means for the sentient city. It’s the Strauss family’s thousand-year legacy―prevent the Vespers from ringing, or they will awake a slumbering evil.
One afternoon, to Mina's horror, her bell peals thirteen times, shattering the city’s tenuous peace. With so much of the city's history and lore lost in a long-ago disaster, no one knows the danger that has been unleashed―until the city begins to fight back. As the sun sets, stone gargoyles and bronze statues tear away from their buildings and plinths to hunt people through the streets. Trapped in Mina’s bell, the soul of a twisted and power-hungry Saint festered. Now free of his prison, he hides behind the face of one of Vaiwyn’s citizens, corrupting the city and turning it on itself.
Time is running out, and the only chance Mina has to stop the destruction and horrific killings is finding and destroying the Saint’s host. Everyone is a suspect, including Mina's closest loved ones. She will have to decide how far she’ll go to save her city―and who she’s willing to kill to do it.
Built by long-gone Saints, the city of Vaiwyn lives and breathes and bleeds. As a Keeper, Mina knows better than most what her care of Vaiwyn’s bells means for the sentient city. It’s the Strauss family’s thousand-year legacy―prevent the Vespers from ringing, or they will awake a slumbering evil.
One afternoon, to Mina's horror, her bell peals thirteen times, shattering the city’s tenuous peace. With so much of the city's history and lore lost in a long-ago disaster, no one knows the danger that has been unleashed―until the city begins to fight back. As the sun sets, stone gargoyles and bronze statues tear away from their buildings and plinths to hunt people through the streets. Trapped in Mina’s bell, the soul of a twisted and power-hungry Saint festered. Now free of his prison, he hides behind the face of one of Vaiwyn’s citizens, corrupting the city and turning it on itself.
Time is running out, and the only chance Mina has to stop the destruction and horrific killings is finding and destroying the Saint’s host. Everyone is a suspect, including Mina's closest loved ones. She will have to decide how far she’ll go to save her city―and who she’s willing to kill to do it.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published March 11, 2025
63 people are currently reading
34.9k people want to read
About the author
Elle Tesch
3books147followersElle Tesch has lived just east of Vancouver, British Columbia her entire life. Surrounded by forests and mountains, it was inevitable that she would daydream about what might lurk in those trees. She twists places she loves and writes what she knows best: hungry monsters, casually cruel villains, and ace-spec girls in the stories they deserve.
Elle is the author of the forthcoming novel WHAT WAKES THE BELLS, publishing March 11, 2025 from Feiwel & Friends.
When not writing, Elle can be found reading whatever she can get her hands on, wrestling with her current cross-stitch project, or re-watching Pride & Prejudice (2005) for the 72nd time.
Elle is the author of the forthcoming novel WHAT WAKES THE BELLS, publishing March 11, 2025 from Feiwel & Friends.
When not writing, Elle can be found reading whatever she can get her hands on, wrestling with her current cross-stitch project, or re-watching Pride & Prejudice (2005) for the 72nd time.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 174 reviews
February 4, 2025
Oh boy. This book frustrated me. (Rant incoming, I’m getting there). Here’s the thing, the vibes were immaculate. It was very gothic fantasy with Hunchback of Notre Dame vibes, which is such a unique setting from what is usually done in fantasy. However, this book is filled with characters and magic systems and backstories that were not properly explained. When info was revealed I had to reread over and over again and I STILL I had questions. That is not what you want in the fantasy genre especially, as this genre needs things to be clear more so than any other genre, because a reader is more likely to be confused/need more explanation with a genre that incorporates things like complicated magic systems. And this book did nothing but confuse me and leave me with more unanswered questions due to a lack of clear explanation. I will dive deeper into this later in the review. Prepare for a rant.
The premise: in the city of Vaiwyn, the Vesper Bells were crafted by the Saints to exile an evil entity from their world. Now, the Bell Keepers must ensure that the Vespers never ring all thirteen times, because the thirteenth toll would bring back the concealed evil. As a Strauss, Mina and her family are designated to keep the evil at bay by making sure the Vespers never ring those dreaded thirteen tolls, that would rouse the evil once more. Of the five saints that built Vaiwyn, The Lost Alchemist was the one who defeated the evil a thousand years prior, and crafted the Vespers with her dying breath, so that the people of the city would have warning if the evil ever tried to return.
The biggest strength of this book is the atmosphere. The atmosphere is beautiful, and gives a subtle mix of Edinburgh and Prague, but a fantasy version. Mina is designated to watch over the Vesper in Lyndell Hall, which is a dark academia gothic dream with iron chandeliers, staircases with long landings, tall windows, and aged portraits. This mixed with a unique magic system and lore, plus gargoyles coming to life, you have a book with a really unique atmosphere.
The biggest weakness of this book is again, the lack of clear explanation. When the lore behind the saints and the founding of Vaiwyn was revealed, I found it hard to understand. You also never quite get a solid, CLEAR explanation for why or how Vaiwyn is a living, sentient city. It’s just kind of…there? Came out of nowhere and it’s alive? More so, you never get a real explanation for why Bane became evil either. You hear his backstory, but don’t get an explanation for his motivation on what caused him to go from mortal to evil. When it comes to writing a good villain, they have to have a solid backstory. If you just make it a, they became evil out of nowhere thing, it comes off as cartoony. It’s so much less satisfying to be like, he just became evil, and that’s it. Oooook? This character is really evil and vengeful but you never get a reason WHY. People don’t just become evil out of nowhere and especially not THAT evil.
Side note, you also get ZERO backstory on the saints, how they got their power, etc. All you know is the basic outline of the history of how they formed Vaiwyn, something about a beast but you don’t know where it got its power either, or if it’s what even made the saints become immortal and gave them their power. It’s like, everything is glossed over but too many details are missing.
Despite the lack of characterization and backstory, the most frustrating part is still the parts of this book that are unclear, ESPECIALLY with tricky dialogue. Here’s an example: the book says that immortals, when they die, come back as a different variation with altered appearances, but they can all still recognize each other. Then, shortly after, the book says Elora (the lost alchemist saint) was not in Vaiwyn because “nothing is tethering her to this world� so “all that remains of her is her relic�. This sure make it sounds like she’s completely gone from this world and “all that remains is her relic�. But again, it sounds like this, yet you’re UNSURE if that’s what they even mean. If it is what they mean, then if she’s an immortal saint, why does the book say she isn’t in the world anymore, when it JUST SAID any immortal that died would come back as a younger person with a different appearance? And if what they actually mean is that she did reincarnate as all immortals do but she’s not in the same world/universe anymore, THATS ALSO CONFUSING BECAUSE THE EXISTENCE OF OTHER WORLDS ARE NEVER MENTIONED, so how would we know? So does this mean that A, for whatever reason she didn’t reincarnate and is dead, which is a direct contradiction to what was just said about immortals when they die, or does it mean B, she’s in a different world/universe? Either option has an issue because A contradicts what was previously said about what happens when immortals die, and B throws in “she’s not tethered to this world� implying her soul is in an alternate world, without ANY mention that alternate worlds even exist in this book’s world. See what I mean? Option C would be, by world they could mean she’s in a different kingdom or city or country or whatever, but that would still be an issue because you said WORLD. See what I mean about the dialogue being unclear?
Note: we do get more info around the last 20% that allows us eliminate some of the possible theories, and you do find out what happens to Elora, despite still no explanation for what “‘nothing tethering her to this world� even meant. However, my statement still stands, because this is not a matter of, things being unclear because information is being hidden. It’s a matter of, things being unclear because the dialogue is too open to interpretation. We don’t want to have all of the answers at the beginning obviously, that isn’t the issue here. The issue is, if I’m having to reread a paragraph over and over cuz I have no clue what this character means by what they said because it could mean more than one thing. We shouldn’t need spoilers at the end to finally be able to figure out what the dialogue at the beginning was trying to convey.
Before the last 20% (not very shocking) reveal, I debated an interpretation of “she’s not tethered to this world� possibly meaning the city of Vaiwyn is the entire world. Which I doubt that’s what it is, but again, we wouldn’t know because this is not explained due to EXTREMELY LIMITED worldbuilding. The worldbuilding INSIDE VAIWYN is really good, and the vibes are immaculate, but it’s like nothing exists outside of this singular city. The existence of anything else is not even MENTIONED. When all hell breaks loose, leaving the city isn’t even mentioned as an option, and we never know why. Is it because this singular city of Vaiwyn is all there is in the entire world and nothing else exists? The whole universe is just this one city? We never find out. The limited amounts of worldbuilding were good, but it needs to be expanded. It’s fantasy. This is your opportunity to create multiple countries and maybe even draw maps. The way it’s written is so restrictive with the world building that it’s basically implying that this one city is the only thing that exists, ever. Especially with confusing dialogue like the example above.
The thing is, when you write fantasy, you have to know that there’s going to be readers (like me lol) that need clear answers and dialogue, not things open to interpretation that are going to have us scratching our heads. It leads to a very confusing and unsatisfying reading experience. I was so frustrated by all of this that it made me not even want to read the rest. Some readers can let this kind of stuff roll off their backs and is ok with things not being clear. I am not one of them. What was done was done well, but there were too many missing pieces, leading to a lot of frustration at the beginning which made me unmotivated to want to read the rest. This was very imaginative, atmosphere was great, and the writing was good. But I recommend better built out characters, clearer dialogue, and less limited worldbuilding.
Thank you to Netgalley and Feiwel for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.
The premise: in the city of Vaiwyn, the Vesper Bells were crafted by the Saints to exile an evil entity from their world. Now, the Bell Keepers must ensure that the Vespers never ring all thirteen times, because the thirteenth toll would bring back the concealed evil. As a Strauss, Mina and her family are designated to keep the evil at bay by making sure the Vespers never ring those dreaded thirteen tolls, that would rouse the evil once more. Of the five saints that built Vaiwyn, The Lost Alchemist was the one who defeated the evil a thousand years prior, and crafted the Vespers with her dying breath, so that the people of the city would have warning if the evil ever tried to return.
The biggest strength of this book is the atmosphere. The atmosphere is beautiful, and gives a subtle mix of Edinburgh and Prague, but a fantasy version. Mina is designated to watch over the Vesper in Lyndell Hall, which is a dark academia gothic dream with iron chandeliers, staircases with long landings, tall windows, and aged portraits. This mixed with a unique magic system and lore, plus gargoyles coming to life, you have a book with a really unique atmosphere.
The biggest weakness of this book is again, the lack of clear explanation. When the lore behind the saints and the founding of Vaiwyn was revealed, I found it hard to understand. You also never quite get a solid, CLEAR explanation for why or how Vaiwyn is a living, sentient city. It’s just kind of…there? Came out of nowhere and it’s alive? More so, you never get a real explanation for why Bane became evil either. You hear his backstory, but don’t get an explanation for his motivation on what caused him to go from mortal to evil. When it comes to writing a good villain, they have to have a solid backstory. If you just make it a, they became evil out of nowhere thing, it comes off as cartoony. It’s so much less satisfying to be like, he just became evil, and that’s it. Oooook? This character is really evil and vengeful but you never get a reason WHY. People don’t just become evil out of nowhere and especially not THAT evil.
Side note, you also get ZERO backstory on the saints, how they got their power, etc. All you know is the basic outline of the history of how they formed Vaiwyn, something about a beast but you don’t know where it got its power either, or if it’s what even made the saints become immortal and gave them their power. It’s like, everything is glossed over but too many details are missing.
Despite the lack of characterization and backstory, the most frustrating part is still the parts of this book that are unclear, ESPECIALLY with tricky dialogue. Here’s an example: the book says that immortals, when they die, come back as a different variation with altered appearances, but they can all still recognize each other. Then, shortly after, the book says Elora (the lost alchemist saint) was not in Vaiwyn because “nothing is tethering her to this world� so “all that remains of her is her relic�. This sure make it sounds like she’s completely gone from this world and “all that remains is her relic�. But again, it sounds like this, yet you’re UNSURE if that’s what they even mean. If it is what they mean, then if she’s an immortal saint, why does the book say she isn’t in the world anymore, when it JUST SAID any immortal that died would come back as a younger person with a different appearance? And if what they actually mean is that she did reincarnate as all immortals do but she’s not in the same world/universe anymore, THATS ALSO CONFUSING BECAUSE THE EXISTENCE OF OTHER WORLDS ARE NEVER MENTIONED, so how would we know? So does this mean that A, for whatever reason she didn’t reincarnate and is dead, which is a direct contradiction to what was just said about immortals when they die, or does it mean B, she’s in a different world/universe? Either option has an issue because A contradicts what was previously said about what happens when immortals die, and B throws in “she’s not tethered to this world� implying her soul is in an alternate world, without ANY mention that alternate worlds even exist in this book’s world. See what I mean? Option C would be, by world they could mean she’s in a different kingdom or city or country or whatever, but that would still be an issue because you said WORLD. See what I mean about the dialogue being unclear?
Note: we do get more info around the last 20% that allows us eliminate some of the possible theories, and you do find out what happens to Elora, despite still no explanation for what “‘nothing tethering her to this world� even meant. However, my statement still stands, because this is not a matter of, things being unclear because information is being hidden. It’s a matter of, things being unclear because the dialogue is too open to interpretation. We don’t want to have all of the answers at the beginning obviously, that isn’t the issue here. The issue is, if I’m having to reread a paragraph over and over cuz I have no clue what this character means by what they said because it could mean more than one thing. We shouldn’t need spoilers at the end to finally be able to figure out what the dialogue at the beginning was trying to convey.
Before the last 20% (not very shocking) reveal, I debated an interpretation of “she’s not tethered to this world� possibly meaning the city of Vaiwyn is the entire world. Which I doubt that’s what it is, but again, we wouldn’t know because this is not explained due to EXTREMELY LIMITED worldbuilding. The worldbuilding INSIDE VAIWYN is really good, and the vibes are immaculate, but it’s like nothing exists outside of this singular city. The existence of anything else is not even MENTIONED. When all hell breaks loose, leaving the city isn’t even mentioned as an option, and we never know why. Is it because this singular city of Vaiwyn is all there is in the entire world and nothing else exists? The whole universe is just this one city? We never find out. The limited amounts of worldbuilding were good, but it needs to be expanded. It’s fantasy. This is your opportunity to create multiple countries and maybe even draw maps. The way it’s written is so restrictive with the world building that it’s basically implying that this one city is the only thing that exists, ever. Especially with confusing dialogue like the example above.
The thing is, when you write fantasy, you have to know that there’s going to be readers (like me lol) that need clear answers and dialogue, not things open to interpretation that are going to have us scratching our heads. It leads to a very confusing and unsatisfying reading experience. I was so frustrated by all of this that it made me not even want to read the rest. Some readers can let this kind of stuff roll off their backs and is ok with things not being clear. I am not one of them. What was done was done well, but there were too many missing pieces, leading to a lot of frustration at the beginning which made me unmotivated to want to read the rest. This was very imaginative, atmosphere was great, and the writing was good. But I recommend better built out characters, clearer dialogue, and less limited worldbuilding.
Thank you to Netgalley and Feiwel for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.
May 21, 2024
Oh, y'all aren't ready for THIS.
March 18, 2025
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the arc!
🌟🌟/5
A novel that had great potential but was ultimately bogged down because of a frustratingly brash protagonist, underdeveloped worldbuilding, predictable plot twists, and an unsatisfactory ending. I'd been excited for 'What Wakes the Bells' ever since it was announced. Unfortunately, this was a huge miss for me.
Here's the good: As a die-hard fan of gothic novels, you can expect me to be the first in line to read books featuring sentient buildings. What's better than a sentient house? A sentient city, of course! This gets 10/10 as far as vibes are concerned. I loved how, through tiny details, the author made Vaiwyn come alive- a character in its own right. The overall concept was very cool and something I've never seen before. I'm glad this didn't end up being yet another trope-heavy romantasy. We're introduced to an already established relationship and the author did a good job at making the romance convincing but not so prominent that it eclipsed the plot. The world is queernornative and I always appreciate that in a fantasy novel.
And here's the not-so-good: The author clearly put a lot of thought into making Vaiwyn come alive but did not think about its geographical location and the other places surrounding it. The 'world'building here is limited to the city and makes it seem like Vaiwyn exists in a void. That's why I was very confused that people didn't just leave the city during daytime if the murderous statues came alive only after sunset. The lore about the Saints was interesting on the surface level but not clearly thought out. I'd love to read a prequel set during their time because this book does not offer any explanation as to who the saints actually are and why they have the powers they have. There is one more aspect related to the saints that I thought was weird but I'll have to dive into spoiler territory and will not be covering it in this review. I couldn't care about any of the characters. Mina made stupid decisions one after another. The way she thought of herself as the chosen one and that she could fix everything was very annoying. The side characters were just...there. I don't know how to explain this, but the prose was elaborate and juvenile at the same time. The dialogue fell flat.
While presenting my critiques, I have to acknowledge the fact that this is a debut and these are mistakes debut fantasy authors often make. I definitely see the potential, though, and will probably read her next novel.
🌟🌟/5
A novel that had great potential but was ultimately bogged down because of a frustratingly brash protagonist, underdeveloped worldbuilding, predictable plot twists, and an unsatisfactory ending. I'd been excited for 'What Wakes the Bells' ever since it was announced. Unfortunately, this was a huge miss for me.
Here's the good: As a die-hard fan of gothic novels, you can expect me to be the first in line to read books featuring sentient buildings. What's better than a sentient house? A sentient city, of course! This gets 10/10 as far as vibes are concerned. I loved how, through tiny details, the author made Vaiwyn come alive- a character in its own right. The overall concept was very cool and something I've never seen before. I'm glad this didn't end up being yet another trope-heavy romantasy. We're introduced to an already established relationship and the author did a good job at making the romance convincing but not so prominent that it eclipsed the plot. The world is queernornative and I always appreciate that in a fantasy novel.
And here's the not-so-good: The author clearly put a lot of thought into making Vaiwyn come alive but did not think about its geographical location and the other places surrounding it. The 'world'building here is limited to the city and makes it seem like Vaiwyn exists in a void. That's why I was very confused that people didn't just leave the city during daytime if the murderous statues came alive only after sunset. The lore about the Saints was interesting on the surface level but not clearly thought out. I'd love to read a prequel set during their time because this book does not offer any explanation as to who the saints actually are and why they have the powers they have. There is one more aspect related to the saints that I thought was weird but I'll have to dive into spoiler territory and will not be covering it in this review. I couldn't care about any of the characters. Mina made stupid decisions one after another. The way she thought of herself as the chosen one and that she could fix everything was very annoying. The side characters were just...there. I don't know how to explain this, but the prose was elaborate and juvenile at the same time. The dialogue fell flat.
While presenting my critiques, I have to acknowledge the fact that this is a debut and these are mistakes debut fantasy authors often make. I definitely see the potential, though, and will probably read her next novel.
Read
March 26, 2025firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc!
unfortunately dnf @ 15%
i was just not interested in the characters or world-building, but i’m sure this book will find its audience.
unfortunately dnf @ 15%
i was just not interested in the characters or world-building, but i’m sure this book will find its audience.
Want to read
February 25, 2025I NEED THIS LIKE I NEED AIR
July 5, 2024
4/5
Świetny pomysł na fabułę i współgrający z nią klimat książki. Bawiłam się wspaniale, akcja, wątki poboczne, moralne decyzję bohaterów- wszystko grało. Jedynie wątek romantyczny trochę mnie nie kupił ale jak zrozumiałam, że bohaterka jest demiseksualna to miało to większy sens w kontekście też kreacji magii 💓
Świetny pomysł na fabułę i współgrający z nią klimat książki. Bawiłam się wspaniale, akcja, wątki poboczne, moralne decyzję bohaterów- wszystko grało. Jedynie wątek romantyczny trochę mnie nie kupił ale jak zrozumiałam, że bohaterka jest demiseksualna to miało to większy sens w kontekście też kreacji magii 💓
November 11, 2024
The writing is really good, but I didn’t care about characters that much, and some of the parts of the book fell flat to me. It was okay read, but I can see lots of other readers enjoying this one.
ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
March 16, 2025
Ugh there’s nothing worse than one of your most anticipated reads of the year turning out to be a complete disappointment :(
In theory, there’s a lot to love about What Wakes the Bells, especially in the YA genre: fascinating worldbuilding, complex religion, demisexual rep, and complex family dynamics. Unfortunately, I found the execution lacking with all of them.
The worldbuilding and religion, while conceptually interesting, is incredibly lackluster and severely under-explained. Although the first 15% is exposition heavy, the proliferation of names and proper nouns associated with the world (everything seems to have a name, from the individual bells to the overly-complex dual-named saints) made it incredibly hard to differentiate the characters. There’s simply too many characters and names introduced in the first part of the book that they all began blending together in my head, especially because almost all of them lack personality aside from one defining character trait. Conceptually, the idea of a living city turning against its inhabitants is so intriguing, but it’s handled in a very stereotypical way that stripped the deadly situation of any actual emotional stakes. Additionally, despite being centuries-old superpowered beings, the Saints felt weirdly distant and indifferent to the entire conflict, even though their entire livelihoods and purpose depended on the conflict.
Another thing that irked me was the surprising flatness of the characters and relationships. There’s so many characters that it’s hard to feel connections to most of them, especially characters who (theoretically) influenced the plot like Quinn. The main character, Mina, was frustrating and impulsive without reason, and I simply could not understand some of her complaints about her family when her self-isolation seemed to be the cause of most of the issues. The complex and at-times adversary dynamic between Mina and her mother was interesting in the beginning of the book, but it dragged on terribly and their reconciliation at the ~70% mark felt obligatory rather than earned. As a demisexual/demiromantic reader, I was also really enthusiastic to see the romance between demisexual Mina and Max, but I honestly felt that nothing happened between them. Max’s entire character centers around being nice, and his chemistry with Mina was entirely lacking. While it’s refreshing that they’re already in a relationship when the book begins, I felt that it weirdly diminished the demisexual rep since their romance is only told through brief memories/flashbacks and their intimacy was easier to achieve; I would have been more interested to see their relationship slowly unfold as Mina learns to trust Max and transition from friends to romantic partners.
Lastly, the prose in this book was simultaneously descriptive yet SO annoying. Tesch’s writing is evocative without verging into flowery, and I thought many descriptions of actions artfully entwined unique imagery with emotional resonance. However, one thing that I simply could not look past was her overreliance on italicized words for emphasis. Almost every page of my ARC had at least one word on the page that was italicized for no reason. I cannot even begin to count how many times my internal monologue got tripped up because random words were italicized. I understand that it’s meant for emphasis, but the writing by itself was enough to convey the emotional stakes. My brain literally slipped into editor mode and began correcting every italicized word; I found that no italics had exactly the same effect as italics. While I can excuse some of the italics, Tesch relies on them so much that it’s a very obvious writing crutch. If I hadn't read this book as an ARC, I would have DNF'd within the first 20% because of the italics alone. A few examples (bolded for emphasis) from just the first chapter are below:
� No , not now.
� This strange, sporadic pain has acted up for over a week now, and I hate it.
� And we Keepers ensure the Vespers can never sing.
� The latter’s enormous size serves as one more reminder of my mother and her belief in my� inadequacies.
� At this time of day, every street in Vaiwyn teems with bodies, voices, and smells.
� So, when I stumble to a halt at its center with that Saints- damned heat surging in my chest again, I’m quickly lost in a horde eager to elbow me aside.
However, despite my complaints above, What Wakes the Bells isn’t a bad book. It had so many interesting elements, but I personally found everything underdeveloped and flat, though the degree of severity may be in part because I’ve been anticipating this book since the deal was announced. The overabundance of names and haphazardly-explained worldbuilding, distracting writing, and heavy-handed plot foreshadowing really inhibited my enjoyment of this book, but I would still encourage readers to pick this one up if the synopsis sounds interesting.
2/5 stars
Thank you to Fierce Reads (Macmillan) for the e-ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.
In theory, there’s a lot to love about What Wakes the Bells, especially in the YA genre: fascinating worldbuilding, complex religion, demisexual rep, and complex family dynamics. Unfortunately, I found the execution lacking with all of them.
The worldbuilding and religion, while conceptually interesting, is incredibly lackluster and severely under-explained. Although the first 15% is exposition heavy, the proliferation of names and proper nouns associated with the world (everything seems to have a name, from the individual bells to the overly-complex dual-named saints) made it incredibly hard to differentiate the characters. There’s simply too many characters and names introduced in the first part of the book that they all began blending together in my head, especially because almost all of them lack personality aside from one defining character trait. Conceptually, the idea of a living city turning against its inhabitants is so intriguing, but it’s handled in a very stereotypical way that stripped the deadly situation of any actual emotional stakes. Additionally, despite being centuries-old superpowered beings, the Saints felt weirdly distant and indifferent to the entire conflict, even though their entire livelihoods and purpose depended on the conflict.
Another thing that irked me was the surprising flatness of the characters and relationships. There’s so many characters that it’s hard to feel connections to most of them, especially characters who (theoretically) influenced the plot like Quinn. The main character, Mina, was frustrating and impulsive without reason, and I simply could not understand some of her complaints about her family when her self-isolation seemed to be the cause of most of the issues. The complex and at-times adversary dynamic between Mina and her mother was interesting in the beginning of the book, but it dragged on terribly and their reconciliation at the ~70% mark felt obligatory rather than earned. As a demisexual/demiromantic reader, I was also really enthusiastic to see the romance between demisexual Mina and Max, but I honestly felt that nothing happened between them. Max’s entire character centers around being nice, and his chemistry with Mina was entirely lacking. While it’s refreshing that they’re already in a relationship when the book begins, I felt that it weirdly diminished the demisexual rep since their romance is only told through brief memories/flashbacks and their intimacy was easier to achieve; I would have been more interested to see their relationship slowly unfold as Mina learns to trust Max and transition from friends to romantic partners.
Lastly, the prose in this book was simultaneously descriptive yet SO annoying. Tesch’s writing is evocative without verging into flowery, and I thought many descriptions of actions artfully entwined unique imagery with emotional resonance. However, one thing that I simply could not look past was her overreliance on italicized words for emphasis. Almost every page of my ARC had at least one word on the page that was italicized for no reason. I cannot even begin to count how many times my internal monologue got tripped up because random words were italicized. I understand that it’s meant for emphasis, but the writing by itself was enough to convey the emotional stakes. My brain literally slipped into editor mode and began correcting every italicized word; I found that no italics had exactly the same effect as italics. While I can excuse some of the italics, Tesch relies on them so much that it’s a very obvious writing crutch. If I hadn't read this book as an ARC, I would have DNF'd within the first 20% because of the italics alone. A few examples (bolded for emphasis) from just the first chapter are below:
� No , not now.
� This strange, sporadic pain has acted up for over a week now, and I hate it.
� And we Keepers ensure the Vespers can never sing.
� The latter’s enormous size serves as one more reminder of my mother and her belief in my� inadequacies.
� At this time of day, every street in Vaiwyn teems with bodies, voices, and smells.
� So, when I stumble to a halt at its center with that Saints- damned heat surging in my chest again, I’m quickly lost in a horde eager to elbow me aside.
However, despite my complaints above, What Wakes the Bells isn’t a bad book. It had so many interesting elements, but I personally found everything underdeveloped and flat, though the degree of severity may be in part because I’ve been anticipating this book since the deal was announced. The overabundance of names and haphazardly-explained worldbuilding, distracting writing, and heavy-handed plot foreshadowing really inhibited my enjoyment of this book, but I would still encourage readers to pick this one up if the synopsis sounds interesting.
2/5 stars
Thank you to Fierce Reads (Macmillan) for the e-ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.
March 6, 2025
4.5/5 got an arc from work
Im such a sucker for lush worldbuilding and interesting mythologies that this was a fun read for me! A gorgeous gothic fantasy that really drew me in to the world it created and kept me wanting more. A touch predictable towards the beginning/middle, there were a couple things I figured out well before the heroine did, but it still managed to surprise by the end and with that and the Demi rep, I really enjoyed it!
Im such a sucker for lush worldbuilding and interesting mythologies that this was a fun read for me! A gorgeous gothic fantasy that really drew me in to the world it created and kept me wanting more. A touch predictable towards the beginning/middle, there were a couple things I figured out well before the heroine did, but it still managed to surprise by the end and with that and the Demi rep, I really enjoyed it!
October 26, 2024
I’ve been disliking YA as a genre recently so I did not expect to like this book as much as I did!!! But really this has all of the best ingredients and none of the worst thing.
What there was:
A sentient city with magic bells that will wake up millennia old monsters if they aren’t cut twice a day? Check.
Gargoyles and statues coming to life and chasing people? Check.
Saints from historic legends (along with stained glass artwork of said saints)? Check.
What there was not:
Instalove? NOPE.
Overpowering YA angst? NOPE.
Love triangles? NOPE.
The absolute best part of this book was the setting. The history and saints and statues gave so much depth to the book, and all of that being overlayed on a sentient living city that actually FELT alive was incredible. I would live in Vaiwyn. The saints and their relics were so cool. The belltowers were so cool. Immaculate vibes for an October read.
The second best part of this book was how incredibly well done the romance was. Y’all know I’m a romance hater 99% of the time. There’s nothing I hate more than instalove. But in this book the MC had been FRIENDS with the LI for a significant amount of time before anything romantic started happening. And not the “friends who are really just horny for each other and don’t actually have a friendship� trope I’ve seen so much in YA. They had a genuine friendship outside of their romance. Their chemistry wasn’t just pure sexual tension with nothing actually meaningful to it. That detail alone is enough to make me want to read every book Elle Tesch ever writes.
Bottom line: I LOVED THIS BOOK
TRIGGER WARNINGS (minor spoilers): there’s a scene where Mina is forced to kiss someone when she doesn’t want to. Her body is used against her will by a spirit. Her father died from a plague and her mother became abusive afterwards. A side character is severely alcoholic.
What there was:
A sentient city with magic bells that will wake up millennia old monsters if they aren’t cut twice a day? Check.
Gargoyles and statues coming to life and chasing people? Check.
Saints from historic legends (along with stained glass artwork of said saints)? Check.
What there was not:
Instalove? NOPE.
Overpowering YA angst? NOPE.
Love triangles? NOPE.
The absolute best part of this book was the setting. The history and saints and statues gave so much depth to the book, and all of that being overlayed on a sentient living city that actually FELT alive was incredible. I would live in Vaiwyn. The saints and their relics were so cool. The belltowers were so cool. Immaculate vibes for an October read.
The second best part of this book was how incredibly well done the romance was. Y’all know I’m a romance hater 99% of the time. There’s nothing I hate more than instalove. But in this book the MC had been FRIENDS with the LI for a significant amount of time before anything romantic started happening. And not the “friends who are really just horny for each other and don’t actually have a friendship� trope I’ve seen so much in YA. They had a genuine friendship outside of their romance. Their chemistry wasn’t just pure sexual tension with nothing actually meaningful to it. That detail alone is enough to make me want to read every book Elle Tesch ever writes.
Bottom line: I LOVED THIS BOOK
TRIGGER WARNINGS (minor spoilers): there’s a scene where Mina is forced to kiss someone when she doesn’t want to. Her body is used against her will by a spirit. Her father died from a plague and her mother became abusive afterwards. A side character is severely alcoholic.
Want to read
January 29, 2024"a dark YA fantasy about a keeper of the bells in a sentient city built by long-gone saints. When the soul of a vengeful saint escapes his prison, Mina must decide how far she'll go to save her city—and who she's willing to kill to do it."
- DEMISEXUAL REP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- starcrossed lovers to enemies romance 👀
I NEED IT ASAP
- DEMISEXUAL REP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- starcrossed lovers to enemies romance 👀
I NEED IT ASAP
Want to read
July 24, 2024Time is running out, and the only chance Mina has to stop the destruction and horrific killings is finding and destroying the Saint’s host. Everyone is a suspect, including Mina's closest loved ones. She will have to decide how far she’ll go to save her city―and who she’s willing to kill to do it.
Gothic, gothic, killings!
Gothic, gothic, killings!
Want to read
April 30, 2023who wants enemies to lovers when lovers to enemies exists. can't wait for this one to give the latter.
March 30, 2025
2025 reads: 69/300
2025 tbr: 28/111
i received a digital review copy from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. this did not affect my rating.
content warnings: death of parent, body horror, emotional abuse
in the living, breathing city of vaiwyn, mina acts as a keeper to take care of the bells and prevent them from ringing, lest they awaken an evil force. one day, though, her bell rings thirteen times, and no one knows what kind of danger this will entail. the soul of a power-hungry saint has been let loose and hides behind the face of a citizen. mina works to find and destroy the saint’s host to save her city.
i’ve been so excited to read this book since hearing about it! i enjoy reading books inspired by central and eastern european cultures, and this book was based on a legend from prague. i really liked how the setting played into this story!
i loved the main character, mina. she had to step into this position a bit abruptly after losing her father, who had the job before her. the relationship between mina and her boyfriend, max, was explored so well. oftentimes, when the mc starts the book in a relationship, their partner sucks and they eventually break up. however, i really liked max and how their relationship grew throughout the book.
i’d recommend this to anyone looking for a YA fantasy with a unique setting. i can’t wait for whatever’s next from elle tesch!
2025 tbr: 28/111
i received a digital review copy from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. this did not affect my rating.
content warnings: death of parent, body horror, emotional abuse
in the living, breathing city of vaiwyn, mina acts as a keeper to take care of the bells and prevent them from ringing, lest they awaken an evil force. one day, though, her bell rings thirteen times, and no one knows what kind of danger this will entail. the soul of a power-hungry saint has been let loose and hides behind the face of a citizen. mina works to find and destroy the saint’s host to save her city.
i’ve been so excited to read this book since hearing about it! i enjoy reading books inspired by central and eastern european cultures, and this book was based on a legend from prague. i really liked how the setting played into this story!
i loved the main character, mina. she had to step into this position a bit abruptly after losing her father, who had the job before her. the relationship between mina and her boyfriend, max, was explored so well. oftentimes, when the mc starts the book in a relationship, their partner sucks and they eventually break up. however, i really liked max and how their relationship grew throughout the book.
i’d recommend this to anyone looking for a YA fantasy with a unique setting. i can’t wait for whatever’s next from elle tesch!
April 20, 2025
What Wakes the Bells is a great young adult Gothic fantasy written by Elle Tesch, published by Feinwel & Friends. A sentient city built long ago by the Saints, an ominous evil that will return after the Vesper Bells ring thirteen times, an immaculate atmosphere that perfectly captures the vibes and a female main character having to fight to stop the chaos from taking over the city of Valwyn after not fulfilling the expectations of her family are some of the elements that makes this such a ride of a book.
Mina is part of a long line of bell-keepers part of the Strauss family, having to take care of the Vesper Bells to keep the evil from coming back to the city of Valwyn; however, under Mina's watch, it's her Bell the one that marks the return of a long forgotten Saint. Mina will have to step up to protect her family and the city from the horror unleashed by the Bell, while unraveling the mysteries behind the city's foundation and its lore, becoming the saviour Valwyn needed, having to confront even those she loved.
If there's an aspect that Tesch has absolutely nailed is the worldbuilding, in terms of setting and atmosphere. We have a sentient city with a long history that has been twisted across the centuries, with many Gothic details and drawing into some religious aspects such as the Saints and how there's a cult around them (even we could say the Strauss' tradition is a sort of religion). There are some unanswered questions at the ending, but I feel it suits well with how Tesch is playing with the concept of how oral stories/traditions often hides the truth behind some garnishments.
It is true that in terms of characterization, What Wakes the Bells lands a bit on the weaker side, but still has some space to shine. Mina's character arc, while it is a bit cliched, works well as part of the plot, and I absolutely love a strong female main character that has to fight against disappointment, having to stand up from the lowest point and confront her fears. The romance was set from the start, but Tesch manages to give an interesting twist to it, suiting well with the general imagery.
The pacing is a bit slow at the start, using a small chunk to introduce us to the world, but once it picks, it never stops, keeping you as a reader in tension during the whole book.
What Wakes the Bells is a great novel, perfect if you are looking for a Gothic fantasy with a vivid imagery and immaculate vibes, a really enjoyable read that will pick your curiosity with the worldbuilding and give you a remarkable character arc. Really interested to see what will Elle Tesh have in the future!
March 12, 2025
3.5 ⭐️
Thank you to Feiwel and Friends/Macmillan for providing Advanced Reader Copies at YAll Fest this year, so I had the opportunity to read this book! This came out on March 11th.
This is the author’s debut novel, and she has a beautiful voice. The book is poetic in its grand descriptions of the “alive”city, Vaiwyn. The ideas behind the story were so cool, a living city built and protected by Saints with specific magical powers. An epic fight of good versus evil that’s doomed to repeat. At the beginning, I did find myself a little confused as she built the world and threw all the terms of her world at me without much context, but it didn’t take long for it to smooth out and allow for immersion into the story.
Mina is one of Vaiwyn’s bell keepers. Every day, she must make sure that her bell doesn’t ring, or else evil that no one truly remembers will descend upon her living city. Unfortunately for her, the bell ends up heralding that evil under her watchful eye, and now she has to protect her city, her family, her love, and her legacy. As she unravels the mysteries of her city’s lore and foundation, she has to learn to rely on herself so that she can be the savior her city needs.
If you’ve read my previous reviews, you might know that I never see anything coming in books. I’m just a happily oblivious brain cell walking around having a good time. This was not the case in this book. I figured out all the surprises and twists almost immediately and just watched the story I expected to play out on the page. Now, that being said, it was a beautifully written story and well-paced, so I had a great time. I think this is a great YA fantasy novel with a unique world and writing that allows you to live in the world forming around you.
Thank you to Feiwel and Friends/Macmillan for providing Advanced Reader Copies at YAll Fest this year, so I had the opportunity to read this book! This came out on March 11th.
This is the author’s debut novel, and she has a beautiful voice. The book is poetic in its grand descriptions of the “alive”city, Vaiwyn. The ideas behind the story were so cool, a living city built and protected by Saints with specific magical powers. An epic fight of good versus evil that’s doomed to repeat. At the beginning, I did find myself a little confused as she built the world and threw all the terms of her world at me without much context, but it didn’t take long for it to smooth out and allow for immersion into the story.
Mina is one of Vaiwyn’s bell keepers. Every day, she must make sure that her bell doesn’t ring, or else evil that no one truly remembers will descend upon her living city. Unfortunately for her, the bell ends up heralding that evil under her watchful eye, and now she has to protect her city, her family, her love, and her legacy. As she unravels the mysteries of her city’s lore and foundation, she has to learn to rely on herself so that she can be the savior her city needs.
If you’ve read my previous reviews, you might know that I never see anything coming in books. I’m just a happily oblivious brain cell walking around having a good time. This was not the case in this book. I figured out all the surprises and twists almost immediately and just watched the story I expected to play out on the page. Now, that being said, it was a beautifully written story and well-paced, so I had a great time. I think this is a great YA fantasy novel with a unique world and writing that allows you to live in the world forming around you.
Want to read
June 4, 2024first time hearing abt this book but I AM SAT
March 17, 2025
I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
I wanted this book to blow me away and it just didn't quite get to that for me. It is still well worth reading; it just isn't something that I'll be raving about.
Mina is part of a long line of bell-keepers, or people who have to ring a bell every few hours to prevent the apocalypse. I feel like the background of this book could have been made much clearer because even after finishing the book, I feel like I don't "get" the bells themselves. This is an ambitious book in terms of the worldbuilding, but it also falls a little short of a coherent world. Several of the characters had depth and creativity to their personalities, but unfortunately, Mina and her boyfriend lacked that spark. I felt uninvolved and thought their dynamic did not match the overall vibe of the setting.
3.5 stars rounded up
I wanted this book to blow me away and it just didn't quite get to that for me. It is still well worth reading; it just isn't something that I'll be raving about.
Mina is part of a long line of bell-keepers, or people who have to ring a bell every few hours to prevent the apocalypse. I feel like the background of this book could have been made much clearer because even after finishing the book, I feel like I don't "get" the bells themselves. This is an ambitious book in terms of the worldbuilding, but it also falls a little short of a coherent world. Several of the characters had depth and creativity to their personalities, but unfortunately, Mina and her boyfriend lacked that spark. I felt uninvolved and thought their dynamic did not match the overall vibe of the setting.
3.5 stars rounded up
October 21, 2024
This had a lot of elements that I really enjoy seeing in a gothic fantasy book, such as a vivid setting and creative magic. It also had a vivid storytelling that made everything super easy to imagine, almost to the point where it felt like a movie in my head. The fact that it was also very fast-paced helped with that feeling too.
The romance was already established when the book started, which is not something I normally enjoy, but I think the author did a good job at making the reader invested in their relationship without it distracting from the plot.
The biggest downside for me was the predictability of the story, not even 20% in and I could figure out the direction the whole book was going in. I usually don’t mind things being sort of predictable as long as the so called twist fits the story, and while this one did, I feel like after the reveal the book wasn’t as strong. The ending fight scenes felt a little anticlimactic in my opinion, and I just expected the story to do more after the reveal than it did.
Overall, even though it’s kind of predictable and the ending didn’t do as much as it could have, this was nevertheless an enjoyable read that I would still recommend.
Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!
🅞🅥🅔🅡🅐🅛🅛 🅡🅐🅣🅘🅝🅖: � � � � � . 25
The romance was already established when the book started, which is not something I normally enjoy, but I think the author did a good job at making the reader invested in their relationship without it distracting from the plot.
The biggest downside for me was the predictability of the story, not even 20% in and I could figure out the direction the whole book was going in. I usually don’t mind things being sort of predictable as long as the so called twist fits the story, and while this one did, I feel like after the reveal the book wasn’t as strong. The ending fight scenes felt a little anticlimactic in my opinion, and I just expected the story to do more after the reveal than it did.
Overall, even though it’s kind of predictable and the ending didn’t do as much as it could have, this was nevertheless an enjoyable read that I would still recommend.
Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!
🅞🅥🅔🅡🅐🅛🅛 🅡🅐🅣🅘🅝🅖: � � � � � . 25
March 7, 2025
Hmm, not what I was expecting. Review to come! 🔔
(FINAL REVIEW:)
This had EVERYTHING I could ask for in a book: LGBTQ+ rep with a demi protagonist, inspired by a beautiful city’s legend, whimsy and gothic vibes, an intricate magic system, and an interesting religious system. What I ended up with was a main character that annoyed and bored me and more questions than answers as to what happened in the ending. 🙁
The story follows Mina, an 18-year-old bell keeper who is trying to prove her worth to not only her city, but her cold mother. I honestly had such a hard time liking Mina because all she really did was push away her family and partner and then complained when they didn’t include her in things or understand her. She reminded me a bit of Danae from Daughter of Chaos who was quick to anger and failed to think things through. The sole redeeming quality to her for me was that she did genuinely care for siblings and Max even though it was so weirdly skewed. 😮�
The other thing that didn’t sit right with me was a minor element that most people might not really care about, but I thought I’d point out. Being inspired by Prague and one of its numerous legends, I was hoping to get some Czech elements in the story here and there, but instead it was reading as German influenced which if anyone knows anything about this region and its history, it just felt like the erasure of parts of a city that melted German, Czech, and Jewish elements beautifully together. 😔
The elements that saved this book from being a bit of a dumpster fire for me was the city setting and magic system. I loved its mix of gothic and whimsy feel. I also really liked that the magic system is mixed into its religious system and how it tied together. 🕯�
But other than that, I sadly didn’t enjoy this. The plot was rather predicable, the ending felt a bit rushed, and I was left with so many questions in regards to Max and his ending role. 🤔
Big thank you goes out to Feiwel & Friends for sending me a copy through NetGalley. I was so excited for this read and wish I could’ve enjoyed it more than I did. 😢
Publication date: March 11
Overall: 2.5/5 ⭐️
(FINAL REVIEW:)
This had EVERYTHING I could ask for in a book: LGBTQ+ rep with a demi protagonist, inspired by a beautiful city’s legend, whimsy and gothic vibes, an intricate magic system, and an interesting religious system. What I ended up with was a main character that annoyed and bored me and more questions than answers as to what happened in the ending. 🙁
The story follows Mina, an 18-year-old bell keeper who is trying to prove her worth to not only her city, but her cold mother. I honestly had such a hard time liking Mina because all she really did was push away her family and partner and then complained when they didn’t include her in things or understand her. She reminded me a bit of Danae from Daughter of Chaos who was quick to anger and failed to think things through. The sole redeeming quality to her for me was that she did genuinely care for siblings and Max even though it was so weirdly skewed. 😮�
The other thing that didn’t sit right with me was a minor element that most people might not really care about, but I thought I’d point out. Being inspired by Prague and one of its numerous legends, I was hoping to get some Czech elements in the story here and there, but instead it was reading as German influenced which if anyone knows anything about this region and its history, it just felt like the erasure of parts of a city that melted German, Czech, and Jewish elements beautifully together. 😔
The elements that saved this book from being a bit of a dumpster fire for me was the city setting and magic system. I loved its mix of gothic and whimsy feel. I also really liked that the magic system is mixed into its religious system and how it tied together. 🕯�
But other than that, I sadly didn’t enjoy this. The plot was rather predicable, the ending felt a bit rushed, and I was left with so many questions in regards to Max and his ending role. 🤔
Big thank you goes out to Feiwel & Friends for sending me a copy through NetGalley. I was so excited for this read and wish I could’ve enjoyed it more than I did. 😢
Publication date: March 11
Overall: 2.5/5 ⭐️
April 10, 2025
2.5/5 stars
yeah no
yeah no
February 3, 2025
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
This was an e-ARC read, Thank you Macmillan Children's Publishing Group & Elle Tesch for the e-arc!
✨✨Vibes the book has:
- Murderous Gargoyle statues
- A Sentient City! (YES the city is alive and has feelings)
- Gothic, mysterious atmosphere 🌫�
- Higher beings like Saints
- Magical Bells that needs to be looked after 👀
- Messy Family Dynamics 🥴
- A protective, cinnamon roll- brother 🥰 (might have been my favourite)
- An Established couple
- Demi Romance
Honestly, if this book ever gets adapted into a movie, it would be absolutely incredible! It’s packed with those vibes above. It felt like I’d stepped into a Tim Burton-esque dream world, but with even sharper edges. Elle, the author, deserves so much praise for her ability to paint this hauntingly beautiful world. The city of Vaiwyn came alive in my mind through her vivid descriptions—so much so that it felt like I was watching the scenes unfold rather than reading about them. I’ll admit the world-building was a bit overwhelming at times (as fantasy worlds often can be). But once I got through it, I was rewarded with something truly beautiful.
One thing I adored was how the story had an established romantic relationship. It was refreshing to see a couple who were already together, and their dynamic was so soft, kind, and sweet—a real balm amidst the darker tones of the story. I found myself rooting for them not just to survive but to hold onto their precious connection. And as I always say, a great story needs a compelling villain, and this one nailed it. He was menacing, mysterious, and undeniably captivating. I was a little disappointed we didn’t get more scenes or dialogue from him because, honestly, every time he spoke, I was like, “Please, just keep talking.�.
The family dynamics were fascinating & messy. The mom? Totally unredeemable for me. But the amazing brother more than made up for it—honestly, everyone deserves someone like him in their life.
The twists and turns were fun to follow, even if some of them were a bit predictable. What I enjoyed most was watching Mina piece everything together. She felt real, flawed, and determined, which made her journey satisfying. The ending took me by surprise—I didn’t see it coming—but I have to admit, I was expecting a bit more from the final battle. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, but I wanted that extra oomph to make it truly unforgettable.
++++++ Elle also has her own playlist cured for this � it’s a must listen with the book!!
This was an e-ARC read, Thank you Macmillan Children's Publishing Group & Elle Tesch for the e-arc!
✨✨Vibes the book has:
- Murderous Gargoyle statues
- A Sentient City! (YES the city is alive and has feelings)
- Gothic, mysterious atmosphere 🌫�
- Higher beings like Saints
- Magical Bells that needs to be looked after 👀
- Messy Family Dynamics 🥴
- A protective, cinnamon roll- brother 🥰 (might have been my favourite)
- An Established couple
- Demi Romance
Honestly, if this book ever gets adapted into a movie, it would be absolutely incredible! It’s packed with those vibes above. It felt like I’d stepped into a Tim Burton-esque dream world, but with even sharper edges. Elle, the author, deserves so much praise for her ability to paint this hauntingly beautiful world. The city of Vaiwyn came alive in my mind through her vivid descriptions—so much so that it felt like I was watching the scenes unfold rather than reading about them. I’ll admit the world-building was a bit overwhelming at times (as fantasy worlds often can be). But once I got through it, I was rewarded with something truly beautiful.
One thing I adored was how the story had an established romantic relationship. It was refreshing to see a couple who were already together, and their dynamic was so soft, kind, and sweet—a real balm amidst the darker tones of the story. I found myself rooting for them not just to survive but to hold onto their precious connection. And as I always say, a great story needs a compelling villain, and this one nailed it. He was menacing, mysterious, and undeniably captivating. I was a little disappointed we didn’t get more scenes or dialogue from him because, honestly, every time he spoke, I was like, “Please, just keep talking.�.
The family dynamics were fascinating & messy. The mom? Totally unredeemable for me. But the amazing brother more than made up for it—honestly, everyone deserves someone like him in their life.
The twists and turns were fun to follow, even if some of them were a bit predictable. What I enjoyed most was watching Mina piece everything together. She felt real, flawed, and determined, which made her journey satisfying. The ending took me by surprise—I didn’t see it coming—but I have to admit, I was expecting a bit more from the final battle. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, but I wanted that extra oomph to make it truly unforgettable.
++++++ Elle also has her own playlist cured for this � it’s a must listen with the book!!
March 22, 2025
Look, the writing and the concept are great, okay? The prose is beautiful and lush, but not over-the-top flowery. The gothic vibes are immaculate. The idea of a sentient city built by saints walking among its people is cool. The pacing is just right for the most part, and the tension is great too. It kept me hooked, along with the atmosphere. The problem is, as always, the main character.
I’m not sure if Mina is deliberately written to be a brash, impulsive, selfish brat, or if we’re supposed to like her despite all that. Her flaws were only ever addressed by her mother, who eventually apologized for being overly critical. She has literally no positive qualities, and the main issue in the book happened because she failed to do her job properly. She’s basically the personification of the YOU HAD ONE JOB meme, she barely takes accountability for it and constantly makes terrible decisions. Also it took her forever to decipher the hints, and it’s frustrating because it’s so obvious with all the hints staring her in the face.
This is seriously what Mina thinks of her loving boyfriend. We don’t even get to see their relationship develop, until near the end when it suddenly gets dumped on us all at once, but they’re supposedly in love.
…and this one aged like milk, but if it’s not an indication to how self-absorbed this girl is then I don’t know what is. Her supposedly nice boyfriend said the exact same thing, by the way. Not like the bell rang when they were busy making out and she wasn’t present to do her job or anything, right? Totally not their business!
The plot is okay though. It’s not original or anything and it’s also super predictable, not to mention it has a very familiar manner of deus ex machina at the end, but it’s not terrible either. While the worldbuilding was severely underdeveloped and the antagonist was one-dimensional, at least it was interesting enough to follow even with an unlikeable main character.
Oh, and one more thing. Dear authors. Please. Stop. Writing. Like. This.
I’m not sure if Mina is deliberately written to be a brash, impulsive, selfish brat, or if we’re supposed to like her despite all that. Her flaws were only ever addressed by her mother, who eventually apologized for being overly critical. She has literally no positive qualities, and the main issue in the book happened because she failed to do her job properly. She’s basically the personification of the YOU HAD ONE JOB meme, she barely takes accountability for it and constantly makes terrible decisions. Also it took her forever to decipher the hints, and it’s frustrating because it’s so obvious with all the hints staring her in the face.
I may no longer have a bell to care for, but a tall, exhausted boy will do as replacement.
This is seriously what Mina thinks of her loving boyfriend. We don’t even get to see their relationship develop, until near the end when it suddenly gets dumped on us all at once, but they’re supposedly in love.
Whichever stranger Bastian’s spirit invaded, whether they consented or not, won’t survive what’s coming. To me, they are faceless, nameless. I pity them, but if it means the monster who took my father from me dies, too—I can live with it.
…and this one aged like milk, but if it’s not an indication to how self-absorbed this girl is then I don’t know what is. Her supposedly nice boyfriend said the exact same thing, by the way. Not like the bell rang when they were busy making out and she wasn’t present to do her job or anything, right? Totally not their business!
The plot is okay though. It’s not original or anything and it’s also super predictable, not to mention it has a very familiar manner of deus ex machina at the end, but it’s not terrible either. While the worldbuilding was severely underdeveloped and the antagonist was one-dimensional, at least it was interesting enough to follow even with an unlikeable main character.
Oh, and one more thing. Dear authors. Please. Stop. Writing. Like. This.
March 15, 2025
What do you think of the idea of a sentient city? I don’t mean like cyberspace or AI sentient, but organically sentient: masonry repairs itself, it puts out fires, it repairs ripped up grass...it requires you to inter all bones underneath it with no covering in a labyrinth-like catacombs�
That’s the city of Vaiwyn, built by saints who are now long-gone, and guarded by vesper bells manned since the saints� departure by the Strauss family. Never once have they slacked in their duties, until one night thirteen tolls ring out from one of the bells and unleash what the saints had trapped inside.
What Wakes the Bells was less dark than I was hoping, but it was still an enjoyable book. I love the concept of a sentient city that isn’t sentient by some futuristic means. I’d read a whole book just about a sentient city. That aspect of this book didn’t get as much attention as I wanted, but that’s because it had other matters to attend to, so that’s okay. It also had an interesting take on saints and how they develop and the roles they play in the world of this book that I found really fascinating and would’ve liked to learn more about. I also enjoyed the world itself, which is very reminiscent of Prague (of course it is) and happens to be one of my favorite settings for fantasy novels.
So, what’s missing? The characters. The characters just weren’t clicking for me. I wish I could have dialed in more to who they were, what they were going through, and become more invested in what happened to them, but I ended up forgetting about half of them most of the time. In my opinion, the B cast was too large for a book with this many moving parts. It ended up crowding space the book needed for other matters. 4⭐️
I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: Action Adventure/Dark Fantasy/Fantasy/Romantasy/Standalone Fantasy Novel/Standalone Novel/YA Fantasy/YA Romantasy/YA Fiction
That’s the city of Vaiwyn, built by saints who are now long-gone, and guarded by vesper bells manned since the saints� departure by the Strauss family. Never once have they slacked in their duties, until one night thirteen tolls ring out from one of the bells and unleash what the saints had trapped inside.
What Wakes the Bells was less dark than I was hoping, but it was still an enjoyable book. I love the concept of a sentient city that isn’t sentient by some futuristic means. I’d read a whole book just about a sentient city. That aspect of this book didn’t get as much attention as I wanted, but that’s because it had other matters to attend to, so that’s okay. It also had an interesting take on saints and how they develop and the roles they play in the world of this book that I found really fascinating and would’ve liked to learn more about. I also enjoyed the world itself, which is very reminiscent of Prague (of course it is) and happens to be one of my favorite settings for fantasy novels.
So, what’s missing? The characters. The characters just weren’t clicking for me. I wish I could have dialed in more to who they were, what they were going through, and become more invested in what happened to them, but I ended up forgetting about half of them most of the time. In my opinion, the B cast was too large for a book with this many moving parts. It ended up crowding space the book needed for other matters. 4⭐️
I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: Action Adventure/Dark Fantasy/Fantasy/Romantasy/Standalone Fantasy Novel/Standalone Novel/YA Fantasy/YA Romantasy/YA Fiction
March 21, 2025
womp womp :(
This was promising in the beginning (kinda) and I thought some of the descriptions and atmosphere were quite nice.
Unfortunately, I think the story was pretty forgettable for me. The writing quality was better than I'd expect from a debut, but the actual story didn't have a lot of meat to it, no real interesting world-building or lore for my brain to latch onto, and the relationship that was supposed to be the emotional core of it wasn't built up and deep enough so I never cared. It additionally doesn't help that the synopsis basically gives away the mystery element before the mystery even happens.
The main character felt very young, so maybe this would be better with the intended YA audience? She spends a lot of time focusing on her relationships with her parents, her inexperience, and her desperation for their approval which all came across as overly angsty and whiny for an adult living on her own.
Audiobook Notes:
Horrible. I'm so sorry. This narrator (Ell Porter) has a lovely accent, if sedate and melancholic kind of voice (I can easily imagine her reading a letter aloud about how their sibling caught consumption), but she's really overworking the text. Every sentence has a rising or crashing or rising AND crashing cadence to it that makes the main character seem like an emotional wreck and constantly on the verge of tears. I wish there was a better sense of emotional scale, instead of constantly being in the deep end for literally every situation.
I feel really bad for the author that maybe I would've felt differently about the book if this wasn't the filter/interpretation of the text I received it through, but man did I not enjoy her narration style.
This was promising in the beginning (kinda) and I thought some of the descriptions and atmosphere were quite nice.
Unfortunately, I think the story was pretty forgettable for me. The writing quality was better than I'd expect from a debut, but the actual story didn't have a lot of meat to it, no real interesting world-building or lore for my brain to latch onto, and the relationship that was supposed to be the emotional core of it wasn't built up and deep enough so I never cared. It additionally doesn't help that the synopsis basically gives away the mystery element before the mystery even happens.
The main character felt very young, so maybe this would be better with the intended YA audience? She spends a lot of time focusing on her relationships with her parents, her inexperience, and her desperation for their approval which all came across as overly angsty and whiny for an adult living on her own.
Audiobook Notes:
Horrible. I'm so sorry. This narrator (Ell Porter) has a lovely accent, if sedate and melancholic kind of voice (I can easily imagine her reading a letter aloud about how their sibling caught consumption), but she's really overworking the text. Every sentence has a rising or crashing or rising AND crashing cadence to it that makes the main character seem like an emotional wreck and constantly on the verge of tears. I wish there was a better sense of emotional scale, instead of constantly being in the deep end for literally every situation.
I feel really bad for the author that maybe I would've felt differently about the book if this wasn't the filter/interpretation of the text I received it through, but man did I not enjoy her narration style.
February 17, 2025
I sadly guessed every plot twist to come from this book around the 35% mark. But even with its predictability, it was a very interesting and fast paced read. The world was very compelling, with a sentient city and statues that come to life in the night. Even though the villain doesn’t come into the story truly until about the 70% mark, he was probably my favorite character. Through-out the entire book the pace is pretty fast and makes you want more, even with how predictable it was which is a plus!
I normally get pretty bored once I’ve figured out everything but the world was what kept me reading, (sentient city, who needs anything else tbh). I only had a few troubles with this book; one was that because the plot was predictable, it made me want to smack the main character because of how blind she was to A LOT of things. Not only with people and their actions around her but with not trying certain things that I would assume anyone else would do in specific scenarios. The other would be that sometimes it became a bit confusing, the world did make sense overall but every so often there would be times I would have to reread and feel like I was missing something and that there was a hole that just wasn't being filled. Definitely will be recommending though because I’m always on the lookout for fantasy stand-alones and especially interested in ones with unique worlds!
Thank you Netgalley for sending me this book for me to review, all opinions are my own
(actual rating 3.75)
I normally get pretty bored once I’ve figured out everything but the world was what kept me reading, (sentient city, who needs anything else tbh). I only had a few troubles with this book; one was that because the plot was predictable, it made me want to smack the main character because of how blind she was to A LOT of things. Not only with people and their actions around her but with not trying certain things that I would assume anyone else would do in specific scenarios. The other would be that sometimes it became a bit confusing, the world did make sense overall but every so often there would be times I would have to reread and feel like I was missing something and that there was a hole that just wasn't being filled. Definitely will be recommending though because I’m always on the lookout for fantasy stand-alones and especially interested in ones with unique worlds!
Thank you Netgalley for sending me this book for me to review, all opinions are my own
(actual rating 3.75)
April 25, 2025
"As the sun sets, stone gargoyles and bronze statues tear away from their buildings and plinths to hunt people through the streets."
� 3.5
This may be the most predictable book I have ever read.
It was also a pretty unique premise with a rich atmosphere, that almost made up for how completely expected every. single. plot-point was. I know this book is YA and therefore, sometimes needs to be a bit on the simpler side when it comes to plotting. But this almost felt like I asked an algorithm to come up with YA plot-twists, if that makes any sense.
There were moments that I felt really disappointed because I felt what the book could have been. I just wanted more. More depth to the characters, to the mythology, even to the evil gargoyles. This book is 336 pages and as such, it can feel incredibly rushed at times.
Still! It's a fun, quick read with mythology and evil gargoyles and complex family dynamics. It wasn't perfect, but if you go into it like it's a Disney movie, maybe, you won't mind the less fleshed out aspects.
Overall, I definitely wouldn't recommend this to someone that struggles with YA, but if you're looking for a quick, easy, atmospheric read and don't mind the most basic plot-twists to ever plot-twist give it a try!
� 3.5
This may be the most predictable book I have ever read.
It was also a pretty unique premise with a rich atmosphere, that almost made up for how completely expected every. single. plot-point was. I know this book is YA and therefore, sometimes needs to be a bit on the simpler side when it comes to plotting. But this almost felt like I asked an algorithm to come up with YA plot-twists, if that makes any sense.
There were moments that I felt really disappointed because I felt what the book could have been. I just wanted more. More depth to the characters, to the mythology, even to the evil gargoyles. This book is 336 pages and as such, it can feel incredibly rushed at times.
Still! It's a fun, quick read with mythology and evil gargoyles and complex family dynamics. It wasn't perfect, but if you go into it like it's a Disney movie, maybe, you won't mind the less fleshed out aspects.
Overall, I definitely wouldn't recommend this to someone that struggles with YA, but if you're looking for a quick, easy, atmospheric read and don't mind the most basic plot-twists to ever plot-twist give it a try!
March 10, 2025
3.5 stars!!
Thank you to Feiwel and Friends and Elle Tesch for this ARC!!
I was on a roll to finish this before it’s publication date so i’m glad I did :)
This book had the VIBES. Like the gothic and serious, moody vibes took me away to another world
I loved the plot of this book, it was super interesting and felt fresh and I loved that
sometimes I felt like the writing confused me a bit (was very well written but sometimes i’d be confused on what was happening which could be a ADHD problem)
And Mina was honestly so relatable, she was always undermined, her mom was extremely tough on her and she felt like she had to hide herself from her or risk being hurt
I loved the dynamics of Mina’s emotions and I think that really made her a great character
The other characters were okay, they added to the story but overall i didn’t connect with them
I loved the parallel between Mina + Max and the Saints the most!! genuinely love when that happens
Overall I enjoyed this!! This is what YA should be!!
Thank you to Feiwel and Friends and Elle Tesch for this ARC!!
I was on a roll to finish this before it’s publication date so i’m glad I did :)
This book had the VIBES. Like the gothic and serious, moody vibes took me away to another world
I loved the plot of this book, it was super interesting and felt fresh and I loved that
sometimes I felt like the writing confused me a bit (was very well written but sometimes i’d be confused on what was happening which could be a ADHD problem)
And Mina was honestly so relatable, she was always undermined, her mom was extremely tough on her and she felt like she had to hide herself from her or risk being hurt
I loved the dynamics of Mina’s emotions and I think that really made her a great character
The other characters were okay, they added to the story but overall i didn’t connect with them
I loved the parallel between Mina + Max and the Saints the most!! genuinely love when that happens
Overall I enjoyed this!! This is what YA should be!!
November 29, 2024
This was such a wonderful and fast-paced read. I had just finished reading two contemporary novels, so I was eager to immerse myself in a completely different world. I really enjoyed the writing, and the imagery was so vivid (I especially loved the descriptions of the statues coming alive in the snowy city, the catacombs, and the body horror).
I also liked the demi rep! So good :)
I guessed the twists pretty easily, but it was still fun to follow Mina as she tried to figure out how to save her city. I'm sure some people might feel differently, but I do like how it ended. Honestly, after recently watching a few dramas with unsatisfactory/open endings, I need some happy closure in my fiction!
Overall, this was a great debut, and I'm excited to see what Elle Tesch writes next!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I also liked the demi rep! So good :)
I guessed the twists pretty easily, but it was still fun to follow Mina as she tried to figure out how to save her city. I'm sure some people might feel differently, but I do like how it ended. Honestly, after recently watching a few dramas with unsatisfactory/open endings, I need some happy closure in my fiction!
Overall, this was a great debut, and I'm excited to see what Elle Tesch writes next!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
February 8, 2025
to start off, the writing and overall atmosphere of this book is absolutely phenomenal! i think the author has a true craft in capturing the aesthetics of scenery and creating a world that can be transportive to the right reader.
my issue was with the world building in the sense of some historical context not being given which made it really difficult to connect with the story. the first half of this read like the second book in a thoughtfully constructed gothic fantasy series with sporadic informative paragraphs but many things were still left to be presumed upon by the reader.
the characters were interesting but lacked a certain emotional depth one would expect in these high stakes encounters so i never felt truly invested into any of them although i did appreciate the approach to ace representation.
thank you so much to Macmillan Children’s Pub Group, Netgalley and the author for the opportunity to read a digital arc in exchange for my honest thoughts 💌
my issue was with the world building in the sense of some historical context not being given which made it really difficult to connect with the story. the first half of this read like the second book in a thoughtfully constructed gothic fantasy series with sporadic informative paragraphs but many things were still left to be presumed upon by the reader.
the characters were interesting but lacked a certain emotional depth one would expect in these high stakes encounters so i never felt truly invested into any of them although i did appreciate the approach to ace representation.
thank you so much to Macmillan Children’s Pub Group, Netgalley and the author for the opportunity to read a digital arc in exchange for my honest thoughts 💌
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