Blurb

A glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.

At sixteen, Honora “Nora” Holtzfall is the daughter of the most powerful heiress in all of Walstad. Her family controls all the money–and all the magic–in the entire country. But despite being the center of attention, Nora has always felt like an outsider. When her mother is found dead in an alley, the family throne and fortune are suddenly up for grabs, and Nora will be pitted against her cousins in the Veritaz, the ultimate magical competition for power that determines the one family heir.

But there’s a surprise contestant this time: Lotte, the illegitimate daughter of Nora’s aunt. When Lotte’s absent mother retrieves her from the rural convent she’d abandoned her to, Lotte goes from being an orphan to surrounded by family. Unfortunately, most of them want her dead.

And soon, Nora discovers that her mother’s death wasn’t random–it was murder. And the only person she can trust to uncover the truth of what happened is a rakish young reporter who despises everything Nora and her family stand for.

With everyone against her, Lotte’s last hope is hunting for the identity of her father. But the dangerous competition–and her feelings for Theo, one of the Holtzfalls’ sworn protectors–turns her world upside down.

Review

I do love a fairy tale inspired story and The Notorious Virtues does not disappoint. As it turns out, this is the first in a series, and whilst ending on somewhat of a cliffhanger, it felt an appropriate place to do so. I need the next book…NOW!

Told from multiple viewpoints, which works well to keep the reader on top of what is happening, this story at is heart is about family. The family in question being the powerful Holtzfall’s, who own and hold all the power in Walstad. The matriarch leader, Mercy, uses her power and magic to control the family and keep the traditions alive…but as the younger generation prepare and endure the trials to decide the next heir to the fortune, they start to uncover deep secrets and infighting. Whilst searching for answers and trying to outmanoeuvre each other, the girls must also be prepared for trials to win a chance to be heiress. These trials are undisclosed (but linked to the virtues) until they happen and can be anything from troll attacks, helping others or not being tempered in stressful situations.

The history of the family and the traditions they keep, including that of their sworn knight protectors, the Rydders, is told in chunks interspersed throughout the main storyline and is their own origins fairy tale, linked to an immortal being in the woods and an honest, hardworking woodcutter who asks no more than to be able to cut wood to help his family survive the winter. How the family has changed these ideals and their use of magic over the generations enables themes of capitalism, dictatorship, family secrets, resistance, betrayal and rebellion. As one of the characters whose point of view is shared with us is a journalist, we also see the power of the press being used to manipulate how individuals and situations are perceived by the general population.

All this sounds heavy, but believe me, this story is anything but. It is fast paced, builds intrigue, suspense and unforeseen twists, whilst also maintaining a fairy tale-esque style.

Thank you to @TheWriteReads, the author and Faber for a copy of this to read and review.

About the book

Genre: Fantasy

Age Category: Young Adult

Publisher: Faber & Faber

Number of Pages: 368 Pages

Publication Date: March 27, 2025

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38347283-the-notorious-virtues 

Storygraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/3e6e7d9c-5b37-413b-9773-4550a1b42233 

Amazon: https://a.co/d/8vVbAG9 (Canada) https://a.co/d/hLVzjdb (USA) https://amzn.eu/d/i8QYXs5 (UK)

Or my preferred method, buy at a local independent bookshop.

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