Friday, December 12, 2025

The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton - ESSENTIAL

The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton, 512 pages. Penguin, 2025. $23

Language: G (0 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (Healthy competition between cousins )

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ESSENTIAL

APPEALS TO: MANY

In a world filled with magic, family politics, history, power, betrayal, and lack of love, Nora is supposed to be an heiress since childhood. When her mother is murdered, Nora’s future is in question. A complicated competition, the Veritas, will determine who is the future heiress. Unfortunately, a cousin no one knew existed, Lotte, enters the scene. Lotte has an equal chance at becoming the next heir but first has to win this trial to get the love and attention of her family. Add to the mix, Theo, a knight, and  August, a young journalist, and you have the “perfect storm” of love and honor intertwined with excitement and competition.

Notorious Virtues was easy to read and kept my attention throughout the book.  Instead of most “slow burns”, Notorious Virtures pulled me in right from the beginning.  The book is intriguing, entertaining, and fun to read.  It was easy to connect with all the characters, especially the underdog, Lotte. The author develops each character very well. I loved that it was written with multiple points of view. Very well written!

Reviewer: sl



No comments: