Boy of Chaotic Making by Charlie N Holmberg
Whimbrel House #3
Historical Fantasy
February 13, 2024- 47North
ARC

Review by Angela

The third book in the Whimbrel House series wraps up the main story arc and gives readers of this series a HEA for at least two of the main protagonists.

Hulda Larkin is now the director BIKER and planning her wedding to Merritt Fernsby. There have been a few snags in her takeover as director, mainly her old boss keeping secrets and hiding illegal activities, but Hulda is looking forward to the future with Merritt, Owein, and the members of Whimbrel House. Then Merritt and Owein receive a missive from London, it appears the Queen is requesting their presence, because she might have a deal for them that they can’t refuse.

I will admit that the pacing of this novel started out a bit slow for me and I struggled to keep reading. But once Hulda has her “vision” and rushes off to London to meet her fiancée I suddenly became super invested and engaged. This book is a wrap-up of sorts of the several books in the series, despite there being a new novel slated for release later this year. This is Hulda and Merritt finding their HEA, Hulda wrapping up some things at Biker and honing her magic, and Merritt discovering his roots. Of course, Owein is one of the main protagonists as the entire book revolves around him making a deal to move his soul from his current terrier body into a human one. Honestly, I had no idea how the author would pull this off without some kind of questionable actions, but she managed to do so. I’m assuming the next book in the series will focus more on him and less on Hulda and Merritt.

This is such a charming, cozy fantasy series. I really love the found family aspect and the unwavering support each character gives each other. It’s not meant to be a standalone and I wouldn’t recommend skipping the first two books in the series as they are necessary to the ongoing series plot arc. But it is a wonderful historical fantasy world that you might want to check out.

Final grade- B