Hello everyone,
One of the absolute gems of reading is that it can transport you to absolutely anywhere in the world – or to a different world entirely, courtesy of its setting. As well as being something fun, exciting, and potentially new, it allows you to really immerse yourself in a different culture or experience things from different perspectives, especially if the portrayal is authentic and well researched.
I absolutely adore a good setting and always try to spotlight or make some kind of reference to them in my book reviews. They can provide an exceptional amount of atmosphere and depth, sometimes to the extent that they feel like an extra character.
Here are some of the countries and settings I have visited this year through reading.
United Kingdom
I love a good Gothic historical setting, and each of these three books deliver in that sense. The Whistling by Rebecca Netley is genuinely haunting in that sense, as it involves spooky deaths and a mute girl who can seemingly communicate with ghosts. The place is so fearful that the main character becomes desperate to leave.
The Shape Of Darkness by Laura Purcell deals more in atmosphere, with the dark streets of Victorian Bath giving the story an extremely haunting vibe, especially when aligned with Agnes’ profession as a silhouette maker, and all her customers start to suffer mysterious deaths.
Blackberry & Wild Rose by Sonia Velton does not have a ghostly element to it, but there is still atmosphere as it highlights the world of silk making and societal divisions. It provides some great historical context.
They Lie Here by NS Ford and Wild And Wicked Things by Francesca May both utilise fictional settings within the UK in their paranormal but very different stories. Ford does a wonderful job of bringing the town of Waelminster to life and making it feel like a real place, while May gives Crow Island a Gothic slice of magic in what was the highlight of an otherwise disappointing book.
Sleep by C.L. Taylor is the classic setting for a thriller – a hotel in a remote location with hostile weather conditions. Cue the inevitable murder mystery.
The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh is the first of a series of books set on the Welsh border. It is an interesting part of the world and it is realised very well, with this book specifically focused on a row of second homes for the wealthy and how they clash with the local residents. It has a lot of rural atmosphere too.
The scene of an unspeakable crime, Demon by Matt Wesolowski features a setting that is very much in keeping with the tone of Six Stories. It is a place where unwelcome forces are supposedly at play and demons possess young children.
I Am Dust by Louise Beech is set mostly in a theatre, which lends itself perfectly to a story which has great atmosphere. You can just feel the eeriness of the theatre at night, particularly when ghostly incidents start to occur.
By contrast, Last Seen by Lucy Clarke is a classic summer thriller. It mainly takes place on a beach, where the main characters stay in beach huts for the summer. As someone who does this herself, the author sets the scene extremely well.
United States
I may have just mentioned Last Seen, but no book I read in 2023 screams summer than Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid. That is one of the reasons why I took it on holiday with me. The California setting was just as Katy Perry describes, where a party just gets way out of hand.
The Vanishing Stair and The Hand On The Wall by Maureen Johnson were my second and third trips to Ellingham Academy, an exclusive school set in the mountains of Vermont. The school itself is an amazing setting with mysterious history, but there is also the tranquility of nearby Burlington and the hostility of extreme weather.
Strangely enough, The Library Of Shadows is also set in a high school in Vermont! It clearly has something the other 49 states do not haha. This time though, the vibe is a little different, as it is more of a ghost story with romance.
These three books are all set in New York City. The first two offer quite a similar depiction, with hustle and bustle and crowds and subways. The Collected Regrets Of Clover by Mikki Brammer is a much more introspective story, however, with Clover herself being a total recluse.
The Cloisters by Katy Hays takes place in the world of academia, mainly in the eponymous Cloisters museum. It is an absolutely glorious setting to bask in – it feels like a special place and that is only emphasised by the main character’s awe.
Five Survive by Holly Jackson is primarily set on a recreational vehicle which is stranded on a country road, where its occupants are being threatened by a gunman. It is just very scary and intense.
Spells For Forgetting by Adrienne Young has a similar setting to Wild And Wicked Things, only better. The island of Saoirse is mystical and everyone seems set in their ways, while magic rumbles beneath the surface.
Meanwhile, The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes was my latest visit to the puzzle box that is Hawthorne House, full of secret passageways and games. It is such a fun place to explore through reading.
Republic of Ireland
It may be a sweet, fluffy romance, but The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar is also interesting for the fact it is set in Dublin. With the main characters being of Asian heritage and the author growing up in Ireland herself, it brought some interesting context.
Italy
The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper is set in the ancient city of Pompeii, told from the perspective of a woman who works in a brothel. It is quite a raw depiction of Roman society, where nearly all the men treat women, especially those less fortunate, like commodities.
A much more glamorous Italy appears in The Bronzed Beasts by Roshani Chokshi. The final part of a trilogy which sees the characters travel through different parts of Europe, this is like taking a beautiful tour of nineteenth century Venice with all its architecture and gondolas.
France
The Bronzed Beasts is also partly set in France. Main character Severin owns a hotel in Paris called L’Eden, and that is where the story ends.
In Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid, one of the Grand Slam tournaments Carrie competes in is the French Open in Paris.
Greece
The Silence Of The Girls by Pat Barker focuses on Briseis and her fellow captured women during the Trojan War. As the mythical scenes play out, she becomes the centre of a dispute between Achilles and Agamemnon, watching on while having her liberties taken away.
All the books set in Greece are based on the classic texts, so I hope to read a book set in contemporary Greece fairly soon.
Norway
The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave is another book set many centuries in the past, and it does not have a happy ending. The setting is Finnmark, an area known for its remoteness and the Sami people. There are rumours of witchcraft, but in reality it is only women showing independence. The writing gives the place an incredible, immersive atmosphere.
Russia
In the second of its two short stories, Last Violent Call by Chloe Gong follows Benedikt Montagov and Marshall Seo investigate a suspicious death while travelling along the Trans Siberian railway. Although it is almost entirely set on a train, the sheer length of the journey all the way to Vladivostok plays an important part.
China
Of course, most of the action in Chloe Gong’s Secret Shanghai books are set in China. Foul Lady Fortune takes place in a Shanghai that is full of political uprising with mysterious deaths and scientific experiments. In the first story of Last Violent Call, Juliette and Roma have retired to the relative tranquility of a village called Zhouzhuang, which with its canals sounds very picturesque.
Nigeria
Feast Of Ashes by Victoria Williamson is set in a dystopian Africa 100 years in the future. She lives in an Eco Bubble and works in maintenance, until she and a group of others are the only survivors of a disaster and have to survive in the hazardous outdoors.
Dominican Republic
Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo follows a family of women as they go through life. I hated this particular book, but I love how she so often includes her Dominican Republic heritage in her novels.
Guatemala
In one of the flashback scenes in The Collected Regrets Of Clover, the title character is on a university placement in Guatemala, learning about the philosophy of and attitudes towards death.
Australia
Carrie Soto also competes in the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam event of the year.
British Overseas Territory
Such A Good Liar by Sue Wallman is set on an exclusive island in the Caribbean where rich families stay at holiday homes. It is painted as an idyllic place, but one steeped in indulgence. It is given some atmosphere by the threat of hurricanes.
Fantasy Settings
Heart Of The Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan retains the amazing, captivating descriptions from Daughter Of The Moon Goddess and expands the glorious Immortal Realm. Just looking at the cover itself shows the vividness of the whole place, from the Celestial Kingdom to the Demon Realm, and the writing never disappoints.
King Of Scars by Leigh Bardugo is the sixth Grishaverse book, and the world building just keeps on getting better and better. This one is more political than ever as we see the uneasy relationships between Ravka and the various other nations play out.
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia Of Faeries by Heather Fawcett takes place in Hrafnsvik, a place inhabited – naturally – by fairies. The townspeople have their own distinctive culture and the town as a whole has a sense of mystery and intrigue throughout.
Meanwhile, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins contains the famous setting of Panem, a dystopian world formed out of the ruins of the United States years into the future where chosen people compete in an annual fight to the death.
Let’s Chat
What are the best settings you came across in 2023? How many countries did you visit on your reading journey? Let me know in the comments!
Happy reading 🙂
Stephen Reads Books 