Quick Synopsis – There has never yet been a crisis that Miss Leda Cassidy hasn’t been able to fix, be it a lovelorn young charge, perpetually distracted students, or an unruly and malevolent ghost. When she arrives at her new employer’s home and discovers the family is being terrorized by a vampiric spirit, she sets about righting the situation without delay.

But it seems that as soon as she puts one supernatural creature to rest, another appears to take its place. A woman’s work is truly never done, is it?

When she meets Mr. Kay, a widower whose greatest worry appears to be making matches for his twin daughters, she is happy to take a post that might provide her a bit of respite from her more “spirited” friends. But she soon realizes that the Kays are in far more trouble than she realized—and that her presence in their home might have put the family she’s grown to cherish in even more jeopardy. Will she be able to save them all before it’s too late, or has she finally stumbled upon the one problem she isn’t able to solve?

Song This Reminds Me Of – Armor – Sara Bareilles

Release Date – Sep. 16, 2025

Bookshop Link – The Formidable Miss Cassidy by Meihan Boey (Disclosure – I receive a small commission if you purchase using my link)

Content Notes – This book is set in the late 1800s in Singapore, there are depictions of colonialism, racism, misogyny, a miscarriage, and death. There is mention of foot binding and loss of a child, but these occur off page.

Rating – ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

Review – This was such a fun marriage of cultures. I really enjoyed how Miss Cassidy approached the culture of Singapore. Throughout the book she encounters various mythological creatures. While she does use her own traditional Gaelic knowledge to combat these beings, she also respectfully engages with local peoples in order to better understand what she’s facing. At no point does Miss Cassidy look down as Singaporeans as less than or backwards. It would have been too easy for Leda Cassidy to be portrayed as an ignorant white woman, but I really thought her character was smart and respecful.

I did have some pacing issues with the book. The book is broken into three sections, and each section has its own distinct story in its own time period. I felt like the transitions between the sections could have been smoother. It kind of took me out of the story because it was a little jarring. Other than a slight pacing issue, I thought this book was a delight. I loved learning about another culture and how their community treated the supernatural.

I also liked that this wasn’t a love story. It was about Miss Cassidy and her adventures without being dependent on a love interest to move the story forward. There is a character who seems to be infatuated with her, but that fledgling romance isn’t a focus of the story.

This is definitely a fun read and I’m excited to see what else this author writes in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for the advanced copy, all opinions are my own.