Reviews with content warning for Sexism - A Restless Truth

4/5

I enjoyed this story though not as much as I enjoyed the first book. It was funny, the plot was entertaining enough, the characters were complex for the most part.

I like that the story centers the feminine characters without making it a girlboss situation and actually shows some of the toxicity with that mindset while still supporting women's agency. I also really loved how it showed that women are important and strong even though society doesn't give them the freedom to be independent. I didn't like how Maud and Violet's relationship starts but I think that's just a preference.

Violet is an interesting character but also one of my least favorite types of characters. Her independent woman with no deep feelings performance is exhausting but that's kind of the point. Maud is fun except her innocence felt kind of forced. But then again, this is the 19th century where women legit didn't get to learn about sex and stuff until after they were married. I love Hawthorn and am curious about Ross.

The sex scenes were awesome! I like how realistic they were about the mechanics of sex and dialogue, the jokes and awkwardness. I like how Maud was new to it but excited and interested so we got a whole scene in safety. I like how the scene was hot but not in a fantastical way and descriptive while also being practical. I love Marske's writing style so much! It's so difficult to find a sapphic story that's smutty but not written for men or perfect the act but is also intimate.

I didn't like how the story kind of particularizes Maud and Robin like their individuality and personness is something that runs in the family and they're just saints among humans but it doesn't go too over the top with it. Maybe that's just because that's how people treat my family so I want to smash it instead of observing that it's just art depicting life? Idk, it's weird.

4/5 Like this story, would recommend

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imds's review

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Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.75

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wilybooklover's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

4.5

While this didn’t quite live up to the first book for me, I still found it gorgeously enchanting. Freya Marske’s prose is as lush and evocative as ever. Sometimes beautiful prose can get in the way of the narrative and leave the reader (at least, this reader) confused about what’s actually going on, but this was eminently readable.

I’ve found that many sapphic romances are lacking in the tension and sexiness that you find in other romances — not so in this book! This book was delightfully horny. Violet and Maud are both deeply flawed and almost mirror images of each other, in a way; where Maud is naive on the surface and unwaveringly strong inside, Violet is confident and sophisticated on the outside but soft and scared on the inside. I especially loved Violet’s characterisation: how she used illusion and artifice as a shield, how she was all defensive sharp edges whenever someone tried to get close to the real Violet, which in turn made it all the sweeter when she dropped those defences and let Maud in. Their story ends on a very satisfactory HFN note that felt right for the characters and their short acquaintance.

While I missed the magical houses and murderous mazes of the first book, I did enjoy the ship setting, and I thought the magical world and its rules were deftly expanded. The reveal

at 50%, that Maud is a medium

was a really fun addition and took me by genuine surprise. The mystery was fun and engaging, mostly due to the hijinks and banter of Maud’s assembled group of investigators but also in part to some very creepy villains. The comparison to Knives Out was a very apt one.

I think (hope!) that the next book will feature Hawthorn and Ross, because they both made fantastic side characters in this.

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takemetomilos's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

A compelling mystery and an astonishing portrayal of what it is to love women, in its many forms. The clumsy beginnings, the hypersexuality hiding pain, women who hurt eachother with sharp words, women who love eachother as lovers, but will never be more than friends, women learning to trust one another. It has it all. Always toeing the line between friendship and love, pushing away and yearning.

The characters are fantastic:

Ross is based as fuck. Fuck the rich fr.

Hawthorn is shitty but devilishly intriguing, he is more sympathetic than I expected (especially knowing how he treated Edwin in book 1).

Maude is my dear stubborn darling, whose sharp morality is endearing, not imposing.
Violet, is smart and clever and dazzling and was forced to grow up too fast- she deserves the world. I will not be taken criticism these r my beloved babies

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kingcrookback's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

A fun whodunit with some great character development! A Restless Truth really stands as its own story--intertwined with A Marvellous Light and not entirely divorced from it but separate enough that I was never distracted from Maud's journey by thinking about Robin and Edwin. I liked the development in worldbuilding, specifically how gender and class play into the dynamics of capability and power in this hidden magic society. I also appreciated how realistic Maud and Violet's relationship was, how their respective flaws, insecurities, and traumas exacerbated the other's and

how the story didn't end with them in an established relationship. They're both young, and they both have some things to work through and figure out. The possibility is there.

And amazingly, given how he initially came off in A Marvellous Light, I came to enjoy Lord Hawthorn as a character! It'll be very interesting to get to see the inside of his head in A Power Unbound.

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sophiesmallhands's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Once again, Freya Marske knocks it out of the park with whipcrack humour, excellent pacing and characters that you grow extremely attached to very quickly. In this volume, we follow Maud, Robin Blyth’s younger sister, as she travels from the USA back to Great Britain on an ocean liner accompanied by an elderly woman with knowledge of one of the objects involved with the Last Binding – too bad she’s murdered before the 2nd chapter…

What follows is Maud “accidentally” recruiting a dream team of fellow shipmates to solve the crime: Alan, a young aspiring journalist with a penchant for stealing; Lord Hawthorn, who would like everyone to know he did NOT want to be involved with these people but somehow ends up showing up when they need him most every time; and finally Violet Debenham, an actress magician with a charming exterior and a steely interior (interestingly, the complete opposite of Edwin in AML).

This love story is more of a lust-at-first-sight but as I came to know both Violet and Maud better, I was able to become more invested in their romance. As Lord Hawthorne put it, Maud is a “ball of righteousness” – the world does not deserve her and she needs to be protected at all costs (just like dear Edwin uwu). The murder mystery combined with the chaotic/cosy/claustrophobic setting of the ship just really *hit* right and just like in AML, there are two climaxes. I can tell you now, I was not expecting the surprise villain and they were scary as shit!!

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