Reviews

Sir Robin Blyth is not thrilled about his new job as liaison between the British government and a secret magic society. Firstly, because he was named to the job as punishment for his late parents’ actions. Secondly, because the representative from the magical side, Edwin Courcy, seems to despise him. And thirdly, because he didn’t even know magic existed until his first day on the job. Before he knows it, he’s embroiled in a magical power struggle against a shadowy enemy who has placed a dangerous curse on him, with no one but Edwin to turn to for help.

The last couple of books I read were pretty heavy, so I was looking for something a little lighter to read, and the promise of historical romance + magic + mystery seemed to fit the bill. I’ll just take a moment to note that while it has an entertaining plot and magic system, this book is heavy on the romance, with quite a bit of smut involved. (If the porn-y type of romance novels are not your thing, you might not enjoy this book, although it’s easy enough to skip these scenes if you want.) Edwin and Robin are an adorable couple, and I loved the way the enemies-to-friends-to-lovers dynamic played out between them. But beyond their cuteness, they are well suited to one another, with their talents, abilities and personalities complementing each other well.

The magic system is very interesting and well thought out. Also, it’s interesting to see a magic-practitioner protagonist who’s at the lowest end of the power spectrum. Edwin was born with very little power, and his expertise in the technical side of magic is hard-earned through study. It’s far more common in fantasy for a magical protagonist to be some kind of prodigy, and I like that this book subverts that trope.

Representation: Two gay men are the protagonists and the focus of the romance, and one of the main side characters is a highly capable woman of color. (I liked Adelaide Morrissey quite a bit and I hope she has a bigger part in the next book!)

CW: Graphic sex, and a background environment of homophobia accurate to the time period. Also, one scene involving torture in the first chapter.

I received an ARC of this ebook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

callylines's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

It absolutely CRAWLED the first two-thirds of the book, which was disappointing because I had really been looking forward to reading this book. The intimate moments and system of magic were well done, but the writing was often flowery for no reason which felt forced and trite. I suspected it was by a writer who grew up writing fic because of that and the cardboard cut-out characters, and was right.

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