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thebetterstory's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The romance is a classic warm/cold dynamic and works well for it. Both the characters it centers are likeable, with Robin amiably stumbling into the world of magic and Edwin reluctantly serving as his guide when he'd much rather be sealed away reading. I did find myself wishing for a little more time for the leads to develop their feelings and pine for each other, but I'm a fiend for slowburn and generally difficult to satisfy in that regard.
The setting, an alternate Edwardian England, has some fun hints of worldbuilding around the magic that never goes too far in-depth. Similarly, the narrative skims gently over topics like women's rights and colonization. Edwin and Robin are kept likeable by being perhaps unrealistically willing to see the women around them as people. Even the two Indian women, both of whom are enjoyable side characters that are apparently uninterested in bringing up any of the effects of colonization, or any discrimination they might face other than the few sideways looks the book includes.
It's hard to see how the book could keep its fluffy tone if it actually did decide to dig into any of that, and whether it'll grate on you to see the narrative sidestep the full the implications of its choice of setting will depend on the person. The topic of women's rights, at least, is likely to be explored further in the sequel, which focuses on Robin's suffragette sister.
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Death of parent, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Bullying
_isabel_'s review against another edition
4.75
Edwin and Robin are brilliant protagonists in an even more brilliant, gorgeous and riveting story. This is a seriously impressive debut for Freya Marske and I can't believe it took me so much time to finally start this.
The writing was a biiiiit fussy at times (and a tiny bit hard to follow), so that's the only reason this isn't a full five star rating. I got used to it fairly quickly though, and I can now appreciate how stunning and poetic Marske's writing is: emotionally charged, powerful and deeply vivid.
The world building, the historical setting, the magic system, the whole plot of this brilliant book were utterly masterful: I was so damn impressed with how clever everything was.
"A Marvellous Light" was a fantasy, a historical romance and a murder mystery all in one: I absolutely adored following Robin and Edwin on their wild, magical quest around the English countryside. Murderous mazes and murderous dinner parties, sentient houses and horrible families, secretive, magical societies and world-ending conspiracies... this story was truly spectacular, and addictive.
Both Robin and Edwin are unforgettable protagonists and I adored them to bits. Robin, in particular, was my absolute favourite: I fell for him from the very start and literally ten pages in, I was quite ready to take up arms in his name.
As individuals, they're opposites in so many ways, but ugh, they fit together so perfectly. Prickly, brilliant, frosty Edwin, with his deep insecurities and his fears, and generous, brave and wonderful Robin, with his glorious muscles and his even more glorious heart: both of them were fantastic, individually, but together they were a force to be reckoned with. Their chemistry, their slowly growing relationship, from antagonism to friendship to kinship to love, everything about them was wonderful and precisely why I keep returning to romances, time and time again.
I absolutely adored every single one of the side characters too: from the very wild, very lovable Maud to practical and brilliant Adelaide, to Flora and Kitty and the mysterious, and seemingly cruel, Hawthorn; every single one of them were unforgettable in their own right, and I cannot wait to discover more of them, and of the overreaching plot.
I'm excited to jump into "A Ruthless Truth"!
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Violence, Death of parent, and Child abuse
kazoo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse
wilybooklover's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, Violence, Bullying, and Torture
Moderate: Misogyny, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Homophobia, Outing, Classism, Murder, Kidnapping, and Blood
Minor: Suicide, Grief, Racism, and Death of parent
miraileah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Physical abuse, Terminal illness, and Child abuse
Minor: Suicide and Homophobia
marina_michelle's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Torture, Violence, Bullying, Homophobia, Sexual content, Classism, Death of parent, Kidnapping, and Sexism
Minor: Alcohol, Colonisation, Chronic illness, Blood, and Child abuse
onthesamepage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
There are a couple of steamy, sexy scenes in here, some of which involve magic and very explicit consent (to which I say, yes, more please).
Robin managed to hold his tongue on something truly unwise like You look like a Turner painting and I want to learn your textures with my fingertips. You are the most fascinating thing in this beautiful house. I'd like to introduce my fists to whoever taught you to stop talking about the things that interest you. Those were not things one blurted out to a friend. They were their own cradles of magic, an expression of the desire to transform one thing into another. And what if the magic went awry?
The magic system was fascinating, if a bit hard to picture. I liked that Edwin, as the main character with magic, isn't considered a powerful magician by most standards. Where most magicians can perform magic using hand gestures called cradling, Edwin relies on a piece of string as a crutch to help him perform similar spells. And it's not something he really overcomes during this story, either.
Robin isn't a magic user, so we get introduced to that aspect of the world alongside him. There's no infodumping, just a steady exploration and broadening of what we know about the world, and I thought this was really well done.
"And we are but feeble women," said Miss Morrissey. "Woe."
"Your sister is a magician," Robin said, pointing out what seemed the largest hole in this story.
"Woe," said Mrs. Kaur firmly, and Robin recalled what Miss Morrissey had said about the assumptions made by men.
The writing was really good, and I particularly enjoyed the banter. There is a lot of humor in the conversations, and the dialogue is snappy, clever, and amusing. It made me really like the characters, even a couple that didn't have a very big role to play, which makes me very excited for the other books in the series. I also just liked the way the relationships developed, and how a moment from earlier in the book would lead to an inside joke between Edwin and Robin later on. These are small details, but they made everyone feel so wonderfully real to me.
Graphic: Bullying, Misogyny, and Torture
Moderate: Child abuse
asnecessaryasbread's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Violence
Minor: Suicide and Death
therainbowshelf's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Torture, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Bullying, Death, Murder, Grief, Homophobia, Chronic illness, Child abuse, Confinement, and Death of parent
ozalina's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Homophobia