Reviews - A Restless Truth

You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.

4.04k reviews for:

A Restless Truth

Freya Marske

3.98 AVERAGE

misssurrah's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

jesiki's review against another edition

2.0

Interesting concept, but the two leads feel like they have little to no chemistry beyond the physical. It suffers from middle book syndrome — spending a good deal of time setting up the plot and romantic leads that will likely take center stage in the third installment. A week on a cruise-style passenger ship is, after all, a kind of claustrophobic limbo, and divorced from most of the locations and cast that made A Marvellous Light so charming (missing the presence of Edwin, Robin, and Kitty here).

It also mostly makes waste of a perfectly good African Grey Parrot...Yes, they are a lot of work in real life so it makes some sense our heroine responsibly loads it off on the (convenient) menagerie onboard almost immediately... but still disappointing.

serina19's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

crimsoncor's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous emotional mysterious fast-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

Absolutely loved this book. I'm a sucker for the murder on the train (Orient Express)/Space Cruiseliner (The Spare Man)/Generation Ship (Six Wakes) format, so that right there was a great hook. Plus Maud Blyth is one of the most delightful characters to spend time with. A combination of pre-code zany screwball energy with deep, thoughtful feelings, and a burgeoning sexuality thrusting its way through Edwardian-era naivete. The supporting cast is lots of fun as well. This does everything the first book does, but does it all a little better.

haleandwellmet's review against another edition

2.0

2.5
This sequel starts slowly and predictably, plus it’s kinda cringe at times, so I feel “meh” about the book overall. To its credit, it does pick up a little during the second half and has some enjoyable tender moments (looking at you, chapter 23), wit, and spice. I also like Maud has a character and could even identify with her in some ways. So it wasn’t a total loss, but I’m unsure if I’ll be inclined to finish the trilogy. We’ll see if I’m still thinking about it once the third book is published ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

kerri_strikes_back's review against another edition

3.0

Robin’s sister Maud meets other surprise heir Violet on a cruise ship; hijinks ensure, we also get a far more forgiving portrait of Hawthorn. Hoping him and the report Ross are the 3rd book protagonists but tbd.

_alexrated's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I read this book as a standalone, without any prior knowledge of the first in the series, and I was pleasantly surprised. The author did a great job providing enough background and context to make the world and characters accessible. I particularly enjoyed the chaotic, whodunnit aspect of the mystery. Maud’s direct, no-nonsense communication style added a layer of realism to both the romance and the overall plot. The ending

especially Violet’s personal revelation

left me hoping for more closure. Now that I know it's part of a trilogy, it makes perfect sense why questions were left unanswered.

Content Warnings