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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
I was already intrigued to how Marske would follow up A Marvellous Light, but when I saw the pitch of this was “Knives Out on a steam liner with lesbians” I might’ve punched the request button on NetGalley; Tor was kind enough to give me it. Honestly, even if you don’t know anything about the first book, you can dive into this pretty easy; the important parts of the last book are rehashed pretty quickly. This is, honestly, first and foremost an Edwardian fantasy closed room murder mystery and a hell of a slow burn lesbian romance. You get a bisexual rake (Violet) and the sweet ingenue (Maud) learning how to trust each other and falling for each other and at the same time solve the murder mystery they’ve become embroiled in. And dear Christ, the sex here is genuinely amazing and honestly uses the magic to get a bit into kink, which I was hoping for in the last book. Pick this up, it’s already in my top five for the year.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
medium-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
Excellent characters and a great setting (shipboard murder mystery queer magic romance??) but the pacing was slow and the plot was a bit lacking.
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
mysterious
slow-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
This book was about six chapters too long for me. It felt like it was just dragging on and smearing out the plot.
I liked the classic murder/mystery on a boat theme mixed with magic.
I liked the classic murder/mystery on a boat theme mixed with magic.
Incredible charming amazing marvellous wonderful!!!
Also I love Lord Hawthorn so much and I am so very excited to read his story in the next book.
I read half physical book, half audiobook. I loved the audiobook narrated by Aysha Kala, although it did at times have artifacts where she must have recorded her pickups in a different studio setup, a common problem in lockdown recording, unfortunately.
Also I love Lord Hawthorn so much and I am so very excited to read his story in the next book.
I read half physical book, half audiobook. I loved the audiobook narrated by Aysha Kala, although it did at times have artifacts where she must have recorded her pickups in a different studio setup, a common problem in lockdown recording, unfortunately.
I really can't believe how much I loved this. I remember finding the first book in the series, A Marvellous Light, enjoyable but don't remember thinking much more about it. But this one, THIS ONE. Wow.
This is an sapphic fantasy romance aboard a ship, and I think that's why I put this off for a whole year because the premise seemed to be trying to do too much in too confining of a setting. But this just worked. Maud and Violet were both so very vibrant and so very human, and had great chemistry on page. I'm a little more lukewarm on the overarching fantasy plot of the series, but that may just be because the characters themselves are so much more compelling.
And the side characters! The side characters! Hawthorn and Ross, Hawthorn and Ross! I'm actually relieved I ended up waiting that year to read this, as their book is now out too, and they're fresh in my mind. My only dilemma now is whether to immediately dive into A Power Unbound or to save it for my upcoming time off over the holidays. I'm so conflicted, but what a delightful conflict to have.
This is an sapphic fantasy romance aboard a ship, and I think that's why I put this off for a whole year because the premise seemed to be trying to do too much in too confining of a setting. But this just worked. Maud and Violet were both so very vibrant and so very human, and had great chemistry on page. I'm a little more lukewarm on the overarching fantasy plot of the series, but that may just be because the characters themselves are so much more compelling.
And the side characters! The side characters! Hawthorn and Ross, Hawthorn and Ross! I'm actually relieved I ended up waiting that year to read this, as their book is now out too, and they're fresh in my mind. My only dilemma now is whether to immediately dive into A Power Unbound or to save it for my upcoming time off over the holidays. I'm so conflicted, but what a delightful conflict to have.
ARC provided by Macmillan Audio via NetGalley.
A Restless Truth is the second installment of Freya Marske’s Last Binding series, begun last year with her debut novel, [b:A Marvellous Light|53217284|A Marvellous Light (The Last Binding, #1)|Freya Marske|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1634067514l/53217284._SY75_.jpg|80535939]. The latter was one of my favorite books of 2021, and hit a perfect balance between a serious, well-developed fantasy plot and impeccably crafted erotic romance. Naturally, the sequel was highly anticipated, and had a lot to live up to.
I was lucky enough to receive an audiobook ARC from the publisher. Aysha Kala’s narration was lovely, and was especially effective in the scenes where one of the characters was channeling the ghost of another character! Kala did a great job of developing voices for each character, and I particularly liked her sardonic Lord Hawthorne voice.
In this book, the story leaves previous main characters Robin and Edwin behind in England, and follows Robin’s sister Maud, who is on board an ocean liner from New York to England when her traveling companion, Mrs. Navenby, is murdered. In her efforts to discover and thwart the culprits, Maud recruits a really excellent cast of characters: the mysterious and many-layered actress Violet, the cynical and prickly Lord Hawthorn, and the calculating but dependable Ross. It’s this group that provides some of the best scenes as they scheme together in Hawthorne’s cabin. This central cast of complicated by ultimately likable characters was one of the things I liked the most about this book.
I also appreciated learning the backstory of the Forsythia Club, the group of four women (including Mrs. Navenby) who, decades previous, used their hard-won scholarship to find the artifacts of the Last Binding, but ultimately decided to hide them when they realized how they might be misused. In the changing world of the early 1900’s, Maud and Violet’s circumstances are further elucidated by the backdrop of this history of women magicians with whom they have unexpected personal connections. There is also a lot of good magical worldbuilding, both having to do with the activities of the Club and with the magical knowledge of Violet and Hawthorne.
Maud and Violet are both strong and likeable characters in their own ways. Maud’s sexual awakening in the midst of all the turmoil was well-written, and I like their romance, despite it not being as satisfyingly head-over-heels as the romance in book 1. That’s OK because it makes much more sense for these characters—they are quite young, in the midst of a crazy murderous plot, and Violet especially is running from a lot of trauma that has left her guarding her heart. It was interesting how Marske held off on letting even the reader know much about what Violet is running away from until the very end of the book; I’m intrigued to see how that information will come to light in the next installment.
Now I’m going to complain about a few things: 1. The pacing was sometimes laggy and uneven, especially at the start. 2. The ship setting was underutilized to the point that it basically was the same as them being stuck on an island or in a castle or something. Cruise ships are really creepy in both tropey and non-tropey ways and I think that could have been used to imbue a more atmospheric and creepy effect. As it was, the setting just made things feel repetitive and confined at times. 3. Dorian the African Grey parrot was criminally underutilized as a character and could have been written much more convincingly—African Greys are some of the most mercurial and intelligent parrots! I didn’t much like how he was just moved around like a piece of furniture most of the time.
All in all, it didn’t blow me away as much as the first book but it was a very solid sequel and I am very excited for book 3 ([b:A Power Unbound|62928257|A Power Unbound (The Last Binding, #3)|Freya Marske|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|98752502]) which I am PRAYING is going to be about Ross & Hawthorne having a romance, PLEASE. I am so intrigued to learn more about both of them! I reread A Marvellous Light after finishing this and was really surprised at how many of Robin’s visions reference things that happen in this book, and some that haven’t happened yet at all!
A Restless Truth is the second installment of Freya Marske’s Last Binding series, begun last year with her debut novel, [b:A Marvellous Light|53217284|A Marvellous Light (The Last Binding, #1)|Freya Marske|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1634067514l/53217284._SY75_.jpg|80535939]. The latter was one of my favorite books of 2021, and hit a perfect balance between a serious, well-developed fantasy plot and impeccably crafted erotic romance. Naturally, the sequel was highly anticipated, and had a lot to live up to.
I was lucky enough to receive an audiobook ARC from the publisher. Aysha Kala’s narration was lovely, and was especially effective in the scenes where one of the characters was channeling the ghost of another character! Kala did a great job of developing voices for each character, and I particularly liked her sardonic Lord Hawthorne voice.
In this book, the story leaves previous main characters Robin and Edwin behind in England, and follows Robin’s sister Maud, who is on board an ocean liner from New York to England when her traveling companion, Mrs. Navenby, is murdered. In her efforts to discover and thwart the culprits, Maud recruits a really excellent cast of characters: the mysterious and many-layered actress Violet, the cynical and prickly Lord Hawthorn, and the calculating but dependable Ross. It’s this group that provides some of the best scenes as they scheme together in Hawthorne’s cabin. This central cast of complicated by ultimately likable characters was one of the things I liked the most about this book.
I also appreciated learning the backstory of the Forsythia Club, the group of four women (including Mrs. Navenby) who, decades previous, used their hard-won scholarship to find the artifacts of the Last Binding, but ultimately decided to hide them when they realized how they might be misused. In the changing world of the early 1900’s, Maud and Violet’s circumstances are further elucidated by the backdrop of this history of women magicians with whom they have unexpected personal connections. There is also a lot of good magical worldbuilding, both having to do with the activities of the Club and with the magical knowledge of Violet and Hawthorne.
Maud and Violet are both strong and likeable characters in their own ways. Maud’s sexual awakening in the midst of all the turmoil was well-written, and I like their romance, despite it not being as satisfyingly head-over-heels as the romance in book 1. That’s OK because it makes much more sense for these characters—they are quite young, in the midst of a crazy murderous plot, and Violet especially is running from a lot of trauma that has left her guarding her heart. It was interesting how Marske held off on letting even the reader know much about what Violet is running away from until the very end of the book; I’m intrigued to see how that information will come to light in the next installment.
Now I’m going to complain about a few things: 1. The pacing was sometimes laggy and uneven, especially at the start. 2. The ship setting was underutilized to the point that it basically was the same as them being stuck on an island or in a castle or something. Cruise ships are really creepy in both tropey and non-tropey ways and I think that could have been used to imbue a more atmospheric and creepy effect. As it was, the setting just made things feel repetitive and confined at times. 3. Dorian the African Grey parrot was criminally underutilized as a character and could have been written much more convincingly—African Greys are some of the most mercurial and intelligent parrots! I didn’t much like how he was just moved around like a piece of furniture most of the time.
All in all, it didn’t blow me away as much as the first book but it was a very solid sequel and I am very excited for book 3 ([b:A Power Unbound|62928257|A Power Unbound (The Last Binding, #3)|Freya Marske|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|98752502]) which I am PRAYING is going to be about Ross & Hawthorne having a romance, PLEASE. I am so intrigued to learn more about both of them! I reread A Marvellous Light after finishing this and was really surprised at how many of Robin’s visions reference things that happen in this book, and some that haven’t happened yet at all!
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
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:
Complicated