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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
I have been SO excited for this book ever since I read A Marvellous Light last year, and this second book definitely delivers. Just like with Marvellous, the magic in this one is so layered and continues the wonderful, complex world building. Great mix of fantasy, historical, queer romance. The book takes place over a week (?) on the Atlantic Ocean heading from America to England. Maud Blyth is accompanying Elizabeth Navenby back to England. Elizabeth has a piece of silver for the Last Contract, that other people on board want a piece of. There’s a power struggle and Elizabeth is murdered, and unmagical Maud has to learn who to trust and how to solve the murder, while falling in love with actress and newly-minted heiress Violet Debenham.
I hadn’t read ML in a while, so I was fuzzy in details, but I honestly think Restless Truth could be read as a stand-alone. You’d miss some context, but the second book fills in pretty well. I also really loved that the book delved into the backstories of more of the characters that we meet in the first book (Flora!!!).
Lesbian knives out on a boat is ENTIRELY ACCURATE. People die!! Magic happens!! Jewels are stolen!! Hijinks ensue!! Everyone on the ship kind of sucks, but I really enjoyed the way that Violet and Maud’s relationship played out. It was heightened because of the short time frame, so a quick burn instead of a slow burn
I hadn’t read ML in a while, so I was fuzzy in details, but I honestly think Restless Truth could be read as a stand-alone. You’d miss some context, but the second book fills in pretty well. I also really loved that the book delved into the backstories of more of the characters that we meet in the first book (Flora!!!).
Lesbian knives out on a boat is ENTIRELY ACCURATE. People die!! Magic happens!! Jewels are stolen!! Hijinks ensue!! Everyone on the ship kind of sucks, but I really enjoyed the way that Violet and Maud’s relationship played out. It was heightened because of the short time frame, so a quick burn instead of a slow burn
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
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
A Restless Truth is a wonderful sapphic romance full of action and mystery. There is a lot of build up, but the story unfolded beautifully with moments and reveals I didn't see coming.
The absolute star of this novel is the characters, especially the main protagonists Maud and Violet. It was a shame not to see much of Robin and Edwin who I'd loved from the first book, but Maud and Violet are equally funny, sexy and dramatic. I really hope that the final book in this trilogy combines their two stories and relationships together.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me an e-copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
The absolute star of this novel is the characters, especially the main protagonists Maud and Violet. It was a shame not to see much of Robin and Edwin who I'd loved from the first book, but Maud and Violet are equally funny, sexy and dramatic. I really hope that the final book in this trilogy combines their two stories and relationships together.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me an e-copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not as good or interesting as the first book or the third. I know I read them out of order but the main characters didn’t have any emotional heft for me. They really didn’t change or grow.
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
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
DNF at 30%. Everything is dragging, the characters are dull, there is barely any magic, and I’ve lost all interest. If I was closer to the end I would push through, but when I realized I was barely at a third? I’m done.
Yes, yes, yes. Loved it, as expected. So much fun. The only disappointment is needing to wait a year for the third installment.
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!
I actually didn't have many thoughts on this one. I would've preferred Robin and Edwin again but I appreciate the diversity. I liked most of the characters. I wasn't super enthralled though. Maybe it's because of the explicit scenes. I'm not used to reading sapphic explicit scenes yet.
The story and pacing was better, but I didn't feel the magic of the couple or steamy scenes nearly as much. Still, technically better all around.