Scan barcode
A review by schnaucl
The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
There was a lot I like about this book. The magic system and underground sisterhood of magic users were interesting, as were the politics and the characters. I would have liked to see more of the sisterhood though. I really liked how the sisterhood communicated and how (at least some) mothers taught their daughters how to decipher grimoires.
What didn't work for me was the romance, though full disclosure, love at first sight (or in this case, kiss) almost never does. Ianthe didn't seem to have much depth and I would have like to spend more time with Ysbeta and her passion for recovering lost magic. There's a single reference to a person not having an interest in men or women so I guess non straight people exist but there's no discussion of what that means. Presumably they're supposed to get involved in a heterosexual marriage and produce kids regardless. I'm also not big on kids generally so a society where women are always treated at pre-pregnant gives me hives. That said, there's surprisingly no discussion of contraception or abortificants. If the whole reason for the collar is the that a spirit might take over a fetus you'd think female presenting bodies would have a collar put on after the first period to be completely safe. That would negate the symbolism of it happening in connection with marriage, but still.
And of course, secretly telling women the secret of how to prevent spirits taking over a fetus while the men are distracted is a great symbolic moment, but since it requires the active participation of men who are clearly unwilling to make the sacrifice and given that women are still unable to own property and don't really have any more power than before I'm not sure what difference it would actually make, at least in Beatrice's homeland. Women could certainly incorporate the knowledge into grimoires. I guess we're supposed to be content with changing a couple of minds here and there and maybe decades from now it will be unacceptable to use a collar instead but that's a pretty depressing place to leave things.
What didn't work for me was the romance, though full disclosure, love at first sight (or in this case, kiss) almost never does. Ianthe didn't seem to have much depth and I would have like to spend more time with Ysbeta and her passion for recovering lost magic. There's a single reference to a person not having an interest in men or women so I guess non straight people exist but there's no discussion of what that means. Presumably they're supposed to get involved in a heterosexual marriage and produce kids regardless. I'm also not big on kids generally so a society where women are always treated at pre-pregnant gives me hives. That said, there's surprisingly no discussion of contraception or abortificants. If the whole reason for the collar is the that a spirit might take over a fetus you'd think female presenting bodies would have a collar put on after the first period to be completely safe. That would negate the symbolism of it happening in connection with marriage, but still.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Misogyny, and Sexism