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A review by charlottereadshistory
A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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
Set in Edwardian England, A Marvellous Light starts with the premise that magic exists in secret, and power passes down through mainly aristocratic families. A distinctly unmagical Robin (Sir Robert) is posted by accident to what he thinks is a dead-end role in government. It turns out to be a liaison post for the magical world that reports to Westminster. Robin's successor disappeared in mysterious circumstances and Robin himself gets cursed on day one of the job - but his new colleague Edwin is determined to unravel the mystery.
Edwin is a younger son of a powerful magical family whose own magic is lacking even if his booklearning is not, and the two grow closer in their search for answers to lift the curse.
I was really intrigued by the world building - patriarchal and classist Edwardian society is replicated in magix too with who gets to be a powerful magician and how - with a sneaky glimpse at another type of magic that ties more closely with nature - I can only assume that as a trilogy we will find out more about that in subsequent books.
It all got quite Agatha Christie/Bloomsbury Set in parts, as there were lots of acerbic aristocrats lounging around the family's country seat. Edwin and Robin hole themselves up in the Library and slowly work out the curse, what happened to the magical liaison who went missing and how they felt about each other.
The action and the romance ramps up in the last third of the book and we get some answers, some satisfying character development and lots of standing up to the bullies. I'm looking forward to reading the next installment!
Edwin is a younger son of a powerful magical family whose own magic is lacking even if his booklearning is not, and the two grow closer in their search for answers to lift the curse.
I was really intrigued by the world building - patriarchal and classist Edwardian society is replicated in magix too with who gets to be a powerful magician and how - with a sneaky glimpse at another type of magic that ties more closely with nature - I can only assume that as a trilogy we will find out more about that in subsequent books.
It all got quite Agatha Christie/Bloomsbury Set in parts, as there were lots of acerbic aristocrats lounging around the family's country seat. Edwin and Robin hole themselves up in the Library and slowly work out the curse, what happened to the magical liaison who went missing and how they felt about each other.
The action and the romance ramps up in the last third of the book and we get some answers, some satisfying character development and lots of standing up to the bullies. I'm looking forward to reading the next installment!