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A review by mspilesofpaper
Letters to Half Moon Street by Sarah Wallace
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
5.0
Letters to Half Moon Street is the first book in a series that is set in a queer magical alternate Regency era where only the birth order matters (in terms of inheriting, ...) but not your gender or sexual orientation. It is a cosy romance with super low stakes with a happy ending.
Letters to Half Moon Street is a short romance novel that is entirely epistolary, mostly in letters between Gavin (the male main character) and his sister Gerry, after Gavin's family sends him to London "to get out of the house" as his older brother comes home with his expecting sister-in-law, and the parents know that Gavin and John do not get along. The official reason for Gavin to go to London is to take care of the family business for their father and to prepare the family's townhouse for the upcoming season. Gavin is the classic introvert who cares more about books than people and considers his sister as his closest friend. Henceforth, he utterly struggles to find a foot in London and keeps the first pages to himself. Yet, he manages to catch the eye of Charles Kentworthy who is set on winning him over - either just as a friend or as a potential husband - and determinedly draws Gavin out of his shell. Each letter to his sister shows that Gavin's world slowly opens up and he starts to include Charles in a positive light. It's utterly cute and delightful to read. Despite the letter style of the book, it never felt distancing although we learn about Gavin's growing relationship with Charles only through his letters to his sister.
The world-building is utterly delightful and well thought-through. It is a queer-normative magical alternate Regency era where your birth order matters by far more than your gender or sexual orientation. Everyone in this world has "a persuasion" (which is the romantic preference, may it be for men, women, non-binary or any combination), which is socially accepted. The importance of your birth order (first-born, second-born, third-born, ...) shows in tiny aspect as the addresses ("Lady and Lord xxx" instead of the typical "Lord and Lady xxx" if she is the first-born) or in the gender-neutral title Dukex for non-binary aristocratic people. I loved how the author built the typical restrictions for the Regency era around their queer-normative world. For example, being unchaperoned as a minor with a person who suits your persuasion is still an issue (and if you aren't open about your persuasion, you'll require simply a chaperone at all times), and the families are still nosy about their children's persuasion so they can make a good and fitting match. In addition, the function of a dowry is not linked to women anymore, it is linked to the birth order. As Gavin is the second-born of the family, he has to bring in a dowry while his brother, as the first-born, does not have to do it. The importance of the birth order also shows in small aspects like dancing at a ball where the position of the dancing card will indicate the birth order and where the first-born always takes the lead in a dance.
As for the magic in the world: magic is not something to flaunt in someone's face. It is meant to be practical magic, e.g. keeping your candles burning longer, cooling/warming a room or beverages, tying a cravat. Spells have to be built by a spell master in a spell shop with ingredients and can end up in disastrous results if they aren't handled carefully. Overall, it feels very well-established and well-thought-through.
As for the characters:
‣ Gavin is 25 years old, white, demisexual and gay.
‣ Charles is 27 years old, BIPOC heritage ("rather naturally a few shades darker than ours [skin tone], "so dark as to be black" [hair colour], "large, brown, angular eyes"), bisexual.
‣ Gerry is 23 years old, white, undisclosed sexuality.
‣ Sebastian is 18 years old, white and gay.
‣ John is in his thirties, white and straight.
‣ Julian (Dukex of Molbury) is between 50 - 60 years, white, non-binary.
Letters to Half Moon Street is a short romance novel that is entirely epistolary, mostly in letters between Gavin (the male main character) and his sister Gerry, after Gavin's family sends him to London "to get out of the house" as his older brother comes home with his expecting sister-in-law, and the parents know that Gavin and John do not get along. The official reason for Gavin to go to London is to take care of the family business for their father and to prepare the family's townhouse for the upcoming season. Gavin is the classic introvert who cares more about books than people and considers his sister as his closest friend. Henceforth, he utterly struggles to find a foot in London and keeps the first pages to himself. Yet, he manages to catch the eye of Charles Kentworthy who is set on winning him over - either just as a friend or as a potential husband - and determinedly draws Gavin out of his shell. Each letter to his sister shows that Gavin's world slowly opens up and he starts to include Charles in a positive light. It's utterly cute and delightful to read. Despite the letter style of the book, it never felt distancing although we learn about Gavin's growing relationship with Charles only through his letters to his sister.
The world-building is utterly delightful and well thought-through. It is a queer-normative magical alternate Regency era where your birth order matters by far more than your gender or sexual orientation. Everyone in this world has "a persuasion" (which is the romantic preference, may it be for men, women, non-binary or any combination), which is socially accepted. The importance of your birth order (first-born, second-born, third-born, ...) shows in tiny aspect as the addresses ("Lady and Lord xxx" instead of the typical "Lord and Lady xxx" if she is the first-born) or in the gender-neutral title Dukex for non-binary aristocratic people. I loved how the author built the typical restrictions for the Regency era around their queer-normative world. For example, being unchaperoned as a minor with a person who suits your persuasion is still an issue (and if you aren't open about your persuasion, you'll require simply a chaperone at all times), and the families are still nosy about their children's persuasion so they can make a good and fitting match. In addition, the function of a dowry is not linked to women anymore, it is linked to the birth order. As Gavin is the second-born of the family, he has to bring in a dowry while his brother, as the first-born, does not have to do it. The importance of the birth order also shows in small aspects like dancing at a ball where the position of the dancing card will indicate the birth order and where the first-born always takes the lead in a dance.
As for the magic in the world: magic is not something to flaunt in someone's face. It is meant to be practical magic, e.g. keeping your candles burning longer, cooling/warming a room or beverages, tying a cravat. Spells have to be built by a spell master in a spell shop with ingredients and can end up in disastrous results if they aren't handled carefully. Overall, it feels very well-established and well-thought-through.
As for the characters:
‣ Gavin is 25 years old, white, demisexual and gay.
‣ Charles is 27 years old, BIPOC heritage ("rather naturally a few shades darker than ours [skin tone], "so dark as to be black" [hair colour], "large, brown, angular eyes"), bisexual.
‣ Gerry is 23 years old, white, undisclosed sexuality.
‣ Sebastian is 18 years old, white and gay.
‣ John is in his thirties, white and straight.
‣ Julian (Dukex of Molbury) is between 50 - 60 years, white, non-binary.