This series is set in a Regency England with magic – powers can manifest at different levels, and the Extraordinaries are the most powerful. Elinor Pembroke’s father has made a study of the families that have produced these powers. Elinor herself is a disappointment, having never manifested a power. Until the morning she wakes up […]
Burning Bright – Melissa McShane Read More »
It’s really hard to describe this book. We open in NYC before WWII, in a world of mobsters. Pea has magical hands and works as an enforcer – she’s always believes she was given them to kill those that deserve it, but as the story goes on, she learns that that’s not always been the
Trouble the Saints – Alaya Dawn Johnson Read More »
This book is the story of Lavinia, the last wife of Aeneas in The Aeneid. Because it’s Le Guin, it’s beautifully written, and thought provoking. When Lavinia is young, she goes with her father to the holy place of her family, and the dreams she has there are of Virgil, who will write her story
Lavinia – Ursula K. Le Guin Read More »
This series is a supposed look into Jane Austen’s diaries, theoretically finding inspirations for various characters and locations in her books. This book finds Jane, her mother and her sister in the Peak District, near Chatsworth House. If you’ve seen the 2005 Pride and Prejudice, Chatsworth was used as Pemberley, and it is considered to
Jane and the Stillroom Maid – Stephanie Barron Read More »
Luzia starts out this story as a scullion in Madrid. She has questionable heritage – this is set in the time of the Inquisition, and Luzia’s family has kept to their Jewish heritage. But even more than that, she has powers. When her mistress discovers her milagritos, Luzia’s secret is out in the open, and
The Familiar – Leigh Bardugo Read More »
I really liked the premise of this book – set in Regency times (in a slightly alternate world where the Prince of Wales is not yet regent, and married differently than in our own timeline), Sarah Tolerance is a fallen woman. She was ruined by her family’s fencing master, and had a lovely life with
Point of Honour – Madeleine E. Robins Read More »
This was a fun read. Set in 1920’s Hollywood, Norah is a war widow, rescued from her life in England by her sister in law Christine, aka the famous actress Chrysanda Flammade. She’s mostly along to take care of the dogs and marvel at the life she’s managed to stumble into, when strange things start
Bride of the Rat God – Barbara Hambly Read More »
This is a fun regency monster story. It has a really interesting twist on zombies. The French decided to go the route of getting to the English army through their wives. Some poisoned face powder was put out in London, and several hundred gentlewomen (and a few unlucky servants) died – and then woke back
Manners and Monsters – Tilly Wallace Read More »
This is a fun, regency set, but fantasy oriented, book. Gussie is the only non-magical member of the Werth family, a family infamous for their powers. But, when she’s kidnapped, she finds that she might be the most magical of them all. The story’s fairly basic, and you’ll get no real surprises out of it,
Wyrde and Wayward – Charlotte E. English Read More »
I caught Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries when it was still on Netflix, and enjoyed the hell out of it. I’ve been sitting on this book for a while. Definitely wish I’d read it earlier. I don’t want to say that the series was sanitized for television, exactly, because it did try to deal with mature
Cocaine Blues – Kerry Greenwood Read More »
