A Marvellous Light

Again completely ignore the pitch line because it has very little to do with either Red White & Royal Blue or Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell besides the fact that it has gays and magic in Britain. It seems that more and more people are starting to read mm romance for the first time and publishers are struggling with comparisons. If Red White & Royal Blue was your first foray into mm, welcome and let me tell you about the 100 plus other books you need to read.

Anyway. This book is delicious and if you're into the aforementioned gays, magic, and Britain, you'll definitely enjoy this. It does start a bit slow and the romance is also a slow burn but I think it's worth it.

Sir Robin Blythe is, thanks to typical Edwardian bureaucracy and nepotism, shoved into a civil service (government) job that he has no qualifications for by someone who knows someone he knows when his predecessor vanishes without a trace. On his first day, a pompous and insufferable Edwin Courcey waltzes into his office and open's Robin's eyes to a world beyond the one he's known his whole life - one of magic. Unfortunately, this also opens up Robin to the dangers of that world and the reason the position was open in the first place.
I enjoyed the unique fact of how the mages in this book summon their powers (including Courcey's little handicap) and how it's a little more believable than, say, elemental magic. Marske also includes the historical prejudices of the era like how women aren't taught to harness their powers and/or are simply not expected to be as powerful as their male counterparts. There's also a bit of racism and classism as well as Harry Potter's magic vs. muggle bias showing their ugly faces here. Though, interestingly, no mention of The War that I can remember. Maybe in book 2.
Murder, mystery, mayhem, and magic bubble together into what's quite a fun ride. Throw in some spicy romance with a hint of enemies-to-lovers and it's just perfect.

I listened to the audiobook and I really enjoyed the performance of the narrator, David Thorpe. He was already one of my fave narrators, so I was excited he did this book that I was so enthusiastic to read. It's like this book was designed to match my tastes as a reader, so maybe I had impossibly high expectations. I have mixed feelings about it.

I'm not dividing the book into three equal parts by page number or anything, but here are my thoughts in the order I had them:

First third, 3 or 4 star read. I'm somewhat interested in the plot, but the MCs aren't charming me. One MC is not at all attracted to the other MC, who is all about keeping his emotions locked down. I think this combo was probably challenging to write, and while I didn't hate it, it also didn't grab me. The mystery plot is okay but I doubt it's going anywhere surprising. The worldbuilding is very good, and I like that it's woven into the story in a way that feels natural.

Second third, 5 star read, instant favorite. I love absolutely everything about this romance, especially the incredible intimacy of the writing style. There are explicit sex scenes and they're quite emotionally intense. Also, one scene involves a kink that I like to read but don't run into too often in books: sensation play, with magic. The non-romance plot has in fact taken some surprising turns, and I'm very invested in the plot.

Third third, 3 or 4 star read. The resolution of the non-romance plot is not satisfying to me. There's a planned sequel, and I'm not at all complaining that it's f/f, because I do read and enjoy f/f. But I feel like these MCs still have fish to fry in the non-romance plot, and they most likely will never be point-of-view characters again. Still, the romance plot wraps up very well and I believe in the MCs' happy ending.

Overall I enjoyed this, and I really loved some aspects of it. I'd recommend it to romance readers over fantasy or mystery readers, though. I might like it better when I reread it in the future.

More of a 3.5 probably.

I have been very excited for this book for a while, so I couldn't resist immediately reading it after receiving my advance copy. But maybe my expectations were too high, because I ended up not feeling too delighted by it.

The world building is this one is definitely cool and I feel like I'm enjoying the historical fantasy set in England subgenre. The whole magic system with moving hands like weaving strings was very very fascinating and I kept trying to picture it in my head. The mystery was also interesting enough, but ultimately it's the characters who kinda let me down. They aren't bad per se, just not very engaging and I didn't feel myself attached to any of them. The main characters Edwin and Robin's developing relationship is nice but I didn't feel that chemistry between them which I was looking for. And the side characters were mostly annoying or boring except Mrs. Morrisey.

So, while I can say that my overall enjoyment of this book was fine and I wasn't too bored, I also wasn't eagerly waiting to pick it back up whenever I took a break. Maybe go in with lower expectations and you'll love it more.

This is the sweetest story.

A romance that has equal plot, worldbuilding, and character development.

And EDWIN AND ROBBIE!

I would die for them. They are my Joe to my ox. The Sam to Frodo. THE couple.

The plot really enhances the romance in the best way. Edwin and Robbie both are well developed, interesting characters. I loved reading about them both.
And Edwin is just the best. So awkward and book smart. I love him.

It did surprise me this had spicy scenes in it but they worked well with the story and complimented both characters on their arcs. it was sweet and awkward.

I did like how it ended. I have found alot of fantasy romance focus too much on the romance and net on the plot but it was int the case here.

I highly enjoyed this book. I want more from this plot and characters.

This was a delightful read with main characters who complemented each other really well.

A Marvellous Light follows Robin Blyth as he gets catapulted into the world of magic after a dreadful encounter with some not-so-nice unnerving folks. Helping him get out of the bind he finds himself in after this encounter is Edwin Courcey, who helps make the world of magic much more palatable for Robin. Amidst all their initial bickering, these frenemies slowly start developing into something more, and I'm looking forward to seeing where their relationship ends up in future instalments.

Robin and Edwin's chemistry was my favourite part of the story. The way they bounced off of each other's remarks was sublime, and their personalities remained very distinct and unique while simultaneously complementing each others' really well.

Though the magic in this story didn't garner complete investment out of me, I still think it was executed fairly well. I appreciated how the instances of magic feeling like a convenience was minimal, and there was clear effort in setting up boundaries and consequences for the magic.

The weakest aspect here was the mystery imo. It was incredibly interesting at first and had me hooked, but for some reason as I kept reading on my curiosity faltered. I kept reading this for Robin and Edwin's blossoming relationship, rather than the mystery, which was disappointing because the mystery plot takes up majority of the page count in the last couple of chapters. It wasn't bad at all, especially since I can't quite articulate why I couldn't find myself caring about it, so I guess your mileage will vary with how much you enjoy that mystery aspect.

While this isn't a novel I'm head over heels about, I still enjoyed it a fair amount and would definitely recommend it. If a premise surrounding two frenemies attempting to solve a mystery together using magic whilst potentially becoming lovers (or something akin to lovers) sounds interesting to you, then do give this story a shot.

This review contains spoilers! Proceed with caution.

First of all, before I dive into a scathing review, let me just say that this book is seriously miscategorized. It is not a “fantasy book with elements of romance,” but rather a “romance/erotica book with a vague nod towards fantasy as a theme.” Seriously, whoever though this was deserving of the fantasy label clearly never read a fantasy book in their lives (fyi to other reviewers: this is most definitely not high fantasy. Where did you get that idea from? Badly implemented magic does not equal high fantasy...)

Yet again, I find myself disappointed with a very hyped-up book. I've figured out by now that 4 and 5-star ratings mean nothing and that glowing reviews cannot be trusted for fault of lack of depth in said reviews.

What is this book about, you ask? Well, I have a hard time articulating that thought despite having finished reading the book not 15 minutes ago. The book is technically about magic in Edwardian London and a queer romance at its centre, but in actuality, this book isn't about anything, really.

Robert “Robin” Blyth is an ordinary, typical lordling who ends up in a job that is anything but ordinary. Without his knowledge, he gets thrown into a position where he should act as a liaison between the magical and non-magical worlds. The only problem is that Robin has zero knowledge of magic and has no idea what he's supposed to do. Enter Edwin Courcey, a stuck-up and condescending magician who knows everything, except why Robin is in this job nor how to get rid of him. Hijinks ensue, and Robin finds himself cursed by a strange lot of faceless people who are after a mysterious artifact called the Last Contract. In order to help Robin (and himself) out of this mess, Edwin takes his new colleague on romp through the countryside in search of a cure for the curse and with the hopes of finding the artifact.

Now, as far as plots go, this sounds pretty good, right? Well yes, in theory, except that the book then proceeds to give us the most drawn out, useless, and uninteresting scenes in the history of literature. I made a list of things that were especially bothersome, so here we go:

The magic system

Edwin and his fellow magicians, with the exception of old lady Flora, use a system called “cradling” to perform magic. Basically, it's like the kid's game of cat's cradle, but make it magical. Everyone in this universe cradles without assistance of any kind, except Edwin. He needs to use a piece of string to help him focus his magic. Why? Who knows, it's never truly explained. All we know is that some people need string to help them along, although we're not given another example of this outside of Edwin. There's also the idea of notations as being part of the process, but we as readers are never explained what notations are or how they work. Then, there's Flora Sutton who uses an entirely different system of magic, but once again, this isn't explained. There doesn't seem to be other people who can do what she does, but it's all brushed aside anyway like the rest of this system. In brief, what we have here is a case of very soft magic with little to no background information about how it works or how it came about.

Edwin and Robin's relationship

In a nutshell, it is so comically unbelievable, it hurts. The two have known each other for nine days by the time they have their big breakup.... NINE DAYS, during which time they've gone from being enemies to lovers to heartbroken to lovers again. What??? Does no one else think this is ridiculous? Robin's mushy inner thoughts of “let's make a life together, my future is you, blah blah” ... PLEASE. Calm down, it's been nine days. Also, allow me to point out that during the nine days of their acquaintance, they've had time to sleep together TWICE in between death threats, Robin's debilitating curse, Edwin's insane family, and acquiring a magical estate for their personal use. .... ????????

Robin's curse

What was the point of the curse? Who are the weird faceless people who attacked him in the first place? Why was it such an important plot point that took up more than half the book, only to be resolved in the most anticlimactic way possible, with no further thought afterwards of “huh, well this was a pointless exercise?”

Robin's sister, Maud

Why is she even there? Seriously, what is her purpose in this story other than being Robin's little sister and an unwanted guest at the Courceys? She was, 1000% useless to the plot. Actually, make that 10 000%.

The infamous Last Contract

Again, why? How is the cup, coin, and knife even remotely related to Robin? Why would a non-magical person be cursed, nearly murdered a few times, and then left to his own devices with all that knowledge on the basis that “he won't tell anyone, scout's honour?” The shadowy “Assembly” that is pulling the strings behind all this remains a mystery even after the last chapter (which yes, I understand that it leaves room for a second book, but still). There's mention in the very beginning of all this that the Contract is related to the Fae, but we never hear from them, nor that connection, ever again. (This is an old motif btw, it is not an invention proper to this book. There are tons of legends about Fae striking deals with mortals. Look it up.)

Death (in general)

When a certain (unremarkable) character dies towards the end of the book, there is exactly zero human emotion tied to it. Zilch. None. The person dies pretty horribly when you think about it, and is actively killed by our loving MCs, and their first reaction afterwards is to be all kissy-face and touchy-feely beside a dead body. Also, the fact these guys are not murderers and have never killed anyone before now, the lack of reaction to taking someone's life is all the more worrying. I don't know about you, but I don't think I'd be feeling very much in the mood with a dead man lying at my feet. Just saying.

The Wokeness(TM)

Ok, look, I know it's 2022, and being woke is the default now unless you want to be cancelled from this planet, but come on. This was wokeness for the sake of being woke. Robin asking about consent every two seconds (both in and out of bed) was a bit much. Like, we get it. Consent is important, of course, but you don't have to keep asking the same damn thing over and over again just for the sake of it. What's the point of going off on a huge speech about magical consent? Why do we care about magical contracts and how they're executed? Makes no sense. Even the blood pact/contract thing requires consent between the two parties, and Edwin makes a big show of it, except that one of the two parties is tied to a magical wall and can't move when he “consents” to the blood pact.... That's hardly consensual, now is it? Sounds like token wokeness to me. Do you know what we call that in legal terms? Coercion (with a dash of threat of bodily harm), not consent.

Then, there's the Strong Female(TM) trope, of course. Flora Sutton? The OG Strong Female(TM) with her merry band of girlfriends who “defied expectations” when they found the artifacts before the men did. Nice. Then there's Adelaide and Kitty, the two Strong (sister) token POC Females(TM) who save the White Males(TM) because they're so clever. Okay, cool, but then they vanish from the narrative completely and we don't hear from them again. Very woke indeed (read: sarcasm).

I could keep going, but I've already given this book too much of my attention. The only reason I finished it was because it was a library loan and I wanted to get ‘my money's worth', so to speak (10 hours of reading time over 21 days of rental, to be exact). Might I add that the book is only 400 pages long.... It shouldn't have taken me as long as it did to read it. I very nearly gave up around 60% of the way in, but then felt bad for having invested so much time already and giving up after more than half was done. I am infinitely grateful that my library had a copy I could borrow so that I could save myself a whole 36 Canadian dollars on purchasing this book that would have hereafter served as a doorstopper.

Liked: Atmosphere, characters, especially bookish introvert Edwin.

Plot and magic where nothing special, so I'm not interested in the next books.

Didn't like: It just me but I'm tired of represetation of introversion and love for books as a self-defence mechanism. And also tired of some stereotypes in the written gay sex.

Have you ever read a book and feel like you didn't take any of it in? Like I know what happened, but I read through too quickly and just didn't absorb any of it. I kept spacing out and would zero back in during very active parts. Either in a hedge maze or during a romantic moment. I think I will need to reread this before reading the next one and try to not dissociate during it. The romance was fantastic and I loved certain lines and confessions. Definitely going to reread because I know I liked it, but I just was not in the right brainspace for it this time through.

I am not giving this book a rating, because i DNFed it at around 50%.

I was bored out of my mind the entire time while reading this.
Both main characters (and all supporting characters for that matter) were as bland as boiled egg whites. It felt like i was reading a book about cardboard cutouts. Not to mention, it was very difficult to even distinguish Edmond from Robin at times.
And even worse, there were no stakes to be found in this book. There was some action in the beginning and some bland story later on, but all of it was more like a setup for the romance between the two leads, rather than a story worthy of a read on its own.

This review is just to help me remember key points about the book. If you find it helpful or relatable that's cool too.
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“You look like a Turner painting and I want to learn your textures with my fingertips. You are the most fascinating thing in this beautiful house. I'd like to introduce my fists to whoever taught you to stop talking about the things that interest you.”

4.5 Stars ⭐️
3 Spicies