Welcome to Litsy!

Robin is dealing with a new job in the government, taking care of his sister, the death of his parents, and his newly inherited, destitute baronetcy. Then, he finds out there‘s magic and gets whammied with a mysterious, painful curse.
He has no choice but trust his counterpart in the magical government, Edwin, to guide him and keep the curse at bay.
Opposites attract while the two work closely to defeat a villainous sect in the magical community.

This was a great book! It‘s been a while since I‘ve read any historical queer romances and one with magic was a welcome change. I loved the writing and the characters and I can‘t wait to read the next one! 5🌟

I get the hype! Delightful, suspenseful, charming; a tale of finding your people and yourself while fighting evil. With magic! This queer tale combines myth, magic, and science fiction in all the best ways. The characters are the best, except for the ones that are the worst. Can you tell how much I enjoyed this? #BookspinBingo #joyousjanuary @TheAromaofBooks @Andrew65

I'm all set for another round of #BookSpin and #roll100! My #roll100 list is my entire ebook tbr (sitting at slightly over 100 now) and for Jan my #BookSpin list is just 1-20 of my #roll100. Other months I will probably do my Libby wishlist filtered to "available now" for #BookSpin but in January I'm going to try reading only owned books. Tagged book is up first* for #roll100! I've been looking forward to it for ages!

We have two main characters, Robin and Edwin. One has magical powers, and the other not so much.
The way the magic system worked around the string game Cats Cradle was very clever and I liked how we learnt about the magic system at the same time one of our main characters did, it felt very natural.
I do love an author who can pull off a decent sex scene and there's steam coming off the pages here.

I spent the day with my BFF at this fabulous little local indie bookstore to spend a bunch of end of year parent gift certificates she‘d stored up. We had fun browsing and basically just buying everything the employees recommended, and now I get to read all the books when she‘s done with them. Best deal ever!!! (The parents even bought me a book though I doubt they know it 😂🙃). ⬇️

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
This book covered so many genres: it‘s a fantasy with an interesting magic system; it‘s a (*very* spicy) romance; it‘s a murder mystery; it‘s historical fiction set in 1908‘s England - and somehow Marske covers them all with ease.
In the Acknowledgment section she lists Pratchett & Wodehouse as influences & you can definitely see that in her very British satirical humor, which I will always love.

I wanted to love this book as it ticks a lot of boxes for me. I was very disappointed. The pace was glacial and it had a very unsatisfying end.

I was a bit iffy on the writing style. It was a bit too chatty for me and I found myself skim reading or zoning out when listening.

Trying the audio book version of this as my brain is fried and I can't focus on reading

What speed do people have it at? I've got it at 2x which is still a bit slow. If I do it faster the narrator's character voices can go a bit squeaky 🤣

Oh this was lovely fun! A queer historical fantasy romance and mystery…. I loved these characters- Robin and Edwin and will definitely continue the series. #bookspinbingo #bingo

I just reread this (already!) thanks to #LGBTBookClub and greatly enjoyed it a second time. This time I went with the audiobook and it was a fun ride. I did enjoy reading it myself a bit more than listening, but it was a close second. #LGBTQ #Magic

This was a reread for me but loved it just as much the second time! I've been meaning to read the sequel which I preordered but still haven't gotten to 😅 so this was a good refresher of the magic system and world-building before I finally pick that one up!
#LGBTbookclub @AbigailJaneBlog #SeriesLove2023 @Andrew65 @TheSpineView #LGBTQ2023 purple cover @Kenyazero #Booked2023 gaslamp fantasy @BarbaraTheBibliophage @Cinfhen @alisiakae

Thank you for the recommendation for my #12challenge @peanutnine ! I really enjoyed it. 😁

A fantasy with a very spicy romance 🌶️! Great characters, cool magic system, fun mystery. I‘m looking forward to reading the second in the series.

#serieslove2023 (book 1, totally works as a stand alone too!)

Q3: family was a big factor in this book, with many different family dynamics taking the stage. Did you have a favourite family, or favourite character? Who did you feel had the most interesting character relationship?

Bonus: how do the family dynamics in this book match up to the last books we've read, all of which have had family as a giant theme?

#LGBTbookclub

Q2: Although this book is a dual POV of two men, gender is undeniably important. What did you think of Markse's women characters? Did any stand out to you? Why?

#LGBTbookclub

Question 1 for the March #LGBTbookclub

What did you think of the magic system/society in this world? What intrigued you the most/least?

Bonus Q: how does this magic system compare to those found in the last two books we've read?

Lost the plot at some point, but still enjoyable

A delightful fantasy romance! I really enjoyed the Edwardian Britain setting and the magical world Marske built alongside the ordinary one. It definitely had shades of Harry Potter while being its own thing. The characters are all wonderful—the Morrissey sisters, of course, were my favorites. The romance was developed well while showing the very different people Edwin and Robin are. And oh, boy, does Marske have a way with a Chekhov‘s gun!

God, I love good historical fantasy. Robin and Edwin were perfect foils (and lovers! 😍), the magic system was super cool, and the central mystery was so fun to unravel! I only wish Adelaide and Kitty had been a bigger part of the story. #historicalfantasy

Time to vote for April's pick! https://forms.gle/b98npQCMos9Zyzu46

Also a reminder that this month's discussion will be posted on the 26th (or thereabouts!) Please let me know if you'd like to be added/removed from the tags.

#LGBTbookclub

Robin is introduced to the hidden magical world in England when a shadowy group think he knows something. Luckily, the handsome magician Edwin is there to help Robin figure out what‘s going on.

This was charming. Marske‘s descriptions are lush, & I really adored our main characters. The magic systems were intriguing, & I am so invested in the big mystery. I was a bit unsatisfied with the end, but it left me wanting to find the sequel. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

I think it‘s fair to say that February was a bust 😅 Lots of picking up books and putting them down again and then comfort-reading old favourites instead #bookspinbingo

Repost for @AbigailJaneBlog:

And here we have March's #BuddyRead pick! Can't wait to hear your thoughts on it.

Discussion will be on the 26th, content warnings can be found here:
https://booktriggerwarnings.com/A_Marvellous_Light_by_Freya_Marske

#LGBTbookclub

Original post:
https://www.litsy.com/web/post/2556715

And here we have March's pick! Can't wait to hear your thoughts on it.

Discussion will be on the 26th, content warnings can be found here:
https://booktriggerwarnings.com/A_Marvellous_Light_by_Freya_Marske

#LGBTbookclub

1. I absolutely loved A Marvellous Light!

2. My daughter turns 5 on the 14th and is fully ready to celebrate for the entire month 🤣 Beyond that, I plan on reading a ton of middle grade for #MiddleGradeMarch and am looking forward to a crochet class I‘m teaching at work on Thursday.

Thanks for the tag, @IndoorDame - I‘m “tagging” anyone who wants to participate!

Here I am at 2am, feeling totally comfortable with the decision to stay up and finish this - despite the fact that my kids will be awake in about 4 hours... it was so good! The magic system was really cool and I absolutely adored Edwin & Robin ❤

Daycare is closed today so I took a sick day to watch Nina and my friend's little guy. We took a trip to the library, where they happily played for an hour while I got to read!

My library hold for the tagged book came in… and I came home with three more library books and a 50p charity shop bargain 🙈

Opening presents that are books on Christmas morning > other mornings

Thanks @CarolynM - I‘ve been meaning to read this one for ages

I wasn't really in the mood for the steaminess this go around, but I did enjoy the overall storyline. The characters were cute and I liked the magical system. Overall, I give this book 3 of 5 stars.

#Lights 💡💡 #DivineDecember 🎄❄️🎁

#BookNerd 🤓📚💙

So good, much better than I was expecting it to be.

🎧 currently listening 🎧

A magical population- with a very original style of magic- hiding in plain sight in Edwardian England. 💥 A shadow group searching for ancient magical artifacts in order to draw on the power of other magicians.😱 An opposites attract, slow burn, yet steamy, romance. 🔥 A magical house. 😍
I thoroughly enjoyed this! (Slightly spoilery comment below)
📷: pinterest

Stayed up till 1 AM reading this and all I can think about is getting back to it the minute I'm off work. Gonna be a long 8 hours!

A fun read, but I wasn't head over heels for it as many are. Magic and mystery in what is, I guess, the cozy fantasy genre.

I wasn‘t sure what this book was about when I first started it. So it took me a bit to get into it. It‘s an Edwardian England and a magical world. People don‘t know about magic or that there are magicians. Robin gets cursed and he teams up with Eddie to figure out why and what happened to his missing predecessor. It‘s also a M/M romance that is pretty steamy! There is conspiracies, mysteries and danger!

#getTBR - one of my recs this quarter

This book is as magical as the title suggests! Words crafted into an elegant prose, Marske dazzles her avid readers by throwing them into a swoon-worthy version of Edwardian London, combining a murder mystery with magical realism, until you're as entangled and committed to this marvellous Downton Abbey-esque adventure as Robin and Edwin. A delightfully queer romance and spells weaved between the strings of a Cat‘s Cradle. Joyous ♡.

Pride Month: Day Thirteen! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

I loved this magical, historical tale and truly believe all the hype it gets is deserved! 🥰📚💕

#pridemonth #queerbooks #lgbtq

I loved this book so much that I don‘t think I can adequately convey how much I liked reading it. I was in absolutely no hurry to finish because I didn‘t want it to end. Beautiful prose, charming and emotive characters, great world building, and an excellent story. I enjoyed this on the same level as my all-time favorite Nightrunner series, which is the only novel series I‘ve read multiple times. #LGBTQ #Magic #Fantasy

Couldn‘t put this SFF m/m historical romance novel down. I enjoyed the Edwardian England setting and the magical world building. The mystery that ensnares Edwin and Robin is interesting and leads to some spicy 🌶 times. Fingers crossed that this will be the first book in a series 💚🐉

I can‘t remember where I got the recommendation for this book. My hold came in on Libby so instead of tackling my massive todo list - how can I resist the comparison to two favourites - fingers crossed it lives up to my expectations 💚🐉

"They're men."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because if even a single woman was involved, they wouldn't have decided that a man who'd been working there for one day was a more likely source of information than a woman who'd been there for years."

I absolutely love this book, and wouldn't say no to a book about Adelaide.

“You‘re not kind, but you care, deeply.” I can‘t help it, I absolutely fell in love with this book. It‘s full of Edwardian properness, magic and mystery, and steamy romance.

After the positively delicious magical realism of The Heartbreak Bakery, I was craving a fantasy full of magic and romance. A Marvellous Light is serving this up in spades! I want to spend the evening nestled inside this story.

Anxiety has been pretty high so I haven‘t been able to focus on reading this week but I‘ve settled down a little and am starting this one today. Queer fantasy is always a nice escape.

Severely underwhelming. SUPER slow & unrewarding. Great premise, poor execution. The writing wasn't bad, but overly chatty. The characters are okay, but I didn't find anyone interesting. Instead they came off mostly pretentious & annoying. The smut felt awkward & aggressive to me & I just got ick factor instead of feeling like it made sense for the progression of the relationship. I struggled to find anything that was really above average.

Lovely. I want more already! I hope we stay focused on Edwin and Robin and don't go off to follow other characters; they've got to a good place for now, but they have more growing to do.

Also, this was my #DoubleSpin book, so I've managed that now! I don't think I'll be going for this vertical line for #BookSpinBingo, but I guess it depends on how fast I finish the two horizontal lines. I might try it!

This book was a cozy English mystery with unique magic thrown in the mix. I really enjoyed this, it wasn't a fast paced novel but the author does an excellent job of making you care for the characters. The little bits of English magic gave it a touch of adult Harry Potter vibes which was great. I'm excited to read the next book and I will never tire from staring at this cover. #pop22 #popsugar

A lot of audiobooks this week!