Tag Archives: gaslamp fantasy

Audiobook Review: Snowspelled, by Stephanie Burgis

I borrowed an audiobook copy of Snowspelled by Stephanie Burgis from my local library to listen to while walking a 5k.

In nineteenth-century Angland, magic is reserved for gentlemen while ladies attend to the more practical business of politics. But Cassandra Harwood has never followed the rules…

Four months ago, Cassandra Harwood was the first woman magician in Angland, and she was betrothed to the brilliant, intense love of her life.

Now Cassandra is trapped in a snowbound house party deep in the elven dales, surrounded by bickering gentleman magicians, manipulative lady politicians, her own interfering family members, and, worst of all, her infuriatingly stubborn ex-fiancé, who refuses to understand that she’s given him up for his own good.

But the greatest danger of all lies outside the manor in the falling snow, where a powerful and malevolent elf-lord lurks…and Cassandra lost all of her own magic four months ago.

To save herself, Cassandra will have to discover exactly what inner powers she still possesses – and risk everything to win a new kind of happiness.

The audiobook includes the novella Spellswept. I thought it was a sweet little prequel to the series. I liked the writing style and voice of the main character and the challenge to societal dictates. I do find that when authors simply swap the gendered dynamics of social position, without also building out the implications of that, it is much less effective than it could be. That’s true here. A similar thing could be said (though I’ll try to be vague) about the decision to force the school to accept the girl, promising it is only about her, not about all women. But all in all, it was a cute read.

The main book, Snowspelled, I also enjoyed, but I have some complaints. The first is simply that, since the audiobook started with the Spellswept prequel, I expected the main character here to also be Amy, as it was in the prequel. I was disappointed to discover that this book is set years later and focuses on Cassandra. (Of the two, I was, at the time, much more interested in Amy.)

Second, though Amy isn’t the main character, she is in the book, and after building her up to be intelligent and capable, we discover that (as is SO OFTEN) the case, she had to give up her hard-earned future for love (and is happy with the decision). I hate this trope so much, and it’s beyond common. Burgis writes strong, female-forward books that frequently buck the gender norms. I was especially disappointed to see it here.

Beyond those initial complaints, I did like Cassandra. I adored her ex-fiance. He kind of remains a shadow, however, never fully fleshed out, which is a shame because he is so likable even as he is, that I wanted more of him and their relationship. The narrative tone is fun, and it is satisfying to see the group succeed against adversity in the end.

I was a tad bored throughout, however. The story feels deceptively low-stakes, which doesn’t really match the level of political world-building or authorial intent (I think). Despite that, I’d likely read the next book in the series. Or listen to it, as Emma Newman did a good job with the narration.

Snowspelled by Stephanie Burgis.

Book Reviews: The Madame Chalamet Collection, by Byrd Nash

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I picked up copies of Byrd Nash‘s Ghost Talker and Delicious Death as Amazon freebies. Then I purchased Spirit Guide, and after that, the collection of Grey Lady, Haunted Grave, and Ghastly Mistake. I wrote reviews as I finished each book.

Elinor Chalamet’s talent to speak with the dead may have landed her in the soup.

Witty and clever, Elinor uses her mediumship skills to hunt for her father’s killer. So when a body in the canal brings her to the morgue, she’s happy to help until Tristan Fontaine, the Duke de Archambeau, takes over the case and places her under house arrest.

Between possessions and poltergeists, she’ll solve the case even if it means putting the duke in his place. Actually, that part of the investigation may be a pleasure!

Welcome to Alenbonné, a coastal city with picturesque promenades along the canals and where the ghosts never sleep. A country where spirits and murder are just a breath away.

Ghost Talker

After a little bit of a rocky start, I ended up enjoying this a lot. I liked the characters, the soon-to-be slow-burning romance pairing, the wit, and I simply had a good time with it. I will be continuing the series.

However, I also thought it felt a bit sloppy. It could use another round of copy edits, especially around homophones (than/then, especially). And more importantly, the big bad that had to be defeated at the end felt much like a breach of the bounds of the world the author had established up until that point. Without too much of a spoiler, it required the existence of a mythical element that nothing in the book up to that point had hinted at existing, taking the book from gaslamp fantasy to straight-up fantasy, in a sense. It felt jarring and very much like an inconsistency. I’ll be curious to see if any other such elements show up in future books because my sense is that they won’t. Of course, my point isn’t so much that I’m making a prediction as stating that the misalignment in this book gives such an impression, and that’s the problem I’m trying to highlight.

All in all, however, like I said, I’ll be reading at least the next one. Though, on a side note, why all the dark-haired cover models for a blond character?

Delicious Death

I’m still enjoying this series. I like Elinor a lot. I’ve always appreciated a practical heroine. Somehow, especially in historic settings. (This series is set in the 1910s.) Though I think Charlotte is my favorite character in the series, we get more of her here than in the first book. The romance is starting to bud just a little bit, and I like the Duke. However, he’s a bit of a cardboard cutout. The romance aspect is definitely in the background, with the mystery taking the main stage here.

My only real complaints are that, as in the first book, the copy editing has a hiccup or two, and Elinor’s deductive skills are sometimes a little too extreme to believe. Regardless, I’ve purchased the rest of the series now and intend to finish it out.

Spirit Guide

I had fun with this third volume of Madame Chalamet Ghost Mysteries, especially toward the end. Elenor and Tristan have become comfortable enough with one another to show their emotions somewhat openly, irritation especially. And I legitimately laughed at some of their snipes at one another. Nash also threw in some amusing moments in general. “Hm, well, that’s enough of that…” about something truly devastating to the other person was my favorite. It just showed Elenor’s practical personality to its fullest—no hysterics for our girl. We also get one more small step forward in the romance department and see a little more of Tristan’s actual personality. It’s still playing second stage, though, which is fine. I look forward to the next book.

Grey Lady

In general, I’m still very much enjoying this series. I like the characters a lot, and seeing both the FMC save the day and the MMC be 100% on board with that. Plus, the mysteries keep me interested. I do think the addition of the colors/music descriptions while in the Beyond feels cringy, and I was left a little cold by the fact that, even though the Guardian acknowledges he did something HORRIBLE in life, it’s literally never addressed. As with the previous books, I caught a few copy-edit mistakes. But I’ll be continuing the series all the same.

Haunted Grave

This is the first book in the series that ended on a cliffhanger instead of wrapping up so that the next book could start a new mystery. I wasn’t thrilled by that. But the books have also been getting progressively (if only by a little) longer with each one. So, I suppose I get it.

I also didn’t happen to like this one as much as the previous one in general. (I mean, I liked it, but not as much.) The FMC and MMC are officially a couple, and, thus, some of the tension has been lost, but I didn’t really feel like it was replaced with much of anything. One might expect romance, but it’s pretty thin on the ground. Mainly, this felt like a whole lot of running around, rather than clever problem-solving.

Ghastly Mistake (w/ spoiler)

Well, that wrapped up nicely. I felt like the first half of the book was more of a continuation of the previous one, and I was a bit bored. (The last book being my least favorite in the series.) But the second half brings Elinor’s clever, socially irreverent side back to the fore, and I appreciated that. And the not-Duke is marvelously accepting of her quirks.

I probably could have done without the whole baby subplot. But that’s just me. I don’t ever really need a baby to make a relationship complete. I feel like compromising and getting married already served the purpose. (I’m hoping the Grey Lady’s portents mean we could get a 2nd generation, I’d forgive the baby then.)

Like in all the books, there were some copy-edit issues on occasion. But honestly, it wasn’t too big a deal. Just enough to notice, really. I’d 100% read another Nash series.

Other Reviews:

Hidden Pages: The Madame Chalamet Collection, by Byrd Nash