Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This book which is set in England, France and Haiti, It is based on the French Revolution and the Haitian slave revolt - but with magic and vampires, and it features real people from the time.
Overall, this was a nice read and I enjoyed the magic system and the politics around it. However, the pace was uneven which made me struggle to keep my attention.

A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians by H. G. Parry is an epic tale of political upheaval, magic and rebellion. Spanning a period of change and chaos, the story brings the reader through multiple stories and points of view. As the stakes rise with each passing moment, a secret enemy works their way behind the scenes, inspiring and leading each movement forward with disastrous results. A powerful story, one which weaves multiple elements of history and magic together with style and grace, A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians will surely captivate the reader's attention and delight. Highly recommended!

This toed the line into fantasy, but ultimately it became extremely historically focused, and that was the downfall for me. If it had been switched up and marketed as a historical novel with a hint of magic I'm sure my expectations would have been met-but as it is, there's not quite enough of the fantasy element to pique my interest.

There's potential here, Parry is clearly a very intelligent and thoughtful writer and I'm not knocking her ability. I think it's the pacing and genre that lets this down. I just hope the novel that follows builds on the magic elements much more.

A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians es una fantasía histórica bastante original en su planteamiento y desarrollo si bien se nota demasiado que es la primera parte de una duología y en ocasiones el ritmo resulta demasiado pausado. Situada en la época de la revolución francesa, cuenta estos sucesos con la diferencia de la existencia de la magia, algo que cualquiera pensaría que habría cambiado de forma más radical el transcurso de la historia, pero excepto la reiterada mención de las Guerras Vampíricas, los demás hitos se asemejan más o menos a lo que conocemos. Y los personajes que poblarán sus páginas son los partícipes de aquella época convulsa, aunque mi desconocimiento de ese pasaje de la historia me impide juzgar si su comportamiento y desarrollo concuerda con la «realidad tal y como la conocemos TM».


Lo que más me ha llamado la atención de esta novela de H.G. Parry es la profunda importancia que da al thriller político, a las discusiones del parlamento inglés y la asamblea francesa. Creo que en pocas novelas habrá visto esta inmersión en la política en sí, la única que me viene a la mente es la de Baru Cormorant. Me gusta esta importancia que se da al diálogo y a la exposición de ideas y sobre todo, el respeto al adversario político, algo que se ha debido perder con el transcurso del tiempo. El tema de fondo es la libertad sobre el uso de la magia por parte de los comunes, ya que los aristócratas lo tienen permitido y la plebe no, siendo este es el principal detonante de la Revolución Francesa. En realidad es un reflejo más de las desigualdades de la época que crearon el caldo de cultivo para este hito histórico, solo que la autora ha adornado un poco el tema con las distintas magias. Sobre todo me gusta el planteamiento de lucha para la abolición de la esclavitud, algo que costó sudor y sangre eliminar de forma «legal» en estos países.

La presencia de un ente en la sombra que maneja los hilos de la trama está bastante dosificada, pero es imposible dejar de plantearse quién será este ser mágico con extraordinarias capacidades, algo que se desvelará supongo en el siguiente libro. Tampoco se puede negar que de los tres puntos de vista en los que se basa la narración hay uno que sale eminentemente perjudicado en cuanto a relevancia y número de apariciones (el situado en Jamaica) y esto es debido a que se están preparando cosas para el segundo volumen.

No es menos cierto que la longitud de la obra juega un poco en su contra, porque hay momentos de impasse que la autora no ha podido dotar del mismo interés que los momentos álgidos de la historia, como el comienzo del Terror y su odiosa justificación para las huestes francesas o la revolución en las colonias.

Todo esto da lugar a un libro irregular, interesante por algunas razones que sin embargo no acaba de despegar como podría haberlo hecho partiendo de las atractivas ideas expuestas. Es posible que mi valoración varíe cuando lea la siguiente novela, al conocer el sentido completo de la obra.

I sincerely apologise that I wasn’t able to get around to reading this title prior to the publication date in order to review it.

Robespierre might have been a magician?

Or, what if the French Revolution wasn’t just fueled by monetary inequality (I’m over-simplifying it), but also by the inequality of use of magical power?

A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians by H.G. Parry, publishing day 23 June 2020.

In this alternate history set in the late 18th century, spanning the abolitionist movement and French Revolution, magic is hereditary, but only aristocrats are allowed to use it; unless it’s necromancy or stems from vampirism. Dark magic is forbidden and the Knights Templar police the use of magic rigorously.

At more than 500 pages, this novel is on the thicker side. What makes it hard to read are endless pages of dialogues or debates with no action. There was hardly any female character other than the family members of the protagonists, well-known figures of that time like Robespierre, Pitt, Wilberfur. Furthermore I felt that although the story starts with the kidnapping of a young African girl by slave traders, her story wasn’t very well represented – at least not until I DNF’d at about 50%.

The reading experience reminded me of Clarke’s Strange & Norrell [DNF’d], and history lectures at uni [finished that degree]. In other words, I found it interesting, but boring.

2/5 stars – purely for research into the historical facts well-done

-DNF @28%-

Change is in the air.
Prime Minister William Pitt works to change the laws relating to the commoners' use of magic in Britain.
In France, revolution is in the air as a man called Robespierre uses his outlawed magic alongside a mysterious benefactor.
Slaves in Haiti fight to be free, led by Toussaint L'Ouverture, a weather mage.
But a shadow is falling over the land, one that everyone will have to join together to fight against if they are to have a hope at surviving.

As a fan of the author's previous book, The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep, I was excited to read their latest release. However, it ended up not being for me.
There are several main characters, but in what I did read most of the chapters were about William Wilberforce and William Pitt. I enjoyed reading about their friendship, but I didn't feel that I particularly connected to either of them, or any of the other characters.
The premise of the commoners and the aristocrats having different laws when it came to magic was interesting, as was the magic itself.
The plot was way too slow paced for me. Not much happened in what I read and the book felt very character-driven, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but in this case the characters were not enough to keep me interested or to keep me reading.
I'm really disappointed that I didn't end up enjoying this as I was really looking forward to it.

Unfortunately, this ended up not being for me.

I had mixed feelings about this book, even going in - this might just be a personal thing, but I find historical fantasy about real historical figures kind of strange, so I admit I was a little hesitant. But I tried to let go of my prejudices and just dive in, but I found even that hard to do, since the pacing was slow and the moments of action were few and far between, interspersed by long scenes of parliamentary debates and visiting family and friends. Far too many, to the extent that it sometimes dragged.

The magic was cool, and the way it shaped the situation in Europe and contributed to the divide between social classes, with Commoners unable to use their magic. And yet. I never really could let go of the fact that these were supposed to be real historical figures, but again that was my own hang up.

It was well-written, despite the pacing issues, so I gave it three stars. I think I liked it enough to read the sequel, especially with the introduction near the end of a notorious historical figure (of whom I know admittedly very little, so it shouldn't cloud my judgment too much!) who will no doubt shake things up.

DNF at 37%

I’ve been trying to read this book since June and I keep putting it off because I can’t get into it so I’ve had to give up.

The premise of this book is fantastic, and I really loved the sound of it (hence the request!), but in reality, it is far too focused on the history and politics, even for a historical fiction.

If you’re going to add magic to an already well known period of history, I’d expect to see a little more of the magic and actually have it used with more effect, not mentioned as part of an elaborate political plot line which doesn’t actually need to magical element at all. This book might as well have been a minute by minute account of the French Revolution instead.

I really wish I could enjoy this book, but I found it so dense that it takes me days to finish a single chapter. I’m not a slow reader by any stretch of the imagination, but I can’t bring myself to continue with this book.

I’ve given it 2 stars as I did enjoy some of the dialogue and relationships in the book, but the plot was too heavy to capture my interest for long enough.

I honestly say this often, but this time I mean it in a whole other sense when I say – I did not know what I was getting myself into.
It is an epic tale, a retelling of the French revolution and other European disturbances at the time including slavery. The difference? The existence of magic. This one factor alters the perspective by adding another difference between people. We have three geographically distinct narrators. One scene is in London where we see the growth of budding politicians (none of whom I had any prior knowledge of) from when they first meet to the rise of the Prime Minister. The second view is of a French man who has dreams of a different France and succumbs to help from a dark source. The last is of a slave who successfully fights off the binding her ‘owners’ have placed on her to discover her own brand of magic.
It is not a fast-paced story. It is more about roiling emotions, changing dynamics between people in general and a battlefield that brews over time and then explodes towards the end of the book. The story, however, does not end with this book. This last part seemed slightly like a let down because I was making good reading progress towards the end and felt that the pace had picked up. I hoped to reach the conclusion of the narrative, but I was foolish enough to assume that because there was every evidence to the contrary. There is a lot of unfinished business between our key players as well as the resurgence of dark magic to contend with. It is not a weekend read, even the swiftest of readers will have to take their time to process the details.
I am not the kind of person to research the history of a whole continent in-depth to better understand a story. Despite knowing next to nothing about the facts, I still enjoyed the interplay of magic into reality. I cannot vouch for the experience of people who have actual knowledge of the facts. Overall, I recommend this to people who like historical fiction with a twist. I would have loved it even more if it was a little more concise in size (although I know that it is a tall order).
I look forward to the concluding part.

Rating: 4 out of 5.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

Actual rating: 2.5

I got this both as an eArc from NetGalley (thank you!) and also in my GSFF sub. I DNFed this book at 20%.
From my investigations, I can see you'll either be in the "loved it" side or "I reaaaally tried and failed to continue" side.

Short review:
Look, the cover is gorgeous, the premise fascinating, but I struggled to keep my eyes open. It reads too close to history, instead of historical fiction with magic. The pace was slow, the dialogue dull, the details minute and the magic scarce.

Long review (no spoilers):

This is such a bizarre situation. A book I thought I would DNF (The Court or Miracles) ended up captivating me both intelectually and emotional, and a book I thought I would love (this one) ended up boring me to tears and DNF-ing it.

Writing and pace:
Historically and politically heavy, this story suffers from telling rather than showing.
The pace is very slow, the plot complex and the narrative chock-full of minute details or clunky dialogue which made every page a chore, I was struggling to follow along, to untangle the political complexities and to understand the brutal historical events. It drained me.

The magic was conspicuously absent throughout. For a book that literally has the word in its title, this element is scarcely used, though to the author's credit, she did use it with taste and blended it seamlessly into the 1800s narrative.

Worldbuilding:
I appreciate both the tremendous work and the accuracy level, but that's exactly why this wasn't for me. True enough, the French Revolution, the Haitian Uprising and the abolition of slavery are painful, gut-wretching topics, but adding magic to this world *should* have brought an air of wonder, whimsy and adventure (it didn't).

There were quite a few humorous moments between Pitt and Wellworth, and some of the political maneuvering sparked my interest, but was very heavy handed, making me ask my British boyfriend a million questions about a topic I've never found interesting.

Overall, there was something gripping about the writing style, but the pace was incredible undigestable. The depiction of magic in the real world was so... painfully accurate and realistic that it stripped the atmosphere of any charm and magic. It felt just like any history book with an added element.  And the subject itself is very harsh and serious (as it should be), but I feel this book did nothing with this wonderful and whimsical magical element.

<b>Rating: 2.5</b>

This book really was fantastic, I was hooked from page one right until the end. This book is quite unlike anything I have every read. I love the way it effortlessly blends real history with magic. It was a very well written book and its obvious that the author has done a lot of research.

This story is set in the late 1700's in a time of great political upheaval from the French Revolution and slave uprisings. It certainly is an interesting time period with a lot going on, the added magic makes it is a rollercoaster of chaos. I really loved that it had many point of views and we really got to know all the chacracters and their importance politically. For me the heavy politics of this book was really fascinating, all the charcaters were changing the world and making stuff happen. This is not an action packed fantasy with lots of epic fights. There is fighting and bloodshed and we do see some of this firsthand but most of the issues are dealt with by discussions and strategy.

The whole story was gripping and I loved every minute of it! Because it is based on real events it really was quite emotional at times, I could feel the characters frustration and I would curse some of their awful choices.

I like how it has set up for book 2 really well and I'm really excited to see how this will play out. I would 100% recommend this book, especially if you love the time period and political fantasies.

I have a lot of thoughts on A Declaration on the Rights of Magicians so I’m going to try to organise them into something coherent.

Characters
This book follows a large cast of characters and not all of them are as fleshed out as they could have been. We follow three main perspectives, that of Robespierre, William Pitt and Fina. Most of the character-building is done through dialogue, as not much action happens throughout the book.

I felt very disconnected from the characters and it often felt like I was just reading from their Wikipedia pages. This is a very in-depth historical fantasy based on real people, but we don’t go into their thoughts too deeply. The only story I was really invested in was Fina’s, and she most certainly didn’t get enough page time.

Characters = 5

Atmosphere
This book spans over decades and continents. It’s a big story, so there’s not enough time spent in one place. Once again it was like reading a Wikipedia page on alternative history. Important battles and history are only mentioned in passing and frankly, would have made for a much more interesting story.

The focus of the book was too broad to capture the finer details that make us care for the characters and the world. It’s a brilliant story and very well researched, it just wasn’t my kind of story.

Atmosphere = 5

Writing
I have no issues with the writing. Parry is a good writer who put a lot of thought and research into this book and it shines through in her writing.

Writing = 6

Plot
Here’s my biggest issue. This book was painstakingly slow and really boring at times. There was a lot of dialogue and not enough action. You’d think that the premise of magic woven into our real history would be amazing to explore. There are so many possibilities. Instead, we get a lot of dialogue, a lot of back-and-forths, and philosophical waxing about slavery (here’s a hint: IT’S BAD).

I like my stories to the point, and if you beat around the bush I want to beat you with a bush. It was tedious. The POV shifts were also very unbalanced and interesting events (like the vampire wars) are just breezed over. I would read a 500-page book about the vampire kings, but one that’s all talk and no action is not up my alley.

Plot = 4

Intrigue
As I said, the premise is really interesting. However, this is the fourth book I’ve read this year on the French Revolution and frankly, I’m tired of it. History is vast, and I’m tired of being stuck in the 1700s with a bunch of white dudes. Yes, I know this is my own problem and I need to branch out with my historical fiction readings.

While there’s nothing wrong with writing about the time period, I’m just a little over it. I’m not usually a historical fiction reader, so I wasn’t very intrigued by the dialogue and events.

Intrigue = 4

Logic
The magic system was really interesting. The use of the Knights Templar to regulate magic was also really interesting (and now I want to read something about the Crusades). I would have loved to go more in-depth about how magic worked, and I really wanted a Templar POV. It would have made the magic system more tangible and real.

Logic = 5

Enjoyment
I did enjoy this book at certain intervals. It has a great premise and lovers of historical fiction and fantasy will enjoy this one immensely.

Enjoyment = 4

CAWPILE = 4.7/10

Stars = 3

Set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, or to be precise, the Age of Enlightenment (1979-1994), 'A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians' is a sweeping, epic tale dripping with politics, history, magic, pain and darkness.

It is set in an alternate history where magic exists but is very strictly controlled, where people are allowed to use magic only for their self defense. Slavery exists and the slaves are spellbound, which means they are compelled to do any job that their masters want and their bodies move automatically to the orders given to them.

One such slave is Fina, who was plucked from her home and family and thrown into the horror of slavery. Many things were snatched from her but her strong magic wasn't one of those things because her magic was just too powerful to do so. So, one ordinary night, when she hears a voice inside her head to rise to the rebellion, she sets on a journey to achieve freedom for all the slaves, using her powers.

France is in the middle of a revolution to achievement their motto of Liberté, égalité, fraternité. But as the revolution continues, it unveils a France that people had only seen in their worst nightmares.

In England, Prime Minister William Pitt is trying his best to legalize magic among commoners and abolish slave trade. But the situation in France and Saint Dominigue makes it not only harder, but almost impossible to pass these laws in the House of Commoners.

What I really liked about this book was that this book is a perfect blend of history and magic, that is, the book included real-life characters and instances but still magic was a very important element to the plot. Also, I highly appreciate the level of research that the author had done before writing this novel which is highly evident in the novel. The setting of the novel alternates between London, France and the Carribean islands. The words were crafted in such a manner that the reader would be able to feel for each and every character.

What I didn't like about this book is that it is really long (544 pages) and some parts felt downright boring and stretched on. I really wish it was edited to be shortened as it took me eons to finally finish reading this book. Also, there instances where I had no idea what was going on.

I recommend this book to history geeks (being a geek is a good thing) and politics lovers.

I thank Orbit books and NetGalley for giving me this wonderful opportunity.

trigger warning (not a complete list since I dnf'ed this!)
<spoiler> kidnapping, control of body through magic, trauma </spoiler>

In an alternate history version of our earth, the French revolution was - at least in part - about the freedom to use magic if you were born with the ability. Magic is used on slaves. The Knights Templar control magic use. You can't even use it to save your loved ones in an attack - things need to change.

I didn't get far in this one. If you look up different reviews, there seem to be two kinds of experiences: You either love it or are very, very board for a few hundred pages.
Since I realised pretty early that I fall in the latter camp, I gave up. Because there are books like this, and the only thing I can do is come back later, maybe in a few years, and give it a go - but as this is an arc, and they want me to write something now, I want to urge you to give it a try. Maybe go and find an excerp, simply try it out and see in which camp you belong.

Be warned that the content matter is pretty gruesome in places and that, even if you like it, it's more of a slow burn.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.

I loved The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep, H. G. Parry’s debut novel, so when I saw that she had a new book coming out, I knew I had to read it and I wasn’t disappointed. A Declaration of Rights of Magicians is a unique and very-well written novel where fantasy and historical fiction perfectly blend together.

Set in late 18th century, the story features a world where there is magic and it is strictly controlled. In France, we are in the middle of the French revolution and the beginning of the Reign of Terror of Maximilien Robespierre. In England, Prime Minister William Pitt tries to convince the House of Commons to abolish slave trade while looking with worry at the situation in France. In Haiti, slaves fight for their freedom.

The story features real-life historical characters that everyone who studied history in school is familiar with. Maximilien Robespierre, George Danton, William Pitt are names that have made history and I remember them from my school days. The author did an amazing job recreating them on the pages of her novel. They are so well-crafted and drawn that they came to life under the author’s pen. I wanted them to succeed, I wanted to slap them when they were made wrong choices, and I felt sorry for them.

A Declaration of The Rights of Magicians is an epic story of magic and politics full of political intrigue, idealism, people who want to change the world, humor, and darkness. I really enjoyed reading A Declaration of The Rights of Magicians, but I won’t lie, it is a big book, more than 500 pages, and there are moments when the narrative dulls and slows down. I am a fast reader and yet it took me longer than I expected to finish it, but despite this, I still loved the story and the characters and I heard there is a sequel planned for publication next year that I am not going to miss.

What would the era of the French Revolution have been like if magic had been a factor, and not only that, but with laws that state commoners cannot use their own magic unless it is purely in self-defence (not even, at the start of the book, the ability to use your magic to save a loved one). 

Slavery exists, and magic is used against them to totally compel the slaves to be under the total control of the slave masters - their bodies moving automatically in response to orders while they scream in their own minds, turning an already horrific thing into something even worse.

The book is told from the POVs of many characters and while it jolts you out of the story a little as it jumps from 1779 every few years until the end of the book in 1794, but it fits the essence of the book which also would have been an unsettling time. Jumping from POV tells you how each state of the world is at that point in time without weighing down the book with unrelated narrative and brings along quite a cast of characters through the time. 

And it's engaging. There's brilliant characters (most of whom are from our own history) and the friendships they share (one bromance in particular) makes this so readable. The writing is of quality, the alternate history is seamless, and I'm greatly looking forward to the second in this duology!

I was hoping for something like Jonathan strange and Mr Norrell, and there were some similarities. Set in the time of the French Revolution, the cast of characters includes Pitt, Charles Fox, William Wilberforce and Robespierre, as well as an enslaved girl from Africa called Fina. I enjoyed the historical detail, and the way that magic was woven into the world. However, I found that rather than being drawn deeper in as I read, I got bored of the repetive politics and speeches. The parallel story about slavery was the most interesting but the smallest part of the story, but I'm not sure whether involving magic in these real historical events really worked. It certainly added an interesting element to the fear and changes of regime in the French Revolution, and the idea of overthrowing the monarchy and using common magic as an allegory for democracy and the power of the people was interesting. However, it seemed almost tasteless to describe slavery as literally taking away bodily autonomy, through spellbinding, when the real life historical events were so awful. A mixed read them, that could probably be edited into a shorter, punchier story.

I’ve actually opted to not give this book a star rating (I’ll probably set it to three stars in the places that don’t let you leave things blank so if you spy that anywhere that will be why) mostly because I don’t think I can judge this book particularly well as a white lady in the UK.

So this book is described in the authors note/acknowledgements as “a mythologisation of the real history of Britain, France and Haiti in the eighteenth century” – and knowing that was the aim did help me to get my head around this book a little.

The aspect of these three storylines about which I know the most is the British history portion – not only did I do a ‘Pitt to Peel’ paper for A level history (which sounds like it is about fruit but is in fact about British Prime Ministers) – but I also had what may have been an unhealthy obsession with the film Amazing Grace detailing William Wilberforce’s involvement in the abolition movement in Britain – I did a lot of reading around the subject at the same time and I’d say I have a fairly good handle on the way events are presented in the history books.* What I didn’t know much about was the French and Haitian aspects of this story – in some ways, this book was an interesting ‘bounce off’ point for research in that regard, I wanted to know how much was ‘mythologising’ and what was ‘real’. I like a historical fantasy that inspires me to go and look at that period of history and in that sense, this book was a success.

I suppose my difficulty is questioning whether this is an area of history we ought to be mythologising? While this book does deal with magic and slavery as separate things (at one point I feared it was a ‘find and replace slavery for magic’ job but thankfully it was not) it still entwines the two in a way that I’m not sure works. I suppose my fear is that by pushing even a small amount of the abolition movement into myth then it paves the way for the entire thing to start to feel like a fantasy story. Especially given that, while this was some two centuries ago, the ramifications are still being felt around the world today. The book tackles the abolition of the slave trade in England – but not only were we still paying back those families who benefitted from the slave trade with taxes until 2015, there is also a lot of current discourse around modern slavery. To push slavery into the stuff of myth, to place it alongside vampires and armies of the undead feels…just a little off to me. Hence my lack of a rating, I know I’m not the person who gets to decide what is problematic or not, and I certainly don’t want to get into a ‘who is the most woke’ discussion. I’m genuinely posing the question – where historical fantasy is involved how do we draw the lines?

Setting that aside for a moment to discuss the actual book, I still think H G Parry is a very talented speculative fiction author. This book had the same huge scope that her first book had, managing to handle a large number of interconnecting plot threads and also managing to keep the most important cards close to the metaphorical chest – only revealing them at the most intense and devastating moments. It’s good writing (though the book did drag a little at the start so one to definitely press on with). One issue I did have was in how the fantasy and historical elements were blended. Again I can only speak to the British aspect of the book but I found it jarring to have one scene where it depicted a genuine moment from history that we know happened with people who did exist and lived saying things that they actually said…and in the next chapter you have characters from history heading off to fight vampires? I didn’t feel the same disconnect with the French and Haitian portions – but I wonder if that is because of my distance from that historical narrative? I’d be interested to hear from both those who know those narratives well and those who don’t have the same British knowledge as I do – whether this is a product of ‘knowing too much’ or if the British segment is, in fact, more disparate?

Should you read this? I would say if you’re able to think critically about the material then it is an interesting take on a period of history. As I say it did provide some jumping-off points for me personally – I’ll be looking to learn more about the Haitian revolution for sure – so if that is why you read historical fiction/fantasy then I would say that might be a good thing as well. But if you’re looking to learn about Britain’s role in the slave trade and the arduous journey towards abolition – it sounds obvious but I think you need to head on over to the non-fiction aisle.

*This is an odd phrasing intentionally – as an ancient history/archaeology student I’d say the biggest thing I learned is that history changes.

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians is out now!