I really thought I would like this book as the premise seemed to be something I would enjoy, but I really struggled with the writing style. I found it really difficult to follow and I didn’t care enough about the characters to find the motivation to continue.

An absolutely fabulous romp through Edwardian England. The world building is both subtle in some senses and clever, and never takes away from character development or action. The characters themselves are lively and fun and the intimate scenes are brilliant! Heartily recommend

Gays, magic and a big mystery to keep you hooked. It was. fun ride in edwardian britain where wizards live secretly among normal humans, only their worlds collide when one human is cursed and needs the help of his government colleague. Can't wait for the next instalment!

The main characters are endearing and frustrating. The romance between them is a lovely slow burn interspersed with a magical mystery that is solved through lots of twists turns and betrayals. An enjoyable start to a trilogy.

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.

I really wanted to like this! The concept is right up my street, and I went in hopeful.

But the writing and characters just didn’t work for me - things felt contrived, deliberately ‘quirky.’ Perhaps it’s my cynicism; I just couldn’t engage. I did try! Apologies, DNF.

Gays and magic seems like the absolute best time. Add in a soft historical setting and you usually have me sold. However the pacing of this was way too slow for me and I really struggled to pick this up. In fact it took me over a month to read because se the constant meandering and stalling by the characters to further any aspect of the plot was getting excruciating.

As someone who reads a lot of fantasy I'm also really picky with the magical systems and world building in my fantasy books, and I think that in this the lore is lacking in favour of the romance and historical aesthetics. I absolutely love my fantasy that spends a long time developing a history to the magic and world, and here the reader is dropped a bit too readily into the world without this build up. The plot itself is also largely predictable, with an antagonist that feeds off a lot of stereotypes.

That said this was overall a fun read, and an interesting magic system kept me intrigued, although the slow pacing did not.

It took me a while to get into this, but when I did I could understand why this was such a popular book that I kept hearing about.

The premise of magic made through cradles was unique, I'd not seen that way of using magic in a book before, but it was definitely an interesting one. Add in an alternate England where magic is hidden in certain families, romance and a mystery to follow, there's not much else you'd want in a book.

I'll be intrigued to see how the mystery plays out in the other books as I can see it's with different characters, I think I'll miss Robin and Edwin quite a bit as their journey from strangers, to friends, to lovers was such fun to read. Hopefully we get that from the other books too!

Complex relationships, a unique magic system, and queerness in the regency period is such a perfect mix. Loved this one and can’t wait to get round to reading the next one

I read this book over a year ago, so the details are a little hazy.

But what I do remember is that this book was a fun read about queer Edwardian magicians. It lost and confused me once or twice, but we got there in the end.

You have to read this book, though, so you can then read its EXCELLENT sequel, A Marvellous Light.

What I liked most about this book was the unique magic system. It was a breath of fresh air and you could tell that the author had spent a lot of time and care on it.
The relationship between Edwin & Robin was wonderful to see and I liked that it grew over time and as they got to know one another.
I’m very interested to see where the plot goes next

'A Marvellous Light’ is a gay regency era romance novel that happens to be set in a fantasy world. It’s creative, well written – especially the relationships, both romantic and otherwise – and a generally fun read.

Robin Blyth has more than enough to contend with, what with his sister to care for, a household to run, and a whole mess caused by his parents excesses to sort out now he’s inherited the baroncy. The last thing he needs is an administrative mistake seeing him named the civil service liaison to a hidden magical society. Now, he also has to contend with an excruciating deadly curse, and worse than that Edwin Courcey, his prickly counterpart in magical bureaucracy who wishes Robin were literally anyone else. However, Robin’s predecessor has disappeared, and tracking him down unveils a plot that threatens every magician in the British Isles – and a secret that more than one person has already died to keep.

Robin is a brilliant character. He’s not always the brightest, but he’s determined, forthright, and jumps into everything with two feet even if he hasn’t sussed where he’s landing. His relationship with Edwin – a pessimist and consummate planner – is regularly hilarious with some brilliant moments. Robin would be frustrating to know in real life in many respects, but you could trust him to the end of the earth and he’s a great person to have at your back.

Edwin, on the other hand, uses a cold demeanour and sharp intellect to hide deep insecurities. He’s lived his whole life feeling inadequate, and clearly doesn’t know what to make of the warm and frank Robin. Magic and Edwin have a difficult relationship, and seeing how Robin reacts to it clearly opens Edwin’s eyes to new ways of thinking. They’re a brilliant pairing, and their slow-burn chemistry is exceptionally well-written.

Whilst there’s a strong fantasy element and an underlying mystery, this is at its heart a gay novel of manners or regency romance. Edwin and Robin’s developing relationship is given more page time and focus than any other element, and there are multiple romance tropes squeezed in. Those who don’t like sex scenes may have to skip a few chapters.

That being said, the fantasy setting is still excellent. The magic system is strongly and believably constructed, the worldbuilding simple but effective, and the subtly different culture well crafted. This is no epic fantasy, but it knows its own limitations and works within them well.

The plot is reasonably fast paced, with a good mix of predictable tropes and less predictable twists. There’s strong character growth for both Edwin and Robin, and a good exploration of both their romantic relationship and complex family relationships. The mystery, fantasy, and romance elements all complement each other without clashing, and whilst the relationships between characters are the main focus the mystery would still stand on its own.

Overall, this is an easy, fun read that will appeal to fans of fantasy romance, regency novel settings, and those looking for a readable, page-turning fantasy novel.

this book was entirely wonderful. the writing was fun an engaging, and felt really upbeat which some period novels sometimes miss out on. the prose is definitely a but flowery, but interesting nonetheless. freya marske creates such an interesting magical world here, and takes a london/england we think we know and makes it so much more. edwin and robin were both fantastic characters, and i hope to see them again in some way!!

Thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan / Tor for my arc.

This book is set in an alternative Edwardian Britain where magicians exist in secret. And I loved the Downtown Abbey feel of the book with magic subtly threaded through the lives of the upper class magicians.

This may be an odd take but I found this story oddly relaxing. Despite one of our MCs being cursed early on, a murder mystery and both of our MCs having to hide their sexuality due to society and laws of the time - I found I was quite happy to potter along with Edwin and Robin as they tried to solve the mysteries of the curse and the missing Reggie. To go on the journey with them as they navigated the magical and non magical upper class society, revealed their sexualities to each other, grow closer in the quiet alcoves of the Courcey Library and eventually start to fall in love was a joy.

I loved the romance aspect of this book so much and I really appreciated the open door scenes, not just for the smut aspect but for the character insights and growth.

However, there were a few parts of this book that I felt drew parallels with the series written by the transphobe; The Assembly being hidden in plain sight in London with government style employees, a fairytale detailing 3 magical items etc. Whether this was intentional or not I'm not sure, but it took me out if the story a bit.

Overall I really enjoyed it though and found the world building and magical system fascinating, especially the 'cradling' based on the game Cat's Cradle.

I'm also very glad that this is a series because this story was left very open ended.
I want to see more of Robin and Edwin in future books but I know book two focuses on Robin's sister Maud so I guess we'll see what happens!

CW: sexual content, blood, injury, abusive family members, death, murder

A Marvellous Light surprised me, in the best way possible. I wasn’t sure what to expect - the blurb didn’t necessarily make it sound special: a story set in Edwardian England, with a secret magical society, and two men (one with magic, one without) being thrust together into a magical adventure.

Though the story itself wasn’t all that mind-blowing, it was fun enough to keep me going. The characters, and the romance, are what really kept me interested. Robin and Edwin seem an unlikely pair at first, but their slow-burn romance is written so well, you slowly start to see what attracts them to one another, and how they were a perfect fit from the beginning.

What I didn’t expect at all, however, was how spicy this book is. And well-written smut it is! Boundaries are respected, while things are explored. Honestly, the smut in A Marvellous Light was written better than a lot of romance novels.

A Marvellous Light is the first part of a series, but can be read as a stand-lone if you don’t mind a few unfinished questions. Personally, I’m very excited about the next part.

I really thought this was going to be a five star read as for the majority I loved this book, in particular the characters! But for some reason it took me ages to actually get it finished, due to a busy work life sadly. So I didn’t feel as connected to the story as I hoped by the time I finished it. I’m extremely excited for the sequel and hoping I can read it in a much smaller amount of time to ensure I give it my upmost attention. A Marvellous Light is definitely a fantastic novel that I will be recommending as much as possible.

I was really excited about this book because the synopsis sounded fascinating. But the writing did nothing for me. Besides, the characters seem flat, dull and uninteresting. So I didn't have much motivation to continue reading.

A Marvellous Light is my favourite kind of a fantasy novel, because it's a romance fantasy. Not to say that the fantasy part isn't important or interesting, or well developed! Simply that the romance part is truly the heart of the story.

And it's an incredible romance, at that. The characters actually feel like real people, which means their chemistry is out of this world. And you actually can't help but root for them! Every part of the plot seems even more interesting, simply because you're so heavily invested into this relationship.

I’d heard great things about this book and was thrilled to be asked to be part of the blog tour. This is such a refreshing read and one I know I’ll keep going back to.

Packed full of mystery, mayhem and murder, with sharp and engaging narrative, this is one of my favourites this year!

I really can’t believe that this is a debut. Freya is a talented storyteller, a fantastic writer and I was gripped from the very start.

Pure story throughout in this Edwardian caper and Edwin and Robin are well primed for further adventures and I can’t wait to read all about them!

Loved this book! Absolutely raced through it! I really enjoyed the detailed magic system and the 'alternate history' vibe of the world building. The characterisation was excellent and I loved the central relationship!