Genre: Historical Fiction

Review – All Of Us Murderers

Posted November 18, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 6 Comments

Review – All Of Us Murderers

All of Us Murderers

by KJ Charles

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance
Pages: 343
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

A genre-bending Gothic mystery with a strong LGBTQIA+ romance from beloved, award-winning author KJ Charles.

When Zeb Wyckham is summoned to a wealthy relative’s remote Gothic house on Dartmoor, he finds all the people he least wants to see in the world—his estranged brother, his loathsome cousins, and his bitter ex-lover, Gideon Grey. Nothing, he is certain, could possibly be worse.

Then the grizzled old patriarch announces the true purpose of the gathering: He intends to leave the vast family fortune to whichever of the men marries Cousin Jessamine, setting off a violent scramble for her hand and his wealth. Disinterested in being tied further to a family he can barely stand, Zeb tries to leave…only to realize that he’s been trapped. The walls are high, the gates are locked, and when the mists roll in, there’s no way out.

And there may be something trapped within the dark monstrosity of a house with them.

Fear and paranoia ramping ever-higher, Zeb has nowhere to turn but to the man who once held his whole heart. As the mists descend, the gaslight flickers, and terror takes its hold, two warring lovers must reconcile in time to uncover the murderous mysteries of Lackaday House—and live to tell the tale.

It took me a bit to get into KJ Charles’ All of Us Murderers: I was pretty sure I would enjoy it, because I’ve really enjoyed almost all of her books, but the opening has almost the whole cast being really unpleasant to each other. Which I should’ve perhaps expected, given that it’s heavily gothic in inspiration, but I guess it felt like a bit of added nastiness than the main character plainly has ADHD, and that’s used as a weapon against him.

That said, once Gideon and Zeb actually start talking to each other and not just sniping, and especially as they work through what happened and start working together, it becomes a lot more fun. It isn’t just Zeb with a massive target on his back, but the two of them against the united forces of Zeb’s horrible family, and you can be pretty sure they’ll win out in the end.

It didn’t take me long to figure out basically what was happening, but it was still interesting to be along for the ride and watch Zeb steadfastly refusing to believe in supernatural occurrences… and it was still fun to have the dramatic and very gothic reveals of what exactly is going on, and what the plan is.

Gideon and Zeb — once they’re talking to each other — make a good team, and I love that (despite his self-recriminations) it’s really plain that their break-up wasn’t all Zeb’s fault. There’s a bit of sharpness round the edges with how they’ve handled Zeb’s ADHD together in the past: Gideon covering for him and taking care of him, but also sometimes getting exasperated and seeming to treat him like a child, or sniping at him because of it. The relationship feels so vivid and realistic, even (or especially?) against the ridiculous gothic background.

To clarify: when I call it a ridiculous gothic background, I say this with affection. Charles was clearly having fun with the setting and genre, and I enjoyed it very much. But it’s ridiculous all the same, if you try to explain the plot outside of the story itself and all the atmospheric trappings it builds up.

I was a bit surprised by how it ended for Zeb and Gideon, because that felt pretty un-gothic — but then, they could hardly have had a happy ending if they’d let the gothic story decide their fate, and this was the best way for them to be happy. I was very pleased by that part!

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – The Duke at Hazard

Posted November 9, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Review – The Duke at Hazard

The Duke at Hazard

by KJ Charles

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 336
Series: The Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune #3
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

The Duke of Severn is one of the greatest men in Britain.

He's also short, quiet, and unimpressive. And now he's been robbed, after indulging in one rash night with a strange man who stole the heirloom Severn ring from his finger. The Duke has to get it back, and he can't let anyone know how he lost it. So when his cousin bets that he couldn't survive without his privilege and title, the Duke grasps the opportunity to hunt down his ring-incognito.

Life as an ordinary person is terrifying... until the anonymous Duke meets Daizell Charnage, a disgraced gentleman, and hires him to help. Racing across the country in search of the thief, the Duke and Daizell fall into scrapes, into trouble-and in love.

I don’t why it took me so long to get round to reading The Duke at Hazard, because I pretty much always love KJ Charles’ work — I think it’s mostly that my expectations are always so high now, I get a little nervous that it won’t stand up… and/or I try to save it for “the right moment”. Anyway, I’m glad I stopped hesitating about/saving The Duke at Hazard, though I wish I’d read The Gentle Art of Fortune-Hunting again first, since there are cameo appearances it’d have been nice to fully appreciate. It’s not necessary, though, and I enjoyed this very much.

Cassian’s a sweetheart. He needs a backbone (which he develops) and the strength to speak up about his own preferences, and fit himself inside the role of the Duke of Severn (or fit the role inside of him), but he genuinely adores Daizell and always means to do well by him. And Daizell… has been dealt a bad hand, isn’t entirely a gentleman, but deserves so much more than he’s had so far. Together, they both get chances to prove themselves, and it’s lovely — even if the inevitable misunderstanding part was unavoidably awful, and Daizell’s absolutely right that Cassian owed him more of the truth.

My favourite part was probably Cassian’s enthusiasm about churches etc, and Daizell finding them interesting because of Cassian’s joy in it all. Now that’s a love language I know well!

The supporting characters are quite fun too, like Miss Beaumont and Leo, and Cassian’s character shines through there as well. I especially love the affection between him and his family, though: it would be easy to villainise them for the ways they messed the poor guy up, but it’s clear they did it with the best of intentions, and with true affection for him.

I love the way it all works out as the people Cassian cares for — and has stuck his neck out for — each bring a piece of the puzzle to get the truth out there. It’s all very satisfying.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – You Should Be So Lucky

Posted October 31, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 4 Comments

Review – You Should Be So Lucky

You Should Be So Lucky

by Cat Sebastian

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 395
Rating: five-stars
Synopsis:

The 1960 baseball season is shaping up to be the worst year of Eddie O’Leary’s life. He can’t manage to hit the ball, his new teammates hate him, he’s living out of a suitcase, and he’s homesick. When the team’s owner orders him to give a bunch of interviews to some snobby reporter, he’s ready to call it quits. He can barely manage to behave himself for the length of a game, let alone an entire season. But he’s already on thin ice, so he has no choice but to agree.

Mark Bailey is not a sports reporter. He writes for the arts page, and these days he’s barely even managing to do that much. He’s had a rough year and just wants to be left alone in his too-empty apartment, mourning a partner he’d never been able to be public about. The last thing he needs is to spend a season writing about New York’s obnoxious new shortstop in a stunt to get the struggling newspaper more readers.

Isolated together within the crush of an anonymous city, these two lonely souls orbit each other as they slowly give in to the inevitable gravity of their attraction. But Mark has vowed that he’ll never be someone’s secret ever again, and Eddie can’t be out as a professional athlete. It’s just them against the world, and they’ll both have to decide if that’s enough.

I’ve enjoyed a lot of Cat Sebastian’s books, but We Could Be So Good and You Should Be So Lucky are probably my favourites, and I think the best written. This one features Eddie, a baseball player, and Mark, a reporter who usually writes book reviews (and really has no need to work at all thanks to having quite a lot of money) who ends up covering his career and the slump he’s in.

Eddie’s an absolute disaster-sweetheart: he has very little filter, he says what he thinks even what he thinks isn’t something that should be voiced to reporters, and he hasn’t yet had to really work at being a baseball player. Mark’s… grumpier, and guarding a hurt he can’t really talk about, after the unexpected loss of his boyfriend, but he can’t help but respond to Eddie’s sunniness and find himself slowly wanting to participate in the world again. Also, he has a dog, who of course gets loved on by Eddie.

We do also see a few glimpses of characters from We Could Be So Good — having read it isn’t necessary to enjoy this one, but if you have, then it’s lovely to see the cameo appearances.

I loved the way this patiently worked through Mark’s fears and inability to say that this is what he wants for sure. Eddie doesn’t push it too far or rush, he’s far too decent, and so there’s a slow burn effect even though their attraction is obvious fairly early on. There’s also a fair bit of growth for Eddie though, not just in his relationship with Mark — though he does have to be sure about his feelings and find ways to make that relationship work — but as a baseball player and a part of his team too, giving the whole thing a satisfying story other than the relationship. His relationship with his mother is adorable.

Also, this will seem like a non-sequitur if you haven’t read the book, but it made me want to reread The Haunting of Hill House.

Overall, just lovely and warm and kind. It does reckon constantly with the homophobia of the period, but it finds ways for Eddie and Mark to live as honestly as they can despite it, and their relationship is adorable.

Rating: 5/5 (“loved it”)

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Review – Mr Collins in Love

Posted September 17, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Review – Mr Collins in Love

Mr Collins in Love

by Lee Welch

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 151
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

The year is 1811 and the new rector of Hunsford, Mr William Collins, must be above reproach. He must be respectable, pious, good at losing at quadrille, and disapproving of popular novels. Above all, he must obey his terrifying patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

When William’s boyhood friend Jem arrives, looking for safe harbour from the press-gangs, William’s ‘perfect clergyman’ disguise begins to slip. A farm labourer’s son, Jem is gentle and loyal, and being with him is all William wants. Soon, Jem and William renew their youthful intimacies—until Lady Catherine’s demands come between them.

Can William find a way to navigate the Regency marriage market without losing his beloved Jem?

This m/m historical romance is a Pride and Prejudice spin-off and features characters from the original novel by Jane Austen alongside original characters.

Lee Welch’s Mr Collins in Love is based around, yep, Mr Collins from Pride & Prejudice: the book is written from his point of view, and with empathy toward him. Here he’s coded as being on the spectrum, and powerfully concerned with keeping up appearances in order to be able to maintain the quiet home life he loves — which leaves him stuck between the problem of needing to marry to satisfy his patroness, while not wanting to bring home a young wife who will disrupt his household.

That need intensifies when a friend from his boyhood arrives and asks to be taken in. They aren’t of the same social status, but that never mattered when they were kids, and Mr Collins finds that it doesn’t matter when they’re alone together now, either, which becomes a powerful comfort to him.

The vibe here is really gentle, and it’s less about all-consuming romance than comfort and having someone you can be yourself with. Mr Collins loves Jem, undoubtedly, and he does say so, but it’s more about the companionship between them, and finding a way to continue the way they’ve been. They don’t kiss, they barely touch, and I can see why some readers don’t find it much of a romance, but relationships don’t all have to look exactly the same to be a real romance.

I did also enjoy the stuff that fleshed out Mr Collins’ everyday world — the work he does as a rector, the work he enjoys in the garden — and the practical arrangement he comes to with Charlotte Lucas, which promises another potential kindred soul, or at least the continuation of his quiet and peaceful world.

I think Welch did a great job; I’m not a Pride & Prejudice fan, nor a superfan of Austen in general, so maybe purists would hate it, or fans would want more of it to be explored, like Collins’ interactions with the Bennets (we only really see Mr Bennet). Personally I don’t think I’d have wanted much more of it (and I found the scene with Mr Bennet quite awful because he so clearly mocks Collins), so it seemed perfect to me. I might’ve liked a little more of the aftermath, with Charlotte Lucas moving into Collins’ home, but the promise of gentle contentment is enough.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – The Sea Road

Posted August 26, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Review – The Sea Road

The Sea Road

by Margaret Elphinstone

Genres: Historical Fiction
Pages: 256
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

A haunting, compelling historical novel, The Sea Road is a daring re-telling of the 11th-century Viking exploration of the North Atlantic from the viewpoint of one extraordinary woman. Gudrid lives at the remote edge of the known world, in a starkly beautiful landscape where the sea is the only connection to the shores beyond. It is a world where the old Norse gods are still invoked, even as Christianity gains favour, where the spirits of the dead roam the vast northern ice-fields, tormenting the living, and Viking explorers plunder foreign shores.

Taking the accidental discovery of North America as its focal point, Gudrid's narrative describes a multi-layered voyage into the unknown, all recounted with astonishing immediacy and rich atmospheric detail.

Margaret Elphinstone’s The Sea Road is a retelling of the story of Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir, a woman who appears in a couple of the Icelandic sagas, including Eirik the Red. She was one of the early converts to Christianity, so this book takes the format of the story she tells about herself to a fellow Icelander who is a priest, Agnar, who is tasked with recording her strange story. They’re both the major characters, although we only actually “hear” Agnar in the prologue and the epilogue.

Part of the format works quite well, but the conceit of Agnar writing absolutely everything Gudrid says — even idly chitchat between the two of them — doesn’t quite work, especially since he doesn’t also record his answers. At times, Elphinstone seems to have found the format too limiting, and adds in sections in italics that I think are meant to show us what really happened, outside of Gudrid’s knowledge and without her mediating it. That felt kinda clunky to me.

That said, for the most part I thought this worked really well: Gudrid is a pretty warm character, and the way that warmth and vitality draws Agnar in is pretty good. It extrapolates the sagas into a story that lives and breathes, bringing vivid realism to Gudrid’s relationships with her husbands and her feelings about them, her experiences with her children, and the remarkable events she witnesses, all mingled together and remembered by her as something that happened long ago. I really liked it, and thought it did a good job with the material (though purists would never be happy, and those hoping for pure historical fiction would be disappointed, since there are ghosts mentioned several times).

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – Murder at the Dolphin Hotel

Posted August 9, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Review – Murder at the Dolphin Hotel

Murder at the Dolphin Hotel

by Helena Dixon

Genres: Crime, Historical Fiction, Mystery
Pages: 252
Series: Miss Underhay #1
Rating: two-stars
Synopsis:

June 1933. Independent young Kitty Underhay has been left in charge of her family's hotel, The Dolphin, on the tranquil English coast. She's expecting her days at the bustling resort to be filled with comfortable chatter with chambermaids as they polish the mahogany desk and glittering candelabras of the elegant foyer. Everything must be perfect for the arrival of a glamourous jazz singer from Chicago and a masked ball that will be the cultural highlight of the season.

But when several rooms are broken into and searched, including Kitty's own, she quickly realises that something out of the ordinary is afoot at the hotel. Soon rumours are flying in the cozy town that someone is on the hunt for a stolen ruby. A ruby that Kitty's mother may well have possessed when she herself went missing during the Great War. And when the break-ins are followed by a series of attacks and murders, including of the town's former mayoress, it seems the perpetrator will stop at nothing to find it.

Aided by ex-army captain Matthew Bryant, the Dolphin's new security officer, Kitty is determined to decipher this mystery and preserve not only the reputation of her hotel, but also the lives of her guests. Is there a cold-blooded killer under her own roof? And what connects the missing jewel to the mystery from Kitty's own past?

Helena Dixon’s Murder at the Dolphin Hotel is a competent enough mystery that I found mildly entertaining. I think that damns it with faint praise a little, but unfortunately it’s how I feel: I had a good enough time reading it, but it wasn’t compelling enough to stand out or stick in my head, it was just one of those competent pseudo-classic mysteries that are pleasant enough to read once, but not to knock your socks off.

And to be clear, that’s sometimes what I want, and also I know other people are far bigger fans of that than I am. The undemandingness is a feature! I just didn’t latch onto it as much as I hoped, e.g. onto the main characters or their relationship, and I found it maybe a little bit too obvious. I’d probably have rated it a little higher if I’d rated it right away after finishing, but with a day of reflection in between, that feels a tad too generous.

So for me, not a stand-out, though enjoyable enough at the time I was reading it.

Rating: 2/5 (“it was okay”)

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Review – The Duke Heist

Posted August 2, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Review – The Duke Heist

The Duke Heist

by Erica Ridley

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 352
Series: The Wild Wynchesters #1
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

A woman accidentally kidnaps a duke in this fabulous Regency romp that Bridgerton author Julia Quinn hails as a "delight."

Chloe Wynchester is completely forgettable—a curse that gives her the ability to blend into any crowd. When the only father she's ever known makes a dying wish for his adopted family of orphans to recover a missing painting, she's the first one her siblings turn to for stealing it back. No one expects that in doing so, she'll also abduct a handsome duke.

Lawrence Gosling, the Duke of Faircliffe, is tortured by his father's mistakes. To repair his estate's ruined reputation, he must wed a highborn heiress. Yet when he finds himself in a carriage being driven hell-for-leather down the cobblestone streets of London by a beautiful woman who refuses to heed his commands, he fears his heart is hers. But how can he sacrifice his family's legacy to follow true love?

Another review from the archives, which somehow never got posted here!

Chloe Wynchester is convinced that she is plain and unremarkable: that is the skill that gets her into capers with her family, the way she manages to twist situations to their advantage and right wrongs. Behind that lies a fear of being forgotten, of being replaced.

Lawrence, for his part, is damaged by neglect and by his father’s profligacy, by the way people talk about his family. He’s hell-bent on fixing his family’s fortunes and restoring their good name. At the same time, he does see Chloe, and thinks she’s remarkable; in fact, he thinks she’s beautiful, much against his better judgement.

I didn’t see at first how this was going to work out, especially given Faircliffe’s behaviour in the prequel novella, but Ridley got me hooked all the same. I loved the way Lawrence was able to be silly with Chloe, and his attentiveness to her needs — however easily he was gulled by them due to silly preconceptions, his intentions were good.

It was odd reading this after having already read the second book, but given that it’s a romance, you kind of know how it’s going to end anyway, so nothing was spoiled. I love all the Wynchesters and their relationships, and I came to love Lawrence too. I’d love to see him more involved in what they do, in future books… even if it’s just lending them legitimacy when needed, or a small part. He’d love it.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – The Governess Gambit

Posted July 29, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Review – The Governess Gambit

The Governess Gambit

by Erica Ridley

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 148
Series: The Wild Wynchesters #0.5
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

Meet the Wild Wynchesters: This fun-loving, caper-committing family of tight-knit siblings can’t help but find love and adventure!

Years ago, Chloe Wynchester and five other uniquely talented orphans were adopted by a wealthy baron with a secret mission: The motley Wynchester family fights for justice from the margins of high society. And the handsome, clever duke Chloe has long admired proves to be her worst enemy…

An unscrupulous boarding school is exploiting orphans in a secret workhouse. Baron Vanderbean plots a daring rescue. When illness befalls him, Chloe must take the reins. But how can a lifelong wallflower lead the charge to save the children?

This is another review that I wrote back when I read the book, which somehow never got posted here! 

The Governess Gambit is full of setup for the first book of this series, The Duke Heist — which I haven’t read yet — but also, for anyone who knows the Wynchesters from their other adventures (in my case the second book, The Perks of Loving a Wallflower) a tension and inevitability that you just don’t want to be real. I think it’s best experienced that way, actually: Bean might be dead in the main series, but nonetheless the love they felt for him is clear, and knowing that already is what shapes the tension of this book.

It’s also fun seeing everything from a slightly different perspective, since this book follows Chloe, and it did whet my appetite for The Duke Heist as well.

Still eager to see more of the other Wynchesters! Especially Jacob and Graham, as I feel like we see their point of view least of all so far. Though maybe The Duke Heist will change that!

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – A Case of Life and Limb

Posted July 24, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Review – A Case of Life and Limb

A Case of Life and Limb

by Sally Smith

Genres: Crime, Historical Fiction, Mystery
Pages: 336
Series: The Trials of Gabriel Ward #2
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

Winter, 1901. The Inner Temple is even quieter than usual under a blanket of snow and Gabriel Ward KC is hard at work on a thorny libel case. All is calm, all is bright - until the mummified hand arrives in the post...

While the hand's recipient, Temple Treasurer Sir William Waring, is rightfully shaken, Gabriel is filled with curiosity. Who would want to send such a thing? And why? But as more parcels arrive - one with fatal consequences - Gabriel realises that it is not Sir William who is the target, but the Temple itself.

Someone is holding a grudge that has already led to at least one death. Now it's up to Gabriel, and Constable Wright of the City of London Police, to find out who, before an old death leads to a new murder.

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I loved Sally Smith’s first Gabriel Ward book, so I was very eager to dig into A Case of Life and Limb. I enjoyed it just as much, though the wintery vibes are a bit at odds with the weather, and enjoyed once more the kindness and decency of Gabriel, the way his conscience nags at him so that he seeks out true justice — and the way the real world outside of his work is beginning to tug at his attention, through his friendship with Wright and his unexpected detective work.

I did find that this sequel did have a few surprises: I didn’t expect a particular character to die, I didn’t expect one of Gabriel’s trials to be quite so sad, and I saw a certain issue coming somewhat but I almost expected it to be a red herring — I’m trying not to say too much, in order to avoid spoilers, but suffice it to say that sadness touches the story more than I’d expected. There’s also some period-typical homophobia (not approved of by Gabriel).

I did feel that a particular event didn’t linger quite so much on Gabriel as I’d expected, but then he is a rather dry character and not really moved to great grief.

All in all, I probably prefer the first book as a fun reading experience, but I did really enjoy this too, and in some ways it surprised me, well-versed in reading crime as I am. And you’ve got to love the introduction of Delphinium, and Gabriel’s surprising affection for her.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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Review – The Perks of Loving a Wallflower

Posted July 22, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Review – The Perks of Loving a Wallflower

The Perks of Loving a Wallflower

by Erica Ridley

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 368
Series: The Wild Wynchesters #2
Rating: four-stars
Synopsis:

As a master of disguise, Thomasina Wynchester can be a polite young lady — or a bawdy old man. She’ll do whatever it takes to solve the cases her family takes on. But when Tommy’s beautiful new client turns out to be the highborn lady she’s secretly smitten with, more than her mission is at stake...

Bluestocking Miss Philippa York doesn’t believe in love. Her heart didn’t pitter-patter when she was betrothed to a duke, nor did it break when he married someone else. All Philippa desires is to decode a centuries-old manuscript to keep a modern-day villain from claiming credit for work that wasn’t his. She hates that she needs a man’s help to do it — so she’s delighted to discover the clever, charming baron at her side is in fact a woman. But as she and Tommy grow closer and the stakes of their discovery higher, more than just their hearts are at risk.

This is an older review which it turns out I never posted! So I’ve unearthed it from the archives for you all.

This was my first book by Erica Ridley, and on the strength of it I definitely want to read more. Tommy (not quite a girl, not quite a boy, just Tommy) and Philippa (a bluestocking who is eager to get a husband, if only to please her parents) are a lovely pair, and the Wynchester family and their hijinks are a delight. I clearly need to read the first book to find out about all the things referenced in this one, and to hope for more of Jacob and his menagerie.

I enjoyed the inclusion of both Tommy’s ambivalent approach to gender and Philippa’s slow realisation of her interest in Tommy. It’s not entirely clear whether Philippa is attracted to women in general (and just hadn’t realised it yet) or purely to Tommy, but I think you could read it either way. I lean toward believing she’s demisexual, particularly since some of her described feelings fit quite well with someone on the asexual spectrum.

It’s not just a love story, though: they also have a shared mission, to declare Philippa’s friend Damaris the creator of a cypher used by the armed forces to encode messages, as opposed to her uncle who has stolen her work. That has a satisfying end, despite the censure Philippa then faces.

Now romances for Graham and Jacob, please? And all the other Wynchesters, to be fair…

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

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