Cinder House is such a clever, inventive, re-imaging of Cinderella! This novella stuffs in a lot at the last minute, but other than that, it’s perfect. Here is how the book begins. It’s not a spoiler – I’m literally quoting the first words of the book. Ella’s father died of the poison in their tea. Ella drank less and so might have lived, and not turned ghost at all, if the house hadn’t shrieked for … Continue reading Cinder House by Freya Marske →
We Solve Murders by Richard Osman is $1.99! This came out last September, but I wouldn’t be surprised if library holds were still pretty long. Maybe snap this up if you impatience is winning out.
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RECOMMENDED: A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvia Cathrall is $2.99 and a Kindle Daily Deal! Elyse read this one and gave it an A:
If you are looking for a cozy fantasy read with excellent romance and worldbuilding, I highly recommend Letters to the Luminous Deep.
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Freya Marske’s new book Swordcrossed is out this week, and she’s joining us from the other side of the planet to talk about what she calls, “Fantasy of manners, mercantile edition.” We also talk about writing fanfic and her new favorite show, Interview with the Vampire. Yes, I did misnumber last week’s episode – sorry about that. Music: purple-planet.com
RECOMMENDED: A Power Unbound by Freya Marske is $2.99! This is book 3 of The Last Binding series, a queer historical fantasy series that began with A Marvellous Light (which is in KU so if you haven’t read this trilogy, it’s easy to start). A Power Unbound was mentioned in Hide Your Wallet, and Freya Marske was a guest on the podcast to talk about the second book A Restless Truth. This trilogy is terrific, and A Power Unbound has a 4.39 star average on StoryGraph and 4.32 on Goodreads. Have you read this book?
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I didn’t know this, but author Freya Marske has been so eager to be a guest on my show, and today, it’s happening! Her latest book, A Restless Truth, is out this week, and if you like queer magical historical mysteries with murder, this series is for you. We talk about magic having a physical cost, and how she highlights the classism and sexism of a magical system controlled and maintained mostly by men. We … Continue reading 535. All Things Magical with Freya Marske →
A Marvellous Light is a slow-paced, M/M fantasy romance set in the Edwardian Age, and is the first of a trilogy. I thought the writing was lovely in terms of describing the use of magic and the romance development, but I kept drifting away from the story. A great deal of the charm and fun of the book is the opposites-attract format of both the world-building (magic meets bureaucracy) and the main characters, Robin and … Continue reading A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske →
From the “masterly” (The New York Times) Jodi McAlister, a charming new romance about two English professors who embark on a fake relationship…only to discover that it may be harder to pretend than they realized. Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic rivals since they first crossed paths as undergraduates in the literature department thirteen years ago. Now that a highly coveted teaching opportunity has come up, their rivalry hits epic proportions. Jonah needs the … Continue reading An Academic Affair →
Sparks fly and lovers dance in this gorgeous, yearning Cinderella retelling from bestselling author Freya Marske—a queer Gothic romance perfect for fans of Naomi Novik and T. Kingfisher. Ella is a haunting. Murdered at sixteen, her ghost is furiously trapped in her father’s house, invisible to everyone except her stepmother and stepsisters. Even when she discovers how to untether herself from her prison, there are limits. She cannot be seen or heard by the living … Continue reading Cinder House →
Can you flimflam a ghost? It’s 1934. Former medium Dashiel Quicke travels the country debunking spiritualism and false mediums while struggling to stay ahead of his ex-business partner and lover who wants him back at any cost. During a demonstration at a college campus, Dashiel meets Hermann Goschalk, an Egyptologist who’s convinced that he has a genuine haunted artifact on his hands. Certain there is a rational explanation for whatever is going on with Hermann’s … Continue reading The Shabti →
A charming fantasy set in an underwater world with magical academia and a heartwarming penpal romance, perfect for fans of A Marvellous Light, Emily Wilde’s Encylopaedia of Faeries and The House in the Cerulean Sea. “An underwater treasure-chest to be slowly unpacked, full of things I adore: nosy and loving families, epistolary romance, gorgeous worldbuilding, and anxious scholars doing their best to meet the world with kindness and curiosity.” —Freya Marske, author of A Marvellous … Continue reading A Letter to the Luminous Deep →
