Book Review

A Magical Inheritance by Krista D. Ball

A Magical Inheritance is the first book in the Ladies Occult Society series. I enjoyed the feminist themes and the characters. However, readers should be advised that nothing much actually happens in the book. This is a fantasy Regency without romance but with The Power of Friendship Between Women and a lot of books. Also, there is tea.

Elizabeth Knight is unmarried. She lives with her stepmother, who is younger than she is (and who is a sympathetic character) and her father (NOT a sympathetic character). She has a wastrel brother and a whiny married sister and, as an unmarried adult woman, spends her time managing all of them, tending to whoever whines the loudest.

Elizabeth was very close to her uncle. When he dies, he leaves her his collection of occult books. She can sell some of them for a lot of money, which is a game-changer for her as long as she can keep her father from taking the money or the books (he can’t, legally, but he can pressure her). However, she plans to keep some of them despite being told that it’s an established fact that women can’t do magic.

Elizabeth has allies in her stepmother, her friend Maria and Maria’s husband, and her Aunt Cass. A more unusual ally is a voice that comes from one of the books, Mrs. Egerton. Mrs. Egerton’s spirit resides in an autograph book. She can speak when addressed with certain incantations, and she’s very opinionated. Gradually the circle of women and a few supportive men grows larger.

This book consists almost entirely of Elizabeth and her friends sorting books into piles to sell and piles to keep. Whether this is a feature or a bug will depend on your personal tastes. What the book does, it does well. Themes of women’s limited options, grief, marriage, family, and friendship are beautifully explored. There are books. There are clothes. There is tea.

However, it does seem reasonable to me that a reader approaching a book called “A Magical Inheritance” might expect more magic. Mrs. Egerton is great but she just talks. There’s no action beyond one scene and there is very little magic. For a reader who knows what to expect, that could be fine, but I was a bit disappointed and, on occasion, a bit bored. This will not stop me from reading the next book in the series. I love these characters, even if the next book consists of them filling out tax returns.

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A Magical Inheritance by Krista Ball

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  1. GraceElizabeth says:

    Well, this feels like worlds colliding for me! Krista D. Ball is a regular contributor over at my other internet haven, the r/Fantasy subreddit, which is a bit of an oasis amidst the general tone of Reddit’s discussions about fantasy media (read: oblivious at best and unashamedly misogynist and racist at worst) and has a small but increasing number of fantasy romance readers. Krista has been a big part of shaping that community over the years. I haven’t picked this one up yet – though it’s now on the list! – but if you’re looking to try her writing and want some more romance, her other series which starts with The Demons We See has a fairly slow-burn romance arc (M/F).

  2. LT says:

    I have a feeling this read will be just about perfect for my tween!

  3. Lisa F says:

    @GraceElizabeth I want to buy this just to support her; it is a huge freaking mess over there!

    This seems really cute and a nice, light read!

  4. Cheryl Holsonbake says:

    I’m about 1/3 in and really enjoying it. I love sorting and rearranging my books though, so maybe all the shuffling of books is a plus for me! Truly love her support of fantasy/romance as “still fantasy” over on r/fantasy. She has a great post that I saved that focuses on not bashing others who enjoy different sub-genres. Amazing to me how the “nerd culture” of fantasy can be so non-inclusive!

  5. Y’all, the weekend I treated myself to A Magical Inheritance was one of the happiest reading weekends I experienced this past summer. Strong female characters. A sprinkling of magic. Period costumes. All delightful. But what really kept me hooked were the deliciously dysfunctional family dynamics. Nobody in my TBR pile is as good as Krista at writing family dysfunction, so if that’s your cup of tea, you’re going to love this book.

    Full disclosure: I also rearrange, sort, and periodically cull my books for fun. And I may volunteer in a library in my spare time so that I can do more sorting of books with a side of matching books with readers.

  6. Sorry about posting that previous comment twice. Itchy trigger finger, I guess. Moderator, please feel free to delete one. (I’m going to slink under my desk now.)

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