Sometimes a book is just exactly what you need right when you need it, and The Lord of Stariel was that book for me. I had been saving it up for a while because the blurb sounded wonderful, but I was nervous about whether it would live up to my expectations. One night in the weeks leading up to the US presidential election, I was in desperate need of a distraction and I finally started it. And BOY HOWDY did this book just wrap its little book-hands around my heart and warm me up from the inside out.

The Lord of Stariel follows Hetta Valstar, a young stage illusionist of noble birth who has not been home to Stariel in years because she is estranged from her (mean, stern, traditional) father. At the beginning of the book, she is returning to Stariel Manor because he has died and tradition dictates that all members of the Valstar family must return to the ancestral land, where a magical ceremony will determine the next Lord of Stariel. The magic could choose any member of the family, but everyone is fairly confident the one chosen will be either Jack, Hetta’s cousin and her father’s protegee, or Marius, Hetta’s introverted, anxious brother.

Of course, the ceremony does not go quite as anticipated. Hetta, Jack, and Marius find themselves somewhat reluctantly teaming up to investigate possible sabotage at Stariel with the help of the sexy, mysterious butler of Stariel Manor, Wyn. Adding to the chaos is the fact that faeries are now making mischief within Stariel’s borders. (Did I mention this book has faeries? I am a TOTAL SUCKER for faeries).

Genre-wise, this is a well-paced fantasy mystery with a strong romance subplot. Tone-wise, there is something just so kind and delightful and magical about this book. It reminds me of a Studio Ghibli movie. Everything is infused with whimsy and awe and wonder. The characters are wonderful: presented as eminently fallible, but also capable of good and great things.

Hetta is a delightful heroine. She is an independent, modern, feminist woman who thinks her oftentimes backwards, traditional family needs to kindly remove their heads from their assess. This is, after all, why she left and is using her considerable magical talents in the theater in the big city of Meridon. As she realizes early on in the book:

She was dependent on her family for neither shelter nor occupation nor affection now; she’d built those things for herself, and her family had no ability to threaten her by withholding them.

But while she realizes she does not need her family, they actually need her. Seeing her reckon with this throughout the book was a lovely journey. I deeply appreciated having a heroine who is fun and flirtatious and scandalous and also has a real core of integrity and principle, and that these two things are not presented as being in conflict with each other.

I loved pretty much all the characters, not just Hetta. As I said, all the members of the Valstar family have their various (humorous) foibles, but it is clear that they are all seeking some kind of connection and reconciliation that couldn’t be accomplished while the previous Lord of Stariel was alive (yeah, he clearly sucked). Watching members of the family, especially Hetta, Jack, and Marius, come to understand each other better filled me with so many toasty good feelings.

There’s an element of dry humor in this book that mostly consists of the narrator lovingly roasting the various characters. For example:

Their stepmother hated disapproval and tended to throw herself with frantic earnestness into the effort of avoiding it. Hetta had no doubt Phoebe’s nerves would be strung tight as she tried to arrange a funeral with ‘helpful’ and conflicting suggestions from the rest of her relatives. It would be a losing battle; there was no way to please every single Valstar simultaneously.

Poor Phoebe!

The tone of the narrator towards the cast of characters seems like one of deep, empathic understanding and sometimes fond exasperation. It’s almost how I would imagine the narrative voice of a nicer Jane Austen narrator. This worked for me in a big way. There is something so wonderful about a book that seems to whisper, “yes, yes, this character is bonkers and exasperating, but it’s okay to love them.”

Even the antagonists in this story are multidimensional. (If you follow my reviews, you know this is HUGE for me.) While their reasons may be selfish, they all have clearly legible desires and motives for what they do other than “I like evil.” Everyone who has more than a few moments of page time feels like a fully rendered character who, if you will forgive the cliche, seems to leap from the page.

In addition to the characters, the sense of atmosphere in this book is also a highlight. The land and the manor itself, often referred to collectively as “Stariel” by the characters, loom large in the book and go a long way towards creating a sense of wild magic just under the surface. Hetta thinks of her home:

A curious feeling rose in her despite her frustration, a kind of child’s wonder. There were many things she loved about Meridon, but this landscape of bleak fields and distant mountains and evergreens could not be found in that city.

Another beautiful passage:

Standing next to the window, she could watch the fog over Starwater slowly burning off. It was a lovely sight, the remnants of frost glistening in the pale sunlight on the lake’s edges.

Stariel is definitely high on my list of fictional places I want to visit!

There is also a prominent romance subplot. It starts out as kind of a triangle, as Hetta is sort of romanced by her handsome neighbor and childhood crush, Angus, while having a growing crush on the aforementioned sexy butler Wyn. But never fear, love-triangle haters; it becomes clear fairly quickly who the main love interest is and the triangle aspect is never played for angst.

The main love interest, Wyn, is very swoony. He is helpful, kind, witty, mischievous, and intense. This is how he is introduced:

They reached the greenhouse and encountered its sole occupant, a tall, brown-skinned man with pale blond hair. He was crouched, cutting a spring of mint, and he rose with smooth grace at the sound of their footsteps. His eyes widened slightly as Hetta followed her brothers in. In his surprise, he spoke, she thought, without regard for their presence.

“Henrietta Isadore Valstar,” Wyn said, drawing the syllables out as if enjoying the sound of them. His eyes were still the same deep russet-brown of horse chestnuts, his mouth still full and shaped for humor, but everything else was…changed.

Attraction coursed through her, unexpected as a lightning bolt, and shocked Hetta temporarily mute.

Yummmmmmm. Of course, Wyn has secrets of his own (which only make him even SEXIER in my view). While the heat factor in the romance between Wyn and Hetta is low (kissing only), there is a lot of really delicious ~longing~ and ~tension~ which is usually my favorite part of a romance anyways. Very “was he flirting with me or did I imagine it?” While this is a series, it ends with an HFN, and I’m very curious to see where Wyn and Hetta’s relationship goes in subsequent books.

In conclusion, I adored this book and I NEEDED to tell the Bitchery about it. This is a whimsical, fun, sweet fantasy mystery with wonderful characters and a healthy dollop of romance. The pacing was on point and the setting and atmosphere were positively magical. If you are looking for something delightful and heartwarming that explores themes of family and homecoming, I highly recommend this book.