CBR14 BINGO: Camel/Adapt Square
(Adapting to a family chock full of magic when you only have a drop/Adapting to a new job and a whole magical world you did not know existed. A whole lot of adapting going on.)
Witty banter, slow burning spiciness and magic make for a great little book.
Edwin, a member of a powerful magical family, is the runt of his lineage. Born with just a little spark of magic, Edwin makes do as a liaison between the British government and magical authorities.
Robin, a baronet who inherits his parent’s debt as well as their enemies, finds himself assigned to a baffling civil service desk job. Having landed the position after the former occupant, Reginald Gatling, goes missing, Robyn soon finds himself embroiled in the shenanigans of a magical world he didn’t know co-existed with the rest of Edwardian England.
When Edwin finds Robin and not Reginald behind the desk, he is exasperated by Robin’s complete ignorance regarding magic but begrudgingly impressed by his relatively calm acceptance of it. Both quickly come to the conclusion that Reginald has gone missing under suspicious circumstances and may be in grave danger.
Pestered by snobbish siblings, mean-spirited hedge mazes, curse-wielding fog-faced strangers, and an outlawed attraction for one another, Robin and Edwin set out to unravel the mystery of Reginald’s disappearance.
A quirky and delightful romp for sure. Hits the same reading sweet spot for me as the Veronica Speedwell and Parasoal Protectorate books do. Just when you think the well of literary British magical worlds has been thoroughly tapped, Marske conjures a very inventive row boat scavenger hunt involving tricky water fowl. See? Quirky and delightful. Very excited that this is just the first in a planned trilogy with the second book slated to come out in the fall.