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  • A Marvellous Light

  • The Last Binding, Book 1
  • Written by: Freya Marske
  • Narrated by: David Thorpe
  • Length: 14 hrs and 30 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (29 ratings)

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A Marvellous Light cover art

A Marvellous Light

Written by: Freya Marske
Narrated by: David Thorpe
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Publisher's Summary

"Narrator David Thorpe’s delicious depictions of steamy encounters between Robin and Edwin are intricately woven throughout this magical realm." (Booklist, starred review)

Red White & Royal Blue meets Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell: debut author Freya Marske’s A Marvellous Light unfolds in an Edwardian England full of magic, contracts, and conspiracies.

Robin Blyth has more than enough bother in his life. He’s struggling to be a good older brother, a responsible employer, and the harried baronet of a seat gutted by his late parents’ excesses. When an administrative mistake sees him named the civil service liaison to a hidden magical society, he discovers what’s been operating beneath the unextraordinary reality he’s always known.

Now, Robin must contend with the beauty and danger of magic, an excruciating deadly curse, and the alarming visions of the future that come with it - not to mention Edwin Courcey, his cold and prickly counterpart in the magical bureaucracy, who clearly wishes Robin were anyone and anywhere else.

Robin’s predecessor has disappeared, and the mystery of what happened to him reveals unsettling truths about the very oldest stories they’ve been told about the land they live on and what binds it. Thrown together and facing unexpected dangers, Robin and Edwin discover a plot that threatens every magician in the British Isles - and a secret that more than one person has already died to keep.

A Macmillan Audio production from Tordotcom

©2021 Freya Marske (P)2021 Macmillan Audio

What the critics say

2021, NPR Best Book of the Year

“Romantic in the best way, funny, sharp, sexy, fantastical. Prepare to fall in love with the gorgeous Edwardian setting, the sizzling character dynamics, and the murderous enchanted hedge maze.” (Emily Tesh, author of Silver in the Wood

"A charming, lovingly crafted adventure full of peril, romance and wit, illuminated by sparkling turns of phrase and a pervasive sense of humour." (A. K. Larkwood, author of The Unspoken Name

“That sublime prose! Her astonishing gift for imagery! And, of course, her bountiful and endless talent for writing some extremely sexy scenes. A Marvellous Light is all that and more. Perfect.” (Jenn Lyons, author of The Ruin of Kings

What listeners say about A Marvellous Light

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fantastic

An interesting system of magic. An exciting mystery. A complicated romance. And some spicy scenes.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Almost Perfect

I have been so excited about this book since I first read about it earlier this year on Instagram, and I really wanted to love it. I liked it, but I certainly can’t say I loved it.

The good:
The story kept me interested, and kept drawing me back in. I cared about these characters and wanted to know what was next.
The magic system is unique and fascinating.
The world building was great, and I’m a sucker for anything set during Victorian/Edwardian eras.
The spicy parts, while unexpected, (I’m much more a “fade to black” reader), were actually quite well written and surprisingly enjoyable.

The bad:
The narration lacked a lot. Some books are just better read than listened to, and I think this is one of those. The narration was confusing at times, as the tones and inflections given to specific characters were not consistent. I also find it concerning that a white narrator was putting on an Indian accent for a character described as Punjabi.
The homophobia. Why? Why in a world where we are asked to believe in magic, can’t we also be given a story about queer love without queer trauma? I think this is a conceit of female authors writing M/M romance; that there must always be an element of self hatred on the part of the queer character. Queer readers don’t need or want this, and we deserve to see ourselves in stories we are shown to be in loving, healthy relationships, and be accepted and safe. This would have taken my review to a 4 star one.

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Great start to a new series!

Excellent historical magical setting, with enough new stuff that it doesn’t feel like a rehashed version of other stories. The narration was great but the audio editing seemed a bit off to me, like there was a half second too long of a pause after any dialogue. I did get used to it by the end though.

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