What do you think?
Rate this book
October Daye #19
Silver and Lead
Seanan McGuire’s New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award-nominated October Daye series continues as Toby Daye is thrust once again into danger... and this time she has more than ever to protect.
Something is rotten in Faerie. In the aftermath of Titania's reality-warping enchantment, things are returning to what passes for normal in the Kingdom in the Mists―until it's discovered that the royal vaults have been looted, and several powerful magical artifacts are missing. None are things that can be safely left unsecured, and some have the potential to do almost as much damage as Titania did, and having them in the wrong hands could prove just as disastrous
At least the theft means that Sir October "Toby" Daye, Knight errant and Hero of the Realm, finally has an excuse to get out of the house. Sure, she's eight and a half months pregnant, but that doesn't mean she can’t take care of herself. But with the sea witch offering to stand godmother to Toby's child, maybe there are greater dangers ahead for Toby and her family than it appears....
Old enemies will resurface, new enemies will disguise themselves as friends, and Queen Windermere must try to keep her Hero on the case without getting herself gutted by the increasingly irritated local King of Cats. Sometimes, what's been lost can be the most dangerous threat of all.
Something is rotten in Faerie. In the aftermath of Titania's reality-warping enchantment, things are returning to what passes for normal in the Kingdom in the Mists―until it's discovered that the royal vaults have been looted, and several powerful magical artifacts are missing. None are things that can be safely left unsecured, and some have the potential to do almost as much damage as Titania did, and having them in the wrong hands could prove just as disastrous
At least the theft means that Sir October "Toby" Daye, Knight errant and Hero of the Realm, finally has an excuse to get out of the house. Sure, she's eight and a half months pregnant, but that doesn't mean she can’t take care of herself. But with the sea witch offering to stand godmother to Toby's child, maybe there are greater dangers ahead for Toby and her family than it appears....
Old enemies will resurface, new enemies will disguise themselves as friends, and Queen Windermere must try to keep her Hero on the case without getting herself gutted by the increasingly irritated local King of Cats. Sometimes, what's been lost can be the most dangerous threat of all.
393 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 30, 2025
534 people are currently reading
1123 people want to read
About the author
Seanan McGuire
508 books17.1k followersHi! I'm Seanan McGuire, author of the Toby Daye series (Rosemary and Rue, A Local Habitation, An Artificial Night, Late Eclipses), as well as a lot of other things. I'm also Mira Grant (www.miragrant.com), author of Feed and Deadline.
Born and raised in Northern California, I fear weather and am remarkably laid-back about rattlesnakes. I watch too many horror movies, read too many comic books, and share my house with two monsters in feline form, Lilly and Alice (Siamese and Maine Coon).
I do not check this inbox. Please don't send me messages through Goodreads; they won't be answered. I don't want to have to delete this account. :(
Born and raised in Northern California, I fear weather and am remarkably laid-back about rattlesnakes. I watch too many horror movies, read too many comic books, and share my house with two monsters in feline form, Lilly and Alice (Siamese and Maine Coon).
I do not check this inbox. Please don't send me messages through Goodreads; they won't be answered. I don't want to have to delete this account. :(
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 198 reviews
April 26, 2025
This book brought me so much joy! I absolutely love this series and this book was just as fantastic as the other 18 books.
Toby (October) is extremely pregnant and has felt trapped in her house as the entire family has been recovering from Titania's spell. When a chance comes to leave the house she takes it but she is asked to take on a dangerous mission. Powerful artifacts have been stolen and the Queen wants Toby to find who stole them regardless of how close Toby is to her due date. Some of the objects are extremely dangerous and if they are in the wrong hands could bring danger to everyone. Toby accepts partly because she is sick of feeling like a prisoner in her own home. What follows is an incredible story filled with all of the wonderful characters we have come to love as well as some old and new enemies. Toby must save the day, her family, and protect her unborn baby.
What I love most about this series is that while I am reading I feel like I am transported to San Francisco and the various Faerie realms as Toby must figure out what is really going on and fight the evil in the world. The characters feel like family to me and I care deeply about what happens to them. Silver and Lead made me cry but also made a tiny part of me want to be pregnant again. I cannot express to you enough how incredible a book must be to make me feel that way! There is plenty of action and I did not want this story to end. The October Daye series is by far the best urban fantasy series out there about the fae!
Thank you to Tor Books and NetGalley for this ARC.
Toby (October) is extremely pregnant and has felt trapped in her house as the entire family has been recovering from Titania's spell. When a chance comes to leave the house she takes it but she is asked to take on a dangerous mission. Powerful artifacts have been stolen and the Queen wants Toby to find who stole them regardless of how close Toby is to her due date. Some of the objects are extremely dangerous and if they are in the wrong hands could bring danger to everyone. Toby accepts partly because she is sick of feeling like a prisoner in her own home. What follows is an incredible story filled with all of the wonderful characters we have come to love as well as some old and new enemies. Toby must save the day, her family, and protect her unborn baby.
What I love most about this series is that while I am reading I feel like I am transported to San Francisco and the various Faerie realms as Toby must figure out what is really going on and fight the evil in the world. The characters feel like family to me and I care deeply about what happens to them. Silver and Lead made me cry but also made a tiny part of me want to be pregnant again. I cannot express to you enough how incredible a book must be to make me feel that way! There is plenty of action and I did not want this story to end. The October Daye series is by far the best urban fantasy series out there about the fae!
Thank you to Tor Books and NetGalley for this ARC.
October 7, 2025
70% recaps, 15% bloody escape sequences (IYKYK), 5% peeing, and maybe 10% story. Far too many uses of the phrase "toss my cookies."
Before I complain, I just want to say that the Toby books are so much fun ("Be the Serpent" in particular was the wildest thing I'd read in ages), and I recommend them enthusiastically to anyone who wants to go on a proper long-series romp. That's not going to change because I didn't like this one. That's also why I'm feeling a bit harsh, because I know what Seanan's capable of.
At a certain point in a 19-book series, you do need to stop trying to fill people in who've never read a previous book. Otherwise, you get this novel, which seems to have been written more for first-time October readers than those who're already invested, resulting in a huge amount of filler.
Apart from that, I'm not sure what happened here. The plot just... drags. I think maybe it's been weighed down by its enormous cast of characters and all the interesting little corners there are to explore, which somehow resulted in this book exploring none of them.
There was a fair bit of retconning and some character decisions that removed nuance and interest, particularly regarding the villain of this book, who is now less interesting than she was before. Even the Luidaeg, who is probably universally everyone's favorite character, is getting a bit oversaturated at this point. (What was the point of that bargain? Could they not have just left Bucer in her house for a bit?)
Good bits: Rayseline appearance (one of the most interesting corners there is to explore). Quentin trying to reconcile what happened to him in the previous two books. May, because I love May.
Very much hoping that this was basically setup for the next book, and that its successor will move along much more quickly!
Before I complain, I just want to say that the Toby books are so much fun ("Be the Serpent" in particular was the wildest thing I'd read in ages), and I recommend them enthusiastically to anyone who wants to go on a proper long-series romp. That's not going to change because I didn't like this one. That's also why I'm feeling a bit harsh, because I know what Seanan's capable of.
At a certain point in a 19-book series, you do need to stop trying to fill people in who've never read a previous book. Otherwise, you get this novel, which seems to have been written more for first-time October readers than those who're already invested, resulting in a huge amount of filler.
Apart from that, I'm not sure what happened here. The plot just... drags. I think maybe it's been weighed down by its enormous cast of characters and all the interesting little corners there are to explore, which somehow resulted in this book exploring none of them.
There was a fair bit of retconning and some character decisions that removed nuance and interest, particularly regarding the villain of this book, who is now less interesting than she was before. Even the Luidaeg, who is probably universally everyone's favorite character, is getting a bit oversaturated at this point. (What was the point of that bargain? Could they not have just left Bucer in her house for a bit?)
Good bits: Rayseline appearance (one of the most interesting corners there is to explore). Quentin trying to reconcile what happened to him in the previous two books. May, because I love May.
Very much hoping that this was basically setup for the next book, and that its successor will move along much more quickly!
September 30, 2025
Thanks to Netgalley and Tor for the pre-release copy of Seanan McGuire's Silver and Lead, book 19 in the October Daye series. Below is my honest review.
Anyone who knows me or has seen or followed my reviews knows with absolute certainty that I am a HUGE Seanan McGuire fan. It should come as no surprise that I devoured and adored this entry into one of my favorite series, the October Daye series.
In this one we have Toby almost ready to pop, so of course, the villains have to get up to their shenanigans and disturb the last bit of her pregnancy with an adventure. This time it involves items stolen from the Windemere's royal vault - items that are VERY dangerous - and naturally, as hero of the realm, it's up to Toby, on the verge of childbirth and with a very zealously overprotective family (due to the events of Titania's spell from the last two books) who want to keep her safe, to retrieve these items. And naturally, hijinx of the greatest order ensue.
This one was so much fun (for the reader, not for the characters!), and I really enjoyed getting to see some relationships revealed, repaired, or restructured as we went along. And let's be honest, the end reveal makes me SO ready for the next book.
Also included at the end is a little shorty from Simon's perspective, and it brings about its own little joys as well.
Highly recommended, but with the caveat that if you start here, you're going in with 18 prior books and countless short stories of this world's history missing from your context.
Anyone who knows me or has seen or followed my reviews knows with absolute certainty that I am a HUGE Seanan McGuire fan. It should come as no surprise that I devoured and adored this entry into one of my favorite series, the October Daye series.
In this one we have Toby almost ready to pop, so of course, the villains have to get up to their shenanigans and disturb the last bit of her pregnancy with an adventure. This time it involves items stolen from the Windemere's royal vault - items that are VERY dangerous - and naturally, as hero of the realm, it's up to Toby, on the verge of childbirth and with a very zealously overprotective family (due to the events of Titania's spell from the last two books) who want to keep her safe, to retrieve these items. And naturally, hijinx of the greatest order ensue.
This one was so much fun (for the reader, not for the characters!), and I really enjoyed getting to see some relationships revealed, repaired, or restructured as we went along. And let's be honest, the end reveal makes me SO ready for the next book.
Also included at the end is a little shorty from Simon's perspective, and it brings about its own little joys as well.
Highly recommended, but with the caveat that if you start here, you're going in with 18 prior books and countless short stories of this world's history missing from your context.
September 25, 2025
It is hard to believe this is book 19 in the October Daye series. And even harder to believe that before I could even finish my re-read I was granted an audiobook from netgalley to read and review a whole week early. Of course I dropped everything I had planned and listened to the whole book in one evening. The narrator did a great job, but I will admit despite the pronunciation guides I go with my own ways and it was a little weird to hear the official pronunciations. It wasn’t bad, but it was weird. The narrator did a great job of bringing Toby’s character to life. In this one Toby is still pregnant, but just barely. And she is going a little nuts trying to stay cushioned and protected inside but she wants to support her family after the trauma they all endured with Tatiana’s spell. The simple case the queen asks her to look into is anything but though. It was nice to get through the pregnancy and I cannot wait for the next book. Especially since about every 4 books the whole world gets turned upside down and while I have thoughts I know it will take me by complete surprise.
November 30, 2025
Nineteen books into this series and October Daye is still going strong! The character October (better known as Toby) has come a long way since the first volume, Rosemary and Rue. Toby has gained confidence in herself and her abilities. She has acquired a fleet of friends and a house full of chosen family. She has often regretted the rift between her eldest daughter, Gillian, and herself, as written in earlier installments, but she has happily housed and fed a coterie of teenagers who have become like her own. Now, she and her new husband Tybalt are welcoming another babe into their household.
At the book's beginning, Tybalt is stuck in overprotective mode. Mind you, he has reason, as Toby, who is after all a Hero of Faerie, tends to charge into action impulsively. In the opening chapter, Toby is trying to heed everyone else's desires to keep her safe, but feels like she is under house arrest and dying of boredom. When her Queen requests her assistance, Toby jumps at the chance to do something. But this is Toby we're talking about, so you know that things will go spectacularly wrong!
As always, I love McGuire's use of fairy lore and her alternative reality of Faerie anchored in the Western United States. (And that her squire, Quentin, is from a Canadian royal family.) Her “rules" are consistent, if very different from our own conventions and they make for interesting complications. While I may not be quite as enthusiastic about fantasy including Fae characters as I was five years ago, I still make room for Toby in my reading life because of the strength of McGuire's world building.
I don't know what McGuire's plans are for Toby and company, but there remain unanswered questions at this book's end, so I can plan reasonably surely to read at least one more volume in the future. No doubt Toby will be risking herself once more, to Tybalt's dismay. But who knows? Perhaps motherhood will temper her impulsive nature (not that I believe it will). I’ll anticipate the next book with pleasure.
At the book's beginning, Tybalt is stuck in overprotective mode. Mind you, he has reason, as Toby, who is after all a Hero of Faerie, tends to charge into action impulsively. In the opening chapter, Toby is trying to heed everyone else's desires to keep her safe, but feels like she is under house arrest and dying of boredom. When her Queen requests her assistance, Toby jumps at the chance to do something. But this is Toby we're talking about, so you know that things will go spectacularly wrong!
As always, I love McGuire's use of fairy lore and her alternative reality of Faerie anchored in the Western United States. (And that her squire, Quentin, is from a Canadian royal family.) Her “rules" are consistent, if very different from our own conventions and they make for interesting complications. While I may not be quite as enthusiastic about fantasy including Fae characters as I was five years ago, I still make room for Toby in my reading life because of the strength of McGuire's world building.
I don't know what McGuire's plans are for Toby and company, but there remain unanswered questions at this book's end, so I can plan reasonably surely to read at least one more volume in the future. No doubt Toby will be risking herself once more, to Tybalt's dismay. But who knows? Perhaps motherhood will temper her impulsive nature (not that I believe it will). I’ll anticipate the next book with pleasure.
October 13, 2025
Heroing while pregnant
When we left our Toby at the end of Sleep No More (or The Innocent Sleep) after she and her allies had succeeded in temporarily disposing of Queen Titania, Toby had learned that her unborn child had survived Titania's alternate reality undamaged. Since then water has flowed under the Golden Gate. Toby's baby is due in two weeks. She is hugely pregnant, to the point where locomotion is problematic, and running or touching her toes are entirely out of the question*. What's more, husband Tybalt is so overprotective as to make Toby virtually a prisoner in her home. She's going nuts.
Then Toby and Tybalt get called to an event at the court of Toby's liege, Arden, Queen in the Mists. This is an invitation that even Tybalt cannot get Toby out of. Once there, Arden takes Toby aside to tell her that someone has ransacked her treasure vaults. Some of the items that were stolen are höchst dangerous, so she wants Toby to get right on the problem of getting them back. Of course Arden doesn't want Toby to do anything that might endanger her unborn child -- Heavens, No! -- but she seems to envision Toby sitting in a basement cellar somewhere strategizing about the problem.
Arden, have you met Toby? Of course, Toby soon finds herself in the thick of things. For once it's not really Toby's fault. It transpires that it is no coincidence that the excrement made contact with the ventilatory apparatus at the moment when Toby was about to pop.
So, this was pretty good. I am on record as opining that October Daye is the strongest of Seanan McGuire's many series. I was also relieved to find that our Seanan seems to have come out of the bout of clumsy over-explanation that has (in my opinion) marred her most recent novels.
Seas and shores
As usual, this book includes a bonus novella. It's called Seas and Shores. It takes place contemporaneously. We knew already that Dianda Lorden, the reigning Duchess of Saltmist, was pregnant. Her husband Simon Torquill, who was in the Bay Area (having been summoned by Arden for the same event that kicked off the action of Silver and Lead) is urgently called back to Saltmist, because Dianda is giving birth. The novella mostly concerns that. The events surrounding Dianda's birth-giving are less dangerous and exciting than Toby's trials in Silver and Lead.
This novella would be perfectly fine, if not for the narrator, Simon. Simon has a dark past in which he did bad things, under the influence of two very bad people. He has since repented and is full of remorse. SO MUCH REMORSE! Nicer people than me like Simon, but I find his Marvin the Paranoid Android act tiresome. He's such a drip.
*At this point I should mention that the cover illustration of a relatively svelte Toby gives an entirely inaccurate impression of Toby's physical state.
Blog review.
When we left our Toby at the end of Sleep No More (or The Innocent Sleep) after she and her allies had succeeded in temporarily disposing of Queen Titania, Toby had learned that her unborn child had survived Titania's alternate reality undamaged. Since then water has flowed under the Golden Gate. Toby's baby is due in two weeks. She is hugely pregnant, to the point where locomotion is problematic, and running or touching her toes are entirely out of the question*. What's more, husband Tybalt is so overprotective as to make Toby virtually a prisoner in her home. She's going nuts.
Then Toby and Tybalt get called to an event at the court of Toby's liege, Arden, Queen in the Mists. This is an invitation that even Tybalt cannot get Toby out of. Once there, Arden takes Toby aside to tell her that someone has ransacked her treasure vaults. Some of the items that were stolen are höchst dangerous, so she wants Toby to get right on the problem of getting them back. Of course Arden doesn't want Toby to do anything that might endanger her unborn child -- Heavens, No! -- but she seems to envision Toby sitting in a basement cellar somewhere strategizing about the problem.
Arden, have you met Toby? Of course, Toby soon finds herself in the thick of things. For once it's not really Toby's fault. It transpires that it is no coincidence that the excrement made contact with the ventilatory apparatus at the moment when Toby was about to pop.
So, this was pretty good. I am on record as opining that October Daye is the strongest of Seanan McGuire's many series. I was also relieved to find that our Seanan seems to have come out of the bout of clumsy over-explanation that has (in my opinion) marred her most recent novels.
Seas and shores
As usual, this book includes a bonus novella. It's called Seas and Shores. It takes place contemporaneously. We knew already that Dianda Lorden, the reigning Duchess of Saltmist, was pregnant. Her husband Simon Torquill, who was in the Bay Area (having been summoned by Arden for the same event that kicked off the action of Silver and Lead) is urgently called back to Saltmist, because Dianda is giving birth. The novella mostly concerns that. The events surrounding Dianda's birth-giving are less dangerous and exciting than Toby's trials in Silver and Lead.
This novella would be perfectly fine, if not for the narrator, Simon. Simon has a dark past in which he did bad things, under the influence of two very bad people. He has since repented and is full of remorse. SO MUCH REMORSE! Nicer people than me like Simon, but I find his Marvin the Paranoid Android act tiresome. He's such a drip.
*At this point I should mention that the cover illustration of a relatively svelte Toby gives an entirely inaccurate impression of Toby's physical state.
Blog review.
October 26, 2025
I mean, Toby has the worst case of baby brain but what's Arden's excuse? I'm team Tybalt on this one.
Over and out
Over and out
October 3, 2025
This wasn't my favorite in the series. It kinda left me underwhelmed. (And I'm so bummed about that, especially after also being disappointed with this year's InCryptid book.)
This felt in many ways like a filler book to me, like the most relevant bits could easily have been a prologue for the next one. And the rest condensed into a novella for those who really want to know.
I also didn't like how not just Tybalt but everyone used the pregnancy as an excuse to get so extremely overprotective... and Toby just indulging them to this extent. "You're not just taking risks for yourself now." Honestly, Toby isn't a neglectful person. As if she wouldn't take protecting the baby into account if you didn't basically lock her in the house. It had a bit of a bad aftertaste of a pregnant woman being reduced to an oven baking a baby and that's the only important thing about her for these months. And any pushback against that felt too little too late.
And I have to say I kinda hate that the plot seemed to reinforce Tybalt's past-trauma-response fears by contriving a way to have near-indestructible Toby still almost die giving birth.
Also, Oberon has the worst taste in women. After Titania and Janet both being so awful, at this point I'm starting to worry that Maeve (once she is found) is going to turn out to suck too...
I still haven't read the Simon novella in the back... I'm not at all caught up on Patreon, but in the past years there have been so many Undersea stories there that I'm honestly kind of like "back to this throuple again, I'm not that interested anymore"...
I hate that I feel this way about one of my favorite series. I really hope the next one turns it around again.
This felt in many ways like a filler book to me, like the most relevant bits could easily have been a prologue for the next one. And the rest condensed into a novella for those who really want to know.
I also didn't like how not just Tybalt but everyone used the pregnancy as an excuse to get so extremely overprotective... and Toby just indulging them to this extent. "You're not just taking risks for yourself now." Honestly, Toby isn't a neglectful person. As if she wouldn't take protecting the baby into account if you didn't basically lock her in the house. It had a bit of a bad aftertaste of a pregnant woman being reduced to an oven baking a baby and that's the only important thing about her for these months. And any pushback against that felt too little too late.
And I have to say I kinda hate that the plot seemed to reinforce Tybalt's past-trauma-response fears by contriving a way to have near-indestructible Toby still almost die giving birth.
Also, Oberon has the worst taste in women. After Titania and Janet both being so awful, at this point I'm starting to worry that Maeve (once she is found) is going to turn out to suck too...
I still haven't read the Simon novella in the back... I'm not at all caught up on Patreon, but in the past years there have been so many Undersea stories there that I'm honestly kind of like "back to this throuple again, I'm not that interested anymore"...
I hate that I feel this way about one of my favorite series. I really hope the next one turns it around again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 7, 2025
I got an arc from net galley and this is my honest review. Now I love the October Daye series, but I so hated this book so much as the way Toby was acting throughout the book were so nonsensical that I felt like I was reading a Rachel Morgan book. Nothing but bad decisions left and right. After assuring Tybalt that she won't endanger herself or the baby because she needs to be hero of the kingdom, she ends up getting poisoned, kidnapped, and nearly dying at the end. There's a reason everyone was being overprotective—Toby fell for the most obvious trap ever. Instead of confronting Brucer, she frees him, which results in her being hit by a spell that leads to Tybalt and May being kidnapped. Rather than calling for backup, Toby and her group head to Janet's house, thinking they are being sneaky, only to be captured again. This leads to Toby's iron poisoning and emergency childbirth because she was dying. Even Quentin almost lost his life. Ludwig should have given her a piece of their mind because I certainly wanted to reach into the book and do it myself. Additionally, Toby's compassion for those who harm her will undoubtedly cause more problems, as she should have dealt with Janet a long time ago.
Arden is the worst queen imaginable; her staff is so inept that she had to rely on an 8 1/2-month pregnant woman to help find stolen items, and prisoners keep escaping.
As for Marcie, I don't believe she is Maeve. I think she was a Merlin who gained some special powers. This book infuriated me to no end
Arden is the worst queen imaginable; her staff is so inept that she had to rely on an 8 1/2-month pregnant woman to help find stolen items, and prisoners keep escaping.
As for Marcie, I don't believe she is Maeve. I think she was a Merlin who gained some special powers. This book infuriated me to no end
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 22, 2025
Oh no, I'm caught up again! Glad to be past this once since the pregnancy stuff was squicking me out a bit, and also I'm just 👀👀👀 about the next book.
October 10, 2025
So far, one of my least favorite OD books. half of it seemed to just be reminding the reader of what was already going on (which I often don't mind in this series, but I like it better with more story progression than I got in this one).
admittedly, I'm also not big on pregnancy storylines so this particular book weighing so heavily around that was pretty tedious for me.
I guess I'm getting a little bored of the "oh no! who has kidnapped our lucky heroine this time and will she get out of it with her life/family intact" arcs. It feels very filler.
to be fair, I don't think I enjoyed the last two books much either because of Reasons™. (relatively speaking- I always enjoy a Toby novel).
admittedly, I'm also not big on pregnancy storylines so this particular book weighing so heavily around that was pretty tedious for me.
I guess I'm getting a little bored of the "oh no! who has kidnapped our lucky heroine this time and will she get out of it with her life/family intact" arcs. It feels very filler.
to be fair, I don't think I enjoyed the last two books much either because of Reasons™. (relatively speaking- I always enjoy a Toby novel).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 27, 2025
Absolutely obsessed with this series, and unsurprising to me book 19 was no different! It's hard to talk about this series without spoiling previous books in the series.
Silver and Lead follows October "Toby" Day after the events of the previous book left everyone needing time to recover. However, Toby isn't very good at being cooped up, so when the royal vaults are looted and the queen calls upon their Hero of the Realm, Toby must thrust herself into danger, again. Only this time it's not just her that is in the line of fire: she's 8 months pregnant.
I love the characters, even the evil ones, and I am sad to be once again caught up on the series.
Silver and Lead follows October "Toby" Day after the events of the previous book left everyone needing time to recover. However, Toby isn't very good at being cooped up, so when the royal vaults are looted and the queen calls upon their Hero of the Realm, Toby must thrust herself into danger, again. Only this time it's not just her that is in the line of fire: she's 8 months pregnant.
I love the characters, even the evil ones, and I am sad to be once again caught up on the series.
October 10, 2025
I spent all last year reading this series that now I'm caught up with the fandom when they release.
This book was me waiting for the baby to arrive. Girl needs to give birth soon! I love the growth all the characters have gone through to make it to this point in October's life (Simon! being my favorite). I love that the series carries the events over from the previous book(s).
Tybalt and October were split up for most of the book, and the mystery was who framed Simon and why. The 'why' in the end was one that I didn't see coming but it made sense given what we learned in previous books.
I am curious regarding the next book now and who the mysterious character was that October recognized / realized was behind things. Seasoned / detail attentive readers would know more.
This book was me waiting for the baby to arrive. Girl needs to give birth soon! I love the growth all the characters have gone through to make it to this point in October's life (Simon! being my favorite). I love that the series carries the events over from the previous book(s).
Tybalt and October were split up for most of the book, and the mystery was who framed Simon and why. The 'why' in the end was one that I didn't see coming but it made sense given what we learned in previous books.
I am curious regarding the next book now and who the mysterious character was that October recognized / realized was behind things. Seasoned / detail attentive readers would know more.
November 21, 2025
As with most urban fantasy, I recommend listening to the October Daye series in the order of its release. Story arcs and relationships are better enjoyed and understood. In Silver and Lead, October (Toby) is eight and a half months pregnant and has been lying low since the events of the previous book. Things have been quiet in Kingdom in the Mists, that is until someone loots the castle’s vault, stealing magical artifacts, and the Queen of Mists calls her hero to find the culprit.
Tybalt, the King of Cats, is not happy that Toby has been called into service, but these magical items are far too dangerous to be left lying about. Naturally, McGuire pulled me right into the story as Toby once again does the Queen’s bidding. At first, Toby is excited to be out and welcomes the case, but soon she will need to not only save the day but protect her unborn child as the danger grows.
I love the characters in the October Daye series. Toby’s found family gathers around to aid her, and as we investigate, we see them come to her aid. The story weaves in old and new characters with twists that will rip your heart out even as the author works to stitch it back together.
Mary Robinette Kowal continues to narrate the series and has become the voice of these characters. It is her voice I hear in my head whenever I re-read past books in the series. I highly recommend listening!
I devoured Silver and Lead and cannot wait for the next story in the October Daye series. If you love urban fantasy, the world and characters McGuire has created in the October Daye series have me ranking it among the best out there. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
Tybalt, the King of Cats, is not happy that Toby has been called into service, but these magical items are far too dangerous to be left lying about. Naturally, McGuire pulled me right into the story as Toby once again does the Queen’s bidding. At first, Toby is excited to be out and welcomes the case, but soon she will need to not only save the day but protect her unborn child as the danger grows.
I love the characters in the October Daye series. Toby’s found family gathers around to aid her, and as we investigate, we see them come to her aid. The story weaves in old and new characters with twists that will rip your heart out even as the author works to stitch it back together.
Mary Robinette Kowal continues to narrate the series and has become the voice of these characters. It is her voice I hear in my head whenever I re-read past books in the series. I highly recommend listening!
I devoured Silver and Lead and cannot wait for the next story in the October Daye series. If you love urban fantasy, the world and characters McGuire has created in the October Daye series have me ranking it among the best out there. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer
August 30, 2025
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
This series has been one of my top 3 for as long as I can remember. I keep expecting it to get old and honestly, I skipped Tybald’s book but I’ll go back to it someday. This book has a ton of call backs. It isn’t quite as good as I’ve become accustomed to but it is satisfying and real for more!
This series has been one of my top 3 for as long as I can remember. I keep expecting it to get old and honestly, I skipped Tybald’s book but I’ll go back to it someday. This book has a ton of call backs. It isn’t quite as good as I’ve become accustomed to but it is satisfying and real for more!
August 18, 2025
Rounded up from 4.5.
December 2, 2025
it's a bit hard to review the 19th book in a series without giving away major plot points of the previous books, especially in this series when SO MUCH has happened within books 16-18. what i will say is that i didn't super love the overall plot of this one - it felt kinda...drab? idk if that's the right word. but maybe that was always going to be the case given the arc of the story in 16-18. however, i do like seeing the ramifications of those books ripple through this one, and how that affects the bonds between the characters. i like that this book gave a bit more room to muddle through that rather than diving right into another world-changing plot line. reading the Simon POV novella at the end also made me realize just how big this world and series is. it's just...amazing. at the end of the day this series is my home, and reading this installment made me happy.
REP: lesbian, gay, bi side characters; trans man side character, many more [queer disabled neurodivergent author]
REP: lesbian, gay, bi side characters; trans man side character, many more [queer disabled neurodivergent author]
October 4, 2025
Another enjoyable addition to the series.
October 14, 2025
God, finishing a Toby book always makes me so ravenous for another one. Though honestly maybe it's time for a reread. A reread and lots of fanart sounds good to me.
October 6, 2025
This book was really good. It was a long two years without Toby stories, so I kind of had to recall what had been going on. The book does a good job of explaining what had happened before with the memory wipe that Tatiana did. Also, I was glad to see that Toby's pregnancy has progressed and everything good on that end.
The Simon novella at the end was very sweet.
The Simon novella at the end was very sweet.
September 15, 2025
The last few installments in the Tobyverse have been world-shattering, highly emotional battles against a literal god. Book 19 takes us back to classic Toby stakes with a standard whodunnit investigation, but the personal impact holds strong with a heavily pregnant hero running around San Francisco.
Things I liked:
-Return to small stakes conflict. The last few books were amazing but exhausting.
-Specific reasons why Toby has to get involved. At the beginning of the story I was skeptical of Arden forcing her into the action, but later plot points show that the missing treasures were a scheme against Toby, and the mastermind behind it makes perfect sense.
-Return of several old villains and bit characters. To say more would be spoilers.
-Realism of Toby’s pregnancy impacting her stamina and agility.
Things I didn’t like:
-Toby is known among friends and fans for being covered in blood, but I found the body horror mixed with pregnancy pretty uncomfortable. Trigger warnings for readers who have any sort of pregnancy squicks.
-Tybalt keeping Toby in bubble wrap and her family going along with it. This is starting to give me flashbacks to Edward Cullen. I feel like Tybalt should have experienced much more character growth after getting his own POV book and a four month time jump. His trauma is valid. His possessiveness is not acceptable.
-The baby’s name. Particularly given the villain of this book.
All in all, not my favorite Toby installment but still my favorite series as a whole.
Things I liked:
-Return to small stakes conflict. The last few books were amazing but exhausting.
-Specific reasons why Toby has to get involved. At the beginning of the story I was skeptical of Arden forcing her into the action, but later plot points show that the missing treasures were a scheme against Toby, and the mastermind behind it makes perfect sense.
-Return of several old villains and bit characters. To say more would be spoilers.
-Realism of Toby’s pregnancy impacting her stamina and agility.
Things I didn’t like:
-Toby is known among friends and fans for being covered in blood, but I found the body horror mixed with pregnancy pretty uncomfortable. Trigger warnings for readers who have any sort of pregnancy squicks.
-Tybalt keeping Toby in bubble wrap and her family going along with it. This is starting to give me flashbacks to Edward Cullen. I feel like Tybalt should have experienced much more character growth after getting his own POV book and a four month time jump. His trauma is valid. His possessiveness is not acceptable.
-The baby’s name. Particularly given the villain of this book.
All in all, not my favorite Toby installment but still my favorite series as a whole.
June 3, 2025
Loved reading this book again, I had to, after my reread of the series, to pick up some details I'd forgotten. So good, and I can't wait to see where the series goes from here!
*Review of Seas and Shores*
Really enjoyed getting this perspective, and seeing this time!
*First Read May 4th 2025*
Oh, loved reading this book, loved everything that happened, it was an incredible read!
*Review of Seas and Shores*
This was a wonderful story, I'm so glad that we got to see this time!
*Review of Seas and Shores*
Really enjoyed getting this perspective, and seeing this time!
*First Read May 4th 2025*
Oh, loved reading this book, loved everything that happened, it was an incredible read!
*Review of Seas and Shores*
This was a wonderful story, I'm so glad that we got to see this time!
October 9, 2025
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---
WHAT'S SILVER AND LEAD ABOUT?
Queen Arden has a task for her hero--and she's more than happy to take it on. During the recent...whatever you want to call what Titania did, several items were removed from the royal vaults. Dangerous items, naturally. Now, Arden had wanted to wait until Toby had given birth and recovered before sending her to find them. But at least one of the items has been used, and someone is dead. She can't put it off any longer.
Toby's tired, fed up, and annoyed by basically being under house arrest because of her worried husband during the last few months of her pregnancy. Yes, Tybalt's worries are understandable, but he's maybe gone a little too far. Toby's glad for the excuse to get to work, and promises she'll be extra careful. (Any guesses how that goes and how cooperative the people she's looking for are going to be?)
Quentin--whose identity seems to be the worst-kept secret in all of Faerie--sticks with her every step of the way. This adventure brings us across many old friends and allies and reminds us of one old enemy.
Oh, I forgot to mention, before any of this happens, everyone's favorite Sea Witch has a request--both sweet and terrifying--for Toby before any of this business with Arden starts.
All in all, this is not the way most people spend the last couple of weeks of their pregnancy. But of course, Toby wouldn't do it any other way, and her readers expect no less.
AFTERSHOCKS
While we are not looking directly at what Titania did in these pages, we’re looking at the aftermath. We’re also learning a little bit about how her plan didn’t completely work. But I’m going to gloss over that (but you’re going to want to stop and muse about it while reading).
Quentin is trying to wrap his mind around the version of himself he saw and remembers, and cannot stand it. He’s overcompensating—and you can’t blame him for that—when he’s not letting it interfere with his thinking in the present.
Some of the ramifications of Titania’s work are seen in the motivations behind this novel’s primary villain. This doesn’t justify their actions (they’d have likely found another way to justify things), but it gives us an idea of all the unintended consequences of her re-write of Faerie. (unintended, but she probably wouldn’t care).
I really appreciate this--we're not primarily concerned with her, nor have we just gotten a "it's been a few months, stuff happened, life goes on" kind of thing. Faerie learned a lot about itself, they found some messes that need to be cleaned up. Yes, life goes on, but it's different and will continue to be for a while.
SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT SILVER AND LEAD?
So after a few novels with big, world-changing events at their core, it’s nice to get back to the bread-and-butter kind of novel. Yes, the stakes are important. Yes, there are life-and-death situations all around—and if Toby fails, it will mean bad things. But it won’t be the end of the world.
One of the advantages of a long-running series like this is that you can pluck a (seemingly?) random someone from an early novel, dust them off, and have them play a major role in the current book. Which is great—it also means that every random someone has the potential of being important. McGuire used that well in Silver and Lead.
While I enjoyed Raysel’s use here, I’m a little afraid that she’s being given some short-shrift overall, and the interesting storyline that seemed to have kicked off for her in Be the Serpent will end more with more of a whimper than it should. (Hopefully, this means that McGuire has something really big cooking).
Early on in the reading, I texted a friend, “a very pregnant Toby is fun.” She really is—and just as it was good to get back to a smaller stakes plot, it’s nice to be with the characters again, adapting to/preparing for this new stage of life.
McGuire’s humor and willingness to put her characters through the wringer for the entertainment of her audience shine forth. Toby’s determination (read: near-uncompromising stubbornness), grit, and humanity are on display for all. Tybalt and May are Tybalt and May (always good), and Quentin continues to develop into quite the man. The Luidaeg was fantastically used—particularly at the beginning. It was also good to see the rest of the cast, and I’m looking forward to seeing what life is like for Sir Mommy Daye.
Fans will be pleased with this one, and it might draw in a few new ones. Silver and Lead is just what we needed after the last arc.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Tor Publishing Group via NetGalley—thanks to both for this. Sorry it's up late, it's been one of those months.
---
WHAT'S SILVER AND LEAD ABOUT?
Queen Arden has a task for her hero--and she's more than happy to take it on. During the recent...whatever you want to call what Titania did, several items were removed from the royal vaults. Dangerous items, naturally. Now, Arden had wanted to wait until Toby had given birth and recovered before sending her to find them. But at least one of the items has been used, and someone is dead. She can't put it off any longer.
Toby's tired, fed up, and annoyed by basically being under house arrest because of her worried husband during the last few months of her pregnancy. Yes, Tybalt's worries are understandable, but he's maybe gone a little too far. Toby's glad for the excuse to get to work, and promises she'll be extra careful. (Any guesses how that goes and how cooperative the people she's looking for are going to be?)
Quentin--whose identity seems to be the worst-kept secret in all of Faerie--sticks with her every step of the way. This adventure brings us across many old friends and allies and reminds us of one old enemy.
Oh, I forgot to mention, before any of this happens, everyone's favorite Sea Witch has a request--both sweet and terrifying--for Toby before any of this business with Arden starts.
All in all, this is not the way most people spend the last couple of weeks of their pregnancy. But of course, Toby wouldn't do it any other way, and her readers expect no less.
AFTERSHOCKS
While we are not looking directly at what Titania did in these pages, we’re looking at the aftermath. We’re also learning a little bit about how her plan didn’t completely work. But I’m going to gloss over that (but you’re going to want to stop and muse about it while reading).
Quentin is trying to wrap his mind around the version of himself he saw and remembers, and cannot stand it. He’s overcompensating—and you can’t blame him for that—when he’s not letting it interfere with his thinking in the present.
Some of the ramifications of Titania’s work are seen in the motivations behind this novel’s primary villain. This doesn’t justify their actions (they’d have likely found another way to justify things), but it gives us an idea of all the unintended consequences of her re-write of Faerie. (unintended, but she probably wouldn’t care).
I really appreciate this--we're not primarily concerned with her, nor have we just gotten a "it's been a few months, stuff happened, life goes on" kind of thing. Faerie learned a lot about itself, they found some messes that need to be cleaned up. Yes, life goes on, but it's different and will continue to be for a while.
SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT SILVER AND LEAD?
So after a few novels with big, world-changing events at their core, it’s nice to get back to the bread-and-butter kind of novel. Yes, the stakes are important. Yes, there are life-and-death situations all around—and if Toby fails, it will mean bad things. But it won’t be the end of the world.
One of the advantages of a long-running series like this is that you can pluck a (seemingly?) random someone from an early novel, dust them off, and have them play a major role in the current book. Which is great—it also means that every random someone has the potential of being important. McGuire used that well in Silver and Lead.
While I enjoyed Raysel’s use here, I’m a little afraid that she’s being given some short-shrift overall, and the interesting storyline that seemed to have kicked off for her in Be the Serpent will end more with more of a whimper than it should. (Hopefully, this means that McGuire has something really big cooking).
Early on in the reading, I texted a friend, “a very pregnant Toby is fun.” She really is—and just as it was good to get back to a smaller stakes plot, it’s nice to be with the characters again, adapting to/preparing for this new stage of life.
McGuire’s humor and willingness to put her characters through the wringer for the entertainment of her audience shine forth. Toby’s determination (read: near-uncompromising stubbornness), grit, and humanity are on display for all. Tybalt and May are Tybalt and May (always good), and Quentin continues to develop into quite the man. The Luidaeg was fantastically used—particularly at the beginning. It was also good to see the rest of the cast, and I’m looking forward to seeing what life is like for Sir Mommy Daye.
Fans will be pleased with this one, and it might draw in a few new ones. Silver and Lead is just what we needed after the last arc.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Tor Publishing Group via NetGalley—thanks to both for this. Sorry it's up late, it's been one of those months.
October 2, 2025
Sir October "Toby" Daye is being kept in confinement, and she's angry about it. Even if her husband Tybalt (a cat shifter) and the rest of her household has good reason to keep her resting: she's 8 months pregnant and just off a dangerous mission where she'd been kidnapped by Titania for 4 months. Now though, Arden Windermere, Queen in the Mists, needs Toby and only Toby to complete a dangerous mission, since she is the only hero knight available (available being a loose term, since even a mostly-faerie changeling knight isn't quite as invincible at 8 months pregnant). But the safety of kingdoms, husband, and babies are on the line, and it's Toby's job to save them.
I'd been considering picking up the October Daye series...and what better place to start than book 19? This may be the most unhinged place to start a series, except I'd read that while the stories are obviously interconnected and there is a big story arc, each plot is self-contained. McGuire herself says you could theoretically start anywhere, so I figured, why not! And you know what, I got enough backstory for the characters and Toby's recent adventures that I was never really lost. McGuire writes in enough callbacks to keep a reader on track, which I can assume is as helpful for someone who can't remember what happened 10 books ago as someone who is reading the series for the first time.
Prior to this, I'd read all the currently published Wayward Children books, and one of McGuire's books as Mira Grant, but I wasn't entirely sure what to expect out of this series. As a lover of paranormal romance and urban fantasy, I was delighted to find similarities to those genres alongside faerie lore. It worked really well for me, and honestly, I'll probably go back to the beginning to start the series, because I found Toby a fascinating protagonist with a really interesting past that I'd read more about.
Thank you to MacMillan Audio for an ALC and Tor for an eARC. Silver and Lead is out 9/30/25.
I'd been considering picking up the October Daye series...and what better place to start than book 19? This may be the most unhinged place to start a series, except I'd read that while the stories are obviously interconnected and there is a big story arc, each plot is self-contained. McGuire herself says you could theoretically start anywhere, so I figured, why not! And you know what, I got enough backstory for the characters and Toby's recent adventures that I was never really lost. McGuire writes in enough callbacks to keep a reader on track, which I can assume is as helpful for someone who can't remember what happened 10 books ago as someone who is reading the series for the first time.
Prior to this, I'd read all the currently published Wayward Children books, and one of McGuire's books as Mira Grant, but I wasn't entirely sure what to expect out of this series. As a lover of paranormal romance and urban fantasy, I was delighted to find similarities to those genres alongside faerie lore. It worked really well for me, and honestly, I'll probably go back to the beginning to start the series, because I found Toby a fascinating protagonist with a really interesting past that I'd read more about.
Thank you to MacMillan Audio for an ALC and Tor for an eARC. Silver and Lead is out 9/30/25.
September 13, 2025
The latest October Daye book sees Toby dealing with the late stages of pregnancy (and the hovering, anxious husband that comes with it) as well as handling some of the fallout of four months in Titania’s alternate reality. Some dangerous artifacts have gone missing, and they need to be found urgently – so urgently that it can’t wait until after the baby comes. What’s the harm in just asking a few people some questions, right? Cue mortal peril.
I love this series but sometimes it does feel a little repetitive. Which is only to be expected in a series that’s run this long, I suppose. How many times has Toby been tied up? Or how many times Tybalt been captured at this point? I get that sometimes for Toby to be in real trouble he needs to be out of the picture, and it ups the emotional stakes considerably, but it gets to feeling a little bit “oh no, not again.” That being said, the story is well paced and propulsive, with a lot of my favorites coming into play, and a few baddies we haven’t seen in a while popping up to cause problems (and a new one I don’t remember seeing much from up to this point.) And it’s not so formulaic that it doesn’t have some surprises and interesting new developments come up. But in retrospect I think one of the things I really liked about the last two books was how different they were from the rest of the series. Hopefully the author continues to find ways to shake things up.
CW: Blood and gore and injury detail (if you can’t handle that then there's no chance you’ve made it to Book 19 of this series, but I thought I’d mention it anyway because it’s especially gruesome) and child endangerment (nothing too harrowing)
I received an advance copy of this ebook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I love this series but sometimes it does feel a little repetitive. Which is only to be expected in a series that’s run this long, I suppose. How many times has Toby been tied up? Or how many times Tybalt been captured at this point? I get that sometimes for Toby to be in real trouble he needs to be out of the picture, and it ups the emotional stakes considerably, but it gets to feeling a little bit “oh no, not again.” That being said, the story is well paced and propulsive, with a lot of my favorites coming into play, and a few baddies we haven’t seen in a while popping up to cause problems (and a new one I don’t remember seeing much from up to this point.) And it’s not so formulaic that it doesn’t have some surprises and interesting new developments come up. But in retrospect I think one of the things I really liked about the last two books was how different they were from the rest of the series. Hopefully the author continues to find ways to shake things up.
CW: Blood and gore and injury detail (if you can’t handle that then there's no chance you’ve made it to Book 19 of this series, but I thought I’d mention it anyway because it’s especially gruesome) and child endangerment (nothing too harrowing)
I received an advance copy of this ebook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
October 11, 2025
Still reeling from the aftermath of the fake memories and alternate reality all of fae had been living for the past 4 months… October and her family find themselves thrust back into the thick of things as they try to figure out who is responsible for stealing dangerous fae artifacts.
In this story we get to see a different side of our favorite characters. October is eight months pregnant and she and Tybolt are at odds about her working while pregnant. A job that usually ends with her bloody and near death.
I don’t know what I was expecting in this story but McGuire exceeded every expectation!!! There is always a surprise around the corner and an old enemy lurking in a closet.
I think this story touched on some really important issues. Toby may be near invincible but her friends and family are not. Being around her puts them in danger and one of these days one of them may not make it home.
The new addition to the family is so exciting and I can’t wait to storylines this opens up for the new parents… waiting patiently for book 20!
In this story we get to see a different side of our favorite characters. October is eight months pregnant and she and Tybolt are at odds about her working while pregnant. A job that usually ends with her bloody and near death.
I don’t know what I was expecting in this story but McGuire exceeded every expectation!!! There is always a surprise around the corner and an old enemy lurking in a closet.
I think this story touched on some really important issues. Toby may be near invincible but her friends and family are not. Being around her puts them in danger and one of these days one of them may not make it home.
The new addition to the family is so exciting and I can’t wait to storylines this opens up for the new parents… waiting patiently for book 20!
December 11, 2025
After a couple of years’ hiatus following that big double header a couple years back, Seanan McGuire brings back her best protagonist for her 19th adventure in the Faerie knowes of San Francisco and beyond, where the pieces left behind by Titania’s alternate universe spell still need to be picked up. Namely, the theft of a good number of royal artifacts. And also the fact that Toby is pregnant now, and missed several months of that while under Titania’s evil spell. And the fact that the Luidaeg wants to be the baby’s godparent (an unnerving proposition to say the least.) While McGuire’s other worlds have been unhooking me as a reader during Toby’s hiatus - I’m especially looking at InCryptid with its increased emphasis on the cuckoos and how, unintentionally or otherwise, they include almost every negative autistic stereotype you can think of - it’s Toby’s world I’ve been looking forward to returning to the most. And on the 19th novel in the series, McGuire again delivers a fast paced, rollicking adventure worthy of any Faerie kingdom’s treasure.
October 9, 2025
Book 19 in the October Daye series and this ranks as one of the best! Set after Titania’s reality warping enchantment was dispelled, Toby is now mere weeks away from giving birth and going stir crazy as her husband and extended family and friends are trying to keep her safe until she delivers. Unfortunately, she is summoned to court by Arden, Queen Windermere to give her testimony against the False Queen who caused so much misery and death during Titania’s reimagining of Fairie. Predictably, nothing goes to plan. Arden tells October of a crisis that requires the assistance of her Knight, despite October’s being 8.5 months pregnant. Meanwhile, Simon has a secret of his own to share with Toby…
This book had lots of twists and turns and delightful prose. It was a great read! Can’t wait for Book 20!
This book had lots of twists and turns and delightful prose. It was a great read! Can’t wait for Book 20!
October 4, 2025
“I’m going to need you to explain what you know to me,” I said, voice low and as level as I could possibly make it. “Slowly. Assume the pregnancy has made my thoughts as clumsy as my feet, and use small words.”
This is something I love about this series; everything will be explained. I read these books out of order. My memory isn't as good as it used to be. Doesn't matter, everything will be explained.
This is something I love about this series; everything will be explained. I read these books out of order. My memory isn't as good as it used to be. Doesn't matter, everything will be explained.
Want to read
June 10, 2025Expected publication September 30, 2025
Displaying 1 - 30 of 198 reviews