Bright and Broken Things

by Ryan Graudin

Set among the glittering parties and Egyptology craze of the 1920s, young academic learns he might be the key to an ancient Egyptian tomb coveted by a powerful cabal of magicians in this enthralling adventure from the author of Enchanted Lies of Céleste Artois.
 
Ezra Bright has returned to London after serving in World War I but, like many returned soldiers, he is haunted by his time on the front lines and the loss of his adoptive brother. He attempts to put the nightmares behind him and focus on his dissertation, but a chance encounter with his sister, Biz, introduces him to the Bright Young Things, a group of socialites famous for their elaborate costume parties and treasure hunts spanning London. At one such party Ezra meets Celia, a young socialite who introduces him to a world of magic and secret societies.
 
Unbeknownst to many, a powerful cabal of magicians known as the Order has been stealing magical artifacts in the hopes of impressing its mysterious leader. The ultimate prize is said to bestow immortality on its bearer and Celia suspects Ezra may be in possession of the powerful, ancient magic key to locating it. When Biz mistakes a note from Ezra’s mother for the start of another scavenger hunt, the Order is alerted to Ezra’s presence forcing him, Celia, Biz and her fiancé on a race across Cairo to find the treasure before the Order does.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Adult, Urban Fantasy

384 pages, Paperback

Expected publication September 22, 2026

About the author

Ryan Graudin was born in Charleston, South Carolina, with a severe case of wanderlust. When she’s not traveling, she’s busy writing and spending time with her husband and wolf dog. She is the author of Invictus, the Wolf By Wolf duology, The Walled City, and the All That Glows Series.

Reviews

[Andi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me a read.

I loved Ryan Graudin's WWII duology. It was just so well done that I admit I have not been following her other books since then. Of course it's been about 10 years or so.

So when I saw she was releasing a book that infused socialites of the 20's with the fascination of Egyptology, I had to read it. After reading it, I don't know what I expected but I was disappointed when finishing it.

There is a lot happening in terms of the characters and their motivations so lets not say that the motivations was the issue. I guess the story was my problem. A character of Egyptian descent is our protagonist and he is trying to figure out his place in a world that doesn't seem made for him - both racial and magic wise. Of course, he is confused on his magic powers he may or may not have (watching what happened to the men who killed his brother so to speak). So he becomes wrapped up in finding a reason of why he is seeing the things he's seeing.

I just felt that the direction was sort of lost on who was screwing who and who had feelings for who while competing against a story about magic and racial identity. I just didn't care about the other characters, I found them either annoying or underdeveloped for me to care.

All in all, I think there will be people who will enjoy this - if they hang more on the emotional drama of all these relationships but I didn't.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

RTC