Dead wizards, stolen enchantments, and broken promises force a young spellbreaker out of the shadows in the next thrilling installment of the Spellbreaker series by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician.
England, 1895. An unsolved series of magician murders and opus thefts isn’t a puzzle to Elsie Camden. But to reveal a master spellcaster as the culprit means incriminating herself as an unregistered spellbreaker. When Elsie refuses to join forces with the charming assassin, her secret is exposed, she’s thrown in jail, and the murderer disappears. But Elsie’s hope hasn’t vanished.
Through a twist of luck, the elite magic user Bacchus Kelsey helps Elsie join the lawful, but with a caveat: they must marry to prove their cover story. Forced beneath a magical tutor while her bond with Bacchus grows, Elsie seeks to thwart the plans of England’s most devious criminal—if she can find them.
With hundreds of stolen spells at their disposal, the villain has a plan—and it involves seducing Elsie to the dark side. But even now that her secret is out, Elsie must be careful how she uses the new abilities she’s discovering, or she may play right into the criminal’s hands.
Charlie N. Holmberg is a Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author of fantasy and romance fiction, including the Paper Magician series, the Spellbreaker series, and the Whimbrel House series, and writes contemporary romance under C. N. Holmberg. She is published in over twenty languages and is a Goodreads Choice Award, ALA, and RITA finalist. Born in Salt Lake City, Charlie was raised a Trekkie alongside three sisters who also have boy names. A BYU alumna, she discovered in her thirties that she’s actually a cat person. She lives with her family in Utah. Visit her at www.charlienholmberg.com.
I read 'Spellmaker' & 'Spellbreaker' back to back to ensure that I understood the entire story. Elsie's arc gets a partial conclusion in this duology. The focus in Spellmaker is the conclusion of the romance as well as discovering & exposing the villain behind the various attacks.
I liked the magic system in both the books. The classes - people who can make spells as well as people who can destroy spells - is quite unique. The way the two classes combine with each other in certain scenes is also well described. There is a also a further exploration of the sub-classes within the spellmaker class that was quite interesting too.
That said, the book is mostly focused on the romance and the 'will they, wont they' question. I found this to be quite distracting when compared to Spellbreaker. It could be that I am not the intended audience (jaded grumpy middle aged male). The tension in this book is also lesser compared to the earlier. We already know who the antagonist is as well as their motives. It just remains to be seen how and when they will captured. The climax was also a tad bit less dramatic than in the first book.
Overall, I still liked Spellmaker, with its flaws. It is an apt conclusion to the duo logy with most questions answered and plot points resolved. If you liked Spellbreaker, you will like Spellbreaker too.
Yup, I binged both books. Normally I take a break between books in a series. It's very rare that I jump right into the next book, but this one I had to read right after Spellbreaker. It's a great duology - I loved the world and the characters and would read more books set in this universe.
Spellmaker Spellbreaker, Book 2 by Charlie N. Holmberg This is a book I requested from NetGalley and the review is voluntary. A word of warning, read book one first! It has spoilers in it of book one. This is a world of complex magical systems. There are four types of magic and training needed to become a master. There is also Spellbreakers, which are gal Elsie is. All Spellmakers and Spellbreakers must be registered. Elsie is not nor has she been since age 11 when she accidentally unraveled a spell keeping the workhouse she lived at safe from fire. Since then, she has been a pawn to a mastermind that tricked her into believing she was helping the poor. Her luck runs out and she is caught and sent to jail. This could mean death or her hand removed. Bacchus, the rich and handsome man she worked to pay off a debt to, helps her get out of jail but lies and tell the judge they are to be married soon. Meanwhile, someone is killing off master Spellmakers. They leave an enchanted artifact when they die. Their special magic. Someone is killing for those. Elsie and Bacchus get in the middle of it along with Else's teacher and boss. Exciting, great mystery, complex plot and characters, and sweet romance! Very enjoyable read and duology.
While this wasn't a terrible sequel to the first half of this duo, Spellbreaker, much of this novel featured a rather patchy, haphazard garble of a narrative that really only served to highlight the flaws of the first novel rather than answering all those unanswered questions and filling in all those holes that you assume will be filled.
Where Spellbreaker felt like a charming, introductory novel — establishing Elsie Camden as the title character within an alternate Victorian era world with magic as natural an ability for many to have as any career-level skill we find in our existing world — Spellmaker feels instead like a book having an identity crisis, unsure of itself to the point of changing into other types of novels mid-chapter.
Holmberg's delightful writing is still present, but even that suffers somewhat, because I found — within the minefield of the plot — a growing desire for more dialogue and a lot of Holmberg-styled telling rather than showing — making Spellmaker feel both crammed full of plot and sorely lacking in it somehow at the same time. For all that she had managed to fold within these pages, Holmberg's second novel in this duo could've been trimmed down by quite a bit and served its purpose better as one, ever so slightly larger, stand-alone novel. There were a lot of skimmable pages.
The main oddity that stood out like a sore thumb gets tacked directly onto one of the unanswered questions I had leftover from the first novel and assumed would be answered here in this sequel. Elsie Camden, secret spellbreaker (one with the natural ability to undo others' set spells), has never registered herself as such and thus never undergone her proper training. We know from the first novel that she is in danger of being arrested and imprisoned if she is found out to be an unregistered spellbreaker — which is the defining part of her character and part of key moments that set up the events for her life.
So, without giving any spoilers here — at the very beginning of this sequel, the guilty party Elsie is chasing after following the events in the first novel, turns Elsie over to the authorities and she is arrested and taken to jail. Bacchus Kelsey, Elsie's love interest from the first novel who (of course) discovered her secret as a spellbreaker), goes to the authorities and sets about to establish a false history for her about having only recently discovered her spellbreaking magic. He adds that he can vouch for her, because he says that he was there when she realized what it was, and ... he's also her fiancé ... and they are set to be married in a month — so, please release her soon.
Thus Holmberg leaves large chunks of the first half of the book to planning a rushed wedding. Not to mention how that leaves Elsie, with understandable abandonment issues, not trusting that Bacchus really cares for her. So she's constantly second-guessing everything he says or does or might say or might do ... what a burden she is or will be ... and while this is all understandable — I just have no idea why we are even doing this right now when the point of this segment in her life should be to track down the person who is trying to control her and her loved ones, who is murdering other master aspectors (read: magicians), and who already magically enslaved at least one person in Elsie's life.
Furthermore, if we can circle back for a second (and we can, because I'm typing this) I have no idea why it's such a big no-no for her to have been unregistered. Why does that mean she's going to be imprisoned and possibly hang for her so-called crimes? I had hoped upon her arrest that this portion of the governing principles of the law(s) would be explained ... nope. So that helps me understand even less of precisely why Bacchus felt the need to offer such a stupid lie of creating a wedding, a month away no less, as his only means of freeing Elsie. He seems so much more capable than that, up to that point anyway, and then he just walked smack into a pole that said matrimony, this way on it? It made no sense, and then this took up a large portion of the novel for seemingly no reason. The delicate romance that existed between them would've stood just fine without this being added.
The reveal that is leftover from the first book regarding a secret with Bacchus is finally discovered and I am thankful they finally cottoned on. But even this was played out the same way as the wedding planning — the whole novel was a back and forth of tedium and action in a strangely unbalanced way — the pacing was off the entire time. Too much is spent on trivial details and too little is spent on tracking down the guilty parties. And even the moments they do spend on actually searching, somehow they seem to be relying heavily on Elsie, who has very little experience in such matters, and it makes this whole hunt feel a bit Scooby-Doo-ish. Zoinks.
The rest of the book was standard Holmberg fare — sweet and charming, but this one left a little too much to be desired from the plot. Too much sweetness, too much bow-tying for Elsie in this book and it moves into saccharine territory ... the ending of the mystery-portion especially was hard to swallow.
I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This affected neither my opinion of the book, nor the content of my review.
This might be my new favorite book by Holmberg! It flowed beautifully, I loved the characters and the story moved quickly with just the right amount romance!
This is the second half of the Spellbreaker duology. In the beginning, our Super Villain (revealed at the very end of the first book) turns in Elsie for illegal spellbreaking. Bacchus helps get her out by telling the authorities they’re engaged. So they go from crushing on each other pretty bad to madly in love. With the “arranged” marriage situation, each is worried that the other doesn’t like them back.
Meanwhile they have to foil the Super Villain’s plans until the Ultimate Showdown. It felt like it didn’t have one big climax but instead several big scenes along the way (and there’s nothing wrong with that). The issues with with Elsie’s missing family and Bacchus’s spell that was placed on him are resolved pretty simply.
The magic duels are pretty cool. Overall, a satisfying story.
Language: Very mild Sexual Content: Hinted at but nothing explicit Violence: Hand-to-hand combat with magic and weapons. Harm to Animals: Harm to Children: Other (Triggers): ["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Ever since I finished the first book, Spellbreaker, I was dying to dive into Spellmaker. Luckily, I had the eARC of the sequel to the duology and dove into it the first chance I got. I'm not going to lie, I finally got the answers to some of my confusing questions. Doesn't necessarily mean that I wasn't confused by some of the things happening in this one - because I was. It just means that I got the answers I was looking for.
In it, you will still meet the same people from the previous book but we do get to meet some new people: Irene Prescott and the Raven. We also get a few dark secrets as well and one of them shocked me. Other than that, Elsie and Bacchus do get a bit closer in this one but the romance just didn't seem like a huge thing to me again. I will admit that we got some teeny tiny moments of possible romance but I just didn't see them being together in this one as well.
The magic aspect is still enchanting as it was in the first one. Plus the villain and the little action were pretty entertaining throughout the book. Heck, I will even admit that the ending was kind of cute. Although I do feel like we could get a new book or maybe a spinoff just because of one thing that was mentioned. Maybe - not sure.
In the end, it was a pretty good sequel and I'm very glad that I got the chance to dive into both books.
After finishing the first book in this duology which was pretty enjoyable, I figured I'd finish up the story by reading the second book, but I wish I hadn't. In my opinion, the ending was so incredibly frustrating and unsatisfying. This review will contain spoilers...
This story picks up just where Spellbreaker left off: Unwittingly controlled by dark magic, Elsie and Ogden had perpetrated crimes they never would’ve condoned on their own accord and aided a murderer. Now, their ultimate goal is to stop any further damage to the magical community and bring that murderer to justice. The stakes are high for this endeavor because bringing down the culprit might also incriminate themselves.
If you’re expecting a dark, gritty chase to bring down a heinous assassin, you won’t find it here. The main storyline takes a backseat to the most powerful of magical spells- love. As the chase for the culprit unfolds, so also does the romantic back and forth between Elsie and Bachus.
The author has created an interesting, well developed magical world that is believable, and the idea of a murderer devastating that community is compelling. Partnering that with the likeable characters should have made for a successful duology. But regrettably, that is not the case. What this author succeeded at in character development and creation of a magic world, she equally failed at in execution of the plot. The potential of this book, ultimately, fell flat.
For one, I found the pacing of this book to be completely off. Important scenes that would’ve benefited from vivid detail were quickly wrapped up while scenes that were minuscule in importance droned on. Also, I found this book quite repetitive (both of itself and of the previous installment). Why tell the reader something once when it can be repeated over and over and over?
This duology would’ve been better served as a single, lengthy novel. Splitting it into two books made the storyline less inviting, more convoluted, and leant itself towards boring repetitions. Condensing the superfluous, repetitive material would have allowed the core plot to shine. The charm I found in the first installment was unfortunately lost in this one.
Many thanks to Charlie N. Holmberg, 47 North, and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.
Having read the first one, I was anxious to see how Elsie's and Bacchus' story would be resolved. This one picks up exactly where the other one left off—they know who the villain is but can't get to her yet.
It also starts with Elsie in prison after having revealed her powers. But Bacchus doesn't rest until she's out and he devises a plan which throws the both of them into marriage. They each have their doubts and think they're a burden to the other, but their relationship also strengthens until they're able to confess their feelings.
This magical system in Victorian England is very well done and I liked how we can still see the regular historical setting but with the spells and everything original to this story.
Although we already know who the villain is, there's still a lot of mystery and action left, and lots of other bad guys.
I couldn't put the book down and read the conclusion. Highly recommend this duology.
I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.
Do I dare say it?! I dare … I enjoyed Spellmaker more than Spellbreaker. There I said it. And I didn’t think it was possible.
What I loved about this book can be summed into 4 points.
1) The magical fueled fights. The scenes are written so well. They’re intense, I’m immersed, and the dynamic between the Spellmakers and the Spellbreakers have you routing for the whole team. 2) The characters. Elsie, who has been struggling to come to terms that she’s got no family, learns that she does in fact have a family. Friends who support her, care about her well-being, and are willing to fight beside her. 3) Elise is still healing from Alfred, who we learn about in book 1. The man we hate for hurting her and breaking her heart but in book 2, the second love teaches you to believe in love again and it’s beautiful. 4) Which leads me to the last thing, the romance. Chapter 10 had me screaming, OMG FINALLY!
I’m sad that I won’t be in Elise and Bacchus’s world anymore but I’m satisfied with how it ended. I can’t wait to read what Charlie is going to come out with next!
Thank you to NetGalley and 47North for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I have to say, I liked this a lot more than the first book. Now that we've established the characters and world, the plot could focus on more of the magic and Elsie's relationship with Bacchus. I really enjoy the two of them together and I think they make a great couple. I also liked seeing more spells and the different specialties the spellmakers have.
Bacchus is a great male lead, he's strong and confident and doesn't let others push him down because of his race. He cares a lot for Elsie and supports her in whatever she wants to do, especially in a time period where wealthy women didn't usually work. Elsie evolves a bit in this, partly because of Bacchus' love. She starts to feel like she has value and trusts her friends around her to help her. I thought Elsie and Bacchus brought out the best in each other and I'm so happy to see them together!
The plot was interesting and moved at a faster pace than the previous book. More characters are introduced and brought into Elsie's fold and we saw some pretty amazing acts of magic. The battle against Master Merton wrapped up nicely and I thought the final fight scene was well done. I did feel like there were a couple loose ends left, maybe in case of another book or spin off?
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I found this finale satisfying and yet strangely not. It makes sense, then, that the author possibly has some plans to continue on with this series in the future. As it stands, I enjoyed the conclusion to this story. The magic continued to be interesting and weird. It was weirdly interesting. LOL. I don't read tons of books set in magic worlds, but the one created by Charlie Holmberg struck me as unique.
I also enjoyed the relationship part of this story. It was refreshing how lack of communication didn't drag on for the majority of the book and how the MCs actually talked about important things. Their relationship progressed in a way that made me very happy, and I'd be glad to read another book featuring them. I really liked this couple and I definitely liked the heroine better with the hero than without. Overall, this was one of my most liked reads by this author to date.
I received this ARC through NetGalley for an honest review. Thank you!
Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg is the conclusion of the duology Spellbreaker and is the continuation of Elsie and Bacchus's story.
In this book, Elsie's secret was exposed and she is thrown to jail and Bacchus is trying to find a way to save her from jail. Bacchus finds a way to help her but for Elsie to be truly free, they must marry. They weren't sure of their feelings for each other, but after they spent time together and worked together they fell in love and were happy that they would get married.
While they were planning their wedding, they worked to find the killer and they found more things about Elsie's family and Bacchus had to resolve a problem with his family.
"I love you more than Barbados, more than magic, more than myself. You are all I think about. And now you are mine. I love you, Elsie."
Spellmaker was a wonderful conclusion to the duology Spellbreaker. I loved the relationship between Bacchus and Elsie. I loved that Elsie becomes more confident in herself and the people around her. I loved the magic system in this book and the world build by this author. I'm glad that I decided to read this duology and I recommend this duology to all fantasy lovers
This story is one I could not stop reading. Every time I had to put it down, my mind wandered back to it, desperate to find out what was going to happen next. There were so many twists and turns throughout the duet, and the unique magic in this world was hard to resist.
I loved how Elsie grew throughout the story. Never weak to begin with, she grew stronger and stronger with every page. I loved seeing her magical abilities grow, and the way she broke spells in the middle of a fight was quite simply amazing. I loved Baccus’s determination to prove to Elsie his feelings were real and he wasn’t under a spell. I loved how the secrets were revealed and the small cast of characters came together to fight against the evil that was trying to take over.
I loved every last moment of this story, and I’m not ready to leave this world behind. I hope someday there will be more stories in this world, because it’s so incredibly intriguing and I need to know what happens to these characters’ lives.
Great 2nd book in this duology. I always enjoy the world that Holmberg creates for her stories. Very detailed and involved. Great read, very recommended
The series description and initial set-up make it seem as if the novel will be invested in upsetting the systems of power that create severe inequity and oppression. Instead, by the end of this book, I'm left with the impression that the author is truly more invested in a world that is peaceful rather than just.
I don't know if the issues I have with the book are more to do with its themes or the poor execution of what is otherwise a good idea. I think that in more recent books, readers and authors have become enamoured with the idea of a sympathetic villain; one whose motives and emotions you can sympathize with even if you don't agree with their means. However, I think that sort of villain is incredibly difficult to pull off without absolutely invalidating their worldview, which is what I think happened here. If you make me sympathize with your villain's goals (particularly if they are fighting to end systemic inequity), then I need to see narrative and character investment in ending those inequities even after your villain has been nullified. Otherwise, it seems as if the book is suggesting (which is what happened here), that rather than incredibly flawed systems, the real problem is individuals like the villain. And really, the world as it currently is is not that bad wouldn't you know 🙄. It's also possible that this is simply the author's worldview (which is even more troubling) rather than a failure in execution.
This book left me so frustrated and I'm beginning to suspect it put me in a reading slump 😫.
Picking up immediately after the startling revelations in book one, we find Elsie and Ogden wondering when the other shoe will drop. And it does. Horribly, with Elsie in prison for being an unregistered spell breaker. Obviously no one in her circle would have blabbed, but she, Ogden and Bacchus feel it’s the nefarious Master who notified the Atheneum. Bacchus finds a way to get her out, but Elsie questions every reason behind this rescue because of her negative feelings about herself. Meanwhile Team Camden must find a way to thwart the further plans and murder attempts by the nefarious Master, while shopping for wedding clothes. I liked this second book in the duology. I’ve become quite fond of everyone in Team Camden, and really liked how the author gave us more time with Ogden and Emmeline, allowing us to become quite fond of them both. There’s also lots of action and peril in this instalment, with enough time left to still give Elsie and Bacchus opportunities to explore their feelings for each other, and for Elsie to deal with her longstanding feelings of abandonment and inferiority and need for her family.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for a review.
For anyone who loves a great, authentic and creatively written historical story with magic galore, this is a lovely choice! I especially enjoyed how the author mixed the magic, the mystery and the romance so perfectly. None overpowered the others, yet all were given the time and understanding they needed.
In an alternate Victorian world filled with magic, SPELLMAKER gives us the conclusion to the story that began when Elsie Camden, a rogue “spellbreaker,” came into her own.
In SPELLBREAKER, while following the orders of a mysterious group pursuing justice and equality, Elsie tries to remove a spell on the estate of a wealthy duke, and she runs into Bacchus Kelsey. Her life changes, and for the first time she questions this anonymous group and their orders. We learn that Elsie had been abandoned by her family as a child and ended up in a workhouse. From there she worked for Cuthbert Ogden, a kind artist who has hidden his own magical talent and treated her almost like a daughter.
In this sequel, we know that Elsie and her friends must seek out Master Lily Merton, who is guilty of murdering fellow magicians in her quest for their “opuses”: books of spells that come into being when a magician dies. It lists all the spells that he or she used, and many have been murdered for them. Lily Merton is conniving and ruthless, and demonstrated in the first book that she can enslave another magician to do her bidding with one powerful spell. Only Elsie, Bacchus and their friends know about this, so it's up to them to bring the perpetrator to justice. Bacchus doesn't even tell his close friend, the Duke of Kent, but supporters come from unexpected places.
Early in the story, Elsie is arrested for being an unregistered spellbreaker. The punishment could be severe, but Bacchus lies and says she just learned of her talents in the past year. The truth is that Elsie has been a spellbreaker since she was a child, and her abilities are beyond gifted and necessary for her quest in this action-packed novel.
Holmberg's England might have magic in it, but some things don't change. The wealthy in this alternate Britain live in incredible ease, while the working classes often struggle to put food on the table. The ability to become a "master" magician is also mostly limited to the upper class, as talented children of the wealthy can afford tutors to help them in their magical studies. A child of poverty, on the other hand, will have to find a sponsor or win a scholarship to a magical academy to learn about magic and become a master “aspector,” someone who can perform spells and earn money from doing so. Only the most talented can pass the test and earn the title of "master."
Bacchus has dark skin, and his parents were not married. He did inherit his father's estate, but he is subject to the snobbery and prejudice that the English (and now the Americans) are noted for. We see the bigotry evidenced in words and actions throughout the story. A surprising fact is that there are no purely evil characters here, and those who perform sinful deeds are doing so for reasons that could (almost) be forgiven.
Charlie N. Holmberg's duology will appeal to mystery lovers, fantasy fans and romance readers alike.
I haven’t had very good luck with duologies. I typically find them to feel unfinished. There is something about the trilogy of three books that rounds out a story in a way that two books just doesn’t. So often I tend to pass on them, but then I was pitched Charlie N Holmberg’s Spellbreaker duology.
The covers for Holmberg’s books are whimsical and really stand out to me. They are easy to identify and the suggest something historical mixed with fantasy and I couldn’t pass on the first book. It just sounded so good and I did enjoy it so reading the second book in the duology was a no brainer for me! These books are quick reads and I really enjoyed diving back into Holmberg’s rich world!
I still feel the a trilogy would have worked better in this particular series but as duologies go, this one wasn’t bad at all. I enjoyed many aspects of this one and am excited to read more books by Holmberg!
As expected, this book answered a lot of questions from the previous book and wrapped up the larger narrative so you will want to go back and read the first book before diving into this one. In the first book, the focus was on the world building and the main story of the spellbreakers, but in this book the focus was more on the romance part between Elsie and Bacchus, which for me was fine but other readers might feel a little let down. The first book in the series already does a lot to establish the main characters and villains as well as various character motives which means by the time we get to the second book it’s just basically wrapping up book one by extension.
This is what bothers me about duologies. It’s like the author couldn’t fully wrap up everything on one book but doesn’t have enough story to fill a trilogy, so they split the different and go with a duology which for me almost always feels unfinished or unnecessary. I have read some pretty disappointing duologies but I wouldn’t say this one was disappointing per say, but I still felt like it could have been stronger or simply wrapped up in one longer book. I would personally liked to have seen more development within the world and story but the romance question was more the focus here, which again was fine but I think it could have been better of the two books were more balanced.
But at the end of the day, I still enjoyed this one and read it quickly. It was a wonderful escape and I love fantasy so this one was a great break from some of my heavier reading I’ve been reading lately. If you liked the first book in the duology, then there is no question that you will enjoy this one probably just as much. I know that I enjoyed it even if at times I wished for more, overall the book accomplished what it set out to do—entertain me! Holmberg crafts a stunning world rich with fantasy elements and fun characters. On that front I felt fully satisfied and I am really looking forward to reading her both books, especially the Paper Magician series! If you love fantasy with some romance and a mystery, this one might just enchant you too!
First off, thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me the Earc to read and review.
Spellmaker is the second and last book in this duology, following the events that happened in the first book directly. Romance blooms even more and the mystery unfolds itself in something bigger and bigger.
I really liked the book and its elements as a whole. It is a nice conclusion to a duology that has an interesting magic system and setting. However, I felt like the main conflict didn’t have the high stakes it had in the first book and I think the reason for that is that we never truly get to know the motive behind it all. Sure, there are speculations, but they are just that, and so it cant be taken as a fact. Due that, it is harder to care, since as a reader, you don’t know what will happen when everything goes wrong, and that is what at least keeps me invested in the main conflict.
Besides that, the characters act believable and I never felt like they were complete different people in comparison with the first book. The new characters also make great entrees and are there with a reason, which makes it easy to care for them. The romance is well done, so if you like slow burn and opposite attract each other it is definitely a book to consider picking up. Events that follow each other up sometimes felt repeated, while others were cleverly done, making it interesting to keep guessing along with the characters what the hell will happen next. Plot twists were also well done, especially the ones that start a conflict, it really shows the character’s emotions and make you as a reader care even more about them.
All by all, it was a solid conclusion to a duology that delivers it all in terms of genres – history, fantasy, romance and mystery-, one that give you characters you root for, a romance that isn’t too much on the front line and a conclusion that raises a somewhat philosophical question.
I had been in a brief reading slump when I read the first one, and it captured my attention in the best possible way. So when I found out the second book wouldn't be coming out until March 2021, I spent days trying to find something as compelling to read. I rarely start unfinished series for the exact reason that I don't like to wait for sequels! Imagine my surprise when I found Spellmaker on NetGalley - and could read it now!
It's not quite as broad scope as the first, which works in its favor. The romance aspect is perfectly tense without making you want to throw the book or yell at the characters. And Elsie herself is still a force to be reckoned with - each time she narrowly escapes (spoilers?) she does it herself and anyone else to help her is just a coincidence. I love that she can show incredible strength and force of will but still allows herself some moments of weakness.
The mystery is good without being too twisty-turny or predictable. If you're the type to analyze every sentence, yes you'll probably figure out the ending; as for me, I sat back and enjoyed the ride and was pleasantly surprised. I did decide to give this book five stars, but I think that rating is more for the small series as a whole! Both books flow quite well but they depend on each other for the complete story.
I real liked the romance and the characters were great... but the plot was not as strong as the one in the first book! It was a little more predictable. But still a great series and I will read more from this author very soon!
I think that my problem with the series was that there were a bunch of characters that I was sure were lying, instead they were not lol. But if you think about it that makes it a good novel because it keeps you guessing.