Okaaay so I loved A Marvellous Light because queer historical romance with a murder mystery going on and magic! It’s like a combination of all the things I love in a book and it was kind of the perfect book for me, you know?
So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered there were going to be two more books! Yes, this book at least, doesn’t follow Edwin and Robin which is kinda sad because I love them dearly, but the mystery and the quest for the other parts of the Last Contract continues! Plus I loved Maud in the first book so I was excited to get to see more of her and hello?! It’s a murder mystery on a ship!? With, I repeat, MAGIC!? What was not to love!?
First things first: I LOVE THIS WORLD! I truly do, it’s historical but there’s magic so seamlessly slotted in, it’s brilliant. I was so happy to slip back into it and pick back up with the hunt for the contract pieces. This one doesn’t mess around either, because we’re straight in with a murder to kick it all off and there’s quite a few suspects because…giant ship. Titanic level ship, even.
As I said, I LOVED Maud in the first book and continued to love her in this one. She can and will stand up for herself, she’s strong and intelligent and wonderfully stubborn when it comes to getting what she wants. I feel like she really comes into her own in this book, away from Robin, and she’s not the only brilliant character!
We also have Violet, another wonderfully independent strong woman who happens to be heading back to London to claim her fortune after working in a theatre in New York. I can’t tell you how much I loved getting two wonderfully strong, badass independent female characters in a historical book and the ROMANCE?!
It’s spicy. Dare I say, even spicier than Edwin and Robin? I seriously loved the two of them, and I shipped them immediately. They’re quite the formidable match, though it takes them a minute to get there!
I also really loved new character Ross, our reporter/purveyor of spicey literature who ends up joining their little team and I truly do hope we get to see more of him because I lowkey ship him with *drum roll* Hawthorn. Oh yes folks, the grumpy asshole makes a return and we get to see quite a lot of him. I actually found myself taking a bit of a shine to him, despite said grumpy asshole-ness.
It’s just as well then that it seems like, as I’d hoped, Book three is going to feature a looooott of Hawthorn and Ross! I can’t wait 😍
Anyway, the writing is brilliant and entertaining, pulling you into the world of the book and while you might be able to get away with reading this without having read the previous one…it’s probably going to end up being a little confusing if you haven’t! The mystery of the Last Contract deepens slightly and there’s a few more reveals about what went down as well as some twists and betrayals to keep you on your feet!
Considering the entire book takes place over the course of a few days, however long it takes to sail from the US to London (I think it was like 3? It felt like a long time because there's a lot going on but it was actually quite short!), the plot is solid and very tight. There’s no room for faffing around and there’s so much going on alongside the romance, plot twists and budding friendships to keep you occupied.
There’s magic, murder and quite literally lions and tigers and bears running amok all over the place. There’s even a casual seance and a jewel thief. When I say there’s never a dull moment, I truly do mean it and this is a brilliant sequel to A Marvellous Light! Marske has become an auto-buy authfor for me at this point and I truly can’t wait for the next book!
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