#cl polk

[entnoot]

I had the absolute honour of illustrating the official portraits of Kell and Saeldian from The Feywild Job by C.L. Polk for Random House Worlds! The Feywild Job is a fantasy romance set in the D&D universe, I'm so stoked to have been a part of this project 💎🍄🪞

(also you can get these two as character portraits on dnd beyond!!)

[wearethekat]

March Book Reviews: The Feywild Job by CL Polk

I received a free copy from Random House Worlds via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Release date June 30th, 2026.

I've read a few of the author's fantasy romances, and I was excited to get a copy of their latest novel. In The Feywild Job, Saeldian has traded their heart in exchange for powerful illusion magic. When a con goes wrong, Saeldian is tricked into a job to retrieve a stolen jewel—only to find that they're working with Kell, the ex-partner they dumped on bad terms years ago.

This is a light, fun heist romance centered around Saeldian and Kell slowly revealing their respective version of what happened ten years ago. The central relationship was a bit more contentious than I prefer—Kell resents Saeldian deeply and holds them responsible for ending up in jail after Saeldian left in the middle of the heist. In consequence, they spend the majority of the novel sniping at each other, which doesn't do much to convince me that they were once friends. While the plot effectively revolves around a misunderstanding, Polk plays it well. Kell's angry about ending up in jail, and Saeldian is understandably reluctant to admit to running away from an embarrassing crush while Kell is monologuing about how they're a stone-cold evil mastermind. Even if the romance wasn't a hundred percent to my taste, the jewel heist and fancy party infiltration and pulpy monster fights were entertaining.

I don't think I realized when I first saw the premise that The Feywild Job is a Dungeons and Dragons tie-in novel, but it very much is a branded title with heavy Franchise References. Maybe I'm a snob, but I judge books that feel too much like "DnD" as a sign of sloppy worldbuilding. Polk is doing a tie-in novel, exactly as advertised, but I still winced a bit at the formulaic, game-based aspects of the plot. Long rests and spell slots look a bit odd wedged into a fantasy book. Not to mention the choice of treating a fey bargain as a "warlock patron pact." Still, artificiality aside, The Feywild Job is a breath of fresh air compared to the beloved but fatally hackneyed Hickman and Weiss era of tie-in novels. Clark has an excellent touch with characterization—the characters may have classes, but they're never reduced to to caricature. Honestly, I think that Polk writing fantasy novels in a predetermined franchise setting rather than in worldbuilding of their own invention is a bit of a waste.

A light and fun heist-based closed door romance. It went a bit heavier on the gory dungeons and dragons dice-flinging details for my taste, but the story still felt fresh and original without leaning too heavily on fantasy cliches.

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

TBR: Black Authors Spotlight!

In honor of Black History Month, here's a selection of my mountainous TBR--new works by many fave authors (Okorafor, Emezi, Polk, Solomon, Roanhorse, and Giddings), and many others I am hyped to try (shout-out to Ancrum, Monae, and Shawl especially!).

And honorable mention, too, to P. Djèlí Clark and Suyi Davies Okungbowa, who did not make the TBR list only because I read them last month haha.

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Historical Fiction Book Bracket: Round 4

Choose a book:

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk

Voting ended onJul 19, 2025

Book summaries and submitted endorsements below:

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Endorsement from submitter: "Shows the intersectional nature of the red scare and lavender scare from the perspective of a Chinese-American teen in San Francisco starting to understand her sexuality."

“That book. It was about two women, and they fell in love with each other.” And then Lily asked the question that had taken root in her, that was even now unfurling its leaves and demanding to be shown the sun: “Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can’t remember exactly when the question took root, but the answer was in full bloom the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club.

America in 1954 is not a safe place for two girls to fall in love, especially not in Chinatown. Red-Scare paranoia threatens everyone, including Chinese Americans like Lily. With deportation looming over her father—despite his hard-won citizenship—Lily and Kath risk everything to let their love see the light of day.

Setting: San Francisco, 1954

Historical fiction, coming of age, 1950s, young adult

Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk

A magical detective dives into the affairs of Chicago's divine monsters to secure a future with the love of her life. This sapphic period piece will dazzle anyone looking for mystery, intrigue, romance, magic, or all of the above.

An exiled auspex who sold her soul to save her brother's life is offered one last job before serving an eternity in hell. When she turns it down, her client sweetens the pot by offering up the one payment she can't resist―the chance to have a future where she grows old with the woman she loves.

To succeed, she is given three days to track down the White City Vampire, Chicago's most notorious serial killer. If she fails, only hell and heartbreak await.

Setting: Chicago, 1940s

Fantasy, historical fiction, 1940s, mystery, noir, novella, adult

[cryptidfromelsewhere]

I was talking to a coworker about books today and he mentioned some stuff he would like to read. Well I made a search and this is what I came up with.

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

Have you read Even Though I Knew the End by CL Polk (2022)?

YES

NO

Voting ended onJun 22, 2025

[lgbtqiamediaclub]

We are rounding off our Sapphic Summer with Even Though I Knew The End by C.L. Polk as our August read for Queer Book Club 🙌

A magical detective dives into the affairs of Chicago's divine monsters to secure a future with the love of her life. This sapphic period piece will dazzle anyone looking for mystery, intrigue, romance, magic, or all of the above.

An exiled augur who sold her soul to save her brother's life is offered one last job before serving an eternity in hell. When she turns it down, her client sweetens the pot by offering up the one payment she can't resist—the chance to have a future where she grows old with the woman she loves.

Come join us on our month-long read & discussion on discord!

[freckles-and-books]

The dreaded slump still has me in its hold, but I think this book will be the one to finally break it.