Glamourist Histories, Book 5 (final of the series)
Of Noble Family
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765378361
The couple get dragged to Antigua, to Vincent's estranged family lands, and find corruption and simmering hatreds.
This book is the last in the series, and Kowal doesn't hold back. By now we expect that things will go as poorly as they possibly could for Jane and Vincent, so I suppose the failure was mine, in not imagining quite how bad that could really be.
Vincent's older sibling contacts him - his father has died, and there are administrative duties at the plantation that must be handled by a male heir - would Vincent please go? A grudging acceptance is quickly regretted as Jane is revealed to be pregnant again on the journey, and even more unwelcome surprises await the couple once they arrive.
The conditions and realities of life on a slave-holding sugar plantation are not avoided nor are they glossed over. They actually become one of the key points of the plot, as the very modern and kindhearted sensibilities of Jane and Vincent are confronted with the sad and horrible conditions that faced slaves of all sorts.
This was a much darker book than any of the others, and there is a lot of emotional and even physical trauma dealt out with a liberal hand to everyone. Still, the setting and characters hold true (even new ones) and there are flashes of humor and even whimsy - our regularly-scheduled Doctor Who cameo is joined by a Princess Bride reference! These lighten up the whole without trivializing the serious nature of the problems to be surmounted, and once more, I feared for the characters.
I'm sad to see the series ending, as I'm quite in love with Jane and Vincent, but I am impatiently waiting the next project coming down the line!
Showing posts with label Glamourist Histories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Glamourist Histories. Show all posts
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Glamourist Histories: Valour and Vanity, Mary Robinette Kowal
Glamourist Histories, book 4
Valour and Vanity
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765334169
Jane and Vincent are off again, this time to Venice, to explore the potential of their glass-working magics.
Will their vacation go more smoothly than their last? Nope! Still, this is more of a caper than the miserable slog of summerless London. Jane's hypochondriac mother is hesitant to let them depart from the family caravan through Europe - she's afraid that pirates will harm them on their way to Venice.
Pirates are a rarity, and the duo laugh them off, until their ferry is boarded and they, along with the other passengers, lose everything they own. They fall in with a kindly older local gentleman, who takes them under his wing while they attempt to recover from the attack and move on with their plans, but the plot thickens, and soon they're reduced to living in a garret, penniless and adrift in a foreign land with hostile forces arrayed against them.
They'll need each other more than ever to win free of these entanglements, but can Vincent control his pride and shame? Will Jane trust his strength when she needs it?
Once more, there's a certain Doctor on the premises, and those scenes add a welcome lightness to the plot. Kowal seems to take a certain glee in tormenting her main characters, and Jane and Vincent are as beaten-down here as they ever have been in the past. They'll have to be stronger, smarter, and trickier than ever, and I honestly worried in this book (for the first time in the series) that perhaps they wouldn't be up to the challenge. That's a good storyteller there.
Valour and Vanity
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765334169
Jane and Vincent are off again, this time to Venice, to explore the potential of their glass-working magics.
Will their vacation go more smoothly than their last? Nope! Still, this is more of a caper than the miserable slog of summerless London. Jane's hypochondriac mother is hesitant to let them depart from the family caravan through Europe - she's afraid that pirates will harm them on their way to Venice.
Pirates are a rarity, and the duo laugh them off, until their ferry is boarded and they, along with the other passengers, lose everything they own. They fall in with a kindly older local gentleman, who takes them under his wing while they attempt to recover from the attack and move on with their plans, but the plot thickens, and soon they're reduced to living in a garret, penniless and adrift in a foreign land with hostile forces arrayed against them.
They'll need each other more than ever to win free of these entanglements, but can Vincent control his pride and shame? Will Jane trust his strength when she needs it?
Once more, there's a certain Doctor on the premises, and those scenes add a welcome lightness to the plot. Kowal seems to take a certain glee in tormenting her main characters, and Jane and Vincent are as beaten-down here as they ever have been in the past. They'll have to be stronger, smarter, and trickier than ever, and I honestly worried in this book (for the first time in the series) that perhaps they wouldn't be up to the challenge. That's a good storyteller there.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Glamourist Histories: Without a Summer, Mary Robinette Kowal
Glamourist Histories, Book 3
Without A Summer
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765334152
Family plotting and the eruption of a faraway volcano create a frigid summer in London for our wedded duo.
Jane and Vincent are back in London after their eventful honeymoon, and they are both carrying scars both physical and mental from the traumatic experiences. They hope for a relaxing and tedious summer of working glamourie for the moneyed elite, with the recommendation of the Prince Regent backing them. In addition, this is the perfect time to host Melody's debut Season in town, since all of the eligible batchelors in their neighborhood were unfortunately made ineligible by the end of the first book.
Their hopes are in vain. The frigid summer sparks a wave of unrest from the long-suffering and short-lived magical cold-mongers. These specialized glamourists work with the dangerous and life-sapping magic of heat-moving, and are often poor, uneducated, and young. The summer's chill means they have no work for this year, and many could starve. Jane and Vincent are hurtled into a growing threat of riot, and Vincent begins to worry that his estranged family may be at the heart of this nest of rot at the core of the city. He wants to make things right, but he fears for himself and for Jane - his vicious family, especially his ambitious and prideful father, will stop at nothing to succeed.
We've moved well on from lighthearted by this book, but the inclusion of Melody (and her budding romance, and her personal discoveries - I love Melody's character) makes a largely bitter pill go much easier. Jane and Vincent are a treasure as always, and his family is a hydra-beast of a monstrous social and reputation-damaging enemy. USA readers are accustomed to the rights of free speech, and so the legal implications of Vincent's actions are a harsher shock than perhaps they would be for the English. Regardless, the stark contrast makes more than one character much more clearly defined, for good or ill.
Finally, this is the book where I realized that there is always a Doctor in the scene - I went back and scanned through the first two more carefully, and was delighted to see that my suspicions were correct. Check the scenes with the Doctors, and think about time-travel and blue police boxes. It'll come to you!
Without A Summer
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765334152
Family plotting and the eruption of a faraway volcano create a frigid summer in London for our wedded duo.
Jane and Vincent are back in London after their eventful honeymoon, and they are both carrying scars both physical and mental from the traumatic experiences. They hope for a relaxing and tedious summer of working glamourie for the moneyed elite, with the recommendation of the Prince Regent backing them. In addition, this is the perfect time to host Melody's debut Season in town, since all of the eligible batchelors in their neighborhood were unfortunately made ineligible by the end of the first book.
Their hopes are in vain. The frigid summer sparks a wave of unrest from the long-suffering and short-lived magical cold-mongers. These specialized glamourists work with the dangerous and life-sapping magic of heat-moving, and are often poor, uneducated, and young. The summer's chill means they have no work for this year, and many could starve. Jane and Vincent are hurtled into a growing threat of riot, and Vincent begins to worry that his estranged family may be at the heart of this nest of rot at the core of the city. He wants to make things right, but he fears for himself and for Jane - his vicious family, especially his ambitious and prideful father, will stop at nothing to succeed.
We've moved well on from lighthearted by this book, but the inclusion of Melody (and her budding romance, and her personal discoveries - I love Melody's character) makes a largely bitter pill go much easier. Jane and Vincent are a treasure as always, and his family is a hydra-beast of a monstrous social and reputation-damaging enemy. USA readers are accustomed to the rights of free speech, and so the legal implications of Vincent's actions are a harsher shock than perhaps they would be for the English. Regardless, the stark contrast makes more than one character much more clearly defined, for good or ill.
Finally, this is the book where I realized that there is always a Doctor in the scene - I went back and scanned through the first two more carefully, and was delighted to see that my suspicions were correct. Check the scenes with the Doctors, and think about time-travel and blue police boxes. It'll come to you!
Monday, June 1, 2015
Glamourist Histories: Glamour in Glass, Mary Robinette Kowal
Glamourist Histories Book 2
Glamour in Glass
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765325570
Regency manners fall prey to Regency intrigue in contested Belgium during Napoleon's time.
The first book was a pretty, light, frothy novel of manners, with the main character ending up married off, and everyone happy and settled. We even got a lovely (if vague, and fairly far-seeing) Epilogue that reassures us that everyone remained happy and settled, and that other characters were securely married off as well. All of that appears to be well in the future, as Vincent and Jane have been hustled off on a honeymoon to Belgium by the Prince Regent himself.
Jane isn't sure this is the best timing, after all, Napoleon is only just barely captured, and Belgium has split loyalties. Still, it's a chance to visit Vincent's old mentor and teacher, and to practice their craft together as professionals. It would be remiss of them not to go.
However, once there, Vincent is acting strangely, and Jane isn't sure why: is it her condition? his old mentor? the tensions in the town? is he regretting the marriage so soon? All the while, things are getting worse and worse in the world outside - there are rumors that Napoleon himself is free, and on the march towards Belgium!
As the truth comes to light, Jane is going to have to put more effort into this marriage than she ever dreamed possible. Will it all be worthwhile?
The story overall is a delight, and the characters are beautifully drawn. I have to say, what I enjoy the most is that these stories feature a married couple working together - being married. No big infidelities or betrayals, just the everyday work of trying to mesh with another flawed human being, with the added benefit of love to smooth out the edges.
Just lovely.
Glamour in Glass
Mary Robinette Kowal
ISBN: 9780765325570
Regency manners fall prey to Regency intrigue in contested Belgium during Napoleon's time.
The first book was a pretty, light, frothy novel of manners, with the main character ending up married off, and everyone happy and settled. We even got a lovely (if vague, and fairly far-seeing) Epilogue that reassures us that everyone remained happy and settled, and that other characters were securely married off as well. All of that appears to be well in the future, as Vincent and Jane have been hustled off on a honeymoon to Belgium by the Prince Regent himself.
Jane isn't sure this is the best timing, after all, Napoleon is only just barely captured, and Belgium has split loyalties. Still, it's a chance to visit Vincent's old mentor and teacher, and to practice their craft together as professionals. It would be remiss of them not to go.
However, once there, Vincent is acting strangely, and Jane isn't sure why: is it her condition? his old mentor? the tensions in the town? is he regretting the marriage so soon? All the while, things are getting worse and worse in the world outside - there are rumors that Napoleon himself is free, and on the march towards Belgium!
As the truth comes to light, Jane is going to have to put more effort into this marriage than she ever dreamed possible. Will it all be worthwhile?
The story overall is a delight, and the characters are beautifully drawn. I have to say, what I enjoy the most is that these stories feature a married couple working together - being married. No big infidelities or betrayals, just the everyday work of trying to mesh with another flawed human being, with the added benefit of love to smooth out the edges.
Just lovely.
Saturday, May 30, 2015
Glamourist Histories: Shades of Milk and Honey, Mary Robinette Kowal
Glamourist Histories Book 1
Shades of Milk and Honey
ISBN: 9780765325600
Jane Austen with magic.
A delightful romp through Austen-inspired Regency family drama.
Jane lives with her father, her munchausens-afflicted mother, and her preternaturally beautiful younger sister Melody, and it's getting to be time for that younger sister to be married safely off to one of the young lords of the neighborhood. Jane has no illusions to her own prospects; she's plain and gawky, with no grace in dancing or flawless social manners. She is, however, a fair hand at glamour, that invisible ethereal substance that can be worked upon to create illusions and pretty fancies. It's a natural gift of hers, but sadly, not any more useful nor marketable than the other basic social graces.
While the family plots to get Melody attached, Melody has plans of her own, and Jane discovers that their neighbor has an acclaimed glamourist on-site, working beautiful magics on their house. Too bad she can't stand him!
I really don't know what else to say about this book. If you love Austen and enjoy Regency manners, then this adds a light touch of magical frosting to the idea. It's a lovely stand-alone book, despite sparking a series afterwards, and it's sweet and lighthearted and clever.
Shades of Milk and Honey
ISBN: 9780765325600
Jane Austen with magic.
A delightful romp through Austen-inspired Regency family drama.
Jane lives with her father, her munchausens-afflicted mother, and her preternaturally beautiful younger sister Melody, and it's getting to be time for that younger sister to be married safely off to one of the young lords of the neighborhood. Jane has no illusions to her own prospects; she's plain and gawky, with no grace in dancing or flawless social manners. She is, however, a fair hand at glamour, that invisible ethereal substance that can be worked upon to create illusions and pretty fancies. It's a natural gift of hers, but sadly, not any more useful nor marketable than the other basic social graces.
While the family plots to get Melody attached, Melody has plans of her own, and Jane discovers that their neighbor has an acclaimed glamourist on-site, working beautiful magics on their house. Too bad she can't stand him!
I really don't know what else to say about this book. If you love Austen and enjoy Regency manners, then this adds a light touch of magical frosting to the idea. It's a lovely stand-alone book, despite sparking a series afterwards, and it's sweet and lighthearted and clever.
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