Rating: 4.5🌈
The Courtship of Julian St Albans (Consulting Magic Book 1) by Amy Crook is this author’s first published novel and it’s an absolute delight. A steampunk murder mystery romance, it’s got a grand cast of characters, an intriguing system of magic, and a combination of historical and cultural influences in the narrative that make the atmosphere and situations so different.
The ritual around courtship and Suitors is given its own special treatment here when Julian St Albans’ longtime Suitor is found dead. It restarts the process of finding Julian, the heir to substantial lands and fortunes, a new Suitor to run the family and take over the titles.
Alexander Benedict is a magical investigator and consultant to the police, especially in high profile cases or where magic is used. Julian’s case involves both.
Crook’s take on an historical murder mystery and romance is a cleverly crafted story. Steampunk narrative is threaded throughout with fantasy characters and elements to my absolute delight. The author dives into the details of her magical world, from the magical bespoke clothing worn to balls to the dangerous and fascinating crafted instruments used by the villain to threaten and destroy.
The slowly developing relationship between Julian and Alex is lovely. Determined by the rituals of Courtship and the fact that Alex realizes he’s falling for Julian, not just because he’s involved in the case, draws out the romantic tension.
How it ends , for Julian and Alex, and sets up the next step in their relationship is so satisfying. I’m thrilled to have found a new author and series to recommend and read.
Check it out. Series is complete!
Consulting Magic series:
The Courtship of Julian St Albans #1
The Apprenticeship of Julian St. Albans #2
The Guardianship of Julian St. Albans #3
A Flutter of Fae #4
I love the simplicity of design of these covers. Beautiful, important to the story (that’s Horace) and elegant.
Buy link
The Courtship of Julian St. Albans (Consulting Magic)
Blurb
Alexander Benedict is a misanthropic thirtysomething magical consultant, working with the Agency’s top homicide detective, and perfectly content with his life, thank you very much.
Julian St. Albans is the youthful heir to his family’s fortune and affiancéd to his beloved Cecil Mandeville, a family friend as well as Julian’s lover.
When Mandeville is murdered using magical means, Alex is brought in on the case. It’s the worst day of Julian’s life, but until they meet, it’s just another case for Alex. Neither of them have any idea how their lives are about to change.
Alex has to disentangle the magical threads until he can catch the murderer, and to do that he has to put himself right in the thick of things. His long-denied family connections get him invited to participate in Julian’s Courtship as a Suitor, where he can observe the suspects firsthand. He just has to stay alive long enough to figure out which of the competition thinks Julian is a prize worth killing for.
- Publisher: Amazon Digital Services, Inc. (June 25, 2013)
- Publication date: June 25, 2013
- Language: English
- Print length: 361 pages
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 