The Magpie Lord (A Charm of Magpies, #1)
by K.J. Charles
Introduction
This was a “pick for me” challenge in a Goodreads group, and a very good one. “Pick for me” challenges work best when you get a book you wouldn’t have picked for yourself, and it turns out to be surprisingly entertaining. That was the case for me, with The Magpie Lord. If you like historical fantasy and m/m romance you will probably enjoy this book.
Genre
Historical Fantasy Romance
Narration
Third person limited POV, usually from Lucien’s POV, but occasionally Stephen’s.
Characters
Lucien Vaudrey - Lord Crane, recently made Earl after the death of his father and brother
Stephen Day - Practitioner (aka witch) and justiciar (agent in charge of bringing rogue magic users to justice)
Merrick - Lucien’s manservant
Esther Gold - Justiciar, Stephen’s partner
Setting
Victorian England, mostly at Lucien’s country estate
Theme
Overcoming personal history and expectations to find love.
Intended audience
M/M romance readers. For mature audiences; this book contains explicit sex.
Plot
The story is set in a fantasy version of Victorian England, where magic is real but not well known and there’s a secret group of practitioners who practice their craft and police their own kind. Some non-practitioners in places of power are aware of this.
Lucien Vaudrey, having recently inherited the title of Earl, finds himself in need of a magical intervention when he suspects that his near suicidal bouts of melancholy are the result of a curse. Luckily, he is inclined to believe in magic, because it’s practiced openly in China where he had lived in exile for 20 years. Lucien was exiled by his father for his perverse proclivities (AKA being gay), and only returned to England after his father and brother’s mysterious deaths left him the title. He calls himself inappropriate for the role of Earl and plans to leave England as soon as possible.
His savior turns out to be Stephen Day, a man with an unfortunate history with Lucien’s unscrupulous family. Lucien and Stephen pursue the mystery of the curse and also discover an undeniable attraction for each other.
About the Author
KJ Charles writes fantasy and historical romance. Find out more on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/KJCharles or the author’s website http://kjcharleswriter.com/.
My Opinion
The Magpie Lord starts out a bit slow, but the dialog is witty and the characters very engaging. Lord Crane is often hilarious, and his interactions with his manservant / best friend Merrick are always entertaining. The author slowly reveals Stephen’s character, and the sexual tension between Stephen and Lucien was absolutely delicious. Talk about opposites attracting! Stephen is serious, driven, and very much a product of the Victorian culture. He is constantly aware that his attraction to men is, at the very least, illegal and dangerous. He has even bought into the idea, perhaps, that it’s shameful and wrong. Stephen goes pretty far to discourage Lord Crane’s advances, but he can’t resist forever. When they do get together, the results are sizzling and magical — literally!
I was rooting for this couple so much more than I’d expected at the beginning. The story is ostensibly a mystery, as the two men work together to find out who cast the curse on Lucien and why. They end up uncovering so much more. The story speeds up toward the end and there is some creepy (seriously, not for the faint of heart!) nail-biting action. The mystery isn’t really the point of the story, though, and the world building is absolutely stellar.
The Magpie Lord was an enjoyable read, and I was eager to read the next story (it was even better than the first). I had a few quibbles, but they were more about my personal taste in romantic relationships than the writing. Lucien and Stephen’s relationship has a bit more of the dom/sub vibe than I prefer. They are hot, nonetheless, and I adore Stephen.
I give it 4 out of 5 stars and recommend the entire series to fans of M/M romance.