- I loved the world Burgis created. The story has a historical setting with castles, carriages and social ladders. Angland is the total opposite of what one comes to expect from dystopian settings. Here men practice magic and the country of Angland is ruled by women. Supernatural creatures are out and about from Trolls who demand tolls to fairies. The door has been left open to explore this world and I find I am quite curious.
- Our heroine Cassandra Harwood is the first women to attend magical college and not practice politics. In the beginning, we learn she can no longer practice magic and that she broke up with her fiance after an incident. I liked Cassandra, she is headstrong, quick thinking and progressive.
- The main conflict for this story occurs early in when Hardwood and her ex-fiance are out looking for missing guests. Cassandra makes a promise to an Elven Lord. She is granted one week to give him the answer he seeks or the treaty between the Elves and the humans will be broken. I loved this aspect of the story as it showcased Cassandra's skills and fleshed out the world.
- Secondary characters from siblings to supernatural creatures added interest. The dynamics between Cassandra, her brother, and his wife left me eager to learn more. The teasing about Wexham, her ex-fiance offered delightful moments that made me laugh.
- The ending has me very excited for the next book. Fans of Harry Potter will delight in the concept.
Decaffeinated Aspects:
- The past events left me very curious and I would have liked greater detail. I understand what happened but felt cheated out of the story.
- There is a romantic thread but their romance happened prior to this story and ended four months ago. So we get a rekindling, second chance story and here again I wanted the full story.
- Because this was a novella it forced some tell don't show moments. However, the story was engaging and Burgis teased me with enough of the world and characters that I am looking forward to the release of Thordbond in 2018.
This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer