Spellbreaker (Spellbreaker Duology #1)

I loved the world created by the author in this story. Imagine a semi-accurate Victorian England where magic is real. The social upheavals that were brewing in the late 1800s are on full display; class distinctions and gender inequality were still codified. The author is guilty of information dumps, especially when we first meet a key character. I don’t like this in fiction, as it slows down the pace of a story. I much prefer a novel to start off in the middle of things (in media res) and slowly world-build as the book progresses. That certainly could have happened here. The magical world the author has created is a fascinating one, but not overly complex. Two types of people have magic, the spellmakers and the spellbreakers. The heroine is an unregistered spellbreaker. She comes across as a bit nave but well intentioned. She wants to do the right thing using her unique talents that are not legal. The hero is a complex character as well and a legitimate spellmaker. The book really gets going when they meet and make a pact; a bit of a romantic aspect comes into play as well. I enjoyed the book once it got beyond the initial info dump world-building stage. The author has created a quirky, imaginative world with characters who are doing their best to work within it. The villain was appropriately evil, making this a fight of good vs. evil that looks like it will broaden in scope in the next half. Yes, from what I understand, this is the first part of a duology, and I did find the end satisfying for this half, but I’m certainly curious about what happens next. The author has certainly tantalized and teased about what that will be.

I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.

It was okay. The magic totally fell flat for me….it wasn’t as original, whimsical, or unique as I was hoping it to be. The 19th century London setting was totally unimmersive. It was not alive, and I really enjoy that time period.

I did enjoy the mystery about about the stolen opuses, although the mystery moved very very slowly until the third quarter of the novel. (That’s the only reason why I kept reading was to find out who was behind it.)
The first half moves really slow with only a few sparks of excitement at best. I found myself dozing off a couple of times.

The ending is set up for a sequel.

No sex, no gore, very minimal cussing. Clean book.

“Spellbreaker” is the first half of a duology, i.e., a series of two books. I think book series should be clearly labeled to differentiate between a series containing standalone but related books and one that is really a single book published in two halves, joined by a cliffhanger.

If I had read this part of Amazon’s ad, I would have known this fell into the latter category and skipped it:

“Those who enjoy gentle romance, cozy mysteries, or Victorian fantasy will love this first half of a duology. The cliffhanger ending will keep readers breathless waiting for the second half.

So, the ad was clear, if I had read every word.

Aside for my dislike for surprise half-books, how was the story?

The spellbreaker idea was itself new to me and led to an interesting fantasy world.

The book started slowly and heated up gradually. At the end of the first 1/4, I almost quit reading. Neither the plot nor the characters had grabbed me more than slightly. By 1/2 way through, the story had picked up enough to guaranty that I would finish. The last 1/4 was gripping, especially when it got to a Harry-Potter-like magic fight.

If half-books with cliffhangers don’t bother you, I’d offer s a 3-4 star rating.

I liked the general idea of two kinds of magicians, rich spellmakers and poor spellbrakers. Other than that, the story has a soothing familiarity of typical magic world created by this and other authors in similar books. The setting is England at the end of 19-th century. There are maybe a few too many characters introduced at the beginning but once the story starts rolling it rolls smoothly although a little sluggishly at times. The budding romance is a big part of the plot.
It is a first book in the series but it does not end with big cliffhanger.

Bottom line: It is a nice escapist book, which, I believe, was written for young readers but it can be enjoyed also by the older ones.

PS. If you are looking for more original ideas and settings, I recommend Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by the same author. It is leaning a little toward sadomasochistic themes, and is targeted at older audience but the concept is original and the audio book is excellent.

I’m a huge fan of Holmberg; and this is a creative story. Unfortunately, it isn’t her best.It seemed a little rushed with not enough Plot or character development. I recommend readers check out her other books. My favorite might be followed by frost, but the 5th doll is also an enchanting read. I’m posting orally with Alexa, so please excuse Capitalization Issues.

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