A Marvellous Light cover art

A Marvellous Light

A dazzling, queer romantic fantasy

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A Marvellous Light

By: Freya Marske
Narrated by: David Thorpe
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About this listen

Set in an alternative Edwardian England, this is a comedy of manners, manor houses, and hedge mazes: including a magic-infused murder mystery and a delightful queer romance.

'Lush historical fantasy . . . A delightful book, with richly developed characters' New York Times

‘Mystery! Magic! Murder! . . . This book is a confection, both marvellous and light’ Alix E. Harrow, author of The Ten Thousand Doors of January

For fans of Georgette Heyer or Julia Quinn's Bridgerton, who'd like to welcome magic into their lives . . .

Young baronet Robin Blyth thought he was taking up a minor governmental post. However, he's actually been appointed parliamentary liaison to a secret magical society. If it weren’t for this administrative error, he’d never have discovered the incredible magic underlying his world.

Cursed by mysterious attackers and plagued by visions, Robin becomes determined to drag answers from his missing predecessor – but he’ll need the help of Edwin Courcey, his hostile magical-society counterpart. Unwillingly thrown together, Robin and Edwin will discover a plot that threatens every magician in the British Isles.

The Binding meets Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell in debut author Freya Marske’s A Marvellous Light. Continue the thrilling series with A Restless Truth.

‘A dazzling debut’ – Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun

‘Prepare to fall in love with the gorgeous Edwardian setting, the sizzling character dynamics, and the murderous enchanted hedge maze’ – Emily Tesh, author of Silver in the Wood

‘An absolute delight . . . If you ever wished Downton Abbey was sharper-edged and full of magic, this is the book for you’ – Kat Howard, author of An Unkindness of Magicians

Fantasy Historical Romance

Critic Reviews

Mystery! Magic! Murder! Long looks full of yearning! This book is a confection, both marvellous and light (Alix E. Harrow)
That sublime prose! Her astonishing gift for imagery! And, of course, her bountiful and endless talent for writing some extremely sexy scenes. A Marvellous Light is all that and more. Perfect (Jenn Lyons)
A magical world of exquisite refinement, where peril skims beneath manners, interiors bespeak both faultless taste and deadly secrets, and the sexual tension crescendos until it literally makes sparks fly. A dazzling debut (Shelley Parker-Chan)
Romantic in the best way, funny, sharp, sexy, fantastical. Prepare to fall in love with the gorgeous Edwardian setting, the sizzling character dynamics, and the murderous enchanted hedge maze (Emily Tesh)
Freya Marske's A Marvellous Light is an absolute delight. I was caught from the very beginning by the compellingly realized characters, the gorgeous and deadly magical world, and the fascinating mystery. If you ever wished Downton Abbey was sharper-edged and full of magic, this is the book for you (Kat Howard)
Freya's prose is so splendid that merely reading it makes me feel like I've been filled to the brim with champagne bubbles. A Marvellous Light has everything you could ever want from a book – beautiful descriptions, expertly woven world-building, queer kissing, sexual tension in a library, quite a lot of William Morris wallpaper . . . This book is brilliant on every level. It is wondrous. It is, if you will excuse a small joke, marvellous (Alexandra Rowland)
A charming, lovingly crafted adventure full of peril, romance and wit, illuminated by sparkling turns of phrase and a pervasive sense of humour (A. K. Larkwood)
Equal parts fantasy, mystery and romance – with bonus murderous garden features – A Marvellous Light heralds a strong new voice in science fiction and fantasy (Sam Hawke)
This romantic fantasy is full of fascinating world-building, layers upon layers of delicious magic, and characters I adored. I want to spend so much more time in this alternate England's enchanted libraries and sinister hedge mazes! The whole experience was a delight (Stephanie Burgis)
A gripping story, told in precise and sensual language, with the kind of characters that make you want a spin-off book for even the ones you've barely met. Magic, romance and mayhem in a beautifully decorated – and occasionally actively dangerous – Edwardian setting (Malka Older)
A completely enchanting story that sweeps you into a world of art and romance. Marske is an extraordinary talent who writes compelling characters, entertainingly awful families, and love stories like nobody else (Everina Maxwell)
A breathtaking queer romantic fantasy . . . Sensual erotic scenes, an intriguing magic system, and a puzzling mystery combine to make this novel a wonder (Publishers Weekly, starred review)
All stars
Most relevant
A Marvellous Light was slow to draw me in (which is why it took me longer than normal to get through the audio), but by about the halfway mark I was more invested in the characters & the storyline. Filled with magic and a mystery that slowly unravels.

A satisfactory ending in regards to Robin & Edwin, I look forward to seeing more of these 2, however some details of the mystery have been revealed but not all. I do find it intriguing that the next book in the series, A Restless Truth, moves onto Robin's sister as a main character instead of Robin & Edwin again. Hopefully there will be a lot more of Robin & Edwin to come.

slow to start, but overall an enjoyable storyline

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Have read this book twice already! Can't wait for the sequel! The premise was fun and mysterious without being frustrating and I loved the world and the characters! Wonderful!

Obsessed!

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A great little mystery and introduction to the magical underbelly of Britain. Passionate romantic scenes. Quaint Victorian setting. Very enjoyable and looking forward to the second book.

Enjoyable and Intriguing

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- Magical feel and ideas, british aesthetics, and family dynamics like a post Hogwarts Harry Potter, with some urban fantasy elements similar to Dresden Files
- Some British Beaucracy elements similar to Ian Fleming's Bond books
- Romantic elements drawn from tropes (growth, tension, lovers spat, and reconciliation), with fantasy and mystery/investigation woven in similar to A Crown of Thorns and Roses, and Twilight.
- Modern consciousness elements such as "consent" and "contract", which was highly topical around mid 2010s, similar to "consent" used in Ghost in the Shell film starring Scarlett Johansson, and parodied in South Park episode "Sponsored Content"
- Fish out of water element similar to Harry Potter, but, no broader introduction into main character's story. Jumps straight into the plot and I needed to backtrack a little from time to time at the start as I needed to settle into the world and "lingo"
- Tropes such as foresight, which seems reminiscent of "flashes" in movies, as well as a macguffin moving the plot along.

My favourite sequence had to do with the trip to, during and post the hedge maze, which could have served as a great short story in an anthology series.

Narrator read well, and writing style is very easy to listen to and I was able to get through the book in a couple of days. Credit to the author for keeping a strong pace throughout.

A well composed romantic urban fantasy

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The writing seems very awkward and stilted. Whilst the language of the Edwardians was undoubtedly more formal than now, people still spoke it fluently. Just listened again and the first paragraph is a dire example of what is to come. Needs editing to smooth out the mixed up phrasing.

The narration echoes the writing - it is finicky and precise and sounds as though everything is being emphasised carefully in case the listener’s first language is not English. Every single consonant, every single syllable is enunciated. Nothing flows.

On the other hand, whoever narrates “This is audible” did a good job.

Awkward writing, odd narration

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