Hello, bookworms!
Happy Friday, I can't wait for the weekend. My plans include sleeping and reading a lot, as I am quite tired, but I am also in the midst of a lot of interesting books I can't wait to talk about with you. I am especially excited by a few titles, but you'll see very soon!
Today, I am here to review A Restless Truth by Freya Marske, the second book in The Last Binding trilogy. I wanted to read this last year as soon as it came out, but life and challenges got in the way, so I pushed it back to 2023. I have made an unofficial sapphic TBR for myself, and this book was on top of it, so when deciding what series to catch up on, this one was the obvious choice. This way I am ready for book three when it releases later this year.
I am a huge fan of historical romance, as I have already stated in my first Romancing the Reader article, and having loved A Marvellous Light, I had such high hopes for this book as well. Were they met or was I disappointed once again? Only one way to find out, keep on reading and I'll tell you all about my thoughts on this novel.
About the book
Title: A Restless Truth
Series: The Last Binding #2
Author: Freya Marske
Publisher: Tordotcom
Publication date: November 1, 2022
Pages: 400
Plot, as stated on Goodreads
Magic! Murder! Shipboard romance! The second entry in Freya Marske's beloved The Last Binding trilogy, the queer historical fantasy series that began with A Marvellous Light. Maud Blyth has always longed for adventure. The most interesting things in Maud Blyth's life have happened to her brother Robin, but she's ready to join any cause, especially if it involves magical secrets that may threaten the whole of the British Isles. Bound for New York on the R.M.S. Lyric, she's ready for an adventure.She'd hoped for plenty of it when she agreed to help her beloved older brother unravel a magical conspiracy. She even volunteered to serve as an old lady's companion on an ocean liner. But Maud didn't expect the old lady to turn up dead on the very first day of the voyage. Now she has to deal with a dead body, a disrespectful parrot, and the lovely, dangerously outrageous Violet Debenham. Violet is everything Maud has been trained to distrust, yet can't help but desire: a magician, an actress and a magnet for scandal. Surrounded by open sea and a ship full of suspects, Maud and Violet must learn to drop the masks they've learned to wear. Only then might they work together to locate a magical object worth killing for - and unmask a murderer. All without becoming dead in the water themselves.
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Review
"Was this a perfect book? No. Was this the perfect book for me read at the perfect time? Absolutely yes". This is how my review for A Marvellous Light on Goodreads starts, and I vividly remember writing it more than two years later. I copied and pasted it, because it also applies to the second book in the series, which — if you don't count Moriarty the Patriot, volumes 14 and 15 — is my first 5 stars rating of the new year. Can I get a wahoo?
Just like the first instalment in The Last Binding, this book was a perfect blend of historical, romance and fantasy with a dash of murder mystery. Add to that that it was sapphic and set on a cruise, and you have the perfect recipe for a book for me, literally tailor made.
I loved Maud and Violet as main characters, and their romance was amazing. I loved the balance in their relationship, and I particularly enjoy their sex scenes, because I think they were a good mix of fun and serious, which I tend to really enjoy. My favourite things about the two of them are their banter and the way the actually communicate with each other, especially when it comes to intimacy, since Maud is much more inexperienced than Violet.
I also liked the secondary characters, and I cannot wait to read book three, which is supposed to follow Lord Hawthorne and Alan. Alan was my favourite in this second book, aside from Maud, who is my baby and I want to protect with my life, thank you very much. I clearly have a thing for the Blythe siblings, and I hope we see them in A Power Unbound.
The plot was slow to start, but I didn't mind, because we were introduced to a lot of new characters, and I think that was necessary to set the scene for the mystery. I liked how the plot that started in the first book continued and evolved in this one, and I cannot wait to see how everything comes to an end. I am reading this for the romances, honestly, so whatever happens, I will not care as much as I care about the relationships, but still, I am interested.
The setting was very well used. I love books set on cruises, especially historical ones, but the last one I read early last year was a huge disappointment. A Restless Truth was the cruise mystery I deserved, and I am very glad to have finally read it. The mystery itself wasn't the most shocking and complicated I've ever read, but that is to be expected, as this series is first and foremost a romance series. And the relationships are top tier, so…
I loved the writing style, it was quick and fun and it made me excited to keep on reading. Mostly because I loved the characters, but also because it was generally easy to read. I love it when books make me want to keep reading for hours and hours, and this was one of them.
Overall, I highly recommend this book and this series in general, and I will be reviewing the third and final (sigh) book hopefully as soon as it comes out. In the meantime, I'll be starting plenty more historical romance series to fill the void, bye everyone.
I will talk to you soon with a new review!
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