Even Though I Knew the End, by C. L. Polk

So if you've read a few thousand books as I have, the basic flow of this short book is not super original. Lots of fiction out there with embodied angels and demons walking the earth (Aliette de Bodard most prominently). But this is a satisfyingly good read. It goes beyond mere substitution of genders for the romantic interest into some discussion of what it was like to be a lesbian at that time. Kept me hooked to the conclusion.

My Goodreads Review

The Midnight Bargain, by C. L. Polk

This was nominated for a Nebula award for 2020. Not sure why. Not that it's a bad book. It's reasonably fun to read.

But it's pretty much a standard romance novel, maybe elevated a little bit. The setting is basically Regency England, though all country names and geography are changed. Lots of attention to the layers and layers of clothing that wealthy women of the time wear. Including its social implications--the stays and stomachers that forced women into artificial shapes.

Women are severely oppressed in Chasland, prevented from studying magic and forced to dull their powers with "warding collars" due to very real danger to unborn babies. The danger is spun into a whole social structure that oppresses women. Pretty familiar. It's an uplifting story, and would have been a cutting-edge plot 80 years ago. Not so much now. The author does try to flip the racial script, but having the desirable people be dark-skinned with no other discussion of racial dynamics at all doesn't really help.

It's a fun read, a little slow early on but it picks up. The ending is a bit pat, romance-novel style. 2.5 stars rounded up.

My Goodreads Review

Witchmark, by C. L. Polk

Witchmark by C.L. Polk

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This was a good, fun read, fine for a first novel, and its structure sets up well for the sequel. Sets it up to be better than the first, in fact. I guess there weren't better candidates for a Nebula? Well this is good encouragement, though the book is not a winner.

The setup is not a strong point--we have Dr. Miles Singer, "witch" and runaway scion of a wealthy family. He's a heroic character, but as others have pointed out, really naive, in a way that is hard to believe given his experience. He's hiding out from his father, the Voice of the Mages--in his home town, in medical practice. Hmm...

This being a modern book, we get all the trappings of gay romance in the person of Tristan, a literally inhumanly beautiful being who has come to investigate the disappearance of souls from Miles' home country of Aeland. Submission to their beauty is both tragic and inevitable, and much futile romantic resistance dialog is delivered.

The book moves forward, but not quickly until the very end, when we are treated to a lot of juicy reveals that are the setup for the series. One might have wished for a bit more meat earlier on.

All in all it's a decent, if predictable book, and probably worth picking up the sequel



View all my reviews