I did enjoy this book set at the turn of the twentieth century. It is both a polite comedy of manners (at least that is the phrase they use on Amazon to promote it!) and a period drama urban fantasy, in that the protagonist stumbles upon a magical underworld which most ‘normal’ people know nothing about. In fact the usual practise is to give the ‘muggles’ a tea which has the same effect as the obliviate charm in the world of Harry Potter so they forget everything.
I was somewhat jarred by the strong language and very explicit sex scenes between the two male protagonists, as it felt out of place with the otherwise gentile feel, although one supposes that beyond the polite social conversation, swearing and having sex all happened in the Edwardian times, they just weren’t included in books written during that period (at least not any I’ve read!).
I did feel invested in the story though, and I liked the magical world. I will look out for more books in the series.
Sarah Wray Writer 