April 1, 2023

Readers may be hard-pressed to decide if the latest from wildly popular Hall (A Lady for a Duke) is romance or fantasy. Set in 1814 in Bath, England, a site of worship, curses, and sacrifice, the story plays out on two planes. There is a romance, between the cursed Miss Maelys Mitchelmore and Lady Georgianna, who, it turns out, knows more than a bit about supernatural problems. When Georgianna sees Maelys hiding in a garden because her dress has magically unraveled, Georgianna steps in and tries to help. That leads to their budding push/pull relationship, against which is set a story of curses that fuels the plot and turns bloody and grim in places. Along the way, Hall, in fine form, crafts two secondary characters who help Maelys and add some needed joy. Robin Goodfellow (known to many as Shakespeare's Puck), narrates the novel, remarking on his role and the story throughout. Some may find the romance a bit underdeveloped. Others, perhaps those reading it as fantasy, will appreciate the clever storytelling, the detailed curses, and the multiple magical beings who put a thumb on the scale. VERDICT Stock up for Hall's many fans.--Neal Wyatt

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Starred review from April 10, 2023
Set in a magic-infused Regency England and narrated by the hobgoblin Puck, of A Midsummer Night’s Dream fame, this stirring outing from Hall (Boyfriend Material) proves a fresh and delightful addition to the queer romance canon. Maelys Mitchelmore, a noblewoman, falls desperately in love with Lady Georgiana Landrake, nicknamed “the Duke of Annadale,” a rumored witch widely suspected of multiple murders. Their meeting and ensuing romance are both dependent upon and marred by two curses: the first upon Maelys, the second upon the entire House of Annadale. With help from Maelys’s best friend, Miss Bickle, and cousin John, Maelys and Georgiana delve into the world of spirits, witches, and “the Old Gods,” in a quest to undo the curses and be together. Hall achieves this intermingling of history and fantasy admirably, such that all the interpersonal drama of Jane Austen meets all the complex treachery of Greek mythology. Full of adventure, chaos, magic, and lust, this will enthrall Hall’s fans and new readers alike. Agent: Courtney Miller-Callahan, Handspun Literary.

April 15, 2023
If scandal is the currency that fuels high society, Maelys "Mae" Mitchelmore is about to give London's gossips a real windfall. While attending a ball, Mae suddenly realizes her gown is literally dissolving. Fortunately, with some unexpected help from Lady Georgianna Landrake, nicknamed the Duke of Annadale, Mae is able to escape detection by the rest of the ball's attendees. Now the pressing question is, who would want to target her with a magical curse? In addition, given that Georgianna is rumored to be a powerful sorceress, are the feelings Mae has for her some kind of spell Georgianna has cast, or is it just human chemistry? From the book's puckish narrator--whose sly observations on humanity add another layer of humor to the story--to the whimsically wonderful, witty writing that evokes Jane Austen and Oscar Wilde, Hall (Paris Daillencourt Is about to Crumble, 2022) works his own brand of magic, creating an effervescent, genre-blurring romantic confection that will be utterly irresistible to fans of Patricia C. Wrede, Caroline Stevermer, Mary Robinette Kowal, and Zen Cho.

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Starred review from April 15, 2023
A midsummer night's Regency. Miss Maelys Mitchelmore doesn't understand why her dress is falling apart at a society ball. (It's not even fairy-made!) Though the situation seems at first to be a social disaster, her predicament leads to adventure when Lady Georgiana, better known as the Duke of Annadale, comes to her rescue. Everyone fears the Duke, who became the sole heir to a dukedom thanks to a series of mysterious deaths. She doesn't mind, as she is generally happy to be left on her own. Miss Mitchelmore, for her part, is grateful to be saved from ruination and then surprised when the Duke's kiss on her hand leads her to a sudden realization that perhaps her lack of passion for any eligible young man this season (or last) is due to the fact that none of them are women. When Miss Mitchelmore is struck by yet another magical attack, she starts to look for the cause and to see if the Duke will help her fix it--assuming the Duke is not the cause herself. And so the story begins, accompanied by a great deal of additional commentary from our petulant narrator, Puck (yes, that Puck), recently banished from the court of Oberon, now forced to write to make ends meet. He proves to be an enchanting and delightfully petulant storyteller, repeatedly winking at the reader as the paranormal meddling continues and a beautiful romance between Miss Mitchelmore and the Duke begins to bloom. The cast is rounded out nicely by Miss Mitchelmore's brother and best friend, both trying their best to help Maelys solve her magical mystery, but it may ultimately be only the women who can save each other. This is a lovely, pitch-perfect romance, with an alternate Regency setting that is well developed and has tremendous charm. The intimacy is relatively tame, for Hall, but the story still contains all the delicious tension and wry humor that he writes so well. Hall continues to prove himself to be one of the best romance writers working today. Part historical, part fantasy, all top-notch queer romance.

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