<i>Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC to review.</i>

The Conductors has rather a lot going for it -- a story of POC triumphing over the great evil that was the South in the Restoration era of American history. The general plot is about two underground railroad conductors solving a series of murders in their hometown. Oh, and there's magic.

However despite the extremely promising premise of the novel, I found this book to be lacking more than a few ways.

First off -- the magic system is FRUSTRATINGLY vague. There is literally no explanation of how magic works. There's two different kinds of magic in The Conductors. Celestial and Sorcery. Celestial is only done by Black people, and Sorcery usually only done by white people. There is almost no explanation as to why. No explanation of what specific spells do, or how magic is controlled, or who has magic, etc. Celestial magic has the makings of a REALLY cool system...if we had more information. This is my biggest complaint of the book. We didn't need an info dump, or pages and pages on it, but some information sprinkled here and there would have done a WORLD of difference.

Secondly -- The Conductors is supposedly in the adult novel category, but I found the writing to be more on edge with a YA or new adult novel. The writing is a little towards the simpler side, with very, very few descriptions of anything. I had no idea where the novel was set until I was already 40% of the way through the book. I would have love more descriptions on what the Philadelphia of this time period looked like. What did their boarding house look like? What was the weather like, how do the characters appreciate/hate their surroundings? It made the novel feel very bland.

Third -- the relationship between Hattie and literally any of the characters was TOLD rather than shown until over halfway through the novel. Hattie calls several people her friends, and we see almost nothing to prove that true. Hattie is rather standoffish throughout the whole book. It makes her less than likeable as a character UNTIL we finally see her open up a bit. Her relationship with Benjy wasn't believable until (again) towards the end of the book.

The Conductors is a slow read -- things happen but they happen in far apart beats. Nothing is seemingly urgent, there's no real page turning action in here. This could be a great book! It has the makings of one! There's just a lot missing. Two and half stars, rounded up.

The Conductors is a book I so, so wanted and expected to love. I did like it, but for me the first half of the book was pretty slow and I had some difficulty connecting with it. The second half of the book was much better both in pacing and interest level and I found myself enjoying it much more. Conceptually I adored this book, the addition of magic to the underground railroad is spectacular. And the use of sigils and the descriptions of the magic and how it comes to life was spectacular. I think I would have preferred that the book focused more on when they were actually Conductors instead of their lives after but I still enjoyed the story.

This book took me many attempts to get through, I kept coming back hoping to just get pulled in and blast through it. It wasn't bad but it for sure wasn't my style. A lot happens in the beginning, but not a lot where you just have to keep reading. It's a lot that then leads to a quick change of location and characters that you are now being introduced to, and then there's more build up but not at a pace where I could keep track of everything. I wish I could have liked this more, the premise is great. There's potential with that alone, maybe I'll give it another go later on from the start and see if maybe now that I finished it I just wasn't in the state of mind when I started it to get into it like I wanted to.

I didn't know much about this book going into it, and let me just say, there is A LOT to love. Post-emancipation time period featuring an all Black cast. CHECK. A compelling main character who is tough as nails but also has a kind heart, even if deep down sometimes. CHECK. LGBT representation. CHECK. A mystery that kept me on the edge of my seat. CHECK. And what I love the most is that it's a book about Black folks who are their own heroes, who protect each other, police their own communities, and love one another regardless of petty annoyances. This isn't a book about white saviors, or white anything, and man, it was so refreshing. I mean, so much to love. But unfortunately one big thing to not love at all--the magic system.

I think the *idea* of this magic system is very interesting, but it fails in execution. Hetty and Benjy, and to some extent others in a much more rudimentary form, have celestial magic that uses the star signs and astrological signs. But that's the extent of what I understand about this system. It didn't feel fleshed out enough that I could figure out with different star signs did in different situations and I have no idea what the magic's rules are, especially in its comparison to Sorcery, which it seems weaker than, but I'm not sure why. To some extent, the magic system is presented in a way that the period piece mystery was already written, and then magic was thrown in to make it more interesting, but the non-fantasy elements of this book are SO COMPELLING on their own, that it doesn't really need this shoddy magic system. I found myself wishing the book would just drop it and focus on the things that made this book great--I wouldn't liked more flashbacks with Hetty and her sister since that seemed to be such an important undercurrent of the book, and I would have loved even more interaction on the page between Hetty and Benjy in a romantic way because, well, I love them and they make such a fantastic couple, but sometimes I felt like Hetty's emotional arc wasn't completely earned because we don't get enough of it. She seems to be pretty judgey towards a lot of people, and a lot of times it really just feels like ego, but I still love her because she's at the heart a good person who risked her life several times to help slaves escape slavery. I would have just liked some more emotion to grab onto. Overall, I loved the mystery and hadn't figured out who the murderer is by the end (though I think that revelation moved a little too fast), I loved the setting and characters, and if you can ignore the confusing magic (which isn't that hard to be honest), you'll really enjoy this book!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a free advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book! I've been looking for something like this for a while now and it had everything I wanted. It's historical with a unique magical system and with diverse characters.

We follow Hetty and Benjy as they try to solve their friend's mysterious murder in a world where only slaves have magic but they're forbidden and enslaved because of it. Hetty and Benjy will have to rely on their wit and magical powers to solve these murders and to keep their community safe.

The story moves a bit slowly and jumps to different timelines but it never confused me and by the end of the book I got a better appreciation for the characters and what they've built and gone through.

Yes, this copy of the book had some issues but my ARC was uncorrected proof so I'm actually looking forward to reading it again after it gets published to see the changes.

I loved the story and the characters and would love to meet them again in the future.

* I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Well written and researched. I think this will be a hit with the children. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher!

Wow! I really hope this gets made into a movie. I’d love to see the spell casting in action. On the downside, the novel deals with the everyday racism faced by the main characters. This seems very relevant to events happening today and we see how little some things have changed. Overall, I enjoyed the book’s blending of history, crime solving and magic. I hope there’s a sequel.

This story is a fictional history two conductors from the underground railroad shortly after emancipation. Magic is used in different forms throughout.

I personally liked the characters and their individual battles.

I received an arc of this book from the author/publisher from Netgalley. I wasn’t obligated to write a favorable review or any review at all.

This book, totally a work of fiction, is timely for events in 2020.

The book blends magic and history - offering a version of what Black life was like when the Underground Railroad was a necessary, dangerous part of life.

The characters are brave, sometimes ethical and morally true to how we might want to rewrite history.

A great read.

I received an ARC in exchange for a review.
I wanted to like this more than I did, I really can't give it more than a 4 or 5 /10
I liked the two main characters, although I found their relationship bizarre for several reasons, they are supposed to be in a marriage of convenience (that of course will end in romance) but I just never felt any emotion between them.
I liked the way the magic system was put together but it would have been more interesting if the author gave us some detail on her ideas of magic vs. sorcery in the world.
It took me quite a while to figure out what the main plot was; I think the book would have benefited from fewer side-plots. As mentioned by other reviewers, the secondary characters are mostly just confusing, and not well distinguished from each other.
I think that there's a lot of potential, and I hope that there is some serious editing before publication. There're A LOT of sloppy grammatical errors, and there are swathes of the text that could use clarification and clipping; if the publisher has decided it's worth publishing, I hope that they give this first-time author some help.

The Conductors is a very slow paced murder mystery set in post-Civil War Philadelphia. Main characters, Hetty and Benjy Rhodes, are former underground railroad conductors turned neighborhood sleuths that solve problems for their friends and neighbors. The Rhodes also have the ability to practice "celestial magic". The novel doesn't provide the origins of the celestial magic, its purpose or the function of each spell. Some spells seem to do the same thing, which can be a bit confusing. Hetty married Benjy for companionship and to stop idle gossip about their relationship. While working to solve the murder of a close family friend, Hetty begins to realize her love for Benjy is much stronger than she'd like to admit. This novel is rich in fantasy, mystery, and romance. It provides a unique perspective on post-Civil War life for black people in Philadelphia with a touch of magic.

3.5 stars

This was a great historical fantasy book that I really enjoyed reading. I loved the magic system; I love how the author integrated both sorcery and celestial-based magic. It felt very fresh and original, and not something I’ve read about before. This book is a captivating blend of genres; traditional fantasy elements mixed with a murder mystery, all in a historical setting. The premise was certainly fascinating; African Americans living in post-Civil War America, with the protagonist and her husband solving crimes that the white authorities ignore. This isn’t a time period I’ve read much about, if ever, so I appreciated getting a glimpse into what life would have been like during this time.

I also loved Hetty, the protagonist; she was clearly a smart and determined woman. I liked the way her relationship with her husband, Benjy, developed — they were an arranged marriage, but as the novel progresses, she realises that she genuinely loves him, and it was sweet to see.

However, I feel like the pacing was too slow. At times, it felt sluggish - the author spent too much time building up the relationships and back stories, to the detriment of the murder mystery plot. While this is important in creating a well-rounded story, I think a better balance should have been struck, with a bigger focus on action and actually solving the mystery.

Despite this, I still really love the concept and premise of this book, as I think it is rather unique. I would still recommend this book to fans of fantasy and historical fiction, as long as you are someone who does not mind a more slow paced plot.

It’s only been recently that I have started reading more in the realm of historical fiction, but I’m finding I am enjoying it more and more. In The Conductors, Ms. Glover — in her debut offering, by the way — weaves an intriguing tale of a very closely knit community in Philadelphia; loosely tied together by their traditions, a heritage of stellar magic, and two former conductors on the underground railroad who now spend time solving some of the mysteries of this community.

Interspersed with looks back to pre-freedom times, and how a fair number of the primary characters came into the orbit of Hetty and Benjy (our crafty protagonists), one cannot help but see the comparisons to Octavia Butler’s Kindred.

This novel, however, very much stands on its own two feet. With the introduction of a mysterious murder of someone close in their circle, the two main characters — Hetty and Benjy Rhodes — begin an investigation that uncovers intrigue, shame, lies to one another, and lies to oneself.

Above all, though, I find The Conductors a story of love and self-discovery. Even without the wonderful booster of magic, sorcery, and the acceptance and acceptable use thereof; this novel would still reach its intended point. The magic, though, makes it all that much more interesting.

While the premise of this book is interesting, it's unfortunately bogged down by several "debut novel" issues.

- The worldbuilding feels flimsy. Part of the problem is that the author spends a little too much time describing things that don't really matter and adds extraneous details about her characters that are intended to deepen their character development but just sound weird in the context of the story. For example, in one of the early chapters the main character describes the various skills (teaching, apothecary/brewing magical medicines, tailoring) that she and her friends have. But then she says something like "even though the gowns she made were worn by the richest people in town, she didn't do it for the money, she liked to clothe her friends for free". This is a weird humblebrag to drop in the middle of an early chapter, and it doesn't really go anywhere after that.

Another issue is that the magic system is basically completely unexplained until about 20% of the way through the book, and you have no idea what the parameters are for spell casting etc. It's only when you're decently far along that you learn that spells are based on constellations... which opens up a whole slew of questions that don't get answered either. I never really felt immersed in this setting and didn't feel attached to any of the characters.

- The writing is clunky. Aside from descriptions that go from overly detailed to overly bare, the pacing of the story drags. Dialogue is stilted and flips back and forth from period-specific phrasing/cadence to modern phrasing/cadence. Sometimes characters would talk in paragraphs, other times there wouldn't be enough dialogue. I think more editing could really improve this aspect of the story.

- The plot was ok, but difficult to get into because the narrative is interspersed with news articles/wanted ads from different times than the central mystery is taking place in. Especially early on, the articles/ads are mainly used to shortcut the worldbuilding process and it just seemed weak to me. I think most of these could have been cut without losing anything and combining these cuts with some restructuring of the story to frontload an explanation of the rules of this world, would have strengthened the book a lot overall. I was also more interested in Hetty's time as a conductor on the Underground Railroad than I was by the murder-mystery.

Overall, this was an ok read with an interesting premise and weak execution. I didn't hate my time with this story, but I didn't love it either.

*****
Thank you to NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for an uncorrected/unfinalized ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A truly special detective tale with writing that leaps off the page and world building that is truly magical and multi-layered. I hope this is the first in a series, as I am eager to read more of Hattie and Benjy's adventures.

I received an eARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. Thank you NetGalley and John Joseph Adams/Mariner Book.

The Conductors follows Hetty and Benjy Rhodes as they investigate a series of murders in black Philladephia after the Civil War. Hetty and Benjy are famous in their circles as Conductors on the Underground Railroad before and during the war and for their prowess with Celestial Magic. The story itself is a rich and detailed exploration of a black neighborhood during reconstruction that is put on edge by the murders of some of their most prominent members.

This was an interesting book for me. I enjoyed the character of Hetty and the magic system. The magic system is divided into two distinct types: Celestial and Sorcery. Sorcery is primarily used by whites and requires a wand. Whites see sorcery as more powerful and heavily restrict access to it. Celestial Magic is primarily used by blacks and uses pictograms (typically of big constellations) to focus magic towards certain tasks. Celestial magics requires innate talent and Hetty is an especially powerful user. Those who are able to utilize this magic are feared by whites. I feel like the magic system, or at least the sorcery side could have been fleshed out a little more especially since a subplot focuses on it. Hetty is a strong female lead who has lots of positive points, and her only negative seems to be the obsession with finding her sister. I really liked her, but wished she had a few more flaws.

My biggest issue with this book was the pacing. The story started off strong and ended alright, but the middle was nearly unbearable. The middle dragged with subplots, asides and a large number of conversations. I have this problem with a good number of more recent mystery novels. There is often a great hook and an interesting revelation at the end, but the middle where the detective should be running down leads and putting the puzzle together is spent exploring other things that don't seem to connect to the central mystery.
This happened in spades with The Conductors. It was too the point that when I got to the big reveal, I had no idea how we got to it. There didn't seem to be a whole lot of ground work set for why the murderer did what they did or a whole lot of how.

Overall, it was an interesting read in terms of the fantasy and historical fiction, but the mystery falls flat.

I would recommend those who enjoy different magic systems or are looking for an own voices novel focusing on a part of history that isn't covered in history class.

I really liked the premise of this book--magical conductors on the Underground Railroad turned crime fighters. I enjoyed watching the marriage of convenience slowly blossom into love and the use of magic with astronomy, however the long flashbacks were sometimes confusing and the list of characters with similar names was hard to keep track of and follow their mingling storylines.

I liked the opening amendments. Several girls have gone missing when Hetty and Benjy discover Elle. I liked the descriptions of events. I liked the characters but couldn't get hooked on the story.

I loved this book. It took me a little bit of time to get very involved with the story, but, once I was, I was all in and couldn’t put the book down. It was a fun and clever murder mystery with magic. The post emancipation world with magic was intriguing. This was an awesome #ownvoices book with a really engaging story. I can’t wait for more from this author.

Thanks so much to the publisher and to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

It was plot heavy and seemed more focus on the characters. The interplay of magic and Black people in whatever time period is, but it fell a bit flat for me. Maybe I will enjoy it upon more reflection.