It was a quite good debut. 3.7 stars from me.

The novel is designed as a town mystery in historical settings with some fantasy elements. Married couple Hetty and Benjy are solving a crime of their friend’s murder. It’s post Civil War times and police wouldn’t be very interested in the Black people cases so they took responsibility for helping their community with major and lesser problems. The strange death of the respected though shrewd Charlie is totally their work.

The story is told from the Hetty point of view. She is good with Celestial magic, a talented dressmaker, a captivating storyteller, and a very strong-willed woman. I very much liked how she was portrayed though sometimes I felt like she had been missing some small faults here and there. Nevertheless, I find her perks interesting. She judges a person by the clothes he or she wears in a professional way and she is very passionate about her magic. She can’t stand not using it. For her, it’s the essence of life like breathing is. “The magic is the world and it moves through us,” she says.

The main plot’s pacing is a bit slow. Especially at the start of the book. It’s good there are interludes to quicken it. New faces and all the talking become too much sometimes. To be honest, I feel confused there. I like that author describes this transition to a free life. Different people deal with it differently, trying to pose as a white person or taking an active part in politics or running some business and schools. They expect a better life now that they are free but the evil and prejudice aren’t gone with slavery. And Hetty’s talking to all of them is the logical way of conveying this narrative. However, these talks shift a focus from the investigation to community life far too often than needed.

There are things that I loved. Interludes are really great. They tell us how it was back then and why conductors were so important. I also appreciated the humor in the dialogues. I can recall the specific one that had taken place at Charlie’s funeral. It was about a man who once had a wife who was sold. “When people were sold they were good as dead”. So after the freedom, he married the other woman. And then his first wife found him and made a fuss. “Did he choose the past or the present?” “From what I can tell he’s taking time to choose his future carefully.” I was pleasantly surprised that it appeared to matter later.

But the strongest point of this novel is a romantic subplot. I rarely enjoy romance but this was done spectacularly. Hetty and Benjy married out of convenience not expecting to fall in love at all. They were partners who had gone through many trials as conductors together. I enjoyed 14th chapter immensely when Hetty realized her love for her husband. The author did a good job portraying their love through small things like a special pin Benjamin presented to Hetty.

The investigation subplot was mostly OK but I was disappointed by the culmination. Clarence is missing a crucial part of a good villain. It was clear he isn’t nice based on his relationships with Eunice. But I couldn’t see his hatred from his previous interaction with Hetty and Benjy. The final fight was a bit far-fetched in my opinion.

Finally, the magic system. It was fresh and fascinating. I liked how Celestial magic and Sourcery were compared. The magic was also used as a separator between white people and people of color. Though I’d like to know if it’s a truth that wands are made from celestial magicians’ bones. )

Celestial magic itself is a strong concept for fantasy world. Apparently, you can even sew sigils into clothes or carve them into the wood or steel. This magic should be learned too so it isn’t obtained easily.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and I congratulate the author with her debut. I feel that with the slight improvements it can be even better.

The Conductors is a historical fiction, meets fantasy, meets murder mystery mash up with interesting characters set during a post Civil War America.
Hetty and her husband Benji are the ones people go to to solve problems and get things done that the regular authorities won’t touch. Missing children, strange magic, and murders are just a few things that are handled by this team in Philadelphia. When a friend is found murdered in an alley with a dark magical mark etched in his skin, the pair begin to muddle thru truths and lies from their friends and acquaintances, who may hold the key to solving this crime.

I was very excited to get an ARC of this book, because the premise sounded so interesting. I liked the idea of magic using star constellations, and I felt it was a very innovative aspect to a popular theme nowadays. However, I think that explaining the different magical types at almost 20% thru the book is very late, and there were missed opportunities for building the background more at earlier points.
The protagonists, plot, and characters were very interesting, and well written. However I felt like parts of the book were disjointed, and could benefit from better flow. All the elements of a great book are there, but I don’t feel it is edited in the best way for the reader to get the most out of the work the author put in. I am excited to see how the final copy comes out.

Thank you Netgalley for this uncorrected proof arc in exchange for an honest review.

★ <i>I received an ARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review</i> ★

This story was a fun read and I really liked the main characters Hetty and Benjy. This story had a lot of potential, but fell short for me for a couple reasons:

1. the magic system: it was really interesting, but very vague. The sorcery magic used with wands by the white people in the story vs. the celestial magic used by former slaves is glossed over and never really formally explained - how are white people taught magic with wands? who makes these wands (what are they made out of)? and how are they regulated? How did slaves learn magic when it was forbidden with shock collars? it states that celestial magic was a mix of magic the slaves brought over from africa and native american magic - but what are those magic systems if not celestial or sorcery? Is this one source of magic being used differently between cultures? or different sources of magic altogether? (also, there were no native american characters in the story to address the mix of magic - so it kind of just seemed thrown in IMO?). There were even teachers of magic in the story and I feel like this could have been easily explained in more detail without info dumps.

2. I was expecting this to be a dark, gritty murder mystery, but it's more of a who done it - clue type murder mystery where all the friends are suspects.

This is more of your standard historical fiction book with a couple in a marriage of convenience (who are in love and just don't know it), that happens to have magic and a murder mystery thrown in. Overall, it was an entertaining story -just not what I expected.

Excellent historical fantasy featuring a pair of Underground Railroad Conductors who find themselves involved in an occult murder investigation. The magic and history are seamlessly blended and the world building is excellent. In this version of the recent US past, magic is real. White people are allowed to use high magic and Black people are permitted to use natural/ nature based magic. The discovery of a dead man bearing an occult symbol on his chest throws Hetty and Benji's plans into disarray leading to a fast paced and beautifully written mystery adventure. Highly recommend.

I loved this book. The protagonists are two former underground railroad conductors turned ad hoc investigators.

It takes place in post Civil War America, one in which magic is a reality. White people are allowed to practice sorcery and blacks allowed to utilize the "lesser" natural magic.

The author creates a rich world with interesting characters. The protagonists take it upon themselves to solve a series of murders.

My review doesn't adequately give this book the praise it deserves. It is a wonderfully written historical fantasy novel. I hope there are more to come.

My one criticism is that the book needs more copy editing.

I received a free ARC. I am leaving my honest review.

I really enjoyed my time reading this! This book follows Hetty and Benjy, who used to be Conductors on the Underground Railroad (which is super cool). They discover a man with a symbol on his chest, that just so happens to be a cursed symbol. They then proceed to investigate the murder, with the book switching between past and present.

The magic in this book is really cool. Definitely one of my favorite aspects of the book. I also really loved Hetty. She’s one of those characters you can’t help but enjoy, because she’s powerful but makes the story more enjoyable with her wit. I felt like the setting was well fleshed out for a historical fantasy novel, which was also nice. My only issue was how long it took for me to fully get into the story. Overall an enjoyable read!

The Conductors is the story of Hetty and Benjy, both former Conductors on the Underground Railroad. When Hetty and Benjy find a dead man with a cursed symbol on his chest, they decide to use their magic to investigate. Switching between flashbacks from their past as Conductors to present day, Hetty also searches for her sister Esther as they attempt to unravel the murder. As clues and questions surface, both start to wonder...could the murderer be someone they know?

I absolutely loved The Conductors!! Hetty is one of my favorite characters: witty, powerful, and so much fun to read as she races to solve the murder. The magic system was well-designed and complex. With solid pacing and excellent supporting characters, I couldn’t put this book down! Anyone looking for historical fiction, murder mysteries involving magic, and fantastic characters will enjoy The Conductors. Spending time with Hetty and Benjy was a joy, hopefully they’ll return to solve another mystery. I highly recommend The Conductors, releasing March 2, 2021. Thank you to Nicole Glover, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and Netgalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.