I really enjoyed this book! I loved the characters, especially sassy Nadi! I know the insta love has bothered some people but this book is obviously based in time with the weird society debutante and being courted immediately etc... so I kind of expected it. And loved it! I loved the world building and prose. My complaint is that there should have been more magic (the spells) and her father shouldn’t have the insta change he had at the very end- it was too drastic. Definitely recommend especially since I read this in one day!

Really enjoyed this with one. In a world analogous to our 19th C, women have fewer rights than men and are not normally permitted to practice sorcery, although a sorcerous wife is preferred since she will pass the talent on to her children. From there it follows the standard beats of an MC who goes against tide and practices in secret despite all the odds against her. I personally though Polk did the exploration of minimising women and organising a society that was inaccessible to them very well. I think I preferred the authors novella series but this was a strong fantasy.

Hmmm stuck in my inner evaluation purgatory: Another book gave me mixed feelings and I couldn’t decide if I hated it or loved it.

There are so many things I truly enjoyed: having equal rights between men and power to hold and use magic, to have rights to be Magus parts are thought provokingly well established.If you are a woman, you have to sacrifice your potential to have and hold the magic because when you get marry, you may put your unborn children’s lives into danger( they may be corrupted by vicious spirits)

Overall: The world building, bargaining system to choose yourself a wealthy, charming husband, rules of magic were the original, well developed and most interesting parts of the book.
But... yes... here comes the parts which bothered me a lot:

Firstly let’s talk about characters:

I found the characterization a little flat, superficial. MC Beatrice carries feminism vibes to fight for her rights to use her magic and become a Magus as like the other men do. But she was mostly too annoying, irritating, acting selfishly. Those facts made her unlikable. Her character suffers from lack of emotional depth. Poor, charming Ianthe shows his feelings from the beginning and I wanted to scream at her face and tell her “ get marry with this guy, what are you waiting for!”

Thankfully even though we suffer from heroine’s obnoxiousness, Nadi, lovely spirit she summoned to help her get back the grimoire, was my favorite character.

Romance parts are haphazard, instantaneous, too. I couldn’t get the part how they suddenly fell for each other. I really thought maybe I missed some pages and returned back to find them. Oh, no. I didn’t skip or miss any pages!

And the pace was a little bumpy. It gets slower and something happens to captivate your attention back. But a few chapters later the boredom comes back!

Fantasy parts and creative world building were truly amazing. I wish there would be less romance and more magic in this book with more tolerable characters. I’m so sure with this formulation: I would give it five stars.
So I stayed in Switzerland territory: it was not great but it was okay read so let’s meet in the middle by giving it three stars.

As in all fantasy books it took me a while to understand what was happening, and how things happen in that world created!  But once that became clear it was so good! I love stories with magic, witch/mage and someone fighting against a system! This book dear people has everything! What more could i ask for! 

Beatrice Clayborn wants magic, she has it in her blood, no one has to give it to her but she must find a way to stop them from taking it away from her! She must find a way to get away from her bargaining season without a husband and at the same time save her family’s honour, they have lost so much. They can’t lose this time! 

Ysbeta Lavan and her elder brother Ianthe Lavan, the heir to the richest, successful family want the same thing, to let Ysbeta live the life she wants but their approach is different and when their lives cross with Beatrice, the adventure begins! Are they ready to make the great Bargain?

As I told you I loved the story, all the food, fashion cloths and all the balls and fancy things were so exciting. The slow romance between Ianthe and Beatrice was so magical! So beautiful! The trio feminists make such a great team! I read the ending twice just to enjoy it again! It felt so so so good and sort of powerful too! There were few places which felt like a drag but it was half because i wanted to know what happens next and couldn’t spare time for the dragging explanations and descriptions!!

Similar to C.L. Polk’s debut Witchmark, The Midnight Bargin is a secondary world fantasy of manners with a strong romance. The worldbuilding is excellent. I love reading fantasy of manners that are set in secondary worlds, rather than alternate versions of Europe. Polk has done an amazing job fleshing out the world and the characters that inhabit it, from the details of their clothing to complicated social norms. These small details are everywhere throughout the book and really help to bring the story to life.

I particularly liked the magic system regarding spirits and their connection to a Magus. Sometimes magic in fantasy novels is rigid, that it is already defined and has rules. Beatrice is self-taught with all her knowledge coming from grimoires and her own experiments. But as she furthers her knowledge, she realizes that there’s knowledge about magic and spirits that even the Magus don’t have.

For all the glitter and glamour of the Barganing Season and magic, The Midnight Bargin is an angry book. Polk takes the reader through a gambit of sexism that at many points feels hopeless. But this is also a romance, and although things are never perfect, eventually you get a happy ending. I cried at end of the book and there’s scenes I’m still thinking of long after having read them.

My one issue with The Midnight Bargin is that Ianthe’s character felt a bit flat. A large part of his and Beatrice’s relationship was of him learning of the sexism Beatrice faces and the restrictions that face her at the prospect of having to lock her magic away. But in the end, Ianthe loves Beatrice enough to let her go when being married to him would still remove her from a central part of herself, her magic, and he loves her even more that he throws convention aside to help her. They’re still an adorable couple though and Polk made me squee over them several times.

The Midnight Bargin is an emotional, but wonderful read. Fans of the Lady Trent series by Marie Brennan will enjoy it. If you’re looking for a story to get angry about, but also a story to give you hope, pick this one up. Also the hardcover edition is freaking gorgeous and deserves to be on everyone’s shelves.

Yes!! I was so excited for this book because the synopsis was right up my alley. Alt history with magic? Sign me up! And this did not disappoint. I loved every single minute of this book. There was a great romantic subplot, the descriptions were amazing, and I did not want to put it down. More of this please! I'd love to see more books in this world.

A bargain made in haste has consequences for beyond its measure. A first kiss that sacred and magical moment has been promised to someone else and the bargain carries a toll so deep and rich it permeates Beatrices decisions and thrusts her into a constant battle between love and duty. I loved this enticing story , born of a fear that who you are can trap desire and make you surrender who you truly are. A great writer of the mystics has emerged.

Where should I even begin?  I was given a free early copy by the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was hesitant at first, to be honest, when I read the description. Would this just be another "blah" book? I have been going through a slump lately where the books I have read have been average, nothing special, but something to read at the very least. This book, however, blew me away. I loved the strong female main characters. I adored the love interest and his views on life and how women in their culture should be treated. I appreciated that the three main characters had so much actual growth and depth. There are so many struggles that you can easily see happening for real in that type of culture where women are seen as inferior. Women also have magical abilities, but they must sacrifice everything as soon as they are married. Their powers are cut off until their childbearing years are over. Beatrice's chance encounter with siblings in a bookstore is about to change her life and her world forever. You will not want to put this book down, and when you think the end is near and no happiness is to be found, something comes along and gives you hope once more, even if it is not the ending you expect. This book is definitely worth picking up and giving it a try!

Thank you Erewhon Books and Netgalley for giving me an ARC copy of this book for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings expressed are my own.
 
*Note:  Please read past the first paragraph.  I sum up the points of the story first.
 
This is a historical fantasy that put me in the mind of Victorian London.  In this story, Beatrice is at her first Bargaining Season.  It is very obvious that this is the only season that she is going to get and she has no choice but to attract a suitor.  The Bargaining Season is only for girls that have magical ability.  It has been decided in this world that only men are allowed to move forward in the pursuit of magic and women who have the ability are “sold off” to be able to produce more magical children.  Once women marry they are put into collars until their husbands let them out.  Which usually only happens after they are no longer able to produce children.  This is portrayed as a for their own protection move.
 
Okay now that I have that boiled down to what sounds like a huge gripe let me tell you that I really enjoyed this story.  I loved watching these girls (Beatrice and Ysbeta) take charge of their futures and not letting someone else decide what they are meant for. I love watching strong female characters take charge.
 
Yes, this story does have some instalove, however, I have to think that Ianthe liked/appreciate that Beatrice did not hold back and pretend to be the perfect debutante with him.  When asked she told him what she wanted even though it could have had her collared before her marriage and I think that on some level he loved that part of her. 
 
One character that I could not stand was Beatrice’s father.  There was something at the beginning of the story that gave me a weird vibe about him and it just got worse as the story went on.  He did not deserve the family that he had. But that is just my opinion.
 
All in all, I really enjoyed this story and I wouldn’t mind a spinoff to see what Ysbeta has been up to.

Thank you @erewhonbooks and @netgalley for the advanced copy of THE MIDNIGHT BARGAIN by CL Polk, 

I love fantasy with smart, independent and competent heroines and the star of Midnight Bargain, Beatrice Clayborne, definitely didn't disappoint in that regard. I found the writing to be wonderfully descriptive and unique; its historical setting and court intrigue - it was all very well done and thought out.  Overall, a really enjoyable read that I'd recommend to sci-fi / fantasy readers who like stories featuring strong heroines.

I’m still confused by this book - did l like it? 

There were so many good things that I did like:
•A historical romance Set in a fictional world
•Bargaining system for a wife 
•The fighting against being ‘collared’ by your husband this taking your magic away

I love a good fight against the patriarchy book but sometimes it can come across too much for me and turns me off 🤷🏼‍♀️

Anywho - sweet love story. One or two kissing scenes but no steam.

Thank you Netgalley and Erehorn publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

3.5/5

The Midnight Bargain follows one Beatrice Clayborn, a young sorceress who dreams of mastering her powers in a world that reserves such power only for men. When Beatrice arrives for the Bargaining Season, where young men and young ladies go to parties in the hopes of securing a marriage contract, Beatrice dreads the day when she will be collared in order to provide her future husband with a family. But when a fellow sorceress and her brother steal a grimoire out from under her, Beatrice finds unlikely allies in Ysbeta and Ianthe Lavan, two of the most eligible members of the Bargaining Season, as well as a spirit named Nadi. In her quest to become a full-fledged magician, Beatrice is faced with a choice: to do what is expected of her by her society and family by giving up her powers and marrying, or to keep on chasing her dream of becoming the first female magician and turn the entire world upside down. 
This was a book I had mixed feelings about. First, I really enjoyed the feel of the Regency-style world that Polk has created here, although the world-building itself left a little to be desired, as we learn about Chasland and Llandras but not much else about the world Beatrice and her friends live in. We do, however, find out a lot about to social and patriarchal norms through the Bargaining Season, and this gives The Midnight Bargain a very Jane Austen-y sort of feel, which I loved. I also thought the romance between Beatrice and Ianthe was really well-done and had some very swoony moments. I also lived for the feminist themes inherent in this book. My biggest problem with this book was that I quite literally hated the majority of the characters in this book. Even Beatrice ticked me off at times. With the exception of Nadi, Ianthe, Ysbeta and sometimes Beatrice, there were just so many insufferable characters that it really dampened my enjoyment of this book. Also, the pacing could have used some work. So although The Midnight Bargain was not the homerun I hoped it would be for me, it is still an enjoyable read for people who enjoy books set in the Regency and fantasy. The Midnight Bargain is a story about duty and dreams, love and power, and the ways society uses things such as marriage and family (which is not inherently bad on its own) to deprive women of autonomy, power and equality, and of one ambitious young woman who turns her entire world upside down to achieve her dreams.

The Midnight Bargain is a magical story that weaves together a historical-style setting with some innovative and determined women who are ready to make some changes to their patriarchal society. 

The Midnight Bargain follows Beatrice Clayborn, a young woman on the verge of marrying age about to begin the 'bargaining season' in which all of the young ingenues are pursued by eligible bachelors. Beatrice prefers to study magic and has no interest in marrying; she would rather focus on improving her magic to where she can one day assist her father in improving the family's finances in order to provide a better life for her family, especially her sister, Harriet. In this world, however, it is only the men who are able to continue pursuing magic into adulthood, whereas the women are only allowed to learn minor spells and charms in their childhood, before putting the interest aside and eventually donning a magical collar of sorts that completely cuts off their magical abilities. 

Beatrice is a headstrong character who meets another equally headstrong woman, Ysbeta, and together the two decide to work together to help each other strengthen their magical abilities. Neither woman wants to marry, although their goals outside of not wanting to marry differ slightly. I found Ysbeta and Beatrice to be a really interesting pair, as on the one hand they held a lot of similar notions about magic and marriage, but on the other hand they also clashed a decent bit in regards to value and personality, and I really appreciated how much contrast Polk created with their characters, showing that women can want to be independent for their own unique purposes, unlike many books that often show women wanting the exact same freedoms from their assigned roles. 

In regards to the magic system, I thought that Polk introduced something really interesting with her particularly brand of magic. I'm not sure I fully understand how some of it works, but what I did find exceptionally interesting was the usage and influence of the lesser and greater spirits that were such a big part of the magic process. I would love to learn more specifics about how this magic worked, as I felt that they were explored, but I'd love to see even more examples of how everything worked. There are some really neat dynamics at play that made this a compelling system. 

There is some romance in this book that I did find a bit hasty at first, but given how marriage proposals and the like often work in this world (similar to our own historical basis where there is often limited courtship), I found it to be somewhat believable with how fast things would move. I liked Polk's exploration of Beatrice's own navigation into determining how she wanted to live her life and how she would balance (or not balance) love and her passion for magic, which I felt really showcased Beatrice's strong personality and ability to focus on the realities of life--all while holding onto her own dreams, of course.

One of my main problems, however, here were that there were some times especially near the end of the story where I felt as though the themes and messages of feminism and equality were almost hammered into the reader a little too much, but I didn't find this to be too much to where it took away much enjoyment. I don't mind when the messages are clear and easy to understand, but sometimes when the author does such a good job of displaying the message throughout the story they don't need to continue to spell it out for us repeatedly. Still, I sometimes find it hard to feel justified in complaining about hearing a message repeated when it's a valuable one.

I had a lot of fun with this book. I believe it's been classified as a YA fantasy (though do correct me if I"m wrong), but I personally felt as though it could easily be considered adult as well, since the characters felt slightly more mature and it didn't really seem to follow the more typical YA fantasy patterns that I'm used to.  

Overall, I've given The Midnight Bargain 4.25 stars! As mentioned, I really enjoyed this one and would love to spread more from Polk set in this world in the future, but I'm also satisfied with the story I got to be a part of.

This book is an interesting read that highlights the plight of women's roles in society and the choices that they are forced to make between family and power.  The characters are interesting and the story flows well.

Polk always provides a well rounded cast of characters in a unique world. The writing is lush and the tale of women and magic that is held frm them is engrossing. I need a sequel. Now.

DNF @ 21%

I really tried, but this novel simply isn't for me, which is a real shame when I've seen so much praise for Polk's other work which I'm still interested in trying one day. This had so many themes I should have liked, and I usually enjoy Regency-inspired fantasy and romantasy, but there's no nuance in this story; whenever Polk wanted to make a perfectly valid point about equal rights, I felt like I was being beaten round the head with it.

This is a story I've seen before and, to be honest, I'm a little bored of bookish heroines who aren't like other girls™ and don't want to get married. I was very intrigued by the idea of Beatrice having to choose between what she's always wanted and a marriage to a man she could genuinely have a happy and comfortable life with, but I'm afraid I didn't care enough to see this story through to the end.

First off, I loved this book. And I shall list the reasons why! 

1.Witches. 
2. A world set in a sort of Regency England. 
3. Secrets. ALL the secrets. 
4. Forbidden magic. 
5. Romance. Of the steamy kind! 

Need I say more? No? That's okay, I'm still going to. 

The entire premise of this book is one that has really stuck with me, even after reading it. It's taken me a little bit to be able to put all my thoughts and feelings about it into words. The themes woven into The Midnight Bargain, particularly with men having the ability to take away a woman's power, literally in this book... whew, it's an intense read. 

It's hard to say much more without spoiling a lot of the main points of the book, but if you're a fan of impossible choices, forbidden magic, and deadly secrets, I highly recommend picking this one up!

I received a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review
This was actually quite a delicious book. a young woman trying not to be forced into marriage and instead become a great sorceress is such a great concept for a novel!

A very interesting book with a strong feminist undertone and a very original world building and magical system.
It's an engrossing and highly entertaining read that kept me hooked.
Excellent storytelling and character development, a tightly knitted plot that always kept my attention alive.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Combining magic, romance, intercultural politics and the struggle against patriarchy, The Midnight Bargain is a delight from start to finish


Beatrice Clayborn is a woman with plans. As a woman from a high-class family in the highly patriarchal society of Chasland, she is expected to spend her first "Bargaining Season" attending dances, handing out her card to eligible suitors, entertaining callers and finally settling down with a man who is comfortable trading her talent for sorcery for the financial resources to get her family out of crippling debt. It's a deal that will secure her family's future and ensure that her sister can benefit from the finishing school education she couldn't afford, but there's one problem: for Beatrice to marry, as a woman with magical abilities, means that she will have to give up her magical powers, putting on a warding collar throughout what her husband deems to be her childbearing years in order to prevent her from being attacked by spirits during a pregnancy. Beatrice has far more attachment to her magic than to a future as someone's wife, and if she can only find the text she needs for a specific ritual, she can call a greater spirit into herself and become both powerful and unmarriagable: a combination that will offer her freedom to help her family in her own way.

What Beatrice hasn't reckoned on is the arrival of the Lavan siblings, both attending this Bargaining Season from the more powerful neighbouring country of Llanadras. Ysbeta Lavan quickly establishes herself as a rival to Beatrice's scholarly knowledge, before establishing that she has the same goal: escaping a politically convenient marriage to one of Chasland's most eligible elites. Her brother, Ianthe, establishes himself as an obstacle of a rather different kind, because he's smoking hot and totally amazing and it's not long before the two are rather hopelessly in love. Ianthe offers the chance at marriage in relatively more egalitarian Llanadras, where Beatrice could still practice minor magic but not call a greater spirit and train as a sorceress, and the Lavan's wealth means it would support her family as well. Of course, if that were actually a solution to Beatrice's real problems, we wouldn't be reading a book about it, and thus begins a romance that's as much about the growth of the individuals involved as it is about their growing together.

The Midnight Bargain benefits from an absolutely delightful setting, with a plot that breezes by in a whirl of regency intrigue. Over the course of her season, Beatrice encounters dances, card parties, picnics, chance meetings at bookshops, symbolic greenhouse conversations with prospective parents-in-law, heated debates in carriages and over breakfast, and even a fabulous boat party, with each set piece given exactly the time it needs to unfold and advance the plot while leaving plenty of time to enjoy each one. Of course, the patriarchal nature of Chaslander society is always on display, and every charming, witty conversation or clever use of feminine wiles comes with an edge: this is a society which burns alive women who give birth without shutting themselves off from magic, after all. Beatrice never loses sight of the game she's playing, in which she's expected to balance the number of men she encourages to chase her until she can strike the best possible deal and get smoothly handed off from father to husband. It's a tricky balance even before factoring in the danger of her attempts to escape the system entirely, or the occasional murder attempt by a jilted suitor, or the fulfilment of bargains made to Nadi, the luck spirit Beatrice invokes to help her in her quest. Beatrice's multiple competing dilemmas and the constant novelty of the scene changes kept me thoroughly hooked on The Midnight Bargain, without ever being overwhelmed or weighed down with the amount of drama it threw at me.

It helps, of course, that Beatrice is a very easy protagonist to love. This being, at heart, an m/f romance, the relationship between Beatrice and Ianthe just about edges out everyone else in terms of screentime, and that's no bad thing: Ianthe is perhaps a little too willing to let go of his ingrained cultural biases about the role of women, but I can't dispute that not being an ass about Beatrice's ambition makes him far more enjoyable to spend time with. Much of the worldbuilding of The Midnight Bargain is built on its portrayal of the different cultures of Chasland and Llanandras, with the cultural power very much held by the latter.  Unlike Chasland, where women are expected to have as many children as possible and sorceresses therefore need to wear warding collars from marriage to menopause, Llanandras allows women to plan their families and only ward themselves while pregnant or trying for children. The assumption of cultural superiority underpins the Lavan siblings' interactions with Beatrice, particularly when her feelings for Ianthe begin to conflict with her desire to pursue magic. For Ianthe, learning to respect Beatrice means interrogating his biases about the role of women in his own culture, and to take her ambition and talent seriously, and he rises to the challenge brilliantly, bringing several more juicy plot twists along the way.

Ianthe isn't the only important relationship in Beatrice's life: her growing friendship and trust with Ysbeta is just as important, as the two learn to work towards their mutual goal. Ysbeta's relationship with Beatrice is also shaped by her assumptions about the superiority of her own culture, and also by her judgement of Beatrice's sexuality: it's not outright stated in the text, but it's pretty explicit that Ysbeta is aromantic, and she finds it impossible to believe that Beatrice wouldn't be better off abandoning her magical dreams even as she pursues the same goal. Ysbeta is a wonderful character and her chemistry with Beatrice is just as good as Ianthe's (until the reveal of her sexuality, I was open to this becoming a poly romance, but it was not to be). The only point at which her characterisation falls down is a spoilery late book scene, which hinges on withholding key information and a point of distrust between Ysbeta and her brother at a point when it felt like their character arcs should have moved past that point. It's a key moment to setup the book's climax, but it was the only point where I felt that The Midnight Bargain's character arcs were at odds with what its intricate plot was demanding of them at that moment.

I could go on for days about the other wonderful characters and moments in this book: aside from the main trio, there's also Beatrice's novel-reading, political-game-playing sister Harriet, her quietly supportive mother, the cast of other ingenues and men in the bargaining season who are pursuing various agendas of their own, and of course her difficult, patriarchal father, who fails to take seriously any of Beatrice's attempts to bring him into her plans for her own future. There's also Beatrice's relationship with Nadi, the luck spirit she initially conjures to help her through a dangerously high-stakes card party, and then continues to work with throughout the book, through whom the majority of the book's magical component is conducted. Nadi and Beatrice's relationship both deepens and challenges our understanding of the spirit bonds which form the heart of The Midnight Bargain's magic system, offering a counterpoint to the universally held assumption that sorcerers must control and dominate the spirits they work with for the bond to be effective. It is also, like everything else in this treasure of a book, an absolute delight.

And that's my main takeaway from The Midnight Bargain: this is just a delightful book, from start to finish, in a way that balances intrigue, incisiveness, drama and flights of fancy to create a reading experience that was pure enjoyment for me. If you're looking for any of the above, in a magical period romance setting, you really can't go wrong with this book.

The Math

Baseline Score: 8/10

Bonuses:  +1 Everything about this book just made my heart very happy. If that's not worth a point, nothing is.

Penalties: Nothing, it is too fun to take things away

Nerd Coefficient: 9/10


POSTED BY: Adri, Nerds of a Feather co-editor, is a semi-aquatic migratory mammal most often found in the UK. She has many opinions about SFF books, and is also partial to gaming, baking, interacting with dogs, and Asian-style karaoke. Find her on Twitter at @adrijjy

Reference: Polk, C.L. The Midnight Bargain [Erewhon, 2020]