Great sequel, delightful magic and well-written characters. A charming read!

The characters in this second book are as lovely and well-cut as ever — I especially loved the introduction of Irene Prescott and, without giving away spoilers, a certain someone from Elsie's past. Nobody felt one dimensional or without motivations of their own, and our returning antagonist is fleshed out some more for us which helps to shed light on her rationale as events unfold. Romance isn't heavy, but there is still room for Bacchus and Elsie's relationship to flourish, which I appreciated as somebody who does not read primarily for the romance. I enjoyed how Cuthbert Ogden was given a chance to shine and that we dipped into his use of rational aspecting, while additionally developing the father and daughter bond between him and Elsie. Alfred, Elsie's former love interest, equally resurfaces in a satisfactory manner, offering some momentary tension and closure for our protagonist. That being said, I would have liked Mr. Parker to return, as I felt there was more to that character in the first book even if it turned out he wasn't working for the so-called 'Cowls'.

'Spellmaker' retains the first book's well-defined magic system and historical worldbuilding. We get to explore spellmaking as well as spellbreaking further and the rigidity between the classes remains ever-present in social situations. There is enough of both to set the tone and environment surrounding each chapter but Holmberg is never too hefty on the details which leaves readers with enough space to imagine but never too little to feel less than engrossed. For example, the London Physical Atheneum feels powerful and purposeful but we are not burdened with vast descriptions of its greatness or imposing architecture. For this reason, this text makes for a good casual read, but the author's world still feels alive and interesting.

Charlie Holmberg also does a good job of refreshing reader's memories, signposting past events and briefly re-explaining them to returning readers in a way that does not seem patronising or excessive. This is handy for those who haven't read 'Spellbreaker' and 'Spellmaker' back to back or who take long breaks between reading. I never once felt out of the loop on revelations regarding the 'Cowls' or Master Lily Merton, or even on how runes functioned within the world or operated through diverse means courtesy of Miss Prescott's lectures, for instance.

I felt that loose ends were tied up sufficiently too. The mysterious American man Master Raven does indeed emerge from the background and utilise an active role later in the plot, the many stolen opuses are referenced in a way that acknowledges their open whereabouts by the end, our lovely couple do in fact manage to get away to that frequently-referenced Barbados which was a nice touch, and the London Physical Atheneum is perhaps not as corrupt by the end thanks to its new head of assembly. For a series that revolves around a bit of mystery this is always a bonus.

A tiny niggle, however: some descriptions are overused, like lips 'quirking', Emmaline's apparent 'squeaking' and the strange fascination with the phrase 'just so'. But given how wonderfully the author writes, I think this is forgivable and as a minor quibble should hopefully pass under most radars. On this note, I do think Holmberg has also done well to avoid anachronistic phrases in this book, using language that really fits the historical timeline, from simple things like citing 'corsets', 'curricles', 'chemise' and 'reticule' (a nice touch for Victorianists for me!)

One other thing. I know this was intended to be a duology, but there is something that could make for a good point of discussion in a third book, if there was one: why was Elsie Camden able to unweave spells in a way that her mentor, Irene Prescott, was not? She was able to dismantle both Abel Nash and Master Phillips' lightning spells instantly in high pressure situations. The character Irene remarks on this as well. It almost seems too convenient, if a little suggestive of something special about Elsie. Was this simply something she could do that not many other spellbreakers could? Why could Irene Prescott not do this as well? Is this in fact a loose end? Intrigue abounds.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me an advance reader copy of “Spellmaker” by Charlie N. Holmberg. I had not realized this was the second book when I requested it so I read the first one before reading this. WOW. SO GOOD. I COULD NOT PUT THIS DOWN. I will say that I started the first one on audio book and hated the people who read it, I’m hoping when they do the audio book for Spellmaker they do not use the same people. This book is so good and I can not recommend it enough! I hate that standalones or dulogies are always the books that I want more information about. Other than wanting more of the story, I loved every bit of not just this book, but the series

This story is one I could not stop reading. Every time I had to put it down, my mind wandered back to it, desperate to find out what was going to happen next. There were so many twists and turns throughout the duet, and the unique magic in this world was hard to resist.

I loved how Elsie grew throughout the story. Never weak to begin with, she grew stronger and stronger with every page. I loved seeing her magical abilities grow, and the way she broke spells in the middle of a fight was quite simply amazing. I loved Baccus’s determination to prove to Elsie his feelings were real and he wasn’t under a spell. I loved how the secrets were revealed and the small cast of characters came together to fight against the evil that was trying to take over.

I loved every last moment of this story, and I’m not ready to leave this world behind. I hope someday there will be more stories in this world, because it’s so incredibly intriguing and I need to know what happens to these characters’ lives.

I absolutely love this book! Holmberg is an amazing storywriter and I enjoyed returning to this world of magic and seeing Elsie step out of the shadows to solve this mystery.

Let's face it, I'm just a sucker for beautiful covers so authors & publishers, it's totally worthwhile to invest in eye catching covers. I've also loved the first book of this duology, Spellbreaker, so I really needed the closure both in the mystery and the romance. Spellmaker did not disappoint!

Spellmaker opens a few weeks after the end of Spellbreaker and Elsie is back at home with Ogden, working and her usual routine except of course, no secret messages/missions this time around. However, the villain who murdered master spellmakers & stole their opuses are still on the loose and isn't willing to let Elsie go. First, Elsie is arrested by the authorities and only by Master Bacchus Kelsey's wily petition that she's freed. Then as attacks on master spellmakers are still happening, Elsie needs to see this stopped and to close this particular past of hers.

This alternate universe of Victorian England truly fascinates me and I'm so particularly drawn by Kelsey's background (a bastard son of an English lord with a Barbados maid). While the romance and the mystery take the main stage, I appreciated the author's seemingly effortless insertion of Kelsey's struggle as a person who is not completely accepted into English society.

it is easy to miss the pain of being different when you fit in so well with the standard

I'm very happy with the way this book ends; the mystery was well done and the romance was well and truly in bloom. While readers mostly follow Elsie's perspective, there were times where we are given Ogden's & Kelsey's but these happened without any warning of any sort so there were a number of times that I just had to re-read again because I just didn't expect that and got rather confused. Aside from these unexpected jumps in povs, the story was well-paced and everything tied up very nicely at the end. You do need to read Spellbreaker first though before you tackle this one but I'd recommend this duology as a totally fun read.

Thank you 47North via Netgalley for the e-copy of this book in exchange of my honest thoughts

Spellbreaker is a satisfying conclusion to the duology. Elise comes into her character as a Spellbreaker, and her romance with Bacchus is so sweet and endearing. The creativeness of the magic system was well thought out and defined between the two books. I can see there is more story to tell and hopefully will see more from this world in the future.

Spellmaker is the second and last book in this duology, following the events that happened in the first book directly. Romance blooms even more and the mystery unfolds itself in something bigger and bigger.

I really liked the book and its elements as a whole. It is a nice conclusion to a duology that has an interesting magic system and setting. However, I felt like the main conflict didn’t have the high stakes it had in the first book and I think the reason for that is that we never truly get to know the motive behind it all. Sure, there are speculations, but they are just that, and so it cant be taken as a fact. Due that, it is harder to care, since as a reader, you don’t know what will happen when everything goes wrong, and that is what at least keeps me invested in the main conflict.

Besides that, the characters act believable and I never felt like they were complete different people in comparison with the first book. The new characters also make great entrees and are there with a reason, which makes it easy to care for them. The romance is well done, so if you like slow burn and opposite attract each other it is definitely a book to consider picking up. Events that follow each other up sometimes felt repeated, while others were cleverly done, making it interesting to keep guessing along with the characters what the hell will happen next. Plot twists were also well done, especially the ones that start a conflict, it really shows the character’s emotions and make you as a reader care even more about them.

All by all, it was a solid conclusion to a duology that delivers it all in terms of genres – history, fantasy, romance and mystery-, one that give you characters you root for, a romance that isn’t too much on the front line and a conclusion that raises a somewhat philosophical question.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of "Spellmaker" by Charlie Holmberg. I got the first book in this duology, "Spellbreaker," for free from Kindle, so I hopped on getting a chance to read the second too. I actually think I liked this second book better than the first, because the romance got way amped up and that's what I'm here for. I love the forced/fake marriage trope and got really excited to see that included in this one. Bacchus and Elsie are just the sweetest couple and I really loved all their moments together. Also, I laughed out loud when Elsie realized if she married Bacchus her name would be Elsie Kelsey. I asked Holmberg on Instagram and she said that was not on purpose, but by the time she figured it out she loved the names too much to change it. I love that she just went with it and inserted the joke into the book—I found it delightful.
The story itself was really fun with plenty of twists and turns. I love the historical 19th-century London feel mixed with magic and all the little details that built up this world. This actually might be my favorite of Holmberg's books after The Fifth Doll. So, if you're into historical fantasy, definitely give this a try!

This is the second part of the Spellbreaker Duology, and I enjoyed this just as much as the first book. Elsie is thrown in jail for her illegal spellbreaking, with Bacchus negotiating her release, under the assumption that Elsie only just discovered her magic, and will begin training to become registered, and also that she and Bacchus are to be married.

As well as her work, training in magic she already knows how to do, and planning a wedding, Elsie and her friends join forces to hunt down the person responsible for the multiple murders across the country. This is personal for them, and it takes a lot of thought and investigation, with twists and dead ends, before they begin to feel they're on the right track. And even then, nothing ever goes to plan.

I read the two books in this duology back to back. I was totally invested in this story, the characters, and liked how it all tied up in the end. These were my first books from this author, and I enjoyed the writing style. I will definitely be reading more!

Thank you for the advanced copy.

I enjoyed this book and the first book of the duology, but I forgot a lot of who characters were in book one and that left me adrift when I started reading this one. I had to google who a few characters were and their significance.

Overall however a victorian setting and a female protagonist and very good prose made for a satisfying read. It came first circle and though I enjoyed book one more than this one, that is entirely a matter of preference and not a testament to the author's talents or the story she tells. I would recommend this duology to friends.

This book worked for me overall. I loved the plot of this and the romance that was involved. I actually thought Holmberg could make this an out-and-out romance for me and it would work. I also felt like I understood the characters a lot better in this novel and their motivations. I enjoyed it even more than the first one. I also liked that it was just a two-part novel. It was perfectly encapsulated into one story in two parts.

However, there are some caveats. I wish there was more questions asked of those in power. Again, that was how the first book started. Elsie still has questions, but they again go unanswered because Bacchus is "one of the good ones." It also seems to only punish single bad actors while ignoring the overall societal issues with people in power. I was interested in those questions and they seemed to be ignored. I also wasn't in love with the way Bacchus's nationality was dealt with. I hated every time they assumed he was from Turkey and Elsie's obsession with his accent. I understand that it is inherent to him "code switching," but it felt like it was mentioned at every turn.

*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

I read the first book of this duology, Spellbreaker, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm a sucker for fantasy books with female protagonists, plus I found the Victorian setting charming. I was eagerly awaiting the second half of the set, but found myself disappointed as I read it--it felt somewhat convoluted and longer than necessary.

The book picks up right after the end of Spellbreaker, with not much refresher on the plot. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I'm wondering if the duology was originally one long book that got split into two. I was caught off guard by the reference to Alfred, a minor character from Spellbreaker, without any reminder of who he was (I eventually figured it out, but it was a bit jarring). This happened a few times, where there were references to previous events without much context. Perhaps I just have a bad memory.

A lot of the plot points seemed somewhat nonsensical. It's never really clear why Master Merton depended so much on Elsie alone. Elsie is a talented spellbreaker, but surely a criminal mastermind wouldn't hinge their entire scheme on one person. One of Bacchus' storylines was also concluded rather unsatisfactorily--they determine who the bad guy is, and then it all just kind of fades away. Moreover, there were two new characters in the novel that felt way too convenient--they almost feel like deus ex machinas, the way they come out of nowhere and automatically join the gang. It all felt rather forced.

It also seemed like Spellmaker was struggling to figure out what type of book it wanted to be. At times it felt like I was reading a Bridgerton romance with some fantasy elements thrown in. Other times it seemed more like a detective novel. I liked the characters and magic system that Holmberg introduced in the first book, and I was disappointed that everything seemed to fall apart in the second.

Spellmaker continues in the mystery from Spellbreaker, we now know who is behind the murders but they are missing. Our two main characters have to figure out how to get to this person all while navigating their feelings for one another. The writing was detailed and the magic system was explained a bit more.

The romance was very well written and I loved the mutual pining for each other. There was a lot of tension between Elsie and Bacchus since they both thought their feelings were one-sided, and it was gratifying once they finally communicated and revealed their feelings.

I think there should have been more focus on the side characters, especially Reggie. It was hard to know his motivations, and for most of the book, I thought he was playing Elsie and working for the villain.

The ending felt somewhat anti-climactic after waiting almost the entire book for the main villain to show up, but it did have a good conclusion and I like where all the characters ended up.

After the events of Spellbreaker, Elsie is exposed by her adversary and arrested as an unregistered spellbreaker. Bacchus manages to get her released from prison with a story of their engagement and that Elsie had only recently discovered her talent. Elsie and Bacchus must secretly hunt down the murderer while keeping up appearances of both their engagement and Elsie’s novice status as a spellbreaker. Acquiring new allies they are getting closer and closer to finding the murderer and bringing them to justice.

Listed as a duology this book brings an end to Elsie’s adventure while, truthfully, leaving a bit of a door open for yet another entry. We learn some things about Elsie’s past while others are tantalizingly touched upon but not resolved. Even though we want to know how all of the characters fare when they do not have a murderer breathing down their necks this duology is an entertaining and satisfying entry in the fantasy field. Highly recommended

Title: Spellmaker
Author: Charlie N. Holmberg
Rating: 4 stars

Holmberg has such a way with words. I love the vocabulary she uses in her stories. I had to look up a few words. This book starts immediately after the events of Spellbreaker. Elsie and Bacchus are brought together by the events that seem to want to tear them apart. Elsie finds herself in a situation that may keep her from everyone and everything she loves, and Bacchus goes above and beyond to keep her safe. Not gonna lie and tell you that i didn’t 100% fall in love with him. (I Stan Bacchus) They make such a great couple, and i really wish my babies would get a break. I am happy this was a duopoly because there was no way i would be able to handle another book full of villainous shenanigans.

Over all, i loved their relationship with each other and the relationship they have with those around them; they find love, affection, friends and family. They find happiness in each other. And i think that is what i like most about Holmberg’s writing. She always shows that love is real, it doesn’t backstab you, and you can always find it.

Think: Bridgestone with Magic and No Sex. Slow burn love. (Victoria Era England)

#netgalley #earc #ElsieKelsey #Spellbreaker #SpellMaker #CNHOLMBERG

I haven’t had very good luck with duologies. I typically find them to feel unfinished. There is something about the trilogy of three books that rounds out a story in a way that two books just doesn’t. So often I tend to pass on them, but then I was pitched Charlie N Holmberg’s Spellbreaker duology.

The covers for Holmberg’s books are whimsical and really stand out to me. They are easy to identify and the suggest something historical mixed with fantasy and I couldn’t pass on the first book. It just sounded so good and I did enjoy it so reading the second book in the duology was a no brainer for me! These books are quick reads and I really enjoyed diving back into Holmberg’s rich world!

I still feel the a trilogy would have worked better in this particular series but as duologies go, this one wasn’t bad at all. I enjoyed many aspects of this one and am excited to read more books by Holmberg!

Summary
Dead wizards, stolen enchantments, and broken promises force a young spellbreaker out of the shadows in the next thrilling installment of the Spellbreaker series by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician.

England, 1895. An unsolved series of magician murders and opus thefts isn’t a puzzle to Elsie Camden. But to reveal a master spellcaster as the culprit means incriminating herself as an unregistered spellbreaker. When Elsie refuses to join forces with the charming assassin, her secret is exposed, she’s thrown in jail, and the murderer disappears. But Elsie’s hope hasn’t vanished.

Through a twist of luck, the elite magic user Bacchus Kelsey helps Elsie join the lawful, but with a caveat: they must marry to prove their cover story. Forced beneath a magical tutor while her bond with Bacchus grows, Elsie seeks to thwart the plans of England’s most devious criminal—if she can find them.

With hundreds of stolen spells at their disposal, the villain has a plan—and it involves seducing Elsie to the dark side. But even now that her secret is out, Elsie must be careful how she uses the new abilities she’s discovering, or she may play right into the criminal’s hands.(summary from Goodreads)

Review
As expected, this book answered a lot of questions from the previous book and wrapped up the larger narrative so you will want to go back and read the first book before diving into this one. In the first book, the focus was on the world building and the main story of the spellbreakers, but in this book the focus was more on the romance part between Elsie and Bacchus, which for me was fine but other readers might feel a little let down. The first book in the series already does a lot to establish the main characters and villains as well as various character motives which means by the time we get to the second book it’s just basically wrapping up book one by extension.

This is what bothers me about duologies. It’s like the author couldn’t fully wrap up everything on one book but doesn’t have enough story to fill a trilogy, so they split the different and go with a duology which for me almost always feels unfinished or unnecessary. I have read some pretty disappointing duologies but I wouldn’t say this one was disappointing per say, but I still felt like it could have been stronger or simply wrapped up in one longer book. I would personally liked to have seen more development within the world and story but the romance question was more the focus here, which again was fine but I think it could have been better of the two books were more balanced.

But at the end of the day, I still enjoyed this one and read it quickly. It was a wonderful escape and I love fantasy so this one was a great break from some of my heavier reading I’ve been reading lately. If you liked the first book in the duology, then there is no question that you will enjoy this one probably just as much. I know that I enjoyed it even if at times I wished for more, overall the book accomplished what it set out to do—entertain me! Holmberg crafts a stunning world rich with fantasy elements and fun characters. On that front I felt fully satisfied and I am really looking forward to reading her both books, especially the Paper Magician series! If you love fantasy with some romance and a mystery, this one might just enchant you too!

Book Info and Rating
Format301 pages

Kindle Edition

PublishedMarch 9, 2021 by 47North

Free review copy provided by publisher, 47North, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.

Rating: 4 stars

Genre: fantasy

Well, that's one way to do it.

While this wasn't a terrible sequel to the first half of this duo, Spellbreaker, much of this novel featured a rather patchy, haphazard garble of a narrative that really only served to highlight the flaws of the first novel rather than answering all those unanswered questions and filling in all those holes that you assume will be filled.

Where Spellbreaker felt like a charming, introductory novel — establishing Elsie Camden as the title character within an alternate Victorian era world with magic as natural an ability for many to have as any career-level skill we find in our existing world — Spellmaker feels instead like a book having an identity crisis, unsure of itself to the point of changing into other types of novels mid-chapter.

Holmberg's delightful writing is still present, but even that suffers somewhat, because I found — within the minefield of the plot — a growing desire for more dialogue and a lot of Holmberg-styled telling rather than showing — making Spellmaker feel both crammed full of plot and sorely lacking in it somehow at the same time. For all that she had managed to fold within these pages, Holmberg's second novel in this duo could've been trimmed down by quite a bit and served its purpose better as one, ever so slightly larger, stand-alone novel. There were a lot of skimmable pages.

The main oddity that stood out like a sore thumb gets tacked directly onto one of the unanswered questions I had leftover from the first novel and assumed would be answered here in this sequel. Elsie Camden, secret spellbreaker (one with the natural ability to undo others' set spells), has never registered herself as such and thus never undergone her proper training. We know from the first novel that she is in danger of being arrested and imprisoned if she is found out to be an unregistered spellbreaker — which is the defining part of her character and part of key moments that set up the events for her life.

So, without giving any spoilers here — at the very beginning of this sequel, the guilty party Elsie is chasing after following the events in the first novel, turns Elsie over to the authorities and she is arrested and taken to jail. Bacchus Kelsey, Elsie's love interest from the first novel who (of course) discovered her secret as a spellbreaker), goes to the authorities and sets about to establish a false history for her about having only recently discovered her spellbreaking magic. He adds that he can vouch for her, because he says that he was there when she realized what it was, and ... he's also her fiancé ... and they are set to be married in a month — so, please release her soon.

Thus Holmberg leaves large chunks of the first half of the book to planning a rushed wedding. Not to mention how that leaves Elsie, with understandable abandonment issues, not trusting that Bacchus really cares for her. So she's constantly second-guessing everything he says or does or might say or might do ... what a burden she is or will be ... and while this is all understandable — I just have no idea why we are even doing this right now when the point of this segment in her life should be to track down the person who is trying to control her and her loved ones, who is murdering other master aspectors (read: magicians), and who already magically enslaved at least one person in Elsie's life.

Furthermore, if we can circle back for a second (and we can, because I'm typing this) I have no idea why it's such a big no-no for her to have been unregistered. Why does that mean she's going to be imprisoned and possibly hang for her so-called crimes? I had hoped upon her arrest that this portion of the governing principles of the law(s) would be explained ... nope. So that helps me understand even less of precisely why Bacchus felt the need to offer such a stupid lie of creating a wedding, a month away no less, as his only means of freeing Elsie. He seems so much more capable than that, up to that point anyway, and then he just walked smack into a pole that said matrimony, this way on it? It made no sense, and then this took up a large portion of the novel for seemingly no reason. The delicate romance that existed between them would've stood just fine without this being added.

The reveal that is leftover from the first book regarding a secret with Bacchus is finally discovered and I am thankful they finally cottoned on. But even this was played out the same way as the wedding planning — the whole novel was a back and forth of tedium and action in a strangely unbalanced way — the pacing was off the entire time. Too much is spent on trivial details and too little is spent on tracking down the guilty parties. And even the moments they do spend on actually searching, somehow they seem to be relying heavily on Elsie, who has very little experience in such matters, and it makes this whole hunt feel a bit Scooby-Doo-ish. Zoinks.

The rest of the book was standard Holmberg fare — sweet and charming, but this one left a little too much to be desired from the plot. Too much sweetness, too much bow-tying for Elsie in this book and it moves into saccharine territory ... the ending of the mystery-portion especially was hard to swallow.

I was given a free copy of Spellmaker by Charlie M. Holmberg (author), 47 North (publisher) and Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. Spellmaker is the second in the Spellbreaker Duology. Spellbreaker is the first in the duology and was published 2020. I did not read Spellbreaker.

This review will not contain any spoilers,

I would categorize Spellmaker as gaslamp fantasy with romance.

The story takes place in London and other parts of England during the late 1890s.

The magic system featured is a bit complex, but Ms. Holmberg did a commendable job of describing it, and then showing how it operates. Magic is important in the story, but it does not dominate when it is feature in the novel. It is more like another character in this story.

Spellmaker has two main characters: a young woman who works for a stone mason with magic abilities and a man who is from Barbados and is a more experienced. The main characters are fully developed, three-dimensional, have depth, and are both engaging. I was fully invested in these two characters and their journeys in this story. Ms. Holmberg presented these two characters in such a way that I believed I was feeling what they were feeling, and the story became more of an emotional read.

As engaging and interesting as I found the two main characters, I did not feel the same for the other characters featured in this story. I would have preferred if Ms. Holmberg featured these characters a bit more in the story because I think their character arcs would have added more layers to the story, particularly the character who trained the young woman in ways of magic and the stone mason.

The flow of the story and progression of the plot is at a steady pace with no lagging or slowing down. Even though I did not read Spellbreaker, I did not feel lost or confused while reading Spellmaker. The way Ms. Holmberg referred to events that occurred in Spellbreaker added more emotional layers to the two main characters and more interesting.

Spellmaker is a quick read but it is a roller-coaster of a ride with incredible highs and low lows.

I think I read somewhere that Ms. Holmberg may not be finished writing in this series. I sure hope she continues writing in this series because I want to follow these characters on their journey.

I rate Spellmaker 4.5 stars.

I would like to thank Ms. Holmberg, 47 North, and Netgalley for the free ARC.

Spellmaker captivated my attention and kept all of the magical charm of Spellbreaker. Watching Elsie develop and grow in both her personal life and her spell breaking made you want to know her. This book answered most of the open questions I had after the first book, but left some pieces missing especially about the “rules” of magic and Elsie’s enhanced skills that I’d happily read a third book to learn about.

After being positively charmed by the first installment of this story set in magical Victorian England, I was absolutely delighted to receive the chance to read the continuation so soon. The novel is nicely paced, captivates your attention from the first page and delivers a satisfying ending, so definitely don't hesitate to invest your free time into this duology, especially, if you're, like me, are a fan of the genre.