Unfortunately I decided to dnf this book at the 20% mark. This book didn't do anything inherently wrong, I just personally did not mesh with the writing style. I thought this book had a lot of important themes around social status and gender and had amazing casually queer representation. But despite the there being so much action in this first section, I felt like the pacing was odd and I didn't have time to get to know the characters. I'm more of a character driven reader and this was very plot heavy from what I read. I was highly anticipating this book and am really sad that it just didn't work out for me. But I truly believe this is a more a fault of my personal preferences, than the book itself.

The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry by C.M. Waggoner is packed with adventure, magic, intrigue, and humor. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The chapter titles are exceptionally clever.

Dellaria Wells is a gutter witch doing anything she can to pay her rent and keep her mother out of trouble. She can put on fine airs and wheedle out of (or in to) most anything and manages to talk herself out of jail and in to an actual bodyguarding position at the same time by using her magic to set her own skirts on fire. Unfortunately, the job is not the cushy one she’d expected, and there’s a brutal murder. Chaos ensues, as does the lure of even more money and a chance at financial freedom for both Delly and her mother. There’s also the risk of death and imprisonment, along with heartache and prison.

I wasn’t quite sure what to think of this book to begin with. It has a very unusual point-of-view. Dellaria Wells is what I’d call an uneducated poor girl who has studied very hard to appear educated and rich. This gives her a very prim-sounding dialogue… until she becomes upset. Then the colorful language pops up. In both cases, she throws in a few imaginary words that sound impressive but are not in any dictionary. When called out on this fact, she ignores the jabs. It’s all very hilarious.

Another benefit of this narrator is that she’s highly unreliable. She’s a liar, a drunk, a lock-pick, and certain to set herself or others on fire if startled. She’s always one step away from ending up homeless or in jail. Yet her main motivation throughout the book is to rescue her mother from drug addition and homelessness, with the goal of one day having enough money to send her off to a country home to live out her days in comfort. She’s a compelling character with depth, and watching her grow throughout the book is heartwarming.

The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry by CM Waggoner is a magical Victorian fantasy.

Delly is having a hard time, she in debt struggling with drinking too much and a mom that is involved with drugs. When she sees an add to protect a rich lady about to be married she jumps on the opportunity. She joins other women that are hired as well and together they fight off mythical creatures. The strong female characters in the story make this one to love. The authors use of her own made up words are a little difficult to get used to at first but then it seems to flow. This is a great book to escape into. It just released this week and is available now 😊.

Thank you @berkleypub for the eArc in exchange for an honest review.


#berkleywritesstrongwomen

The Ruthless Lady's Guide to Wizardry is filled with spirited characters, an exciting plot all set in a charmng historical fantasy setting and is such a fun ride!!!

We follow Delly, who is quite the force of nature, as she decides to get a job guarding a high class lady in order to earn some money to help her mother, who is a drug addict and in quite dire straits. Delly is a great character, she has so much fiery spirit and is proud of her heritage of being from essentially the slums, but she is also after a 'prospect' and money. She sets her sights on Winn, a fellow bodyguard who is such a ray of sunshine. she is half-troll and from an important family so Delly is very interested in persuing a relationship. Watching Delly and Winn's affection for each grow throughout the book was so adorable to watch, I love historical romance type relationships, it just adds a whole extra layer of yearning hehe. I also liked how supportive Winn was of Delly, even when she made some questionable life choices haha. I also really loved how sex positive the book was, both in terms of sexuality and have sex with multiple partners not being stigmatised.

The plot of the book becomes so much more than just the guarding of Lady Weixin on her way to her wedding (they are trying to protect her from assasination), it eventually progresses into a sort of drug ring conspiracy and I loved how this tied into Delly's struggles for her mother and caring for someone with addiction. I also loved the group dynamic between the guards, both Delly and Winn and some of the other characters are all such icons.

The tone of the novel is also so light and humourous, I was often smiling while reading, as well as laughing out loud sometimes. The writing is over the top sometimes but I feel like this just suits the tone of the novel, feeling very period drama and austen-esque. It also kind of reminded me of Bridgerton, which I have recently become obssesed with.

Altogether a really strong story, with characters who are very loveable, an adorable sapphic relationship and cracking dialogue.

3.5

The Ruthless Lady's Guide to Wizardry is extremely successful at what it sets out to do (be a historical inspired fantasy comedy about a lowborn street witch trying to do the right thing while maybe falling in love with a classy lady half troll) so I definitely enjoyed the overall ride, but dear god was it a trudge to get into. I understand that the writing is stylized on purpose for both atmosphere and comedic effect (and once I got used to it, it was actually really funny! much laughter!!) but it took me like 35% to really feel like I had my footing.

Overall, a fun story with a very cute romance but a writing style that makes it more slow going than it needs to be.

3.75 Stars. This was oddball book but I enjoyed it anyway. I don’t get to read a lot of historic fantasy so I’m always excited to read them when I can. This has a Victorian feel but with witches, trolls, necromancers, and an animal shifter. I have read other fantasy books that take place in a similar time period and place, but I really liked the different mix of beings and magic. It’s been a while since I have read a book that even had a troll in it, and then you put them in this kind of setting and the book felt more unique because of it.

Like most fantasy books, especially ones that have a different way for characters to speak and even new names for things, it took me a little while to get into the story. I actually felt comfortable faster than I expected because most of the new names and phrases where very easy to understand. While it was annoying that the troll character said What? at the end of every other sentence -even when a question was not asked- I thought all the other differences where well done. I also thought the world building was intergraded pretty seamlessly. I don’t recall thinking ‘oh here comes another info dump’, instead I found myself pretty immersed and felt like I learned everything that I needed know.

One of the main reasons I wanted to read this, besides it being historical fantasy, was that this promised a sapphic romance. The main character, Dell, is a petty criminal, bisexual, fire-witch. When Dell takes a job to be a magical bodyguard, she meets a fellow bodyguard, our troll, Winn. Dell sees Winn as a mark, someone wealthy to buy her gifts or maybe even the long game to wife up with her, but things start to change when real feeling get involved. I was actually surprised how much time was spent on the romance. It was more than I expected and I was happy with it. There were no explicit sex scenes. It was a little annoying that Dell slept with a couple guys but never with her potential love interest, but that’s because Winn wanted to treat her like a lady. There were a couple passionate scenes but nothing really explicit.

It was interesting that this book had a bit of a darker feel, one of the storylines is about the drug trade, there is some death, attempted revenge, and people that have it tough in life. But this book was also quirky and had humor that made you feel like this wasn’t dark fantasy at all. It was a really interesting and well done balance. I always talk about how I struggle with book humor, but here I found quite a few things funny and I didn’t even realize that they were jokes. It was subtle dark humor and it leads me to my favorite character, Mr. Buttons, a dead mouse that is being inhabited by something…. I’m being vague here not to spoil anything but it was so damn bazaar and unique that I completely loved the thing.

I would recommend this book to historic fantasy fans. There are not a ton of books in this category so it is always nice when a good new one comes out. This did have a few pacing issues. It’s funny, but after the first one third of the book, it almost felt like the book should be ending, but then it climbs up again for another adventure. So the pace was a bit up and down and I think I would have edited a few parts out. On the other hand, some of the slower parts where nice because it gave time for Winn and Dell to grow closer. Anyway, I think most sapphic historical fantasy fans will enjoy this even with the few bumps it has. I don’t know if there will be a sequel but I would absolutely read more about Winn and Dell. In the meantime, I will read Unnatural Magic that takes place in the same world but with different characters.

Unfortunately, I was unable to get past the writing style and the slang in the book, which made it impossible for me to read. I wasn't able to click with the character either, so I gave up reading it.

This was like nothing I’ve ever read before! Dellaria was definitely a different type of leading lady and I found her to be quite fun. It took me a while to get used to the language used in the book and I did have trouble connecting with the characters. Overall though I still enjoyed the storyline for this one!

*This review appears on Nerds and Beyond, link in the box*
What do you get when you combine a feisty, slightly drunk heroine with a murder mystery, throw her in a fantasy version of Victorian England, and add a romance with a beautiful witch with a few tricks up her sleeve? You get The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry, a hilarious and fun tale of hijinks and magic. If you’re looking for an unapologetically queer and feminist fantasy that will also make you laugh out loud, this one’s for you.

Based in the world created from author C.M. Waggoner’s first novel Unnatural Magic (not necessary to read to understand this standalone novel), the story follows Dellaria “Delly” Wells, a woman born on the wrong side of the tracks who scrapes by using her magic to con others. When she sees an advertisement for a bodyguard to protect a rich lady before her wedding, Delly smells an opportunity. All she’ll have to do is pretend to be something she’s not: a trained magician and higher class lady. But she gets more than she bargained for, both in the scale of the murder plot she’s supposed to stop and in her growing feelings for Winn, a fellow bodyguard who returns Delly’s affection who Delly initially plans to con into marrying her for money. In over her head, Delly is forced to take charge of the group of misfit bodyguards to track down the potential killer, all of whom have their own quirks. Will Delly and Winn find happiness together? Will this unlikely team track down the killer?

This novel is unique in many ways, but its strongest element is its characterization of Delly. A laugh riot and a bit of a mess, Delly is sure of who she is and cheerfully aware of her shortcomings. Her lines are snarky and quotable, like when she learns what’s required of her new position and notes that “she ought to do none of the things toward which she felt naturally inclined, and do all of the things she thought were a real pain in the tits.” It’s rare to see a protagonist this interesting and well characterized. She’s so fully formed that it feels like listening to an old friend tell you about her adventures. Delly is instantly memorable, and you want to follow her wherever she goes.

It’s Delly’s relationship with Winn that will likely win the hearts of readers, and it’s easy to see why. As Delly and Winn explore their growing feelings for each other, they fit together like puzzle pieces from their witty banter and instinctive understanding of each other. You root for this couple to succeed because they bring out the best in each other and are adorable together. The world of the novel does not deal with homophobia, with many queer characters that feel natural to the world of the story. This allows for the reader to relax, knowing that this will play out as a traditional romance and not be torn apart by prejudice. Delly is not shy about her bisexuality, having dalliances with both men and women in a breathtakingly casual way that feels authentic. It’s refreshing to read about a character so comfortable in her own skin and a world that allows her to be.

Of course, this novel has plenty to recommend it other than the strong lead character and romance. The writing itself is top notch, with so many witty asides that I found myself reading with a highlighter. Even the chapter titles are funny, with headers like “Wherein Dellaria Indulges Her Romantical Instincts, and Is Also Shot At” setting the irreverent tone for the pages ahead. The plot moves along at a breakneck pace and reads like a classic adventure tale, making it a joy to read. The side characters are just as funny as the main ones, with necromancer Mrs. Totham being a standout alongside a reanimated dead mouse named Buttons, who is absolutely the star of every scene he appears in. The entire team of bodyguards is female, which creates an unapologetically feminist dynamic that strengthens the story.

Perfect for fans of novels like The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry is a roller coaster of a good time that will keep you up at night to finish it. A queer love story with adventure, magic, and hilarity, it’s an excellent read that’s sure to be a classic.

I had so much fun with this unique book. I loved the first line of the book--it really sucked me in and made me want to read more.

The main character, Delly, is an antihero in the beginning of the book. Her life is a mess, drinking too much, hard-up for money, etc. Despite all that, she is a likeable character.

The language in the book takes some getting used to--it seemed like it was written in a foreign language. However, I quickly grew accustomed to it and was able to use context clues to figure out what was being said. In the end I thought the unique language added to the quirky charm of the book.

This is not my usual genre, but I am so glad I gave it a try. The characters, fantasy world, and unique language all combined to make this an entertaining read. 3.75/5

Thank you to Berkley for this eARC.

This was a book I probably wouldn’t have picked up on my own but I really enjoyed it!!! Go look for the author’s backlist and try to buy it all....enjoyed it!!!!

For me, the characters made this book! Our main character Delly has lived a hard life. She is a con artist and thief, who’s barely getting by when she sees an ad seeking a body guard for a wealthy girl that needs protection for the 2 weeks leading up to her nuptials. Delly thinks it’s easy money, the threat can’t possibly be that serious. What comes next is a fun cast of characters, a rag tag group of women with different backgrounds and magical proficiencies set on protecting the rich lady from mysterious assassins. Delly never anticipated making friends and finding love along this journey.

I fell so hard for Winn! She was half troll and had the warmest heart ever. One of the most interesting things about the magical system in this book was the ability people had to change their appearance. Gender and sexuality were very fluid since the characters could change on a whim and I loved that freedom. Whether you want a fantasy read with magic....this is it. Want an LGBTQIA romance this is also it, this book was a little bit of everything and I loved it!!!

This book wasn’t what I expected and definitely more than I bargained for. I have a new series to follow and a group of characters I won’t soon forget. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This was a highly enjoyable, enchanting, magical historical fantasy!

Dellaria Wells is a fire witch. She’s also a con artist and petty thief with a bit of a drinking problem. Delly is barely getting by, but she’s determined to find a way to pay her rent and get the best care and treatment for her drug-addicted mother. Delly manages to land a high-paying job protecting a young Lady of some Importance from mysterious assassins and becomes part of a team of misfit female bodyguards who may have gotten more than they bargained for.

I absolutely loved this gem! Although I struggled with the writing style at first, I quickly became enamored with this delightful, whimsical story and found myself completely wrapped up in the lives of these interesting characters. There’s magic and adventure, a band of crime-fighting ladies, mystery and mayhem, unlikely friendships, a sapphic romance, and a Victorianesque society with nontraditional gender roles. It was refreshing to read something so unique!

The eccentric female characters were the highlight of this book. The witty banter had me laughing out loud, and I was often smiling or sighing as the relationship developed between Delly and a fellow bodyguard, Winn. Despite all her misgivings, Delly was spunky, quirky, and fun! Winn (a half-troll illusionist with impeccable aim) was an absolute delight, Abstentia (a highly skilled student of magic and chemicastry) was a pistol, and Buttons (an undead mouse), well . . . let’s just say he grew on me!

I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series!

Set in a land where the women are tough, the men wear skirts, and previously deceased mice go “Bong,” Dellaria Wells, Delly to her friends, is a simple gutterwitch trying to scrape together a few tocats between drinks of gin and get her mam off Leiscourt’s premiere drug of choice, red drip. All that changes, though, when she takes an unconventional job as a bodyguard for an upperclass bride-to-be in C. M. Waggoner’s sophomore book, A Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry.
I haven’t read Waggoner’s first book, Unnatural Magic, and while it seems Ruthless Lady’s Guide is a companion book, I didn’t feel it necessary to have read Unnatural Magic first. With that in mind, though, I offer two pieces of advice: If you like fantasy, especially of the historical type, and quick and clever wordplay, go read one of these books now. Then, read the other.
Ruthless Lady’s Guide has so much style it hardly knows how to contain itself. The writing is tight and witty, at times making it feel as though the banter is between the reader and the book and not contained to the characters. The story is compelling, too, weaving worldbuilding in naturally and incrementally so as to not drag the story down in exposition. Clever quips and cleverer storycraft surround Delly; Winn, the part-troll woman Delly’s hoping to woo; Abstensia, the stiff academy-trained wizard; and a whole “merry band of female catastrophes.”
Delly makes for a compelling heroine. Kinder than she ever gives herself credit for, the story is told in third person but from Delly’s perspective, leading to gems of Delly’s insight like this:
“Delly, as a loose rule of her tenure upon this, the World as Conceived by Mortal Man, did not leave the best of first impressions. She hadn’t as a child, when she was ill-kempt and badly behaved through not fault of her own, and she still didn’t as an adult, when she was ill-kempt and badly behaved through every fault of her own.”
I don’t often quote books for reviews, but this quote is just one of many, many examples of the cadence, tempo, and of Delly’s sense of self-expression, that made me love this book. And I haven’t even mentioned the skeletal, back-from-the-dead mouse Buttons that goes “Bong” to the shuddering horror of those within earshot. A delightful, magical, adventurous romp, I’m looking forward to picking up Unnatural Magic and seeing what C. M. Waggoner does next.

Yall, this book was magical! magic, a fire witch, historical fantasy, and queer love .. what more can you ask for? Our love interest, Winn, just captures your heart from the beginning. Also, the portrayal of strong women throughout the book just keeps you so engaged and rooting for this unlikely team of allies. The writing is a bit quirky, but the more you read, the more you understand. After a few chapters I didn’t have any issues. I am very interested to see what happens in book 2!

Down-and-out con artist and thief, Delly Wells, joins a team of female bodyguards to use her magic to protect a wealthy young woman about to marry, who keeps being attacked by someone unknown.

This one had a plot that seemed like a great fit-magical powers, a female main character who learns to be an assassin and a sprinkle of some steampunk and I did think this was very original and I give kudos to the author for this creativity. But unfortunately, I dnf’d this for two reasons: 1.) the writing style-all of the writing, including the narration, is written in the vernacular of the characters which at first was amusing but once that wore off it started to distract me from the story and 2.) the main character-I could not get behind Delly and she probably redeemed herself by the end but I didn’t find her likable enough to on that journey with her. These are both very subjective reasons to my taste but I think they are important things to note going into this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkeley Publishing for the eArc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and to Berkley Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book will also be discussed on my BookTube channel, Cat's Book Corner.

This book was a lot of fun! The setting is kind of historical fantasy, but feels more like 1800s London with magic and fantasy creatures. Delly is a great main character. Thought she thinks of herself as morally gray, I wouldn't put her in that category. Delly hasn't had a great start to life and is just trying to survive in the city, and is making whatever choices she needs to in order to accomplish that. Winn was a fun love interest for her, as well (did I not mention this was a sapphic romance? It is!!)

In terms of the worldbuilding, its nothing extraordinary, but was still fun to read. As I mentioned, its very much as though someone took a historical 1800s London setting and changed the names to make it a fantasy city. She created a slang language for the lower class that was occasionally a little difficult to understand, but not too bad. The magic system is fairly soft. Delly can do things with fire, but her limitations aren't really explored. Other magic users talk about parameters, which seems like a more scientific approach to casting spells. I actually really enjoyed that, and the talk of "chemicastry", a clear mix of chemistry and magic use.

The part that got me was the plot. I feel as though the first 40% of this book dragged on. It was all to set up the plot for the latter half of the book and the pacing throughout it just felt a bit off to me. Once the group moved back to Leiscourt, things started moving much more quickly and I really enjoyed the 2nd half of the plot so much more. It really brought the characters together more cohesively, especially the two main love interests.

As far as the romance goes, while I thought it was extremely cute, I think it might have needed to be fleshed out a bit more. To me, it felt extremely quick overall, especially because the entire plot takes place over a matter of weeks, and the various issues that they would face in sharing their lives together was briefly addressed and then kind of brushed aside? I enjoyed it overall, but I think it needed just a little bit MORE.

I enjoyed this book overall, so I'm giving it a very high three stars (this is still a good rating!). The beginning and the pacing didn't draw me in quite enough to give it a higher rating than this, but I will absolutely still read anything further set in this world or by this author in general.

{3.5 stars}

“This wasn’t at all like her ordinary lackadaisical gallops with old friends or perfect strangers. This felt like being a page of old newspaper caught up in a sudden gust of wind.”

———————————

If you read the synopsis for The Ruthless Lady's Guide to Wizardry, you might think that it’s a simple sapphic love story with your typical protagonists from two different sides of the tracks. But it’s much more than that. It’s a crime caper with a love story at its heart complete with a bing bong-ing necromanced mouse skeleton leading the investigation.

This mismatched group of magical ladies are brought together when they are charged with protecting a young woman who is about to get married. Delly is the star of our story; not much more than a grown-up street urchin running games to make money and hunting dark alleys to make sure her drug-addicted mother is still alive she finds herself suddenly in a world of privilege. As the story progresses we find that or she may not be the most sophisticated person, she is street savvy and exactly what is needed to properly protect the young bride. As their short stent in this project ends they find themselves embroiled in a much bigger criminal mystery and find themselves pulling together around a common cause. Our Delly finds herself drawn out from her life of moral ambiguity into a much more proper one. But will it take?

The writing is unbelievablely clever, the world uses its own vernacular of hilarious terms for various things. That made the book extremely challenging to read. I am someone who can regularly power through for 500 pages in a day but I found myself working through this much more slowly. This was both because I wanted to better understand the world (the world building here is not as obvious as in some other novels, you need to put together a lot of the pieces for yourself) but also because I wanted to savor the words. The more closely you read each sentence the more you can appreciate the vision or laughter it evoked.

The one thing that I didn’t love about the story, is that there was parts that seems to glorify drug use. You see the gritty bad side but there are several passages that talk about the elation and feelings of escape. This is classed as an adult novel, but I feel like should younger readers pick this up it was more than I was comfortable with. I will caveat the statement by saying I am a complete straight-edge so my opinion may be severe for the average person but I feel like it’s a warning I would have preferred to have tacked on somewhere. I also really struggled with Delly’s mommy issues, as they struck a little close to home, but I think that’s a sign of great writing, when it makes you uncomfortable.

When trying to think of parallels to the story I’d say it’s Once and Future Witches with a dash of Things in Jars.

Dellaria's had a hard life, and she also likes the hard stuff. Even though she has an alcohol problem, and sure, she steals things from time to time, it's all because she wants to save enough to help her dear mother out. Finding out that a female bodyguard is needed by some hoity-toity so-and-so, Dellaria figures it'll be easy money as she smooth-talks her way into the guard force along with a little pyro witchy magic. Her new boss is supposedly being attacked by unknown assassins, but how bad could they be? That is, until the first attack comes, and Dellaria feels the peril bite a bit too close for comfort. Shaken, she turns to Winn, another bodyguard, and they prepare to fulfill their duties to their lady no matter what.

A hard-drinking woman living in a fantasy Victorian world, becoming entangled in bodyguard business that leads into a criminal plot, and becoming further entangled with another bodyguard? That certainly piques the interest, if I may say so. One thing that I immediately noticed about this story is the expansive use of alternate or created words mixed with Victorian-style language mannerisms. That's a long-winded way of saying it took a moment to adjust to how things were phrased, which I assume is similar to C.M. Waggoner's previous work, Unnatural Magic.

Dellaria is a solid if not entirely likeable character, and her motivations are at least pure, even if her actions aren't. I also do admire her for sticking with the job even when it became more perilous than she expected, as that does speak to her strength of character to some degree. I did mention offhand that Dellaria does become enamored with another bodyguard, as this is a sapphic romance, but it's also interesting to note that Winn is half-troll, and it's not often that individuals from two species intertwine. The other bodyguards are serviceable and have interesting abilities and personalities, and it was nice that all of them were female as well as representing many different age groups. That part of the group does serve a more supporting role in the story, as the focus remains on the central duo.

The Ruthless Lady's Guide to Wizardry presents a sapphic Victorian fantasy that captures the imagination, though it does slow down a touch much at times. This allows for the growth of character relationships, and for them to show us their personalities, but the tension in the plot suffers a bit as a result. Still, if you can grow accustomed to the terms and language of this interesting world, you'll find it to be an interesting rough-and-tumble romp for money, companionship, and purpose, if only the assassins don't find their mark and end it all too soon for Dellaria and Winn.

I was sent an advanced copy of The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry by Ace Books so I could share my review with you!

Delly Wells is scraping the bottom of life’s barrel. She’s going to be evicted from her apartment if she can’t find rent money soon, her mother won’t stop descending deeper into the world of illicit substances, and she can’t seem to stay out of trouble with the law. Just when she’s running out of options, Delly happens upon an advertisement seeking a female bodyguard to protect a wealthy client from a band of mysterious assassins. After a demonstration of her magical abilities and some fast-talking, Delly lands a position as one of several bodyguards. Sparks fly between Delly and a fellow bodyguard, Winn, almost immediately, but if Delly wants to pursue romance, she’ll need to survive this mission first. But who, exactly, are they protecting their employer from? Why would someone want her dead?

You can get your copy of The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry on January 12th from Ace Books!

After reading the synopsis for The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry, I was instantly smitten with the premise! I cannot resist a good story about a group of female bodyguards, especially when there’s the promise of a queer romance. This book was filled with twists I could never have predicted, which kept me reading eagerly until the very last page. Winn was my favorite character, without a doubt! Her cheery outlook and willingness to try anything made her so likable. Historical fantasy is a genre that should have many more books, especially if they are as interesting as The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry! After reading this one, I will definitely want to read C.M. Waggoner’s other book, Unnatural Magic.

My Recommendation- If you adore stories with disaster queer folks finding love and adventure, you absolutely need to check out The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry! It would be a great read for fans of Gideon the Ninth, especially if you loved Gideon’s chaotic style!

3.75 stars. Quirky and fresh queer Victorian fantasy read! The style took a bit getting used to and the pacing was a little uneven for me - sometimes it would be so hard to put down and other times I felt overcome with details that I found myself skimming a bit. But the characters were so vivid and it was quite the adventure! I fell in love with Winn so hard! I enjoyed it more than Plain Bad Heroines and I would recommend it if you enjoyed that book. This story had more vivid and fantastical characters but it gave me a similar vibe to Plain Bad Heroines. Thank you to Berkley Publishing for an eARC of this title!