This novella took me completely by surprise. I was immediately immersed in the plot and the more that things unfolded, the more invested I became.

This is a beautiful sapphic love story wherein the main character has sold her soul to a demon to save her brother's life, and is nearing the time in which her soul is to be claimed. When offered a deal to get her soul back in exchange for solving a series of supernatural murders in her neighbourhood, and she immediately accepts. All she wants is the chance to have a future with the love of her life, Edith, and solving this case is her one chance.

I loved the biblical storylines, the complicated central relationship, and the many twists along the way. I was also very satisfied with the ending, but would be happy to see more stories about these characters/in this world.

Amongst the horror I have been reading in October and November, I was desperate for a fun book to break it up. So, I pick up a crime detective story with angels and demons, with a serial killer no the loose. Sounds about right. I think I misunderstood the premise because it was advertised heavily as queer romance, at least from what I saw, and while there is a queer romance, it was still a mystery at heart and had many heavy moments. It deals with misogyny, homophobia, and discussions of mental health- all things that hit quite close to home. Magical detectives sounds like it was picked right out of a delicious rom com, but the descriptions discussions of souls and reviews mentioning how it is set in 1940's Chicago following queer characters- sometimes I forget how far we've come in so little time in society that I was almost (almost) shocked at the heavy homophobia.

While it was not what I was initially looking for, I absolutely adored this book. It's short, which I did not know, and I flew through it despite the heavy content. It was so beautifully written and well done. I'm almost speechless, I cannot believe it is a short standalone and I cannot get more of it. I recommend it to anyone who is ready for a short, heavy hitting queer novel with a fun, new premise that will not let you down. I highly highly recommend it.

A fabulously drawn 1940s paranormal crime novella, with blood magic and demons and soul pacts and tender queer love. This little book was fast-paced and gripping from the first page, immersing the reader in the noir mystery and silver screen lingo, and I absolutely devoured it. I sometimes find novellas disappointing in their limited scope, but this one felt complete and satisfying (though I would definitely read ten more books about Helen and Edith and their mystical private eye business). I’d previously read and loved Polk’s alternate-Edwardian fantasy “Witchmark,” and after this I will be picking up everything they write.

Thanks to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Content warning: gun violence, ritualistic sacrifice, implied and period-appropriate homophobia

All magical detective Helen Brandt wants is to live out her days in peace Edith Jarosky. But her time is running out and an opportunity comes to get her soul back in exchange for solving a serial murder. With mischievous devils and devious angels, this Chicago fantasy noir has great worldbuilding and intricate character development.

Polk pulls off something I rarely see in fiction where a relationship drives the central plot: an established couple trying to make the future work. The two adults at this story’s core are so devoted to each other, and they are very committed to both themselves and each other’s respective dreams. The tension comes from the things they haven’t told each other, and it pays off well. To say more would be opening up this review to spoiler territory. But, if you’re into fantastic character development propped up with some stellar world-building, you’ll be delighted.

This magical version of early 1900’s Chicago is very cool, and the reader learns more about it as disparate elements start caused problems for Helen. The tension glitters as new wrenches are thrown in Edith’s plans and in her process of reconciling with her brother before it’s too late. There’s magic and some literal divine intervention. That being said, though Elena and Edith have very stylish lives, the speakeasies aren’t just for the aesthetic, and legalized homophobia definitely affects their existence. The book ends on a hopeful note, but there’s a bit of angst and literal blood to get through before it’s earned.

For people who want to read a super Chicago-y novella with a compelling mystery driving the plot, I highly recommend giving this one a read.

Gorgeous! Packed with drama and the kind of fantastical & horrific noir that I love. The magic system was super inventive and the queer love story was touching, tender, and real. The balance of darkness and social commentary was done in a lovely way, and I felt the novella length served the story well.

A very enjoyable queer love story/murder mystery set in 1940's Chicago. It features a fleshed out magic system, fully realized characters, and a historical milieu that feels real and lived in, rather than staged and self-referential. I would look forward to more stories in this world.

4/5
Angels, demons, and magic combine in this gorgeously queer novella tinged with romance and heartache. An insightful and entertaining romp through 1940s Chicago, following a Lesbian detective determined to get back the soul she bargained away and secure a future with her great love.

I’ve expressed my deep and abiding love for a deftly crafted novella before. I trace this love of short stories and novellas back to a course I took in community college, when we would take stories like these apart and analyze them to pieces. (In non-shocking news, that’s also where I got my love of literary analysis as a whole from). There’s just something so spectacular about authors who can master the art of economy of words. Who can tell a whole novel’s worth of story in 200 words or less. To leave you feeling as fulfilled by their story as you would if you had read a much longer one. You may think it’s an easy job, but many authors would be willing to tell you it’s not.

“Even Though I Knew the End” is a beautifully written example of genre mashup literature. By that, I mean that there are so many genres kneaded into this story that the bread of it is an amalgamation of historical fiction/romance/fantasy/mystery, occult fiction, and LGBT+ fiction/romance/fantasy. I tend to love when authors go wild like this, when they let their imaginations run free and their fingers out to play over theirs keyboards, not stopping to think too deeply about things like, “How can I make a sapphic romance in the 1930s if I add in occultism and some really wicked magic?” and just letting the words flow. I’m sure Polk had to reign herself in at some point to wrestle the book into submission and bring method to the madness, but short stories and novellas are a great place to let experimental pieces out to play.

The story itself is mostly a fantasy/occult mystery wound around a powerful private detective/magician (though that’s not the term they use for her in the book) who’s on a very tight schedule and is in a long-term relationship with a woman who she wants to protect at all costs. There’s a big bad in town, and a powerful demon client wants our protagonist to find it so it can be taken out. Problem is, the powers that be in Chicago don’t like our protagonist very much, considering she doesn’t have a soul. I’d tell you more, but there be spoilers, and I don’t deal in those.

The magic system isn’t explained in any real detail, but it’s not something that really could be explained unless you sat down and wrote a manual, because it’s based in things like phases of the moon, numerology, astrology, planetary hours (which is also known as the Chaldean order), sacred geometry, and prayers. It’s more fun just to roll with it, honestly, because why would you want to spend pages with magic system exposition when you could be spending time wrapped in lovely prose, an alternative version of 1930s Chicago, and a beautiful love story between two women who really just want to move to San Francisco someday?

It’s really a fabulous read. Entertaining, compelling, fun, and beautiful. I highly recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley, MacMillan-Tor/Forge, and Tordotcom for granting me access to this title in exchange for a fair and honest review.

File Under: Novella/Genre Mashup/LGBTQ Fantasy/Historical Fantasy/Historical Fiction/Historical Romance/LGBTQ Fiction/Historical Mystery/Occult Fiction

I had previously read and enjoyed CL Polk’s novel about witches The Midnight Bargain so was curious to check out their latest novel, Even Though I Knew the End. Even Though I Knew the End is a supernatural noir which takes inspiration from The Great Gatsby and is set in an alternative Chicago in the early 20th century where magic and demons are real and deals at the crossroads bring your heart’s desire for the cost of your soul. The supernatural elements are cleverly integrated and the sweet Sapphic romance as well as a story of reunited siblings was fast paced. If anything, it was over a bit too quickly for my taste, I wanted more of the charming characters and their adventures. It also had probably one of my favorite fictional demons. Highly recommend! I received an early copy of Even Though I Knew the End for review from Netgalley.

Set in the 1940s, and utterly rife with noirish overtones that add color and vibrancy to the story, C. L. Polk’s Even Though I Knew the End is a sublimely beautiful tale of the lengths one woman will go to for the sake of love.

"I called to the devil, and the devil came to me."

Helen Brandt made a Faustian bargain nearly ten years ago—near enough that the end of that bargain is nigh, and the devil has come to collect. Or should have, but the devil has a bargain of their own to strike: if Helen catches the White City Vampire, she can win her soul back. The only problem is that Helen herself may be the next victim on the killer’s agenda.

Polk thrusts readers into an atmospheric tale of magic and ritual murder in which Helen comes up against her estranged brother, Ted, who considers her the enemy, and is doing her damndest to keep the love of her life, Edith Jarosky, safe. Helen and Edith both have their secrets from each other, though. Secrets that are integral to the investigation, not to mention to their future together. In fact, to their very survival.

What would you do in the name of love, even though you knew the end? That’s the question C. L. Polk asks and answers in ways that define the emotion at both is simplest and most complex. Polk also answers it in the most romantic of terms—for another moment, another hour, another day. This story is not simply a test of faith, it’s an act of courage. It’s love at both its most selfish and its most unselfish. It’s love at its most eternal and its most finite. It is love at its most unspoiled in an imperfect world.

As much as I loved this author’s Kingston Cycle series, Even Though I Knew the End is my favorite of their work yet.

There is a serial killer terrorizing 1930’s Chicago and Helen is on the case. A detective kicked out of the brotherhood and estranged from her own brother for making a devil with the devil, Helen is recruited to track down the killer dubbed ‘The White Vampire.’ Along the way, she gets assistance from unlikely sources.
It is a testament to the author that at only 144 pages they manage to create a supernatural crime noir that still manages to pack its punches. This book is incredibly atmospheric, full of 1930s slang and speakeasies. You can easily imagine this as a black and white film noir. The magic is drawn from the church and the opposition between demons and angels. At its core, it's a sapphic love story that explores how far one would go to save the ones they love.

Even though I knew the end, or at least I thought I did, Polk manages to lead the reader down some unexpected roads.

Thank you Tor Books and NetGalley for an advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

Chicago is being haunted by a serial killer dubbed the 'White City Vampire.' When Helen, an exiled augur visits their latest crime scene she sees something others have missed and quickly becomes drawn into the task of tracking the killer down. The more she delves, the darker the secrets turn out to be, but Helen is determined to catch them, not only to save their future victims, but to save her own soul. If she fails, only hell and heartbreak await.

Helen is a great POV to read this story from. She has spent her life knowing the day she will die, thanks to selling her soul ten years ago to save her brothers life, something she never once regrets. That is until she meets Edith. Edith who brightens her life, makes her want to live and gives her hope. Helen reads as a kind of John Constantine turned gangster. She's the chain smoking, suave, not afraid of a fight or getting her hands dirty style character and she certainly knows how to get herself into some dangerous situations. But the more time we spend with her, the more we see her soft underbelly, her love for those around her, her hope and want to survive despite the circumstances, but also her desperate need to protect the people she loves, no matter the cost.

Polk's version of 1950's Chicago is somewhat different from the one we know, thanks in large to it being inhabited by a multitude of magical beings. From Devils, to fallen Angels and the Brotherhood of the Compass, a magical human police force. Polk does a brilliant job of building her world with such a small word count, and as much as I wanted to spend more time there devouring all the information that I could, I felt she gave us the perfect amount to get us through this story without any confusion. Her story has that dark, noir crime feel with gangsters and dolls, crime syndicates and a city filled with murder and magic. But Polk also brings a sapphic element to the story and uses that to shed a light on what women went through in that time, think insane asylums and the like, as well as showing how women were seen as second class, especially seeing as the Brotherhood would only take female apprentices if they had a male family member already in the force, no matter how much potential they showed.

The story was suspenseful, slightly predictable in parts, but still overwhelmingly entertaining. For such a small page count it certainly packs a punch and deals with some heavy themes such as feminism, religion, murder, as well as mentions of electro shock therapy for dealing with committed women, but despite all that, it was a fun read, hilariously funny in parts and I seriously hope we get to spend some more time in this world, be it following Helen & Edith, or some other characters... I'm just saying, I would love a Marlow focused Novella of some kind. If you like the idea of a gender bent gangster John Constantine and a story filled with adventure then you should definitely check this out.

I have deeply enjoyed Polk's worlds like in Witchmark, so I was so excited for this latest novella. And this has to be my favorite! First of all, I have a sweet spot for detective stories. Maybe it's just because I watched these investigation shows growing up and so now every time I see a detective or something similar, I'm instantly captivated. So when you combine that elements like queer characters and demons, I could not start this one fast enough. And this novella is fast pace, full of action, and a fabulous world.

To secure a future with the love of her life, a magical detective must solve a murder mystery involving Chicago’s divine monsters.

A sapphic period piece that is profound, funny, and magical. I tore through this book in one night because I simply could not put it down.

This is a gorgeous queer fantasy set in 1940s Chicago. Drawing from noir mystery fiction as well as biblical mythology on angels and demons, the novella starts with urgency and doesn't let up until the end.

As the title suggests, there's a hint of tragedy about the book: Helen is a powerful magic user who bargained away her soul nearly ten years ago, and the demon is just about ready to collect. She knows she doesn't have much time left with the love of her life, Edith, but she's also hoping to leave enough behind her that Edith won't be financially strapped. So when she's hired to find the White City Vampyre, she can't refuse.

The prose is beautiful, the love story poignant, and the mystery unravels perfectly. And the ending is a satisfying mix of romance, tragedy, and denouement that you wouldn't change it - even if you knew the end.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novella.

This is a really fun queer urban fantasy novella in a film noir setting. It follows Helena, a private detective/warlock in 1940s Chicago, on the tail of a serial killer who is also using some kind of mysterious magic. At the same time she is lamenting the imminent end of her relationship with the wonderful Edith, who she met in secret underground queer bars.

The forbidden queer romance was one of my favourite parts of this. Hèlena and Edith’s interactions are beautiful. Helena herself feels like a more romantic, and stylish, version of John Constantine - sardonic yet moral.

The magical mystery plot is also really fun and surprising, but at times felt a little convoluted. Every chapter introduces a new character, part of the world, or new magic system. I felt this this number of ideas would be better suited to a full length novel than a short novella.

That said all of the ideas were fantastic, they just needed a little room to breathe. The world Polk has created is super atmospheric and entertaining. I really hope they expand this world and do more books with these characters because I’d love to read them.

I loved this read! It was short, sweet, and sapphic. It had a good amount of mystery and intrigue and plot twists, which can be hard to do with the length of the book.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
CL Polk is one of the masters of historical fantasy, and I love the somewhat different direction they take here with this little morsel of a story both set in the 1940s and containing vibes of noir stories of the time period with a fantastical twist. You get a subtle, but still immersive feel for the time period, while moving the action along.
I love the balance between Helen’s different goals and motivations and how they’re connected. She’s enlisted to find a serial killer called the White City Vampire, which ends up being much more challenging and perilous than she expects, with many twists and turns. And in between, there’s lovely moments of her trying to protect her family, as well as sweet moments of sapphic love.
This is a great genre-bending story, and it will satisfy both lovers of the classic noir style and modern fantasy readers who enjoy stories with mystery and a bit of romance.

I really enjoyed this book. A Sapphic noir with angels and demons is such a unique idea, and it really paid off. I love a novella, and this was no exception.

Wow, this novella is excellent. I love how magic is such a part of the world, and the presence of angels and demons. I also really loved how Helen’s goal is always to give for those she loves. I can see that being a negative but the execution felt like something good and not too much. The setting and the mystery and the characters were all so interesting. I just all around really loved this story.