A Restless Truth is truly, as promised, a lesbian Knives Out on a boat. From the get-go, I got the impression of a magical Agatha Christie novel crossed with a sapphic rendition of the film adaptation of Clue. There's camp, there's scandal, and there's murder.

You follow Maud Blyth, Robin's little sister from A Marvellous Light, as she attempts to assist her brother in returning one of the Forsythia club ladies to England, so that she might aid their cause in protecting the freewill of all the magicians of England. When the lady in question meets an untimely end and her valuables in question go missing (any of which that could be her part of the Last Contract), it is up to Maud alone to catch the murderer and take back the artifacts in question.

We fell in love with Maud in A Marvellous Light and she truly shines in A Restless Truth. She has a totally endearing combination of fervor for justice and well-intentioned naivete that has you rooting for her all the way through. Violet Debenham on the other hand, is the polar opposite of naivete and also the only reason you think any of Maud's plans might succeed.

This was a fantastic, action-packed, magical mystery romp on a pleasure liner and was possibly my favorite of the two books in Marske's magic-cradling world so far.

In a Restless Truth, the second book in Freya Marske's The Last Binding Trilogy, Maud Blythe must undertake a transatlantic voyage to retrieve the second part of the last contract from America. On the journey however, a woman is murdered and the contract piece lost, and Maud must solve the case with the help of the surly Lord Hawthorn, a many hatted reporter, and a sexy English gentlewoman turned new York thespian. More intriguing and just as magical and steamy, Marske enchants in this follow-up to 2021's A Marvelous Light
A Restless Truth is everything I could want from a sequel. The book deftly dodges the sophomore slump. Rather than feeling like it is all set up for a thrilling conclusion, A Restless Truth pays off on a lot of foreshadowing from book one, rather than holding onto it to build additional intrigue. It rewards the reader by introducing the mysterious vision of a woman from A Marvelous Light, as Violet [last name], the sexy bisexual gentlewoman turned thespian, and by revealing more of the deep seated plot by the English magicians to find the Last Contract. Lord Hawthorn, who had appeared for a scant few pages in A Marvelous light returns as a begrudging ally with a secret soft spot (and I very much suspect he will be one of the leads in book three).
Plus, this book is sexy. Maud Blythe goes from "wait women can sleep together" to "Violet do whatever you want to me" in the span of three days. Characters use their salacious reputation to their advantage. There is a dramatic reading of pornography. I would almost go so far as to say it's erotic, as the plot of the book, and the titular Restless Truth, can't really be disentangled from the sex.
I think this book is better than the first, which lost a lot of steam to having to explain the entire world concept. Since readers already know how the magic works, A Restless Truth is Able to focus on intrigue and character depth more than A Marvelous Light was able to. I heartily recommend it to anyone who read the first book and is wondering if the second book is worth it, as well as fans of Olivia Waite's Feminine Pursuits series and Helene Wecker's The Golem and the Jinni series.

Such an enjoyable sequel to Marvellous Light! It has romance, murder and scandal. What more could you want?! Can’t wait for the next book.

Thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

I read and very much enjoyed "A Marvellous Light" earlier in the year; like many I was curious to see how Marske would make Robin Blyth's pert and nosy little sister the romantic heroine of its sequel, "A Restless Truth". Maud more than rises to the occasion here; while it took a bit for her to grow on me I did wind up liking her stubborn ferocity quite a bit. Maud is an active, meddling, quick-witted young woman, and her slow amassing of allies and enemies is engaging. Violet, her two-faced foil and love interest, likewise took me a bit to warm up to, but once again by the end of the book I was ride or die. Those looking for a Robin/Edwin dynamic will not find it here, as both women are largely extroverted, but Maud and Violet have a similar "opposites forced to work together" vibe to the series' original couple that I found very enjoyable. The mystery is fun, the reveals are well-paced, and the characters that will be the romantic leads of the third book (I assume) are well set-up (I already ship it).

Cozy, fun, and beautifully written, very much recommended. If you liked the first book, you'll like this one too.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for a chance to read this ARC!

Returning to the magical Edwardian setting of A Marvellous Light, we find Robin Blyth’s younger sister Maud in first class on a steamliner as a lady’s companion, traveling from New York to England. Their journey has barely begun though, when her sponsor, Mrs. Elizabeth Navenby is murdered. Suddenly, Maud finds herself in a position of sorting out murder on top of following Robin’s visions.

A Restless Truth has a slower set-up than A Marvellous Light. As we have largely new character, we slowly learn their desires and motivations, all while we are faced with a new mystery. Maud has been appropriately sheltered as a baronet’s daughter, so meeting actress and magician Violet Debenham, who is always looking for her next scandal, is both exciting and alluring. There’s a flare to Violet and a brewing passion to Maud that I found utterly appealing as a pairing; they aren’t precisely opposites, and while I’m not sure Marske did quite enough to convince me they would get together, but once they crashed into one another, their passion was fun to watch. It’s also delectably steamy, which I think is rare in a sapphic fantasy.

I strongly suggest re-reading book one first, if you have difficulty retaining details from one book to the next. I didn’t reread, and spent a bit of time trying to remember what characters had done previously. There is a self-contained romance and self-contained mystery, but this is clearly also the second book of a fantasy trilogy. The greater storyline arc continues into A Restless Truth. Even with a slightly different cast, our protagonists have the screws tightened on them, with the stakes increasing.

A Restless Truth didn’t quite live up to my expectations, but that might have been hard, as A Marvellous Light was a favorite of mine this year, and I eagerly anticipated this release. That said, it’s an incredibly strong book full of liminal spaces, magic, passion, and dramatic flare. There are brilliant moments, quiet moments, and sensational moments.

Thank you to @tordotcompub and @netgalley for this eARC for review. A Restless Truth and its gorgeous cover come out 11/1/22.

I’m pretty wary of direct sequels that shift focus to a different character, but I was really pleasantly surprised. The characters were well drawn and I loved getting to know them—but what I really loved was seeing the magic system expanded upon. I look forward to reading the next installment!

I loved this follow up to A Marvellous Light that follows Robin's sister Maud in her search for the second piece of the Contract on a White Star Line ship after the woman guarding it is murdered. Along with a scandalous heiress, Lord Hawthorn, and a thief, she'll have to find the stolen silver item without attracting the attention of murderous magicians onboard who are after the same thing. It took me longer to get into than the first book, but considering it starts off with a bang and a literal murder that might have more to do with me being in a bit of a reading slump the past few months than the book itself. And once I got into the mystery I was fully engaged in watching Maud, Violet, and Hawthorn solve it. I also appreciated the prominent secondary role Hawthorn played in this novel since he's really growing on me. I think / hope the next book might follow Hawthorn and Ross which I would absolutely love. There was some serious tension between the two, so here's hoping!

Thank you so much, NetGalley, Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tordotcom, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

Maud Blyth longed for adventures and she expected them when she decided to be and old lady's companion on a ocean liner, in order to help her beloved brother fighting against a magical conspiracy. Her work was apparently simple: accompany Elizabeth Navenby and her piece of the Last Contract safe and sound to Edwin and Robin, but when the woman is killed on their first day of voyage and some of her possessions are stolen, Maud has to deal with a dead body, to track an unknown piece of the Last Contract, a rude parrot and a murderer on the loose. Fortunately she has Robin's foresight as help, a notebook filled with hints and visions that leads her to the outrageous Violet, the rude Hawthorn and the thief Alan Ross. With their help, Maud is ready to look for clues, avenge Elizabeth and protect her brother. In a ship full of suspects, with the help of a magicians, an ex magician, a journalist and thief, Maud has to do everything in their power to get the piece of the Last Contract back and protect herself and her loved ones.

A restless truth is the brilliant sequel of the Last Binding trilogy, started with the amazing A marvellous light. An historical queer fantasy series and, if in the first book the reader was following Robin and Edwin, A restless truth sees the brave and stubborn Maud as main character, helped by the confident and fascinating Violet. Brilliantly queer, set on an ocean liner filled with suspects, magicians and new original magic, like with rings and embroidery, fake and real mediums, queer love, intense slow burn and a funny and thrilling investigation, A restless truth is the worthy sequel of A marvellous light, one of the best book I've read last year.
Maud is a wonderful main character and I loved her bravery and stubborness, her eagerness to learn and discover, her passion and drive, determined to help Robin and Edwin, falling in love and lust with Violet, creating a team made of a thief and a reluctant ex magicians (someone the reader knows from the previous book, but now there's the chance to know him better and to love him more).
Between animals running on the ship, romance, new and old allies, magic and kidnapping, murderers and stories, A restless truth adds pieces to the Last Contract's story, introducing and shedding light on powerful female magicians, queer love and sapphic stories, friendships and bonds.

Each character, from Maud to Violet, Hawthorn, Alan, Elizabeth herself, is complex, intricate and so skillfully written. The reader has the chance to know them or know them better in Maud and Hawthorn's cases, between moneys and heritages, murderers and magic, investigations and truths. It was a pleasure seeing Robin and Edwin through Maud's eyes, their bond and love, their determination in doing the right thing and Maud's stubborness in helping Robin, in a way to repay him from his kindness, thinking of their parents and childhood.
It was also steamy and funny following Maud in accepting her desires and passions, in learning things with Violet and opening her heart, slowly getting to know her and getting behind her armor.

I loved everything about this book and I can't wait to know what will happen next.

I really loved the first book in this series, A MARVELLOUS LIGHT, and as soon as I heard the premise of A RESTLESS TRUTH I could not wait to get my hands on it. I mean, sapphics solving a murder on a boat? Yes please! I enjoyed both Maud and Violet and being in each of their POVs, and the secondary characters were great. As someone who reads a lot of historical romance but not a lot of fantasy, Marske combines the two extremely well and I never struggled to understand what was happening. This definitely ends with more HFN vibes than HEA, but that worked for me, and I'm hoping it means we get to see more about how Maud and Violet's relationship develops in future books.

Thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A Restless Truth by Freya Marske is an adult fantasy adventure that would make the perfect vacation read! The story revolves around Maud, who volunteers to be an elderly woman's companion on a historical cruise ship. But on the first day of the voyage, the woman is found dead. Along with new allies like Violet, a magician and actress, Maud has to find the murderer. Can the pair solve the case before the murderer comes for them?

Here is a delightful excerpt from Chapter 1:

"Elizabeth Navenby was known for three things: needlework, talking to the dead, and an ill temper at the best of times.
These were not the best of times. Seasickness had taken rough shears to the edges of that temper. And being subjected to well-meaning jabber about the stateroom’s furnishings, and how the handkerchief-waving crowds lining the New York docks as the Lyric pulled away looked exactly like a flock of doves—didn’t she agree?—had hardly helped.
So Elizabeth had ordered the talkative Miss Blyth, who had truly disgusting amounts of energy for a girl her age, off to explore the ship.
“Finally,” said Elizabeth to the empty interior of the cabin. “I could do with some quiet.”"

Overall, A Restless Truth is an adult fantasy that blends magic, history, mystery, and features LGBT characters. One highlight of this book is the interesting premise. I loved the idea of a shipboard mystery featuring magic. I don't think I've read any other books that blend so many genres. I did take off 1 star, because I felt there were too many characters, and I'm not a fan of books with large casts. Also, I tried to make sense of it, but the mystery just confused me. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of historical fantasy in general, I recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in November!

This book was so good, if not better than the first one! I loved where the story was headed and I love these characters so much! Highly recommend this series!!

Review:
Magic, a murder mystery, and sapphic romance? Here we go! Maud Blyth has always wanted to go on an adventure, and following the events of the previous book she now knows magic exists and she also wants to repay her brother for everything he’s done for her, so she volunteers to serve as an old lady’s companion on an ocean diner to search for a magical artifact... that might have gotten said old lady killed. Along the way she meets the beautiful but scandalous Violet Debenham who is also someone who delights in adventure and mischief. Violet is a magician and an actress, and she might be the person Maud has found herself falling for. Another person on the ship is Lord Hawthorn, a rude but very scandalous ex to Maud’s brother’s current partner. Maud will need all the help she can to figure out who the killer is on this ship and how to retrieve back the magical artifact. With romance blooming, a killer on the loose, and complications, Maud has her work cut out for her. This one sadly did not connect or work for me as much as the first book did. I did enjoy Maude and I do adore sapphic romance with murder mystery? sounds amazing, sadly it just fell through a bit for my expectations and how everything played out. The story got boring at some parts and definitely slowed down, and the steamy romance scenes just weren’t as steamy as I had expected considering the first book. Also Mauve and Violent’s relationship and romance just didn’t feel as strong as I had hoped. Overall, this was an okay read, it was an interesting second book in the trilogy and I am definitely looking forward to where the final book goes next and how it wraps up the series. I thought it was cute we got to see little tidbits and name drops of Edwin and Robin from the first book too.

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tordotcom for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

This book was phenomenal! I loved Maud as a protagonist, so much so that I think I liked A Restless Truth more than A Marvellous Light. The storytelling in this one was excellent, taking such an interesting, windy approach at world-building and inadvertently making me like a character that I strongly disliked in the previous book. There was more narrative-building through new, fascinating characters, all while Maud both strutted and stumbled through the adventure of her dreams, on a quest to prove herself and help her brother the way her brother has always helped her. I loved the begrudging assembly of her gang of helpers, her sparkling charm, endless curiosity, and stark self-awareness while she attempts to solve a mystery while evading those who oppose her on the limited terrain of a cruise. It was so fun, and featured quite a steamy lesbian romance the likes of which would make anyone blush. The lighthearted hilarity and sexy moments were interwoven in more serious and dark themes, making for emotional whiplash along with constant intrigue. I loved this book, and I'm excited for (what I'm assuming will be) the final book in this trilogy.

I was already intrigued to how Marske would follow up A Marvellous Light, but when I saw the pitch of this was “Knives Out on a steam liner with lesbians” I might’ve punched the request button on NetGalley; Tor was kind enough to give me it. Honestly, even if you don’t know anything about the first book, you can dive into this pretty easy; the important parts of the last book are rehashed pretty quickly. This is, honestly, first and foremost an Edwardian fantasy closed room murder mystery and a hell of a slow burn lesbian romance. You get a bisexual rake (Violet) and the sweet ingenue (Maud) learning how to trust each other and falling for each other and at the same time solve the murder mystery they’ve become embroiled in. And dear Christ, the sex here is genuinely amazing and honestly uses the magic to get a bit into kink, which I was hoping for in the last book. Pick this up, it’s already in my top five for the year.

Maud is off on her own journey helping her brother find and safely retrieve the next piece of the last contract.

This was so fun a good murder mystery while stuck on a boat. This book is so beautifully written. Both Maud and Violet were given so much depth to their characters I was able to justify all of their actions through the journey. The banter and angst really had me hanging by the edge of my seat waiting for what would happen between the two.

The first and last third of the book has so much momentum that I struggled to put the book down at all. However I did find the middle dragged a little, I honestly can’t wait to see what happens in the epic conclusion to this trilogy !

Simply delightful! A murder, a scandal and great romance! A thoroughly enjoyable sequel to Marvellous Light, with characters of great wit and verve.

This was fantastic. I might have even liked it more than the first one. I absolutely cannot wait for the third book now. I hope it's about who I think it's going to be about, and we also see lots of Maud and Violet (and Edwin and Robin).

I did like "A Marvellous Light" slightly better but not by much. I loved the mix of fantasy, mystetry, and romance, just like with the previous book, and also like the previous book, the characters are a major highlight. I would not have minded never seeing Hawthorne again after the first book, however, I'm glad that wasn't the case because I quite enjoyed seeing more of him in this one and seeing a different side of his character as well. Now I know that he is more than just a grumpy, brooding, cynical man (he still is all of that of course but not quite as rough around the edges once given the chance). Of course I loved seeing more of Maud and reading about her exploring who she is and growing a whole new sense of confidence with the help of Violet. It wasn't a lot but every time Maud mentioned Robin or Edwin, I felt a bit of a thrill and I do hope that we will see more of them in the future but obviously, Maud and Violet were the main focus of this story. I loved watching their relationship progress and how they left things off at the end left me wanting more and there is still a lot of room for their dynamic to develop and I look forward to seeing how that unfolds.

It's sometimes odd to come to a sequel without the characters you grew to love in the first book, but Marske crafts her new heroines so that you love them quite instantly. (Though you still miss Robin and Edwin).
Filled with nods to "Titanic" if you, like me, watched it a million times as a teen, that will make you smile.
The pacing was a bit slower than the first book, and at times I wondered at the character's ability to just "take a break" or ask the bad guys to wait until tomorrow, but I'm wondering if that's a bit that I missing from not reading a lot of historical mysteries?
Still fun, and I will be finishing out the series when the third book finally arrives.

I am going to keep this review as spoiler-free as humanly possible, because truly one of the best things about A Restless Truth was how it unfolded an absolutely edge-of-your-seat plot that had me alternately gasping and holding my breath through entire chapters.

But if you don't like *anything* at all spoiled, here's my short take: A Restless Truthmaintains the gorgeous prose and deft character work of A Marvellous Light, while extending its overarching mystery and deepening the world-building of the magic system, all while creating something entirely new for Maud and Violet that felt like it was their own, and not just a shadow of the first book. It's a story that has something for nearly everyone (hijinks, mystery, romance, sex, feelings, banter, humor, atmosphere, prose for DAYS), yet manages to pull together a coherent whole. This will easily make my top books of 2022.

Ok. Full review. No major spoilers for plot, some information about tone, feelings, romantic arc, etc.

I do think it's worth saying a word about my expectations coming into this book, because expectations can be a funny thing. As is clear from my first review and blog post, I loved A Marvellous Light a whole lot. But when I started hearing things about the second book - essentially that it was a low-angst hijinks-y "Knives Out On A Boat" romp - I will admit I had my hackles up. Because while I firmly believe that books within a series can and should switch up tone and heat level as appropriate for the story, and without wanting to ascribe value to certain tones/heat levels over others... I did have feelings about having to haul around another stone for our cultural edifice of angsty, sexy, tortured mlm vs. cute, emotionally-defanged, gals-being-pals wlw.

And honestly, this book smashed my expectations with a one-two punch. Because not only were the rompy, Knives Out elements of this book SO well-executed that I'd essentially made up my mind around 30% in that I would be fine with nothing but those, but then Freya Marske also brought the heat, a dash of emotional angst, and what I can only describe as some grown-ass feelings and internal conflict. And proceeded to balance them throughout the rest of the book in a manner I can only liken, rather tritely given the subject matter, to magic.

Our two heroines here are Violet and Maud. Maud is Robin's sister, whom we met in book one, where quite frankly she didn't do much for me. Things started out slowly for her here with me as well, but she grew into a fascinating character. Her primary external motivations are a quest for a [redacted object], and to prove her worth and helpfulness to her beloved older brother. Internally, she reacts to having been raised by horrible manipulative parents with a stubborn adherence to never telling a lie. Her arc is, on further consideration, a knightly one - a quest for a holy object, a devotion to brotherhood, a strict moral adherence to truth. Which is a theme I will confess I might have picked up right away on if she was a 40-year-old man on a horse, but "knight's honor" is something I didn't see immediately in a naive 20-year-old girl. It was fascinating to read exactly how that characterization sat her shoulders, to watch how others around her (and I) read her morals as naiveté and her quest as frivolous meddling until we got further inside her head. I love when a book has the guts to present a character as one thing, and lets them grow into something else, building on an understanding of human tendencies to make judgements and willingness to learn.

And opposite her, we have Violet Debenham, for whom I immediately was and remain ready to die. She's a young woman who escaped her English family to be an actress in New York City, who wields the art of illusion both as an acting job and a magical skill. Set up against Maud's stubborn devotion to the truth, Violet understands the power of artifice, especially for a woman in a misogynstic society. This is, in a lot of ways, my thematic catnip: explorations of people who fight back against societal perceptions of their "flaws" by turning those flaws into weapons. Violet is the more experienced of the two women - in terms of magic, life experience, and knowledge of sex. But she has a kind of softness underneath her shell that contrasts beautifully with the steely core inside Maud's apparent innocence, which the two women into very believable and often fiery contact and conflict.

The rest of what I have to say is going to remain a bit impressionistic, since I don't want to spoil the fun. There's a great cast of characters here, whose antics are kept grounded by the bone-dry sarcasm of a very put-upon Lord Hawthorn, who is going to absolutely kill it as the hero of the next book (I'm assuming. He almost has to be). There's a LOT going on plot-wise, but the author balances it all so well: within the first couple chapters, I had met a dozen new characters who I had no trouble keeping straight, and had an entire ocean liner mapped out so clearly I could follow all their comings and goings (these are two things I struggle MIGHTILY with. This book made me want to hire Freya Marske to help me remember names and follow spatial directions).

To those of you coming here from A Marvellous Light, A Restless Truth does an even better job of working the magic system into the moral universe of the story. Magic gets further enmeshed in questions of gender and power (and even though its only hinted at, imperialism) in ways that I want to scream about/write a dissertation on, but I CAN'T BECAUSE IT'S ALSO ALL SO SUSPENSEFUL AND EXCITING.

And I loved how glimpses of Edwin and Robin's life were woven in through the story, primarily in how Maud thinks about them both as family: it was such a gentle and loving way to check in on them (without having to do that awkward "trot out the previous couples" gesture we sometimes see in romance series). I get a bit choked up just thinking about it? How their relationship is so well-worn now that it just sinks into the way others think about their own impressions of home and family.

The prose is, unsurprisingly, stunning. It is at once gorgeously etherial and intensely grounded and carnal. It's a bit ironic, because I at least attempt to make something of a brand for myself around explaining what I like about prose, and I simply CANNOT UNDERSTAND how the richness of this prose does not get tiring or overwhelming for me as a reader, but it never does. And seeing that prose in service of open-door sex scenes between two women was an absolute pleasure. The words took the characters so deep into their own BODIES, I don't really know how to describe it.

Anyway, I really did love this book immensely. Right up through the ending, which offers not only a very satisfying "part 2 of 3" conclusion to the mystery, but also gives our heroines a gorgeous HFN that respects the reality of their age, their experiences, and the time they've known each other. It also contains one of the most generous instances of allowing guarded characters to keep some secrets as they grow into love that ... honestly it made me tear up. I will be thinking about it for ages, until this book comes out, and I can talk about it with everyone I know.