Shades of Milk and HoneyBy Mary Robinette Kowal
Tor, 2010. 304 pgs. Fantasy.
Ever wonder why all those women fainted back in Regency England? Little did you know it was because of over exertion while weaving glamours. In Mary Robinette Kowal’s alternate version of Jane Austen’s England, a lady must be able to weave the subtlest of glamours into her home and personage in order to be considered truly talented. It must not be anything too garish, just simple things like making the fire glow a little brighter or swaying trees in a painting.
Jane and Melody are two sisters hoping to make advantageous marriages, but Jane has all the talent and Melody has all the beauty. When Jane discovers that one of Melody’s suitors is a scoundrel set on taking advantage, she uses her skills to try and set things right. However, Jane still doesn’t believe her talents are enough to attract a match and almost overlooks the love of a man right in front of her.
This is a quick, fun read. I enjoyed the fantastical elements mixed in with Jane Austen type characters. However, I felt the concept was better than the actual results.
AJ
1 comment:
Simply put, Shades of Milk and Honey is Jane Austen with magic. But Kowal has done something far more elegant than just mashing those two concepts together. The glamour system of magic is designed to wonder, to both draw and subvert your attention. Kowal chose to weave in the perfect kind of magic for what was expected of young ladies in Austen's books. And then, masterfully, she teased at the depths of how that magic changed society, drawing our attention, without spending too much time going into how the weaves of glamours work. On top of that, she gives us characters and a plot snuggly fit into the Jane Austen's genre, subverting our attention from the potentially monolithic depth of society and magic she could have focused on. And even better, the book actually ends, we know what happens to the main character, we know what path she chooses, and it's a genuinely heartwarming story, on top of all the other masterful stuff!
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