The Glamourist histories by Mary Robinette Kowal
Corsair, 2013
Shades of milk and honey. ISBN 9781472102492
Glamour in Glass. ISBN 9781472102522
(Age: 15+) Recommended. Magic. Regency England. Romance. In a fine
tribute to Jane Austen in Shades of milk and honey, Mary
Robinette Kowal vividly describes an alternate Regency England,
where talented people can perform glamour, a form of illusion. Jane
Ellsworth is a woman ahead of her time, not only can she perform
glamour like men, but she wants to learn more about her art. However
she is expected to behave like a genteel woman and marry well, even
though she is constantly in the shadow of her beautiful sister. When
the glamourist Mr Vincent visits her area, love comes unexpectedly.
In the second in the series, Glamour in glass, Jane is in
Belgium on her honeymoon with Vincent, when Napoleon escapes from
his exile in Elba. Jane finds herself having to use all her powers
of glamour to rescue her husband when he is imprisoned, accused of
being a spy.
Mary Robinette Kowal has succeeded in creating a very credible
world, with all the restrictions binding women that would be found
in Regency England, while adding in a world that takes the magic of
glamour as a matter of course. Her descriptions of glamour, the work
that both Jane and Vincent do to create amazing illusions, are
refreshingly unique and quite fascinating.
The character if Jane is well developed, she is sensible and loving,
but always overlooked when compared with her beautiful sister
Melody, who attracts all the suitable men in the district. Her
skills and loyalty however are noticed by Vincent, a suitably
taciturn hero.
Glamour in Glass follows and will also delight readers who
enjoyed the first in the series. Once again the plight of women in
the Regency period is highlighted, when Jane is not entrusted with
the secret work that Vincent is doing for the government. However it
is her skill and courage that rescues Vincent from imprisonment and
helps the English cause.
Readers who enjoy the works of Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen will
pick this series up with delight and would also enjoy Lady Helen
and the Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman. Both novels by Mary
Robinette Kowal were nominated for Nebula Awards, Locus Awards and
Romantic Times awards and there are more in the series.
Pat Pledger