I haven’t done a reading post in months and months, So instead of doing one huge post, I’ll break it down.

Which Witch by Eva Ibbotson. This has always been my favourite Ibbotson. The dark wizard arriman the Awful decides to get married. Not because he particularly wants to, but because it has been foretold his heir will be an even greater wizard than he. And to choose a wife he arranges a competition among the witches from his hometown. Belladonna, the youngest witch falls hopelessly in love with him, but she is a white witch, and no matter what she does, her magic remains white. But then he meets a work called Rover and his owner, an orphan called Terence, and suddenly her magic goes black. Perhaps she will be able to win the competition, after all, if there wasn’t a new witch in town, whose magic isn’t only black; it’s evil.. It’s a funny book, but with its serious moments- especially Terence story is heartbreaking.

Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers. I started re-reading Sayers last year, and then got distracted, but I think I will continue now. I’ve always found her three first Lord Peter books the weakest ones, and Unnatural death is the one I re-read the least, apart from Five Red Herrings. The murder mystery is quite good; an old lady, dying in cancer, dies, all her money going to her great-niece who, by all accounts was devoted to her. The doctor attending the case is convinced something is amiss, but it all seems like a natural death. Enter Lord Peter, suddenly a lot more people are killed, and, of course, it was murder all along.

There are some glorious moments, the best the introduction of Mis Climpson, but what drags this book down is some rather unpleasant digs at lesbians, and several characters says nasty things about people of colour. I know it reflects views of the late 1920’s,, and at when it comes to the Reverend Hallelujah it is clear that the persons coming with derogatory remarks are narrow-minded bigots- he is actually a very pleasant person. But it still makes it a bit of an uncomfortable read.

The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley. I read The Watchmaker at Filigree Street earlier this year and loved it, so I was delighted when I learned Pulley was publishing another book. This one takes place in the same universe, but some 30 years before the events of the previous books, in 1859. They share a character, so it could be considered a prequel, but both books stands on their own legs. Here the hero, Merrick, is a young man who, due to damaging his legs, has resigned to live with his brother, whom he doesn’t get along with. They upper-class, but poor, the manor house they live in basically falling apart around them. There is also the fear of inherited insanity, something getting very acute for Merrick when a statue starts to move around, but it is only he who sees it. But then he is asked to travel to Peru to try to fetch trees to get quinine from, and to fetch it from the very place both Merrick's grandfather and father spend a lot of time.

I think this book was better than the first one; though there were a few minor things in the first part which never got fully followed up. Pulley has a trick in writing supernatural things in a way which makes them feels perfectly natural- like trees which may burst into flame at the smallest provocation. And in a way this is a book about two friendships; one this is falling apart, and one that tentatively starts, and then blossoms, both described vividly and interestingly. I look forward to see what Pulley will write next!

Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth. I read Forsyth’s The Wild Girl, about the wife of one of the Grimm brothers, interwoven with the fairy tale Deerskin. Bitter Greens have a similar set-up. Charlotte-Rose de la Force was a real person, an author and noblewoman at Louis XVI’s court. She was banished to a convent in the 1690’s, and the novel begins with her arriving at the convent. The story then split between her past, her life at the convent, and eventually a story an old nun tells her; the story of Rapunzel. Here it takes place in Venice in the late 16th century, told from Rapunzel’s point of view. Eventually we also get the sorceress’ story too, starting in the late 15th century.

Despite several timelines and POV’’s it was not difficult to tell them apart. Forsyth has a lovely language, and is very easy to read. She has also done extensive research which I love! You really do get a proper biography over Charlotte-Rose de la Force, authentic details about the clothes, as well as the proper history. I especially like that even if there is real magic in this story, it is still magic which very much rely suggestion, and real magic lore. The plot twist in the end wasn’t difficult to guess, but it didn’t matter- I enjoyed this book from beginning to end.

The Drowning Game by LS Hawker. Interesting start about a young woman who has been raised by a survivalist father, basically locked in and with no contact with other people.. When the father dies events unfold which makes her flee her hometown, trying to find out what happened to her mother. But all in all everything hinges on far too many unrealistic and fantastical events