Name: Witchmark
ISBN: 9780765398970

C. L. Polk

WINNER of the 2019 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, and a finalist for the Nebula Award, the Locus Award, and the Lammy Award! One of the 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time, according to Time Magazine One of the best books of 2018, according to NPR, Publishers Weekly, BuzzFeed, the Chicago Review, BookPage, and the B&N Sci-Fi and Fantasy Blog. C. L. Polk arrives on the scene with Witchmark, a stunning, addictive fantasy that combines intrigue, magic, betrayal, and romance. The New York Times calls it “thoroughly charming and deftly paced... an accomplished and enjoyable debut.” In an original world reminiscent of Edwardian England in the shadow of a World War, cabals of noble families use their unique magical gifts to control the fates of nations, while one young man seeks only to live a life of his own. Magic marked Miles Singer for suffering the day he was born, doomed either to be enslaved to his family's interest or to be committed to a witches' asylum. He went to war to escape his destiny and came home a different man, but he couldn’t leave his past behind. The war between Aeland and Laneer leaves men changed, strangers to their friends and family, but even after faking his own death and reinventing himself as a doctor at a cash-strapped veterans' hospital, Miles can’t hide what he truly is. When a fatally poisoned patient exposes Miles’ healing gift and his witchmark, he must put his anonymity and freedom at risk to investigate his patient’s murder. To find the truth he’ll need to rely on the family he despises, and on the kindness of the most gorgeous man he’s ever seen. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Witchmark

This book is fairly charming and unique. The magic is interesting and it’s almost cozy adjacent. The actual story isn’t cozy — considering it’s a murder mystery with magic — but the setting is. It’s like an urban fantasy meets historical fiction. It’s not our world but it has elements of our world that feel extremely recognizable. While this was cool, I wasn’t thrilled by any of it. I felt almost no need to keep reading it aside from my own motivation to finish a book this week. I felt nothing for the characters. There was nothing wrong with them, but there also wasn’t anything making them standout. I wanted to feel the angst and desperation between Miles and the people around him, but it felt like the author was telling me his emotions instead of showing me. Overall, I felt “eh” and will only continue the series if I’m in a slump and need something easy to read. 

Nik ✨

felt like it had a bit of an abrupt start… like it almost feels like it’s missing the exposition..? it was very focused on showing miles’ current reality rather than exploring his memories or past, which disconnects you from the characters and world-building a bit. looking past that, it still is very charming and def had me a little hooked during the second half :)

grace 

In an original world reminiscent of Edwardian England in the shadow of a world war, cabals of noble families use their unique magical gifts to control the fates of nations, while one young man seeks only to live a life of his own. Moving at a brilliant pace and pulsing with deadly intrigue and unforgettable characters, Witchmark grabs readers and doesn't let go until the thrilling conclusion.Magic marked Miles Singer for suffering the day he was born, doomed either to be a slave to his family's interest or to be committed to a witches' asylum. He went to war to escape his destiny and came home a different man, but he couldn't leave his past behind. The war between Aeland and Laneer leaves men changed, strangers to their friends and family. Even after faking his own death and reinventing himself as a doctor at a cash-strapped veteran's hospital, Miles can't hide what he truly is.

Gillian Rose

2.75 stars

I had a really tough time with this book. I just couldn't connect with it at all. Not the magic, not the alternate history, not the characters, not the romance. I mostly found it boring and slow.

Jamieson

Me and this book got off to a bit of a rocky start but once we got going we really got along. A lot of my friends loved this book and I see why - it's a really cute fantasy with an m/m relationship at the centre and a really unique setting. 

Anyways, you know when you just don't have strong feelings about a book either way, like it's just a solid three star read? Yeah. We all know those are the hardest books to review, so this will be brief. 

Witchmark is a fantasy set in a world that feels like a blend of Edwardian England aesthetics, and World War One warfare. We follow Miles Singer, a witch who ran away from his family, joined the ongoing war, and then became a doctor who works with ex-soldiers who have developed a mysterious sickness only soldiers are getting. When Nick Elliott, one of his patients dies under mysterious circumstances, Miles, along with his new friend Tristan, have to solve the case. 

For me at least, Witchmark was a book with good concepts and ideas that failed a bit upon execution. The world was interesting and unique - it blended the historical and fantastical worlds well, and created a setting that felt so different to anything else I've read. The aesthetic of people biking around all the time, and the magical feel was really cute. But I felt the world overall wasn't explained that well, especially when it came to the magic. Miles pretty much - never, lets you in on the info he knows, and it made it hard to understand the world and lots of the plot. It's also why I struggled to get into this book at first. 

The plot moves pretty quickly, and the second half especially is fast. I liked the mystery element and the way the exploration of wealth, class and privilege as the plot unfolds. Although I did have trouble starting this, once it was going it was very enjoyable. The dynamics of oppression and control also play quite a big role in shaping the plot and world and again, I thought C.L Polk did a really good job at weaving the thematic issues throughout the plot. 

My favourite part was definitely the romance. Miles and Tristan were really cute and I loved their romantic scenes. Tristan is kind of *too perfect* and his character doesn't have heaps of complexity - but the two were cute and happy together so I decided to give it a pass. 

Overall this is a really cute book. I loved the romance and the way the themes are explored. It wasn't like an instant favourite for me, especially since it took me SO LONG to get into, but it's definitely sweet and I would recommend it for a historical fantasy with an m/m romance!

Elizabeth Garza

Set in an alternate late-1800s, early-1900s England, this book follows the life of doctor Miles Singer a witch in hiding. It was refreshing to read a witch story that didn't solely focus on a female witch. In fact, in addition to being male, Dr. Singer is also gay. *sighs happily* so refreshing. The writing was a little slow at first, but I honestly think that was more due to the narrator than the actual writing style. He read the book in a ... British professor, I-have-feelings-but-find-it-very-hard-to-express-said-feelings kinda way. Buuuuuuut once I adjusted to that, I found it to be delightful. 

Also, once the Mystery started getting more fleshed out in addition to the magical system in this world getting fleshed out it got REALLY interesting. And the ending was great. Some of the characters, like Mile's sister, Grace, did really surprising 180s and I was like uhhh yay you're on the good guys side (like for real this time) but wut? I did a literal SMH, but moved along. This is the first book in a ... trilogy (??), but it doesn't have any annoying cliff hangers. And though I will be listening to the next book, I don't think one has to.

Judy McClure

What a wonderful surprise this book was. I so enjoyed the story which kept me enthralled from start to finish. Great characters, world building and magical system. I look forward to reading more stories featuring these characters and to see what happens next!

Alexia Cambaling

Witchmark caught me off-guard with how deceptively charming it was. What seemed to be a simple murder mystery quickly unravels to become something more, something connected with a much larger plot- one which can see a country unravel and erupt. It’s really just a beautiful book and I enjoyed every moment of it. Witchmark is an excellent book, please read it. It’s a magical murder mystery with gays and possibly inciting nearly changing an entire country by exposing a terrible system. If you don’t want spoilers, I’ll just say this very good and if you like witches, family drama, and Victorian-Edwardian era type settings, this is for you.

 I don’t think I’ll be able to write this review properly without spoilers so there will be spoilers after this point. 

Witchmark is a Gaslamp Fantasy set in this universe’s equivalent of the late Victorian to Edwardian era. There’s also an in-universe equivalent of WWI- albeit, with vastly different causes. Here, everything is powered by aether which is basically magic and this, along with the mages who control Aeland’s weather are the reason for its prosperity.

(view spoiler)[ I originally titled this review “Progress Written in Blood” because that’s what this book is essentially about. If you’re the wrong type of mage from a high-born family, you get to become a living battery for the Storm-Singers to enhance their power. These Storm-Singers are so prized because of how they control Aeland’s weather. Meanwhile, their Secondaries are good as slaves so it’s a fate Miles tried desperately to avoid- to the point of running away to the army and faking his own death. Unfortunately, things aren’t that simple and when one of his patients die, he is caught up in a plot bigger than what it seems at first glance.

Miles is such a fascinating, complex character. He’s a veteran of the war and works in a veteran’s hospital. The way he cares for his patients is really nice to read about and I love how he doesn’t abandon them, no matter what happens. While he strives to distance himself from his family as much as he could and actively avoids highborn society, he’s still very much a product of his upbringing and believed that there was a difference between the mostly-poor witches and the highborn wealthy mages. It takes the arrival of a strange man, Tristan Hunter for him to challenge these assumptions and find out harsh truths about the society he lives in.

The truth was- it wasn’t true that poor witches inevitably go mad. It was all a lie so that they could be sent to asylums where they could be used, so that their souls could power Aeland. It was a monstrous secret and one which was abhorrent to all. It portrays the horror of what people are willing to do in the name of “progress”. This even connects directly to the war which has been affecting soldiers who then go on killing sprees. Honestly, Witchmark has this potent blend of mystery, politics, family drama, and the slow slide to a possible revolution or another war.  (hide spoiler)]

Freedom is a huge theme in this book. Throughout the story, Miles constantly reiterates his desire for freedom and it does get constantly undermined by his family and the greater society he lives in. This personal desire can then be seen in the larger context of the novel- that of the poorer witches, the ones who weren’t born to aristocracy and thus doomed to the asylums. They too, deserve freedom and to know that their gifts aren’t useless because they aren’t ‘mages’ or Storm-Singers.

There’s also a hefty amount of family drama in this book in part due to Grace, Miles’ sister and the person he was supposed to be a Secondary to. While Miles does love Grace as his sister, there’s always that undercurrent of resentment in their interactions as Grace is the prodigy, the favorite child. Their relationship is complex and while there are a lot of things that happen in this book which makes Grace not exactly a good person, she does have a lot of moral complexity to her which I appreciated. I really would like to see her redeem herself for her actions more in the next book.

I enjoyed the romance between Miles and Tristan. It’s kind of an instant attraction thing followed by a slow-ish burn as they try to solve the murder mystery. I also liked that despite who-or what Tristan is, that doesn’t really play a part in their relationship. They were together because they got to know each other enough to know that they like each other and wanted to be in a relationship. It was very cute and heartwarming.

Overall, Witchmark is a charming book which eases you into the larger context of its world and the implications which surround it. Highly recommended.

Heather Killeen

There were some really cool elements in this, and the romantic tension was great, but I felt like some of the world building elements were thrown in and explained too quickly without showing us how these elements work, or why the society is set up the way it is. I was left with a lot of questions and felt like the romance quickly turned into a instalove situation. It was an enjoyable read though for sure!

 Bruna Acioly Leão

This is like a gay Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.

Set in an alternative world (that feels very British), we follow the point of view of Dr. Miles Singer - an army surgeon with a secret: he is a witch. But his magic is not his own. He is hiding from his powerful Mage family, because his abilities (particularly healing) are considered secondary and he is destined to bound himself to serve his sister who possesses what is considered to be higher magic among this magical nobility. His life is upended when upon trying to save a patient, his secret is exposed to Tristan Hunter, a man Miles is instantly attracted to.

What I Liked: the romance was adorable, Miles was a great narrator and character, the plot surrounding Miles wanting to be free from his families ties and how terribly the Secondaries were treated, the world is very complex and nuanced and I really felt transported to Aeland.

What I didn't like so much: I didn't really care for the main mystery plotline, as I feel I kind of solved it almost immediately (view spoiler)[ I didn't know it had to do with the Laneer war, but clearly they were possessed. (hide spoiler)]. Also, I don't really understand Tristan as character - he is kind of perfect, it's weird.

Overall: I think this was a fun book and I am really interested in reading more about this world.