kblincoln's review against another edition
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series for the formal, alternate-turn of the century European society tone, engaging hero (Duilio) who is earnest and doggedly pragmatic (who chooses to snag pastries from the kitchen on the way to a morgue), and interesting political scheming in an alternate Portugal that has outlawed nonhumans-- selkies, otters, and sereia. (The heroine--Oriana--is okay, she's a bit too emotionally reserved for me, I liked Duilio better).
This second one is even better: with more juicy relationships and revealing layers of character backstory as well as ratcheting up the politics around gruesome murders.
We get alternating POVs, here, with both hero and heroine, as well as a bit of Duilio's police-inspector Joaquim (who is slowly realizing he's not so entirely human as he once thought) which didn't tick off my anti-multiple POV peeve because of the tightly interlaced plot and emotional, romantic arc Joaquim is also experiencing. Sometimes, thought, the POV change didn't "feel" like a change so much as a reason to follow Joaquim somewhere Duilio wasn't going. Small quibble.
Did I mention a tight plot? Tight as a corset (that Oriana can't wear because her sereia lungs are too small-- but I'm getting ahead of myself) both with seemingly unrelated murders and Joaquim's mysterious dreams of a woman, as well as Oriana's betrayal by her people and Portugal's Prince's continuing persecution of non-humans.
It all comes together in the end in a lovely, satisfying way, revealing even deeper issues between Portugal, the Sereia, and Spain.
So there's lots of poncing around talking to people, carefully trying to be discreet with love relationships, Duilio trying not to call attention to his family for fear of revealing his selkie heritage, and speculation. Some of that tempted me to skim at times, but then we'd get to a juicy relationship, gruesome murder, or political revelation and i was drawn back in.
Or the invisible infante would show up. Or Duilio's mother would make some very proper kind of statement condoning improper behavior.
Lovely second book overall, I am definitely heading out to the third one as I can't wait to find out how Duilio and Oriana fare in the new sticky situation set up for them at the end of this.
This second one is even better: with more juicy relationships and revealing layers of character backstory as well as ratcheting up the politics around gruesome murders.
We get alternating POVs, here, with both hero and heroine, as well as a bit of Duilio's police-inspector Joaquim (who is slowly realizing he's not so entirely human as he once thought) which didn't tick off my anti-multiple POV peeve because of the tightly interlaced plot and emotional, romantic arc Joaquim is also experiencing. Sometimes, thought, the POV change didn't "feel" like a change so much as a reason to follow Joaquim somewhere Duilio wasn't going. Small quibble.
Did I mention a tight plot? Tight as a corset (that Oriana can't wear because her sereia lungs are too small-- but I'm getting ahead of myself) both with seemingly unrelated murders and Joaquim's mysterious dreams of a woman, as well as Oriana's betrayal by her people and Portugal's Prince's continuing persecution of non-humans.
It all comes together in the end in a lovely, satisfying way, revealing even deeper issues between Portugal, the Sereia, and Spain.
So there's lots of poncing around talking to people, carefully trying to be discreet with love relationships, Duilio trying not to call attention to his family for fear of revealing his selkie heritage, and speculation. Some of that tempted me to skim at times, but then we'd get to a juicy relationship, gruesome murder, or political revelation and i was drawn back in.
Or the invisible infante would show up. Or Duilio's mother would make some very proper kind of statement condoning improper behavior.
Lovely second book overall, I am definitely heading out to the third one as I can't wait to find out how Duilio and Oriana fare in the new sticky situation set up for them at the end of this.
melv2052's review against another edition
5.0
I have never written a review before so bear with me. I have not read the first book in this series. But I don't feel completely lost as I have in the past when skipping books. This story was just my style. I love the historical feel as well as the selkies. The characters draw you in and make you feel what they feel. Truly a book to lose yourself in.
mtk_reads's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to like this so much more than I did! The mystery was engaging and creepy, Oriana and Duilio continued to have excellent chemistry...and yet, enh. ENH. I think I was mostly just annoyed by how many of their misunderstandings could have been resolved by just...talking about things? I mean, honestly, how hard is it to say, "bro, I super want to bang you, but I also am not wild about living here pretending to be a human forever!"? Especially given how generally with-it Oriana was - it was jarring and frustrated.
Plus, fade-to-black love scenes are 10000% not my jam. GO HARD OR GO HOME.
That said, if there is a third book, I will totes mcgotes read it - this is a fun universe, and I would be really interested in a more in-depth exploration of the sereia culture.
Plus, fade-to-black love scenes are 10000% not my jam. GO HARD OR GO HOME.
That said, if there is a third book, I will totes mcgotes read it - this is a fun universe, and I would be really interested in a more in-depth exploration of the sereia culture.
wordnerdy's review against another edition
4.0
http://wordnerdy.blogspot.com/2014/07/2014-book-152.html
cupiscent's review against another edition
4.0
This continued both the things I enjoyed and the things that annoyed me from the first book. In the former camp: a delightful world of manners and magical waterfolk; a proper grown-up romance with genuine issues to make work; a great cast of capable and foible-icious characters. In the latter camp: a predilection for detail that often swamps the big plot and emotion points.
Those details seemed particularly problematic in this second book because there was so much going on that I really begrudge the use of those words to give us all the little twiddly bits of society manners and explanations of things. Indeed, the awesome foursome of special investigators were almost entirely sidelined because there just wasn't space for them amongst Oriana and Duilio's story. Now, I love Oriana and Duilio, but I love Nadezhda, and I really wanted to see more of her arc throughout this, especially considering how important she is for the finale.
But overall, I enjoyed this and look forward to the third one bubbling to the top of my to-read list.
Those details seemed particularly problematic in this second book because there was so much going on that I really begrudge the use of those words to give us all the little twiddly bits of society manners and explanations of things. Indeed, the awesome foursome of special investigators were almost entirely sidelined because there just wasn't space for them amongst Oriana and Duilio's story. Now, I love Oriana and Duilio, but I love Nadezhda, and I really wanted to see more of her arc throughout this, especially considering how important she is for the finale.
But overall, I enjoyed this and look forward to the third one bubbling to the top of my to-read list.
jaclynder's review against another edition
4.0
A strange thing happened when I was reading The Seat of Magic. Despite feeling pretty mediocre about the first book, The Golden City, I totally fell in love with its follow up. The Seat of Magic was lush, romantic and mysterious and I couldn’t have been more engaged reading. I am so glad that I picked this one up. It would have been so easy to forget about this one since I wasn’t totally enthralled by book one, but the gorgeous cover grabbed my attention and I thought it was time to give this world another shot. I can’t remember what didn’t work for me the first time round, because I absolutely loved it in the second book.
The Seat of Magic picks up soon after the events of the first novel. Oriana has returned to her homeland, but has promised to return to the city. Duilio soon finds himself helping the police investigate another series of deaths; it seems that someone is killing non-humans, but to what end is anyone’s guess. While Duilio investigates these murders he can’t shake the feeling that Oriana is in danger, and after a daring rescue, Duilio and Oriana have to determine how the murders and her imprisonment is connected.
In a lot of ways, The Seat of Magic isn’t any different from The Golden City. Mystery remains a large part of the second book; however, the romance element does move forward a lot more than it did in The Golden City. It is the romance that I felt was very interesting in The Seat of Magic. Because Oriana is a sereia, a non-human, many of her expectations of romance and relationships are informed by that culture. As this is set in early 20th century Portugal, society is governed by a strict set of acceptable behaviour, at least for those of the upper classes. As a sereia Oriana is not bound by those conventions; however, taking up with Duilio will mean restricting her own identity in favour of disguising herself as human for the rest of her life. I really liked how Oriana felt conflicted about entering into a relationship with Duilio; from her perspective she was giving up a lot and I appreciated the fact that they negotiated this obstacle and that it wasn't brushed aside in favour of an assumed happily ever after.
What was also interesting and entertaining about Duilio and Oriana’s romance was the fact that in Oriana’s mind it is the woman’s job to do the courting. Oriana makes the decision to court Duilio and convince him to be her mate, which doesn’t necessarily mean marriage. The reversal of expected gender roles in the romance department was a strong element in The Seat of Magic and it was well executed. Never did Oriana's efforts at courting read as a gimmick for the plot to move forward in an unusual manner. The fact Oriana would be the one to do the courting was explained and grounded in the culture that she grew up in.
The mystery facet of The Seat of Magic is rather dependent on reading the previous book, so I wouldn’t recommend reading this one out of order. The investigation into to the killer hunting non-humans in the city was a very important element and it developed why non-humans were reviled and made clear how easy it was for non-humans to live beneath notice in a city that has outlawed their existence. The Seat of Magic makes some dramatic changes to the status of non-humans, and I can’t wait to see how these changes unfold with the third book, The Shores of Spain.
The Seat of Magic is a strong and compelling follow-up to The Golden City. Not only are the characters developed but also the world is further explored. The setting of Portugal in the 1900s is both magical and evocative. Anyone who appreciates their historical fantasy with a strong sense of place will love this one.
Originally reviewed at The Book Adventures.
The Seat of Magic picks up soon after the events of the first novel. Oriana has returned to her homeland, but has promised to return to the city. Duilio soon finds himself helping the police investigate another series of deaths; it seems that someone is killing non-humans, but to what end is anyone’s guess. While Duilio investigates these murders he can’t shake the feeling that Oriana is in danger, and after a daring rescue, Duilio and Oriana have to determine how the murders and her imprisonment is connected.
In a lot of ways, The Seat of Magic isn’t any different from The Golden City. Mystery remains a large part of the second book; however, the romance element does move forward a lot more than it did in The Golden City. It is the romance that I felt was very interesting in The Seat of Magic. Because Oriana is a sereia, a non-human, many of her expectations of romance and relationships are informed by that culture. As this is set in early 20th century Portugal, society is governed by a strict set of acceptable behaviour, at least for those of the upper classes. As a sereia Oriana is not bound by those conventions; however, taking up with Duilio will mean restricting her own identity in favour of disguising herself as human for the rest of her life. I really liked how Oriana felt conflicted about entering into a relationship with Duilio; from her perspective she was giving up a lot and I appreciated the fact that they negotiated this obstacle and that it wasn't brushed aside in favour of an assumed happily ever after.
What was also interesting and entertaining about Duilio and Oriana’s romance was the fact that in Oriana’s mind it is the woman’s job to do the courting. Oriana makes the decision to court Duilio and convince him to be her mate, which doesn’t necessarily mean marriage. The reversal of expected gender roles in the romance department was a strong element in The Seat of Magic and it was well executed. Never did Oriana's efforts at courting read as a gimmick for the plot to move forward in an unusual manner. The fact Oriana would be the one to do the courting was explained and grounded in the culture that she grew up in.
The mystery facet of The Seat of Magic is rather dependent on reading the previous book, so I wouldn’t recommend reading this one out of order. The investigation into to the killer hunting non-humans in the city was a very important element and it developed why non-humans were reviled and made clear how easy it was for non-humans to live beneath notice in a city that has outlawed their existence. The Seat of Magic makes some dramatic changes to the status of non-humans, and I can’t wait to see how these changes unfold with the third book, The Shores of Spain.
The Seat of Magic is a strong and compelling follow-up to The Golden City. Not only are the characters developed but also the world is further explored. The setting of Portugal in the 1900s is both magical and evocative. Anyone who appreciates their historical fantasy with a strong sense of place will love this one.
Originally reviewed at The Book Adventures.
bcinkoske's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed reading this book. The characters are well developed and diverse. Conflicts take place on several levels. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.
drowninginthewords_jessica's review against another edition
4.0
4.5
I liked it more than The Golden City. the characters were more established and relationships were fleshed out. their interactions were fun and lively. my main complaint is that a character previously believed to be dead was found to be alive without clues to that truth before the reveal.
I liked it more than The Golden City. the characters were more established and relationships were fleshed out. their interactions were fun and lively. my main complaint is that a character previously believed to be dead was found to be alive without clues to that truth before the reveal.
wilde_book_garden's review against another edition
4.0
I have to agree with other reviewers--this second book in the series (trilogy?) reads much smoother and is much more exciting than the first. Although I did like the set-up for the mythology in The Golden City, The Seat of Magic gives us a chance to really explore the characters and another creepy mystery.
Favorite part: the scene with Miss Vladimirova at the end. Without giving anything away...I thought it was a nice addition!
Favorite part: the scene with Miss Vladimirova at the end. Without giving anything away...I thought it was a nice addition!
amym84's review against another edition
4.0
Originally posted at Vampire Book Club
After solving the mystery/murders of the houses under the sea, Oriana was called back to her people. She promised Duilio she would return. That was two weeks ago and he’s heard nothing from her. His talent tells him that Oriana is anything but safe and secure, but he has no idea where to even start looking for her.
Besides worrying over Oriana, Duilio’s cousin Joaquim requires his assistance in uncovering a series of mysterious murders and disappearances occurring throughout the Golden City. Duilio is drawn even further into the investigation when it is discovered one of the missing girls is part of his brother Erdano’s selkie harem. Now he has to discover if the girl being a selkie was just a coincidence or if she was taken for a specific reason.
J. Kathleen Cheney does a good job of making Oriana’s whereabouts foremost in everyone’s mind, even with the missing/murdered girls. Finding out where Oriana is drives the first part of the book, but I think it’s safe enough to say that Oriana does return. I’ll try to keep the details of Oriana’s return under wraps as much as possible, but it may prove a difficult task seeing as how much of the mystery involving the missing girls and Oriana’s own confinement are linked together, which also turns out to be my biggest complaint about the book. I oftentimes found the coincidences and links to be a little too convenient (people happening to be in the same place at the same time with the same connections). But when I step back and look at the bigger picture of what’s going on I suppose I can be forgiving if some happenstance feels a little too plotted out because The Seat of Magic did keep my attention very well.
Something I can talk about with little censor is Duilio and Oriana’s relationship. I was very happy with the progression of things between them in this book. The attraction, even hesitantly, was there in The Golden City, but was very reserved for society’s sake. Neither Duilio nor Oriana knows what the future will bring, but they are both in agreement that they don’t want to waste time waiting. Where the conundrum comes in is the fact that Oriana is a sereia, and they both end up going about the courtship in different ways. One of the best things about the series so far is that Oriana is treated as an equal to Duilio and all the other men of authority so why shouldn’t she be the pursuer in regards to courting Duilio? I love the way it all plays out.
The Seat of Magic is a very pivotal book in the series because it ties up a lot of story threads started in The Golden City. Certain events cause unavoidable changes, and I’m interested to find out what the general feelings are towards said changes. It prepares for our characters to go off on new assignments and adventures, which will hopefully lead us away from The Golden City and to sereia land, which is something I’ve wanted to happen for two books now.
After solving the mystery/murders of the houses under the sea, Oriana was called back to her people. She promised Duilio she would return. That was two weeks ago and he’s heard nothing from her. His talent tells him that Oriana is anything but safe and secure, but he has no idea where to even start looking for her.
Besides worrying over Oriana, Duilio’s cousin Joaquim requires his assistance in uncovering a series of mysterious murders and disappearances occurring throughout the Golden City. Duilio is drawn even further into the investigation when it is discovered one of the missing girls is part of his brother Erdano’s selkie harem. Now he has to discover if the girl being a selkie was just a coincidence or if she was taken for a specific reason.
J. Kathleen Cheney does a good job of making Oriana’s whereabouts foremost in everyone’s mind, even with the missing/murdered girls. Finding out where Oriana is drives the first part of the book, but I think it’s safe enough to say that Oriana does return. I’ll try to keep the details of Oriana’s return under wraps as much as possible, but it may prove a difficult task seeing as how much of the mystery involving the missing girls and Oriana’s own confinement are linked together, which also turns out to be my biggest complaint about the book. I oftentimes found the coincidences and links to be a little too convenient (people happening to be in the same place at the same time with the same connections). But when I step back and look at the bigger picture of what’s going on I suppose I can be forgiving if some happenstance feels a little too plotted out because The Seat of Magic did keep my attention very well.
Something I can talk about with little censor is Duilio and Oriana’s relationship. I was very happy with the progression of things between them in this book. The attraction, even hesitantly, was there in The Golden City, but was very reserved for society’s sake. Neither Duilio nor Oriana knows what the future will bring, but they are both in agreement that they don’t want to waste time waiting. Where the conundrum comes in is the fact that Oriana is a sereia, and they both end up going about the courtship in different ways. One of the best things about the series so far is that Oriana is treated as an equal to Duilio and all the other men of authority so why shouldn’t she be the pursuer in regards to courting Duilio? I love the way it all plays out.
The Seat of Magic is a very pivotal book in the series because it ties up a lot of story threads started in The Golden City. Certain events cause unavoidable changes, and I’m interested to find out what the general feelings are towards said changes. It prepares for our characters to go off on new assignments and adventures, which will hopefully lead us away from The Golden City and to sereia land, which is something I’ve wanted to happen for two books now.