Review: The Magpie Lord by K.J. Charles

From the blurb:

Exiled to China for twenty years, Lucien Vaudrey never planned to return to England. But with the mysterious deaths of his father and brother, it seems the new Lord Crane has inherited an earldom. He’s also inherited his family’s enemies. He needs magical assistance, fast. He doesn’t expect it to turn up angry.

Magician Stephen Day has good reason to hate Crane’s family. Unfortunately, it’s his job to deal with supernatural threats. Besides, the earl is unlike any aristocrat he’s ever met, with the tattoos, the attitude…and the way Crane seems determined to get him into bed. That’s definitely unusual.

Soon Stephen is falling hard for the worst possible man, at the worst possible time. But Crane’s dangerous appeal isn’t the only thing rendering Stephen powerless. Evil pervades the house, a web of plots is closing round Crane, and if Stephen can’t find a way through it—they’re both going to die.

Review:

I couldn't put this novel down.

The plot is well focused and the main characters are incredibly well drawn.  The pacing is just phenomenally well executed.  While there are a few cliches, e.g. a tall, strong earl, the fact that Lord Crane has spent 15 years in China adds a really nice embellishment to the character.

K.J. Charles does a really great job of balancing elements of Victorian England with a paranormal story line.  Fans of romance might find the romance plot takes a while to get into, but, trust me, it's worth it.

The pacing of the romance is something that I really admired.  The two heroes really do get to know each other and the attraction doesn't feel forced.  There's also the whole business of being in peril and saving one another that helps to solidify their attraction.  What others would have brushed off as a bromance, K.J. Charles masterfully makes into a romance.

The dynamic between the dangerous, but mostly good Lord Crane, and the mysterious, but grudge holding Stephen Day is first almost hostile before journeying through to romantic interest.  Their passion for one another develops over the course of the novel in a series of unfolding events, and K.J. Charles masterfully controls the unfolding relationship by building up to a crescendo.

The editorial execution was, from what I could tell, flawless.  The ebook cover was professional, interesting, and definitely attention grabbing. Overall, a polished end result.

It is one of the best queer romances that I've read, although I have my quibbles with it.  I am eagerly awaiting book 2, A Case of Possession due to be published Jan 28, 2014.

Title: The Magpie Lord
Author: KJ Charles
Publisher: Samhain
Publishing Date: Sep 3, 2013
Length: Novel (50k)
Genre: Romance/Paranormal/Historical
Type: m/m