Ever since she broke the curse that made her live as a harpy for two years, Jules has worked as a cursebreaker, taking on magical odd jobs for minimal pay and the occasional spot of cake. In a society obsessed with propriety and status, she must tread carefully to maintain her ties to both her aristocratic mother and the wild clamor of harpies with whom she once flew. The delicate balance she has struck is disrupted when her childood friend, Anthony, begs for help with a disgruntled sword. At first, she assumes it will be a job like any other, but the sword soon reveals itself to be an ancient, powerful weapon: the dubious sword forged by the magician Wayland Smith that can literally cut through human certainty. Now, it has awakened to challenge a new law in Parliament that would strip millions of their rights—magical and mundane people alike. The man behind the law, Lord Ventstock, was the very person who once cursed Jules, and she’s determined not to let him hurt anyone else.
A novella of manners and magic set in a Victorian London that never existed but provides a truer reflection of our world than any mirror could ever attempt!
A Dubious Clamor is a delightful, whimsy free celebration of friendship, love, family and standing up for what is right against overwhelming odds. There is a whole lot of story in this deceptively slight book and it gave me pause for thought with regard to traditionally terrifying monsters (Harpies) while indulging my love of British history (in particular the Victorian age) and myth (I am a fan of stories of Wayland the Smith). There is also a hint of Oscar Wilde about the story and some scandalous behavior that brought to mind Ncuti Gatwa’s take on Algernon Moncreiffe in The Importance of Being Earnest.
More seriously, London as a melting-pot was an essential piece of the background being targeted by the villainous Lord Ventwood as was the continuing rise of what was known as the ‘middling sort’ – people finding new paths, lives and employment for themselves and their families, shaking of the shackles of the traditional work that their sort had always done.
The London and world that Marissa has created and only hinted at in this story is one that I will hopefully have the chance to visit again one day (hint, hint).
A Dubious Clamor is written by Marissa Lingen and will be published by Horned Lark Press on September 15 and you will be able to buy it wherever good books are sold from thereafter (or request it at your local library).
