Published By: Manilla
Pages: 400
Released On: 19/06/2025
Two women. An extraordinary power. In a time of revolution, betrayal could lie in the turn of a card . . . It is the early days of the French Revolution and, on the streets of Paris, terror reigns.
Marie Anne Adelaide Lenormand is a young woman with an extraordinary power – through her tarot cards, she can commune with the dead, revolutionaries and the aristocracy alike seeking her out to divine their fortunes. Lenormand is loyal to Marie Antoinette and the dauphin of France, but she has seen the queen’s fate in the cards and must take care that it doesn’t become her own.
Then, one fateful day, she comes across Cait, a scullery maid from Ireland who has travelled to Paris for love. Cait has powers too – she can read people’s pasts as Lenormand reads their futures. The two young women share an electrifying connection, drawn to each other’s abilities. But Cait is hiding something. What will she do – and who will she betray – to bring revolution to the shores of her beloved Ireland too?
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Manilla for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
My dislike for long books over about 400 pages is well known and so books are always at a slight disadvantage before I’ve even started them. However, not long before this, I read a 500 page book in one day because it was so good, so I know it can be done, it just has to warrant being that long. And sadly, this fell victim to this dislike. But first the positives.
I can really appreciate the level of historical research that has gone into this, it’s very thorough and really helps bring everything to life. There’s no doubting her love for the period and for history, and this passion is clear to see on the page.
I didn’t know anything about the French/Irish connection, and so it was enjoyable learning about something new. It is a historical epic yes, but there’s fantasy elements, dark supernatural touches, the odd flash of romance.
However, I found it a difficult read. There’s lots of characters, lots of settings, lots of stories going on that I struggled to find the main one, and I think that’s my main issue, there’s too much going on, and I feel perhaps it would have been easier to read if she’d focussed on a couple of storylines rather than spreading herself too thinly.
The characters were interesting enough and full of layers, and I do love reading about women during a time when men were seen as superior. But I think the downfall here is there are too many characters and so I couldn’t focus on one or two of them, and some felt superfluous to the story. But I do think, overall, the characters are where the strength lies in this book.
The fear I have about long books is evident here. I feel it rambles at times and ends up being complicated for no reason. So I feel if it was tightened up a bit, the long stretched-out bits culled slightly, it would be a much stronger read. But I did enjoy it none the less, and I have a copy of her previous book The Witches of Vardo, which I am excited to read as that’s much shorter.
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