Showing posts with label Glass and Steele. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Glass and Steele. Show all posts

Friday, March 21, 2025

The Toymaker's Curse by C.J. Archer

The books are getting rather formulaic (and, really, have been for a bit) but there are only a few left in this series so I'm going to finish it out.
In this book, Matt and India encounter a toymaker who claims his magic was diminished by a  curse. When the toymaker is murdered, they are thrown into yet another mystery surrounded by magic.
Aunt Leticia is working on making Willie and Farnsworth fall in love... perhaps even get married. 

Three stars
This book came out March 2, 2021
Glass and Steele #10
Follows The Kidnapper's Accomplice
Followed by The Spymaster's Scheme
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own



Friday, March 14, 2025

The Kidnapper's Accomplice by C.J. Archer

I think most reviews will start with the shocking reveal that, in this book, Willie wears a dress. It's a bet with Lord Farnsworth that goes wrong but it's not as large a part of the story as the blurb might want you to believe.
The bulk of this book is the repercussions of magicians coming out in the open and one particular magician who wants India to use her magic to extend his spells. When she refuses, he pairs up with another magician to take drastic measures.
We do see that India has been working on new spells with Fabian and they have created a flying carpet which eventually comes in handy. Also, we learn a little bit more about the mysterious Sir Charles.

Three stars
This book came out September 1, 2020
Glass and Steele #10
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own


Monday, March 10, 2025

The Imposter's Inheritance by C.J. Archer

In previous books, India had been given a secret. She kept the secret, but someone else didn't and now Matt's familiy is being threatened. There are a number of other things happening in this book meaning it did get a little chaotic. For such short books, there is a lot going on in them. 
The promise to Lord Coyle is dealt with, there are any number of characters whose stories move forward a little bit but it feels like India and Matt have more or less stalled where they are, like their story has stopped now that they're married. 

Three stars
This book came out February 4, 2020
Glass and Steele #9
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own



Monday, February 17, 2025

The Prisoner's Key by C.J. Archer

Matt and India are enjoying married life and India is starting to work with a friend of her grandfather's learning the laguage of magic. Her tutor, Charbonneau (my spelling might be off, I listened to the audiobook) comes from a wealthy French family. He is a second son so they'd prefer he marry someone for politics or money. He wants to marry a magician. So, when Louise more or less proposes, he turns her down. But then, Charbonneau is sent to debtor's prison and any number of people would like to help him out, including one very sneaky magic obsessed lord. When Charbonneau (a lead magician) escapes, everyone is on high alert.


Three stars
This book came out September 3, 2019
Glass and Steele #8
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Monday, February 10, 2025

The Cheater's Game by C.J. Archer

Shenanigans abound when Buffalo Bill Cody's show comes to London. While India is impressed, Willie is not. But she doesn't mind playing cards with some of the men who were in the show. It's just too bad that Duke gets into a fight with one of them. And that man ends up dead.
While the "posse" is wrestling with that issue, India's got some added trouble. Her name is starting to get out in the magician's community and her grandfather seems more concerned about making sure people know they're related than keeping her safe.

Three stars
This book came out March 12, 2019
Glass and Steele #7
Follows The Ink Master's Silence
Followed by The Prisoner's Key
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Thursday, January 23, 2025

The Ink Master's Silence by C.J. Archer

 In a previous book, a man, one India thought was a friend, published an article releasing the knowledge that magic is real. Now, the man's editor is dead. But was the person aiming for Oscar Barratt or was the editor the actual target. 
There is no shortage to the number of people who would prefer that magic would be shoved back into Pandora's Box. But it's too late and now India's become a focus for the people who find magic to be a source of amusement. 

Three stars
This book came out September 5, 2017
Glass and Steele #6
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Sunday, January 12, 2025

The Convent's Secret by C.J. Archer

Matt and India still need a healing magician. Their search leads them to a convent where the boy was given up for adoption. But there are secrets the convent wants to keep; more than just the disappearance of one magical boy. It will be up to the pair and their friends to track down two nuns and two little boys that disappeared within the time frame of 27 years ago, the night a magician connected to Matt's watch was murdered.


Three stars
This book came out September 5, 2017
Glass and Steele #5
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

The Magician's Diary by C.J. Archer

Finding Chronos was supposed to solve all of their problems. But he is only half of the solution. Now, Matt, India, and their friends are going to have to not only find the diary of the healing magician who helped create Matt's watch in the first place, they're going to have to find another healing magician. They think that they've found one but the man is killed. Could it be the guilds who want to hide the existence of magicians? Or is it some reason more closely connected to the two of them?

Three stars
This book came out September 5, 2017
Glass and Steele #4
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Friday, December 27, 2024

The Apothecary's Poison by C.J. Archer

While Matt and India are generally trying to stay under the radar of the newspapers, they do still read them. And an article about a doctor, claiming that he brought someone back from the dead. Of course, that's going to be of great interest to Matt so they take a chance an interview him. 
It's too bad that, while the man may be a magician, he doesn't appear to be capable of miracles. It's also too bad that the man ends up dead. Because they were there the day before, Matt becomes a suspect. 
A fine story and the ending actually moves the overarching story along.

Three and a half stars
This book came out April 4, 2017
Glass and Steele #3
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Sunday, December 22, 2024

The Mapmaker's Apprentice by C.J Archer

The commissioner that helped Matt out in the last book needs help now. A mapmaking apprentice has gone missing and the commissioner would like Matt and India to help him out. In order to do so, they pretend to be a married couple. 
While visiting the guilds, they discover that the mapmaker's guild is also trying to suppress the knowledge that magicians exist. That leads to a very desperate situation where the pair barely survive. They also discover that their enemies may be more numerous than they thought.

Three and a half stars
This book came out October 25, 2016
Glass and Steele #2
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own

Sunday, December 15, 2024

The Watchmaker's Daughter by C.J. Archer

Down to her last penny, about to be thrown out of her lodgings, India Steele does the only thing she can think of. She goes to the shop of her former fiance (the one who dumped her after her father died) and tells the customers not to buy from him. While she makes a scene, it doesn't do much. Except that one man takes notice, Matthew Glass. He immediately hires her on to find a watchmaker known only to him as Kronos.
Matthew needs to find Kronos soon. We don't learn much about it in this book but it is a life-or-death situation tied to a watch that the man made for him. But is Matthew Glass all he seems to be? Or is he possibly the American fugitive known as the Dark Rider.

Three and a half stars
This book came out June 28, 2016
Glass and Steele #1
Borrowed as ebook from Libby
Opinions are my own