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"Whimsical, witty, and brimming over with charm" (India Holton), Olivia Atwater's delightful debut will transport you to a magical version of Regency England, where the only thing more meddlesome than a fairy is a marriage-minded mother! It's difficult to find a husband in Regency England when you're a young lady with only half a soul. Ever since she was cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has had no sense of fear or embarrassment--an unfortunate condition that leaves her prone to accidental scandal. Dora hopes to be a quiet, sensible wallflower during the London Season--but when Elias Wilder, the strange, handsome, and utterly ill-mannered Lord Sorcier, discovers her condition, she is instead drawn into peculiar and dangerous faerie affairs. If her reputation can survive both her curse and her sudden connection with the least-liked man in all high society, then she and her family may yet reclaim their normal place in the world. But the longer Dora spends with Elias, the more she begins to suspect that one may indeed fall in love even with only half a soul. Praise for Half a Soul "Whimsical but never frivolous, sweet but not sugary. I loved it." --Alix E. Harrow "Delightful. Half a Soul is the definition of a comfort read." --Hannah Whitten "I wolfed this down with great pleasure." --KJ Charles "This winsome, whimsical fantasy romance sweeps you off your feet." --Megan Bannen "Smart and subversive, Half a Soul will ignite your heart--and your hope." --Shelley Parker-Chan "A perfect historical fantasy romance: warm, sparkling with magic, dangerous, and delightful." --Tasha Suri … (more)
User reviews
This read as a combination of Bridgerton and a lighter Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, and I loved every minute of it. Really fun to read, and it had a surprise social justice angle that I thought was well done. I'm really looking forward to reading other books in the series. 4.5 stars.
Meeting the royal sorcerer and his best friend led her on a journey to reclaim herself and get rid of the hold the faerie had
The romantic element is pretty well handled even if the happily ever after might be a bit predictable, the author managed to make it new in a way that did not feel soppy or over the top. The whole aspect of faery was pretty fresh.
I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Half a Soul was a fantasy, magical realism story set in Regency England. When Theodora Ettings (Dora) was ten years old, Lord Hollowvale, a fae, attempts to steal her soul, claiming her
Elias blinked at her. “I will admit,” he said, “you are proving to be far more interesting than I first assumed, Miss Ettings.”
This was a very soft and light magical realism story and even though there are evil fae, they are portrayed as exaggerated dandys, thinking they are better than the humans of the day but also trying to top their cultural norms; Lord Hollowvale wears five coats to show his wealth. While Dora is fae-cursed with only half a soul, it's still business as usual and since her cousin Vanessa is eighteen, going to London for the season is still a must. Readers begin to realize that Dora's aunt isn't the kindest to her and often calls her a puppet. Lord Hollowvale seems to have taken the emotional side of Dora and left her with never feeling anything. With the help of her cousin Vanessa, Dora learns how she should react in situations and after saying something, Dora often reads people's reactions and begins to tell that what she said wasn't right or “normal”.
And maybe Dora was imagining it, but she thought that perhaps Elias was thinking something similar – that he gained some small comfort from holding onto her, and that it would be difficult for him to set that comfort aside.
We learn that Vanessa agreeing to go to London was dual purpose, she hopes to get the Lord Sorcier, Elias Wilder, to cure Dora. While there isn't much world building, there actually doesn't need to be too much because this is magical realism and if you know about London in the 1810s, you know the world, with just added fae and magic interjected. Elias has a dangerous reputation, he seems to have come from nowhere, earning the title of Lord Sorcier after fighting Napoleon's army in France and with fear and suspected humble beginnings, society doesn't exactly welcome him. He has a friend Albert who he met in the war. Albert is a physician with titled parents, he saved Elias' life and Elias in turn saved Albert by creating a silver arm for him when shrapnel took his. When Dora wanders into a magical bookshop during a downpour and Elias comes up behind her, I felt that spark between them.
“Are faeries and magicians both afraid of scissors, then?”
Elias agrees to try and help Dora but he's also working on curing a plague, a sleeping plague that seems to mostly be affecting children. I love when magical realism takes a real world mystery (encephalitis lethargica, most notably early 1900s) and works to give it reason by creating a fantasy explanation. It's a great part of story-telling, working out those emotions that sometimes have nowhere to go. In fact, this story seemed to be an adult version of children's books where things not deemed “normal” in the real world were laid out to show that just because things or people are “different” doesn't mean that they don't deserve respect or love. Dora read coded as Autistic spectrum disorder to me, her not feeling emotions as other people or reading social interactions correctly. Thinking this throughout had me actually not anticipating the ending because I worried how her only having half her soul was going to play out. I don't want to spoil the ending but I'm going to tell you right now, it's handled perfectly in way that respects Dora and the messaging threaded throughout the story. Dora, rightly, was the star of the show but there was other messaging of war and economic inequality that added to that children's book style but with adults I mentioned.
Elias leaned closer towards her under cover of the dim starlight. Dora stared at him, entranced, as his forehead pressed lightly to hers.
“I don't want to wake up either,” he whispered.
She felt his breath along her cheek as he said the words. The whisper shivered its way into her heart, and Dora thought, Oh dear. Because she was now quite sure that she was in love.
The romance between Dora and Elias had sweet moments, you're only going to get a true love's kiss, kind of off-screen at that, but I could still feel the something between them. This was a quick read, a little over 200pgs, and I thought paced out just right. Around 60% we learn a secret about Elias and then Lord Hollowvale comes back into the picture as Dora gets trapped with the fae, learns what happened to the other half of her soul (this part was a little wonky) and the sleeping plague comes into play in a big way. The ending doesn't wrap everything up in a perfect bow but with the resolution with Dora, like I said, perfect. When Elias tells Dora that he fell in love with her exactly as she was, I can see some readers getting a tear in their eye.
Very light on the fantasy aspects and angst, this was a magical realism story that cloaked its messaging in a sweet way. There were human machinations, mama's trying to marriage mart scheme, and fae evil doings. A great early October read to dip your toe into an otherworldly setting that was sweet and charming.
It's definitely sweet, but I might call it closer to YA than cozy. I'm not sure I can explain why though - maybe because of the strong fairy tale parallels? Either way, Atwater
I struggle with nasty, mean characters that don't end up the centre of a murder investigation by the end of the book, so I struggled with the Aunt's treatment of Dora; treatment she faced no consequences for. I enjoyed the strong friendships though, and the satire of the British ton that was faire land was acerbic.
All in all it was a light read strongly focused on kindness.
I was expecting romantic Regency fantasy
I liked the bond between Dora and Vanessa, and I really liked the way the story explores how Dora experiences her emotions. Recommended.
“Oh, bother,” Dora sighed. “I am about to flout propriety, Lady Carroway. Do be kind to me, please.”
I picked up this BB around LT early this year but I can't remember from whom, so whoever you are, thank you! A perfect read for lovers of Jane Austen and fantasy (there's a bit of a Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell vibe, in particular), which definitely includes me. The romance is sweet and gentle, the fantasy world fascinating, and I thoroughly enjoyed that Atwater explored aspects of the Regency era that don't typically crop up in novels set in the period. Enjoyed it so much, I immediately placed a hold on the second in the series.
I do love a good fantasy of manners every once in a while, and this is a delightful example of the genre. I thought the characterization was particularly well done, and the author did a good job of handling what I suspected was going to be a tricky issue at the end of the book.
The narrative had generally good pacing, switching between scenarios smoothly when the characters are at fancy balls, stately homes, or coping with illnesses in charitable service at the dreadful workhouses. What felt off from time to time were two dominant aspects: Dora's behaviour as a less emotional, bland 'half soul' character who then evinces rage at the workhouse conditions or seems delightedly happy dancing with Elias; secondly, the author did not show much familiarity with regency manners, or use the vernacular of the day. As a result the conversations were too modern and Dora too liberated to be acceptable in her social circle.
I did enjoy the novel despite my niggles and overlooked the inconsistencies to rate it as a 4-star read. I'm hoping the next book is tightened up and that Atwater finds a good editor.
As a child, Dora's soul was claimed by Lord Hollowvale but her cousin Vanessa saved her before he could take all of it by plunging her embroidery scissors into his leg, since faery beings cannot abide the
"As you wish, niece of Georgina Ettings," the elf spat finally. "I have full half of my payment. May you make good use of the other!"Since then, Dora (Theodora Ettings) has always worn the scissors around her neck as protection against him returning to steal the other half of her soul but she has been unable to feel any deep emotions and knows that she doesn't react like normal people. Her aunt (Dora is an orphan) seems constantly exasperated by Dora's lack of emotion and her inappropriate responses; essentially, Dora has no filter and says what she's thinking out loud.
Now in danger of becoming spinsters at the grand old ages of 20 and 19, the cousins travel to London for the Season - where the Lord Sorcier, Elias Wilder, is also to be found as well as his friend Albert Lowe, a physician who happens to be the third son of Lord and Lady Carroway. Vanessa feels that the Lord Sorcier might be able to help Dora with her magical problem. And Dora might discover that she can feel emotions, even with only half a soul.
Though they are members of the nobility both Wilder and Lowe engage in charitable work, specifically trying to cure a magical plague affecting the labour classes in London. Atwater shows us a lower tier of society from those we usually see in Regency novels - though I don't know enough to attest to the accuracy or lack thereof of the workhouses and so on that she describes, myself. The medical angle was interesting and unusual and I did like the way all the loose ends were neatly tied up. I'm getting used to seeing discrepancies in small details of the manners of the period and the country in novels written now but set then (hardly a new gripe for me) but this is a parallel England where magic is used for the benefit of the nation - so it's easy to turn a blind eye in this instance.
I liked this gentle story though I did feel a bit like Dora; muffled in cotton and a little distant from emotions. I wondered, as I read, if the author wanted us to feel that Dora is on the spectrum (to coin a phrase) though that angle wasn't expanded on. It was nice to see things working out well for her in the end - because who doesn't like a Faery Tale to end happily ever after?
(January 2024)
3.5-4 stars
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