A Radical Act of Free Magic

March 22, 2021
The entertaining if conventional final installment to Parry’s Shadow Histories series (after A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians) returns to the Enlightenment era as war, magic, and revolution sweep Europe and its colonies into a frenzy. While a magically empowered Napoleon Bonaparte summons a kraken from the sea, an army of the dead rages across the continent in the name of French conquest, and Toussaint Louverture uses weather magic to fight for freedom in Saint-Domingue. In England, the aristocracy practices magic freely while the magical abilities of common folk are suppressed—but the British government debates a law to allow commoner magicians to wield magic in service to the royal army. And in the background of all of this chaos, a dark, powerful force uses old magic to seize power over Europe. Parry pieces together an elaborate, perhaps occasionally overstuffed, story of mystery and intrigue that easily transports readers into its fantastical world. Though some will wish for a more radical take on the history here, fans of the first volume and of European historical fantasy played straight will find plenty to enjoy. Agent: Hannah Bowman, Liza Dawson Assoc.

June 14, 2021
In this immersive conclusion to Parry's Shadow Histories duology (after A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians, 2020), set amid eighteenth-century social unrest and warfare, three key players oppose a sinister blood magician (i.e., vampire) before he can consolidate power. As this elusive enemy aids Napoleon with summoning a kraken and a dragon for France, they seem poised to conquer all of Europe. In French colony Saint-Domingue, former slave Fina helps General Toussaint free its slaves, until the enemy is alerted to their treachery. In England, William Pitt and William Wilberforce fight fractious legislative battles in Parliament over battlefield magic, the suppression of magic in commoners, and the abolition of slavery. Yet their political battles matter little if Pitt, hiding his own blood magic, cannot stand against the enemy when the time comes. Parry blends historical fact, political intrigue, military battles, and fantastic magic in this compelling alternate history. While the characters' human-rights debates are centered in eighteenth-century politics, they still ring true today, particularly on the difficulty of upholding personal beliefs with political actions, and the slow grind of legislating social change. Satisfying and entertaining.

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