Readers return to England, 1895 in the sequel to Charlie N. Holmberg’s Spellbreaker novel. Spellmaker picks up where the first book left off; We know the murderer’s identity and now Elsie and Ogden must try to figure out a way to turn the person in without exposing Elsie’s role in the series of crimes. Unfortunately, Elsie ends up in jail by the end of the first chapter.  

Read my review of the first novel, Spellbreaker. 

Luckily for Elsie, Bacchus has a plan to get her out of jail – get married. Bacchus convinces the magistrate that Elsie only recently discovered her powers. We know this is a lie because Elsie has been practicing for about ten years at this point. He explains that he was there when it happened because he was courting her and they are now getting married. While the scheme works, they have to carry out the plan in order for Elsie to avoid being thrown back in jail. To be honest, this doesn’t seem like a bad deal for Elsie – a get-out-of-jail-free card in the form of a dark and handsome Master Magician for a husband? Way to go, Elsie. 

So now Elsie can register as a Spellbreaker but has to feign a novice level of proficiency as she receives her training. Meanwhile, she, her new fiance, and Ogden must work together to track down the murderer and bring the person to justice, with a little help from new characters as well. For Ogden, however, it’s personal; he’s been under the spell and feeding Elsie her assignments on behalf of the perpetrator for the past nine years. He works tirelessly in Spellmaker to see the mission through. 

I’m a sucker for budding romances, and was not disappointed to see how Elsie and Bacchus’s relationship grew. Even though the marriage is technically a ruse, it’s easy to see that they both desperately want to be with one another – even if it takes a while for either of them to be convinced of the other’s feelings. Our characters are still in danger throughout Spellmaker, so I appreciated that Holmberg still gave them some *very* happy moments. The Bastard from Barbados and Orphan Spellbreaker each got their own Cinderella story in each other – which Holmberg illustrated beautifully. 

Throughout the sequel, Holmberg rewards readers by answering questions left from the first book. In an attempt to be spoiler free, I’ll just say that while we know who the murderer is by the end of the first book, we still don’t know what happened to Elsie’s family, nor who the mysterious American is. Spellmaker ties up those loose ends but still leaves room for a possible third novel in the series (which Holmberg has considered). 

Overall, the duology is an enjoyable read that entails romance between underdogs, a criminal chase, and hope for the future of our characters. Spellmaker, along with the first book Spellbreaker, are both available now. Feel free to check out my interview about the first book with author Charlie N. Holmberg on Episode 117 of The Nerd Cantina Show podcast.