The Raven Song (A Conspiracy of Magic)
The Raven Song is the second book in Smith’s Conspiracy of Magic series. It’s set in a Victorian Great Britain in which beings with magical powers exist, including witches, wizards, hearth elves, and fairies. Edwina Blackwood, the main character and a witch who can change into a raven, is alone after the disappearance of both parents and the death of her twin sister. However, the supernatural detective Ian Cameron, who helped her solve a series of murders in the first book, is at her side and the chemistry between them is on the rise.
When her store is burnt by spellfire and it becomes ominously clear she’s being pursued by a dangerous stalker, Ian and Edwina head north to Ian’s hometown and the protection of Sir Elvanfoot, a famous wizard who has taken interest in Edwina’s plight. Ian also has a magical investigation to conduct there. An entertaining variety of supernatural beings either attack Edwina or work to save her as her full potential becomes ever clearer. Edwina herself must find her own role in this world or the Other.
An example of the delightfully detailed way Smith has developed the magic in her series appears in the first chapter when Edwina finds a disconcerting note tucked in her sister’s coffin, “The lettering was written with the same iridescent green used by most witches. The ink was charmed so it would shimmer on paper for those with arcane sight, but the enhancement was undetectable to the mortal eye… printed by tincture witches who specialized in the grinding of beetle shells in enchanted mortars.” Readers will enjoy an imaginative, skillfully written dive into Victorian fantasy.
