Review: The Court of Mortals

The Court of Mortals by A.J. Lancaster
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm enjoying this series, set in a not!19th-century not!Britain that is appealingly sketched as a background to romance, fae politics, mortal politics, and even some mundane practical struggles surrounding the management of a somewhat run-down estate that's also a magical faeland. That last aspect gets less attention in this volume than in the earlier ones, though it's sometimes there in the background as a concern.

Wyn is appealing as the One Decent Fae, dealing with his dangerous family and trying to protect his love, Hetta, against their machinations while they look for a way to be together. Hetta is pleasingly determined, pragmatic and capable as she navigates magical and mundane issues with and without his help. Their families, and the noble and royal characters they encounter (usually as antagonists to some degree), are well drawn and distinct from one another.

It's a very solid series, and even though I'm not always the biggest fan of the fae as a fantasy element, I enjoy how they're handled here. Definitely one for my Best of the Year list for 2021.

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