Valour and Vanity

March 24, 2014
The espionage potential of magical illusions sets the stage for Kowal’s fourth alternate-Regency caper (after Without a Summer). Lady Jane and Sir David Vincent, both accomplished at the art of spinning strands of magic into the sounds and images called “glamour,” leave England to visit Venice and Murano. Their plan is to work with Murano’s glassmakers, under the guise of visiting Vincent’s friend Lord Byron, and capture glamour in glass so that it can be moved from place to place. After their ship is attacked by “a Barbary corsair,” Vincent is injured and the pirates relieve the pair of their valuables. They arrive in Venice sans papers and discover Byron is away; their straits are dire. A banker offers lodging and monetary assistance, but their relief turns to dismay when they begin to suspect his motives. Jane and Vincent’s affectionate but never anachronistic relationship, and Kowal’s clever incorporation of period artifacts into the schemes, are of particular note. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Agency.

Starred review from April 1, 2014
Renowned glamourists Lord and Lady Vincent become the victims of an elaborate scam that leaves them in dire straits until they conceive of a daring strategy to strike back. After an extended voyage with her family, Jane and Vincent are anxious to find some time to themselves, traveling to Murano. They have a letter of introduction from the prince regent and hope to work with an artisan to experiment on infusing glamour--magical illusions of sight, sound and light--into glass. On the way, they're waylaid by pirates, then rescued by a fellow passenger who takes them under his wing in the city. Without papers or money and with Vincent suffering a concussion from the attack, they're grateful for the gentleman's help. Once they make progress on their revolutionary glamour process, however, they're detained by the local police and accused of fraud. Realizing their "friend" is a con man who has disappeared with all their notes and finished work, Jane and Vincent are left broke, in debt and under suspicion: "They had no funds and no friends at all. The only resources they had were the clothes upon their backs, and even those they owed money for." Unable to find employment, Vincent becomes dispirited, especially when he must depend on the meager salary Jane manages to secure from a nearby convent. Things look up when a chance sighting of one of the crooks enables Vincent and Jane to turn the tables on them: "[S]he could see his mind working and putting together pieces of a plan, as surely as if he was plotting a glamural." Kowal continues her creative Regency-set Glamourist Histories series with a clever, captivating plot that culminates in a magical heist storyline. Before we get there, though, we are treated to a touching examination of a loving marriage under duress and the connections and collaborations these extraordinary partners must create and reaffirm with each other and those around them in order to thrive. Combining history, magic and adventure, the book balances emotional depth with buoyant storytelling.

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

April 15, 2014
While traveling to the Italian city of Murano to find a glassblower who will help them with a magical experiment, husband-and-wife glamourists Jane and Vincent are attacked and robbed by pirates. Fortunately, an older gentleman who was also on the ship kindly offers the couple help and a place to stay. Jane and Vincent are thrilled finally to have a chance to experiment in capturing the fantastical folds they can pull from the aether and anchor them in glass. But when the real owner of the house where they're staying shows up, they realize that their saviour is a master con man who stole not only their money but the glass globes they have produced. It will take all of Jane's and Vincent's wits and talents to catch the thief and get their revenge. VERDICT Kowal's latest entry in the series (after "Without a Summer") has a very original and subtle magic system, but its real strength lies in the way it evokes the Regency period. The relationship between Jane and Vincent continues to grow stronger, as they learn to lean on each other.

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2014
If Jane Austen were to write about a magical heist, her novel would not be all that different from the fourth installment in Kowal's (Without a Summer, 2013) Glamour History series. Jane and Vincent travel to Murano, an island off of Venice, to study glassblowing in hopes of amalgamating it with glamour (magic). Though clever, they fall victim to an elaborate hoax that consumes their funds and leaves them stranded in Italy. Living in poverty, they team up with Catholic nuns and a street puppeteer to enact retribution. Adventures, obstacles, and high jinks propel the story while upholding its romantic core. Jane and Vincent's healthy, steadfast marriage makes sense in the Regency era yet satisfies modern standards, even when their quips and stubbornness create problems instead of solutions. The act of weaving glamour into art or apparatuses makes for entrancing imagery, complementing Kowal's Victorian writing style and enhancing the action-packed scenes. Lively, well written, and with sprinkles of history, Valour and Vanity will charm both adventurers and romantics. Add Lord Byron as cohort for extra fun.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)