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Series Review: The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan

Greetings and welcome to Reviews That Burn: Series Reviews, part of Books That Burn. Series Reviews discuss at least three books in a series and cover the overarching themes and development of the story across several books. This review is for The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan. Full Audio Here   The Governess Affair Miss Serena Barton intends to hold the petty, selfish duke who had her sacked responsible for his crimes. But the man who handles all the duke's dirty business has been ordered to get rid of her by fair means or foul. She’ll have to prove more than his match… The Duchess War The last time Minerva Lane was the center of attention, it ended badly—so badly that she changed her name to escape her scandalous past. So when a handsome duke comes to town, the last thing she wants is his attention. But that is precisely what she gets... A Kiss for Midwinter Miss Lydia Charingford does her best to forget the dark secret that nearly ruined her life, hiding it beneath her smi...
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Spear by Nicola Griffith

The girl knows she has a destiny before she even knows her name. She grows up in the wild, in a cave with her mother, but visions of a faraway lake come to her on the spring breeze, and when she hears a traveler speak of Artos, king of Caer Leon, she knows that her future lies at his court.

And so, brimming with magic and eager to test her strength, she breaks her covenant with her mother and, with a broken hunting spear and mended armour, rides on a bony gelding to Caer Leon. On her adventures she will meet great knights and steal the hearts of beautiful women. She will fight warriors and sorcerers. And she will find her love, and the lake, and her fate.

TITLE: Spear
AUTHOR: Nicola Griffith (narrates the audiobook as well)
PUBLISHER: Macmillan Audio
YEAR: 2022
LENGTH: 176 pages (5 hours 43 minutes)
AGE: Adult
GENRE: Fantasy
RECOMMENDED: Highly

Queer Rep Summary: Lesbian/Sapphic Main Character(s), Gay/Achillean Secondary Character(s), Bi/Pan Secondary Character(s).

SPEAR is a wonderfully queer addition to Arthuriana, the protagonist filled with a hunger for belonging and a willingness to put in the work to achieve the rightness she can feel in her bones. 

I'm delighted by the characters I could recognize, they feel full and vibrant even when they are not the focus. The pacing is unhurried, allowing quiet moments to take up precisely the space they are due, only occasionally breaking into action and danger. It has grief and joy, each having space in their turn. The author narrated the audiobook and did an amazing job. The words flow easily and her performance enhanced the already excellent story. 

Having reached the end I'm contented by the time I spent with this book, and I'll happily spend time again. 

CW for sexual content, grief, sexual assault (backstory), sexual harassment (brief), ableism (brief), blood, violence (graphic), injury detail, cannibalism (not depicted), animal death, suicide, parental death, death (graphic).

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A cauldron with smoking rising from it, forming the shape of grass and a fort, with a red spear-wielding figure on a horse.


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