At a quarter of the way through the novel, overall I don’t hate it. I like the way the novel starts not from the main female’s perspective, but from the love interest’s perspective. It takes a little bit before the Avery is revealed, and the way Brockway does it was interesting and humorous, something I did not expect. I think the descriptions of Sophia, an early antagonist, were a bit overzealous and hyperbolic. Though I do tend to value a more subtle approach.

The dialogue is one of my favorite aspects so far. I like when dialect reflects the time period, and this is certainly one of my favorites.  The witty banter seems to fit with the time, though I’m no expert. It maintains an air of British aristocracy without being so stuffy that I have to google phrases that don’t quite make sense. That’s the key to doing a period piece right.

There is one glaring problem that I can’t get over. The book jacket describes Avery’s goal as admittance into the Royal Astronomical Society. But every time thus far it has been brought up in the book, it is referred to as the Royal Astrological Society. I’d like the think the author means astronomical, and, sadly, no one caught the spelling error. I really hope this doesn’t persist throughout the whole novel.

Stay tuned.