The Midnight Bargain

 

The Midnight Bargain / C.L. Polk
NY: Erewhon Books, c2020.
375 p.

This one got a lot of attention when it was chosen as a title for Canada Reads. I was a little surprised by that -- genre fiction doesn't get a lot of attention in the CanLit world. So of course I had to read it, although by the time I realized that I was WAY down on the holds list at the library. But I did finally get my hands on it, and enjoyed it. 

It's set in an alternate world, one in which the main character lives in a country where women do not run businesses or work, they marry well -- and at that point, any inherited magic they have is controlled by donning a metal collar, putatively so that any children they may come to carry will not be possessed by spirits their magic may attract. But this dulls and destroys women's capacity for a full life, and our main character Beatrice Clayborn is having none of it. 

As the book begins, she is on display during Bargaining Season, the yearly ritual of marrying off eligible young women. She is supposed to act sweetly and snag the best catch she can, especially since her family is deeply in debt. Things do not go quite as planned. Beatrice finds it very hard to cooperate, as all she wants is to improve her magical skills, through collecting certain books that only magical women can decipher. She discovers that the sister of one of the eligible bachelors from overseas has the same goal, and rather than compete, they come to a tentative agreement to share their hidden treasures. 

But the eligible bachelor in question is threatening to overturn all of Beatrice's plans...because he's so dreamy. He's tall, dark, rich and handsome, and also of a sympathetic persuasion. Beatrice finds for the first time that the question of marriage vs. magic is a real conundrum for her. But as the season progresses, more and more happens until Beatrice is faced with an existential decision. Or is she???? 

There is some fun Jane Austenish writing here, lots of Regency inspired social norms (and clothes!) and also magic of the sorcerous kind. Women's rights and autonomy are key to Beatrice's struggle throughout the book, and it's why magic is so important to her. But there's also a good romance going on, and thankfully, she finds a happy ending in which she can get what she wants -- it's a little tricky but it works. I had a lot of fun reading this and am glad I gave it a try. C.L. Polk is a new author to me, but I'm intrigued enough now to search out some of their other works.