by Mary Robinette Kowal
Jane Ellsworth is an eldest daughter beyond reproach: magically talented, virtuous and unfailingly supportive, but always the last considered. Her younger sister Melody is the one who attracts the coveted suitors around Long Parkmead, for in spite of her magical and artistic shortcomings, she is beautiful. Half-resigned to a future of spinsterhood, Jane competes with her gorgeous sister for the affections of Edmund Dunkirk, the charming, intellectual bachelor who Melody’s fickle eye has focused on, but Jane furtively longs for.
When a dashing young captain arrives in town, Melody turns her attention to him. With her sister looking elsewhere, Jane dares to hope for a future with Mr. Dunkirk, even as she is puzzled by the attention she is receiving from the mysterious Mr. Vincent, an unparalleled glamour artist.
But the secret longings and furtive courtships of Long Parkmead are about to erupt into the open, and Jane must set aside her thoughts for the future — as well as her jealousy of her sister’s beauty — in order to make things right. Pushing her body and her magical skills to the very limit, Jane must save her family, and, more importantly, their honor. In the process, she accidentally wanders into a love story of her own.
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