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Greenwing & Dart #1
Stargazy Pie
Magic is out of fashion.
Good manners never are.
Jemis Greenwing returned from university with a broken heart, a bad cold, and no prospects beyond a problematic inheritance and a job at the local bookstore.
Ragnor Bella is a placid little market town on the road to nowhere, where Jemis’ family affairs have always been the main source of gossip. Having missed his stepfather's funeral, he is determined to keep his head down.
Unfortunately for his reputation, though fortunately for several other people, he falls quickly under the temptation of resuming the friendship of Mr. Dart of Dartington, Squire-in-training and beloved local daredevil. Mr. Dart is delighted to have Jemis' company for what will be, he assures him, a very small adventure.
Jemis expected the cut direct. The secret societies, criminal gangs, and illegal cult to the old gods--to say nothing of the mermaid--come as a complete surprise.
Book One of Greenwing & Dart, fantasies of manners—and mischief.
Good manners never are.
Jemis Greenwing returned from university with a broken heart, a bad cold, and no prospects beyond a problematic inheritance and a job at the local bookstore.
Ragnor Bella is a placid little market town on the road to nowhere, where Jemis’ family affairs have always been the main source of gossip. Having missed his stepfather's funeral, he is determined to keep his head down.
Unfortunately for his reputation, though fortunately for several other people, he falls quickly under the temptation of resuming the friendship of Mr. Dart of Dartington, Squire-in-training and beloved local daredevil. Mr. Dart is delighted to have Jemis' company for what will be, he assures him, a very small adventure.
Jemis expected the cut direct. The secret societies, criminal gangs, and illegal cult to the old gods--to say nothing of the mermaid--come as a complete surprise.
Book One of Greenwing & Dart, fantasies of manners—and mischief.
373 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 24, 2016
189 people are currently reading
2361 people want to read
About the author
Victoria Goddard
43 books783 followersI walked across England in 2013, fulfilling a long-held dream. I'm currently the sexton of an Anglican church in Nova Scotia, which means I am keeper of the keys and opener of doors (and shutter-off of alarms). I have a PhD in medieval studies from the University of Toronto, looking at poetry and philosophy in the works of Dante and Boethius -- both the poetry and the philosophy come into my stories a great deal (and occasionally the Dante and the Boethius).
I like writing about the ordinary lives of magical people on the other side of the looking glass ... and the extraordinary deeds of ordinary folk, too. Three of my favourite authors are Patricia McKillip (especially 'The Riddle-Master of Hed' trilogy and 'The Bell at Sealy Head'), Connie Willis ('Bellwether' and 'To Say Nothing of the Dog,' which latter would make my top-ten books on a desert island), and Lois McMaster Bujold ('The Curse of Chalion' and its sequels).
I like writing about the ordinary lives of magical people on the other side of the looking glass ... and the extraordinary deeds of ordinary folk, too. Three of my favourite authors are Patricia McKillip (especially 'The Riddle-Master of Hed' trilogy and 'The Bell at Sealy Head'), Connie Willis ('Bellwether' and 'To Say Nothing of the Dog,' which latter would make my top-ten books on a desert island), and Lois McMaster Bujold ('The Curse of Chalion' and its sequels).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 192 reviews
December 26, 2019
(I'd probably bump this to a 2.5 stars if I had the option, but I can't go to a full 3 stars.)
If you've ever wanted to read a book where the main character sneezes, almost sneezes, or tries to avoid sneezing on every other page, then boy is this the book for you.
There are some decent bones here - the setting provides the requisite "quaint small town with mix of diverse locals" that is needed for the sort of cozy mystery being told, and the central three players of Greenwing, Dart, and Mrs. Etaris are likeable. But rather than a cohesive mystery, the plot felt like it was just jumping around from one weird event to the next without laying the necessary groundwork for me to understand how things fit together. There were a lot of revelations that popped out of nowhere that the book had to pause and explain the backstory that made those tidbits fit together, which made it all feel like things were being made up as it went along. To go with the pie metaphor, I feel like this one needed a bit more time in the oven to get the ingredients to meld more smoothly.
If you've ever wanted to read a book where the main character sneezes, almost sneezes, or tries to avoid sneezing on every other page, then boy is this the book for you.
There are some decent bones here - the setting provides the requisite "quaint small town with mix of diverse locals" that is needed for the sort of cozy mystery being told, and the central three players of Greenwing, Dart, and Mrs. Etaris are likeable. But rather than a cohesive mystery, the plot felt like it was just jumping around from one weird event to the next without laying the necessary groundwork for me to understand how things fit together. There were a lot of revelations that popped out of nowhere that the book had to pause and explain the backstory that made those tidbits fit together, which made it all feel like things were being made up as it went along. To go with the pie metaphor, I feel like this one needed a bit more time in the oven to get the ingredients to meld more smoothly.
May 18, 2024
This just makes it onto my Best of the Year list despite a blatant piece of lucky chance (the most blatant of several) used to get the not-very-effectual main character where he needed to be for the plot to work. The author tries to hang a lampshade on it and attribute it to serendipity being more common where magic is being employed, but she knows and I know that it's just shoddy plotting, a workaround for the fact that her protagonist is a bit wet even when he isn't falling into the river, and not bright enough to figure out how to get to where she needs him by himself, or to pull off the job of getting there.
The main character is supposed to be part of what seems set up to be a detective duo, but his employer, the redoubtable bookstore owner, who is not one of the duo, is the one who actually solves most of the mystery and drives much of the plot. She would have been a much better main character than him, but he's a young man and she's a middle-aged woman, so the weight of tradition is on his side.
The setting is unusual; it's connected to the setting the author has used for other books that are more epic fantasy, and epic fantasy has definitely occurred, elsewhere and some years previously and to the main character's father, but this is not epic fantasy. It's happening in what is explicitly the least dramatic part of the entire setting, a sleepy country town. It's technically post-apocalyptic, but the apocalypse hasn't actually had much impact here - just making magic unreliable and difficult to do, mostly.
So there's plenty that's unpromising. An ineffectual, rather pathetic, and not particularly clever main character (though with both courage and tragedy in his backstory); a setting that is out-and-out stated to be the least interesting place in the known world; a mystery (the pie of the title) that seems stunningly inconsequential. But we do eventually get cultists, organized crime, high magic, midnight adventures, and a decadent dinner party, and it's told in an appealing style. Mr Greenwing, the MC (I hesitate to call him a protagonist because he's driven by events rather than vice versa), may not be up to much in many ways, but he bears many trials with some dignity and acts with unhesitating courage when called upon. He's a bit like a sickly Watson to his employer's blend of Holmes and Mrs Hudson. His friend Mr Dart is... necessary to the plot, but at this point hardly worthy of his series title billing.
The editing isn't too bad, just a few typos and a couple of homonym errors. (My notes are on the box set I got it in here, starting at 52%.)
Despite its flaws, I did enjoy the book and looked forward to my sessions of reading it, and I would like to read the sequels - though they're a bit overpriced for the quality of the first one by my standards, and I will wait for them to be on sale.
The main character is supposed to be part of what seems set up to be a detective duo, but his employer, the redoubtable bookstore owner, who is not one of the duo, is the one who actually solves most of the mystery and drives much of the plot. She would have been a much better main character than him, but he's a young man and she's a middle-aged woman, so the weight of tradition is on his side.
The setting is unusual; it's connected to the setting the author has used for other books that are more epic fantasy, and epic fantasy has definitely occurred, elsewhere and some years previously and to the main character's father, but this is not epic fantasy. It's happening in what is explicitly the least dramatic part of the entire setting, a sleepy country town. It's technically post-apocalyptic, but the apocalypse hasn't actually had much impact here - just making magic unreliable and difficult to do, mostly.
So there's plenty that's unpromising. An ineffectual, rather pathetic, and not particularly clever main character (though with both courage and tragedy in his backstory); a setting that is out-and-out stated to be the least interesting place in the known world; a mystery (the pie of the title) that seems stunningly inconsequential. But we do eventually get cultists, organized crime, high magic, midnight adventures, and a decadent dinner party, and it's told in an appealing style. Mr Greenwing, the MC (I hesitate to call him a protagonist because he's driven by events rather than vice versa), may not be up to much in many ways, but he bears many trials with some dignity and acts with unhesitating courage when called upon. He's a bit like a sickly Watson to his employer's blend of Holmes and Mrs Hudson. His friend Mr Dart is... necessary to the plot, but at this point hardly worthy of his series title billing.
The editing isn't too bad, just a few typos and a couple of homonym errors. (My notes are on the box set I got it in here, starting at 52%.)
Despite its flaws, I did enjoy the book and looked forward to my sessions of reading it, and I would like to read the sequels - though they're a bit overpriced for the quality of the first one by my standards, and I will wait for them to be on sale.
September 17, 2018
The most chaotic and poorly-explained world building I've come across in lo, these many years. Needed a map, an historical preface, and list of characters to make it comprehensible, and then you'd still be stuck with the overly arch and witty (and repetitive) badinage. I couldn't wait to finish it.
February 26, 2023
Another one where I thought I knew what I was getting into, and DEFINITELY DID NOT. (A most delightful experience, in this instance.) This was a bewilderingly funny, cozy, complicated fantasy/mystery adventure featuring people Being Proper whilst uncovering the misdeeds of several secret societies (honestly, I lost count) and also some legit crime? Also there's a mermaid. And an entirely unhinged dinner party. And a sacrificial cult. I may not have known what was going on half of the time but neither did our protagonist, and I rather enjoyed experiencing it alongside him. I cannot wait to dig into the rest of this series. :+)
June 16, 2025
A very enjoyable cozy fantasy mystery, with high etiquette and some spicy darkness thrown in for good measure.
Jemis Greenwing has finished university and is back home in Ragnor Bella, a small town where nothing much happens - an oasis of calm in a land where repercussions from a cataclysmic “Fall” of magic some years previously are otherwise still being felt. Jemis tries to keep his head down and avoid the gossip of scandals and missteps that have beset his family.
Into this mix comes Jemis’ long standing friend Dart, the slighlty mysterious Violet (a friend of Jemis’ from university) and the remarkably well informed Mrs. Etaris, who runs the local bookshop.
One day, Jemis sees a robed figure skulking around the town square, and on investigation finds the titular stargazy pie abandoned by a fountain - and this kicks off a sequence of mysteries and investigations that’s as much fun as it is intriguing.
I don’t usually cope well with mystery stories, as I generally find it hard to keep track of various threads, red herrings (or actual herrings, in this case), clues and dead ends. But I managed to keep track of most of what was going on - assisted periodically by conversations between some of the characters (which was very well handled… no jarring exposition here!).
But for me, the mystery takes second place to the character development and world building. I loved all the characters, with their stoic politeness, even in the face of surprises, sticky situations, and even some occasional danger. They are all so charming, with a delightful thread of good manners, etiquette, and fine society running through all of their interactions. The depth of friendship and loyalty in all of the relationships was lovely, even with those characters whose backgrounds and behaviour were more questionable. These are people I would like to spend time with.
Happily, Victoria Goddard has obliged with an entire series of Greenwing and Dart stories!
Jemis Greenwing has finished university and is back home in Ragnor Bella, a small town where nothing much happens - an oasis of calm in a land where repercussions from a cataclysmic “Fall” of magic some years previously are otherwise still being felt. Jemis tries to keep his head down and avoid the gossip of scandals and missteps that have beset his family.
Into this mix comes Jemis’ long standing friend Dart, the slighlty mysterious Violet (a friend of Jemis’ from university) and the remarkably well informed Mrs. Etaris, who runs the local bookshop.
One day, Jemis sees a robed figure skulking around the town square, and on investigation finds the titular stargazy pie abandoned by a fountain - and this kicks off a sequence of mysteries and investigations that’s as much fun as it is intriguing.
I don’t usually cope well with mystery stories, as I generally find it hard to keep track of various threads, red herrings (or actual herrings, in this case), clues and dead ends. But I managed to keep track of most of what was going on - assisted periodically by conversations between some of the characters (which was very well handled… no jarring exposition here!).
But for me, the mystery takes second place to the character development and world building. I loved all the characters, with their stoic politeness, even in the face of surprises, sticky situations, and even some occasional danger. They are all so charming, with a delightful thread of good manners, etiquette, and fine society running through all of their interactions. The depth of friendship and loyalty in all of the relationships was lovely, even with those characters whose backgrounds and behaviour were more questionable. These are people I would like to spend time with.
Happily, Victoria Goddard has obliged with an entire series of Greenwing and Dart stories!
December 16, 2017
Jemis Greenwing isn't having a good life. His father was a traitor, he's left university in disgrace, the girl he loved betrayed him, and he's missed his stepfather's funeral. Now he's come back to his sleepy little hometown to find himself the local pariah, and to top it all off, he can't stop sneezing.
While trying to ignore the malicious gossip and take comfort in the few friends he has left, Jemis is unwittingly and unwillingly dragged into the lively secret life of the barony. This includes a hidden mermaid, dark cultists, and a rather unseemly dinner party, not to mention the pie of the title.
Aided and abetted by his old friend Mr. Dart and his new employer and unofficial fairy godmother Mrs. Etaris, Jemis attempts to figure out just what has been going on while he was away. The unexpected appearance of a college friend teaches him that he might not have understood what he himself was doing during that time either.
This book has a delightfully wry tone reminiscent of Steven Brust or the Cecelia and Kate novels by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer. The dialogue is sparkling and witty and there's a nice balance between the cozy atmosphere of the bookstore and wild nighttime adventure, mixed with ominous hints of dark, twisted magic in the world beyond.
Most of the loose ends are tied up neatly, while still leaving enough mystery about Jemis' past and future to pique one's interest in his further doings. I'm always a sucker for fantasies of magic, and this one is a delight.
While trying to ignore the malicious gossip and take comfort in the few friends he has left, Jemis is unwittingly and unwillingly dragged into the lively secret life of the barony. This includes a hidden mermaid, dark cultists, and a rather unseemly dinner party, not to mention the pie of the title.
Aided and abetted by his old friend Mr. Dart and his new employer and unofficial fairy godmother Mrs. Etaris, Jemis attempts to figure out just what has been going on while he was away. The unexpected appearance of a college friend teaches him that he might not have understood what he himself was doing during that time either.
This book has a delightfully wry tone reminiscent of Steven Brust or the Cecelia and Kate novels by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer. The dialogue is sparkling and witty and there's a nice balance between the cozy atmosphere of the bookstore and wild nighttime adventure, mixed with ominous hints of dark, twisted magic in the world beyond.
Most of the loose ends are tied up neatly, while still leaving enough mystery about Jemis' past and future to pique one's interest in his further doings. I'm always a sucker for fantasies of magic, and this one is a delight.
March 20, 2024
"Do remember that gossip when well organized is sociology and when ill regulated, slander."
One of many sage remarks in this tale that spoofs Victorian etiquette. Opens the door to humorous interactions among characters trying always to be on their best foot. Mix the spoofs, the humor, with a vigorous shake from the 'mystery' spice container marked...ag aga agatha..(small print)...christ...ahh; Agatha Christie then add magic, cults and the nefarious. Quite the stew Victoria Goddard has brewed.
"Greenwing and Dart" proceed Goddard's "Lays of the Hearth-Fire." In the Nine Worlds. The main characters appear in the "Lays" as a cameo. Thought I'd give this series a shot and am glad I did. Read mostly with a smile on my face. I had to absolutely stop laughing and go pour a scotch when our hero-heroine(s) rushed into a burning house to save a damsel in distress seen through a window only to discover said damsel was a mermaid in a bathtub. Of course the bathroom window had to broken so the trio could exit into a river. Where else would a mermaid be comfortable? In the water, of course. Goddard makes the impossible real.
"Never cry for the future before it's happened."
I will read the next in the series right away, but I will save the others for intermediate reads in between more serious reads. Greenwing and Dart are just plain fun!
One of many sage remarks in this tale that spoofs Victorian etiquette. Opens the door to humorous interactions among characters trying always to be on their best foot. Mix the spoofs, the humor, with a vigorous shake from the 'mystery' spice container marked...ag aga agatha..(small print)...christ...ahh; Agatha Christie then add magic, cults and the nefarious. Quite the stew Victoria Goddard has brewed.
"Greenwing and Dart" proceed Goddard's "Lays of the Hearth-Fire." In the Nine Worlds. The main characters appear in the "Lays" as a cameo. Thought I'd give this series a shot and am glad I did. Read mostly with a smile on my face. I had to absolutely stop laughing and go pour a scotch when our hero-heroine(s) rushed into a burning house to save a damsel in distress seen through a window only to discover said damsel was a mermaid in a bathtub. Of course the bathroom window had to broken so the trio could exit into a river. Where else would a mermaid be comfortable? In the water, of course. Goddard makes the impossible real.
"Never cry for the future before it's happened."
I will read the next in the series right away, but I will save the others for intermediate reads in between more serious reads. Greenwing and Dart are just plain fun!
October 21, 2021
2.5 stars. This is almost good, it’s just rather tame and insubstantial. I’d recommend it if you like cozy mannerpunk; everyone in this is addressed by their titles, and there is a lot of bowing and kissing of hands. I rather like being dropped into a setting with names and terms thrown around as if you belong there, but it might be daunting here for some readers.
I think I’ll try one more of these to see if they grow on me.
I think I’ll try one more of these to see if they grow on me.
May 31, 2022
A review of one of these books complained that they read like "fanfic to a fandom I'm unfamiliar with." And you know what? They do. But the more I think about it, the more I think that's a feature, not a bug.
Goddard throws us very much in media res like books used to when I was younger, and you really just have to put things together and figure them out as you go along. It's a joyful sort of puzzlement, but there are pieces to put together to make the full picture. Even if you're just looking at the box, or just a tiny corner of the puzzle, it's beautiful and intricate and satisfying. But when you are able to put everything together and stand back to see all the stories Goddard has written, all the characters she knows, and all the ways she has woven them together, the whole takes your breath away.
I enjoyed this book even more after having read The Hands of the Emperor. The first time I read it (and, to be clear, I mostly picked it up because I really wanted to read the fifth book in the series Love-in-a-Mist because it was a pretty cover and had the silhouette of a unicorn on the cover), I was confused a lot. You are really dropped directly in media res and just expected to keep up. The second time through, having more context about the Fall, the world, and Mrs. Etaris herself, I picked things up much easier. And I liked the characters even more. I seldom reread books so quickly on the heels of reading them for the first time, but I'm making an exception for this one because 1) I'm having so much fun 2) the real world is awfully scary right now, and I just want to hang out with Jemis and Mr. Dart and Mrs. Etaris.
Goddard throws us very much in media res like books used to when I was younger, and you really just have to put things together and figure them out as you go along. It's a joyful sort of puzzlement, but there are pieces to put together to make the full picture. Even if you're just looking at the box, or just a tiny corner of the puzzle, it's beautiful and intricate and satisfying. But when you are able to put everything together and stand back to see all the stories Goddard has written, all the characters she knows, and all the ways she has woven them together, the whole takes your breath away.
I enjoyed this book even more after having read The Hands of the Emperor. The first time I read it (and, to be clear, I mostly picked it up because I really wanted to read the fifth book in the series Love-in-a-Mist because it was a pretty cover and had the silhouette of a unicorn on the cover), I was confused a lot. You are really dropped directly in media res and just expected to keep up. The second time through, having more context about the Fall, the world, and Mrs. Etaris herself, I picked things up much easier. And I liked the characters even more. I seldom reread books so quickly on the heels of reading them for the first time, but I'm making an exception for this one because 1) I'm having so much fun 2) the real world is awfully scary right now, and I just want to hang out with Jemis and Mr. Dart and Mrs. Etaris.
April 18, 2022
I finally.. finished it?
I've been on a very wearying journey of listening via TTS to this and then losing my earphones and just dealing with toddlers so it just kept going on for too long to make much sense.
I definitely will NOT read it again to try and make sense of it.
I did enjoy the parts where Jemis skulked around and sneezed fit to burst while there were supposed demonic cults doing their thing..
Its very weird and entertaining but also I find everything confusing too..
Soo...um I just don't think I'll be coming back to this author sadly. For now anyway. There are many good reviews from friends on this to not follow it up someday.
I've been on a very wearying journey of listening via TTS to this and then losing my earphones and just dealing with toddlers so it just kept going on for too long to make much sense.
I definitely will NOT read it again to try and make sense of it.
I did enjoy the parts where Jemis skulked around and sneezed fit to burst while there were supposed demonic cults doing their thing..
Its very weird and entertaining but also I find everything confusing too..
Soo...um I just don't think I'll be coming back to this author sadly. For now anyway. There are many good reviews from friends on this to not follow it up someday.
August 10, 2018
This book is difficult to get into and boring to boot. The author does not do a great job of world building--too many references to things that are never explained. I actually double checked that I was indeed reading the first book in the series. I gave it 100 pages because I was really hoping it would pick up. No luck. Couldn't make it through the book.
May 11, 2025
3.5 Not bad in any way, bu there is an awful lot of stuff happening without any moment to catch your breath. Coming from The Hands of the Emperor, The Return of Fitzroy Angursell and At the Feet of the Sun, this was way too action- and revelation-based for me. I also regretted not reading this before Return of Fitzroy... for reasons.
The characters are all very interesting - mysterious, but not too much, not overly psychologising or too rational and all with their own little quirks and insecurities. It's quite believable, especially the youngsters. The setting is quite different from the first book and the magic is too. There are some nice world-building ideas too.
My (moderate) dislike probably comes from inclination. While I enjoyed the faster pace of Fitzroy for a change, this was breakneck speed for me and the next volume seems to only slow down a little bit.
Also there were a lot of minor spelling & grammar mistakes that the editor really should have caught. Nothing major, but it was a little distracting.
Still very interesting in reading on.
The characters are all very interesting - mysterious, but not too much, not overly psychologising or too rational and all with their own little quirks and insecurities. It's quite believable, especially the youngsters. The setting is quite different from the first book and the magic is too. There are some nice world-building ideas too.
My (moderate) dislike probably comes from inclination. While I enjoyed the faster pace of Fitzroy for a change, this was breakneck speed for me and the next volume seems to only slow down a little bit.
Also there were a lot of minor spelling & grammar mistakes that the editor really should have caught. Nothing major, but it was a little distracting.
Still very interesting in reading on.
April 10, 2025
A bit of Alice in Wonderland for me. Lots of psychedelic level drama for incomprehensible reasons. However, I liked the main character Greenwing even though he often seemed befuddled. His heart was always in the right place. It’s set in a land where there has been a catastrophic disruption in magic that everyone is struggling to adjust to. That accounts for much of the confusion. I find it interesting that there are so many series that are based on a similar disruption in magic. I wonder what that says about our world?
July 20, 2023
Mm, I was going to give this book 5/5 all the time I was reading it, but then the finale came and... I was left wanting. I don't know if it all came together too quickly for me, or was too intertwined, or perhaps there are lingering or new questions that haven't been answered, I don't know, something doesn't feel right and I can't put my finger on what it is.
I love the book otherwise, I absolutely adore the writing style, I've enjoyed the athmospere and the wordbuilding tremendously, I think the characters (although the only one I feel I know is Mr. Dart, the narrator's best friend!) are great, I've had immense fun with the plot and everything.
I will recommend this book (series) to people, I will read the other books (can't wait to, really), and I know already, I'm going to reread it. But untill further contemplation and/or the reread I shall give it only 4/5.
I love the book otherwise, I absolutely adore the writing style, I've enjoyed the athmospere and the wordbuilding tremendously, I think the characters (although the only one I feel I know is Mr. Dart, the narrator's best friend!) are great, I've had immense fun with the plot and everything.
I will recommend this book (series) to people, I will read the other books (can't wait to, really), and I know already, I'm going to reread it. But untill further contemplation and/or the reread I shall give it only 4/5.
September 30, 2025
I’ve read quite a few of Victoria Goddard’s books recently, and would have thought this would be among my favorites. Really cool title! Cozy-small town-fantasy mystery! Small-town intrigues, and criminal masterminds, and cults, and mermaids!
All the ingredients were there for the liking. And yet, they didn’t quite come together right for me. The characters had interesting backstories, but lacked the spark other books by the author are well-known for. Especially poor Jemis is a bit too bumbling, with far too many things just happening to him, rather than him propelling the story along. The mystery took ages to build up, and while most things tied up in the end, the way there wasn’t the best.
Maybe it’s just a symptom of being the author’s early work? Will give this series another try later, as it has intriguing foundations and the reviews suggest big improvements as the series progresses.
All the ingredients were there for the liking. And yet, they didn’t quite come together right for me. The characters had interesting backstories, but lacked the spark other books by the author are well-known for. Especially poor Jemis is a bit too bumbling, with far too many things just happening to him, rather than him propelling the story along. The mystery took ages to build up, and while most things tied up in the end, the way there wasn’t the best.
Maybe it’s just a symptom of being the author’s early work? Will give this series another try later, as it has intriguing foundations and the reviews suggest big improvements as the series progresses.
August 1, 2021
What a disappointment! This was not a bad book, but I did not connect with the characters or the writing.
October 19, 2025
Now that you’re finally back to scandalize the good gentry, life should be much more interesting. Fire, mermaids, herring pies, gossip, and half the town jammed with fools debating the folly of the rest, and all of them talking about you. I’m delighted you’re back.
Cosy crime novel, the first in the Greenwing and Dart series, set in Victoria Goddard's 'Nine Worlds' universe. From other novels (specifically The Return of Fitzroy Angursell and At the Feet of the Sun) I know more about some of the characters than Goddard tells us in this first installment: I wonder if she had their later stories in mind when writing this?
It's a frothy, cheerful novel, despite some fairly dark undertones. Jemis Greenwing, our first-person narrator, has returned in disgrace to the sleepy, notoriously dull town of Ragnor Bella where he grew up. Due to illness, he missed the death and funeral of his stepfather; his stepfather's second wife is happy to give him a home, but she can't help with the rumours about his dead father, or the lingering illness that still afflicts him, or the disaster of his time at university, or the heartbreak at his lover's betrayal. Jemis should have inherited the Greenwing estate: instead, he's working at Elderflower Books, for the charming and genteel Mrs Etaris. Luckily his old friend Mr Perry Dart is in town, and invites Jemis to go mushroom-hunting. Jemis thinks this is a veiled excuse for gambling or poaching (both popular local pastimes) but it turns out to be an expedition to spy on a secret cult in the forest...
There is a mermaid; an actual stargazy pie; a decadent dinner party, with matching footmen; a young lady dressed as, but not pretending to be, a young gentleman; allusions to the work of banned anarchist poet Fitzroy Angursell; a drug-smuggling operation; a villain quelled by sneezes; and a number of surprising, and positive, revelations for Jemis.
I enjoyed this a great deal, though I was almost as frustrated by Jemis' constant sneezes as his companions were. It's very nice to read a fantasy crime novel in which (almost) nobody behaves in a way that'd be out of place in the works of Austen or Heyer! (Well, apart from the ritual sacrifice. And the orgy. And ... But those are mostly off-screen!) The novel is available for free as part of Sword and Magic: Eight Fantasy Novels: I'm quite likely to dip into the series further, not least for glimpses of those characters mentioned in other strands of Goddard's work.
EDIT 18OCT25:
“—- This is all very civilized and delightful,” Mrs. Etaris burst in, rushing back at us like a dark blue sheepdog herding her flock, “but I’m afraid we really should be going inside if we don’t want our friends and neighbours to be sacrificed to the Dark Kings." [p. 345]
First in the Greenwing and Dart series: reread, to remind myself just how miserable, unwell and generally detached Jemis was when he first returned to Ragnor Bella (the dullest town in Northwest Oriole) after the debacle of his final term at Morrowlea. Original review here...
This time around I appreciate Mrs Etaris much more (and wonder whatever became of her previous assistant, 'a quite lovely young man'). I'm also fascinated by the offhand mentions of life before the Fall. ('Whistle a few notes and anyone could call light into a dark room, mage or no, before the Empire fell' (p. 144)).
Anyway! A fish pie (and the Honourable Rag eating herring eyes); aphrodisiacs and a Decadent dinner party; the mysterious Miss 'Redshank'; Jemis as apprentice bookseller; and all manner of delicious references to life in Ragnor Bella.
I may now need to read another one...
February 11, 2021
Bewitched, bothered and bewildered.
This novel is set in a very complex invented world some years after the fall of a magical Empire. The author does not make it easy to understand the background to the story or the bizarre family history of our hero - Jemis Greenwing. There is very little action in the first quarter of the book and then all manner of extraordinary things happen, not all of which are explained by the end of Volume I in the `Greenwing & Dart' series. Not many authors could get away with a hero whose adventures are hampered by a terrible case of Hay Fever but I was charmed by Goddard's eccentric cast of characters and delightful descriptions of food and clothes. This is a Fantasy world I'd happily move into.
This novel is set in a very complex invented world some years after the fall of a magical Empire. The author does not make it easy to understand the background to the story or the bizarre family history of our hero - Jemis Greenwing. There is very little action in the first quarter of the book and then all manner of extraordinary things happen, not all of which are explained by the end of Volume I in the `Greenwing & Dart' series. Not many authors could get away with a hero whose adventures are hampered by a terrible case of Hay Fever but I was charmed by Goddard's eccentric cast of characters and delightful descriptions of food and clothes. This is a Fantasy world I'd happily move into.
September 24, 2024
Only marginally less chaotic on reread but Jemis is Jemis from the very start.
-
This was such a confusing reading experience - I was super invested in the characters pretty much from the beginning, but the plot was strangely convoluted and at places just plain mad. I'm still primarily a character-focused reader so I'm more than happy to continue reading the rest of the series.
-
This was such a confusing reading experience - I was super invested in the characters pretty much from the beginning, but the plot was strangely convoluted and at places just plain mad. I'm still primarily a character-focused reader so I'm more than happy to continue reading the rest of the series.
March 18, 2018
Extremely confusing and chaotic world building. I'm not even sure I know what the real mystery WAS. Hopefully the second book will clarify....
January 21, 2023
Fun and unique ideas but execution not for me
May 10, 2023
A shame the main character’s only personality trait is being allergic to absolutely everything.
April 20, 2024
3.5 stars
I found out about this book in an odd, roundabout kind of way.
I take the bus to and from work and frequently take a peek at what my fellow passengers are reading. There's a woman I nicknamed Bus Nemesis from the time two winters ago she sat in front of me and her bulky winter coat hood was inconsiderately on my knees; I've since observed that she mostly reads books of "literary merit" that are probably indie bestsellers, which is largely why I keep calling her Bus Nemesis. It's not fair; she's probably a lovely person, but sometimes I just need to get judgmental. Worse than Bus Nemesis is RMBM, Ratty Mustache Book Mangler, an unfortunately-mustached hip-looking young man who FOLDS HIS BOOK COVERS BACKWARDS to read. I've never glimpsed a title but from the yellowed pages I'd say he's reading mid-century novels - probably Kerouac and Salinger feature heavily. Even still, how dare you treat the book like that, RMBM.
Anyway, unnecessary background aside, one day I saw another person reading Plum Duff, which happens to be a later book in the Greenwing and Dart series. The title seemed familiar so I looked it up on Goodreads - doesn't seem like I HAVE read a book with this title, but the description was compelling. Georgian/Regency-esque magical world with adventures and intrigue! Sign me up. So I found book one through my library and started reading.
So then, review:
I can't tell if I'm on a streak of books with clumsy worldbuilding or if my brain just isn't up for the challenge right now. I suspect, with this book, it might have been a little of both. The manners stuff seemed a little pointless: "oh, we can't call each other by our first names anymore since...there were magic problems" was my takeaway from some of the etiquette our sneezing young hero struggled to remember to employ. The sneezing magic allergy has also been handled better by other authors; although I admit there were a couple of times when it was funny, it was so constant that it got annoying. It was like spending time with someone who shares their minor ailments in excruciating detail for hours, like a Jane Austen character. I had a lot of trouble keeping track of minor characters, and found the background of our young hero's broken heart to contain unnecessary amounts of academia. As far as the plot went, for a while I wasn't sure I understood what the heck was going on, then realized, like Roger Ebert watching The Usual Suspects, that I had understood everything I was supposed to, and there was simply less to understand than initially suggested.
On the positive side, the adventuring parts were very entertaining. The sequence with our young heroes stumbling on a cult was a lot of fun. The mysterious pie macguffin was likewise an excellent choice. I'm not sure the whole adds up to the sum of its parts, overall, but I will probably eventually read more of the series.
Who knows, maybe someday I'll even be reading Plum Duff on the bus.
I found out about this book in an odd, roundabout kind of way.
I take the bus to and from work and frequently take a peek at what my fellow passengers are reading. There's a woman I nicknamed Bus Nemesis from the time two winters ago she sat in front of me and her bulky winter coat hood was inconsiderately on my knees; I've since observed that she mostly reads books of "literary merit" that are probably indie bestsellers, which is largely why I keep calling her Bus Nemesis. It's not fair; she's probably a lovely person, but sometimes I just need to get judgmental. Worse than Bus Nemesis is RMBM, Ratty Mustache Book Mangler, an unfortunately-mustached hip-looking young man who FOLDS HIS BOOK COVERS BACKWARDS to read. I've never glimpsed a title but from the yellowed pages I'd say he's reading mid-century novels - probably Kerouac and Salinger feature heavily. Even still, how dare you treat the book like that, RMBM.
Anyway, unnecessary background aside, one day I saw another person reading Plum Duff, which happens to be a later book in the Greenwing and Dart series. The title seemed familiar so I looked it up on Goodreads - doesn't seem like I HAVE read a book with this title, but the description was compelling. Georgian/Regency-esque magical world with adventures and intrigue! Sign me up. So I found book one through my library and started reading.
So then, review:
I can't tell if I'm on a streak of books with clumsy worldbuilding or if my brain just isn't up for the challenge right now. I suspect, with this book, it might have been a little of both. The manners stuff seemed a little pointless: "oh, we can't call each other by our first names anymore since...there were magic problems" was my takeaway from some of the etiquette our sneezing young hero struggled to remember to employ. The sneezing magic allergy has also been handled better by other authors; although I admit there were a couple of times when it was funny, it was so constant that it got annoying. It was like spending time with someone who shares their minor ailments in excruciating detail for hours, like a Jane Austen character. I had a lot of trouble keeping track of minor characters, and found the background of our young hero's broken heart to contain unnecessary amounts of academia. As far as the plot went, for a while I wasn't sure I understood what the heck was going on, then realized, like Roger Ebert watching The Usual Suspects, that I had understood everything I was supposed to, and there was simply less to understand than initially suggested.
On the positive side, the adventuring parts were very entertaining. The sequence with our young heroes stumbling on a cult was a lot of fun. The mysterious pie macguffin was likewise an excellent choice. I'm not sure the whole adds up to the sum of its parts, overall, but I will probably eventually read more of the series.
Who knows, maybe someday I'll even be reading Plum Duff on the bus.
May 26, 2024
Two-out-of-five stars, which is the lowest I've rated any of the dozen or so books that I've read by author Victoria Goddard thus far. I'm heartened that this 2016 novel is one of her earlier works, because it means I know firsthand that her talents improve after this, but I'm honestly not sure I would have finished this title if it was the first one I had picked up. As is, my primary enjoyment has been in spotting the worldbuilding references to the writer's broader Nine Worlds setting: particularly the outlaw poet Fitzroy Angursell and his banned epic Aurora, along with the general depiction of life in the wake of the cataclysmic Fall of Astandalas.
The immediate plot here concerns the protagonist returning to his provincial hometown after leaving college in disgrace, reconnecting with a few old friends, and investigating an odd but seemingly inconsequential mystery -- the titular seafood dish, which someone has left sitting by the fountain in the town square -- that winds up uncovering cult activity and an even larger criminal conspiracy. The characters are fine, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if the sub-series launched by this volume grows stronger in subsequent installments. But the story is delivered rather poorly, with important developments happening by chance, oblique connections that readers don't have enough context to follow, and other passages heavy with exposition that the recipients plainly ought to have already known.
The tale is structured like a Regency-pastiche whodunnit (with some fantasy genre flourishes on the side), but the heroes don't really assemble clues in a reasonable or interesting way. Instead they blunder about, make intuitive leaps, and get caught up in a sequence of unrelated diabolical machinations. And yet it doesn't quite land as a comedy of errors, either! It's altogether strange, and although the narrator's personal backstory is fairly compelling once we learn all the relevant details, the narrative around him is a remarkably poor showing for it.
[Content warning for drug and alcohol abuse and sexual assault.]
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The immediate plot here concerns the protagonist returning to his provincial hometown after leaving college in disgrace, reconnecting with a few old friends, and investigating an odd but seemingly inconsequential mystery -- the titular seafood dish, which someone has left sitting by the fountain in the town square -- that winds up uncovering cult activity and an even larger criminal conspiracy. The characters are fine, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if the sub-series launched by this volume grows stronger in subsequent installments. But the story is delivered rather poorly, with important developments happening by chance, oblique connections that readers don't have enough context to follow, and other passages heavy with exposition that the recipients plainly ought to have already known.
The tale is structured like a Regency-pastiche whodunnit (with some fantasy genre flourishes on the side), but the heroes don't really assemble clues in a reasonable or interesting way. Instead they blunder about, make intuitive leaps, and get caught up in a sequence of unrelated diabolical machinations. And yet it doesn't quite land as a comedy of errors, either! It's altogether strange, and although the narrator's personal backstory is fairly compelling once we learn all the relevant details, the narrative around him is a remarkably poor showing for it.
[Content warning for drug and alcohol abuse and sexual assault.]
Like this review?
--Throw me a quick one-time donation here!
https://ko-fi.com/lesserjoke
--Subscribe here to support my writing and weigh in on what I read next!
https://patreon.com/lesserjoke
--Follow along on Goodreads here!
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6...
--Or click here to browse through all my reviews!
https://lesserjoke.home.blog
April 16, 2022
CW:
While this book felt weakest to me in the series, I also finished reading all six currently available books in under a week, so it must be doing something right!
If you're interested in this author I do recommend starting with The Hands of the Emperor. This one was a bit hard to find my footing in since there was little explanation of characters and background, so I felt at times quite confused about what was happening. It has a light, adventurous tone but still a lot of dark events depicted.
Some intended plot twists are quite obvious to the reader because they're harped on so much in the book. For instance:
While I enjoy the female characters presented, I do wish there were more of them as central characters. That being said, it's refreshing to see such close male friendships presented on the page. I'm already looking forward to reading the eventual 7th installment in this series.
While this book felt weakest to me in the series, I also finished reading all six currently available books in under a week, so it must be doing something right!
If you're interested in this author I do recommend starting with The Hands of the Emperor. This one was a bit hard to find my footing in since there was little explanation of characters and background, so I felt at times quite confused about what was happening. It has a light, adventurous tone but still a lot of dark events depicted.
Some intended plot twists are quite obvious to the reader because they're harped on so much in the book. For instance:
While I enjoy the female characters presented, I do wish there were more of them as central characters. That being said, it's refreshing to see such close male friendships presented on the page. I'm already looking forward to reading the eventual 7th installment in this series.
August 4, 2021
Fun, sweet, weird, confusing, always engaging. The plot possibly had too many elements going on at once, and didn't quite come together, but there are more books in the series and I really liked Jemis and his backstory, so I'm definitely continuing. Lots of question marks about the other characters that I hope get answered! I'm familiar with the world from The Hands of the Emperor, though this corner of it is entirely different, and the magic system is pretty much "whatever she feels like throwing in for good measure," so familiarity wasn't much help! She's a fantastic writer with a crazy imagination and does relationships really well, so I'm confident this series will find its feet. In the meantime, this book was a head-scratching hoot!
March 30, 2024
I have no idea what I’ve just read. This is the most confusing book I’ve ever finished along with perhaps anything by Patricia McKillip. I didn’t DNF because what little I understood was super intriguing and I loved the characters and the friendships that have a found family feel.
It’s a fantasy of manners with incredibly intricate world building and you’re just dropped there in the middle of things.
Greenwing failed at uni and is constantly bullied because his father betrayed the kingdom. His only friend is Dart, and Mrs Etaris who’s kind enough to take him on as a bookshop assistant but mysteries - a pie, powerful magic - keep falling on his lap and soon enough, Greenwing isn’t too sure Ragnor Bella is the boring little town he’d been looking for.
I don’t know what to make of this! I keep hearing it all starts to make sense by book 3-4 so we’ll see!
It’s a fantasy of manners with incredibly intricate world building and you’re just dropped there in the middle of things.
Greenwing failed at uni and is constantly bullied because his father betrayed the kingdom. His only friend is Dart, and Mrs Etaris who’s kind enough to take him on as a bookshop assistant but mysteries - a pie, powerful magic - keep falling on his lap and soon enough, Greenwing isn’t too sure Ragnor Bella is the boring little town he’d been looking for.
I don’t know what to make of this! I keep hearing it all starts to make sense by book 3-4 so we’ll see!
May 25, 2025
Absolutely splendid, start to finish.
I love the depth of the setting, the detail, the delightful cast of characters, the wonderful sense of tone and scale and just how breathtakingly real and original and made of love the created whole feels. I will admit to losing the plot a bit towards the end, but as likewise did our protagonist, I'll let myself off.
I'm ordering the next couple right the heck now.
I love the depth of the setting, the detail, the delightful cast of characters, the wonderful sense of tone and scale and just how breathtakingly real and original and made of love the created whole feels. I will admit to losing the plot a bit towards the end, but as likewise did our protagonist, I'll let myself off.
I'm ordering the next couple right the heck now.
May 16, 2023
these characters are charming and I am looking forward to spending several more books with them. and maybe getting a little of the emotional introspection that was so generously given in Hands and Feet to go along with the extravagant descriptions of clothes and food.
I miss my guy Kip.
it took me a while to read this, and I honestly found it kind of a snooze.
I miss my guy Kip.
it took me a while to read this, and I honestly found it kind of a snooze.
May 18, 2023
3.75.
This was VERY chaotic. I'm glad I haven't started reading Goddard with this book, and happy to report her writing style improved immensely.
That said, I did enjoy the characters in this story even if half the time I had no clue what was going on.
Now, on to tge second volume!
This was VERY chaotic. I'm glad I haven't started reading Goddard with this book, and happy to report her writing style improved immensely.
That said, I did enjoy the characters in this story even if half the time I had no clue what was going on.
Now, on to tge second volume!
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