The Conspiracy of Magic by Harriet Whitehorn

In a world where magic is so powerful it has been outlawed, Cass is a rare creature ­– an obtuse, someone who is unaffected by magic. But what has always felt like a handicap becomes a strength when sorcerers and magicians begin to perform magical deceptions with malicious intent. The Queen of Minaris is in grave danger and it’s up to Cass to protect her. But how can Cass defeat the sinister magician behind it all with no powers herself? {goodreads summary}

I started The Conspiracy of Magic within days of finishing The Company of Eight - neglecting the other novels I was part way through to do so. I couldn't wait to return to Cass's world of magic and sword fighting. 

In The Conspiracy of Magic, Cass leaves behind the islands of The Company of Eight, travelling North of Minaris to visit foreign lands on a diplomatic mission with Queen Arden. When magical foes keep attacking their convoy, Cass is the only one able to see through the magic's deception, but Cass's status as an obtuse may prove more crucial to what is going on than she realises. 

As with The Company of Eight, the cover and map work are beautiful and I kept flicking back as I progressed through the story to see exactly where we were (and to try and guess where the story was going next!)

Here are three reasons I loved The Conspiracy of Magic: 

1) The world building from the first novel is expanded on in interesting and exciting ways. I loved that there was an entirely new setting for this story, which was rich in history and had some interesting parallels with real-world wars and politics. Veraklia, with its post-war poverty, was depicted with sensitivity and nuance; despite Queen Vegna's role as the story antagonist, the people of Veraklia are overwhelmingly helpful and kind. 

2) The events of this novel take a heavy emotional toll on Cass. What she goes through affects her greatly, and it was nice to see this addressed in the text, rather than glossed over to move the story forward. 

3) The plot is really twisty and unexpected! There were plenty of moments where I felt like I knew what was going to happen next, or understood how the plot was progressing, only to have the narrative take a completely unexpected turn. 

Thank you Stripes Publishing for sending me a copy of this fantastic fantasy adventure. I can't wait to find out what Cass does next!