I don’t know that book 3 is the best of the trilogy or that it learned the most important lessons from books 1 and 2, but it did seemingly improve in some ways, and was simultaneously more enjoyable overall than either of the first two books while still nearly as frustrating as book 2.

Perhaps the best part of the story is that like book 2, it has a very good climax. It’s well paced, fun, and creative. The pacing of this book is overall far better than the previous two, though the opening was again a bit slow. I think part of the difference here is that book 3 is far shorter than the other two, meaning it moves a little faster, which it greatly benefits from. That being said, there are still moments that hearken back to the first two where the narrative slows down to a ridiculous crawl.

Perhaps the most glaring problem with this book is the over-emphasis on jealousy. In books 1 and 2 the issue was the weird "back and forth", "will they won’t they", "hot cold whatever" between the leads. Book 3 was jealousy, and both characters badly hiding their own, one minute being jealous, the next pretending they’d never been so, and then the immediate next being jealous again. It got boring as soon as it happened.

Another issue, which I’m conflicted about being annoyed about, is the “Rory can prepare food” subplot. In book 1, apropos nothing other than the fact that Rory appears to know a kitchen by dint of being critical of an empty one and a failed attempt to make coffee (as well as simply being Italian), Ace assumes that Rory can cook and would cook wonderfully (at one point he says something like "his cooking would be wonderful"). At no point in any of the books does Rory fulfill this, despite getting lost in nostalgia sniffing food in a supermarket in book 2 and buying ingredients he doesn’t use, though Ace does get him a nice coffee maker in book 1, which Rory even uses, eventually, halfway through book 3.

This wouldn’t matter if Ace hadn’t insisted on Rory’s cooking skills in book 1 multiple times, it popped up in book 2, and the whole thing is so out of the blue and never delivered on. It’s a bad subplot and has me more convinced the author just doesn’t know any actual Italian dishes than anything else. It’s fine if you don’t know enough about cooking to have your character do it on-page. But randomly having one character assume that because his crush is half-Italian he can cook is... well. Though there’s the potential that the joke is that young Italian men are actually unlikely to know how to cook, at least according to an Italian friend of mine. The insistence that Rory can, though, is odd.

But hey, at least he finally prepared some sort of food? I guess? So book 3 has that going for it.

Another thing that pissed me off is that in each book, we're told how useful Pavel's potions are, but in the first two books, we're not told what they do, just that they might come in handy. Out of like six potions, in book 1, the heroes take three potions they don't know the use of onto a battlefield, and they are then stolen and used against the heroes, one of which knocks out Ace. In book 2, they again get three potions of unknown use, one of which is actually useful to Ace, and the other two of which knock two of the heroes out. In book 3, finally, we are told ahead of time what Pavel's potion is supposed to do. ...And it fails. This is perhaps the dumbest and most annoying subplot in the story, and not helped by the fact that in book 3 Therin actually has a narrative nod to how she does the same things over and over in each story.

The “new” cast is good, and it’s nice to see all the side characters have more of an active role. It made the stuff with the central dynamic less frustrating.

My favorite subplot was actually Rory hiding his plans from Mrs. Brodigan and thinking about how he couldn’t “burden” his friends. It’s very whumpy and self-sacrificing, and all the more frustrating that it lasted basically five seconds. But it’s nice to see the smart people using their brains for once.

All in all, though, this book also sold me on trying the spin-off out. If nothing else, I am far more interested in Wesley and Sebastian’s story after this, particularly given Wesley’s conversation with Ace this book. I hope it’s good.

I can’t really say I recommend reading this book, or this trilogy. It’s fine enough as historical fantasy m/m goes, even if I still think the magic system is dumber than it is fun. Overall my experience with it was mixed. The things I liked about it I liked a lot. The things I disliked I generally hated. The m/m is often more frustrating than it is enjoyable, but the cast is fun, and the world, while kind of weird in magic terms (and not necessarily in an interesting or enjoyable way) and underused maybe in terms of historical fiction, is interesting. ( )

*I* am wonderstruck at how good this installment is. How do they keep getting better?? Great characters, squishy-challenging romance all tangled up in magic, and a nicely tricksy plot drawing to a satisfying close. There could be more, but it isn't necessary, and these three novels are among the strongest stories I've read. Love them. Highly recommended. ( )

I really enjoyed this series. It definitely has its problems, especially with consistency which was mentioned in a few other reviews, but the premise is really fun and all of the characters are distinct and interesting. Arthur and Rory are one of my favourite MM couples I've read and I hope there's more of them in the future, perhaps with lower stakes and less death. I would definitely recommend this series to people who enjoy historical romances mixed with adventure, fantasy, and magic. ( )

I was hoping to like this third book best, but that didn't end up being the case, it's my least favorite, (but still 3 stars in its defense). Rory continued to rub me the wrong way a bit. Maybe it's his age, but even that, by the third book I would think would improve (through adversity and experience if not time). The relationship as well is more serious but maybe not more close. They seemed to be having most of the same problems they've been having this entire time. I would have liked to see their relationship evolve more I guess. I liked Art, and I liked the class difference, and the secondary characters. But I think I'm perhaps feeling a bit tired of this series, so it's nice that this was the last. The steam is mostly closed door, if that sways you either way. ( )

Wonderstruck by Allie Therin
Magic in Manhattan #3

1925 New York with paranormal and mundane persons working together to save the world – loved it! This is definitely a book that should be read as a series and a series I thoroughly enjoyed and recommend!

What I liked:
* Rory: psychometric, barely twenty-one, poor, hard-working, sweet, kind, tough, charming, jealous, perfect for Arthur
* Arthur: mundane, interested in magic, early thirties, wealthy, military veteran, generous, kind, lethal when necessary, a good man, perfect for Rory
* The relationship between Rory and Arthur
* The magic component of the story and how it all comes together
* The supporting characters (some may need stories of their own)
* The writing, plot, and the way it all came together
* The friendships and team feeling of how they all worked together
* The twists and turns – there were a few I did not see coming
* That evil was eventually thwarted
* The feel-good ending that made me believe in happily ever after.

What I did not like:
* Baron Keppler and his henchmen…especially the puppeteer…
* Being reminded of how wicked Rory’s father was and how hard it must have been for orphans
* The other evil people that showed up here and there.
* Saying goodbye to characters I grew to know and love

Did I enjoy this book? Definitely!
Would I read more by this author? Without a doubt! ( )