Fledgling by Molly Harper
Fledgling (2019), the second book in Molly Harper‘s SORCERY AND SOCIETY series, picks up where Changeling left off, following Sarah Smith (posing as Cassandra Reed) as she endeavors to learn magic and navigate elite society at Miss Castwell’s Institute for the Magical Instruction of Young Ladies while keeping her identify as a former housemaid secret. If you haven’t read Changeling yet, you’ll want to do that first.
Sarah is feeling more comfortable with her magical abilities and her social situation. She’s making friends, doing well in school, and is even being courted by Gavin, a handsome, smart, and kind young man who doesn’t know she’s a snipe. How will he react when he finds out?
Meanwhile, Mr. Crenshaw is pressuring Sarah to translate the book faster. He looks ill and seems desperate, so Sarah wonders if his intentions are for good or evil. She isn’t sure how compliant she should be.
She and her friends also learn that other changelings, like Sarah, may exist and may be being hidden in a remote location by adults who plan to train and use them for some sinister purpose. The girls want to discover if the pressure from Mr. Crenshaw is related to what’s happening with those children.
As I mentioned in my review of Changeling, Harper’s story is mostly entertaining and often witty (though sometimes attempts at humor fall flat), but it’s just too familiar. The characters, while likable, don’t evolve much from their archetypes. There’s nothing innovative about the world-building or magic system. The plot feels predictable and suffers from some fantasy blunders. The most egregious of these is the villain’s lengthy expository monologue, which drains the tension from the novel’s climactic scene.
Fledgling is an entertaining read for those who enjoyed the first book, but it doesn’t bring anything new or daring to the series. It continues to rely on tried-and-true magical school tropes, making it enjoyable but ultimately forgettable and lacking the spark to set it apart from others in the genre.
Amanda Ronconi continues to do a fabulous job with the narration of the audio edition.
Published in 2019. Days away from becoming completing her first year at Miss Castwell’s Institute for the Magical Instruction of Young Ladies, Changeling-born Sarah Smith might just get away with posing as an upper-class Guardian girl named Cassandra Reed. But strange visions of a Lightbourne destroyed by Miss Morton’s revenant army keep Sarah from enjoying her achievement. Plus, the Mother Book, Sarah’s one secret advantage and the ultimate entrée in Guardian society, suddenly stops revealing itself to her…putting her in a precarious position with the Guild. On top of all that, her former lady’s maid left Miss Castwell’s, and the new hire is, well, taking some getting used to. If it weren’t for her two best friends, Alicia McCray and Ivy Cowel, who will do anything to protect her secret, Sarah doesn’t know if she’ll make it another year. When the three girls take summer holiday with Alicia’s family (chaperoned by an exacting and very disapproving Mrs. McCray), a relaxing vacation in Scotland is the last thing they’ll find. Mrs. Winter is thrilled that Sarah is spending time with the influential McCray family, but Sarah can’t help but feel that her real purpose is to find other Changeling children like her, and free them to realize their own magic. Can she find genuine satisfaction in her accomplishments when she knows there are others like her out there who need her help? Will the three girls uncover the deeply-held secrets they’re looking for in the mysterious mountains of Scotland? Will the Mother Book finally start talking to her again? And will Sarah come to understand the importance of her connection with Ivy and Alicia, and the true nature of her own power…before it’s too late?
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KAT HOOPER, who started this site in June 2007, earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience and psychology at Indiana University (Bloomington) and now teaches and conducts brain research at the University of North Florida. When she reads fiction, she wants to encounter new ideas and lots of imagination. She wants to view the world in a different way. She wants to have her mind blown. She loves beautiful language and has no patience for dull prose, vapid romance, or cheesy dialogue. She prefers complex characterization, intriguing plots, and plenty of action. Favorite authors are Jack Vance, Robin Hobb, Kage Baker, William Gibson, Gene Wolfe, Richard Matheson, and C.S. Lewis.
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Well, darn! Because these covers are just as cute as a bug’s ear!