Mr Paranoid and Mr Bland

[mtvessel]

Sep 2021
Witchmark - C.L. Polk – Tor, 2018
* * *
This is a largely enjoyable fantasy set in Aeland, a post-World War 1 Edwardian England with magic. Miles Singer, a doctor with several secrets, is working incognito in a hospital tending to soldiers who have become dangerously psychotic after returning home from the front. He treats a man called Nick Elliot, who dies in his arms after a) telling him that he was murdered, and b) transferring a magical witchmark to him. Which is bad news for Singer, who is desperate to conceal his magical gifts for reasons that become very apparent later on. Also bad news is Tristan Hunter, the mysterious and attractive gentleman who brought Nick to the hospital, who takes an interest in the case.

It is a perfectly good read and the faux-Edwardian setting is interesting and well-realised. However, it hasn't lingered in my memory as much as it could have, in part because some of the more unusual magical features of the world were explained in Miles' thoughts rather than shown in action. As a result, it is difficult for the reader (well, me at least) to identify with Miles' utter refusal to trust anyone at all, making it seem more a means to create dramatic tension than a believable character trait. This is also the case with Tristan's whole deal, which is poorly introduced, doesn't really fit with the rest of the world-building, and makes him a rather bland love interest. But other than that, not bad.