The magic system in the book is not something we haven’t seen before, but you can never go wrong with elemental magic. That being said, I think the writing style suited the tone of the book perfectly, and I was engrossed enough in the story to not feel thrown off by the verbosity. The writing can seem quite dense and history book-ish at times, and I can see why that might make it difficult for some to get through this brick of a book. In terms of pacing, the story itself moves quickly enough, but it also demands to be read slowly and savoured thoroughly. I’m completely in awe of the way Parry has woven magic into the late eighteenth century world and given it a magical background so convincing! As you read the book, you’ll find yourself firmly believing that the Parisian mob that stormed the Bastille consisted entirely of commoner magicians, or that Robespierre, a necromancer, raised an army of undead during the French Revolutionary Wars. This book is a beautiful and well-balanced combination of extensively researched history and a captivating magic system. In the midst of it all, an ancient, dark presence is stirring, slowly leading the world into utter chaos. Fina, a slave stuck in a sugar plantation in Jamaica struggles to be free of the enchantment suppressing her magic and join the Revolution. As the abolition of the slave trade is heavily discoursed in London, Prime Minister William Pitt is locked in a constant battle against his own nature. He’ll go to any means to make it a reality, even if that means he has to associate with dark magic.

In France, Robespierre dreams of a country free of constraints, a France where commoners and aristocrats alike use their magic freely. The story travels back and forth between France, Haiti, and Britain where magic is confined strictly to the aristocracy in the European countries. As a historical fantasy enthusiast, A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians is everything I could ask for and more from a magic-imbued reimagining of the interrelated histories of the French Revolution, the Haitian Revolution, and the abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire!Ī Declaration of the Rights of Magicians presents an alternate version of the late eighteenth century world, a world with magic in it.

A declaration of rights of magicians