The inspiration for this book, according to the author, was “what if the conductors of the Underground Railroad had magic?” She runs with that, and it works very well.
(Aside, because I’m not sure how widely known this aspect of American history is outside of the U.S.: the Underground Railroad was a secret network of abolitionists, free Blacks, escaped slaves, and other sympathizers who would help runaway slaves escape to the north. They used terms like “Conductors” for people who acted as guides and escorts, “Stations” for safe houses, etc.)
This book is set in post-Civil War Philadelphia. The protagonist is a former slave named Hetty, who served as a very successful Conductor on the Underground Railroad after her own escape. Her husband Benji (they married for mutual convenience rather than love) is the same. She works as a seamstress, he as a blacksmith, and with the dissolution of the Underground Railroad now that slavery has been abolished they have sort of fallen into a role as unofficial detectives/sherrifs of the Black community in Philadelphia.
(The distrust among the Black community for the city of Philadelphia’s official, White police force is a topic that certainly isn’t relevant to any present day matters. Certainly not!)
Magic in this book occurs in two forms. There is Sorcery, which uses wands, and the drawing of Star Sigils, which depends upon the constellations in some way. Sorcery is magic the Whites use, while the Sigils are something that only Blacks use (and is treated with disdain by Sorcerers). Even in Quaker Philadelphia, teaching Black people sorcery is outlawed. A Black person in possession of a wand in Philadelphia will never see the outside of their prison cell again. A Black person in the South caught with a want wouldn’t have a prayer of even making it to a prison.
The main thread of the plot comes from a murder investigation Hetty and Benjy are undertaking. A member of their close circle of friends has been murdered, brutally, and with a few flourishes that had once been reserved for slaves caught using forbidden magic. Naturally Hetty and Benjy are determined to find the killer, but things get … complicated when it becomes clear that the murderer almost certainly has to be another among their close circle of friends.
Interspersed with this are various flashback chapters, from the days when Hetty and Benjy were working as Conductors and helping slaves escape north.
This was a good read. I appreciated it both as a fan of fantasy books and as a fan of mystery novels. The mystery was engaging, the magic interesting, and the characters were great. It’s standalone, though I could easily envision a series of books with Hetty & Benjy solving mysteries in the tradition of Peter & Harriet or Tommy & Tuppence.