October “Toby” Daye is trying to settle into life with her newborn daughter while continuing to deal with the dangers of Faerie. Things become complicated when Raysel, the estranged daughter of Toby’s liege lord, is nearing the end of her time living with Toby. Raysel’s mother, Luna, wants her daughter back, but Raysel doesn’t want to leave the home and family she has found with Toby. When Luna takes matters into her own hands and carries Raysel away to the dangerous lands of Blind Michael, Toby must set out to bring her back before it’s too late.
October Daye has been through a lot over the course of the series, and now, in A Divided Duty, she once again finds herself dealing with trouble in the world of Faerie. This time, she has the added benefit of having Tybalt working alongside her. Of course, whenever Toby and Tybalt get involved in something, things have a tendency to become complicated very quickly. What…? Surprise!
As I’ve often noted, I really enjoy Seanan McGuire’s work. Reaching the twentieth book in any series is something of an accomplishment and worth celebrating – there aren’t too many series that I can get this far in and still look forward to spending time with the characters. McGuire has created a world that is large enough that there always seems to be something new to discover, while still giving us characters we’ve come to know over the years. The characters definitely drive the story, but the variety adds to the CTPP (Cool Things Per Page) quotient.
One of the things I particularly enjoyed about A Divided Duty was getting to see Tybalt and October working together. The two of them have always had a fun relationship, and putting them together on a problem gives us some great interaction between them. Tybalt is one of my favorite characters in the series, so anytime he gets a little more time in the story, I’m happy. Dare I say that I might enjoy the books just as much if Tybalt were in it and Toby wasn’t?
I also really like the variety of characters and creatures McGuire has created. There are so many different types of Faerie, and they all have their own personalities, abilities, and ways of looking at the world. Even after twenty books, McGuire is able to introduce or bring back creatures and characters that make this world feel much larger than just the immediate story.
At this point in the series, though, I think it helps to already be invested in Toby and the world around her. There is a lot of history here, and the story builds on what has come before. That’s not really a problem for someone who has made it to book twenty, but this is definitely not a series where I would recommend starting with the latest installment.
There were a few places where the story didn’t grab me quite as much as some of the earlier books, but I still enjoyed it. For me, a big part of the appeal at this point is simply spending time with these characters and seeing what new trouble they are going to get themselves into (or what trouble is finding them).
Like all the books in the series that I’ve read, this includes a pronunciation guide (very helpful in a McGuire fantasy series) and short story/novelette, “But By Degrees,” which, as per usual, gives us a different angle – the chance to see some of what we’ve just read, but from someone else’s perspective. I love this.
Looking for a good book? A Divided Duty by Seanan McGuire is another enjoyable entry in the October Daye series. The combination of interesting characters, a wide variety of creatures, and especially getting to see October and Tybalt working together makes this a fun addition to a series I continue to enjoy.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
4.0 stars
* * * * * *
A Divided Duty
author: Seanan McGuire
series: October Daye #20
publisher: Tor Books
ISBN: 9781250375278
hardcover, 400 pages
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