Sophia Westlake is an Extraordinary Seer, gifted with the ability to See past, present and future in Dreams and Visions. When she accuses a prominent politician, Lord Endicott, of embezzling from the Army, her Dream is “proved” false and she is disgraced, her reputation ruined. Furious and desperate, Sophia takes the only course left to her: she sets out to discover Lord Endicott’s criminal … enterprises and bring him to justice.
Sophia’s allies are few, but loyal. Cecy, her best friend, supports Sophia in her quest, while her cousin Lady Daphne, an irrepressible Extraordinary Bounder, is always ready for a challenge. And always watching her is the mysterious Mr. Rutledge, who claims to be interested in Sophia’s friendship—and possibly more than that—but who has an agenda of his own.
But as Sophia delves deeper into prophetic Dreams, Cecy and Daphne begin to fear for Sophia’s health and sanity. Driven to collapse by her frequent Dreaming, Sophia is forced to reevaluate her motives: does she want Lord Endicott brought to justice, or is it revenge she seeks? Sophia’s Dreams and Visions are leading her to just one place: the destruction of Lord Endicott. But the cost of her vengeance may be too high—and may demand the sacrifice of her own life.
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I needed a break from my current gorging on Jane Austen Fan Fiction and since this was a close era book, I decided to give it a chance. I went on to read two more in the series. What does that tell you? I’m addicted to another genre. It’s a good thing I have an e-reader. I was running out of shelving space!
This is the second book in the series, and what I like is that it’s not a sequel to Burning Bright. It’s its own story and while it’s not technically a stand alone, it gives just enough backstory for you to keep up. This didn’t have quite the same world building as the first story, but it’s still enjoyable.
The War of 1812 is over and we meet Sophia Westlake, who has been dismissed from the British Navy under questionable circumstances, one might say. Sophia is a Seer. She doesn’t have visions, per se. She has Dreams. In the Dream in question, she saw Lord Endincott, a local popular politician, embezzling funds from the Army. He was able to disprove her Dream and he’s been tormenting Sophia ever since. She is determined more than ever to restore her reputation, but she has very few allies and one very powerful enemy. In her quest to restore her stellar reputation, she stumbles across something interesting. A counterfeit ring! Enter Mr. Rutledge. He has been keeping a close eye on Sophia from a distance. Mr. Rutledge has been tasked with ending the counterfeit ring before any further damage can be done. He’s going to need some help, but Sophia is reluctant. With each encounter with Lord Endicott, Sophia is positive he’s in charge of the counterfeit ring and is obsessed with proving it. Will Sophia get her justice, or will she become the person she hates to get revenge?
It was a nice game of cat and mouse with a hint of romance. The banter between Lord Endicott and Sophia, plus Mr. Rutledge and Sophia were great. For me, it may have been the best part of the book. It had a pretty strong storyline, it just felt like something was missing. I would very much like to see where the series goes from here.
I really enjoyed the twists in this book. Kept me reading
I was eager to return to The Extraordinaries world of elegant Regency London, an ongoing war with France, and oh yes, people born with magical gifts that made them a bit of something extra. Wondering Sight shifts the spotlight to a new intrepid heroine, Sophia Westlake, who possesses a different magical gift and a new adventure of her own.
Wondering Sight is book two in The Extraordinaries series, but it is written in such a way that it can be read out of order or standalone though I would encourage the reader not to miss the first and exciting book, Burning Bright.
The story opens with Sophia Westlake dismissed from her work for the Army in disgrace. Only a select few know about her disgrace- a dream that did not turn out true implicating one of the army’s weapon’s suppliers in a crime. Sophia is a Seer and an Extraordinaire at that. Her gift is powerful and never wrong. She can’t fathom how Lord Endicott got away with his scheme and made her look bad.
Now back in London and forced to meet Endicott in society, Sophia is determined to prove she was right and take down Endicott. She is convinced that a slippery character like him would have more than one scheme afoot.
Her friends, Cecy and Daphne worry about her entering her Dream state too much and Endicott is aware of her pursuit of him and taking steps. A mysterious and interesting man wants to hire her for Seer work and just happens to be around each time she needs rescuing. Driven harder each time she is thwarted, Sophia is so determined to catch Endicott that her pursuit of justice just might slip into revenge. Only, the hunter might turn into the prey if she isn’t careful.
Alright, Wondering Sight was vastly different from the earlier book, Burning Bright. The two stories occupy the same world of Regency times blended with magic, but this one takes place mostly against the backdrop of the London Season and the war that was prevalent before is distant background here. There is some excitement, but this one is more of a mystery than adventure.
Sophia’s gift was mentioned in the first book, but now the details about how the Seer magic works is detailed out. Sophia is a powerful Seer and can slip into dreams to gain present or future scenes. She can also touch an object to see visions. Sophia is an impulsive and emotional type who leaps into thought, words, and actions which gets her into trouble more often than not. She is written with deep flaws and much of the story she is oblivious, but slowly she is forced to see them and grow though it is only near the end when she teeters over a real abyss of trouble that she finally listens to her friends and the man she loves.
This one had a cunning plot. The villain and even his scheme is known, but this leads to a cat and mouse game that gets deadly. And the story that was evenly paced really started picking up speed near the end for the exciting finish.
Like the first book, I loved the world of magic users and the camaraderie of friends and a little romance. Sophia is a Seer, but her best friend Cecy has the magical ability to connect with others through mindspeak and her new friend Daphne is a Bounder who can teleport from place to place or ‘skip’ to longer distances. There are also Movers who use telekinesis, fire magic wielders, shapers who can alter their appearances, and more.
I had a good time with this second outing in the series and can’t wait for the next installment hopefully involving the precocious Daphne. Those who enjoy their historicals blended with some magic, some romance, and a cunning adventure should give this book/series a try.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Took a bit to understand the abilities of the characters but then it all makes sense and it very entertaining.
I much prefer the first book in this series. Much of this book was the seer protagonist ignoring the concerns of her friends that she was over-using her powers to prove that the villain was truly a villain. The romance felt tacked on
New types of paranormal gifts and insight into the brains and emotions of old English. Truly enjoyed this book.
I started with book two and was lost. I highly recommend reading book one and follow chronologically.
I loved this book and am waiting for sequels!
This book isn’t your normal paranormal romance book. It’s a fresh new idea and I did enjoy it.
Kept me turning the pages!!
The pages were scrambled making impossible to read.