Hetty and Benjy Rhodes used to be conductors on the Underground Railroad; after the end of the Civil War, they settled down in Philadelphia and sort of fell into solving crimes and other mysteries brought to them by their local community. Oh, and did I mention that they utilize magic? Yeah, this book has a little bit of everything. The latest mystery that falls into their laps involves the death of a close friend, which appears to be murder.

I loved the premise of this book. Despite some minor flaws (mostly related to editing, which makes sense given that this was an ARC), I felt that the book delivered. I loved watching Hetty grow and develop, especially in terms of her relationship with her husband Benjy. I appreciated her strong, independent nature that took no shit from the people around her - she makes a pretty bad ass heroine. The book kept me reading and truly pulled me into the historical and magical world built by the author, and I look forward to reading additional books starring Hetty and Benjy.

This was a difficult one to get through. The writing and the repetitiveness gave way to being a debut novel. I was really interested in the story, but had a difficult time enjoying the book because of how the story gave too much explanation for things a reader should sometimes be assumed to know.

**Please see content/trigger warnings at the end of this review**

This book is a murder mystery set in an alternate history post-Civil war era (1871, Philadelphia) that includes magic used in the everyday. The two leads are Hetty and Benjy, a married couple who used to be Conductors on the Underground Railroad, and now help their community by investigating problems that the local police won't touch.

The premise is amazing and I was all in for this alternate history, but I was disappointed in the execution of the plot. The pacing was very slow (especially for a murder mystery), Hetty and Benjy seem to spend the majority of the book spinning their wheels (when they're supposed to be extremely smart and accomplished investigators) and suspecting all their friends of the murders because they're "acting weird." There was also a lot of flashbacks into Hetty's (and sometimes Benjy's) past which was interesting but seems more appropriate for a historical fiction rather that contributing anything to the actual mystery.

All in all, I felt the book failed to live up to the extremely cool plot outline and could have benefited from different editing. I really hope the author continues her story and some of the irregularities in the book are worked out in the next.

Content/trigger warnings: descriptions of enslavement and torture, loss of parents, racism, microaggressions, domestic violence, shaming for not having children.

The Conductors had a really interesting premise, but overall I think that this book could do with a bit more polishing in order for the book to reach its full potential.

The magic system that was based off constellations was very creative, and not something that I had seen before. Additionally, the idea of a historical fantasy set in the Reconstruction era and based around the Underground Railroad is really exciting. I also enjoyed the murder mystery premise of the novel.

However, I found it hard to connect to the characters and the plot of this book was slightly rushed. I think maybe this was because of the pacing or the writing style, but things seemed to happen very quickly, and I think that there was maybe a little too much telling (rather than showing).

While there were definitely elements of the book that I think could be improved upon, overall, The Conductors has a lot of promise, and I think that with a bit more time, this book could really shine.

This book is about a couple Hetty and Benjy who solve murder cases that are not taken by the police.
I am usually a huge fan of magical books. But I did not really connect with the magic system in this story. The plot was unique and interesting but character descriptions were not the best. As a debut novel, it is not that bad but could have done better.
The pace also didn't seem very consistent.
Overall an okay read

The Conductors is a historical fantasy/murder mystery, set in post-Civil War Philadelphia. A husband and wife team (Benjy and Hetty Rhoades) were previous Underground railroad conductors, and now that slavery has been abolished, they help people find missing relatives, solve mysteries and even murder.

However, there is an undercurrent of magic running through everything, where both Black and white people have access to certain magical abilities, but even the magic using is only allowed in certain circumstances, and white and Black people use the magic system differently. There are periodic flashbacks that allow the reader to see some of the backstory, but the glances are brief, but it gives you some insight on what’s currently going on in the story.

This first installment is about murder and magic, and you find out that someone has died, and Benjy and Hetty are put into a position to investigate. While they are investigating a murder, all sorts of secrets, and mysteries materialize and they realize there may be danger lurking out there for them as well.

To be honest, I’ve come to realize that magical realism doesn’t work well for me in the historical slave setting. I don’t like the idea of anyone putting enslaved Black people into situations where they have to use magic in order to be safe. Black people have done some miraculous things during slavery, and even til this day, but it’s not magic. It’s real! I feel like when Black people have to be magical, the ability for other non-Black people to see them as human is diminished. But that’s just my opinion. I felt like this book was a retelling of a kind of spin off of the magical realism of Harriet Tubman in The Water Dancer. (Don’t ask how I went there, but I did, and that magical realism with Harriet Tubman in The Water Dancer still irritates my soul) The pacing of the book was slow, and confusing, and all over the place. The magic system isn’t really explained well in the book. About 19% in, you get some sort of explanation, but it doesn’t really explain the how/why/where/what questions a reader may have about how the system works, especially for fantasy books. Who is allowed to use it? Where did it come from? Why is it being used? Why do Black people have different magic than whites? What are all the different kinds of magic that work in this world? What’s the significance of the magic that is used via wands, hand-drawn, chanted, brewed, etc.? So many questions that go unanswered about the magic system that it really put a hinderance on how I processed/comprehended what I was reading.

Hetty and Benjy, who are the main characters, also have this awkward marriage situationship going on. The way the author writes about their relationship is really aggravating to me personally; although I can see how maybe this could happen in real life, but I think it could have been done better.

As far as the mystery and murder and investigations start to happen, the book picks up from there, but it’s more than half way through at that point. There are quite a few excessive explanations, that have nothing to do with the magic system or advancing the plot forward, and there is unnecessary scenes and so many characters, that made this book a lot longer than needed.

The author does attempt to discuss quite a few topics in this story, but it’s only done to the detriment of the plot, in my opinion.
- Micro/macroaggressions with white people
- Friendships with women
- Class/elitism among Blacks
- Social standing

The story just doesn’t come together for me, and I’m left feeling like it’s disjointed or disorganized or dis-something. It’s just not cohesive enough. The magic system not being explained, is a big downfall to this book. For fantasy genres, this is “where the money resides.” World building, plot development, character development, magic systems, and problem solving are the major areas that should be done with exceptional care, and I don’t think this book hit the mark for me on those areas. I really wanted to love this book, as the plot is a bit unique, but I don’t see myself looking toward the next installment, as the ending doesn’t really feel like a part 2 is around the corner. I am disappointed, and probably gave this more expectation than needed in this debut novel because historical fantasy with Black protagonists is one of my up and coming favorite genres, but this was a 3/3.5 for me.

Thank you to Net Galley, Nicole Glover and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

What a wonderful idea-intertwine magic with Underground Railroad conductors! Nicole Glover has written a great mystery with historical elements and completely believable magic that simply carries you along and invites you to care for the characters. #theconductors is well researched, well plotted and a thoroughly enjoyable read. I thank #netgalley, the publisher and author for this ARC to read and review.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC. DNF at 20%...I feel bad about it.

First off, this is a murder mystery-style book blended with historical fiction and fantasy. Even better, it follows recently freed slaves during the Reconstruction era where promises were made and rarely kept. Fascinating, right?

You'd think so...but the writing doesn't really quite deliver. A lot of things are thrown in here, which would be fine if it was spaced out evenly, but it felt like being hit in the face with dodgeballs several times in a row. How are we supposed to keep track of all these infodumps & character introductions? It felt like it was going so fast!

The magic system isn't clearly explained either...it's a cool concept but not really fleshed out.

Despite my issues, I think if it gets refined and polished more it can really shine, especially since the concept & location is an AWESOME idea.

When I first looked at this book, I expected a magical adventure story centered on the Underground Railroad. While there are vignettes of Hetty and Benjy's prior exploits sprinkled throughout the novel, the plot focuses on mysteries happening in Philadelphia where they've made their home post-Civil War. There's murder, magic, complicated friendships, and even a little romance thrown in for good measure. I must say, I absolutely adored this book. I found the magic system super interesting and honestly would have loved to learn more about it. The mutable nature of Celestial magic fascinated me, especially in how it could be combined with physical manifestations like stitching. The mystery itself managed to be both expansive and small, perfect for the rest of the story. Honestly, I wasn't trying too hard to solve it since I was enraptured by the world Glover created. If you're looking for a magical historical mystery, look no further!

There's an idea in writing called 'kill your darlings'. It's the concept of eliminating certain aspects of your work, though they may be precious to you, in order to liberate the final product. The Conductors suffers, as many debut novels do, because Glover did not kill her darlings.

There is too much going on here, and little of it is sufficiently fleshed out. There are so many great ideas, but the execution is wanting. I absolutely adore the concept of former Underground Railroad conductors solving crimes in post-Reconstruction Philadelphia using magic, but actually reading the story I was both frustrated and bored.

I wish there was more explanation about the magic and its parameters - it seemed like magic could do just about anything, especially Celestial magic, and I wanted a better understanding of how sigils and the constellations worked. I wanted a much stronger sense of place from the setting - aside from a few descriptions of taverns and dresses, there wasn't anything to tie the story to its location and time, no evocation of old Philadelphia in the scenes. It could have been truly magical (pun not intended) but the action could have taken place anytime, anywhere. I wanted a better mystery - I found the main plot itself uninteresting, and not because I'm not a particular fan of murder mysteries.

For most of the book, Hetty and Benjy went around the city talking to their friends. Ostensibly this was to solve the murders, but I couldn't even tell you the content of most of those conversations. They rarely picked up clues from those talks. A great deal of the book was exposition through dialogue, which made for a rather boring read. Not a lot actually happens in terms of plot. They go to an 'excursion' where Hetty enters into a bicycle race, an explosion goes off, and she falls into the river and almost drowns. And I was so bored I didn't care. There are also several scenes where Hetty, ostensibly in pursuit of a suspect, hears some gossip and then claims that she doesn't care about the case at all because she's suddenly too wrapped up in her own drama. I liked that she was strong-willed and courageous, but I also found her needlessly judgmental and easily distracted.

The copy of the novel I received was riddled with errors as well. It's an uncorrected proof, but receiving the ARC so shortly before publication I was hopeful that it'd be a cleaner version. Alas, this was not the case. Words were frequently missing from sentences, and often the opposite term was used, utterly changing the intended meaning of the phrase. As a close reader, I found the frequent errors to be distracting, and I hope it's not an issue with the final publication. I'd be interested in picking up a published copy to see whether any of the issues I had with the book were resolved prior to publication.

I received a free electronic copy of this historical novel from Netgalley, Nicole Glover, and the publisher Houghton-Mifflin, John Joseph Adams, Mariner Books. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. The root of the tale, the Underground Railroad and those 'conductors' who escorted runaway slaves and others needing the amnesty provided in northern states or Canada is well presented and an interesting slant on these folks not often showcased. I did not, however, feel comfortable with the 'magic' aspect of this work. I felt it detracted from the story, rather than enhancing it.

I want to say thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for giving me free access to this title in exchange for an honest review.

There is a lot to love about this book. What initially drew me in was the meeting of historical fiction and fantasy. I personally have never read a book that has done this and I greatly enjoyed it. I also found the concepts of the types of magic in this reality very interesting. I definitely found myself invested in knowing what the outcome of the story would be and wanting the main characters to succeed. There were many points where I thought I knew where the story was going, but very often Glover last minute revealed that actually, that is not the truth, just want the characters (and readers) had been lead to believe.

All that being said, I think the book still needs a lot of polishing from the version I read. Though, since the eARC I received is well over half a year old, I do have high hopes that such changes will be made prior to the publication of the book. I do feel it would be not fully honest to comment on these points, though. There were a large number of grammar errors as well as some places where there didn't seem to be consistency when it comes to words and actions on the parts of characters. While there is a feel that Glover has fully constructed the rules for magic within this reality, I feel that it was not conveyed as clearly as I would have liked seen since it is so interesting and different from other books with magic I have read.

There is a large cast of characters, so it did take a lot of effort to remember who was who and what variation of names different characters went by. And I think it would take a second read to more fully have a handle on everyone in the story.

Whether you are person who enjoys historical fiction or someone who likes fantasy, I would suggest picking it up and reading the first few pages to see if it's for you.

3.5 stars

"Who are you people?" Elle stammered. "You summon birds, walk into gunfire with little pause, and make people vanish into the air."

Hetty held out a hand to the girl, much as she'd done many times before, and said, "Someone here to help."

The Conductors is a debut novel from Nicole Glover full of substance and emotion, and I am in awe of her creative prowess. Combining the history of the Underground Railroad with a magic system is both unique and inventive, especially due to the fact that there are two types of magic at hand, sorcery and celestial. Married couple Hetty and Benjy are the main characters in the story, investigators or "conductors" solving disappearances and murders that the police won't seem to take an interest in. We also meet a full cast of vibrant characters that support Hetty and Benjy in their business, and I adored and felt as close to the supporting cast as I did with our leads.

The beginning of the book takes place after the Emancipation Proclamation has been issued, but there are many flashbacks giving us insight into what Hetty and Benjy were doing before they began their business as magical investigators. Part of the book is the investigation into the present day murder, and part of it gives us glimpses into where the characters came from and how Hetty came to be separated and searching for her sister. I love how the author set this up for a series, and I'm eager to continue on with these characters throughout all their various ordeals.

I did struggle a bit with the pacing; I love a good slow burning novel, but the story felt like it stalled a bit in the middle. Also, I did feel that the magic system was a bit confusing and not fully developed, as there was never really any explanation into exactly how celestial magic works. Aside from those two issues, I was engrossed in the story and feel like Glover's strong suit is definitely in creating lifelike and memorable characters. I'm so grateful she chose to write this book, and I cannot wait to read The Undertakers when it is released.

Really wanted to like this, as the concept sounded interesting, but I just couldn't get into it. It is not described as YA on the Netgalley page, but the writing is very YA, which is not the type of book I typically enjoy. Those who typically enjoy YA may find it more appealing.

The Civil War is over, but Hetty's memories of the Underground Railroad and her time as a conductor there remain. Now in Philadelphia with her husband Benjy, Hetty tracks down the truth and solves crimes that the authorities leave by the wayside. This new role hits very close to home when a friend turns up dead, and when Hetty and Benjy start turning up stones to unearth why their friend was killed, it all begins to point toward the elite of Philadelphia. Using magic drawn from the stars above to guide and protect, Hetty is ready to take on the powerful, and to find the truth for the sake of justice and peace, no matter what it takes.

I really enjoyed the premise of The Conductors, and the story that was built around Hetty. A former seamstress turned Underground Railroad conductor, who then moonlights as a detective in reconstruction era Philly? I wanted to know where this story was headed, and once I started, I found the magical system to be intriguing. Pulling power from the constellations, and being able to harness that power for later use so long as that power was stored in an anchor object such as clothing was pretty cool. I do wish there had been more explanation of this magical system, and the competing magical system(s) within the story. For instance, some people are allowed to carry magical wands, and others aren't, and that's all wrapped up in matters of race, but not a lot is done to fully explain where the social limitations end, and where there might be cultural or racial boundaries alone that limit magical ability within these magical systems. These distinctions would have been valuable.

Because the story is set in the reconstruction era, there is a lot of happiness for those who have newfound freedom, and there is also trauma for those who for so long wished and hoped for freedom. The story covers both the present and the past of Hetty and Benjy's life, as detectives and as conductors, and in many ways how past traumas inform the present. With that mystery is also corruption, and the pace picks up as Hetty uncovers more of why her friend was murdered. If you've ever wanted a reconstruction era story in an alternate reality with magic, this is it, and I recommend The Conductors to anybody who likes a good mystery interwoven with history.

3.5 ⭐ rounded to 4⭐

Thanks to NetGalley, I had the pleasure of reading an advanced digital copy of The Conductors.

This debut is one that you absolutely do not want to miss! Nicole Glover does an amazing job navigating between the past and present of the main character Hetty, a former Underground Railroad conductor who used her wits and magic to help dozens flee north. Post Civil War, Hetty and her husband Benjy work together solving mysteries and murders that would otherwise be ignored by white authorities. The death of one of their close friends leads the detective duo on a journey to find answers, but every answer leads to more and more questions.

This gripping story is essentially an alternate history with fantasy and magical elements. In the acknowledgements, Nicole Glover says this story exists because she thought to herself “What happens if I added magic to a story about Underground Railroad conductors?” I’m so glad this thought occurred to her because a speculative fiction based on the Underground Railroad + astronomy magic + mystery + a slow burn romance...YALL I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN! The mystery keeps you on your toes and I really enjoyed the main characters. Especially Hetty. She’s fierce! I would love for this to be picked up as a series or movie. I highly encourage you to add this to your tbr now.

The only changes I would’ve liked is for the magical system to be more developed and I think it would be better with less characters. Other than that, this is a great story.

3.5 stars - This book flip-flopped in terms of rating for me throughout this experience. The historical fantasy aspect was amazing as it follows to ex-slaves after the abolition of slavery in the US who now live and work in Philadelphia - while also solving mysteries at the same time. However, I think the fantasy aspect of it was underdeveloped. The magic system (while interesting because it was based on zodiac signs (which I have never seen before!)) was really hard to both understand and visualize just because it really was not explained and just there. The main characters are also able to put magic into objects (sewing them into clothing, for example), but that too is not explained. I think Hetty and Benjy were really great main characters who had a lovely little marriage of convenience to romance relationship that made me smile and I loved how they really worked together to help each other solve the murders occurring in their community. I really enjoyed how Glover wrote about people who escaped slavery and how they processed the trauma of escaping. Most of them were happy and healthy and even though their were a slew of murders going on, the community aspect was lovely. Throughout most of the book, I was expecting to this to be a 4 star read because I was just really enjoying the read, but I think the murderer is fairly obvious 40% of the way through, and I was just uncertain why Hetty and Benjy were not catching on. Even though the mystery is a little predictable, I still highly recommend this debut and I am very keen to see what Glover publishes next!

Hettie and Benjy Rhodes are former slaves and legendary members of the Underground Railroad who work part-time as self-declared detectives in a magical world based in Philadelphia in the antebellum era. The murder of a close friend kicks off the main mystery of the novel which sets upon a long and winding road to resolution. Ancillary mysteries surrounding missing persons (including Hettie’s sister) and kidnappings were weaved within the novel which showcased our protagonists' ability and honed their craft with each adventure.

This is a debut novel and while the premise piqued my interest, the execution was a bit disappointing. While I enjoyed the tidbits of American history that were sprinkled within the story, there were a few minor issues that detracted from the reading experience: There were a lot of characters to track. Whenever someone was introduced, I had to refer to my notes to ensure I understood their relationship to the main characters, their occupation, their magical skill(s), if any. The author had a habit of delving into a backstory as soon as someone new was introduced - while the info was helpful, it got to be a somewhat predictable interruption of the story’s cadence. Many of these characters were inconsequential and easily forgotten. The other nit was the pace and style of storytelling - I found it to be a bit slow and elongated with a lot of “telling.” Hettie and Benjy were sympathetic characters and noble in their efforts, but they weren’t endeared to me as much as I think the author wanted.

This was an earnest debut and I would be willing to consider her next release.

I love this concept: a murder mystery set after the Civil War, focusing on magic users who also worker as conductors of the Underground Railroad. The world is so interesting and I really enjoyed the mystery itself. However, this book got bogged down in a lot of extra details, scenes, and characters. It took me until about 30% of the way through to really get a handle on the world.

I wish this story had been pared down and simplified a bit: simply what we need to know about the mystery, two main characters, and general fantasy world-building. There were so many minor characters, including Hetty’s friends/acquaintances and people new to her, that I started to lose track of some. There are also many flashback interludes to Hetty and Benji’s time as conductors and before, and not all of them felt necessary. The times we got full flashbacks vs. the times important past events were simply mentioned didn’t always make sense to me. The magic also seemed somewhat under-explained. The Celestial magic that Hetty uses comes from the star signs, and over the course of the book you piece together what that means, but I would have liked more.

I really liked Hetty and Benji, and I thought their relationship was really sweet and refreshing: two people who like and respect each other who married “for convenience”, but or course there’s more to it than that. I can see myself picking up the eventual sequel/more by this author in the future.

The one word I keep repeating for this book is ‘unique’. The cast, the magical system, the points of views, the time it is set in… so many things about this book made it a new experience for me. This book has been compared to Octavia Butler’s Kindred and Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files so if you have read either of those, you will probably be more familiar with the feel of the book. Personally, I will admit the cover was a major draw for me to choose this book. The murder mystery mentioned in the synopsis was a good hook as well.

A number of Fantasy books have recently made me think about the balance between the number of characters and the plot. At first, I struggled a little bit with the sheer number of characters in this book but once you explained to me that African American communities are usually quite tightly knit, that automatically took away my stress. I appreciate the depth to which each character was written and the clue cards that the author shared on Twitter and her website were really helpful in adding more grounding for me.

Many thanks to the publisher for providing me a complimentary copy of the book with a request for an honest review.