The Conductors is a fantasy murder mystery set in post-Civil War America and also has wonderful elements of chosen family and community, plus a sweet romance between Hetty and Benjy (whose marriage is one of friendship, not romance). From the moment I heard about this book, I was intrigued, and in no way did it disappoint!

Hetty is amazing and fierce and a very good example of competence porn. She’s very skilled with magic, and also at making clothes. She’s also known to meld the two together and show sigils into the clothes she makes. I love her brashness and how she stands for what she believes in. But sometimes that also gets her into trouble, especially as a Black woman who used to be a Conductor on the Underground Railroad.

Her husband, Benjy, is also an amazingly competent individual and he does so many little things for Hetty to show his care, though sometimes she’s oblivious to the significance of his actions. He followed her to lead people from slavery because he was “bored” and together they balance each other and strengthen their skills in a way that ensured they were more often than not successful on their trips. Since the Civil War, they’re known to help people with unusual incidents - like finding a body in an alleyway with a cursed sigil carved in his chest.

All of the side characters feels fleshed out and the mystery was wonderfully layered. The clues were there, but at least for me I felt like I was along for the ride with Hetty rather than figuring everything out on my own.

I really enjoyed this story, and I’m looking forward to the continuation of this series. I loved the chosen family and community especially because it shows friendships growing from common pasts and how everyone in their community will help and when they can. I definitely recommend this book if you enjoy slower paced mysteries, especially with a unique magic system.

I really enjoyed this one. I love Hetty and all of her compatriots and would definitely read on about their continuing adventures.

This was an interesting murder mystery with a magical spin. I was expecting just a little bit more from the overall writing, but I did enjoy the uniqueness of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Excellent magical world building in history, and I loved the progression of Hetty and Ben's relationship as the story traveled backward and forward in time. Would be delighted to read another story about them!

The Civil War is over, and Hetty and Benjy are no longer using their magic and wits as conductors on the Underground Railroad, but the couple quickly discover that post war life is anything but peaceful. Death has come to their Philadelphia community, and Hetty especially is determined to discover who, in their close knit community, is responsible for the crime. Along the way, she'll uncover many dark secrets, including ones hidden by those she holds most dear.
This debut novel is an intriguing blend of history, mystery, and magic, which marks Glover as an author to make note of. I am eager to see what Hetty, Benjy, and their found family will get up to next!

This book feels like a debut novel, but not in that debut novel that knocks your socks off with its brilliance and strong writing kind of way. Instead this book feels like a debut novel that needed a lot more editing and polishing before being considered finished. This book has so much potential, there could be such a strong solid core here, but unfortunately it just does not come together in the execution. There is far too much telling, and not enough showing in this novel, that the writing just comes across as juvenile.

For me the biggest issue with this novel is that it feels like it's a second or third book in a series, instead of the first. There is absolutely no world building in this novel, and for a novel that includes magic this is absolutely crucial. There are no explained rules to how the magic system works. The author never delves into the history of the world or the magic to explain why things are the way they are. There are several references to previous cases or mysteries that the characters have solved but there's no building on the characters to make you feel like these things actually happened. These references end up feeling disconnected and hollow, and fail to develop the world and the characters.

This novel also feels extremely bloated with ideas. There was just too much that the author seemed to want to cover, but she never really spent the time delving into most of these ideas. This could have been a much stronger novel if it had left out either the fantasy elements and focused on the mystery, or left out the mystery and focused on the fantasy.

The Conductors is a riveting murder mystery that also addresses the aftereffects of slavery on family life. The majority of the characters were enslaved for most of their formative years and some of their adulthood. They conceal scars with ornamental collars and avoid discussing the families they left behind or were separated from, but the past comes back to haunt almost all the major characters. I really enjoyed the protagonist Hetty. She's wiley, stubborn, and has a flair for the dramatic, earning her a wide array of friends who it can be daunting to keep track of. Early on, readers learn that Hetty is a flawed, impulsive character, but you don't love her any less for it. She married her husband Benjy out of convenience for stability and their investigative enterprises, but there's a romantic subplot about how, after years, that dynamic starts to change. The mystery was both confounding and simple. I wasn't able to guess the end but felt like it brought the story full circle.

The magic system was fun and memorable. African Americans predominantly practice Celestial magic, which relies on hand signs, herbs, or markings to summon different guardians based on the constellations. White people practice Sorcery, which requires incantations and a wand that African Americans are prohibited from using. The setting of Philadelphia felt well-incorporated into the story. Glover name drops a few streets and local monuments.

This is a genre mash-up with a new voice. In post Civil War Philadelphia Hetty and her husband Benjy were once part of the Underground Railroad and now help solve mysteries the police have no interest in. They use the star magic that once helped them stay clear of danger while working on the railroad and the danger that is still present even in the free North. Together they are trying to solve the murder of a friend and keep a low profile which isn't easy. Just the right mix of historical fiction with the added bonus of fantasy and the use of magic. The book moves swiftly with an authentic voice and the marked tension of Hetty and Benjy's arranged marriage adds a slight romantic element.
My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

This was a really enjoyable read with a unique magic system embedded in a historical society that we are familiar with.
The story follows husband and wife team, Hetty and Benjy, former conductors on the Underground Railroad, who are now settled living in Philadelphia after the Civil War. They use their skills with celestial magic and the skills they honed while working as conductors to help any in their community who might need it.
When a close friend is murdered, Hetty and Benjy use their skills to try and uncover they culprit before anyone else gets hurt.
I loved that this was a historical fiction/mystery story that featured a black couple as investigators, using celestial magic to help them in difficult situations.
The sense of community and friendships that Hetty and Benjy cultivated was heartwarming to see, even though some of their friendships moved in different directions as people began to move in different social circles. I appreciated this realistic representation of how relationships change and evolve over time.
Another aspect of the story i enjoyed was the progression of Hetty and Benjy's relationship, which we got to see during a series of flashbacks during their conductors days. I loved the fact that Benjy allowed Hetty to take the lead on many of their rescue missions and even afterwards. He was not intimidated by her intellect or her skill with celestial magic. There was no toxic masculinity vibes, which I appreciated.

Cannot recommend those book highly enough. If you are a fan of historical fiction with a little bit of magic, this is the book for you. Not a super in depth magic system, which I think worked perfectly here. This is more mystery than it is fantasy, with several mysteries woven throughout. A unique book with a fantastic cast of characters.

The Conductors by Nicole Glover (out from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt on March 2, 2021) takes place in an alternate world where people practice magic. White people do sorcery, colonizer magic from Europe, using wands to cast spells. Black people practice celestial magic, which originated from Africa, drawing sigils of astrological signs to summon their power. These magic systems are segregated, and Black people caught doing sorcery are punished.

In this alternate history, white slave owners collar their Black slaves who practice or even teach sorcery. Hetty and her sister Esther escape from the South, only to be separated along the way. After joining and marrying Benjy and helping runaway slaves escape to the North, Hetty works as a seamstress in Pennsylvania, navigating the Black social circles in the city.

he Conductors isn’t centered on the trauma of Slavery. The magic systems are a part of everyday life, demonstrating the wielding of power and what it means for the user. Glover shows the intersectionality and perspectives of Black people post-Civil War. Among the supporting characters are Queer, Trans, disabled, working class, and higher class Black people. One character is white passing. The novel mostly focuses on the interpersonal relationships between Hetty, Benjy, and the people they know and encounter.

Hetty and Benjy work through their relationship while investigating the mystery behind the murders. The two are married, although for convenience, and they find themselves falling in love with each other as the story progresses. The relationships in this novel naturally culminate, and the characters come off as humans with their own flaws and desires.

As a reader, I find the mystery unpredictable. I thought I had the person behind the murders figured out, but then it turned out that it was the last character I’d expect. Glover knows how to keep her readers intrigued with her initially unnoticed hints.

The Conductors is a steadily paced murder mystery that takes unexpected turns. Glover’s atmospheric prose and clever storytelling will draw you in.

Nicole Glover has executed a wonderful debut novel, creating a world in which there are two magic systems, as segregated as the society in which they are found. Despite the suggestion of the cover and title, this story does not live in the period of the Underground Railroad, but in the immediate aftermath, with a couple celebrated as conductors trying to get on with their lives.

There are many layers in Glover’s world, with Hetty and Benjy not quite at the bottom of their social order, but not near the top, either. The formerly enslaved and the always freedman don’t always mix, and their old friends, many of whom they personally conducted out of the slave states, seem more likely to be trying to forget the past than to recognize Hetty and Benjy’s role in it.

It’s a dark world, and they are troubleshooters within it, trying to make sense of murders and kidnappings and body snatching. This particular story revolves around the murder of one of the first men they brought to Philadelphia, a man all about making a fast buck, feeling that money will make him more secure.

As a typical admirer of the Underground Railroad, it threw me when there was a scene where a woman excoriates them for having helped people escape slavery. But it makes sense; those left behind probably did have to endure more for the sin of deliverance of a few. I just hadn’t thought of it as being anything more than inspiring, and it was good pause for thought.

The magic systems are quite interesting. There’s Sorcery, used by wand-wielding whites and forbidden to Blacks. Then there’s Celestial Magic, which Hetty and Benjy practice, based on drawing sigils based on the constellations, which can be used for mundane tasks or impressive feats of defense.

The protagonists are complex, and even after the conclusion of the book, it feels as though there’s more to learn about them. I had difficulty at first keeping the other characters straight, as the in media res has them reeling off names as if you should know who they are, so it took a while to get into it because I was busy trying to figure out who was being discussed. However, after a few chapters I started getting more comfortable with them and enjoyed the cast.

The other quibble I have is with the denouement, which felt a little hurried to me, and the clues to the murderer were a little murky, but there, once you know the answer.

All in all, an engaging book in an interesting alternate reality and a world I’ll be happy to return to.

[Post will be published after 2/2/2021]

Hetty and Benjy Rhodes were once Underground Railroad conductors, using courage and a touch of magic to bring dozens of people to safety in the north.
With the Civil War over, Hetty is still focused on locating her sister Esther from her new home base in Philadelphia. Hetty works as a dressmaker while Benjy is a blacksmith but together the couple solve crimes in their community that white authorities have zero interest in. When their friend Charlie is found dead in an alley, Hetty and Benjy search for answers in the city’s elite Black society, learning secrets they’d rather keep buried.

This story holds so much promise! I was intrigued at the idea of magic woven into a story about Underground Railroad conductors turned detectives. Unfortunately, the execution was lacking in several areas.
First, we’re introduced to a number of characters at the very beginning of the book and I had trouble keeping up with them all since there isn’t a ton of back story or development throughout.

Next, readers are told that some Black people have magic but it’s all too vague — there’s no explanation or insight into how/why/when this came about or its parameters. All we know is that constellations are used as sigils by those who have magic and they work as spells. I’m still confused about it; the magic just feels random.

The mystery is interesting and finally pulled me into this story after the vague and rocky start. Then, I became frustrated that there was much more telling than showing. Instead of action or first person narratives to offer insight, readers must rely on dialogue between Hetty and Benjy as they work out clues, motives, and discuss the unfolding of events.

I can enjoy a well-executed slow burn but this one didn’t work for me as much as I would’ve liked it to. For me personally it felt like the story tried to go in multiple directions, focus was lost, and that hurt many of the unique concepts within. The Conductors is historical fiction with speculative fiction/fantasy elements in a post-Civil War mystery. Still, the ideas here are fantastic, original, and hold so much promise that I cannot give it less than 3 stars.

Thanks to Mariner Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Conductors is scheduled for release on March 2, 2021.

I requested this book through Netgalley mainly based on the cover. And then I read the premise and it sounded Amazing. A murder mystery, with magic, in post Civil War Philadelphia. This could be great. I really wanted it to be great. And sadly it wasn’t. This is the author’s debut book, and you can tell. There are issues with it across the board. So much so that I DNF’ed it about 60% in.

First of all the magic system. Great idea, poor execution. It seems to be a mix of sourcery and celestial magic. Some people have wands. And black and white magic are different. But nothing is explained. The magic doesn’t seem to have rules, and just feels very random to me. I just needed some explanation on what the different forms are and how it works. Some kind of structure.

Then the characters. Most other people seem to like them… I didn’t. And maybe I had wrong expectations. Had I known going into this that it would follow some high society people, maybe I would have liked them better. But as it is, they annoyed me. They gossip so much!!! And for some reason everyone is obsessed with babies and pregnancies. It has nothing to do with the story, yet pops up everywhere. Then there is the main character. Sure, she is strong and brave and does whatever she wants. She also isn’t a very nice person. For example, within a single chapter she states she doesn’t want to be in someone presence because of a disdain for how they dress, someone else is the most boring person ever (because he sells life insurance), the landlord is a horrible man because he actually makes them pay rent (I know shocking, and when they can’t he doesn’t kick them out but just moves it over to the next month instead), and when someone bothers to cook dinner for her, which happens to not be to her specific taste, she rather goes without food. She judges other people’s marriages and states that her’s is so much better because it is loveless which makes them stronger (and then they bicker for several chapters because they were hiding stuff from each other). Let’s just say she is not my kind of person…

The writing was okay… some spelling errors I am sure will be taken out before publication. But the world building is lacking. Like I said, the magic part of it is underdeveloped. But I also didn’t really get a sense of the time period. The interludes in which Hetty goes and frees slaves were very good. But anything in the ‘present’ somehow felt hollow. And then there was the pacing… this book was a very slow burn. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as long as you got enough going to keep me intrigued (or love the characters). This should have been the murder mystery… At the point where I put this down (about 250 pages in), there were two murders and Hetty had been taken on another case as well. And we still have no clues, and no real effort has been put into solving any of the crimes.

Glover had a great idea, an unique premise and an interesting blend of genres. Yet it couldn’t keep my interest and I found myself not caring about any of it. I am sure there are loads of people out there who will love this, it just wasn’t for me.

*Review to be posted on my blog on 2/18/21*
Likes:
*I love how the underground railroad and slavery history are part of this story. Hetty helped many people escape the South after the Civil War by using her magic and bravery. Now that she is in Philadelphia she plays a role in figuring out murders taking place around them, some of the victims being her friends.

*The celestial magic in the story was very interesting. I liked how it was based off of constellations and they used sigils to conjure up the magic.

*Hetty is a strong character – she is smart, caring and so brave.

*Hetty and Benjy’s relationship was a marriage of convenience but it grew into something more which was so nice to see. They really were partners in solving the mystery and taking care of the people around them.

Random Notes:
*Triggers: slavery, abuse, murder

*This is definitely a mystery, not quite a cozy mystery, and mysteries and I have a strained relationship – meaning if it’s too slow, I will not be invested in the story. This was slow for me. If you like mysteries though, this might be up your alley.

*It would have been nice to learn more about the magic system because it sounded so fascinating. I love the idea of using the constellation sigils as magic. I just needed a little more information about the magic.

Final Thoughts:
The concept of blending magic, black history tied to slavery, post civil war and the underground railroad is fantastic. I just wished the story held my attention more and that we got to see more of the magic system. In the end, Hetty and Benjy make a good partnership as they figure out the mysteries and investigates murders happening around them. Even though this book wasn’t for me, I think mystery lovers will really enjoy this book because of it’s uniqueness.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This was an enjoyable book and I enjoyed the main characters. I wished the magic and sorcery were explained in more detail, but I'd definitely read more.

THE CONDUCTORS is a fantastic and original murder mystery novel.

Before we get started, I want to get something out of the way. The cover (while absolutely stunning, and nothing I would want to change) paints, I think, a slightly false picture of the story inside. I was expecting a historical fantasy with a (relatively) dark crime element. THE CONDUCTORS isn’t quite a cozy mystery, but it probably sits somewhere between the two. The story is far more amateur sleuth/ murder mystery than fantasy and, while I really enjoyed that, I think that’s put off some reviewers.

Aside from the slight mismatch of expectations, I thought THE CONDUCTORS was perhaps a tad long for the story it was telling and could have been 50-or-so pages shorter but that’s a minor niggle.

On to the positives!

THE CONDUCTORS was wonderful!

• Hetty and Benji: Our sleuthing protagonists, I loved these two. Both headstrong and stubborn, they were a delight to read about. The marriage-of-convenience offers a nice bit of will-they-won’t-they tention and, as a couple, they have adorable chemistry.

• The supporting characters were wonderful. At first, I thought the cast might be a little large to properly keep track of, but they each have such well-drawn personalities it wasn’t a problem. I especially liked the somewhat gloomy Oliver.

• The setting: A historical mystery that not set in Regency/ Tudor or Wartime England? What’s this? The historical Philadelphia that Glover paints is rich and vivid, the neighborhood the Rhodes live in filled with interesting characters and intriguing secrets. Having the sleuths have been involved in the Underground Railroad opens up a whole range of interesting stories to explore, while also making sure the protagonists feel worldly and competent enough to pull off their snooping. There’s none of the “too dumb to live” moments that can be so jarring in a mystery.

• I loved the magic system. It’s suitable, with the fantasy being only a small part of the story, but I really liked the idea of Hetty sewing constellations into her clothes, which can then be triggered for various effects as needed. I’ll be interested to see how the two types of magic butt up against each other and to learn a bit more about the differences between Sorcery and Hetty’s conjurings.

THE CONDUCTORS was a totally unique story and a delight to read. Without a doubt, I’ll be buying a copy of the sequel, THE UNDERTAKERS, when it comes out next year.

I was already enjoying this book and then it gave me one of my favorite romance tropes.

Benjy and Hetty used their magic powers to work as conductors for the underground railroad. After the Civil War is over, the power couple marries and start to solve crimes in Philadelphia. A death of a friend makes them start questioning their friendships and the life they are living now.

I fell in love with Hetty and Benjy. I love then as individuals and together as a couple. When Hetty realizes that she's in love with Benjy, I didn't blame her. There is caring and trust between the two of them that makes them work simpatico together.

My only problem was that I had trouble remembering all of their friends. They get introduced in one clump in chapter 2 and I had to go back to remind myself the differences between all of these couples.

This review is based on an advanced reader copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

I will jump straight to the point with this one. This book just was not for me. I really tried to read it AND enjoy it, but it’s just too confusing. Feels like it’s a second or a third book in the series, when you already know the magic system and don’t need any more explanation.
Also there were so many characters introduced in first few pages, that finally I just got confused who was who and how they were connected, were they friends or enemies.
And thirdly, I tried to read this book for at-least 3 months now and still couldn’t past the 15% mark, so I just can’t waste more if my time for book I don’t enjoy.
That’s why I’m deciding to DNF it.