Books like 'Freaks'
Readers who enjoyed Freaks by Kieran Larwood also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy mystery action / adventure urban fantasy historical-fiction steampunk industrial-era victorian friendship
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Bloodline by Jordan L. Hawk
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsBetween his bullying father and dissolute brother, Percival Endicott Whyborne has quite enough problematic family members to deal with. So when his sister returns to Widdershins asking for help solving the mystery of a derelict ship, Whyborne is reluctant to get involved. Until, that is, a brutal murderer strikes, leaving Whyborne and his lover Griffin no choice but to take the case...Categorized as:
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Hoarfrost by Jordan L. Hawk
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSorcerer Percival Endicott Whyborne and his husband Griffin Flaherty have enjoyed an unprecedented stretch of peace and quiet. Unfortunately, the calm is shattered by the arrival of a package from Griffin’s brother Jack, who has uncovered a strange artifact while digging for gold in Alaska. The discovery of a previously unknown civilization could revive the career of their friend Dr...Categorized as:
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Breaking and Entering 101 by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsSince Jamie and Henri agreed to be Kingsmen consultants, they’d not had much call to actually consult. Which is a fortuitous thing, as Henri is up to his neck in labwork and interviews for a new Magical Examiner due to Sanderson’s departing. He is hardly in any position to add more tasks onto his shoulders.Which, naturally, means two disasters strike at once...Categorized as:
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Stormhaven by Jordan L. Hawk
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsan alternate cover edition can be found hereMysterious happenings are nothing new to reclusive scholar Percival Endicott Whyborne, but finding one of his colleagues screaming for help in the street is rather unusual. Allan Tambling claims he can’t remember any of the last hour—but someone murdered his uncle, and Allan is covered in blood...Categorized as:
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Charms and Death and Explosions (oh my!) by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA dead charm maker is only the beginning. Humanity seems determined to come up with increasingly clever ways to murder one another. They seize upon new technological advances in a way that’s alarming, their creativity and blood-thirstiness knowing no bounds...Categorized as:
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Claimed by Magic by Jasmine Walt
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFenris and Mia's story continues in the second book of this Baine Chronicles spinoff trilogy...Now that Fenris and Mina have finally admitted their feelings for each other, for the first time, they both face something they’d thought impossible—settling down with someone who accepts and loves them for who they are...Categorized as:
industrial-era law-enforcement magic paranormal steampunk action-adventure adult assassins -
A Matter of Secrets and Spies by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHow many ways can a marriage proposal go wrong?One: the ring gets stolenTwo: a storm destroys the beachThree: a dead body, seriously?Four: A THEFT RING?!Come hell or highwater, he WILL propose before leaving this benighted island... -
The Lost Future of Pepperharrow by Natasha Pulley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 29 ratings1888. Five years after they met in The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, Thaniel Steepleton, an unassuming translator, and Keita Mori, the watchmaker who remembers the future, are traveling to Japan. Thaniel has received an unexpected posting to the British legation in Tokyo, and Mori has business that is taking him to Yokohama...Categorized as:
friendship historical-fiction industrial-era magic paranormal steampunk victorian action-adventure -
Death Over the Garden Wall by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThree modus operandi to die. Four employees, six house guests, and not a single witness.Confusing clues and no helpful leads cloud the death of Countess Giada Barese, who washed up on shore two weeks after her mysterious disappearance. Henri and Jamie have no idea if her death is a homicide, suicide, or accidental death, for nothing adds up...Categorized as:
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The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsWhen the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in . . .For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career...Categorized as:
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The Convent's Secret by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsTo find the one man who can fix the magic in Matt’s watch, he and India are led to a convent where the nuns will do anything to keep their secrets private. Including murder? Matt and India must uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the mother superior and two babies given to her care many years ago. But sometimes, the truth is painful and its exposure can have deadly consequences...Categorized as:
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Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsAlthough I had never seen him before, I recognized him immediately. I'd have known his voice anywhere. This was the guy I'd seen on my last journey back in time.Or more precisely, the one who'd kissed my doppelganger while I was hiding behind the curtain in disbelief.Sixteen-year-old Gwen lives with her extended - and rather eccentric - family in an exclusive London neighborhood... -
In Plain Sight by Dan Willis
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen a magical plague is released in a Depression-era New York soup kitchen, private detective Alex Lockerby finds himself in a desperate hunt to catch a madman before he can strike again.His investigations lead Alex to a famous thief, a daring heist, and the search for a mythic book of ancient magic, but none of that brings him any closer to finding the man responsible for the massacre...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era law-enforcement magic paranormal steampunk action-adventure adult -
Saved by Magic by Jasmine Walt
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFenris and Mina's story concludes in the final book of this Baine Chronicles spinoff trilogy!Alerted that Sunaya and Iannis's wedding may be the target of a Resistance plot, Mina and Fenris travel to Solantha despite the very real possibility that Fenris could be recognized and thrown into prison should any of his enemies spot him...Categorized as:
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Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsDead wizards, stolen enchantments, and broken promises force a young spellbreaker out of the shadows in the next thrilling installment of the Spellbreaker series by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician.England, 1895. An unsolved series of magician murders and opus thefts isn’t a puzzle to Elsie Camden...Categorized as:
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Fugitive by Magic by Jasmine Walt
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhat happened to Fenris after he fled Solantha? Find out in this epic new trilogy following the events of Scorched by Magic from the Baine Chronicles… Fenris is no stranger to picking up the pieces of his life and starting over...Categorized as:
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Ambush or Adore by Gail Carriger
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLondon’s best and most covert spy tries to escape the man who has always adored her.INTELLIGENCERAgatha Woosmoss, the Wallflower, is the greatest intelligencer of her generation. And no one knows she exists. She has been invisible, capable, and cunning for well over four decades. Her greatest skill is in her ability to go forever unnoticed. Except by one man... -
Theodosia and the Last Pharaoh by R.L. LaFevers, Yoko Tanaka
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn this fourth book in the series, Theodosia sets off to Egypt to return the Emerald Tablet embedded with the knowledge of some of the ancient world s most guarded secrets. Accompanied by her cat, Isis (smuggled along in a basket), Theo plans to return the artifact, then explore the mysteries surrounding her own birth and oh, yes help her mother dig up treasures on her archeological expedition...Categorized as:
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Of Fates And Phantoms by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAs Charlie and Lincoln’s lives settle into a harmonious pattern, a new threat arises that could have far reaching effects for the royal family and Lincoln’s parents.When a seer warns the Prince of Wales that his life is in danger, only Charlie and Lincoln take her seriously...Categorized as:
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The Magician's Diary by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsPRAISE FOR C.J. ARCHER'S GLASS AND STEELE SERIES: "Part romance, part mystery, part magic; all of which a joy to read." - Dreamer J's Book Reviews "This story has everything I look for in a quality, entertaining piece of fiction. 1) A strong female lead, 2) a dark and mysterious male character (I admit, they are my weakness), 3) eloquent writing, and 4) lots of quirky humor and banter...Categorized as:
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The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsA corrupt countessA spy in dangerAnd an assassin at largeThe fifth title in Genevieve Cogman's witty and wonderful Invisible Library series, The Mortal Word is a rollicking literary adventure.Peace talks are always tricky, especially when a key diplomat gets stabbed. This rudely interrupts a top-secret summit between the warring dragons and Fae...Categorized as:
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The Tempest Sea by Robin D. Mahle
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA rescue mission turns into a fight against a force more powerful than they could have imagined.With the amulet still stuck around her neck, Addie must outwit her powerful captors who will do anything to get to the power held within the ancient artifact. If they find out she doesn’t know how to use it, she’s dead...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic paranormal steampunk action-adventure book exploration -
Forsaken by Magic by Jasmine Walt
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA novella exploring the origins of Fenris, one of the most beloved characters from the Baine Chronicles. Lord Polar ar’Tollis has everything he wants. Wealth, power, respect, beautiful women eager to marry him—there is very little the Chief Mage of Nebara lacks in his life. Except, perhaps, compassion...Categorized as:
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Whisper the Dead by Alyxandra Harvey
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsCousins Gretchen, Emma, and Penelope are all dealing with what it means to be a Lovegrove. For Gretchen, it means she often feels like her head is going to explode. As a Whisperer, Gretchen constantly hears the whispers of other witches' spells...Categorized as:
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From The Ashes by C.J. Archer, Shiromi Arserio
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsWhat will happen when Charlie returns to Lichfield?The killer is still on the loose, Lady Harcourt's secret past is out, and Lady Vickers is trying to find Seth a wife. Charlie is stepping back into chaos, but nothing compares to the chaos wreaked on her heart by seeing Lincoln every day...Categorized as:
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Veiled in Moonlight by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen a young gentleman is murdered by a shape shifter, Charlie and Lincoln interrogate their contacts and uncover a plot with links to the royal family—and links to more than one member of the ministry's committee. At the heart of the mystery is a sinister love triangle, corruption, lies, and treason...Categorized as:
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The Prisoner's Key by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIndia's study into the language of spells is interrupted by the arrest of her teacher for an unpaid debt. Before Matt can repay it for him, the powerful magician escapes from his prison cell. To make matters worse, the moneylender is murdered and the magician is implicated...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic paranormal steampunk victorian action-adventure audiobook -
The Cheater's Game by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe arrival of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show in London brings trouble. When the sharpshooter who beats Willie at poker is murdered, Matt and India investigate. Willie is convinced the victim cheated, but no one knows how until India discovers his secret - he was a paper magician. When their list of suspects grows to include a member of the mysterious magic Collector's Club, they uncover a spy...Categorized as:
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Beyond The Grave by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAt the request of Lady Harcourt, Charlie and Lincoln begin searching for her missing stepson. Still recovering from her ordeal at the hands of a diabolical villain, Charlie is supposed to be resting. But resting is dull, so she throws herself into the task at hand, much to Lincoln's frustration. The search leads them down a dark path littered with family secrets and titillating scandal...Categorized as:
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Hexbreaker by Jordan L. Hawk
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsWill a dark history doom their future together?New York copper Tom Halloran is a man with a past. If anyone finds out he once ran with the notorious O'Connell tunnel gang, he'll spend the rest of his life doing hard time behind bars. But Tom's secret is threatened when a horrible murder on his beat seems to have been caused by the same ancient magic that killed his gang...Categorized as:
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The Dire King by William Ritter
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe fate of the world is in the hands of detective of the supernatural R. F. Jackaby and his intrepid assistant, Abigail Rook. An evil king is turning ancient tensions into modern strife, using a blend of magic and technology to push Earth and the Otherworld into a mortal competition...Categorized as:
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The Apothecary's Poison by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen a newspaper report of a medical miracle catches Matt's eye, he and India go in search of Dr. Hale in the hope he is more magical doctor than miracle worker and can lead them to Chronos. But Hale turns out to be an apothecary magician keen to educate the public about magic. Their disappointment at not finding Chronos is soon forgotten when Hale is murdered, and Matt becomes a suspect...Categorized as:
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Disturbing the Dead by Kelley Armstrong
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsDisturbing the Dead is the latest in a unique series with one foot in the 1890s and the other in the present day. The A Rip Through Time crime novels are a genre-blending, atmospheric romp from New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong.Victorian Scotland is becoming less strange to modern-day homicide detective Mallory Atkinson...Categorized as:
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Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus by R.L. LaFevers
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsBeing able to detect black magic isn’t all tea and crumpets—and for Theodosia Throckmorton, it can be a decidedly tricky business! When Sticky Will drags Theo to a magic show featuring the Great Awi Bubu, she quickly senses there is more to the magician than he lets on, setting in motion a chain of events she never could have bargained for...Categorized as:
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Firebrand by A.J. Hartley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsOnce a steeplejack, Anglet Sutonga is used to scaling the heights of Bar-Selehm. Nowadays she assists politician Josiah Willinghouse behind the scenes of Parliament. When government plans for a secret weapon are stolen, their investigation leads right to the doorsteps of the city’s superexclusive social club, Elitus...Categorized as:
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The Timeseer's Gambit by Kate McIntyre
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIt’s been three months since mild-mannered Christopher Buckley began working with Olivia Faraday, the eccentric Deathsniffer. They’ve hunted killers, solved murders, and learned to work together. But their greatest challenges are yet to come…As a brutal heat wave wracks an increasingly unstable Darrington City, someone is killing young priests. Worse, they are using bound elementals to do it...Categorized as:
crime industrial-era magic paranormal steampunk action-adventure adult alternate-history -
The Warrior by Jim Butcher
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsHarry Dresden and Michael Carpenter are sitting on the diamond's bleachers, where Carpenter is coaching his daughter's softball team, discussing a number of pictures that Dresden received, depicting Carpenter in his day-to-day activity. Dresden feels his friend is in danger, Carpenter minimizes it all, stating he's not going to live in fear, and that Amoracchius has passed out of his hands...Categorized as:
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Time of Trial by Michael Pryor
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIn the fourth book of this utterly addictive series, magical genius Aubrey Fitzwilliam is heading deep into the heart of enemy territoryluckily, with his friends by his side It may look like a simple wire device, but the Beccaria Cage could be the cure for Aubrey's condition: a way to reunite his body and soul. But can Aubrey solve its mysteries while Dr... -
Heart of Gold by Michael Pryor
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAt a loss after finishing their end-of-year exams, Aubrey and George travel to the Gallian capital, Lutetia, where it so happens that the lovely Caroline is studying natural history... -
Word of Honour by Michael Pryor
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSinister plots, schemes within schemes, magical upheavals, and a world to save from evil. As always, Aubrey goes looking for trouble--and finds it, in spades.Magical genius Aubrey Fitzwilliam, along with his loyal friend George, is trying to immerse himself in his new life at university. But for Aubrey life is never straightforward... -
The Emperor's Mask by Ben S. Dobson
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA killer walks among the rich and powerful. Who can the Magebreakers trust? Someone is killing the non-magical members of Senate houses–those who might one day be named Protector of the Realm. And that same someone is leaving behind messages for the Magebreakers beside symbols of the shadowy organization known as the Knights of the Emperor...Categorized as:
crime industrial-era law-enforcement magic paranormal steampunk action-adventure adult -
The Cecelia and Kate Novels: Sorcery & Cecelia, The Grand Tour, and The Mislaid Magician by Patricia C. Wrede
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsCourageous cousins are forced to do battle with magical foes in this series, collected here in a single volume In Sorcery & Cecelia, cousins Kate and Cecelia have been inseparable since childhood. But in 1817, as they approach adulthood, their families force them to spend a summer apart... -
Rook by William Ritter
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThis standalone adventure set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Jackaby series brims with humor, heart, and—of course—a hefty dose of supernatural mayhem. Abigail Rook never intended to be the mortal bridge between the human and supernatural world...Categorized as:
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The Flaw in All Magic by Ben S. Dobson
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIn a world of elves and dwarves and sprites and mages, Tane Carver is a human with no gift but his wits. Which, to be fair, did get him into the world's most prestigious university of magical technology.For a while.Until his lack of magic was discovered. And then it all came crashing down.But when a student is murdered on campus behind unbreakable wards, Tane gets a second chance...Categorized as:
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The Toymaker's Curse by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsAre curses real?After a toymaker magician gives a lecture at a collector’s club soiree, an important spell is stolen and a man is found strangled. The investigation into his murder leads India and Matt to the colorful and dangerous world of the Romany gypsy where curses are used as weapons against their enemies.But nobody seems to know if curses are real or not...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic paranormal victorian action-adventure adult audiobook -
Carousel by Jordan L. Hawk
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsNote: “Carousel” first appeared in the anthology Another Place in Time. It takes place between the events of Stormhaven and Necropolis. When a child goes missing in Widdershins, ex-Pinkerton detective Griffin Flaherty fears sinister forces are at work in the town...Categorized as:
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Ice Cracker II by Lindsay Buroker
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsShe’s wanted for crimes against the throne. He’s the empire’s most notorious assassin. With bounties on their heads and soldiers hunting them, they’re not likely candidates for heroics. But when they unearth a plot against the military’s premier ice breaking ship, they may be the only ones who can thwart the saboteurs...if the soldiers don't kill them first...Categorized as:
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The Kidnapper's Accomplice by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTo investigate the source of gossip about Cyclops, Willie does the unthinkable – she dons a dress. However her plan goes awry when she’s kidnapped by a disgruntled magician with the power to detonate gunpowder at will. The magician forces India and Matt to race all over London in the hunt for her before the bombs go off...Categorized as:
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The Imposter's Inheritance by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA sordid scandal rocks the Glass household and threatens to ruin Matt's family unless he can suppress it. But after word gets out, and a rare magical coronet is stolen, he and India find themselves scrambling to recover the heirloom and suppress the gossip before reputations are ruined...Categorized as:
historical-fiction industrial-era magic paranormal steampunk victorian action-adventure audiobook -
The Breath of God by Guy Adams
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe nineteenth century is about to draw to a close. In its place will come the twentieth, a century of change, a century of science, a century that will see the superstitions of the past swept away.There are some who are determined to see that never happens.A body is found crushed to death in the London snow. There are no footprints anywhere near it...
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