A Far Better Thing
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell meets A Tale of Two Cities in H. G. Parry’s A Far Better Thing, a heart-rending fantasy of faery revenge set during the French Revolution.
Most Anticipated SSF Books 2025—The Nerd Daily, BookPage
I feared this was the best of times; I hoped it could not get any worse.
The faeries stole Sydney Carton as a child, and made him a mortal servant of the Faery Realm. Now, he has a rare opportunity for revenge against the fae and Charles Darnay, the changeling left in his stead.
It will take magic and cunning—cold iron and Realm silver—to hide his intentions from humans and fae and bring his plans to fruition.
Shuttling between London and Paris during the Reign of Terror, generations of violence-begetting-violence lead him to a heartbreaking choice in the shadow of the guillotine.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
A Far Better Thing tells the story of A Tale of Two Cities through the eyes of Sydney Carton and with a fantastical twist. Parry's novel provides further depth and background to familiar characters and a whole new world is introduced via the Faerie realm, while the setting of the mortal realm during the French Revolution remains.
I started reading a digital ARC but then switched to the audiobook with about a third of the story left to go. I enjoyed the flow of the author's writing but at times things got a little confusing as there is a lot going on and a lot of characters to keep track of. The narration is excellent and I found the story much easier to follow and preferred giving it a listen over reading the text.
Thank you Edelweiss and Tor Books of Macmillan for this digital Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.