Books with context

Want to know where to find books that have a specific aspect or thing in common? This page is here to help. This list does (out of necessity) include some basic spoilers for the contents of the books. The lists are grouped by topic and are in order by the date that book begins. Click on the label you're interested in to reveal the list.

Groups and organisations (including professions)
Connections (family, romantic, etc.)
Identity
Magic
Disabilities and chronic health
Structure (tropes, more gentle plots, no on-page sex)

To find other books that feature a specific character, check out that person's page. Last updated as of The Magic of Four, May 2024. Includes information about some not-yet-released titles.

Groups and organisations

Council

Eclipse (Alexander, social events)
The Hare and the Oak (Cyrus and Mabyn are Council members)
Best Foot Forward (Alexander is a Council Member, other Council actions discussed.)
Nocturnal Quarry (Alexander is on Council business.)
Old As The Hills (Gabe is engaged in work for the Council)
Upon A Summer's Day (Changes to the Council, including a challenge.)
Council arc has a list of books that focus on the Council.
See Council Members for a list of named members.

Societies

Dwellers At The Forge:

Education

Eclipse (set during the 1924-25 school year at Schola)
Chasing Legends (winter solstice 1926)
The Magic of Four (school story, 1946-1947)
See Schola staff for their details.

Guard and Penelopes

The Guard and Penelopes work closely together.

Four Walls and a Heart (Guard)
Pastiche (Guard and Penelopes)
Complementary (Penelope)
Wards of the Roses (Guard and analyst)
The Fossil Door (Penelope)
Perfect Accord (Guard and Penelopes investigate)
The Hare and the Oak (Penelopes make an appearance)
Old As The Hills (Penelopes)
Upon A Summer's Day (Guard response to WW2 and the Blitz)

Temple of Healing and Healers

Four Walls and a Heart (Gil is a patient)
Sailor's Jewel (Rhoe is a Healer)
Complementary (Rosemary is a midwife)
Carry On (set at the Temple of Healing)

Crafters

Carry On (knitting, apothecary)
Bound For Perdition (bookbinding)
On The Bias (dressmaking)
Eclipse and Casting Nasturtiums (Seth, woodwork)

The Arts

Pastiche (stained glass exhibit)
Complementary (paintings, artists colony)
Bound For Perdition (bookbinding)
Shoemaker's Wife (theatre, shoemaking)
Perfect Accord (perfume)
Fool's Gold (art, forgery, fountain pens)
On The Bias (dressmaking, fashion)
Mistress of Birds (writing)
Best Foot Forward (music, as audience members)

Connections

Close friends and collaborators

Ancient Trust, Goblin Fruit and On The Bias (Geoffrey and Benton)
Perfect Accord (Charlotte and multiple people)
Eclipse (Thesan and Isembard begin as friends)
In The Cards (Galen and Martin)
Point By Point (Galen, Martin, the Dwellers, Julius and Blythe)
Mistress of Birds (Thalia and her friend Hilaria)
Upon A Summer's Day (Gabe, Rathna, and their allies)
Illusion of a Boar (two pairs of chosen siblings)
The Magic of Four (four students as close friends)

Mentorship

Eclipse (teaching, Alexander was Isembard's mentor)
The Fossil Door and Three Tales of Gabe and Rathna (Avigail is Rathna's apprentice mistress)
Old As The Hills (both Gabe and Rathna are working closely with apprentices)
Illusion of a Boar (Thesan and Isembard to Orion)
The Magic of Four (four teenagers and their mentors)

Siblings

Sailor's Jewel (Cyrus and Rhoe)
Perfect Accord (Charlotte and Gabe, Lewis and his brothers)
Goblin Fruit, In The Cards (Lizzie and Laura)
Magician's Hoard (Ibis and his youngest sister, Hypatia)
Upon A Summer's Day (Gabe and Charlotte)
Illusion of a Boar (two pairs of chosen siblings)
The Magic of Four (four teenagers and their families)

Parents and children

See the Edgarton family arc and the Carillon family arc, and the Fortier & Landry families arc for more about those families.

Pastiche (Alysoun and Richard Edgarton as parents, Gabe and Charlotte are young children)
Carry On (Roland's parents, Melusina and Arthur)
Country Manners (Giles and his family)
The Fossil Door (Gabe has finished his apprenticeship)
Perfect Accord (Charlotte as an adult)
Seven Sisters (Cadmus and his nephew/ward)
Magician's Hoard (Pross and her daughter, Cammie)
The Hare and the Oak (Cyrus and his daughter, Gemma)
Best Foot Forward (Geoffrey and Lizzie Carillon as parents, their children briefly appear)
Nocturnal Quarry (Alexander learns more about his family)
Old As The Hills (Gabe with his parents, and Gabe and Rathna as parents with their children)
Upon A Summer's Day (Gabe with his parents.)
The Magic of Four (four teenagers, interacting with their parents)

First relationship

Carry On (Elen)
Shoemaker's Wife (Clara, though the book is after her marriage)
Outcrossing (both Rufus and Ferry)
Perfect Accord (Lewis)
Seven Sisters (Cadmus)
In The Cards (Laura, Galen)
The Fossil Door (both Gabe and Rathna)
On The Bias (Benton)
Fool's Gold (Beatrice)
Point By Point (Galen)
Best Foot Forward (Alexander)

Previously married

Cyrus in Sailor's Jewel and The Hare and the Oak
Shoemaker's Wife (rapid marriage during the Great War, figuring out how to be married after it ends.)
Pross in Magician's Hoard and Chasing Legends
Mabyn in The Hare and the Oak

Identity

Diverse backgrounds

(characters with backgrounds outside of Albion)

Complementary (Mason is of Dutch-Malaysian ancestry)
Casting Nasturtiums (Golshan is Persian, arrived in Albion at 13)
A Dog's Chance (Una is Irish)
The Fossil Door (Rathna is London-born Bengali)
Eclipse (Alexander's parents were Egyptian and French)
Magician's Hoard (Ibis is Anglo-Egyptian, Jonas is American and Black)
Chasing Legends (Ibis)
Best Foot Forward (Alexander)
Old As The Hills (Rathna's background, people with German family)
Upon A Summer's Day (Rathna, Alexander)
Illusion of a Boar (Cammie is mixed-race and Hypatia is Anglo-Egyptian.)

Religion

(noted when it is particularly relevant to the character or book) Polytheistic practice:

Sailor's Jewel (Rhoe is devoted to Belisama)
Carry On (Elen is devoted to Sirona, Rhoe to Belisama)
Magician's Hoard (Ibis is devoted to Djehuty (Thoth) and Hetheru (Hathor))
Best Foot Forward (Alexander's primary religious practice is Egyptian polytheism.)
Nocturnal Quarry (Alexander)
Upon A Summer's Day (The numinous nature of the land magic.)
Illusion of a Boar (Hypatia favours Sobek.)

Jewish:

The Fossil Door (Avigail is Jewish, Rathna apprenticed there)
Old As The Hills (Getting innocents out of Germany. Navigating religious preferences and identity in difficult settings.)

Hindu

The Fossil Door (Rathna, most relevant at the end of the book)
Forged in Combat (Takes place in India, references Hindu festivals briefly)
Old As The Hills (Navigating religious preferences in difficult settings.)
The Magic of Four (includes a Holi celebration)

Christian

Country Manners (Kate is Welsh Chapel)

Neurodiversity

(A number of these characters appear in other books as well.) ADHD:

Autistic:

Bound For Perdition (Lynet)
Ancient Trust and On The Bias (Benton)
Perfect Accord (Lewis)
Seven Sisters (Cadmus)
Eclipse (Thesan)
Illusion of a Boar (At least Orion and Hypatia)
The Magic of Four (Leo)

Class & class differences

Aristocratic (focusing on living up to the obligations in Albion)

Pastiche (Alysoun and Richard)
Country Manners (Giles and his family)
The Fossil Door (Gabe and his family)
Perfect Accord (Charlotte and her family)
Goblin Fruit (Geoffrey)
Eclipse (Isembard)
Best Foot Forward (Geoffrey)
Old As The Hills (varying approaches to the land magic obligations)
Upon A Summer's Day (Protecting the land)
Illusion of a Boar (Orion and Claudio)
The Magic of Four (Ros and Avigail)

Navigating class differences:

Carry On (Elen)
Bound For Perdition (Lynet is crafting class, Reggie is posh)
Wards of the Roses (Kate)
Country Manners (Kate)
The Fossil Door (Rathna)
Perfect Accord (Lewis)
Outcrossing (Rufus)
Goblin Fruit (Lizzie)
Eclipse (Thesan)
Point By Point (Lydia)
Mistress of Birds (Adam)
Illusion of a Boar (Hypatia)
The Magic of Four (Jasper, also a secondary character)

Older protagonists

Seven Sisters (Both Vivian and Cadmus)
The Hare and the Oak (Both Cyrus and Mabyn)
Best Foot Forward (Alexander is in his mid-60s, Geoffrey is in his early 50s)
Nocturnal Quarry (Alexander)

LGBTQIA+

Due to the time period, how characters would identify themselves varies widely. Books listed here have significant on-camera presence of someone who'd fit into the list. Gay:

Four Walls and a Heart (Magni and Gil's romance)
Pastiche (Magni and Gil, established relationship)
The Fossil Door (Magni and Gil, especially Three Tales of Gabe and Rathna)

Bisexual

Geoffrey Carillon (in Goblin Fruit and Best Foot Forward)
Galen (Point By Point is where he's clear about that)

Lesbian

Complementary (Mason and Rosemary, f/f romance)
A Dog's Chance (Anna and Una, f/f romance)
Seven Sisters (Andromache and Emma, established relationship)

Asexual spectrum

The Fossil Door (Gabe is demisexual)
Seven Sisters (Vivian and Cadmus are both asexual)
Eclipse (Alexander is asexual and aromantic, secondary character here.)
On The Bias (Benton is demisexual)
Best Foot Forward (Alexander is aromantic and asexual)

Polyamorous

Casting Nasturtiums (MMF triad romance)
Best Foot Forward ("It's complicated" but open relationship.)

Magic

Land magic

Ancient Trust (Ytene and the Carillon family)
Chasing Legends (Schola's magic)
The Hare and the Oak (land magic)
Best Foot Forward (tending the land magic)
Nocturnal Quarry (land magic in America)
Old As The Hills (land magic and WW2)
Upon A Summer's Day (land magic, the Blitz, WW2, the Council)
Illusion of a Boar (resonance with the land magic)

The Fatae and the Pact

Fatae and The Pact.

Seven Sisters (Vivian is a Cousin)
Fool's Gold (Robin and Vivian are Cousins)
The Hare and the Oak (effects of oaths on the Silence)
Old As The Hills (Fatae)

Magical beings

Sailor's Jewel (Selkiekin)
Goblin Fruit (Belin)
Fool's Gold (Custos dragon)
Mistress of Birds (spoilers!)

Shapeshifting

Magician's Hoard (two characters)
The Fossil Door (minor character)
Illusion of a Boar (multiple characters)

Disabilities and chronic health

Physical

Blindness

Wards of the Roses (Giles)
Country Manners (Giles)

Chronic health issues

Pastiche (Alysoun has fibromyalgia)

Deafness

Seven Sisters (Lena and others use sign language)

Injuries with ongoing implications

Four Walls and a Heart (Just after Gil's leg amputation)
Pastiche (Gil is a partial amputee)
Bound For Perdition (Reggie's foot)
Goblin Fruit and Best Foot Forward (Geoffrey has a old shoulder wound)
Casting Nasturtiums (Golshan is paraplegic)
The Fossil Door, Old As The Hills, and Upon A Summer's Day (Gabe has chronic pain from an ankle injury)
Eclipse (Isembard has a bad knee and ongoing curse damage)
In The Cards and Point By Point (Julius has a facial injury)
Illusion of a Boar (Orion has a hand injury.)