If what drew you in was Corin learning under the exacting eye of Aubrey—and how each spell became a test of character—you’ll love how Ceony is assigned to the enigmatic Emery Thane. Like Corin’s training in transformation, Ceony’s paper-folding magic forces her to confront what power should and shouldn’t do, and her apprenticeship evolves from wary obligation into trust as she navigates dangers that echo the consequences of reckless sorcery you saw unfold in Aubrey’s household.

If you were absorbed by the quiet, close-quarters tensions in Aubrey’s home—the veiled truth at the heart of his marriage and the way a few people’s choices reverberate—you’ll find the same hushed intensity here. A nobleman’s household becomes a crucible where desire, illusion, and transformation collide, much like the secret that Corin slowly uncovers about his master’s wife. The story stays close to the hearth, but its emotional stakes are immense.

If the heart of the book for you was watching the fallout from Aubrey’s shape-changing experiments—the way one act of magic can deform lives—you’ll be right at home with Schmendrick’s fateful transformation of the unicorn into a woman. As in Aubrey’s tale, the spell reshapes identity, love, and duty, and forces characters to face what was taken, what was given, and whether any wizard has the right to make such choices.

If you loved how a wary connection deepened into real partnership—think Corin’s guarded respect growing amid the perilous secrets of Aubrey’s work—you’ll relish Agnieszka’s evolving relationship with the prickly wizard known as the Dragon. Their dynamic shifts from resentment to hard-won trust as they confront a corrupting magic with real human costs, echoing the tender, transformative bond at the center of Aubrey’s household.

If you were captivated by the way Corin pieces together the mystery of his master’s home and the true nature of the woman under its roof, this will resonate. Peri’s curiosity leads her to untangle a prince’s curse and the sea’s claim on him, with revelations that land as softly—and as powerfully—as the truth behind Aubrey’s transmutations. It’s a gentle investigation where every answer changes the heart at stake.