Summary
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GENRE
TROPES
AO3 TAGS
Born into slavery, Elle Burns is now a free woman and a spy for the pro-Union Loyalty League. While on assignment in Richmond, Virginia, she encounters another undercover operative: white Pinkerton Detective Malcolm McCall. Their attraction is instantaneous (and mutual), but there are so many reasons they can’t be together. Set during the American Civil War, this compelling story of forbidden love and espionage boasts authentic characters and well-researched historical detail that should please fans of Beverly Jenkins’ novels.
Summary from NoveList Plus
Hot Takes
What We Liked
Jems
As a card carrying history major, I really loved the amount of history Alyssa Cole weaved into this story. It informed the story as much as drove it forward, and it never once bogged down the plot or made it feel clunky which can happen sometimes in historicals. I also really enjoyed the literary quotations sprinkled throughout the book given how much more common memorizing passages and poetry were at the time.
What We Didn’t Like
Apers
Listen. Ok. I know, I get it, this is just me but also. They spend so much talking and not enough time doing things until the very end of the book. It started with a prologue where a situation blows up and there’s an actual factual riot so I thought “oh nice, this will have a lot of action” but it didn’t until like 75-80% of the way through. There is one other action scene between the first bit and that point, but I honestly thought there would be more.
(you can tell she wasn’t a history major) ((jemma has seen my degrees on their corkboard, she knows I wasn’t))
Review
Jems
Alyssa Cole masterfully balances the weight of the Civil War with the deeply human desire to love and connect, no matter the odds, in An Extraordinary Union. Elle and Malcolm are two passionate, driven characters who you can’t help but root for as they navigate the dangerous world of espionage and the fight for abolition. What makes their story shine is that neither of them wavers in their convictions, even when their growing love puts everything at risk. Cole weaves the horrors of war with moments of hope and tenderness, creating a romance that’s as inspiring as it is heart-pounding. If you’re looking for a story with high stakes, historical intrigue, and a love worth fighting for, this one’s for you!
Apers
From the prologue I was like “oh buddy, he’s got it bad” already because there was just something that felt genuinely magnetic between them even though they’re both being suspicious of each other from the beginning. But then as he is so careful and so concerned with not just her well-being but also her consent, because he holds so much of the power as a white man during the start of the Civil War, that when they finally do come together it is as incendiary as the riot in the prologue.
