I read The Midnight Bargain because I wanted to read a fantasy romance novel, and that's exactly what I got. Set in essentially Regency England, The Midnight Bargain tells the story of a young witch, Beatrice, who wants to continue her magical education rather than get married, collared and forced to have children. Beatrice collects grimoires in hopes of one teaching her how to summon a spirit and become a full-fledged Magus. In doing so, Beatrice meets the Lavan siblings.

This book was good; however, it wasn't as fleshed out as I would have enjoyed. The plot was interesting, and the characters were likable and flawed. The author could have done a better job explaining the magic system, part of this had to do with the secrecy of how a wizard becomes a Magus, but the author never explained why Beatrice summoned a lesser spirit until the end of the book. In general, the beginning of the book was sort of confusing, and as I read, I feel like I just ignored some of my confusion rather than it clearing up.

The author also wrote the story as if Beatrice and Ysbeta had two different goals when they wanted to become Magus. Beatrice planning to become a Magus was kept a secret from Ysbeta, which doesn't make sense. Ysbeta also never suffered any consequences from her brash decision-making skills, and that felt unrealistic.

My favorite part of the book was when the author pointed out the hypocrisy of men and the debate between Beatrice and Ianthe. Beatrice is a competent heroine when many of the men in her life lack competence but refuse to listen to her because she is a woman.

Overall, I rate the book 4 stars and will be reading other books by this author.