[Review] Dark Mirror (Dark Passage #1) by M.J Putney

Title: Dark Mirror (Dark Passage #1)

Author: M.J Putney

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (February 17, 2011)
 

 Lady Victoria Mansfield, youngest daughter of the earl and countess of Fairmount, is destined for a charmed life. Soon she will be presented during the London season, where she can choose a mate worthy of her status. Yet Tory has a shameful secret—a secret so powerful that, if exposed, it could strip her of her position and disgrace her family forever. Tory’s blood is tainted . . . by magic.
 When a shocking accident forces Tory to demonstrate her despised skill, the secret she’s fought so hard to hide is revealed for all to see. She is immediately exiled to Lackland Abbey, a reform school for young men and women in her position. There she will learn to suppress her deplorable talents and maybe, if she’s one of the lucky ones, be able to return to society. 

But Tory’s life is about to change forever. All that she’s ever known or considered important will be challenged. What lies ahead is only the beginning of a strange and wonderful journey into a world where destiny and magic come together, where true love and friendship find her, and where courage and strength of character are the only things that determine a young girl’s worth.

I was immediately interested the moment I first saw the blurb of this book. Fantasy, history, romance all in a YA novel? Of course I had to read it! It has one of my favourite premises, where the girl, Tory (Lady Victoria) has an exceptional gift (except, well, in this case magic is frowned upon and known by all instead of being a secret), gets sent to a new boarding school away from home, where she meets new people, gaining friendships and love, and also discover the extent of her own magic. I liked how the book started out with a typical YA-paranormal feel but slowly expanded into an entirely new territory. Although the book was set way back in the past, it still had some modern elements to it.

The only problem I had with the story was how the romance was rather undeveloped. There was a hint of Tory's possible romance with another character (I won't reveal who, but he's a pretty likeable one), then suddenly he wasn't on the love radar anymore. I didn't really feel like Tory really connected with her guy, and they didn't have much interactions before he started proclaiming her as "my love", everything just happened so suddenly! Maybe it's because there were other events happening that outshadowed the romance. Some of you might actually like that because romance tends to take over the whole plot in many YA novels, whereas in this case Tory has another purpose in her life rather than snagging the boy she likes.

I won't say this book is mind-blowing or thought-provoking or exceptionally awesome, but the plot is interesting enough to make me want to check out the next installment in the series, Dark Passage (Dark Passage #2).