A look at late 18th century Britain, France, and Haiti if there were magic users and vampires. Very slow to start but it picks up during the French Revolution and Toussaint Louverture's slave uprising (I confess the bits about British parliamentary politics remained a bit of a slog--and the "just for now" justifications of war and slavery, while historically accurate, were frustrating). This book was well researched, and I am looking forward to the sequel, which I assume will feature the Napoleonic Wars.