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3.44 AVERAGE
3.44 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Questland is a standalone modern fantasy by Carrie Vaughn. Released 22nd June by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, it's 304 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately; it makes it so easy to find information with the search function.
I try very very hard not to compare authors or books to one another. This book does have its own rhythm and style and of course, the author is capable, prolific, and adept with the more technical aspects of writing. That being said, the comparisons to Westworld and Jurassic Park (and Ready Player 1) are not far off. I've enjoyed much of Vaughn's oeuvre and this one is also skillfully written with good use of dramatic tension and a satisfying denouement. The very last scene seems to possibly hint at forthcoming future stories, which would be interesting.
It's a locked room sandbox SF/Fantasy mystery with a band of adventurers including mercenaries, a minstrel/lorist (whose day job is English Professor), a tech billionaire who may be hiding some stuff and a fantasy island doing its level best to kill the adventurers.
The action rolls along at a good pace; I never found it dragging or tiresome. I did skim some of the many action scenes. This will be a good choice for readers who love nerdy in-jokes and Easter eggs in their stories. The cultural tie-ins and spoofs are plentiful and varied. The language is variable and roughly R-rated.
Four stars. Readable and a lot of fun.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Questland is a standalone modern fantasy by Carrie Vaughn. Released 22nd June by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, it's 304 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately; it makes it so easy to find information with the search function.
I try very very hard not to compare authors or books to one another. This book does have its own rhythm and style and of course, the author is capable, prolific, and adept with the more technical aspects of writing. That being said, the comparisons to Westworld and Jurassic Park (and Ready Player 1) are not far off. I've enjoyed much of Vaughn's oeuvre and this one is also skillfully written with good use of dramatic tension and a satisfying denouement. The very last scene seems to possibly hint at forthcoming future stories, which would be interesting.
It's a locked room sandbox SF/Fantasy mystery with a band of adventurers including mercenaries, a minstrel/lorist (whose day job is English Professor), a tech billionaire who may be hiding some stuff and a fantasy island doing its level best to kill the adventurers.
The action rolls along at a good pace; I never found it dragging or tiresome. I did skim some of the many action scenes. This will be a good choice for readers who love nerdy in-jokes and Easter eggs in their stories. The cultural tie-ins and spoofs are plentiful and varied. The language is variable and roughly R-rated.
Four stars. Readable and a lot of fun.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵, 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘪𝘵? 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨.
Questland was a fun read that really interrogated the question that if you could wake up in a fantasy world, would you? Under the adventurers journey through a fantastically island (with a few critical fails) our main character Addie also faces some uncomfortable questions about the realities of going through the wardrobe into Narnia. Who gets to be the hero if you wake up in Middle Earth? Who does the dishes in your elven castle? And that even in a world of magic and fantasy, violence still exists.
I really enjoyed Questland, and loved picking up on all the references to beloved fantasy stories like D&D, Lord of the Rings, and even Skyrim. There were also sprinklings of sci-fi references which I enjoyed as a SFF girlie.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is 100% a book I would have obsessed over in junior high, and for that reason alone, I loved it!
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Mass/school shootings
Minor: Domestic abuse, Violence
PTSD is heavily discussed and a character has PTSD attacks during the book.
There's a multibillionaire who has designed an island where robots and technology make everything look like good ol' fantasy tropes (unicorns, wargs, flying monkeys, etc....). Except something has Gone Wrong on the island, and a team of mercenaries needs the help of Dr. Addie Cox, partly because she's a professor of comparative lit with tons of geek experience and partly because she's the ex-partner of the island game designer who has (presumably) gone amok. (And to add emotional flavor, Dr. Cox is a survivor of a Columbine-type school shooting, who is triggered by gunfire.)
Yes, it might sound like Jurassic Park, but for me, the touchstone was the (much better) series of [b:Dream Park|357922|Dream Park (Dream Park, #1)|Larry Niven|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1309200983l/357922._SY75_.jpg|1775372] novels by [a:Larry Niven|12534|Larry Niven|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1596428206p2/12534.jpg] and [a:Steven Barnes|20058|Steven Barnes|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1284667688p2/20058.jpg]. I found this book slow going, somewhat obvious when it came to Dr. Cox's motivations, and sadly not something that got me excited about the park itself.
Yes, it might sound like Jurassic Park, but for me, the touchstone was the (much better) series of [b:Dream Park|357922|Dream Park (Dream Park, #1)|Larry Niven|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1309200983l/357922._SY75_.jpg|1775372] novels by [a:Larry Niven|12534|Larry Niven|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1596428206p2/12534.jpg] and [a:Steven Barnes|20058|Steven Barnes|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1284667688p2/20058.jpg]. I found this book slow going, somewhat obvious when it came to Dr. Cox's motivations, and sadly not something that got me excited about the park itself.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes