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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Mass/school shootings
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book had me internally screaming and eye rolling constantly. Now, let me be honest, I didn't have high expectations. A Jurassic Park for fans of Tolkien, Narnia, and D&D seemed difficult to pull off and turns out, it is.
So yeah, I didn't like it. At all, turns out. I wanted it to be a fun, cozy read, but Questland was too much of what it wanted to be.
I'll spoiler tag what annoyed me because I'm aware this is just me being annoyed. I see many reviews liked this book and I may have had weird expectations on it, I don't know. So take my rating with a grain of salt and go read other reviews.
- Calling the Sphinx riddle a "PhD level question". For God's sake. Seriously. EVERYBODY knows that riddle. MY TEENAGE SISTER knows that riddle.
- The main character being basically a plot device. She would say CONSTANTLY that the team had to stay together. And every chapter she would wander off and fuck things up.
- Too many "roll for perception/initiative" jokes. Two would have been okay. One every three chapters became too much. I played DnD and I've never heard any of my friends speak this way.
- Dwelling too much in every non-Tolkien reference. Whenever the main character would spot something that did not belong to the Lord of the Rings, you knew she'd waste a bit of page about it even if it was not relevant to anything.
So yeah, I didn't like it. At all, turns out. I wanted it to be a fun, cozy read, but Questland was too much of what it wanted to be.
I'll spoiler tag what annoyed me because I'm aware this is just me being annoyed. I see many reviews liked this book and I may have had weird expectations on it, I don't know. So take my rating with a grain of salt and go read other reviews.
Spoiler
- TOO many references of the Lord of the Rings. I cannot believe I'm saying this, but it was TOO much. And it was all pretentious with everybody knowing Sindarin or "my Elvish is coming back to me now that I hear it" or the worst thing, implying that the (unlikable) main character read the Silmarilion when she was a kid and understood it easily. Like hello. And don't even get me started with all the rings (or should I say "Rings", capital R).- Calling the Sphinx riddle a "PhD level question". For God's sake. Seriously. EVERYBODY knows that riddle. MY TEENAGE SISTER knows that riddle.
- The main character being basically a plot device. She would say CONSTANTLY that the team had to stay together. And every chapter she would wander off and fuck things up.
- Too many "roll for perception/initiative" jokes. Two would have been okay. One every three chapters became too much. I played DnD and I've never heard any of my friends speak this way.
- Dwelling too much in every non-Tolkien reference. Whenever the main character would spot something that did not belong to the Lord of the Rings, you knew she'd waste a bit of page about it even if it was not relevant to anything.
This one was fun, but the afterword was almost as much fun. Definitely a lot of love for the story and the scene from the author, it reminded me a bit of the set-up for [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] but more modern. Might make a good movie.
I just could not get into the main character, and the premise was okay. Basically Jurassic Park D&D. If you like that idea and the MC, you’ll enjoy it!
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
tense
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I've read some of Vaughn's YA novels, and this has a light, similar feel. Everything sketched out on the surface, without diving too deep. This will disappoint some, but not everything needs to be deep. Rather, it made it a quick, enjoyable read. I could see it all playing out as a movie while I read.
I consider this book great for readers like me - those who like and appreciate nerds or geeks, but who themselves are not nerds or geeks. I've played some of the classic video games (Zelda), watched both old and new Westworld, watched Lord of the Rings (although I didn't love it), and have rudimentary knowledge of Dungeons and Dragons, mainly gathered from those around me who have played a little in the past. So, I got many of the references and asides. But I'm not steeped in geek culture overall. I suppose I skim the surface, dipping in my toes occasionally, not unlike this book.
Clearly, Insula Mirabilis is inspired by Jurassic Park. I seriously heard the Jurassic Park theme each time I read the name. Equally clearly, eccentric millionaires don't learn from the mistakes of others, because you'd definitely know something was going to go wrong.
I sympathized with Addie's yearning for the island to be real. Haven't we all wished for our fantasy world? But like us readers, she views it with skepticism. It's nice to get lost in the fantasy, and understandable even, but you can't ignore that a fantasy is what it is. I'm glad she didn't get sucked in.
Addie has PTSD from surviving a school shooting. The way that she coped with that throughout the book seemed realistic to me. I liked all the characters well enough. Everyone was lightly sketched out, which made this a quick read once I could get into it.
I really enjoyed the ending. Again, exactly what I would expect if I were watching a movie.
I received an copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I consider this book great for readers like me - those who like and appreciate nerds or geeks, but who themselves are not nerds or geeks. I've played some of the classic video games (Zelda), watched both old and new Westworld, watched Lord of the Rings (although I didn't love it), and have rudimentary knowledge of Dungeons and Dragons, mainly gathered from those around me who have played a little in the past. So, I got many of the references and asides. But I'm not steeped in geek culture overall. I suppose I skim the surface, dipping in my toes occasionally, not unlike this book.
Clearly, Insula Mirabilis is inspired by Jurassic Park. I seriously heard the Jurassic Park theme each time I read the name. Equally clearly, eccentric millionaires don't learn from the mistakes of others, because you'd definitely know something was going to go wrong.
I sympathized with Addie's yearning for the island to be real. Haven't we all wished for our fantasy world? But like us readers, she views it with skepticism. It's nice to get lost in the fantasy, and understandable even, but you can't ignore that a fantasy is what it is. I'm glad she didn't get sucked in.
Addie has PTSD from surviving a school shooting. The way that she coped with that throughout the book seemed realistic to me. I liked all the characters well enough. Everyone was lightly sketched out, which made this a quick read once I could get into it.
I really enjoyed the ending. Again, exactly what I would expect if I were watching a movie.
I received an copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I feel like Carrie Vaughn gave me a present just when I needed it the most. I haven't had this much fun reading a book in years. Think Jurassic Park, except the theme of the park is High Fantasy instead of dinosaurs. There are so many in-jokes for fans of fantasy movies and books, TTRPGs, and video games. You could read it for the chapter titles alone and get a good laugh. This is escapist fiction at its best as a nerd who knows stories and pop culture leads a group of soldiers through a technologically manufactured fantasy-land. It's a delightful adventure romp complete with perilous labyrinths, monsters, and magic rings. There's also a decent dose of social commentary included, which I've come to expect from Vaughn and most sci-fi writers of merit. This book was a treat and I can't recommend it highly enough.