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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Several months ago, I read Lisa Goldstein’s The Red Magician. I enjoyed it enough to accept the publisher’s invitation to read this book, and I’m glad I did. It had none of the faults that I had found with The Red Magician, and it was also a very different book. Though both stories involve magic, that’s where the commonality ends, and if I hadn’t already known that they are by the same author, I would have never guessed it.
I also wouldn’t have guessed what the story would ultimately be about by the title, and I find it funny how my mind interpreted the synopsis to mean that this book fit very well into the Fantasy genre. As I said, there is the element of magic. There is also a labyrinth, and the two are connected in an interesting way, but that’s it for the Fantasy part of the story. It’s more of a Mystery novel than anything else. It’s also about a young woman trying to find where she belongs in the world.
Four things that I loved about this book are the interesting chapter titles, the 90’s setting (especially seeing the main character, Molly, and the private investigator, John Stow, doing research in a library instead of on the internet), Molly isn’t a Mary Sue, and the fact that, unlike so many other genre books involving a male and female duo, Molly and John don’t fall in love over their shared interest in solving the mystery. I also enjoyed that, even though I had my suspicions about how the mystery would be solved, there were enough “suspects” and possibilities to make me unsure all the way up to the end.
I will definitely be checking out more of Lisa Goldstein’s books, and even though it’s too early to tell, I might be adding her to my favorite authors list. There are too many “types” of readers I think would love Walking the Labyrinth as much as I did. So, I’m not going to name them. Just read the book. It has been in print since 1996, so I’m sure you can find it at a library if you think you might not be one of those readers.
I also wouldn’t have guessed what the story would ultimately be about by the title, and I find it funny how my mind interpreted the synopsis to mean that this book fit very well into the Fantasy genre. As I said, there is the element of magic. There is also a labyrinth, and the two are connected in an interesting way, but that’s it for the Fantasy part of the story. It’s more of a Mystery novel than anything else. It’s also about a young woman trying to find where she belongs in the world.
Four things that I loved about this book are the interesting chapter titles, the 90’s setting (especially seeing the main character, Molly, and the private investigator, John Stow, doing research in a library instead of on the internet), Molly isn’t a Mary Sue, and the fact that, unlike so many other genre books involving a male and female duo, Molly and John don’t fall in love over their shared interest in solving the mystery. I also enjoyed that, even though I had my suspicions about how the mystery would be solved, there were enough “suspects” and possibilities to make me unsure all the way up to the end.
I will definitely be checking out more of Lisa Goldstein’s books, and even though it’s too early to tell, I might be adding her to my favorite authors list. There are too many “types” of readers I think would love Walking the Labyrinth as much as I did. So, I’m not going to name them. Just read the book. It has been in print since 1996, so I’m sure you can find it at a library if you think you might not be one of those readers.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest
Walking the Labyrinth tells the story of Molly Travers and the maze she walks in discovering who her family is, and in a way, who she is.
Be aware, this review may contain a certain amount of information that could be considered "spoilers".
I'd really like half-star ratings - I would give this one 3.5
I received this book in exchange for a review, through NetGalley. The description of the story was very interesting. The execution of the story was sound, but I found myself feeling like I would not have finished the book if I were not a little obligated to do so. Therefore, a 3-star "It's okay" most accurately reflects my feelings on the story.
A third or more of the book is actually made up of text from books within the story; a couple of diaries and information collected from a visit to the library. These texts were really quite interesting, but made the in-progress moments with Molly feel lessened.
Molly was, at turns, a very good, strong character and at others a very frustrating one. My biggest peeve was her "relationship" with Peter. She loves Peter, utterly. There's NO reason for it, except convenience - and the reader is simply expected to accept it. He is, by all accounts, a bore and a callous jerk - Molly is just obsessed. But she's not even really obsessed, unless there is a downswing in the momentum of the story. Peter is a filler - and meant to build tension. In a way, he does - but it's not a good way. Ultimately, the whole story would've been better without him. He was almost entirely unnecessary; without him, the story would have only required a little agency on the part of a couple other characters to make it work. Without him, Molly would've been better - while he may have served a role in her journey (through the labyrinth), her development could've been achieved in better ways, I feel.
In addition, characterization seemed to fall flat for almost every character. Alex's question to Molly (near the end) was completely unexpected and felt like another bone toward building intrigue that failed. the family's last name being 'solved' by John, the PI, was not at all a surprise to any reader, but the character unveils it (and Molly reacts to it) as though it were.
The ending felt a little bit abrupt and neatly tied everything into a bow. This wasn't a bad thing, even if it felt a little bit too tidy. What ever happened to Tom, the trumpeter? That detail wasn't particularly needed, but given the tension with the two men who are never identified... it seems like Tom at least deserved a little closure.
Overall: Walking the Labyrinth was a fairly even read. It was well written and did not require a great deal of suspension-of-disbelief even though it dealt heavily in illusion, magic, and the ways we both fool ourselves and others. Based on this book, I'd probably read more of Goldstein's work, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend this book to everyone. I also hope that Goldstein's award winning works perform better than this one did.
Be aware, this review may contain a certain amount of information that could be considered "spoilers".
I'd really like half-star ratings - I would give this one 3.5
I received this book in exchange for a review, through NetGalley. The description of the story was very interesting. The execution of the story was sound, but I found myself feeling like I would not have finished the book if I were not a little obligated to do so. Therefore, a 3-star "It's okay" most accurately reflects my feelings on the story.
A third or more of the book is actually made up of text from books within the story; a couple of diaries and information collected from a visit to the library. These texts were really quite interesting, but made the in-progress moments with Molly feel lessened.
Molly was, at turns, a very good, strong character and at others a very frustrating one. My biggest peeve was her "relationship" with Peter. She loves Peter, utterly. There's NO reason for it, except convenience - and the reader is simply expected to accept it. He is, by all accounts, a bore and a callous jerk - Molly is just obsessed. But she's not even really obsessed, unless there is a downswing in the momentum of the story. Peter is a filler - and meant to build tension. In a way, he does - but it's not a good way. Ultimately, the whole story would've been better without him. He was almost entirely unnecessary; without him, the story would have only required a little agency on the part of a couple other characters to make it work. Without him, Molly would've been better - while he may have served a role in her journey (through the labyrinth), her development could've been achieved in better ways, I feel.
In addition, characterization seemed to fall flat for almost every character. Alex's question to Molly (near the end) was completely unexpected and felt like another bone toward building intrigue that failed. the family's last name being 'solved' by John, the PI, was not at all a surprise to any reader, but the character unveils it (and Molly reacts to it) as though it were.
The ending felt a little bit abrupt and neatly tied everything into a bow. This wasn't a bad thing, even if it felt a little bit too tidy. What ever happened to Tom, the trumpeter? That detail wasn't particularly needed, but given the tension with the two men who are never identified... it seems like Tom at least deserved a little closure.
Overall: Walking the Labyrinth was a fairly even read. It was well written and did not require a great deal of suspension-of-disbelief even though it dealt heavily in illusion, magic, and the ways we both fool ourselves and others. Based on this book, I'd probably read more of Goldstein's work, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend this book to everyone. I also hope that Goldstein's award winning works perform better than this one did.
A family secret, magical performances, and philosophy all combined in Walking the Labyrinth. Molly’s family has a dark and interesting history, one that she knows nothing of until a private investigator approaches her with a request for information about the whereabouts of a relative she’s never even heard of. Molly’s curious mind latches onto the mystery and she digs deeper into what is revealed to be a secret society in England, and its continuation in modern-day America.
Much like a labyrinth, the story has a lot of twists and turns, and it’s hard to tell sometimes just how close to the truth you really are. Molly experiences this plenty of times through the story, which does get a little tiring when it turns into a round of, “Did Fentrice do it? No, she couldn’t have, because of this thing. Oh, but then there’s this thing! Did Fentrice do it after all?” It’s a good question. Did she do what she’s being accused of? Who is telling the truth, and is it the whole truth? But the circular nature of half the arguments make it difficult to keep track of what I’m even supposed to be mentally debating at times.
As with the last work I read by Goldstein, I found the historical aspect of this novel to be quite fascinating. Everything historical was told through diaries and letters rather than through dialogue or from a character actually being there, which weirdly appeals to me. Finding out about the Order of the Labyrinth and how that turned from a secret society devoted to the supernatural and philosophy in England to a traveling magic show in America was definitely a fun journey to embark upon.
Though I could have done with a couple of characters now and again who hadn’t heard of the Order. Everyone they asked had heard about them, despite them being a secret society that’s really only mentioned in one pamphlet and a couple of family documents. Everything tied in so neatly that it stretched the bounds of credulity.
Part of the problem I had with this book, though, was the rather meandering nature of the plot. The pacing wasn’t that great, meaning that you’d spend pages and pages reading diary entries of life and family affairs in a traveling show, then BAM, major plot development with Molly’s family that has roughly the same amount of book space devoted to it. You’d get used to one pace and then suddenly it would switch, and it was never the same twice.
This could have been a wonderful way of showing that things aren’t what they seem and that life throws you curveballs all the time, a meta-commentary on the events of the story themselves, but it didn’t really come across that way. It came across, unfortunately, as just poor pacing, and I suspect my suddenly thought about it having deeper implications was just my habit of overthinking things and finding connections where there are none.
But the story itself was pretty good, and an interesting blend of the old and the new, an exploration of the psychic craze that swept England in the 1800s and a connection to the more mundane aspects of modern day. I like the ideas that Goldstein played with here, and it was really only the pacing issues that kept me from enjoying it all more.
Walking the Labyrinth is a quick read, only around 200 pages, and when the pacing is even it’s so easy to fall into the story and get caught up in everything. It’s intelligent, prompts personal reflection, and is a good exploration of someone uncovering that her family has far more to it than she ever gave thought to. Not Goldstein’s best work, but still worth reading, and it definitely stands the test of time better than many urban fantasies that I’ve read from the 1990s (the edition I read was a digital reprint rather than the original publication). Worth checking out if you like some history with your mystery!
(Book received in exchange for an honest review.)
Much like a labyrinth, the story has a lot of twists and turns, and it’s hard to tell sometimes just how close to the truth you really are. Molly experiences this plenty of times through the story, which does get a little tiring when it turns into a round of, “Did Fentrice do it? No, she couldn’t have, because of this thing. Oh, but then there’s this thing! Did Fentrice do it after all?” It’s a good question. Did she do what she’s being accused of? Who is telling the truth, and is it the whole truth? But the circular nature of half the arguments make it difficult to keep track of what I’m even supposed to be mentally debating at times.
As with the last work I read by Goldstein, I found the historical aspect of this novel to be quite fascinating. Everything historical was told through diaries and letters rather than through dialogue or from a character actually being there, which weirdly appeals to me. Finding out about the Order of the Labyrinth and how that turned from a secret society devoted to the supernatural and philosophy in England to a traveling magic show in America was definitely a fun journey to embark upon.
Though I could have done with a couple of characters now and again who hadn’t heard of the Order. Everyone they asked had heard about them, despite them being a secret society that’s really only mentioned in one pamphlet and a couple of family documents. Everything tied in so neatly that it stretched the bounds of credulity.
Part of the problem I had with this book, though, was the rather meandering nature of the plot. The pacing wasn’t that great, meaning that you’d spend pages and pages reading diary entries of life and family affairs in a traveling show, then BAM, major plot development with Molly’s family that has roughly the same amount of book space devoted to it. You’d get used to one pace and then suddenly it would switch, and it was never the same twice.
This could have been a wonderful way of showing that things aren’t what they seem and that life throws you curveballs all the time, a meta-commentary on the events of the story themselves, but it didn’t really come across that way. It came across, unfortunately, as just poor pacing, and I suspect my suddenly thought about it having deeper implications was just my habit of overthinking things and finding connections where there are none.
But the story itself was pretty good, and an interesting blend of the old and the new, an exploration of the psychic craze that swept England in the 1800s and a connection to the more mundane aspects of modern day. I like the ideas that Goldstein played with here, and it was really only the pacing issues that kept me from enjoying it all more.
Walking the Labyrinth is a quick read, only around 200 pages, and when the pacing is even it’s so easy to fall into the story and get caught up in everything. It’s intelligent, prompts personal reflection, and is a good exploration of someone uncovering that her family has far more to it than she ever gave thought to. Not Goldstein’s best work, but still worth reading, and it definitely stands the test of time better than many urban fantasies that I’ve read from the 1990s (the edition I read was a digital reprint rather than the original publication). Worth checking out if you like some history with your mystery!
(Book received in exchange for an honest review.)